Looking down on a forest path simile
From the start of this part of the trilogy we can see the extent of Tally's change. She is proudly a part of the Specials and against the idea of New Smoke which is odd considering the ending of the previous novel. Quite apparently, Tally's mind, her opinions have been completely altered. She describes the feeling of being a Special as seeing everything clearly, "like looking down on a forest path from above."
Wallpaper/background metaphor
The way that Specials see themselves is them being above everyone else. They are the center of the world, they just know that they are special and like Shay said to Tally-everyone else is just "wallpaper, a listless background of chatter."
Hawks and rabbits
Tally comes to a realization after her fight with Shay over Zane and the Crims that she and Shay always end up on opposite sides. The two of them go from being best friends to enemies and this peculiar relationship Tally brings into comparison with hawks and rabbits, which are completely different species that can't be allies. What's interesting is that even at the end, Tally and Shay don't end up on the same side, it could be even interpreted that they end up on opposing sides once again: Tally being a self-proclaimed protector of earth and nature and Shay being on the side of the new world rising.
