Author's Note: Alright! Chapter three is up. Things are coming right
along. I have all of these ideas stirring in my mind. I think there will
be quite a few more chapters to come! Be patient: Romance shall come.
You can't rush these things! ;-) Please review so I know if I am on the
right track.
Disclaimer: You know the drill (or at least you should by now). I own nuttin'!
***
Quistis awoke in the morning, still groggy and yearning for more sleep. Last night had been a strange night to say the least. She'd gone undercover at a bar in Fisherman's Horizon, hoping to hear some talk about the mysterious disappearances of a few people in town. She had not been directly assigned as a SeeD to the case, but there was something about it that drew her in. Balamb Garden was only staying at Fisherman's Horizon for a few days for repairs and supplies. Thus, if she wanted going to solve this mystery, she would have to do it fast. She could not keep her mind off of it and thought it was weird that the town carried on as though nothing had happened. Three people had disappeared, but the town did not seem phased. There did not appear to be an investigation led by the police either. No one seemed to know the three people, and yet the records showed that they had all lived in Fisherman's Horizon for years. Quistis could sense in her gut that things were not right.
She had sat at the bar for hours, and uncovered nothing. Instead she had spent her time trying to keep middle-aged drunks from hitting on her. She had gotten tired of everything and left empty handed. Things had only gotten stranger when she reached Balamb Garden. As she had approached the Garden she had seen a familiar figure, but she had thought she was too tired and was imagining things. Once she was closer, she knew for a fact that it was Seifer Almasy. She had hesitated for a moment before saying anything to him. It must have been about half a year since she had seen the fallen knight. It made her uneasy to think back on his devilish smirk and cruel eyes he'd flashed at her during the Sorceress War. She wondered if he still had some evil inside of him. Was that why he had come back to Balamb Garden? Part of her was afraid of him, but the fighter in her knew that she would never back down to him.
Their conversation had yielded Quistis no explanation for his sudden appearance. She was not having luck in finding answers to any mysteries. It was very frustrating for Quistis, because she could not give up and say something was unexplainable. She knew that everything had an answer to it, and she had the compulsive need to uncover it.
It was not until after Seifer left that a thought came to Quistis: Was Seifer somehow involved in these strange disappearances? Perhaps he still did have some evil inside of him. The thought was unsettling. She decided that she would try to find where he was staying, and ask him a few questions about the disappearances. She wouldn't be so bold as to accuse him of them, but she wanted to try to get out some information from him.
Quistis wondered where Seifer could be staying. She thought back to the night before and recalled the direction he had been walking. Perhaps if she followed that route, she would stumble upon his residence.
Just as Quistis managed to pull her body out of her bed, a knock came at her door. She wondered who the heck it could be this early in the morning. She quickly grabbed a sweater to put over her head, since she had worn just a thin tank top to bed, and opened the door. On the other side of the door was someone very unexpected.
"Squall?" Quistis said hoarsely since it was the first thing she had said that morning. "Is something wrong?"
It was very rare for Squall to appear at her room, especially this early in the morning. His worried expression made her even more concerned.
Squall ran a hand through his chestnut hair, only to have it fall back into his face. "Do you remember Adrien Cummings?"
Quistis nodded her head. Adrien had been her brightest student. He had always aced his examinations and was an excellent problem solver. The only thing that had held him back from being a great SeeD was that he lacked in physical strength. Quistis knew the kid had tried extremely hard to master his weapon and do well in the field, but some things could not be learned, they just had to be natural.
"Of course I remember him. What about him?" Quistis was a concerned now, for Squall's eyes were reflecting worry, despite the fact that he was trying very hard to remain in reserve and not upset Quistis.
"Well, he's disappeared," Squall said frankly. Quistis was shocked to hear this.
"How the hell could he disappear?" Quistis was letting her emotions show through. Adrien had always been a very kind individual and Quistis and him had always gotten along well.
