Man, has really been struggling these past few months, hasn't it? Hopefully email alerts are working better for you guys than they are for me so you don't miss an update. I'm still committed to posting the stories here, but I've definitely missed a few of your comments these last few weeks.

"...And I'll end my turn by deploying my Regna-Crois, which has flying so I'll use it to obliterate your D-Arma!" Juna crowed happily, "You have no way of stopping my awesome Natial with your wimpy creatures! Victory will be mine!"

"Well, nice job jinxing yourself." Fie responded blithely even as both girls waited for Juna's opponent to move. "Just wait for it... Yep. There it is."

The 'it' which she was speaking of was the slight upturn of Musse's smile as she drew her card. The former Zephyr member sorely wished she had a snack to enjoy while watching the spectacle of the card game – Juna's rapidly paling face was priceless.

Ah well. Something to remember for the next time. As long as Musse was tormenting someone else then it was pretty fun to watch her in action.

"Oh my. How ever shall my poor little Requs stop your big bad Regna-Crois? Hmm... Well maybe if I use these two Uptides I possess to buff them up and deal damage to you?"

Regna-Crois had seven health. Two Uptides reduced it to five. Each Requ had three attack after the buffs. The moment Juna finished doing the math in her head was the same moment she let out a long-suffering groan.

"And of course thanks to the sacrifice of my brave Natials I am free to draw two more cards. And one of them just so happens to be this Greon-"

"W-Wait!" Juna protested immediately, "You don't have the mana to summon that!" Despite herself Fie found herself bobbing her head in agreement. But contrary to her friend who showed a look of relief, she found herself holding her breath. Just what was Musse about to do now...?

"Why yes, you are indeed correct. It is fortunate then that I also possess a Reduce card in my hand, isn't it?"

Yep. There it was. With that card Musse had just enough mana to pull it off. And given the Greon could attack immediately on the turn it was summoned...

Juna's head slammed into the table, "It's not fair! You must be cheating!"

"I've been watching her the entire game." Fie admitted, "Either she's found a way to cheat without me noticing..." Something which Sylphid doubted very badly, "...or she's somehow doing all this without cheating at all."

Now that was a scary thought.

"It's not that complicated." The mint-haired girl in question responded with a teasing smile, "One just needs to keep track of every card that has been played until that point. Once that's done it's a trivial affair to create a different strategy for as many of the remaining cards in my deck as possible."

The silver-haired girl rolled her eyes. If Musse wanted to keep her secrets that was fine with her, but did she really expect them to believe such a crazy method as that? There was no way Musse could keep track of all the possible cards and create different strategies for all of them! It was simply impossible!

"Think what you will..." The brilliant girl gave a smile that was far too innocent as she gazed knowingly at Fie, "but I must bid you all farewell. We're having a very special tea ceremony today and I'm hopeful I can convince Instructor Rean to join us~"

"Ugh... Why does she always have to be so weird!?" Fie could only nod her agreement, "Ah well. She's right, though. I need to go change and get ready for-"

"Juna!" Both girls blinked as a newcomer arrived. Fie recognized her as Juna's tennis club member... Louise? "There's no practice today." The girl announced with a heavy frown marring her expression.

Needless to say such a declaration caused the pink-haired girl no amount of confusion, "What? Why?"

"Jessica hurt herself while doing spear training."

"What!? Is she alright!?"

Louise nodded her head, "Linde doesn't think it's too bad, but she wants her to avoid putting weight on her foot as much as possible for the next few days."

Juna's relief was palpable, "W-Well, that's good. Still... We have an exhibition match against that school next week, don't we?"

"I'm confused." Fie probably should have kept her mouth shut, but curiosity compelled her onward, "Don't you usually play singles? Can't the two of you practice without her?"

"Well, we could." Louise answered, "But we like to keep rotating players between matches so everyone remains fresh."

That made sense to Fie. She nodded her head and was about to separate herself from the two, but before she could she noticed Juna was staring rather intently at her, "Uh...?"

"...I have an idea." Her classmate said without ever breaking her gaze.

