A Finnick-y Fiasco
By: dispix94
AN: OM Goodness, I'm finally writing my first Zootopia fic! I've been meaning to write one for a while, but I haven't gotten around to it until now.
For those of you that have been following my work/been checking in on what I've been writing (on the rare occasions when I actually post something), I am still doing the After Happily Ever After stories. I'm just taking a break from them for right now. Anyways, back to the story.
I got the idea for this story when I was doing one of those "pick 10 characters and answer these questions" things for my profile, and I chose to do mine with Zootopia characters. There was one question that went along the lines of "Character 1 and Character 4 get into an argument. What is it about?" (see my profile for the exact question, since I don't remember what it was off the top of my head). My answer to that question was a slightly different wording of this story's summary. I then decided to expand on that idea and create a full-blown fic from that answer.
Sorry for the lame pun in the title, BTW. I honestly tried to come up with a more creative title, but this was, unfortunately, the best I could think of. I hope the story makes up for it, though!
Finnick ran as fast as he could through the alleyways of Zootopia. He couldn't believe he screwed this up. He had carefully planned this hustle. It sounded perfect to him. Walk into the pizzeria, pretend like he was a homeless kit looking for food, get his free pizza, and be on his merry way. He had no idea that the owner was smart enough to see through his guise. I'm gonna have to be more creative next time, Finnick thought as he ran, his heart racing with fear and adrenaline. The reason why he was running was because the pizzeria owner had threatened to call the police on him if he didn't leave. The fennec fox had tried to stand his ground and convince the owner it wasn't a scam (which it was). But, he stopped and immediately raced out of the restaurant when the owner picked up the restaurant phone and began dialing. Finnick wasn't too worried about being arrested, since he had never been caught before, even after all these years of participating in sometimes questionable and illegal actions. Also, he now had connections to the police force, so his chances of being locked up were little to none. But, he figured the smart thing to do was run, just in case. After about half an hour of running, the small fox stopped to catch his breath. He looked around, ears pricked for any signs of the police. He then sighed with relief, thinking he had once again gotten lucky and had not gotten caught. But, just as he was about to walk back to his van and plan his next move, he heard the distinctive sound of sirens. Finnick turned to run once again, but it was too late. A medium sized ZPD cruiser pulled right in front of him, forcing the fox to stop right in his tracks. Ok, he thought, No big deal. I'll just explain myself to Nick and he'll let me off the hook. But, his fear immediately rose again when the door to the cruiser opened to reveal not his fellow fox companion, but a large, cape buffalo. Finnick had seen this officer before, and Nick had described him as the police chief. The small fox was confused. What was the chief of the ZPD doing here? Why was he out on patrol when there were many of his officers already on the streets? As his mind was racing with these and similar thoughts, Chief Bogo stormed towards Finnick, handcuffs in his right hoof. As soon as he saw the round, metal objects, the fennec fox knew he had to think of a way out of this, and fast. Something told him that Nick wouldn't be able to help him this time. So, he put on his best "cool" face (he never was as good as making that face as Nick was, but he tried anyway) and held his paws up, pads facing the chief.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, easy there Chief," said the fox, calmly. "Don't you recognize me?"
"Yes, I do," growled the cape buffalo. "You're that fox that used to hang around Wilde."
"Yep, that's me," replied Finnick, putting on his best, confident grin.
"Wipe that grin off of your face! You're under arrest," shouted the chief.
Finnick pretended to be surprised and yelled back at Bogo, revealing his anger at being caught. "What?! Why would you do that?! I didn't do nothin'!"
"Stop lying, fox, I know it was you!"
"For the last time, you have no reason to arrest me!"
"Oh really?! Then, explain to me why we received a call from the owner of Pony's Pizzeria about a certain tiny fox trying to con him out of his pizza?!"
Finnick was at lost for words. He tried to think of something witty to say back. He then decided to go in a different direction.
"Hey, whatcha doin' on the streets, anyway? Ain't you supposed to be back at the office bossin' people around?!"
"Watch your mouth, fox," growled the chief, not fazed by Finnick's attempt at a distraction. "And, for your information, I was on my way to the precinct when I received the call."
"What, you couldn't get anyone else to answer the call for you," Finnick shot back, half sarcastically, half serious.
Bogo then came closer to the fox, so close that Finnick could feel his breath on his snout.
