Thanks! I figured that might be the case but didn't want to waste my time grinding supports if they weren't required. Still giving priority to the A+ ranks, though, if only for the conversation unlocks.
Here's another question: is there any difference between A and A+ aside from the convo?
I've been looking for a castle with skills for Nohr children for a while. Specifically, Velouria with Aptitude would be awesome. Seems it's not easy to find this stuff anymore as the game gets older, especially for us EU folk. Can anyone help out?