The members of Team Avatar regarded the princess in surprise. Katara was the first to speak.

"Your dad was researching Xei?"

Durnaz nodded her head. "Xei, Rhijaj, the missing people, the tides and moon–anything and everything he thought could've given him a clue to where our people went."

"What did the others in Rhijaj think of his ideas?" Suki asked, looking at Inaya.

The servant had eyes wide with surprise.

"They don't know," the princess answered. "He never told us."

"Then, how do you know?" Toph inquired.

"I found a hidden passageway one day. I'd remembered seeing him in that area of the palace a lot when I was little, but he'd always avoid my questions."

"Do you have any idea why he might not have told you?" Katara asked.

"Knowing my dad, he didn't want to say anything before he could be sure that he was right. He didn't like to disappoint people. He wouldn't have risked telling us that something weird is going on and not being able to follow that up with an explanation."

Toph sighed. "I need you all to get bigger. It would've been way easier to sense that the palace had a secret room if it was our size."

"Well, I might not be able to lead you there, but I can show you what it has. There's a lot. I still haven't gone through all of it."

Suki paused thoughtfully as a frown appeared on her face. "Wait, you said that the rest of your people 'don't' know? You didn't tell anyone either?"

Durnaz's expression became sheepish. "It's sort of for the same reason. I don't feel comfortable telling anyone if it won't help. As far as I know, these notes won't help us progress with the search at all. It didn't help Dad. I'm just being hopeful, I guess."

"Maybe he needed some more people helping him," Katara offered, getting a smile from the small airbender.

"Maybe. I wish he told me. I would have loved to work on this with him." Durnaz paused, grimacing. "But I can't really say too much without being a hypocrite. I haven't told Mom or Buraid either."

"How do you think they'd respond if you did?" Suki asked.

The princess stopped to consider this. "Mom would probably get a little sad as she thought about Dad. Buraid would probably blame these scrolls and light them on fire."

"Yeah, that sounds like Prince Burns-A-Lot to me," Toph commented.

"So, until we prove the information can help–if we prove that–I'd like to keep this just between us," Durnaz said. "Of course, the rest of your friends are welcome to the information."

"We'll read over it and see what we can find," Katara told her.

Suddenly, Toph chuckled, causing the others to regard her in confusion.

"You guys are going to have to put the scrolls directly on your eyes if you want to read that tiny print."

"She's not wrong," Durnaz mentioned, frowning slightly in thought.

"We'll figure that part out," Suki said. "I bet that we'll find a way to read everything without it causing too much of a strain on our eyes."

"Too bad you aren't telling the other people in Rhijaj," Toph added. "You could just order them to read everything to us. Pipsqueak here wouldn't be able to get through everything on her own," she said, pointing to Inaya.

"Even with that, it might not work," Suki said. "What if the king found something that incriminated one of the subjects, and then that subject is the one reading? Most likely, we'd be told a version of the scroll that excluded whatever could give us what we needed to know."

Katara nodded, becoming more pensive. "We really need more people we can trust to go through this."

The group continued to think of possible solutions they could use to learn the information. As they did this, Tipah was returning to Xei to find some citizens to speak with the rest of the team. First, he went to the turquoise building to check on things. As soon as he did, he saw Megat pacing around the office. The president glanced up, frustration plainly visible on his face.

"Where were you?" he questioned. "I've been looking everywhere. I just came back here since I figured that you would return eventually. For a moment, I worried that you had been captured."

The vice president shook his head. "Far from. I was speaking with the giants. They were telling me of the ways they ended their war."

"Did it give you an idea for getting our people back?"

"Yes, actually," the man said, smiling. "I'm going to find some citizens to speak with the giants. We–"

"Why would you want to do that?"

Tipah paused for a moment, then resumed what he was saying. "We realized that it could be beneficial for them to hear what the citizens have seen. I have asked around a little myself, but they might get more answers. The people have been curious about them anyway."

"They can be curious as much as they want, but this isn't helping."

"Well, we haven't tried it yet. It might."

Megat's lips pursed into a line. "This is serious, Tipah. We're not trying to have some attraction show where the citizens get to slide down the giants' backs. We're trying to stop a war."

"I am being serious. Our more violent methods have only resulted in more deaths–no people being found. I think it's time to change tactics."

"I think so too, which is why I want your help with some ideas. That's the reason I was looking for you earlier." He gestured to the desk. "Have a moment to talk? Or is the matter with the citizens so pressing?"

Tipah noticed the snark in his tone and went over to sit in front of the desk. Megat sat behind it, a frown on his face.

"We could capture Ebrah."

Automatically, the vice president pulled back in his seat, eyes widening. "No, we couldn't do that."

"Why not?"

"Because that's abducting someone. We haven't done that yet, and we shouldn't start."

