Blend the Light

Capital City or Not?

"What is it, Hawk?" Vladimir crouches next to me.

"Look. They match each other. This one has that ridge there. Those two both have the prisons in the same place, and the staircase next to it that leads to the big room." I point out the matching features.

"We could have ourselves a complete map," Vladimir breathes as a smile tugs at the corner of his mouth.

"Hold them up to the light." Lily grabs two of them, placing them on top of each other on the window. I stack the rest on top of them, and the sunlight filters through.

We take a moment, staring in awe as the dark lines give us an almost complete map of what we believe to be Capital City. "Can you guys hold it up? I'm going to trace it over on one of his blank sheets of paper." I uncap a marker.

"Sure. Vladimir, go tell Jay what we've found. I'll tape it up." Lily makes quick work of fitting the blank paper over the maps and securing it against the glass. I start in corner, and work my way across.

"There are more markers if you want. They're in the top drawer," I say when I see Lily standing off to the side. She doesn't respond, instead grabbing one from the drawer and uncapping it. There's a comfortable silence as we trace over the maps. Black runs across the paper, mirroring the landscape I already know and showing what the land I don't know looks like.

"How are you doing, Hawk?" Lily asks suddenly.

"Huh?" I had been zoning out, focusing on getting all of the lines right instead of focusing on everything around me.

"How are you doing?" She repeats.

"Fine. Why?" What is she getting at?

"You've said you're fine to almost everyone who's asked you how you are."

"I change it up," I retort.

"Not really."

"I've said that I'm fine, that I'm alright, that I'm doing well but a little tired. I do change it up."

"Those are all almost identical."

"No, they're... I guess they're sorta similar. Not to be rude or anything, but why are you asking me this?"

"The Wasteland changed me, and Guthrie Harper's prison changed you." She shrugs before turning her attention back to the map.

Changed, not probably changed. That's what you're focusing on? Lily's right- you're not the same. How? I still act the same and stuff. No, no. I'm not talking about big things. I'm talking about little things. Like what? I'm not sure, but she's right.

The map is done by the time Jay and Vladimir return. Rex lifts himself to his paws from where he had been napping next to Adrien's desk, and trots over to say hello. "So what's this map that Vladimir's been telling me about?" Jay doesn't look convinced.

"Adrien had a bunch of unfinished maps. When we put them on top of each other, we got what we're nearly certain is Capital City. Here's the prison I was in, and here's the staircase that I used to reach the room where I found you." I point out a few of the landmarks.

"Were they labeled?"

"No."

"Then how do you know it's of Capital City?" Jay crosses his arms across his chest. I sigh.

"As I said before, we don't know for certain whether these maps make up one of Capital city, but we're almost certain. There are a lot of familiar landmarks around it, and a few of the rooms look identical to the ones I saw when I was in Capital City. Jay, I really think this is it."