Chapter One *An Unusual Evening* A/N:This is a Final Fantasy VIII fanfic with a centered Seifer/Quistis pairing. Don’t like...don’t read. It’s rated M for language and violence. Disclaimer: I don’t own this story. Squaresoft does...I only own the plot :) *Dedicated to my friend Courtney Webb for always being there. May heaven always smile on you.* *** Balamb 20:00 Friday November 4 *** It was a usual evening for Quistis. After a long week of work she was out drinking at the bar in Balamb with her friends. Work was grueling and demanding and she rarely got to spend any time with them. So tonight she was glad to see them. Her hair was long and a light golden blonde. It was a beautiful shade. Her eyes were a deep shade of blue...a dark gorgeous blue. So striking that it was like someone was looking into her psyche. She was wearing a stunning ruby dress that satisfactorily showed off her assets. The outfit was complete with red pumps. Quistis was a Crime Scene Investigator....CSI agent for short. It was an annoying job with plenty of health benefits. That was probably the only reason she stuck around. She originally wanted to be an instructor at Balamb Garden. She tried out and tested for the position. Intellectually, she was perfect for the job. But socially she was a disaster. She had problems relating to her students. She tended to give special treatment to students who were more like herself. As a result, she was fired. When she got fired she applied for a position as a CSI agent. And she got the job without an interview. Actually, she wasn’t just a CSI agent. She worked for the Military. Yes, the Military. She was originally a SeeD agent. But she grew tired of it after the war. All of his friends had really grown apart. No one was really the same after all the fighting, bloodshed and tears. The only two people she knew who maintained a sense of normalcy were Selphie and Irvine. Selphie and Irvine were officially a couple. They got married after the war. It was a surprise to everyone. No one thought Irvine would give up his womanizing ways. Apparently, Selphie’s Emerald eyes were enough to make him forget. Selphie was a sociable, energetic young woman. And Irvine was a comical, forthcoming young man. They belonged together. Unfortunately not everyone was that lucky. Not everyone got married. Quistis was one of those people. She was alone, very much so. It had been three years since the end of the war. And she had nothing to show for it....NOTHING. Broken engagements, drug abuse, adultery...everything bad happened to her. She hated it. Why couldn’t she be as lucky as Selphie? Then she remembered. Rinoa and her secret meetings with an unknown person. Rinoa never spoke of them but everyone knew it was going on. The question was...was Rinoa doing something illegal? Rinoa was unusually secretive when it came to that subject. Usually Rinoa was open like a book, and shared everything with Quistis and Selphie. But with that subject, not a word dropped from her lips. And Quistis didn’t feel like questioning her. She did that too often in her job. Being a pain-in-the-ass was a requirement to be Crime Scene Investigator. But it wasn’t to be a good friend. And that was a good thing. Because those kinds of friends were annoying. Here they were, sitting at a table and Quistis couldn’t think of a thing to say! Why did she have to be so damn reserved? When it came to her job she could talk and get the job done. But when it came to being social, Quistis was a moron. Sometimes she wondered if she had a social disability. “So...Irvy gave me another diamond ring!!!” Selphie squealed happily. “It’s soooo beautiful.” “OOOOOO,” Rinoa giggled. “Is he having an affair?!” Selphie dramatically rolled her eyes. “What?! NO!!!!” she protested loudly, drawing a lot of attention to herself. “It’s OUR three year anniversary and he wanted to get me something special!!!” Quistis took a sip from her drink and quietly raised an eyebrow. “Seriously,” she joked calmly. “What’s he done now Selph?” Selphie rolled her eyes again. “Seriously guys,” she demanded. “It’s NOT like that at ALL, he was just- Before she could finish she was suddenly cut off by a bloodcurdling scream. It came from the alley outside the restaurant. No one rushed to help however. Everyone quietly went back to their meals. Everyone except Quistis Trepe. She got up to investigate. Selphie and Rinoa stayed behind...too frightened to leave the safety of the restaurant. Quistis ran outside into the cold night and gasped sharply at what she saw. At that moment she wished everything she was experiencing was a dream. There was a small child, a little girl...lying in a pool of blood. Someone had murdered her. “What the fuck is happening to this place?!” Quistis said quietly to herself. *** “You take a human life you commit a deep sin; you kill a child you go straight to hell. Children should be allowed to live and learn so they can become better adults. To kill a child is to destroy the future.” -Quote written by author Sophia Porrow.