Author's Note: Alright guys, how you all enjoying the new school year? Haha, my seme started before me, and I still can't start because my books haven't gotten here yet. : P Anyway, this chapter brings Aerith into the storyline. I always laugh when she pulls Cloud off the road in ADVENT CHILDREN COMPLETE, because it's like, "WTF? I'm riving here!" XD Alright, enjoy this random chapter - the following takes place two days before the start of school.

Retarded and High

Zack looked up from his breakfast cereal at Cloud, his blond lover leaning against the fridge with a bored expression. "So like...Sora and Roxas are gonna go help out your parents for a few days?" The ravenette swallowed another spoonful of puffs. "Why?"

"Chew with your mouth closed..." Cloud muttered. "Roxas apparently got into some trouble again a few weeks ago...something about a party at the park. He said he wants to spend some time away from Axel."

Zack dropped his spoon into the now empty bowl. "What? But they're like, inseparable!"

"That's what happens when you get drunk." The blond shifted from the refrigerator and checked the clock on the stove. "Alright, I'm headin' over to the old place."

"Why?" Zack asked, getting up from the bar counter with his bowl.

"I'm watching over the house while they're gone." He walked around to peck his lover on the cheek. "I'll be back in a few days."

Cloud rode Fenrir through the tourist-crowded roads, his blond spikes flipping this way and that. His eyes widened comically as he was suddenly pulled from the road and into a white abyss.

He stood amongst the flowers, a hand covering his face as he sighed. "Damnit Aerith, do you have any idea how ridiculous this is?"

The brunette sighed. "I couldn't get a hold of Zack."

Cloud turned and glared at her. "Then try him again – I'm driving right now!"

The Ancient folded her arms over her chest. "Well I'm so very sorry for wanting to tell you that I'll be returning to the states to see you boys again. How rude of me." She turned on her heel so her long braid smacked into the blonds' side.

"Wait...you're coming back?"

Aerith looked over her shoulder. "Yes, I'll be back before the start of Sora and Roxas' school year."

Cloud sighed. "That's only a few days away..."

"I know."

And out of nowhere, Cloud was back on the road, only a few minutes away from his old house. He swerved a bit on the hot asphalt, startling an old lady in a Buick. Damn Aerith and her pulling me out of the real world into whatever the Hell that is...

It was nine in the evening when Cloud heard the doorbell ring. "What the fuck?" He stood up from the comfy living room couch and set his book down on a pillow, waking Oathkeeper from his nap. The blond shifted one of the vertical blinds and saw three familiar bikes lined up in the driveway. "Oh no..." He sighed and figured he might as well answer the door.

Yazoo, Loz, and Kadaj all grinned as they were graced with the blonds' presence.

"Cloud, great to see ya!" Kadaj let himself into the house, waltzing straight past the nearly twitching male into the living room. "So brother, where do you keep the booze?"

Cloud sighed and nodded for the other two silverettes to enter his old house and shut the door behind them. "You know damn well minors live here, and stop calling me brother. It's annoying."

Yazoo threw himself onto the couch, snatching the book Cloud had set down and reading it aloud. "Production of lambda phage particles occurs after the repressor is inactivated... Dude, what?" He turned to the cover of the book. "Biology of microorganisms. ...why do you have my dad's old school book?"

Cloud plucked the book from the puzzled male and placed it on one of the shelves across the room. "Because I have a vast thirst for knowledge, now what do you three want?"

Loz, who had apparently been carrying an ominous black duffle, dropped the bag onto the floor and knelt down. He unzipped it and pulled out several things that had Cloud wondering wether or not to call Zack. The silverette had retrieved several decks of nude playing cards, twelve cans of beer...and a bong.

"Alright, out of my house."

Kadaj stepped over and slung an arm around the blonds' shoulders. "Cloud, you need to relax. We're all just gonna spend the night, get drunk, get high, and loosen you up a bit."

Cloud quirked a brow. "That had better not be sexual..."

Yazoo laughed and hopped off the couch, scooping a disgruntled Oathkeeper into his arms and cradling him. "C'mon brother, just one night of fun, it won't kill ya."

Cloud snorted. "...fine, but only because..."

Loz sat down on the floor with his legs crossed. "Because what?"

The blond screwed his eyes shut, snatched a can of beer from the floor, and downed half of it in one gulp. He sighed and opened his eyes. "Aerith's coming back."