The Class IX girl glanced from Juna to Fie and back, before her face lit up in realization, "Oh! That's a good idea! Please help us, Fie!"

"Huh!?" They weren't suggesting what she thought they were, were they?

"Yeah! It's perfect! How about it, Fie? Want to play tennis for a couple days?"

"Aren't you forgetting one important thing?" The taciturn girl did her best to ignore the twin pleading looks, "I don't know how to play tennis, remember?"

And yet her valid argument was waved away by Juna with dismissive ease, "No worries! We can teach you. And with your natural agility I'm sure you'll pick it up in no time. It's not like you're doing anything right now, right?"

Wow. That was kinda rude. Just because the Cooking Club wasn't meeting that day didn't mean she wasn't busy. Did Juna ever consider that she might've already had plans, like maybe she wanted to study for the exams next month...?

Fie let out a sigh. She couldn't even make that lie with a straight face in the friendly confines of her own mind.

"Fine, I guess." She conceded at last, "But if you laugh when I suck I will never forgive you!"

"We won't do that, I promise!"

Unlike Louise, Juna had a massive grin on her face, "Speak for yourself. It's going to be funny watching you mess things up for a change."

Even as the bespectacled tennis player chastised her friend Fie was strongly reconsidering her decision. Instead she opted with the tried and true tactic of getting revenge via teasing, "You know, you've been a lot different since we got back from Crossbell. Sure it's a good thing you seem to be a lot happier and all, but did you have to become more annoying too?"

"What!?"

Fie raised a finger, "You've been smiling a lot more since we got back. Like, a lot. It's kinda creepy." Second finger, "You have way more energy too. Stop it, it's exhausting to watch." And a third finger, "And I don't think I've heard you complain about Erebonia once in the last week. Actually, that one might be a good thing because it was kinda annoying."

"Hey!"

"She's right, you know." Louise chimed in, "Well, I don't know about you being more annoying, per se, but you have definitely been a lot happier and more transparent."

Juna let out a growl and stomped her foot, "Just because I haven't been talking about Erebonia as much doesn't mean my opinion hasn't changed! Kurt and Instructor Rean are still infuriating! As are you! And now Ash and Musse are in our class too!? This place sucks!"

After huffing for a moment to recover after the outburst the Crossbellian adopted a sly smirk on her face before pointing her finger, "And if I've become more annoying since the last field exercise than what does that make you?"

Fie – the target of said finger – could only blink in confusion, "Huh?"

"You used to act all cool and aloof, but now look at you! You're a lot more social, you laze about all day, and you follow Instructor Rean around waiting for him to pat you on the head. It's so weird!"

The silver-haired girl couldn't help but color slightly, "Stop making me sound like a cat!"

"Then stop acting like one, because right now I can't see much difference between you and Coppe besides the color of your fur! In fact I'd say you're more of a cat than Celine is!"

Fie glared back and was about to retort when Louise giggled, "I-I can kind of see the similarities." The tennis player agreed, forever earning Fie's ire, "It's kind of funny, isn't it? She was such an intimidating individual until the news that you were a jaeger came out. You'd think that would make her even scarier, but I've heard nothing but good things from you and everyone else. They all say you're so friendly and helpful!"

Friendly and helpful? Had she really gotten that lame since arriving at Thors? No. Juna, Tita, Sandy, and everyone else were to blame for spreading stupid nasty rumors about her. They would need to be silenced before her reputation suffered further...

"...And plus!" Louise continued, oblivious to Fie's internal turmoil, "You bought me that Retro Mishy strap in Crossbell!"

"Nuh uh!" She protested immediately, "It was Rean who bought it using my discount! I definitely wouldn't have gotten it otherwise!"

Juna rolled her eyes, "Please. You whined about it, sure, but we all know if you'd really been against it Instructor Rean wouldn't have done it."

"Hehe. Regardless of what you feel about the matter I'll continue to believe that you were the one responsible for it. So thank you, Fie."

Despite herself the aloof girl couldn't help but blush. Getting praised so honestly like that from a near-complete stranger was way too weird for her! Why would Louise say such an embarrassing thing!?