"I happened to be the closest to the pizzeria at the time," he growled. "Now, I want you to SHUT UP so we can get this over with!" Finnick's calm façade faded as he knew that no matter what he said, the chief would not leave unless Finnick went with him-in the back of the cruiser, with his hands behind his back. Then, one final thought came to him. If he couldn't get out of this himself, he'd have to get help. He immediately got out his phone. Just as he was about to search for Nick's number in his contacts, his phone was immediately snatched from him.
"And just who do you think you're calling at this time," confronted Bogo.
Finnick glared at the cape buffalo and stated firmly, "A friend. And I think you know which one."
"You're not calling anyone, especially one of my officers! Phone calls during the arrest process is strictly forbidden!"
"What?! That's not a law!"
"No, but it's part of my protocol!"
Finnick growled as Bogo placed his phone in a plastic bag and threw it on the passenger seat of the cruiser.
"Now, where were we," asked Bogo. "Ah, yes." Click! Finnick glared at the silver pieces of metal that were now attached to his wrists. Well, there goes my last string of hope, he thought. Now I just gotta convince them to get me outta here. And by "them," of course, Finnick meant him, his best friend and former business partner.
About half an hour later, Chief Bogo stormed into Precinct 1, dragging a rather persistent Finnick behind him.
"This isn't fair! You have no proof that I did it," protested the fox.
"The phone call and description of you were enough proof for me to arrest you," explained the buffalo, clearly annoyed with his arrestee.
Clawhauser looked up from his fifth donut of the day and stared at the pair as they passed his desk, his mouth open in astonishment. Although the cheetah didn't know Finnick, he had heard enough about him from Nick, and seen enough pictures of him, to know who he was.
"Is that-" began Clawhauser, before Bogo cut him off.
"Can it, Clawhauser," stated the chief, angrily. "I'm taking this perp to interrogation. Find Wilde for me and let him know immediately what's going on!"
"Yes, sir," Clawhauser replied. He dashed off as fast as he could to find the fox cop as Bogo escorted Finnick to the interrogation rooms. He had a feeling that breaking the news to Nick was not going to be easy.
Meanwhile, Officers Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps were busy doing research for a small case they were working on. About a week ago, they had gotten a call from the Targoat in Sahara Square. The store had been broken into in the middle of the night, and almost all of the clothes and toys were gone. Since there were no witnesses at the time the robbery took place, and the footage the security cameras got of the thief only showed the outline of him/her, the duo had to rely on other means to get the information they needed. Judy was in charge of going through the department's records and search for any possible suspects for the crime. Nick's job was to map possible routes the thief could have taken, with what little information they had, so he and Judy could later follow the route/routes and hopefully trace them/it back to the thief. They had been at their computers for at least two hours, and Nick was getting bored. He yawned, making sure it was loud enough for Judy to hear, and stretched his arms. The rabbit ignored him and continued searching. The fox sighed in defeat, this time a little quieter. He then began drumming his paws on the desk to the tune of one of his favorite classic rock songs. Hey, I'm pretty good, he thought. If this cop thing doesn't work out, I think I might try becoming a drummer. He was so wrapped up in his thoughts about him being behind a drum set that he barely heard his partner say his name until he felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Huh, what," asked the fox, a bit startled, as he turned around.
Judy gave him a slight glare and said, I said 'could you please stop using your desk as a musical instrument and focus on your work!' "
Nick rolled his eyes in fake annoyance and said, "Whatever you say, Mom." The rabbit gave him a fake glare in response, only to be met by one of Nick's classic smirks. Judy then went back to her search. Nick shrugged his shoulders in defeat, took a sip of the coffee he had grabbed from Snarlbucks on his way to the precinct, and went back to mapping. He then thought of a joke he had heard one of the other officers tell him the other day, and it was all the fox could do not to laugh. He then wondered if Judy had heard it, yet. Just as he was about to turn around and ask her, Nick's ears pricked up at the sound of someone panting. Immediately, he turned towards Judy. Just as he thought, she, too, had heard the noise, as her ears were also turned up, which signified that she was probably listening for any signs of danger. The two officers were relieved when they both saw Clawhauser coming around the corner, who, without a doubt, was the source of the panting. Their relief immediately faded, however, when they saw the look on his face.
"Nick," gasped the cheetah, trying to catch his breath. "Bogo wants you in the interrogation room. It's very urgent." Clawhauser then gave him a look that was a mixture of concern and worry. Immediately, Nick jumped up from his desk, both out of concern for Clawhauser and relief that he finally had something to do other than look at a screen all day.
