“So, already got plans for the Lebensfest~?” Vee asked with a pixie grin, the chameleon weasel’s eyes teasingly fluttering at her friend.

“N-no… I don’t…” Rehn answered, the feline female skilfully holding her composure on her face but her unusual stutter still stood out prominently to her friend’s attentive ears. The grin on Vee’s lips grew.

Looking at the two, the difference between them couldn’t have been more apparent. Where Rehn was dressed in a smooth, clean and well-kept combo of green blouse, white undershirt and a dark blue, plated skirt with long stockings and fitting shoes, Vee looked at first glance like she had come straight out of the dumpster. Her black jeans were torn at strategic places, splatters of red covered her deep purple shirt and her black jacket seemed scuffed with a number of metal spikes at the collar and sleeves. Rehn looked like a model student while Vee was the punk seconds away from getting her next detention.

Both were wearing brand-name clothes by the way.

“So you didn’t accept that date from Thale earlier?” Vee asked innocently, eyes big and wide.

“I merely accepted to show him around the new park…” Rehn replied poised, head held high but unable to hide the small blush dusting her cheeks. “Hardly a date when I’m simply helping a fellow student.”

“Yeah, right. Pull the other one if you think he believes the same.” Vee smirked as she leant backwards in her seat, arms spread out over the sides. Slowly she rocked back and forth on the tips of her chair.

The classroom was still empty except for the two of them. That was one of the advantages of going to the Dampfstadt Privat Gymnasium, there were few enough students that the teachers could actually concentrate on helping everybody instead of being forced into general instructions.

“W-well…” Rehn began to defend herself when she suddenly blinked and mischief gleamed in her eyes now. “Wait. Could it be you’re actually envious of me~? You, Vee?”

The chameleon weasel’s eyes went wide at that sudden accusation and she flailed cutely as she lost her balance, nearly crashing backwards onto the floor with her seat.

“W-wha…?!” She squeaked out, a blush rushing to her cheeks. “N-no! I’m not jealous!”

“You are! You actually are~!” Rehn giggled with an exhilarated grin. “The cool and aloof Vee is actually envious of me going on a maybe date~!”

“Ugh, I’m not jealous!” Vee exclaimed annoyed, throwing her hands up as she had climbed back up. The blush on her face however clearly spoke a different language. “I can get a date whenever I want… I just don’t have anyone I want to date.” She nodded firmly wth a huff, crossing her arms.

“And aren’t you admitting you’re going on a date then~? Even if it’s just a maybe date~?” Vee quickly shot back, embarrassment pushed away by mischief.

“Don’t dodge the topic just because you’re getting embarrassed.” Rehn rebuked with narrowing eyes, expertly dodging the topic because she was getting embarrassed.

Meanwhile, as the the two girls were wrapped up in the ancient tradition of throwing the other under the bus of embarrassment, Jak was crawling through the ventilation system of the school. Finding an empty classroom to enter was normally pretty easy but for some reason he was just getting unlucky with his usual rooms this time around.

“Stupid perverts…” He muttered under his breath, a hot blush adorning his cheeks as one room had a particularly risqué couple engaged in some steaming hot tangling. It had taken him a few moments before he had managed to drag his gaze away and continue with his search.

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Unnoticed by him, his blind passenger had poked its head out of his school bag, curious about where they were after it had finished eating all the rust dust in his bag.

Back with the two girls their ancient tradition had nearly ended and the results aligned with the common trend, mutual destruction.

“Fine! I will ask the next guy to enter out on a date, satisfied?!” Vee groaned in annoyance, a blush on her cheeks that was entirely eclipsed by the burning pink enveloping Rehn’s face. The cat girl was actually more embarrassed that she had been tricked into blurting out that she wanted to date than by admitting the actual truth itself.

Overall, Vee had come on ahead. She had managed to keep quiet on her jealousy, if only by a technicality but that’s all that counted here, really.

Above them Jak had just groaned exasperated at another room being crossed of the list and was about to crawl onwards, when the Rust Slime from his bag eagerly jumped out of its hiding place. The vent system was kept well cleaned and orderly, but sometimes things just went under the radar. Like for example some rusty clasps holding the vent hatch closed. A great snack for a randomly passing by rust Numeryuu.

“Is anybody even coming here today…?” Rehn wondered after a moment as it was getting rather close to the start of class and not a single other student had stepped in to join them.

“Heh, seems like I get to dodge my dare.” Vee grinned smugly.

“Humph, well, maybe someone’s going to fall from the sky to shut you up.” Rehn huffed annoyed, a blush on her cheeks as she crossed her arms and pouted cutely.

Just in that moment the Numeryuu had finished its meal with a satisfied, cheerful hum and the hatch, clasps smooth and clean for the first time in months, fell open. A second later Jak was dumped straight down, the dumbfounded wolf cat landing right in Vee’s lap.

Both girls blinked startled, staring at the boy that had just literally fallen from above. Not exactly the sky but close enough.

“…welp, looks like you just earned yourself a date to the festival.” Vee smirked wide, white fangs gleaming prominently. “I hope you don’t have anything planned for then.” Her eyes flashing imperiously from above at Jak who was still trying to process what just happened.

“Wat?” Was his perfectly reasonable response, blinking blankly at the two beautiful girls looming over him. Vee’s hair actually reminded him of Jenny’s more chaotic bad hair days, though the chameleon weasel somehow managed to make it look great on her.

“Vee just asked you on a date for the Lebensfest in two days.” Rehn answered him with a warm smile and helped him to his feet. She was surprisingly strong as she pulled him up, out of Vee’s lap.

Jak’s head was still whirling and realising that there had been a warm pair of thighs beneath him didn’t help at all.

“Wait, wait, wait.” He declared, holding up a hand as he shook his head. His other hand rubbed his temples. “Y-you are asking me out… on a date?” He asked in disbelief, looking at Vee. That didn’t feel all that right, did she even know him? Wait, no. He had seen her a few times, actually… And the feline was also becoming quickly familiar as well.

Right, Rehn! The model student that actually lives in the Dampf Tower with her prominent father! And her completely inverse of a friend who’s nearly always at her side. How the hell had he gotten mixed up with those two?! Never mind, why was that punk girl was asking him out on a date?! He was still sure he must have misheard her.

“Yup. We’re gonna exchange Herzperlen at the end~” Vee giggled exaggeratedly, fluttering her eyelashes at him. “But yeah, you just shot a date with me.” She smirked teasingly at him, propping her head on her hands as she leant forwards on her desk. Hands on her cheeks.

Right now she was loving this. Before, this would have been an embarrassment for her but now Jak was basically the victim here instead of her. And Vee had to admit, it was pretty fun to tease him. She was pretty sure she had seen him skulk around the school a few times as well, though going by his looks he definitely didn’t come from any of the rich families. His clothes were covered in dirt and dust and he had just fallen out of the ventilation system. Yeah, she was pretty sure he came from the slums.

“So? Cat got your tongue~?” Vee asked as her definite date seemed to still wrangle with that sudden declaration. “Do I have to ask Rehn to give it back?”

“Hey! I don’t steal tongues…!” Rehn huffed in reply.

And while those two were playfully bickering again, as Jak was still recovering his wits and the teacher was wondering what was going as he stepped inside, the little reason for all of this had just jumped, unnoticed by all, down after Jak and was now back to hiding in his bag. That had been a great snack! Now, where was he going to take it next?