"This morning his window was broken and we could not find him anywhere." Squall trailed off.
"How the hell could someone break into his window without the alarm setting off?" Quistis was becoming angry now. Balamb Garden was supposed to have one of the most advanced security systems available. There were numerous cameras on the premises, and after curfew each dormitory had alert systems on the windows and door that would activate if opened or broken. Adrien's room should have alarmed and he should never have been kidnapped.
"I don't know," Squall said, a little perturbed. He knew that he would be getting questioned about the incident all day long. This was the joy of being commander of Balamb Garden. "It must have been premeditated because somehow the security system was deactivated for a few minutes last night."
"No one has the security code but Cid and you though, right?" Quistis was trying to run possibilities through her mind.
"That's true. Perhaps it was hacked into though, although I don't know how that could be possible," Squall stated. He was beginning to make Quistis angry since he was remaining so calm and virtually unphased by the situation. What human could be so solid and together all the time? He was definitely the only person she knew that could mask his thoughts and feelings so well. Those crystal blue eyes were the only tip off to the worry inside his mind, despite the rest of his body's façade of confidence.
He continued speaking in a professional manner. "There will be an investigation. I wanted your input on who I should assign to it."
Quistis lowered her head for a moment and then looked up to him saying "Me. I'll investigate it."
Squall sighed and told her "Quistis, you all ready have a lot of things going on. Do you really think you should take on something else?"
Quistis felt as though she was being patronized. How could he know what she could handle? The only thing she felt she couldn't bear was seeing someone do a half-assed job of something, especially when it was over a very important matter. This was why she overloaded herself with work; she was the only person she could truly trust to get things done to her liking.
Glaring at Squall she said definitively "Yes I think I should do this."
Squall shook his head but seceded and said tiredly "Whatever. Don't be afraid to ask for help though. Choose anyone you would like to aid you."
He turned around and walked out of her room. Quistis sat down on her bed and reflected upon the events. Where would she get started? Was all this related to the other disappearances of Fisherman Horizon? She tried desperately to piece a puzzle to which she had gathered very few pieces.
Disclaimer: You know the drill (or at least you should by now). I own nuttin'!
***
Quistis awoke in the morning, still groggy and yearning for more sleep. Last night had been a strange night to say the least. She'd gone undercover at a bar in Fisherman's Horizon, hoping to hear some talk about the mysterious disappearances of a few people in town. She had not been directly assigned as a SeeD to the case, but there was something about it that drew her in. Balamb Garden was only staying at Fisherman's Horizon for a few days for repairs and supplies. Thus, if she wanted going to solve this mystery, she would have to do it fast. She could not keep her mind off of it and thought it was weird that the town carried on as though nothing had happened. Three people had disappeared, but the town did not seem phased. There did not appear to be an investigation led by the police either. No one seemed to know the three people, and yet the records showed that they had all lived in Fisherman's Horizon for years. Quistis could sense in her gut that things were not right.
She had sat at the bar for hours, and uncovered nothing. Instead she had spent her time trying to keep middle-aged drunks from hitting on her. She had gotten tired of everything and left empty handed. Things had only gotten stranger when she reached Balamb Garden. As she had approached the Garden she had seen a familiar figure, but she had thought she was too tired and was imagining things. Once she was closer, she knew for a fact that it was Seifer Almasy. She had hesitated for a moment before saying anything to him. It must have been about half a year since she had seen the fallen knight. It made her uneasy to think back on his devilish smirk and cruel eyes he'd flashed at her during the Sorceress War. She wondered if he still had some evil inside of him. Was that why he had come back to Balamb Garden? Part of her was afraid of him, but the fighter in her knew that she would never back down to him.
Their conversation had yielded Quistis no explanation for his sudden appearance. She was not having luck in finding answers to any mysteries. It was very frustrating for Quistis, because she could not give up and say something was unexplainable. She knew that everything had an answer to it, and she had the compulsive need to uncover it.
