The digital clock on the dresser read 3:14 AM. The red light from the clock and the street lamps outside shining in thru a small window were the only lighting for the inhabitant of the small apartment. The apartment, an old ragged studio that has seen better decades, was cramped by a medium sized animal bed with the head pressed against a drab wall. The three drawer dresser holding the clock stood across from the bed, with only a space large enough to open the drawers between them. A front door being the only means of exiting or entering the apartment was positioned directly across from the window. The light from the outside illuminating the wooden door, with the brass handle and assortment of locks being shown in the darkness. An open doorway to the left of the door led to a bathroom with just enough room for a toilet and small standing shower. A small kitchen area directly to the right of the door had only a stove, fridge and small counter space. The only signs that it was a kitchen being faded tiling in the area breaking up the stained carpet that ran through the apartment.
None of this was considered by the active owner of the apartment. Instead his focus was on the burning sensation of his arms as he continued his workout. Hanging from a sturdy water pipe that perforated the apartment, he continued to pull himself up and down. Losing focus of whatever the original number he was supposed to stop at, he continued until his arms couldn't take it anymore. Glancing at the clock he saw that it now read 3:27 AM. A recurring nightmare had awoken him roughly a half hour ago, and not wanting to return to it, he decided an early workout would be the best course. Finally letting himself drop from the pipe, breathe heaving from the exertion of the workout, he glanced out the window.
It was still pitch black in Sahara Square. With street lamps periodically dotting the street on either side, he could see the worn out buildings across from his own apartment. None of the inhabitants of the other buildings were up and about, and the only people on the street at this time were trying not to be seen. He sighed as he looked back towards the dresser and the clock, now proudly reading 3:31 AM. His gaze slid to a uniform hanging from a nail above the dresser. A striking dark blue uniform pressed and finely cleaned with a steel badge attached to the left breast pocket. It was the uniform of the ZPD, all ready for the day to begin.
Three years, that is how long Reggie had waited to be accepted into the Academy. Applying as soon as the Mammal Inclusion Initiative was instated, yet he was denied for two long years. First were questions of whether or not a weasel could even finish the training. With a rabbit being let in that same year, the committee that oversaw applications decided it only wanted so many drop outs in one year. The next year, once a certain rabbit and fox proved themselves very much worthy of being officers of the law after the Missing Mammals then Nighthowler cases, Reggie was sure that he had a real chance. Even the fox had been accepted, and Regg was well aware of his background.
Instead the committee decided to point to his Juvenile record and that he was a person of interest in an old murder case. The Juvy record was easy to argue against, it was simply an underage drinking from his early high school days that he did the community service for. The murder case was a bit more difficult. It had taken Reggie standing before the committee and reminding them (in a very loud tone) that both the detectives on that case had been removed from the ZPD and the only reason he was a person of interest was because he was a witness to the crime. Eventually the Chief of Police was contacted about the matter, and finally it was settled.
That was eleven months ago, and six months ago he started training at the ZPD academy. In comparison to the struggle of being accepted, the academy had been a breeze. The reading and tests he knew from his time studying before his first application. The obstacle courses he had seen after talking to the committee directly, and trained as best as he could in each of the districts. The Rainforest and Sahara course was a walk in the park, and the Ice Wall was only a challenge until the second month. By the second week of training he had become tired of Major Friedkin's "dead" nicknames. "Fuzzy Snake", "Creepy Crawler", "Pipe Cleaner", and the list went on. Eventually after his "deaths" stopped occurring, then Reggie received his first positive comment from the tough Polar Bear instructor.
While Reggie eventually overcame the obstacles at the academy, his fellow trainee's were a completely different story. Reggie is sure that not only did he not make any friends there, but he cannot recall a positive interaction with any of them. He knew they were not intimidated by his physical appearance. Slightly taller than a least weasel, his light brown colored fur and off white front were nothing threatening, in fact Reggie remembers receiving complements before the academy for his long half black and half brown tail. His small claws and teeth were not even note worthy compared to the massive mammals that surrounded him on a regular basis. Even his black, beady eyes were not the reason for lack of companionship. No the reason was a plain as day. He was a weasel and could not be trusted. No matter how well he scored or outpaced them on the obstacles, they would never accept him because of what he was. Who he was.
