Well, hi! I'd like to thank my three reviewers (damn it, people! Make me happy and clic on that BIG, green BUTTON. Not too hard, is it?), Miserable At Best (you ROCK my SOCKS XD), Murasaki Shibiku (thansk, really =D) and Light (ooh, is L there too? XD Sorry 'bout that). I LOVE you three! Thank you so much!! =)

On another note, this chapter is much, much shorter than all my other chapters, really sorry. I just couldn't find anything worth mentioning in it...

WARNING : Slight SHONEN-AI between Zack and Cloud, but not much!! I just love the couple way too much to just let it be, so it will come up sometimes. Since I realize not everybody is a yaoi-fan like me (pitty that...), I promise I won't write any in this story. Except for that tiny, eensy bit of ZackxCloud. Couldn't resist. =P Since the time-line will be slightly off, I'll arrange it as good as I can to follow the story-line.

Oh, and also, it will take a few chapters more (like one or two max) before Ren meets Gen-Gen. Can't rush it all, can we?

Chapter Three: Materia and Accidents

When she got to her room, she stared pitifully at it. It was grey, with the walls made of steel. The bed was small and looked very uncomfortable, the white standard sheets looking like those of a hospital. Beside it there was a night able with a plastic clock, and facing the bed stood a tiny closet. It all smelled clean and cold, the air being purified and filtered by a small ventilator placed above her head.

Looking back at Zack, she sighed in a depressed tone. The man gave her a small, strained smile. "It seems you didn't make the best impression on Seph: he gave you one of the smallest rooms. At least you have a clock, the cadets don't. It's a general alarm that awakes them." He then straightened up, "You will start training tomorrow at six. I'll show you where you will have your classes with the other cadets."

Ren frowned, "I never asked for training." But Zack just smiled, "Consider it a bonus!" Before he dragged her off to show her the rooms where she would study, train, and eat. When they came to the cafeteria, they stumbled upon a certain blond cadet. Said boy (he could only have been fifteen or sixteen at most) smiled so brightly Ren thought he had swallowed the sun.

"Zack! I thought you were still with Aerith." The boy then looked at her curiously. Zack proceeded to hug the now spluttering blond, crowing about his cute chocobo-head, and how he had missed him. When the blond finally managed to pry of his… friend? Boyfriend? (She internally squealed at that thought) Anyway, when he had managed to pry him off, Zack introduced them to each other.

"Ren, Chocobo. Chocobo, Ren." Said chocobo glared playfully at him, and thwacked him upside the head. "I'm Cloud Strife. Sorry about Zack, he's horrible at times." His smile turned into a grimace when Zack latched onto him, crying about his chocobo being a bad boyfriend that said mean things and wouldn't even say hello properly. Cloud sighed heavily and pecked the other on the lips.

Ren had to slap a hand to her mouth to force her former mental squeal to become very real.

"Cloud is going to be with you in your classes, he can help you if you need anything."

Cloud nodded his head, and Ren thanked them both.

---

The sergeant teaching materia class was yelling incoherent babbling, something about spirit, mako and mind. She understood nothing of the rest, and by the look of the other boys (unfortunately, she was the only girl. Something about them being weak and unable to become SOLDIER, whatever that was), she wasn't the only one.

Ren couldn't help but gulp loudly when the sergeant looked at her maliciously, pointed at her and ordered her to come down. Why did teachers always have to hate her? It seemed she was a magnet to unwanted things, teachers being on the top list. World travel was second.

When she was beside him, he smirked broadly.

"Well, class! Seems like we hav' a newbie, aye? So, girlie, let's see what yeh can do." That had been understandable, and some boys let out a snicker. Cloud just shook his head in sympathy, probably used to all of this.

The sergeant went to his desk, picking up a white-ish green materia after some searching. His smirk became even larger when he looked back at her. Ren just knew he had picked something that was going to be very difficult for her. Cloud, meanwhile, had straightened up nervously.

'This is bad, that's probably a mastered materia! Or at least level3! The sergeant himself would have difficulties to activate it.' He clenched his teeth in frustration, not knowing what to do. Some of the other boys who knew as much as him and where looking at her in sympathy. Those who didn't just looked on curiously.

Ren swallowed some saliva that had accumulated in her mouth, and reached for the thing in the sergeant's hand. When she hesitated, he glared at her, took her wrist in a tight grip, holding it in place, and placed it forcefully in her palm.

The reaction was instantaneous, and the teacher was thrown back into the wall a few meters behind him. Waves of blue, black and green were circling and swirling around Ren, creating some sort of protection. Crackles of electricity were running up and down her body. Slowly, very slowly, she was lifted up by the energy encasing her. Her eyes were glazed over, but they seemed to shine from within.

Her breath hitched, and she frowned. She looked to be in pain.

PowerBurnHeatPainFLASHDarknessITHURTS.

And she screamed, long and loud.

As suddenly as it began, it stopped. The aura that had been surrounding her retracted itself in the materia, and she crumpled to the floor. Nobody dared to move, even as she fainted. The sergeant cleared his throat in a nervous reaction, and that made everybody react instantly. Whispers and talking were heard throughout the classroom as they argued about what happened.

Who was she, to be able to do that? Hadn't the sergeant said she'd had no training prior to this? How had she done it?

Cloud had jumped up as soon as he had they had started talking, and went to her to take her on his back. He quickly said to the sergeant that he was taking her to the infirmary and left, with Ren moaning in pain and the class, sergeant included, gaping at their backs.

Right... Hopefully you'll review... The button is just there, in the middle...

Very visible. Promise. Really.

2009-01-18: I EDITED A FEW THINGS, MOSTLY CHANGED A FEW SENTENCES SO IT SOUNDED BETTER. IF YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS, PLEASE TELL ME SO.