Catava managed to get to her before she could even work out the courage to seek her out, herself. All stiff but powerful postures and level but mean glares, she snatched Maizah while she was on her way back to Kamaria and Issa. Maizah jumped initially and flinched even harder when she realized who exactly her assailant was. If anything, it made the mean look on Catava's face darken even further.

Omari, at her side, laid a gentle but hesitant hand on his wife's wrist, curling his long fingers around it snugly and urging her slowly to relax her hold on Maizah.

Catava cast a quick glance over at him wordlessly and let go a few seconds later.

"Maizah," she said matter-of-factly, "have you heard from your cousin?"

"Jelana?"

Maizah swore she saw Catava's eye twitch.

"Who else?"

"No," Maizah said honestly. "I haven't seen her in months. Why? Is something going on?"

"Why would that concern you—"

"Maybe," Omari spoke, accidentally interrupting Catava. She gave him an overtly irritated look that he only acknowledged with a tired sigh. He continued, albeit a little quieter than before. "We only have rumors, really. Two women; one in red and the other in pink. Neither wearing proper Omen uniforms."

Pink. That meant the other woman was from the Tentilo Omen. Maizah had heard stories of how such an arrangement had come to be, but she'd never confirmed any of it. All of the rare and brief meetings they'd had together, Jelana had always been alone. When Maizah asked about it one day, Jelana had gotten irrationally angry, and Maizah had left before the situation could escalate any more than it already had.

She could ask Jelana's parents, but she rather valued her life and limbs.

"Unfortunately," Maizah said, a bit snarky by complete accident, "I know nothing about any of this."

"Allow us to catch you up," Omari said. He turned away from her, but nodded his head in a gesture for her to follow. "We'll buy you a meal. I hear you've just gotten back from a long travel."

"Uh," Maizah said stupidly. For a moment, all she could think about was the offer. How unlikely such a thing was and yet, it was happening. Then, she thought about how she should probably decline the offer considering Catava would be present, as well, and her aunt wasn't exactly pleasant company by any means. A final thought came to mind— perhaps the most important— that she had yet to respond to the question disguised as a statement. "I got back a little over a day ago."

"Ataraxia?" Omari asked.

Maizah didn't have to wonder how they'd known; it was easy enough to infer that Oldenzier Kade had told them. At the very least, he must have told Catava. He was a gossip that way, and as much as Catava would vehemently deny it, she wasn't much better.

"Yeah."

"And how was that?" Catava asked, but she didn't seem actually curious. She seemed as if she was waiting for a response to pick apart and belittle. When it came to a searing hatred for the Teio Omen, Catava and Oldenzier Kade were most alike. "Did you enjoy your time there?"

"It was fine," Maizah said carefully, only a little hesitant. It was always best to not show any sign of weakness or uncertainty around her aunt. She would zero in on it like a hound if you gave her the chance.

"The fact that you just told such an obvious lie says more than the truth ever could," Catava said, narrowing her eyes meanly. Still, she turned away, as well, and led them in the direction of a particular little restaurant before either of them could really have a say. 

At the very least, it was a familiar restaurant. Devlin had taken Maizah and her siblings plenty of times when they were younger, and when she was old enough to afford it herself, she kept going. It wasn't like she needed a ton of money to afford it, anyway. It was a quaint, tiny place with an even tinier menu. 

Maizah was enough of a regular to know the owner and her grandchildren by name, smiling politely as her granddaughter approached their table Catava had chosen out in the sun. 

"Maizah," she said as a greeting, nodding at her politely. The girl was a little younger than Maizah herself but somehow held more maturity in her eyes. She was hard to get a smile out of on the best of days, always moody for one reason or another. "I haven't seen you in a while."

"Hey, Mina,"  Maizah said, making up for the enthusiasm the girl lacked. "I've been busy, but it's nice to see you again."

Mina nodded as she sat down three waters in front of each of them. "Would you like the regular?"

"Yes, please."

Mina turned to Omari and Catava, giving the both of them little bows. "Olden Hines. What can I get for you?"

After mentally taking down their requests, Mina left them to speak alone. For a considerable portion of time, none of them said anything. It was awkward, and Maizah got the feeling she wasn't the only one feeling the tension. Eventually, Maizah broke the silence. If there was one thing she wasn't, it was patient.

"So," Maizah said, taking a sip from her water. "Jelena."

Catava's face spasmed as if the mere mention of her daughter was enough to boil her blood. Luckily, Maizah didn't have to immediately deal with the woman's flaring temper, Omari sliding his fingers between his wife's atop the table as a means for distraction and clearing his throat to speak up.

"As I'm sure you're at least somewhat aware," he said, "Jelena hasn't been in Firelight city for a few years now. She hasn't associated with the Furoa Omen for just as long, and we have reason to believe she might still have connections with a girl from the Tentilo Omen."

"What makes you believe that?" Maizah asked.

Catava scoffed. "So clueless. The night I banished Jelena from Firelight was the night Jelana and a Tentilo girl came and caused chaos in the city. Jelana was acting out and that girl was an accomplice. It's a reasonable assumption."

"What's the problem," Maizah asked, quickly amending a second later, "beside the obvious, I mean? If Jelena has been away with this girl for years and you've been aware of it just as long, what's changed?"

"What's changed is we think there's more to this," Catava said. "That they may be responsible for a string of disappearances."

"Disappearances?" Maizah asked. This sounded a lot more serious than she might have originally guessed.

"Murders," Omari whispered and then averted his eyes. Maizah couldn't be certain, but it looked a little like shame. "Assassinations. We have no real proof. Just... rumors, more or less."

That couldn't be the full truth. Rumors didn't spawn from thin air; even when untrue, they tended to always have reasonable origins. It made something uncomfortable twist in her gut to think about the conversation she'd had with Oldenzier Kade. She wondered, uneasily, where those whispers had come from?

"Is she... suspected?" Maizah asked. "Officially, I mean?"

"By some, but there's been no definite proof. Just supposed sightings."

"So you don't believe the rumors?"

It certainly sounded that way. Or like, at the very least, Omari didn't want to believe the rumors.

Omari didn't answer immediately so Catava responded for him.

"Doesn't matter," she said. "As I'm sure you understand, we would ordinarily take this matter to Oldenzier Kade and he would send a group of either Mid or High Guardians to take care of it depending on his perception of the gravity of the situation. As it stands, we would rather not have to make this any bigger than it already is. Additionally, as Oldens, Omari and I are already busy enough as it is."

Maizah could see the picture she was trying to paint.

"So you want me to look into it for you?" she asked. 

Omari nodded. "We'd be very grateful, Maizah."

"Do I get a team?"

"That'd defeat the point of doing this silently, wouldn't it?" Catava sighed. "If you're really so dependent, bring Kamaria."

"That would leave Issa alone."

"That's up to you," Catava drawled. "However you choose to do this is your problem— I just need it done, got it?"