[quote=@Antarctic Termite]
Kei's gaze skated headfirst back down the alley, then back at the tower, afraid that the figure would be gone if she stopped tracking it. Her phone flipped out of her pocket with the usual ease. Mary wouldn't have answered right now even if Kei had her number, and though she had seen others at work in Danzig, she only knew one. It was a long shot, considering how new that one was to the business, but Kei knew that at least this one would never get snappish over a panicked message.

[i][b]Kei:[/b]
Sal, it me, paint girl again. something really weird going down here at gate end of royal road. lots of mag girls in one place. not sure who knows what. please confirm you're safe, any other deets would be good. thanks
[b]Kei:[/b]
sorry[/i]
[/quote]

Salomea's phone buzzed with the arrival of a message.  Checking it, she saw Kei's text, and replied:

[i][b]Salomea:[/b]
That's really close to where I am.  I'm fine, enjoying the parade with family.  I sense a witch.  You're taking care of it, right?[/i]

[quote=@Lolita Complex]
Spiraling through the air, the creature fluffs its body up again as it approaches the other alleyway wall, striking it at an angle and fluffing outwards, instantly recovering with another lightning-quick bounce in the other direction. Zigzagging like this, it adjusts its trajectory and continues its jaunt towards the nearby roadway.

And just like that, it was there-

[color=gray]"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiii~!"[/color] The Familiar screeches cheerfully, hurtling past the outskirts of the abandoned area and into populated space once again. With the incredible density of people around the main roadways, it was only natural that immediately upon approaching the street, three humans are sucked into and trapped within the Familiar's flimsy barrier. 

It makes its choice, and spirals wildly, hurtling itself towards the nearest human. It was clear what its intention was at this point.

At the same time, Salomea would notice the distinctive sensation of a Witch being almost on top of her. Directly across the street from her, she could probably see the edge of the monster's barrier encroaching on the sidewalk, sucking in a couple of passerby before stopping there, dangerously close to the crowd.
[/quote]

Salomea looked across the street in dread, realizing the 'witch' had found her.  She didn't know what to do, she couldn't transform in this crowd without being noticed, and she couldn't cross the street with so many people's attentions focused on the parade.  Then she remembered how Kyubey had guilted her into becoming a magical girl, that she was responsible for the safety of the populace.  Salomea backed away from the street slowly, telling her family she needed some fresh air.  After she was backed far enough into an abandoned alley, she transformed into her magical girl outfit, a white frilly dress.  Looking down she could see a manhole.  Salomea cringed at the thought, but figured that traveling through the sewer was probably the only way she'd get to the witch without being seen.  She stuck her finger into the tiny hole that was built into the cover.  Normally, a long metal tool was hooked into the hole to pull the cover off, but one thing Salomea had noticed about being a magical girl was increased strength.  It was still an exertion to pull the cover off, yet she had the sense of stealth to roll the cover over to a wall quietly and prop it up instead of just letting it fall to the ground in a loud clatter.  Looking at the parade to get her bearings, Salomea jumped down the manhole, splashing down into some muddy nastiness.  Litter from the parade flowed passively by her feet.  She headed in the general direction of the 'witch', hearing the sound of the parade move over her head as she went under the street.  When she arrived at another manhole, one that she was certain was in the alley opposite where she stood with her family, she could sense the 'witch' almost directly above her.  She climbed up the ladder to the surface and pushed up on the manhole cover, peeking through it to see what was going on, hoping that she could successfully stay hidden for the time being.