"What's up," asked the fox.
"Bogo just picked up a perp on his way in, and he specifically asked for you to do the interrogation."
"Hmm, interesting. Never knew the chief actually liked me that much."
"It wasn't the chief that requested you," clarified Clawhauser. "It was the perp." Immediately, Nick's face grew serious and a bit worried. What if the perp was an old foe of his who wanted revenge? What if he or she worked for Mr. Big and he had hired the perp to "take care" of him? Almost instinctively, he looked back towards Judy's desk, expecting her to still be sitting there. But, as it turns out, she was standing right in front of him. The fox's tension released slightly when he saw his friend and coworker in front of him. He smiled as he thought Of course. Carrots is probably gonna want to come with me for support. His thoughts were confirmed when Judy told him just that. "I'll go with you," she stated bravely.
"Thanks, Carrots," responded Nick, still smiling.
"Hey, what are friends for," she replied, returning his smile. The two then followed Clawhauser to the interrogation room, with Nick being relieved that he wouldn't be doing this alone.
A few minutes later, Nick and Judy were standing outside the door to the interrogation room, both a little nervous and worried about who was on the other side. Clawhauser wouldn't tell either of them who Bogo had brought in, but from his expression and the fact that the mammal had specifically asked for Nick, they both knew this wasn't going to be easy. After about five minutes of Judy giving Nick words of encouragement and Nick debating whether or not to actually go through with the interrogation, he finally made up his mind to go in. As he opened the door to the interrogation room, Judy wished him good luck. She then went over to the one-way window to get an idea of exactly who Nick would be dealing with. When she saw Finnick sitting in there, her already large violet eyes became even bigger. No wonder Clawhauser seemed so concerned! She then remembered back when Nick first joined the force, Finnick had all but forced him to promise to protect him and keep him from getting arrested. Obviously, the chief was either unaware of their deal, or just didn't care, most likely the second. As Judy watched Nick approach his friend and former partner, the rabbit crossed her fingers and hoped things would turn out for her friend and work partner.
The moment Nick opened the door and entered the room, he stopped, too shocked to say or do anything. There, sitting at the table in front of him, looking down at his handcuffed paws, was Finnick. Nick couldn't tell if his best friend was sad, worried, or angry. The small fox showed no expression on his face. The larger fox then took a moment to gather his thoughts together. Professionally, he felt a little embarrassed that he had not thought of what he was going to say before he walked in. On the other hand, however, he was not expecting to have to face someone he promised to protect. The red fox felt guilty at this thought, even though it wasn't his fault. I thought I told the chief not to arrest him, thought Nick to himself. He wrote himself a mental note to talk to Bogo once he was finished. His thoughts then turned to the present situation. First things first, Nick had to get his friend's attention. The fox took a deep breath and gathered as much courage as he could. He then strode casually towards the table where Finnick sat.
"Well, well, well," said Nick in the calmest way he could. "Look who's here."
As Nick was talking, Finnick's ears perked up and turned towards the sound. Once he was finished, the fennec fox's head slowly rose and he gave his taller friend a look that, once again, bore no emotion. Great, Nick thought, He's putting on his "I don't want you to know how I'm really feeling," look. Now, the fox cop was even more nervous than he was before. Even though he and Finnick had known each other for years, the red fox still was unable to read his friend when he made that face. Man, I've got to get better about that if I want to stay at this place, Nick thought. He then took a seat across from the fennec, still managing to keep his calm appearance. The last thing he wanted was for Finnick to make fun of him for being unprofessional, or whatever other joke he might make at Nick's expense.
The two foxes sat across from each other, neither one of them speaking. Finnick just stared at Nick with the same stoic expression. Nick watched him, using his police skills to analyze his friend and try to decipher his demeanor. After a few minutes, Nick still couldn't come up with any clue of what Finnick was thinking. So, he decided to take another route.
"Alright. Tell me what happened," Nick said. Finnick's expression now changed to one that was more readable to Nick. Well, it's about time, he thought.
"Didn't they tell you?! I got busted," said the smaller fox, annoyed.
Nick feigned surprise and gave a mock gasp. "Really?! I thought you came in here just to say hi to your old friend," he said sarcastically.
