A/N: I'm not sure exactly WHO I want Quistis to be with. Like, I want her to be with Irvine, cause he's much more fun than Squall, but at the same time I want her to be with Squall cause he's so...right for her in a way. Eh...Depending on how the story goes, I'll probably do alternate endings. I'm trying to even out the Quall-Quirvine in this story, but if it seems to go one way in one chapter, expect the next chapter to be the opposite, ok? I just wanted to let everyone know that before I get screams about "No! She has to be with Squall!" or "Aw...why not Irvine?", not saying that getting those reviews are bad in anyway, just explaining it before hand. Also, as you all may know, I really dislike Rinoa. But, and that is a big but, I will hold back my opinion on her depending on how you, the reviewers feel about her. There WILL be touches of Squinoa in this, but I assure you, it's not going to be a Squinoa. Whew...nice long rant!

Chapter Six

Quistis whispered to the guards, "Which one?"

Before the guards could speak, a sniffling girl came walking up to Quistis. She looked up, her big brown eyes pleading with Quistis. "Q...Priestess Masako? Is...Squall in?"

Quistis sighed. She looked at the guards and nodded her head. "I'll be out in a few seconds. Come on, Rinoa. Squall's just getting changed..."

Rinoa sniffled again and leaned against the support of the blonde. The cherry blossoms dangled in Rinoa's hair, giving her an innocent look. Squall walked out of the bathroom just as Irvine shut the main door. "What happened?" he asked, concerned at the fact that Rinoa was there, much more at the fact that Quistis was comforting her.

Suddenly, Rinoa bolted from Quistis' arms and ran straight into Squall, mumbling incoherently. Irvine gave her an eccentric look. "What? Stop mumbling girl!"

She sniffed twice and looked at the rest of the party. "My uncle, Senator Glenn Garai, was murdered..."

She went back to weeping in Squall's arm and he brushed down her hair. He looked up at Quistis who was now sitting on the couch Irvine was sleeping on. "Your uncle?" Rinoa nodded her head. "Well, then we know it's a Priestess."

Rinoa sniffled and looked at Quistis. "What?"

Squall looked a bit shocked. "And how? We barely searched for any clues..."

"Last night, the table Irvine was sitting at was discussing something about the assassin. The assassin wants to murder Laguna for what? None other than helping Galbadia in their time of need. Rinoa's uncle is murdered, so unless he was a miserable man who everyone hated, or he was against having Esthar help out Galbadia, it has to be a Priestess."

They all looked at Quistis. "Amazing. And you figured that all out in just a few minutes?" Irvine asked, laying a hand down on her shoulder. Squall felt a pang of jealousy storm through his heart, and Quistis notice his eyes getting a bit fiery.

'Maybe Irvine was right...' She laughed out loud at that fact. "Yes, I guess so. All what we have to do now is figure out which one."

Rinoa sniffled and rubbed her nose. "But what if the assassin murdered him to throw people off his, or her, trail?"

They all looked shocked at Rinoa. No one ever went against Quistis' notions. Squall coughed a bit. "Well, I doubt that it's a congressman, or anyone from Galbadia. They all want Esthar to help them rebuild their cities." Rinoa nodded. She hadn't thought about that fact.

Irvine searched his brain for a bit. "Rinoa, we also have to put you in as a suspect," he finally said. Quistis flinched as he said that. Sure, all three of them knew that, but did he have to say it?

"Me? Why me?" she asked as she stepped away from the trio. "Why the hell would I murder my uncle?"

Irvine held up his hands. "I know! But, it's apart of our job! We have to suspect everyone!"

Rinoa's eyes flared. "Irvine! Come on! You know me better than that! Just because I'm a sorceress doesn't mean that I want my uncle dead! Don't you think, if it was me, I would have murdered another senator? Why my own uncle?"

Irvine was backed into a corner. She had a very strong point. Quistis stood up, placing her hands on Rinoa's shoulders. "Calm down, ok? Yes, we do have to suspect everyone. But with every bit of evidence we come up with, we eliminate everyone, one by one."

Rinoa looked up at Quistis. Her brown eyes were tinged with red from her outburst. "Listen, I didn't do it. I have no reason to. You know, as well as you two know and I know, that I love Laguna too much to kill him. Same with all the senators! I've known them since I was a child! That, and I respect the priestesses for what they do."

Quistis nodded her head and walked away from Rinoa. "She's off the list. We'll call up Cid tonight and tell him about this."

The phone abruptly rang. Quistis groaned inwardly and walked over to it, picking it up. "Hello?"

"Priestess Masako, I assume?" the voice called out.

"This is her. Who is this?"

The voice coughed. "Unless you lay off of me and get off of my trail, I will be forced to murder someone else..."

Quistis was silent. The three of her partners stared blankly at her. "Excuse me?"

