(Author's Note: Hey! Here's the next chapter for those of you who are reading this! Enjoy! Please R&R)

Disclaimer: Don't own don't sue! Any other characters are friends and mine though.

NOTE FROM RUEH: Hey, this is a chapter revised by me.  I hope you all like the detail I've added; I know Juzu does.  Sorry about the blonde thing in the last chapter, but I couldn't help myself.

Chapter 2

Marching and Problems

                                       -Next day-

"All right," Mr. Valentine huffed once he got the band quiet again.  "There are about 100 people in band this year and I'll need you all to cooperate with me and each other so we can learn the drills for marching.  Hopefully we'll have learned the drills AND the songs this year before competition.  That'll be a mile stone for us so lets aim for it this year."

Most of the students started talking again when Mr. Valentine met with drum majors to discuss the drills and music.  After about ten minutes he finally gave up talking to them and went back to the head of the band.

"Settle down," he said when he was ready to start. No one listened.  "SILENCE!" he yelled.  The entire band fell silent and stared at him in wonder.  "Now, get you instruments and go to the practice field," he said. 

The class filed out of the room into the empty hallway.  No one dared to speak as they walked through the hall, out the doors, between the buildings, then to the practice field.

They listened to Mr. Valentine's instructions, got into place then started playing.  Nothing they did seemed to be together so they had to practice saying 'Up,' several times then it was even worse when they were playing.  They had to stop a lot and after 15 they got a break when a red feline like beast padded swiftly up to the teacher.

"Hojo's trying to take over the school again!" the feline hissed.

"Hojo?" the entire band said together for the first time that day.

"Gosh! You can say his name as one but you can't yell 'UP' together!" Mr. Valentine shook his head then turned his attention back to Red who also shook his head.  "Hojo you say. Where's Tseng?" Vincent asked quietly so that the students would not overhear.

"That's just it…we don't know," Red replied shaking his head in confusion.

"This isn't good." Vincent tightened his lips and tried to think of what to do.

"What do you suggest we do?" Red asked; Vincent had turned back to the band.

"Band! Horns up!" Vincent yelled clapping his hands in time with the music they were to play.

"UP!" The band was together this time.

"1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, ready, go!" The band started to play.

"I don't know. Kick Hojo out and find Tseng?" Vincent suggested as he conducted the band.

"Might work…but how?" Red asked with feline amusement.

"Umm…not sure," Vincent said, he was watching the band with a critical eye, something wasn't going right but he couldn't quite point it out.

Red turned his eyes to the students and looked over them with a different kind of interest.  "Some of your students look like they might be good in a fight if trained correctly," he stated thoughtfully.

"Yes, but most of them just talk," Vincent said bluntly and rolled his eyes, he still couldn't find the problem.

Red chuckled.  "For now we'll just try to get rid of Hojo, and then we'll worry about finding Tseng." He turned and strolled back towards the building. Vincent watched him then turned back to the band. He turned in time to see a drumstick fly past his nose, so close he could feel the slight breeze in its wake.

"Red! Look out!" Vincent warned quickly, spinning around on his heels. Red spun around to his voice then jumped. He caught the stick like a Frisbee in his mouth. Vincent turned and looked at the percussionists.

Dete was holding the cymbals for Sephiroth to play; Rueh was walking over to Zack to hold the cymbals for him. Cloud was standing stock still, his blue eyes wide…he was holding only one drumstick in his left hand. He shook his head frantically and pointed at Sephiroth; Sephiroth just kept playing since the bad had not stopped playing.

Red came back and sat down next to Vincent. He dropped the drumstick at his feet then fixed his golden eyes on the spiky headed blonde.  His fiery tail twitched in irritation. "Come here," he ordered darkly.

"You're in trouble," Rufus sneered as Cloud slowly walked him towards Red and Vincent.

"Why did you throw the drumstick at me?" Red growled.

"It umm…" Cloud stammered trying to think quickly of what to say.  "I hit the cymbal and I lost my grip on it," he confessed.

"Sure," Red hummed sarcastically not believing a word of it.

"Honest!" Cloud cried.

"We'll see. We'll talk later," Red threatened and walked back to the building, tail twitching all the while.

"Back to your spot," Vincent ordered.

Everything was fine for about 5 minutes…but Vincent still couldn't point out the problem.

There was suddenly a yell heard over the entire band; Vincent was on the far side of the band making sure some freshmen were walking in step. He thought that may have been the problem, but it wasn't.

It started at the other end but when the domino effect hit the last person they landed in a cloud of dust at Vincent's feet. He shook his head slowly and looked at the lone figure still standing. It was the freshmen girl Rueh and she was laughing hysterically. Dete sat at her feet holding her foot that was for some reason bare. She blowing on her foot for some reason, Vincent walked over to them.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Dete dropped the cymbal…" Rueh laughed harder.

"And?" Vincent prompted when she didn't go on.

"It landed on her foot!" Rueh laughed more and pointed at the broken cymbal strap and the cymbal.

"It hurts! It hurts!!" Dete cried and continued to blow on her sore foot.

"Guess we'll just have to cut it off then won't we?" Vincent declared with out a hit he was kidding.

"You wouldn't! Mr. Valentine! If you did that I couldn't mar…me and my big mouth," Dete grumbled and pulled her shoe back on.

"Enough for today," Vincent announce to the half standing band.  "You're doing well. We'll try this again tomorrow." The rest class got up and followed the other half, back into building.

                                    ****

"All right class. Today we're going to the library to start on your first research paper," the 5th hour science teacher announced. The class gathered their books and followed her to the library. Cloud froze in the door way as he was just about to enter the big room. The librarian sat on a chair reading a book, when he looked up his eyes met Cloud's.

