Xifa's Notes: Don't own band camp, don't own the title really, and definitely don't own the characters, although I am looking for action figures of Cloud, Sephiroth, and Commander Leonhart, if anyone knows where to find them!!!
Chapter XVI: The Revolt
Band practice that day was unusually suspenseful. Everyone involved in the revolt was waiting to see whether their work had been successful or in vain. ''The anti-s'', as Yuffie called them, were easily spotted amongst the group—they were the confused ones. Elena was still AWOL, but that was okay. Nobody complained.
"Why are you all so quiet?" Commander Leonhart frowned, glaring suspiciously at all of them. His eyes lingered the longest on Yuffie, who just stared back at him. He finally shook his head and reached for his baton. He frowned and looked behind his conductor's score. Nothing. He looked around and finally glared at the bandies.
"Who's got it?" he scowled.
"Not me," Yuffie smiled cheerfully. "For once."
He glared at her and then glanced up, something on the ceiling catching his eye. Aeris glanced up to see what 'Doom of the Living' had pulled off. On the ceiling was a colorful banner that read, ''Looking for me?'' Underneath was his baton, held up by masking tape. Drawn messily on the tape with a crayon was, oddly, a tree. Commander Leonhart scowled and pulled it down, then started the song.
Even from the back where Sephiroth was sitting, he could tell there was a group of instruments really off-beat with the rest of the band. He listened carefully (all the tenor saxes had in this particularly boring part of the song were quarter notes, so he didn't have to pay as much attention) and decided it was, collectively, the instruments that composed the group Clear Tranquil. Sephiroth wondered if this was part of the revolt, but said nothing. He looked over to Cloud, who shrugged at him once he realized Sephiroth was trying to get his attention. As soon as Sephiroth had a rest, he held one finger up at Cloud as if to say, 'One minute and he notices we're offbeat'.
Cloud grinned and shook his head, disagreeing. Sephiroth set his watch, but had underestimated the commander. Only fifteen seconds passed before he waved the band to a halt.
"Rude, where's the block?" he practically hissed.
"I dunno," Rude shrugged.
Commander Leonhart threw his arm down angrily and started searching for it. It only took him a minute to find the post-it note taped to the wood-block solo measure in the song. 'Please save me', it read. Undoubtedly the work of the group Greased Lightning.
Cid and Yuffie had anticipated it to take awhile before Commander Leonhart put two and two together, but he had figured it out quickly. He stormed outside, so naturally the rest of the bandies followed him like sheep follow their leader.
Tied around one of the largest, widest, and oldest trees in the entire world was the woodblock.
"Omigosh…" Tifa laughed. "So this was their plan…"
"I see Yuffie, but where's Cid?" Shera asked nervously.
"I think he's behind the tree so Commander Leonhart won't see him," Tifa pointed. Shera walked behind the tree, and sure enough, Cid was standing there.
"Alright, let's light 'em up," he grinned, taking a drag from his cigarette before expertisely using it to light what appeared to be a firecracker.
"CID!!! What have I told you about smoking?!" Shera cried. "Hand them over!"
Meanwhile, the other bandies were watching the woodblock nervously, wondering what was going to happen. Commander Leonhart started walking toward it, and then stopped. His expertise training had taught him to know better then to walk into such an obvious trap.
And sure enough, with a loud POP, the woodblock went flying through the air. Everyone watched as it went up, then fell to the ground, right at the Commander's feet.
"Oooh! Do it again!" a piccoloist named Heidigger yelled. "GWAHhahaha—"
"Shove it," a French-hornist named Rufus told him, slicking his hair back.
It didn't matter. All Yuffie needed as a go-ahead. Using all the material she'd collected, the bandies, and even Commander Leonhart, watched in awe as fire, ice, and lightning shot through the air. She ended it with a dramatic showy limit break of incandescent light. Everyone was silent in amazement, and then slowly began clapping.
Commander Leonhart picked up the charred remains of the wood block and turned to the group.
"An excellent performance. Perhaps you could do it again during the climax of 'Holding My Thoughts in my Heart'?" he asked.
"What?" Yuffie asked, dumbstruck.
"Exactly as I said. I want that at the key change in that song, at the climax. And I want to take this time to tell you all that you're excellent musicians. There's no practice needed to make tonight's performance better. So, we're done playing for the rest of practice."
"So, you're not mad?" Yuffie asked incredulously, eyes wide as saucers and sparkling in almost an anime-style look.
"Mad? I'm furious! All of you, run laps until class would typically end!" Commander Leonhart barked.
There was total silence as everyone stared in shock at him. Did he have any idea how long that was?
"Ugh! Give it to me!"
"Ow!"
The bandies were naturally drawn to the source of the noise. Shera had her hands shoved in an angry Cid's pockets. They paused, jumping away from each other, hands behind their backs guiltily.
"Two extra laps for you two," Commander Leonhart put his head in hand, shaking it sadly.
Has anyone noticed how often he does this when he gets picked off in FF8?
Sorry, I didn't really know what would happen if you put a firecracker to a woodblock, so I took my creative license and just took a really wild guess.
Final notes: Also, I want to thank The Author-2 for the idea. I hope it was them. I really do. I have no idea who it was, but their name was at the top of the page a few chapters back, so I'm gonna assume it was them. If not, kill me and if I come back I'll thank you too…
Love and peace,
Xifa
P.S. I had last chapter down as 14 even though it was 15. Sorry.