It takes Alistair a handful of seconds to realize that he's not hearing the pounding of footsteps behind him anymore, that he's hearing a voice instead. Someone intervened? Thank God, he...

...is that a child?

The scene behind him is so completely strange that after he's skidded to a stop, Krei actually finds himself stepping back toward it. Granted, he's been saved by kids before--teenagers and young twenty-somethings, more like--but this kid isn't even as tall as Hiro Hamada, and Hiro had been part of a group. A superhero team. This kid is alone. As much as Krei doesn't relish the idea of bringing the crowd's attention back down on himself, he can't just stand here and let some child draw their ire to save him.

He's not that self-centered, not matter what Callaghan seems to believe.

He's just about to call out to the kid, to assure him (her?) that everything's fine, he can handle this, when the Waterbending starts. Krei's eyes go wide; for all that today has been full of strange places and confusion, this is the first overt use of... Christ, is that magic? By the time the group has dispersed he's slouched against the wall of the alley, one hand on his forehead, trying not to hyperventilate.

"I've gone insane. I've gone completely insane."