...Fie did her best to ignore the small traitorous part of her that enjoyed the compliments. Helping people was not fun! That was the kind of stupid a bracer would do, not a cool former jaeger like herself!

"Are we gonna play tennis or not?" She groused in an attempt to change the subject away from the topic.

"Getting a little uncomfortable?" Her classmate teased. Juna was treading on thin ice even if the pink-haired girl didn't realize it, "But fine. If you want to be such a grouch about it we can get a move on."

"Oh but we need to change into our tennis uniforms first."

Louise's statement caused Fie to narrow her eyes in confusion, "But I don't-"

"It's fine, I've got a spare that should fit you. We're about the same size, I think." Juna's smile grew a little sharper as her gaze drifted downwards a bit, "...Actually the shirt might be a little loose on you, since you're a little... lacking in certain areas."

The silver-hair warrior stiffened. Thin ice? Juna had just fallen through the ice thanks to that last comment. She would pay dearly.

In hindsight maybe they were right about their previous conversation. The last couple months had somehow led to them all becoming a little more annoying. It was the only explanation for why Juna was making such comments.

And being more annoying was the only reasonable explanation for why Fie saw fit the need to smack her friend for that same comment.

Fie was giddy with anticipation.

The reason for that was because it was her favorite time of the day. That moment when they were in homeroom at the end of the day, mere moments away from dismissal and the freedom that came with it. Even better there were no club activities that evening so she was free to do whatever she wanted.

Maybe she could do some extra combat practice? A nap in a solitary location? Hang out with Tita? Play with Cerberus despite Jingo's protests?

Her options were limitless!

She just needed Rean to hurry up and dismiss them.

"...And one last thing before I let you go." Hurray, he was nearing the end of his daily speech. Just one more message and freedom awaited her! "Chief Instructor Michael is in the process of organizing extra school classes in order to assist any student wanting a little extra help before exams next month."

Pffft. What a dumb idea. Who would ever willingly go to extra classes?

"...He has also approached the Principal with the idea of making those classes mandatory for any student currently failing any class or with an overall grade beneath an eighty percent. Thankfully none of you are failing, but Juna and Fie, you are both currently hovering around that line."

Wait, what!?

"Huh!?" Seemed Juna was just as stunned as Fie was.

"Haha! Have fun with extra classes, morons!"

"Be quiet, Ash!" Rean's rare moment of sternness was lost on the former jaeger as she contemplated the terrible fate awaiting her. Her teacher must have noticed, however, as his expression softened as he looked towards the two girls, "...I shouldn't be telling you this, but we will be having a surprise quiz at the end of the week. A strong result there would be enough to keep you from needing to attend those classes."

With his piece said Rean began approaching the door, but he paused before exiting, "As always my door is open to you should you want a tutor, but I would recommend looking to your classmates for assistance. Class VII is filled with many talented people, after all, and I know you would all look out for each other."

With that Fie could only stare in stunned silence as he exited the room. Slowly she began to gather her thoughts.

If she wanted to escape her terrible fate then she would need to study hard to pass the upcoming quiz. That was a terrible fate, but it was one she could probably endure for a few days if it meant staving off an even worse fate.

"Kurt! Save me!" Juna managed to beat her to the punch as the terrified girl hastily rose from her seat to rush Class VII's swordsman student, "I don't want to have to take extra classes!"

"Um..." Fie didn't fail to notice how Kurt colored slightly as in her haste Juna got well inside his comfort zone, but she also noted how he didn't pull away either, "...I was planning on practicing my swordsmanship, but I suppose I can do that another time and help-"

"Yes! You're the best!"

The Vander let out an awkward cough as he rose to his feet and away from the exuberant girl, "W-Well. Shall we get started right away? Given what I've seen in class I suspect you will need help in a myriad subjects." It was only then that his gaze met Fie's causing his to widen in surprise, "O-Oh, Fie! Did you want my assistance too?"

She couldn't help but stare at the boy with a complete deadpan. On paper Kurt would definitely be the ideal choice. He was one of the smartest people in class and the one least likely to drive her insane in the process.

