Shore Leave: The Village

"Yes, I am sure you can do that, dear, but I am wondering why you are doing it? And what is this about other cadets? Do you know something that I am unaware of?"
Alira notices from the corner of her eye that Lisa is - barely noticeably - shaking her head, trying to let you know not to tell her about the missing cadets. Drenala either doesn't notice or doesn't comment on it.

The investigation is not very interesting to watch. The security officers don't talk to each other and they don't seem to find anything surprising or of note. Because of this, some of the spectators are turning around to go back to town, most likely to get something else to drink.
As Alira's eyes scan over the group of spectators, one person in particular catches her eye. A woman, probably around thirty, with long black hair. From the way she stands and walks, she does not look like spacefleet and something about her sets off Alira's alarm bells. The woman turns away from the scene of the investigation, her eyes lingering for just a second on Alira and Drenala, and then walks back towards town.

"There is a nice little cafe in town, right by the plaza. Your father and I will be there tomorrow afternoon. Meet us at four. And don't be late. I know that is difficult for you, dear." Drenala notices Alira slowly backing away and closes the distance with a few quick steps. She leans forward and kisses Alira's cheek. "Have a good night, Lira."

As you're walking back towards the town, Lisa quietly speaks up. "That was so awkward... Thank you for not saying anything about the other cadets."

"No offense, but I'm glad Professor Vitan is not my mother. She can be very... stressful. Is that rude to say?"
You make your way back to town where the drinking is continuing as usual. As you look around, you notice that there is some movement back at the living quarters but you're too far away to make out any details about who it is. You still have a couple of bars ahead of you that you can check out if you want to proceed with that plan.
You also notice some people who are trying to blend in but obviously aren't drunk and aren't here to have fun. They look to you like security officers in plain clothes.

You intentionally walk by close to two people who you assume to be a security guards to listen in on their conversation. They seem to notice you and pause their conversation as you walk past so you can't gather any new information that way. They dont seem like there's any danger or anything really worrying them, though. Moving on, you continue to the next bar from where you continue with your system of checking the bars for the missing cadets but don't seem to have much success.
You're almost done with your round when you reach a small bar on the edge of the town that doesn't seem as popular as the other places. As before, you enter and Lisa stays outside. It's mostly empty except for a short, skinny man with dark hair and a long beard behind the counter and a man and a woman in the corner of the bar who are leaning very closely together and whispering to each other.
You approach the bar and the bartender immediately hands you a small glass with a transparent, brown liquid. "On the house", he says with a grin. "How can I help you?"

You don't recognize the people at the table.
The barkeeper doesn't take the drink back. He keeps it next to you, probably in case you change your mind.
"Cadets? There were some kids here who looked around that age. Four, two guys, two gals. They had a few drinks, nothing crazy, and talked to a woman that was in here for a while. She wasn't a cadet, she was older than them. They all left around thirty, forty five minutes ago."

"Out the front door. I can't see past that. They seemed a bit nervous, I would say"

Lisa doesn't look happy about this but nods.
You walk back into the village and Lisa leads you to a section of the village that seems very lively despite the fact that nobody is out on the street. There's sound coming from all cottages and you can see people moving behind the windows.
Lisa heads straight for one specific cottage that seems quieter than the others. There is light burning inside, though.
She knocks at the door and after a minute or two, the door opens. A girl, the same age as Lisa, is standing in the doorway, raising an eyebrow at the two of you. Alira, she smells like she has been smoking something not quite legal.
"Are they back?", Lisa asks her before the girl has the chance to say anything.
"Is who back? Everyone's here. Nobody left their quarters." The girl is looking straight at Alira as she's saying this.
"She knows about it. She's cool. Helped me search for them and even got me out of a tough situation with Vitan."
The girl hesitates for a bit longer, then she says: "They're back. Got here fifteen minutes ago. They look a bit messed up but they'll be fine." She pauses and then explains: "Messed up as in stressed. I don't think they got in a fight or anything."

The girl rolls her eyes and turns back into the house. She doesn't close the door behind her.
Lisa replies: "I wish you would tell your mom that, though. Maybe she'll think twice about failing me then. But probably not."

Shortly after, two cadets come to the door, one male, one female. The guy looks at you, then Lisa, then back at you. "What's this about? I was already sleeping."
He's obviously lying. He's visibly nervous, he's wearing outside clothes and shoes and he doesn't sound sleepy at all.

"Stars, calm down, will you?", the guy says. He seems to consider whether pretending he doesn't know what you're talking about would do him any good but decides against it. "We were just having some fun. That woman just came up to us and we just talked for a while. Her name was Neeza and she's working for some shipping company, not spacefleet. Why do you even care?"