Adem chuckled as he pulled the black hoodie and goggles out of his backpack. “The Crow, huh?” He said approvingly.

James sat down on Adem’s bed. “Yeah at least your name is cool. Sparrow… Sparrow? I mean, anything would have been better.”

Adem, almost automatically, stated, “City dwelling sparrows are some of the more aggressive songbirds in the U.S.”

James grimaced, “Yeah a songbird, crows are creepy and cool. Why can’t I be like Hawk or Falcon.”

Adem ignored his complaints, “The news said that the cops haven’t said anything.”

James nodded, “Well what about Eli? He hasn’t said anything.”

Adem’s blond hair fell into his eyes as he shook his head. “No, he’s been working a lot more than usual lately. I haven’t seen him much.”

“Aren’t you worried? Your roommate is a cop. You are a criminal vigilante. Seems pretty risky.”

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With a sigh, Adem shrugged. “Well, what do you suggest? I can’t just move out.” He paused to think when suddenly they heard the front door open. “Speak of the devil.”

James flashed a smile and jumped up, “How about we just ask him now then?

“No no no, James-” But it was too late. James had already hurried off and Adem reluctantly followed.

Eli was in the kitchen, still in his police uniform. He was tall and bulky with neat black hair parted to the right. He usually held himself with confidence but tonight his movements seemed sluggish.

“So cop boy, what do you think about this?” James questioned as he held up his phone with a blurry picture of two hooded men on it.

Eli made a weak and indulgent grin, but how exhausted he was still showed through. “The vigilantes? Yeah, the news is making a big deal about it. But really, I’m not supposed to tell you guys about this.” He continued making himself dinner.

James pouted, “Come on, it’s not like we’re going to do anything with the information.”

Eli sighed, “Well it’s mostly just annoying because Chief is pissed. We have no idea who they are. I don’t think we should pay so much attention to them. I mean, there is real crime going on in this city. Gang violence has been particularly bad lately,” Eli walked into his room and came out a few minutes later in shorts and a t-shirt, “Really all I know is that the city is putting pressure on the department to deal with it.”

James continued to pry more information out of Eli but gave up after twenty minutes of getting nowhere and headed home.