"I heard what you've been saying to your little SeeDs in there, Quistis. I've got your room wired. So lay off of me..."

Quistis hung up the phone, spinning around to face the three of them. She motioned for the door and the phone rang yet again. She picked it up. "Hello?"

"Heh heh...best to let me finish, kid. It's also being monitored...Nice breasts you've got there, kid."

She hung up the phone again and stepped away from the phone. Squall walked over to her. "Who was..."

"Sh..."

She walked to the door and opened the door, staring at the two guards. She walked down the hallway, having the trio follow her. The guards shut the door and followed the party. Squall marched next to her, whispering in her ear, "Who was it?"

"The assassin. He has the placed bugged and monitored." Irvine coughed gently.

"Monitored? Meaning...he sees everything?"

The three of them gave him a weird look. Rinoa rolled her eyes and walked next to Squall. "Kind of reminds you of Big Brother, huh?"

Squall nodded his head and walked down the grand steps and into the dining hall. Quistis walked slower, causing the three to slow down. "The entire palace is monitored, I know that much, with the exception of rooms. The cameras are undetectable and can capture sound perfectly."

Rinoa looked over at Quistis. "How do you know?"

"I was trained in the computer field during my classes. I had to learn every single security system known on the planet. The assassin is male, unless they're using a voice disguise, which it didn't sound like. He also has to be from Esthar, due to the fact that the wires are undetectable in our room."

Squall frowned. "I could have looked harder."

The entered the dining hall, a young host escorting them to four tables. Quickly, a waiter brought a pitcher of orange juice and poured each of them a glass, then rushed to another table. Irvine shrugged at Squall. "It doesn't matter. All what we have to do is look at the people who treat us weird."

Quistis shook her head. "Not going to work. They already treat us weird due to the fact that you're SeeDs and we're with the sorceress." Rinoa frowned. "I'll just have to use my all access pass to the Priestesses."

Victoria walked in, abruptly frowning at the sight of Rinoa with her favorite Priestess. "Priestess Masako!" she called out.

She walked over to her and Quistis smiled. "Good morning, Head Priestess Victoria." Quistis stood up and bowed politely. "I assume that you heard about the murder."

"Yes, quite tragic that a man so gallant as Glenn had to die in vain. He was one of the few Senators I enjoyed being around."

Rinoa glared at her. "I'm sure my uncle would have loved to hear that."

Victoria smiled at the sorceress. "I'm sure he would. Well, I must be off. Priestess Miyoko has some news for me."

Quistis nodded her head and sat back down. The same waiter as before walked over to the table, laying four plates with eggs, bacon, sausage, and hash browns in front of each people. Quistis sighed and picked up the fork and slowly began to eat.

Rinoa and Squall talked lightly, and Irvine watched Quistis' saddened face. Surely enough, Irvine gently touched her knee, causing her to look at him. He coughed to gain the others attention. Suddenly, Quistis' eyes lit open. "Irvine...you're a genius."

Squall coughed out his food into a napkin and Rinoa gulped down her orange juice. "Irvine? A genius? Are you feeling ok?" Squall asked Quistis.

"Yes! He's a genius!" Irvine looked a bit shocked. Quistis stood up and bent down next to Irvine, planting a giant kiss on his cheek. His face grew red. "I am in love with you right now!"

Squall's felt that same pang of jealousy hit his heart. Quistis saw his eyes twinkle with anger yet again. "What?" Irvine asked. He was just as confused as the rest of them.

"The person on the phone, he was coughing!"

Quistis walked over to the other Priestess' table, sitting down and smiling the entire time. Squall looked at Rinoa, then Irvine, and then back to Quistis. At the other table sat Miyoko, Alexia, Douglas, and a few others that she didn't remember. Her eyes mysteriously danced towards Douglas, who seemed to be coughing as Quistis talked to him.

Quistis nodded her head and excused herself from the table, walking back to her original table. The three of them gave her an odd look. "Ok, it's not any of them."

"But...that Doug guy was coughing," Irvine announced.

Quistis smiled at Irvine and touched his nose with her finger. Squall turned his head and grabbed Quistis' other hand. "Is it him?"

She smiled and went back to eating her food. "I don't think so, but as Irvine said, he was coughing. Yet, his voice is too weak and shaky. Plus, he's considering going back home to Winhill because of the assassin."

Irvine shrugged. "So, we look at people who are coughing."

Rinoa chuckled. "This is Esthar. The climate is completely different. A lot of people are probably coughing."

Quistis shook her head. "This was a smoker's cough. It sounded too wet."

Victoria emerged from where she was sitting, holding a long black tube with a cigarette on the end. Quistis lifted up her eyebrows, staring at the rose queen. Rinoa frowned. "She's the only one I saw smoking this entire time..."

Quistis grinned. "We may have a winner..."