These thoughts kept Regg from moving on to his next exercise. He couldn't help but stare at his uniform and wonder if everything would become different. Zootopia was not the friendliest place for what some people considered the "dredges of society." Weasels, foxes, raccoons, hyenas, jackals, the list could go on and on. It seemed to Reggie that unless you were large, or part of a pack or herd, you were quickly pushed aside. Society decided what you were before you could prove yourself, stereotypes chose your fate.
Reggie sighed. The clock mocked him once more by showing it was 3:34 AM. He returned to his workout, trying to keep anymore unpleasant thoughts from creeping in. Sleep wasn't going to come anytime soon.
The ZPD Precinct One building was an imposing structure. It meant to intimidate those who had either broken or considered breaking the law, while also reassuring those in Savannah Central of the police's power as well as residents' protection. Therefore the shock of seeing a jovial, plump cheetah sitting behind the front desk eating donuts and cheerfully talking to cops and criminals alike was enough to put anyone at ease. As Reggie walked through the doors for the first time after graduating from the academy, now an officer of Precinct One, he couldn't help but wonder if it was wise to have such a figure at the front desk.
The front desk seemed a mess with crumbs; a snow globe sat right next to a box of donuts, daring the cheetah to accidently knock it off its perilous position. A box of some brand of cereal and bowl perched on the other side of the desk. Behind it a small wall that held an overlarge shield of the ZPD on a plaque. The cheetah was having an animated discussion with the two figures before the desk. One was a grey rabbit garbed in a police uniform that seemed to be just as animated as the cheetah, waving its arms around excitedly. The other a red fox wearing a uniform as well, though quite disheveled in appearance. Aviator sunglasses firmly on, leaning against the desk his left shoulder as a cup was in his right. The fox's tail slowly swaying back and forth in mesmerizing fashion. Even with the sunglasses, there was no question that his gaze was on the rabbit watching with a smirk the excited creature. As Reggie approached he started to pick up pieces of what was being said between the two officers.
"…it's the best since 'Try Everything' and deserves to be-"
"How can it be better than 'Try Everything'! It's an amazing song, not that I'm not saying that this isn't goo-"
"I didn't say that it was better than the 'Angel with Horns' perfect song! I just said that it's AS GOOD AS her best song, making them tied for best!"
The conversation made no sense to Regg, usually when two mammals are in this heated of a discussion, he passes by real quick and keeps his head down. Sadly he needed directions on his first day, and the cheetah would have the answers. Once he was only a few feet away from the officers, he saw that the snow globe actually encased a small gazelle holding a microphone in its hooves.
"Ah" mused Reggie, "mystery solved."
While Reggie's personal opinion of the "Pop Sensation" Gazelle was definitely not a positive one, he thought it extremely unwise to state this in front of two obviously horn crazy fans.
The cheetah glanced to see Reggie approaching the officers. An ear splitting squeal of excitement then left the still excited feline.
"EEEEEEeeeeeeee" exclaimed the large feline "O.M GOODNESS! Aren't you the cutest thing to walk in here since my favorite couple joined!"
The squeal alone was enough to make Reggie stop in his tracks and wince, but the comment made him cringe.
"Don't think I have ever been called 'cute' before," thought Reggie. Whatever confidence he may have been building up since walking through the doors was completely dismantled after the cheetah's burst of excitement.
"Clawhauser you know how I feel about calling animals cute," stated the rabbit officer starting to turn around "also don't call us a couple, me and Ni-"
The rabbit stopped speaking once her eyes focused on Reggie. Amethyst eyes staring right at him. The frown that was on her face replaced by a quick friendly smile, large ears pointed in his direction catching any sound he made.
"Oh, hello!" started the doe "Officer Judy Hopps at your service. I see you must be the new recruit!"
