The city was quiet. Zootopia was never this quiet. Usually at this time of night, cars raced around the busy streets, their headlights cutting into the shadows. Honking horns and whirring motors were a common sound of the city. Most animals were also out at this time as well, some walking alone, others chatting noisily with friends.
But there was nothing except silence.
I hopped down the sidewalk, my ears twitching back and forth. My hair stood on end. Why was it so quiet? So… empty?
I looked around the empty streets for any sign of life. The only thing that caught my attention was the eerie glow of the iridescent street lights.
Suddenly, my ears pricked up. I had heard something. It was the faint sound of nails clicking on the sidewalk behind me. I whirled around, but nothing was there. I shivered, hugging myself, and continued on my way.
Then it happened again. I whipped my head around, but still, the sidewalk behind me was empty. I sped my pace up, worried that someone was following me.
Then, out of nowhere, I was grabbed.
I tried to scream, but a large paw clamped over my mouth. A sharp claw pinched the back of my neck and I was lifted off of the ground. I tried to struggle, kicking away at the paws with my back legs, but it was no use. I could hear the animal breathing. It's breaths were long and ragged, but I could tell it was chuckling at my efforts softly.
Just about when I thought I was done for, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a gray streak flash towards my captor. I heard the large creature yelp, and I was dropped. I fell onto my side and bounced once. I quickly sat up after falling, shaking my head. I wanted to see what had happened.
When I looked over to where the creature had been, I saw a large brown bear, obviously the one who had captured me, and a small gray rabbit who was darting around the bear. She was wearing a Zootopia Police Department uniform and she moved so quickly that the bear's eyes could not keep up with her. The rabbit darted behind the bear and the bear's eyes became frantic, wondering where his opponent had disappeared to. Before he could retaliate, the bear's front paws were held behind his back in metal cuffs. The bear growled furiously, struggling against the paw cuffs, but his efforts did not get him anywhere.
"Are you alright?" I looked away from the bear to see the rabbit standing next to me.
"Yeah, I'm fine…." I responded slowly, rubbing my head. I glanced at the rabbit's police badge. It glowed in the light of the street lamps, and a engraved name shimmered across it. The name was Judy Hopps.
I was just about to gasp with excitement, when-
Beep, beep, beep! Beep, beep, beep!
I groaned, sitting up in bed. I threw the covers off of me, and slammed my paw down onto the alarm clock on my nightstand. The beeping ceased. I rubbed my eyes tiredly, letting out a breath of exasperation.
It was Monday….
Of all places to go, I did not want to go to school. But I knew if I didn't get out of bed in the next five minutes, my mother would come hopping in, yelling at me about being punctual. I sighed, tired of the regular, boring routine. I hauled myself out of bed, throwing the door open and proceeding down the dimly lit hallway.
When I got to the dining room, both of my parents were already at the table eating their breakfast. My father was wearing his regular dark blue suit and my mother was wearing her favorite dress, which was decorated in a pink and yellow flowers.
"Good morning Jane!" My parents greeted me cheerfully. How did they have so much energy in the morning?
"Mornin'" I said drowsily, before dragging myself into the kitchen to fix myself a bowl of Alfalfa O's.
"Are you ready for school this morning?" My mother asked when I had taken my place at the table.
"We better hope so…" I yawned, jamming a spoonful of cereal into my mouth.
"Jane!" My father scolded.
"Sorry." I murmured.
Once I had finished my breakfast, I left the kitchen and went back to my bedroom to get dressed. I dug a random outfit from my closet and put it on. Turned out it was a light blue tank top and jean shorts. Then I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and comb my hair. My backpack was the last thing I had to grab before hopping out of my room.
I leapt down the stairs and out towards the front door. I peered out the window to see the Zootopia High school bus waiting outside for me.
"The bus is here!" I hollered as I ran into the kitchen to say goodbye to my parents. I gave them both a quick hug before hopping back out to the front door.
"Have a good day at school!" My parents said.
"Bye!" I yelled, slamming the door behind me. I jumped out to the bus and clambered on, moving down the aisle way and taking an empty seat. I sighed, dropping my backpack onto the floor.
Let the week begin… I thought as the bus pulled away from my house. But little did I know, the week was going to be a lot more exciting than I had anticipated.