It was not until after Seifer left that a thought came to Quistis: Was Seifer somehow involved in these strange disappearances? Perhaps he still did have some evil inside of him. The thought was unsettling. She decided that she would try to find where he was staying, and ask him a few questions about the disappearances. She wouldn't be so bold as to accuse him of them, but she wanted to try to get out some information from him.
Quistis wondered where Seifer could be staying. She thought back to the night before and recalled the direction he had been walking. Perhaps if she followed that route, she would stumble upon his residence.
Just as Quistis managed to pull her body out of her bed, a knock came at her door. She wondered who the heck it could be this early in the morning. She quickly grabbed a sweater to put over her head, since she had worn just a thin tank top to bed, and opened the door. On the other side of the door was someone very unexpected.
"Squall?" Quistis said hoarsely since it was the first thing she had said that morning. "Is something wrong?"
It was very rare for Squall to appear at her room, especially this early in the morning. His worried expression made her even more concerned.
Squall ran a hand through his chestnut hair, only to have it fall back into his face. "Do you remember Adrien Cummings?"
Quistis nodded her head. Adrien had been her brightest student. He had always aced his examinations and was an excellent problem solver. The only thing that had held him back from being a great SeeD was that he lacked in physical strength. Quistis knew the kid had tried extremely hard to master his weapon and do well in the field, but some things could not be learned, they just had to be natural.
"Of course I remember him. What about him?" Quistis was a concerned now, for Squall's eyes were reflecting worry, despite the fact that he was trying very hard to remain in reserve and not upset Quistis.
"Well, he's disappeared," Squall said frankly. Quistis was shocked to hear this.
"How the hell could he disappear?" Quistis was letting her emotions show through. Adrien had always been a very kind individual and Quistis and him had always gotten along well.
"This morning his window was broken and we could not find him anywhere." Squall trailed off.
"How the hell could someone break into his window without the alarm setting off?" Quistis was becoming angry now. Balamb Garden was supposed to have one of the most advanced security systems available. There were numerous cameras on the premises, and after curfew each dormitory had alert systems on the windows and door that would activate if opened or broken. Adrien's room should have alarmed and he should never have been kidnapped.
"I don't know," Squall said, a little perturbed. He knew that he would be getting questioned about the incident all day long. This was the joy of being commander of Balamb Garden. "It must have been premeditated because somehow the security system was deactivated for a few minutes last night."
"No one has the security code but Cid and you though, right?" Quistis was trying to run possibilities through her mind.
"That's true. Perhaps it was hacked into though, although I don't know how that could be possible," Squall stated. He was beginning to make Quistis angry since he was remaining so calm and virtually unphased by the situation. What human could be so solid and together all the time? He was definitely the only person she knew that could mask his thoughts and feelings so well. Those crystal blue eyes were the only tip off to the worry inside his mind, despite the rest of his body's façade of confidence.
He continued speaking in a professional manner. "There will be an investigation. I wanted your input on who I should assign to it."
Quistis lowered her head for a moment and then looked up to him saying "Me. I'll investigate it."
Squall sighed and told her "Quistis, you all ready have a lot of things going on. Do you really think you should take on something else?"
Quistis felt as though she was being patronized. How could he know what she could handle? The only thing she felt she couldn't bear was seeing someone do a half-assed job of something, especially when it was over a very important matter. This was why she overloaded herself with work; she was the only person she could truly trust to get things done to her liking.
Glaring at Squall she said definitively "Yes I think I should do this."
Squall shook his head but seceded and said tiredly "Whatever. Don't be afraid to ask for help though. Choose anyone you would like to aid you."
He turned around and walked out of her room. Quistis sat down on her bed and reflected upon the events. Where would she get started? Was all this related to the other disappearances of Fisherman Horizon? She tried desperately to piece a puzzle to which she had gathered very few pieces.