His heart started to beat faster, blood boiling, temper rising.
"This is why I wasn't let in!" Reggie fumed.
Reggie had seen her picture before. On newspaper, television, magazine covers, even on the flyers at the ZPA. He felt it was always life mocking him, reminding him that his plans were put on hold because of this rabbit that was everywhere. Now though, standing in front of the same doe, Officer Judy Hopps, he expected so much more and was found wanting. He quickly put up a strained smile and extended his paw to Hopps.
"A pleasure to meet you ma'am, I've read and heard so much about you," Reggie said coolly.
The smile worn by Officer Hopps face slightly diminished. Whether his words or something about his body language gave away his displeasure he wasn't quite sure. What Reggie was sure of was that when she grabbed his paw for the pawshake he was not expecting it to be so firm. He did not wilt under the pressure, simply was surprised that someone of her stature could hold so much power.
"Underestimating a small mammal are you Regg? Bad start."
"Officer Reginald C. Weaselton. I just graduated."
A small flash of recognition passed through the bunny's eyes before another emotion came through.
"What was that?" pondered Reggie. Whatever that emotion that he had just peeked at was not something he was used to seeing.
"Ah a Weselton!" stated a voice from behind Hopps. The older tod moving from the front desk to engage in the conversation moved towards the two officers. Extending his paw forward, the fox's smirk grew into a smug look. The aviators hiding what Reggie knew were half lidded, emerald green eyes. Releasing his grip from Hopps, Reggie then grabbed the outstretched paw.
"Officer Nick Wilde I presume" stated Reggie.
"You would presume correctly," responded Officer Wilde with confidence.
"Your reputation precedes you…at least on the streets," said Reggie calmly, trying to hide the bitterness in his voice.
"It's good to know that I still have cred to my name," Wilde said, his smug expression never changing.
Reggie shrugged "Most want you dead honestly, too many secrets with a cop now."
While both of them had been shaking paws during the beginning of this exchange, after that last statement both hands stopped moving. Reggie and Wilde now staring at each other, paws in a death grip. Wilde's tail slowly swaying and twitching slightly behind him, Reggie's completely straight out and not moving an inch.
"I didn't realize that Duke had a kid, I gotta say I'm impressed that he could afford to feed you with only bootlegs. Granted you're a bit skinny."
The statement was a low blow, but Reggie expected it after his last comment.
"Duke's my uncle, and before you ask Duchess is my aunt," stated Reggie. He knew who his father was would come out, but he still didn't want to say it.
Wilde's expression changed only from his smug look, to a quick frown, into his trademark smirk Reggie was familiar with.
"Welcome to Precinct One," Wilde stated coldly. While his facial features didn't show it, the tone in his voice made it clear to Regg that they would not be on good terms.
Reggie finally released Wilde's paw, the blood starting to return to his digits slowly, and turned to the cheetah. Precinct
"Officer Clawhauser I presume?" he asked to the cheetah behind the desk. Clawhauser had been so drawn into both conversations that his head was resting in his paws, eyes wide open from what Reggie could only assume was shock.
Clawhauser reacted to his name being mentioned and quickly raised his head and nodded quickly. "Uh, yeah," the cheetah stated.
Reggie felt guilty for what just happened in front of the Clawhauser. He honestly wanted to at least be on good terms with his fellow officers, just not the two standing before him.
"I was told to ask you where RollCall is for the morning meeting," Reggie said. Trying to sound cheerful, but it came out slightly high pitched. He anger was getting close to boiling over and the workday hadn't even started.
"Oh yes!" Clawhauser exclaimed, "Go down the hallway and it'll be the third door on your left."
Reggie gave a slight nod of his head and passed in between the tod and the doe. Reggie could feel the anger pulsating from both of them, but he didn't care one bit. This was his chance to try and make things right in his life and damn any mammal that stood in his way.
As he walked quickly to RollCall, he noticed the many different types of mammal officers standing about. Some ignoring him, others were glancing his way.
"All these different mammals and I run into that pair first." Reggie lamented.
"Fleas and ticks."