(Author's Note: Sorry this chapter is short…that's just the way it turned out…oh well…here it is…please r&r!)

Disclaimer: FF7 and Squaresoft are not mine. Anything else is mine and a friends.

Chapter 3

Suspicions and Experiments

                                       -Next Day-

"No teacher!" Yuffie yelled.

"Sephiroth isn't here either," Dete said so only Rueh heard.

"Yeah and Red the librarian wasn't there either when Tymih and I went to return her book," Rueh said.

"Hmm…" Dete looked to be thinking.

"Umm…what should we do? I don't see a sub," Rueh said.

"Oh well…FREE DAY!!"

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After the bell rang Dete and Rueh went to the office.

"May I help you?" the aid asked.

"Yes…umm…where's Mr. Valentine? He wasn't here today and we didn't have a sub," Rueh said.

"Red XIII isn't here either," Dete said.

"That's strange. Neither of them called in saying they wouldn't be here. Miss Lucrecia called and said she and Sephiroth wouldn't be here but that's all," the aid said.

"Yesterday we heard something about Hojo trying to take over the school. What's up with that?" Dete asked.

"Tseng is missing."

"Missing?" Rueh asked.

"You'd better be getting to your next class. Don't want to be late do you?"

"No…come on Rueh," Dete said.

They went out into the hall.

"Somethings wrong," Dete said.

"Yeah I know. Something happened to Mr. Valentine and Red and I bet you that this Hojo person has something to do with it," Rueh said.

"I won't bet because you're probably right," Dete said.

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"Vincent? Can you hear me? Wake up! Vincent!" Vincent groaned and let his eyes slowly open. Everything was blurry. There was something red above him.

"Vincent! Answer me!"

"…Red? What happened to you?" Vincent asked as his eyes focused on Red.

"Hojo," Red growled fixing his one eye one Vincent.

"Hojo did that to you?" Vincent asked.

"Yes. How do you feel?" Red said.

"Why do you ask?"

"Hojo shot you."

"He did, didn't he? I remember now," Vincent said and let his eyes close. He raised his left hand to rub his face but was met with something cold and hard. He opened his eyes more. Where his left hand should have been was a metal claw.

"I'll get Hojo for this," he said angrily and let the arm fall to his side. There was a sharp pain in his chest.

"Relax. Just rest. I'll think of a way to get out of here," Red said. Vincent nodded weakly.

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Sephiroth lay perfectly still staring blankly at the ceiling.

"I'm so sorry," Lucrecia said softly watching him through the glass wall of the cell.

"Get her out of here. Take her somewhere where she can't bother me," Hojo said. Two soldiers roughly grabbed her arms and started to drag her to the door.

"No! Don't take me away from Sephiroth!" she pleaded. Hojo ignored her. The soldiers dragged her from the lab.

Sephiroth heard Lucrecia but didn't have the strength to look. The Mako in his system was supposed to make him stronger but it felt like the opposite to him. His stomach was doing somersaults every time he tried to move. He could feel Hojo watching him. Hojo nodded and 2 soldiers entered the cell.

Sephiroth didn't do anything until they grabbed him by the arms. He started to struggle, ignoring the feeling in his stomach and his spinning head. He kicked the soldier on his left in the shin. His left arm was released. Sephiroth turned and punched the soldier on his right in his face. As the soldier stumbled back Sephiroth ran for the door.

He ran past Hojo who was smirking. Sephiroth's vision was beginning to double. He drew his breath in with a hiss as something sharp hit his arm. A red feathered dart.

The drug took instant affect. Sephiroth stumbled to his knees. Hojo walked over to him laughing softly.

"You'll have to do better than this to get away from me," he said.

Sephiroth slumped to the floor as darkness descended.

                                    ****