Well, not quite - but it's the last big street, at least. And it's a one-way, which makes things a bit less harrowing.

Or it should have done. In retrospect, they weren't in any real danger, but as Daine hustles past a bus, its breaks hiss. She's startled into bolting before she can remember her passenger, and when she does, it's too late - she can feel Andrew slipping off of her back.

There's a tickling sensation around her neck as Secret stirs from its hiding place. Before Andrew can slip more than an inch or so, a thin, black tentacle darts out and wraps around his wrist. A moment later, another one appears, seizing his other wrist. Realizing what the darking is doing, Daine ups the pace, dashing through the Grand Army plaza, under a carriage (with a mental apology to the horse), and over a little stone wall. Safe in the greenery of the park, she finally stops, her tail fluffed to twice its already considerable size.

"Fast," Secret says in its tiny voice. "Fun!"