Going from building to building was harder than Chris expected. The cats could do it, of course; even in human form they could leap incredible distances, move without any sound of footfalls, and land undamaged on their feet after falls that should have broken bones. Antoinette had apparently anticipated him on that; the words she'd laid on him didn't just hide him from sight, they also muffled the sounds he made. Even so, he was glad that the buildings in the training quad were solid.
He was vaguely aware of Antoinette and Elyssa moving away below him; a moment later he lost them completely. He made a short jump across to another building and paused there. It helped that there was nobody else in the training quad; any sounds or movements would only come from their targets. As long as he managed to stay unseen and un-heard, the only thing that could give him away was...
Magic. Chris paused on the low wall at the edge of another room, catching his balance so that he didn't step down and come into contact with it. Somebody was worried about people coming at them from above. It was a simple ward, an alarm, but not something that he -- as a wolf -- should be able to bypass. No, he'd need Antoinette for that. Except...
He lowered himself and then hung over the side of the wall, eased down to the top row of windows. The structure was only three stories high, but he took his time; a fall at this point would be more than just inconvenient, if it gave him away. Nothing. He moved down another level. There. The windows for a corner room were warded as well, but...
He sprang across the width of the alley to the opposite wall, caught his fingertips on a brick ledge, and hauled himself up until he could see inside. The windows were warded, but not covered; he could see a mostly-empty room, with two figures inside. The doll that was taking the place of the hypothetical child hostage might be in there, but if so it wasn't anywhere obvious.
His fingertips were getting tired from hanging here. Chris pulled himself up to the top of the building and circled around the warded one, finding his own way. He was due to meet his partners at the far side of the quad, and needed to check as many buildings as he could manage on the way.
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