Mathias gasped and stuttered as he pointed shakily to the note. The rules were being violated!

His lumbering steps made Lisanna smirk as she patted at the blanket that covered the fur.

"... It's fine like this, right? I'm just getting a taste of what I'll get after I help you today so be thankful!"

"...?!"

"Hah! Well, look," she said as she pressed her back against the stone wall and slowly extended her feet to the black fur.

He froze.

And her toes her a mere millimetre away before they retracted.

"See? It's fine. After tonight, I expect to be able to do this as much as I want. Of course, you'll be graced with my company, so it's a fair-trade."

'Not fair at all. Not at all.'

He thrust a note in her face, throat sore from all the talking he did earlier.

"But just think: you get to hang out with me. It'll be fine."

'We already hang out every day.'

"Then... why is this weird?"

'Not weird, but it's against the rules! Not the fur!'

"So it's not weird! Okay, then next time, I'll do this again, even if I have to avoid the fur!"

She jumped up, deftly avoiding the fur by maintaining contact with only the blanket, and stood in front of him tauntingly. And she pressed her index finger into his heaving chest. "It's your fault. I'll try to be a little more selfish from today on, okay?"

'You're plenty selfish in the morning.'

"And it's past the morning so you have no excuse now. Plus, I do it for your benefit - not mine!"

'...!'

He snorted. 'If there is a trace of ash, or water, or dust on my fur - it's over! And spread out your selfishness like a normal person!'

"So I'm allowed?" He paled and rapidly shook his head. "Not the fur, but the bed, okay. I got it."

She turned and walked to the door.

"What? Are you just going to stand there?" She pointed at the clock. It was 11:00. "We have to leave soon. I'll do your announcement so just give me a note or something."

Mathias passed her the note he prepared last night.

"... Hmm, okay. Since it's a big task, I expect a lot afterwards, okay?"

She smirked and turned on her heels.

"Let's go!"

"..."

Mathias grumbled and followed after her. He knew it would be tedious - which is why he forced the task on Lisanna after her releasing information regarding the fur store.

Since she felt she adequately paid him back, it was more a matter of repairing the trust that was damaged. A task she was eager to do.

"Right! And no flirting with those stupid girls that'll come along with the guests, okay?" Lisanna added with an unusually sharp gaze.

"...?"

'Even if I wanted to, how would I if I want to avoid dealing with troublesome people? It's too annoying.'

"Once we get to the banquet, you have to stay with me and Wendi, got it? Or Jennifer. She's okay, too."

"...?"

That was his plan. He prepared a note in case he got separated, but it was easier to have another explain the matter.

"Also, I'll be your first dance partner. Then Wendi, Jennifer, Ayla, and the other girls - in our class."

Mathias thought she was getting more unreasonable.

'I don't want to dance anyways.'

"You'll have to. Erik and Ayla will make you." Lisanna said matter-of-factly.

Mathias groaned as she continued to direct him more and more. Many things he would've done anyways, but having been told to do it made him annoyed.

Lisanna understood that there was a general, implicit consensus on their status so there were not many girls in their class that would try to break the status quo. She was nervous about Jasmine's place in the matter, but since he couldn't speak, it was probably manageable. Given all that, even she understood that many of the guys avoided getting too personal with Lisanna, a sentiment she liked, but it only added to her embarrassment when she thought deeply about it.

A note appeared in front of her. Mathias' brows creased as he considered Lisanna's words. It was probably true. But he wanted to mitigate the damage.

'Five dances. That's it.'

It would give him enough of an excuse to say he participated but it would not require more than a half-hour.

"Hmm, okay. But the final one is with me."

"... Hah..." He sighed.

Lisanna poked him in the chest again.

"People talk a lot during the final dances so it's easier this way."

"...?" He quirked his head.

He had never been to one, nor did he know how to dance, so it was not something he thought of.

"Wait, you do know how to dance, right?"

He shook his head.

Lisanna groaned and looked at the clock on her desk. After setting an alarm, she said, "okay, I'll show you."

She extended her hands and Mathias just blankly looked at it.

Lisanna grumbled, forced it into her hand and then meticulously began teaching him basic moves.

Due to his recent work on getting his foot-work back up-to-snuff, it was easier than he imagined. But it seemed so dreadfully dull that he wasn't really concentrating. And a half-hour lesson hardly would accomplish much.

"It will be more interesting once the music starts; until then, we'll be going over it again! And one, and two; and one, and two-"

Lisanna kept her sight on the clock as she hastily taught him. Since she learned the basics in her previous school and had to participate in its events, she did have some experience. Even if her partners had much, much different expectations of how the night was to end. She would never have let them so much as touch her without being forced into the task.

And her nights were spent alone, unlike many of the girls that experimented with their new-found freedom from their parents' constraints.

And soon the alarm sounded.

11:45.

"Okay, you're not absolutely terrible, but we'll practise more later. We have to leave now!"

"..."

Mathias breathed out in relief, inciting a small pointed poke at his chest, but Lisanna still turned off the alarm and dragged him out of the room.

To go back to the exhibition.