"Class this is Red XIII, he is the librarian. If you have any questions about regarding this paper ask him," the teacher said.

"Your reports are to be on star formations, yes?" Red purred.  "There are lots of books that I think will help you."

"Now you know what to do so get to work," the teacher instructed.

"Umm…Miss Lucrecia? I don't think the librarian likes me," Cloud whined and tried to hide behind her.

"Do you want an 'F' to start out this year or what? Never mind that. Just get to work, I'm sure Red XIII is not like that. Now, your report is due in 3 days, and I expect it to be finished" she said.

"Yeah…but…" Cloud trailed off as Lucrecia walked away; Cloud quickly looked around and took a seat at the table with his friends.

"Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy Shera!"

"Yes Cid?" the girl asked, looking up from the paper she had been writing on.

"Do this report for me?" He put on the sorriest look he could muster up at the time.

"Cid Highwind! Do it yourself! If you want to be the first man in space this will help you," she snapped as Cloud sat down next to Cid.

"I'm afraid of Red," Cloud murmured and looked around the library to see if the feline was watching him.

"After that stunt you pulled in band you ought to be." Cid grinned at the blondes withering look.

"I wonder how Sephiroth likes this science class? He has it next hour," Shera said suddenly.

"Why should that bother you?" Cloud asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Miss Lucrecia is his mother," she answered.

"Are you serious?" Cid laughed as she nodded.

"Hey you guys look like you could use some help! I've already gotten 4 of the 5 pages assigned done." Aeris smiled and pulled up a chair to sit down next to Shera; the 3 stared at her. "What?" she asked nervously; they just kept staring at her.

After a few more minutes of silent staring Aeris decided she had had enough of THAT look.

"Umm…I'm going to go talk to Red now…" Her face red was with embracement as she left.

"Show off," Shera muttered and turned her attention back to a book and jotted down some more notes.

"Is she really that smart?" Cloud asked looking after the departing girl.

"I think she is but only she knows…" Cid rolled his eyes. "Think I can get her to do my report?" Cid wondered.

Cloud shrugged.

                                    ****

"I wonder…who could that be?" Hojo asked himself. There was another knock at the door and it was none to patient.  Hojo stood up and opened the door to find two of the teachers there, but he knew these two.

"Hojo, where's Tseng?" Vincent demanded.

"Ahhh…Vincent and Red, nice to see you too. So what brings you to my lab today?" Hojo asked completely ignoring Vincent's tone of voice and question.

"This is no pleasure call; where's Tseng?" Red repeated for Vincent.

"Oh him? I'm not quite sure, why?" Hojo asked calmly.

"Hojo, where is he?" Vincent asked trying to stay calm.

"Go find him yourselves. I don't have the time and I have better things to do than to find someone who had so convenient lost themselves." Hojo laughed at his own joke, that all over wasn't that funny.

"Where is he?" Red growled and laid his ears back flat on his head in irritation.

"It's not my responsibility to keep track of him," Hojo said turning to face them once more only because the door had opened and Lucrecia hurried in the and handed him a file.

"Here is the file you wanted," she panted breathlessly.

"Lucrecia?" Vincent asked in surprised, he hadn't expected to HERE of all places.

"Huh? Vincent? Red? What's going on?" she asked in confusion and looked at each of the three for an explanation. Hojo grabbed her arm and pulled his gun out aiming it at her head.

"What are you doing?" she cried, panicking.

"What does it look like? I'm taking you hostage," Hojo sneered at her.

"Let her go," a voice said slowly and coldly.

"Sephiroth!" Lucrecia gasped in surprise at the sight of her son.

"Ahhh Sephiroth," Hojo cooed and motioned for him to come closer with the hand holding the gun.

"I thought you went home," Lucrecia stated slowly.

Sephiroth shook his head. "I did, but you should have been home an hour ago so I came to see if something was wrong and it looks as if I was right. You're Hojo I presume."

"I am," Hojo answered smugly

"Let my mother go."

"Not until these 2 quite bugging me about Tseng," Hojo said looking at Vincent and Red; they slowly started to back up towards the door. Sephiroth stepped passed them into the lab. Three soldiers came in through the door, one knocked Red out, another Sephiroth.

"Get them out of here," Hojo ordered then a thoughtful look came to his features. "I wonder…what will Mako do to the boy?"

"No!" Lucrecia cried and spun around to face Hojo.  "Don't do anything to him, please!"

She turned in time to see the 2 soldiers stoop down to pick up Red and the other dragged Sephiroth from the room by the arms.

"Silence. You don't have a say in this," Hojo growled and threw her to the floor; Vincent knelt next to her.

"How could you do this to him? He's your son!" Lucrecia cried.

"Easy…I have no son," Hojo sneered and aimed the gun at her once again.

"You…you…how could you say that?" she sobbed at the hurt she felt.

"That really doesn't matter. I've been waiting for this moment for a long…long time, so that I could finally finish my experiments with him." Hojo smiled at them none to friendly.

"You sick monster," Vincent snarled and twisted around to protect Lucrecia.

"Shut up," Hojo laughed and tightened his finger on the trigger, it went off. Vincent hastily pushed Lucrecia further back behind him, out of the way but wasn't fast enough to move himself and took the bullet in the chest.

"VINCENT!" she screamed with tears in her eyes; he fell backwards on the floor bleeding from what would have been a fatal wound. He heard Hojo laughing and Lucrecia yelling at him then darkness and silence reigned over all.

                                    ****

            (Author's Note: from Rueh, this is a little something…for Juzu before I left for Florida.  I hope you like it…Hehe, I just had to do one more chapter before I left.)