Sometimes less is more. I'm going to make this story simple in writing and details, but as deep as i can write. I want to leave some things up to the reader's imagination and their previous knowledge of this game. So I hope you enjoy it. Kind of a new style for me.

Enjoy! Review!

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The building loomed over him like an oppressing bully, intent on breaking his self esteem and degrading what little there was of it into nothing. With an exaggerated sigh the blonde shoulder his bag and walked into the gaping mouth of the hideous monster waiting to strip him of any originality or confidence.

"Name," the woman at the front desk asked in a monotone. Her hair was like curling fire. it reminded him of awful 50s hairstyles.

She looked up at him through flower printed, over the top, hideous granny glasses. "It's Cloud Strife," he said.

She looked back down at her papers and scribbled something on a small slip. she handed it to him without looking up and pointed to the chairs resting against the back wall in front of the desk. "Your counselor will get your schedule, you just wait there."

Without so much as a nod, the blonde did as he was told, sagging into one of the uncomfortable chairs only to be called by some man's voice as soon as he hit the seat.

"Cloud Strife?"

He rose.

"Come this way."

He fallowed.

"So where are you from, Cloud?"

He assumed this man was his counselor. He was being lead back through a maze of hallways to a small room with a computer and a desk. Cloud took a seat in front of the desk as the man sat in the chair opposite him. There were pictures of family tacked to a cork board. One little boy who appeared older than a little girl he was standing next to. Both were smiling. The sun was obviously in the lens of the camera at the time.

"Nibleheim," he replied.

"Ah, Nibleheim," he repeated as if he understood something deeper than that name, "that's a pretty middle-of-no-where town, right?"

Cloud nodded.

"You have that slip Miriam gave you?"

He assumed Miriam was the woman at the front desk. He leaned forward and placed the slip on the desk. The man took it and typed in a code that was printed on it.

"Well, here's your schedule," he said, handing Cloud a piece of paper, "you'll find your locker and lock number on there. Teacher and room numbers. Please have them sign this sheet, to make sure you aren't skipping any classes, no offense, just policy, and bring it back to me at the end of the day."

"I'm sorry, what did you say your name was," Cloud asked.

"I didn't," he replied with a smile, "you can call me Mr. Highwind. Or Cid if you like."

"Thanks Mr. Highwind," he replied and rose from his seat to leave the room and make for his first class.

"No problem," he added, "have a good day. Oh, hey..."

Cloud looked back at him.

"Good luck."

He was going to need it.

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"Okay, first class is Advanced Physics with Professor Hojo," he said aloud, walking through the empty hallways of the school. It had been about 10 minutes since everyone had suddenly disappeared from the building's traffic ways into separate rooms. He was going to cause a disturbance in Advanced Physics with Professor Hojo. And he hated it.

Finally coming up to the room, he drew in a deep breath and pushed the heavy wooden door open.

Every head in the room instantaneously turned simultaneously to see what had disturbed their learning. Or rather, it seemed, to see what had disturbed their nap. Professor Hojo was a lanky looking man with black hair tied in a ponytail. He was writing some equation on the board while pushing his box framed glasses further up his nose.

"...and that...class...is the formula for momentum, the product of the mass and velocity of an object."

"Hey professor," some kid with spiky red hair spoke up, "we got a new kid."

"Oh," he turned from his old school black chalk board to face the nervous Cloud who was standing by the door, shuffling his feet, feeling awkward. "Well, come on, don't just stand there."

Cloud walked a bit further into the room.

"What's your name," some kid called out.

Cloud froze in his steps, raising his head to try and find the kid who called out to him. He saw a kid with black hair, who looked at least a year or two older than him, elbowing another kid.

"Well, out with it," the professor harassed him.

"Cloud. Cloud Strife."

"What a gay name," some other kid called out.

"Hey, last time I checked, Reno was a place where cross dressers go to pick up guys in random bars," the black haired kid replied. The kid with red hair who first pointed him out lowered his head to his desk. "So if I were you, I'd shut the fuck up."

"Alright, alright, lets settle down," the professor urged, "Cloud, you can go take the empty seat in the back."

Cloud did as he was told. He was sitting next to a girl with long, black, silky hair. She averted her eyes out the window and seemed to pay extra attention to not touching him or anything of his. She was wearing leather gloves, which the blonde found slightly odd. In fact, her whole wardrobe was different. But Cloud shouldn't be one to talk.

He sat there, not listening but at least watching, being bored out of his skull, counting down the minutes until he was out of the classroom of horror. He could feel eyes sometimes boring in to him, watching him, trying to figure out what made him tick. He felt like he was a specimen, a new toy for the student body.

The bell rang. The sound was awful and shrill.

Walking away from the classroom he was suddenly shoved up against a wall. He dropped his bag as his head hit the plaster.

"Don't think anyone's going to come and save you," a voice growled in his ear. The sound was dripping with venom and hate. "This place grinds people like you in to dust. You better watch your back, pretty boy."

Finally his eyes focused. He found that the red head was the one tormenting him.

"Come on Reno," a black kid behind him called, fluidly pushing his sunglasses further up his nose, "let the poor kid go. Zack seemed to take a liking to him today."

"That's why we need to teach him a lesson," he said in a slightly amused tone, "there is no one here who gives a shit. No one is going to save him."

"I'd have to disagree."

Before Cloud could figure out what happened, the red head was thrown a few feet away from him, kneeling on the ground, rubbing his jaw. Cloud turned his head to find the black haired kid who stuck up for him earlier holding a fist slightly in the air. He looked over at Cloud and smiled.

"You son of a bitch," Reno shouted, pulling himself off the floor and lunging at the other kid, throwing a fist which successfully made contact with his left cheek. He didn't get blown back very far and managed to step around him a bit and take hold of him in a headlock. The red head struggled.

"Leave him alone."

"Why," Reno hissed.

"Because I said so." He dropped Reno to the ground and grabbed a hold of Cloud's bag, throwing it over his shoulder and walking away. Cloud look at the red head and the black kid who was giving him an amused look. Then he realized the other kid had his bag. He ran after him.

"Hey, wait up," he called, "I need that!"

"I know, I'm just carrying it for you," he replied once Cloud had managed to weave through the other kids to his side. "So where are you headed?"

Cloud opened up his schedule. "Gym with Mr. Wallace."

"Oh, he's a hard ass," he chuckled lightly, "but I think you'll like him. He'll toughen you up so you can kick Reno and Rude's asses."

"What's your name," Cloud asked.

"Zack Fair," he replied, extending a hand. Cloud took it.

"Nice to meet you."

"Pleasure's all mine," Zack replied. "So you're a Sophomore."

Cloud nodded his head, keeping his eyes straight ahead to keep track of where he was going to remember the route for the next day. "What grade are you in?"

"I'm a senior," he replied, "it's pretty weird that a Sophomore got into Advanced Physics. I think that's probably why they were picking on you. Little kid in a big kid's territory. Poor you. Me stickin' up for you probably didn't help much either. Sorry about that."

"No, I appreciate it," Cloud replied, looking at him with a smile.

"Well, here's the gym," Zack said, handing over Cloud's back pack. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah, see ya."

Cloud wasn't so sure how the rest of the day would go from then on, but having just one person who wasn't a complete douche bag talking to him, helping him out, it brightened his outlook considerably.

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