"But if we do, we'll have leverage," the other man stated, determined. "We can send in earthbending soldiers. She can't airbend if she's trapped in rocks. Once we have her, we'll tell the rest of Rhijaj to deliver our people." He looked at his hands as he placed them on the surface of the desk. "I thought of our other options, but they don't work as well. If we go after Buraid, he's too unpredictable. He could really hurt some of our soldiers. He probably wouldn't even notice if his attempt to save himself led to deaths on his side too. For Durnaz, she'd notice if she was about to hurt their subjects by fighting more, but her absence would cause less of an uproar. She's just a princess. Ebrah's their queen. She won't do anything to put her people in danger, and they'll be in chaos without her. They'd do anything to get her back."

Tipah quietly sat across from him, but felt ill. When it was obvious that the president was done speaking, he began to say his piece.

"What's your plan for after you have her? Throw her in a cell?"

"Precisely. She'll remain a prisoner until our people are free."

"And if they don't immediately give us our people, would you kill her?"

"If I have her killed, we lose our leverage. It would make more sense to threaten torture."

Tipah put a hand over his face, closing his eyes. When he reopened them, they flashed with horror.

"These are people we're talking about, Megat. I won't be part of something like that."

The earthbender glared at him and pointed behind himself in the direction of Rhijaj. "They still have our people, Tipah–our mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, and children. You have to be willing to do anything to get them back."

"I don't and neither do you," the waterbender said. "We just have to be willing to do what will protect our own and not change us into people we don't want to be."

"The person I want to be is someone who gets back the citizens."

Tipah sadly regarded him. "You're my friend, Megat. I don't want to see you go down a path you might not be able to return from."

Megat angrily gestured to the table. "If my idea is so terrible, then by all means, tell me yours."

"I want to start combining reports to see where there are inconsistencies." The man could see how the president looked more annoyed. "It could work. We might be able to find a way to get everyone back."

"Everyone," Megat scoffed. "Why do I feel like that includes the people in Rhijaj?"

"Because it might if they're part of the missing group." Tipah had a knowing look in his eyes. "And for you to consider that, I think it means that the idea's crossed your mind a few times too."

"It means that I know you. There's a difference."

"Have you considered that idea?"

"Not long enough for it to do anything but irritate me."

"Maybe you should."

Megat regarded him blandly. "I think it's safe to say that you aren't going to stand with me on my hostage plan."

"It is."

"Then, you can understand how it's also safe to say that I'm not going to stand with you on your 'everyone's a victim' plan."

An unhappy expression crossed Tipah's face, but he nodded. "I can respect that, but I hope to prove you wrong."

"Good luck with that."

The vice president rose to stand. "If that's everything, I'm going to find some of the citizens."

"It's everything. I've got other matters to tend to." Megat saw Tipah's face pale and sighed. "Matters that don't include capturing anyone."

This made the other man visibly relax and he gave a polite bow of his head before leaving to begin his search. Soon enough, he had the people he wanted to bring with him. While he did that, the friends met back up to discuss what they had learned.

"Durnaz has been going through the investigation notes her father made," Katara said.

"Tipah was telling us something sort of similar," Aang informed her.

Zuko nodded. "He'll be bringing some people by later tonight for us to interrogate."

"But until then," Sokka chimed in, "Katara, we were thinking that you and Aang could do your thing with the ocean and see if you find any monsters."

"Monsters?" Suki asked. "Like the Unagi?"

"Yeah! We figured that if one of those ate everyone, then it would explain why Toph can't sense them."

The earthbender shrugged. "That's a good point. I wouldn't be able to feel them if they're swimming or in a sea monster's stomach."

Katara's face saddened as she considered this. "I hope that's not what happened, but I'm fine checking."

She and Aang moved away from the others and towards the ocean. Raising their arms, they created a giant wall of water. As they did, they heard a few screams. Their actions had been difficult to miss and were disconcerting to many individuals.

"We're not drowning you!" Sokka quickly assured them.

Speedily, the waterbenders moved the wall so that it would not be near the islands. Still, the people on both islands carefully watched to be sure that the giants did not change their minds. With the water temporarily relocated, the group began to look. Toph shook her head.

"Nothing. Can't feel them now either, and without the water, they should be on the ground."

Sokka became downcast. "Okay, thanks for checking."

Katara and Aang gently returned the water to its proper place, then the girl went over to her brother.

"It was a good idea," she said consolingly. "It's just a really weird situation we're in."

Sokka nodded. "It doesn't make any sense. I hope those interrogations go well."

"I might have another idea," Suki added, a hand on her chin. "It won't immediately show us where the people are, but if Tipah's been trying to look further into this mystery, and Durnaz has too, maybe they can work together."

Katara's eyes lit up. "That could work perfectly. We still need someone who'd be able to read all of the print. If Durnaz and Tipah are going through it, it'll go faster. Since Inaya knows now too, that could mean there are three people on the task. I think they'd all be trustworthy enough to not hide what they find from us."