"Cut the sarcasm," stated Finnick, a tone of anger in his voice. Nick immediately became serious. He knew not to get on Finnick's bad side. He had seen what happened when someone made his friend mad.
"For your information," continued the tan fox, "Your boss was the one that brought me in. Said I was 'outfoxing' someone." Nick had to keep himself from laughing at that pun, regardless of whether or not it was intended. Thankfully, his friend didn't seem to notice. Instead, he put his head back down, apparently ashamed.
"I was running a hustle at Pony's Pizza over in Savannah Central when the owner got wise and called the cops on me. I immediately ditched the scene and tried to hide somewhere. That's when Chief Snorty out there nabbed me."
Once again, Nick had to keep himself from laughing at Finnick's nickname for Bogo. He would have to use that one someday.
"I tried to get him to cut me loose, but he refused," the fennec fox continued. "Brought me here, and that's why I asked to see you."
"I see," replied Nick, nodding his head. He then thought long and hard over how to solve this issue. When he started working for the ZPD, Nick had introduced Chief Bogo to Finnick and told his boss about his and Finnick's deal they made to protect each other from getting arrested. Nick had told Finnick he would keep that promise, even though he was on the other side of the law now.
"I guess maybe the Chief forgot about our deal," said Finnick, interrupting Nick's thoughts.
"Or he just doesn't care," answered the red fox. Knowing his boss, he had assumed that that was the case.
"Well, whatever the reason why your boss locked me up, I don't like it."
"Okay, first of all, he didn't lock you up," explained Nick. "He just arrested you and brought you in for interrogation. Honestly, didn't you learn anything from those cop shows you watch all the time? Secondly, we need to come up with a way to get you out of here." Almost instinctively, he got up to bring Judy into the room.
"Hey, wait a minute," called Finnick, causing Nick to stop where he was and turn to face his friend.
"Where you goin'," the small fox asked worriedly.
"Carrots is going to want to help us out. I'm going to fill her in," responded Nick.
"Nuh-uh. I don't want your fluffy friend butting her way into this!"
Nick became slightly angry at Finnick's last statement. "She's not going to 'butt her way' into this. She's just going to help us figure things out."
"I don't want her help," Finnick said, anger rising in his voice.
"Why not? She's been in this business longer than I have, plus she's probably gonna want to help anyways."
"So what?! I specifically asked for you to help me out, not you and someone else!" Nick thought for a moment. He looked at Finnick, who was looking at him with a mixture of worry and anger. His gaze then went to the door. He knew Judy was on the other side, probably watching what was going on in the room through the one-way window. Whoever came up with that idea was brilliant, especially when it came to situations like what he was about to do next.
"Okay, fine," the red fox said, sitting back down at the table. "Let's think of a plan. Just the two of us." Nick then held out his paw for Finnick to shake, which he did. The two foxes then began to discuss a solution to Finnick's predicament.
About half an hour later, Nick emerged from the interrogation room with a now free Finnick behind him. The two foxes smiled at each other and gave each other a congratulatory high-five. Their cheerful demeanor briefly faded, however, when they saw who was there to greet them. In addition to Judy, whom they were both expecting to be waiting for them, there stood Clawhauser, Bogo, and about half of the force, all awaiting what Nick had to say. Apparently, word travels fast at the ZPD. Nick immediately became nervous, for he was not expecting such a large audience. But then, he remembered the advice he gave Judy before the ill-fated press conference over a year ago. Wow, has it really been that long, thought Nick. He then shook his head to focus on the present. One of the things the red fox was working on was learning to get better on focusing, since his mind tended to wander a lot.
"Wilde," shouted Bogo, "What did he say?!"
"I let him go," responded the red fox calmly.
"Why," asked the chief sternly, stepping closer to the two foxes.
"Let's just say we made a deal," said Nick, giving Finnick a knowing look. Out of the corner of his eye, the red fox could see Judy, who was standing on the other side of him, give him a suspicious look. Nick turned to her and gave her a reassuring smile.
Bogo also gave Nick a questioning look, but his was more stern than Judy's. Instead of reprimanding Nick, however, he gave a slight snort, which everyone on the force knew meant he wasn't satisfied, but wouldn't push the topic anymore.
