The two boys and the spirit ran through the hallways quickly. They were heading toward the source of the noise. It was apparently coming from the main lobby of the building.

They burst through the large doors hastily and found the rest of the students gathered there. They all turned toward the boys. They looked confused. Only Hakuren, Mikage, and Shuuri were freaking out.

Once they saw the calm expressions on their friends' faces, they began to relax. "I think it was only a drill." Shuuri said after somewhat regaining his composure. Hakuren glared at his cousin.

"Students," A booming voice reverberated against the large ornate walls. All heads turned towards the main doors. A large man, followed by five other officers, made his way gracefully to the front of the pack.

The man's silver hair glinted in the sunlight that was pouring in from the enormous windows surrounding the lobby. Hakuren studied this man carefully; something didn't feel right.

He glanced over at Shuuri. His cousin had tensed up and was completely rigid. His face went back to being emotionless. His eyes were like empty shells.

He turned toward Mikage. The blond had the face of a wild wolf. His teeth were showing. His hands were clenched tightly. His eyes held nothing but pure rage.

Hakuren pieced together what was happening in his head. "Is that Ayanami?" He whispered to his cousin. Shuuri didn't answer audibly. He simply nodded his head.

Hakuren looked back toward the captain, who had finally made his way to the front of the student body and was now beginning to address them.

"There is nothing to be afraid of. This was simply a drill. If there had been a real emergency, troops would have been deployed. We will always alert you in case of an actual emergency. Now that you know what to do in the event of a real emergency, you may be released at this time. That is all."

Ayanami was a man of few words, Hakuren guessed. He and his lackeys exited quickly and the students began to disperse. "Well, that was uneventful." Hakuren commented dryly.

A hand tugged on Hakuren's sleeve. It was Shuuri's, "We need to follow him. Now." His voice was tense; urgent. Hakuren glanced over at Mikage, who was currently too busy digging his nails into his palms to even notice the other blond.

Hakuren nodded toward his cousin, and the three of them set off to follow the captain. The captain seemed to have retreated into the recesses of a dark hallway secluded in the back corner of the room.

Hakuren stopped briefly to assess the situation that they were about to get themselves into. Were they about to risk their lives to save their friend? Yes.

Was it worth it? Hell yeah.

Shuuri looked back at his cousin worriedly, "You coming?" He called back at him. Hakuren shook his head and nodded. He jogged to catch up with Shuuri and Mikage.

~~~

It felt good to feel the wind in his hair again.

Frau zoomed through the setting sky on his hawkzile nimbly. His spirits were high as he was totally sure of himself. He was going to get Teito back; there was no doubt about that.

It was all a matter of time. He also guessed that he should look for Hakuren while he was there. The boy was smart; it was also only a matter of time before the blond figured out where Teito was.

"The military is so predictable." Frau commented aloud to himself. He speeded up as he saw the academy come into view across the horizon.

"Teito…please be okay." Frau said quietly as he began to descend toward the outskirts of the academy. He didn't want to be noticed this early on. That would be dumb.

He hid his hawkzile carefully behind some conveniently placed bushes and started towards the west wall of the looming building. He snuck up quietly and pressed himself up against the wall tightly.

He listened carefully for any sounds coming from the other side of the wall. When he was sure it was clear on the other side, he leapt up a nearby tree and jumped over the tall wall that was blocking the thick forest from the elite academy.

He landed in the middle of a training field which, thankfully, was empty at the moment. Frau walked slowly toward the main building as he tried to take in as much of his surroundings now as he could.

"Fancy" was the only word that came to mind. There was no doubt that the academy was up to date with the latest battle machinery and technology. They seemed to be prepared for anything.

Frau shuddered at the thought of fighting the Barsburg Empire again. The Raggs Kingdom was long gone, and yet the Empire still acted as though an enemy still lurked nearby.

Frau brushed the thought of war aside and focused on the task at hand. He was leaving here with Teito. That much he was sure of. And maybe Hakuren, if he was lucky.

He approached the main building. He looked up and found random hawkziles zooming past overhead. He sighed and snuck up to the side of the main building. That's when he realized something.

"Damn, I stick out like a sore thumb." He said aloud quietly. He knew that he needed a disguise if he even hoped to get past the front door. Luck seemed to be on his side, however, as a guard happened to pass by him at that moment.

Using everything that society had taught him on the streets, he jumped the guy clumsily. They both went crashing to the ground as Frau struggled to strip the defenseless man. Tired of listening to the man try to yell for help, Frau finally socked him in the face. The guard promptly passed out and the blonde bishop sighed again.

Once he had taken possession of the guard's clothes, and quickly disposed of his old clothes and the guard, he stood up and walked around the corner casually. He was heading for the main lobby of the central building; the most likely place he thought Teito would be.

He knew that by the end of this whole ordeal, he was going to have a major migraine.


I...I have no words to express how sorry I am for the lateness of this chapter. ;3;
Now that I'm graduated, I've become more flexible with my schedule...
JUST KIDDING. I'm busier than ever with all this college shiz.

...Also I've been highly distracted lately.
With family, Robot Unicorn Attack, the community theater...but mostly Robot Unicorn Attack. 8D

Anyways, enjoy this lame filler chapter!
I promise things will really heat up in the next chapter. ;D