The loud beeping woke Judy Hopps from her sleep. She was awake nearly instantaneously and managed to shut the alarm off in one swift motion. Bolting from her bed, she made her way to the small dresser tucked into the corner of the room. She shed her pajamas and quickly donned her police uniform. Moving as quietly as to not wake her neighbors, Judy walked to the mirror to check her appearance.
Judy was short, as were most rabbits, and her fur was pale gray in color. Her ears, which offered a level of hearing above most other animals, extended above her head about half of total body height. The police uniform that covered her body consisted of a durable, light blue shirt and heavy, dark blue pants with pads built into the knees. Over her torso she wore a dark blue vest that offered protection from knifes and small caliber firearms.
With a smile, Judy turned to the door and walked into the hall. It was time to go to work.
Nick Wilde walked into the front door of the Zootopia Police Department. He was a small, slender red fox. His orange fur was covered by a standard dark blue police uniform with a darker blue tie. He wore a pair of reflective aviator sunglasses to protect his sensitive eyes from the bright sunlight.
As he walked deeper into the station, Nick removed the sunglasses and sat down on a bench to the right of the door. He always met his partner, Judy, here before heading to the morning briefing. Nick noted it odd that Judy wasn't there already. She always got to work before him. He pulled out his phone and checked some new e-mail notifications, all the while he prepared speech he was going to give Judy about punctuality once she arrived, all in jest, of course.
Nick started to become more and more concerned, however, when roll call was only minutes away with no sigh of Judy. That wasn't like her. He dialed her number into his phone. It rang for several seconds before it went to her voicemail.
"Carrots, it's Nick. You are going to be late for work. Call me when you get this message." With that, Nick hung up and headed for the bullpen. Nick walked into the group of officers and silently prayed Judy was there. There was no sign of her. Nick walked to is normal seat in the front of the room. He pulled the large chair back and climbed into the seat. The chair was so large compared to the small mammal that he normally shared the chair with Judy, but there was still no sign of her.
The door in the front of the room opened and Police Chief Bogo, a towering cape buffalo, walked into the room. The other officers started pounding on the tables in a form of applause. Bogo paid it no mind and studied the clipboard in his left hand. He held his hand up to silence the room and looked up from the clipboard. He locked eyes with Nick and the empty space next to him.
"Where is Officer Hopps?" the Chief's low, baritone voice asked. Nick swallowed hard.
"I don't know, sir," he replied. Nick noted the Chief's expression turn into one of genuine concern, a rarity for the large buffalo. The Chief knew Judy's record for punctuality just as well as Nick did, so he knew how out of character it was the bunny.
"Have you tried to call her? Bogo asked. Nick nodded. Bogo thought for a few seconds before picking up the folders on the podium at the front of the room. "Well, we have today's assignments." Bogo divvied out the folders to the officers, who left the room one-by-one. After all the other officers had filed out of the room, Nick was left alone with Chief Bogo.
"Your assignment, Officer Wilde, is to find your partner and report back to the station." Nick leapt off the chair.
"I won't let you down, sir!" Nick quipped with a slightly sarcastic tone.
"Just go, Wilde," Bogo commanded as he walked out of the room. Nick turned toward the exit and walked out of the bullpen. Nick wasn't sure how to feel. Judy was never late and she would never disappear without letting someone know. Maybe she had an accident in her apartment this morning? It seemed like as good a place as any to start.
Nick pulled the black and white police car up to Judy's apartment building, the Grand Pangolin Apartments. Nick walked through the door and headed to Judy's room on the third floor. He walked up to her door and tried the handle.
Locked.
Well, of course it was. Judy never left her door unlocked, so it was unlikely that she was home, but there may be evidence as to where she went. Nick walked back down to the front desk and rang the bell on the counter. Judy's landlady, a scaly anteater, walked up to the desk.
"How can I help you?" she asked.
"Yes, Officer Nick Wilde: ZPD," Nick began. "Have you seen Judy Hopps today by any chance?"
"I have not," the landlady answered flatly.
"Well then, I'm wondering if you could let me into Judy Hopps' room on the third floor?" Nick asked. "I have probable cause to believe she missing." Nick hoped that throwing out the words "probably cause" would get her to help him. He had no idea if she was missing. He let out a silent sigh of relief when she reached for the keys and started walking toward Judy's room.
She opened the door and left to walk back to the front desk without saying a word. Nick thanked her as she turned to walk down the stairs. Nick peeked into the dark room. It was perfectly neat, so no sign of a struggle. Nick walked into the center of the room and looked around, his eyes straining to find anything out of place.
It was just like Judy to keep her home spotless. Nick kept looking for anything out of the ordinary. He walked over to the mirror where he saw several notes taped around the edge. Most were inconsequential; nothing more than a shopping list and a few other reminders. Nick noted that some of reminders were for later that day and the next day.
So she wasn't planning on leaving.
Nick then noticed the picture of the two of them taped to the top of the mirror, just next to the picture of her parents. He turned to the bed and noticed the pair of pajamas neatly folded resting next to the pillows. He walked over to the dresser and opened the top drawer. One set of her police uniform was missing.
So she was on her way to work.
With that information in mind, he left the room, making sure to lock it behind him. He was going to have retrace Judy's steps to find out where she went.
The room was dark and the air felt damp and cold. A single small figure sat in a chair in the middle of the room. The air was filled with the sounds of dripping water and the slight whimper coming from the figure. The creaking sound of a large metal door opening shattered the silence. The small figure weakly looked up to the source. A much larger figure was walking into the room, carrying a flashlight. He pointed it at the smaller figure, illuminated the crimson blood sticking to the smaller figure's fur and clothes. The large figure approached and kneeled down in front of the small figure's fur.
"Well, Officer Hopps, it's time to go to work."