Zuko thought over the plan, appearing uncertain. "That would be good, but would they be willing to work together?"

"Honestly," Aang said, "they're probably the only three who we could convince to do it."

"So, who do we tell first?" Suki asked.

"Since we're going to see Tipah tonight anyway, we can bring it up after the other citizens leave," Katara suggested.

The friends agreed to this plan and continued proposing ideas until it was the evening. Tipah led a small group of citizens to the raised ground where Team Avatar stayed. The people had a range of emotions from excitement to suspicion.

"I'm Hilmi," one boy said, smiling.

The team introduced themselves as the rest of the group did the same.

"What was that giant wave for?" Hilmi asked.

"We were trying to see if we could find anybody under the ocean," Zuko explained.

"Oh, no luck then, I guess?"

Unhappily, the giants confirmed that there had been none. Returning to the purpose of them being there, one-by-one, the people from Xei began telling their experiences.

"It was so strange, but then I noticed that our boat was missing too."

"That was when you realized that your sister was gone?" Toph asked.

"It was. Normally, she'd stay out late, so I wasn't surprised to not see her in the morning. That boat always stayed at the docks, though. She'd gotten in a lot of trouble for keeping it out a couple of years ago, so I knew there was no way she'd do that again."

"I didn't see anything," another citizen admitted when it was her turn, "but I heard a weird noise once. It was really loud."

"Do you think it might have been some type of machinery or a scream?" Aang inquired.

"It definitely wasn't from a human. Maybe a machine, but I'm not sure what would have caused that. It was indescribable. I heard it, tried to run towards it to see if it meant someone needed help, and saw nothing."

"Nothing at all? Not even anyone running away?" Zuko asked.

"Not even that. It was on the island's side closest to Rhijaj."

The others shared their stories of people being seen getting on vessels and not returning home whenever they went towards Rhijaj. Once they were done, Hilmi had a twinkle in his eyes.

"Could you pick me up?" he asked Toph.

"Why?" she asked.

"I've never been up that high before. I'm not a bender, so it would be fun to see everything from that vantage point."

Sokka laughed. "You do realize you're asking the shortest person among us, right?"

This earned him a punch in the side.

"I retract nothing," he wheezed.

Toph's frown faded as she shrugged. "Okay, I guess it wouldn't hurt."

She bent down to pick up the citizen. He eagerly took in the new view of everything.

"You guys are missing out!" he called down.

Most of the other people looked less intrigued by the idea, but one did ask for the same treatment from Aang. When they were returned to the ground, they waved goodbye and began going back home. Before Tipah could leave, Zuko stopped him.

"Could we talk to you?"

"Of course."

Tipah waited for the people to be gone, then continued.

"What's going on?"

"We know someone else who has been studying the mystery of the missing people," Suki explained. "Would you be willing to share notes?"

Tipah's eyes widened hopefully. "Yes! That would be great."

"But this person is from Rhijaj," she added.

The vice president's eagerness faded, but his expression became thoughtful. "I would still be willing to do that. Could it be on this soil? With it existing between our islands, it's common ground. That way, it won't seem like our truce is being broken. I highly doubt many people would approve of the Rhijaj investigator coming to Xei. Personally, I would not feel comfortable going to Rhijaj to hold our conversations either."

Aang nodded. "We still have to talk to them, but we'll let you know what's decided on and when you can meet up."

Tipah bowed to the group and wished them a good evening. When the appointment was scheduled, he would be ready to attend. Schedules could be helpful or harmful. In Team Avatar's dimension, such adherence to particular times led to predictability.

"Three, two, one," a prisoner counted down quietly.

Just as she got to one, Kyoshi warriors walked past her cell. In thirty minutes, they would walk the other way unless they stopped while in a conversation. In two hours, there would be a changing of the guards. In another thirty minutes, they would not stop to have a conversation. That group was more professional than the two warriors currently in the prison. Azula found it fun to learn about the warriors. It was always the same. The talkers would keep chatting for their full shift, and the walkers would remain silent as they kept track of her whereabouts and those of the other prisoners. Nothing beyond this ever happened. Every day was the same. Every. Single. Day. It would drive a sane person mad, and it would drive a mad person to have dangerous thoughts.

The firebender listened to the steps of the warriors. In one more minute, they would be too far to hear her. When sixty seconds passed, Azula stood up and let electricity sparkle on her fingertips. In her cell, there was no opening she could use to blast someone. That did not mean she could not practice. She could and did every time the warriors would walk by the small window that gave her a glimpse into the free world. Azula loved the feeling of the lightning and fire as it illuminated her otherwise dark cell. The contrast of light was so strong that it nearly hurt her eyes, but they could adjust.

"Soon," she thought, "I won't be forced to do this in secret." A smirk crossed her face. "The next time I see them, I'll have bolts ready for every one of those friends."