The triplets gasped.

"What? When did you find this out?" Yazoo asked, sitting on the carpet and reaching up to yank the blond down beside him.

"A few hours ago." He took another swig of the awful liquid.

Kadaj joined them on the floor and helped himself to a beer. "You do realize...that with Aerith coming back...she'll want to see Zack."

Cloud looked absolutely distraught. "I know..." He finished off the can and smashed it against his forehead, a bad habit he had picked up from the ravenette in college. He helped himself to another and let out a shaky breath. "I don't know what I'm gonna do..."

Loz clapped the blond on the back. "You'll be okay. It's not like you're gonna lose him for good, ya know?"

Yazoo released Oathkeeper and pulled the brightly colored bong so it was in the center of the group. "Alright, let's all stop with the emo shit and get high."

"Got any 3's?" Yazoo asked, a smoking joint hanging from his lips.

"Go fish." Cloud muttered, taking a gulp of beer.

"I thought we were playing Old Maid..." Loz said, frowning and looking completely lost.

"Bullshit!" Kadaj called out, pointing at his short-haired brother.

Cloud picked up his own joint and took a drag. "Wrong game asshole." He blew out the smoke and sighed contentedly.

Three more hours later, around five in the morning by now, the four high-off-their-ass males decided it was time to turn in. Cloud helped himself to his old room, curling under the Chocobo-print sheets with a dopey grin on his face. Loz was in the guest room, sprawled out with the covers twisted around his left foot and a can of beer sitting idly on the bedside table. This left Yazoo and Kadaj sleeping in Sora and Roxas' room, the shorter-haired male on the top bunk with his brother on the bottom.

It was just before the crack of dawn when Kadaj awoke to a horrible screeching sound just outside the window. The high-pitched noises began to scare him and he peaked over the edge of the bed, looking down at his brother to see if he was the only one hearing the strange noises or not.

Yazoo cracked open an eye when he heard the sound of possums fighting...or fucking, he really couldn't tell, and saw Kadaj looking down at him from the top bunk. Huh...brother's awake... with that thought, he fell right back into sleep.

Kadaj whimpered when his brother gave no sign of hearing the terrifying sounds coming from outside, and for the rest of the night, he lay there awake with wide eyes.

Loz groaned when the doorbell rang at ten in the morning, the guest room being right beside the front hall. He stumbled out of bed and kicked the tangle covers off himself, walking unsteadily towards the front door. It took him five tries to find the right key to unlock the door, and he moaned pathetically when the sunlight hit him.

"Loz Remnant Valentine!" Tifa shouted, her hands on her hips as she stared him down. "You were gone all last night, you didn't even have the courtesy to call, and you were getting high and drunk to boot. You're coming home right now." She would've kicked the glass door in, but luckily it was unlocked and Loz stepped out and hugged his wife.

"I'm sorry, I should've called..." He mumbled into the brunette's hair. Tifa sighed and patted him on the back.

"Alright c'mon, let's cram your bike into the back of the truck."

The couple left and hours later, so did the other silverettes. Cloud spent the rest of the day getting over his nasty hangover as he threw out the empty beer cans and destroyed the evidence of last night.

Sora and Roxas walked into the house around six in the afternoon, both lugging bags full of back-to-school shopping sales. The twins stopped when they smelt the familiar smell of pot and snickered, both glad that their brother had finally let loose for once.

Zack sighed as he turned the TV off, scratching the back of his head lazily and making his way to the stairs. He stopped when the sound of someone stepping on a Chocobo came from the front hall and quirked a brow. "Who would be showing up at this hour?" He checked the clock on the stove and saw it was shortly after midnight. Zack knew it couldn't be Cloud – the blond had called and told him that he'd be staying home for another day due to a hangover. With a resound sigh he made his way through the dark house to the front door, entered the security code on the panel beside it, and found his front porch light to be burnt out. "Aw damnit to Hell..."

"Zack?"

The ravenette blinked and flicked on the light in the hall, his eyes going wide and his jaw dropping at the sight on his front porch.

Aerith stood with her hands behind her back, her usual pink dress wrinkled from sleeping on the plane, her red denim jacket barely hanging on her shoulders, and her flower-print luggage beside her. "I'm back."

"...shit."