"And get in the way of whatever that was? No thanks. My grades aren't so bad that I'm in the mood to be the third wheel today."

At least she got the satisfaction of watching the two of them blush at the insinuation, which wasn't helped by the barely concealed laughter of the silently observing peanut gallery – minus Altina, naturally, "I-It's not like that!" Juna protested quickly, "I just... Hurry up, Kurt. I want to get this done as quickly as possible!"

With that feeble attempt at a deflection out of the way the Crossbellian stormed her way through the door and out of the class. With a tired sigh Kurt followed suit. It wasn't until both of them were gone that Fie decided to break the silence, "Well... That was something."

But as funny as that was it meant her best option for tutoring was gone. Since she absolutely refused to turn to Rean for help again her options were sorely limited. Without thinking she let her gaze drift to the person standing closest to the door her friends had just left from.

"Nope. I'm a busy man who doesn't have time to study with a dumb jaeger. Have fun with your remedial class!"

Of course that person being Ash meant they were naturally no help. Not that Fie expected anything else nor had she even considered asking the guy, but the taunt did sting a little. The silver-haired girl made a mental note to get revenge for that comment at some point.

That just left two. Of the two Fie knew who she would prefer to spend time with.

Altina stiffened slightly under her hopeful gaze, "...If you require my assistance I would be willing to provide it, but I do not feel I am the best option for you. My grades are only slightly higher than yours and I don't think I have the same aptitude for teaching that someone like Instructor Rean possesses."

Honestly? That was fair. As much as Fie liked her youngest classmate she understood that spending time with Altina – while undoubtedly fun – would do little for her current plight.

Mentally Fie listed her as a 'maybe'.

Juna was an idiot, Kurt was a bust, Ash was a jerk, and Altina was unqualified. There goes four of her potential five options. That just left-

"Teeheehee."

Nope. Nuh uh. No way. Maybe Altina's lack of social skills wouldn't be so bad. Or maybe she could swallow her pride and go to Rean? Or Tita! She was smart. Sure she had been pretty busy with soldat stuff the past week, but she would surely be willing to sacrifice her limited available free time to save Fie from this terrible fate-

"I would be more than willing to assist my dear classmate in overcoming her ordeal~" Came the sing-song voice of her most troublesome classmate.

It took great effort for her to resist the groan that threatened to burst forth, but she just managed to pull it off. A-As terrible as studying with Musse might be, she wasn't so inconsiderate as to pester her other friends when someone was freely offering their time. And at the end of the day the mint-haired witch was one of the smartest people she knew. I-If anyone could save her from needing to take remedial classes it would be Musse Egret.

"T-Thanks a lot, Musse. I r-really appreciate the h-help."

"Oh joy! We're gonna have so much fun together! I'll come find you tonight and we'll study in the dorm, alright?"

"S-Sure! That sounds great!" Why did it feel like she was damning herself with each and every word she said?

Fie couldn't help but look towards Altina as the younger girl silently shook her head before sending a pitying look her way. M-Maybe she should have gone with her instead?

"With the uptick of cars and other personal vehicles the reformists in government forced through a law standardizing the rules of the road. That act was the-"

"Imperial Transportation Act, right?"

"Very good!" Musse clapped her hands in delight, "I honestly didn't think you'd know that one off the top of your head like that!"

Fie couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed at the praise, "Well, I guess I've been paying a bit more attention to these things ever since we got the orbal bikes."

And equally as important was the fact that as much as she hated to admit it, Musse was a damn good teacher. Despite being as intelligent as she was the mischievous girl had little difficulty in breaking things down to a level that Fie herself could understand easily. She wasn't even the least bit condescending about it, either!

"Teehee... I am quite glad to hear that. I must know, however, how do you think my private lessons compare to our beloved Instructor Rean?"

"...Huh?"

Musse rested her head on her hand with a dreamy smile on her face, "I was quite certain that you received private lessons during out first month. Was I mistaken?"

"Wha!? No! I mean... I-" Fie paused to compose herself, "...How did you know?"