"Very well, then. He is dismissed." The cape buffalo then turned and walked away, most of the officers following behind him. The only ones that remained were Nick and Judy, along with Finnick. Judy looked from Nick to Finnick, trying to read their true expressions. She would have to admit, it was still a little tough with Nick, but attempting to read Finnick was even harder, and it wasn't because Judy didn't know the fennec fox as well as Nick. Finally, she asked the two, mostly addressing Nick, "So, what was this 'deal' you guys made?" The rabbit crossed her arms, waiting for the foxes to answer. Nick and Finnick exchanged glances with each other, silently debating to each other who would tell Judy and whether or not they would tell her the truth. Finally, Nick spoke, a bit nervously. He was pretty sure Judy was not going to be happy about what he was about to say.
"I may or may not have promised Finnick we wouldn't arrest him no matter what he did. And, I may or may not have told him we'd get Mr. Big in on this." As Nick expected, Judy sighed in annoyance at his response.
"Sweet cheese and crackers, Nick! Why didn't you talk to me about this first?!"
Nick turned to Finnick, hoping the fennec fox would answer for him. To his relief, the smaller fox did.
"I didn't want you to get involved," he said. "This was an issue that Nick and I needed to solve on our own."
Judy nodded in understanding. The foxes had known each other far longer than she and Nick had known each other, so it was only natural that they would want to have some conversations in private. She was still a little mad at Nick for not asking her first before telling Finnick Mr. Big would be involved. Whether or not he actually was, Judy was yet to find out. But, she decided to save that question for another day. Instead, she walked with Nick to see Finnick out of the station. As they were walking, she turned to Nick and said, "Next time, talk to me first before telling anyone you'll involve Mr. Big."
"Yeah, about that," responded Nick. He looked around to make sure no one was listening, especially not Finnick. Then, he said quietly to Judy, "I haven't actually talked to Mr. Big about this. I was waiting to talk to you about it."
Judy was quiet for a moment, not sure whether or not to believe Nick. But, as she studied his face, she saw no signs that he was lying. So, she asked, just as quietly, "So, you lied to Finnick?"
"Not exactly. Mr. Big could say yes, you know. That is, if we end up asking him."
Before either officer could say anything, they found themselves standing at the entrance to the station, Finnick about to walk through the automatic doors.
"Let's talk about this later," whispered Judy to Nick, who nodded in agreement. He then turned to his fox friend and said, "Hey, wait a minute. You're not gonna leave without saying goodbye, are you?"
"Bye, Nick," said Finnick shortly, and turned to exit the building. He wanted to get out of there as fast as he could so he could think of his next hustle. Also, he wanted to be as far away from Chief Bogo as possible. He didn't even apologize to the small fox for arresting him.
"Hey Fin," called Nick. The small fox turned around at the sound of his nickname.
"Wanna get together Friday night? We can grab a drink or watch a movie or something?" Finnick thought about this for a moment. It had been a while since the two foxes did anything social. Since Nick had become a police officer, the two barely saw each other except in passing.
"Sure, why not?! It's been a long time since we did somethin' together," Finnick answered, a slight trace of a smile on his face.
"Great! Hey Carrots, wanna join us?"
Judy thought for a moment, and then responded, "Maybe I'll hang out with you guys for a little while. But, I don't want to intrude on your special moment."
"Oh, come on. It's not like we're dating or anything," persuaded Nick. Finnick cringed at the thought of him and Nick together. They had always thought about each other as brothers, but nothing else. Judy slightly giggled as she thought of this, too. She also could never see the two as anything more than friends. Then, she said, "Fine, I'll stay the whole time."
"Perfect," said Nick, smiling in a satisfied way. He then turned to Finnick and said, "See you Friday, bud. I'll text you and keep you posted on the plan." The fennec fox gave a slight nod and turned towards the doors. Before he left, however, he turned around and said, "Hey. Good luck with everything." Nick was shocked to hear his friend say this. Usually, words of encouragement were not something Finnick was particularly fond of. His expression then turned to that of a smile, and the red fox replied, "Thanks, bud." The smaller fox then turned back towards the doors. As he was leaving, Nick called after him, "Stay out of trouble!" Finnick gave him a somewhat rude gesture as disappeared onto the streets. Nick shook his head in fake annoyance as he and Judy went back to their desks, Nick humming a tune from one of his favorite movies.
AN: So, what did you guys think of my first Zootopia story? Was everyone in character? Was the pacing too fast or too slow? Any feedback, positive or negative, is greatly appreciated, as long as it's polite and civil. With that, I hope this story was to your satisfaction. If it wasn't, please don't ice me! See you all in my next story!