One advantage her earlier self had over her current form was that because she held no attachment to anyone she was able to take those mandatory lessons with Rean without anyone caring about her lack of presence. Not even Juna had bothered to ask where she went those many long and painful nights, and she was Fie's roommate!

...Altina hadn't said anything either, but given her status as an intelligence agent she wouldn't be at all surprised to discover the younger girl actually did know, but she at least had the good sense to keep her mouth shut.

Musse let out a giggle at her discomfort, "It wasn't that hard to put the pieces together. A former jaeger, completely helpless and out of her depth in a new environment. There was no way you would have the foundational knowledge to survive in a school like this, but that didn't last long, did it?"

"Naturally something had to have changed for you to handle classes the way you did, but given your stoic nature I couldn't imagine you taking the initiative on your own. The only solution that came to my mind was that someone had forced you into changing, and the only ones with that authority were the faculty. While I am quite certain any of our teachers could have done the job, it was quite obvious to me that our dearly beloved Instructor Rean would have been the one to step up to rescue his poor pitiful overwhelmed student."

Fie stared at the other girl for a very long moment before tiredly shaking her head, "Sometimes you really scare me. You know that?"

Musse only let out another giggle before tipping her head gratefully. Did she think Fie was only joking with her comment?

Well it wasn't a joke. She was dead serious. For some reason this overly cheerful girl stood among some of the most fierce jaegers and other psychopaths she had come across during her short but eventful life as a person to be wary of.

"So what was it like getting private lessons from Instructor Rean!? Did you go into his bedroom? I keep trying to slip into his room, but he's managed to catch me every time. Tell me what it's like!" Musse pleaded with a hopeful look on her face.

...In hindsight maybe Fie was wrong in her assessment of Musse. Maybe she wasn't someone to be wary of. How could someone this flaky and weird possibly be a threat?

"Why are you always so weird?"

The young genius let out a gasp, "Good heavens! Why would you say such a cruel thing about me?"

"Because it's true? Can't think of too many other students who are weirdly obsessed with our teacher like that. What even do you see in the guy?"

"Where do I even begin?" Musse asked before letting out a dreamy sigh, "Maybe it's because of his wondrous good looks?"

"...He looks like a dork with those fake glasses."

"Or maybe it's because of his limitless kindness?"

"...He's a nuisance who won't ever leave me alone."

"Perhaps it's the dashing figure he cuts as he takes charge and accepts no villainy? He doesn't even need his fancy title to be a hero in my books~"

"...We're definitely all going to die in battle at some point."

"And what woman can't deny a man with such delicious looking muscles-"

"...He's a bit scrawny compared to most of the guys I used to know."

"Ah... How I dream about the day when he pulls me tightly into those powerful arms before whispering sweet nothing in my ears. Then he will pull my clothes off, throw me onto his bed, and proceed to ravage me with his mighty-"

"Stop! Stooop!" A red-faced Fie couldn't help herself. She had been a jaeger for most of her life. Despite Boss and the others doing their best to keep her away from some of the more adult part of mercenary life she was no stranger to what jaegers did when they had time to kill and mira to burn. She was no stranger to what Musse was about to describe.

"Aww. I didn't know the big bad jaeger was so innocent!" Musse cooed, much to her annoyance.

"No, but the thought of you and Rean together like that is making me sick."

"So innocent!"

The silver-haired girl paused to compose herself, lest she fall deeper and deeper into Musse's trap. Once again the other girl had managed to effectively tease her.

She had always considered herself to be so unflappable, so how come she was so powerless against the force of nature known as Musse Egret!?

"You are such a headache..." She groused while doing her best to stave off said migraine, "But you do know that there are a lot of far more talented and beautiful girls that are into Rean, right? Seems like all of his classmates have the hots for him." Maybe not Millium, now that she thought about it more. She hadn't really been paying much attention at the time, but the little gremlin of the original Class VII might be the one exception.

For a moment Fie couldn't help but think about the woman that connected both her and her teacher to Thors. A drunken Sara had once proclaimed her undying love for older men, so obviously that meant she was excluded from the list... right?

"You are most certainly correct." For some reason Musse didn't seem at all unhappy about that admission, "In fact I can guarantee that both Her Highness the Princess and his darling Elise both see Rean in a rather romantic light."

"How would you even know about that...?" Come to think of it, hadn't both those highborn girls mentioned Musse during that meeting in Orchis Tower? Given everything that happened after that conversation had slipped Fie's mind, but this moment served as a sharp reminder.

"Every girl has to have her secrets." Musse chided with a mysterious smile, only confirming to Fie that there was a greater mystery at play with this girl. Were Musse not such a menace to her maybe the former jaeger would have used her Sylphid skills to do a little extra investigative work.

Instead she just shook her head to focus on the painfully annoying present, "So why bother if you know there is already so much competition?"

The mint-haired devil let out a cheerful giggle, "You should know the answer to that already. Doesn't victory taste better when you overcome a tough obstacle? To know that I prevailed in a battle of womanly charm against some of Erebonia's most famous up and comers. To claim the nation's greatest hero for myself..." She let out a dreamy sigh that unsettled Fie greatly.

"But you know what might be the most surprising thing I've calculated?" Musse asked after recomposing herself, "I am positive that my biggest competition won't be from any of them. Instead I think the most significant threats might be the girls who live in close proximity to him. The students who currently rely upon him the are the ones he will soon rely upon most in turn."

That final part of Musse's statement would have raised an eyebrow had Fie not been so caught up on the rest of it, "Do you seriously believe the crazy stuff coming out of your mouth?"

"I do. Now that Juna's gotten over her stubborn hatred of Erebonia I am certain she will start to see our dear instructor in a new light." Musse's eyes widened briefly before she adopted a more pensive expression, "Although maybe I can nip that threat in the bud with a little careful planning? Hmm..." After a few thoughtful seconds Fie's classmate lit up with joy, "I'm going to need your help with a plan soon enough."

"Uhh...?"

Naturally the young noblewoman completely ignored Fie's confusion, "But it isn't just Juna I need to worry about, of course. There's one other girl in our class that I believe could be a dangerous opponent."

Fie waited impatiently for Musse to clarify, but the other girl remained stubbornly silent. That being said, the way she was gazing across the table at the silver-haired girl with such intensity... "You don't mean me, do you?" An amused nod was her only response, "Are you completely delusional? Haven't you heard a single thing I've said about the guy?"

"Sure, sure." Musse waved her off flippantly, "You say a lot of things, but that doesn't stop you from demanding affection from him. Do you know how many girls would love to get their head patted by our beloved Ashen Chevalier?"

"Uh..." Fie couldn't help but flush at the reminder. "T-Thats... That's not true! A-And even if it was, what about Altina!?"

Her protest was ineffective as Musse gave a disinterested shrug, "What about Altina? It's clear that even if she herself doesn't understand her own feelings that our teacher sees her more as a little sister or even a daughter figure."

"W-Well..."

"Face it, Fie. You might claim otherwise, but to everyone else you appear as nothing more than a kitten who tries to act aloof and stubborn, but secretly craves affection and attention from their owner."

T-That wasn't true at all! S-Sure she could see why others might see it like that, but she absolutely definitely with complete certainty had no ulterior motives with the way she acted.

And once again someone was comparing her to a cat. What was up with that!?

"Oh my, we seem to have gotten off track, haven't we?" Musse exclaimed as if nothing had happened, "Why don't we call it here for the night? You made good progress on your studies and I'm confident if we keep at it all week that you'll be more than prepared for the upcoming test. Good night, Fie."

Fie could only sit there in stunned silence even after Musse had left. It took many minutes before her brain had rebooted enough to realize that Class VII's biggest headache had probably been messing with her. All it took was a few words from Musse to completely screw her mind up. And yet despite knowing that she still couldn't fully eliminate those crazy thoughts from her head!

Truly the most troublesome of opponents.

Fie let out a groan as she realized she was in for many more days of this late-night teasing. Maybe those remedial classes didn't sound so bad after all?