Judy is a literal plot bunny. And I can't shoot Judy, can I? Ugh. I should not be starting another story. But here we are. After watching Zootopia twice and adoring its intricate and brilliant plot, I'm here to do my own take on the animals' interesting world.

Greetings, Zootopia fans! I'm daphrose, also known as Rosie. I write for a lot of Disney shows, and today I thought I'd tackle a Disney movie. You should know that I love me some plot twists and dark storylines. This is a multi-chaptered story that is rated a high T for dark themes, criminal acts, violence, muzzles, kidnappings, physical and psychological torture, and potentially death. I condone none of those things, but they do make for good conflict in a fictional world. Tread with care.

A few other notes: There is an OC who will play an important role in the story. I will do everything in my efforts to make him a three-dimensional character and not some sort of generic Gary-Stu, but if you don't trust me, you can leave now. The other thing is that Judy and Nick will not be shipped romantically in this story, but there will be a strong platonic friendship between them. (Basically just like the movie.)

I don't own Zootopia, only Jack and this story. Enjoy.

* * * Chapter 1 * * *

"Nick?" She pounded on the door one more time. "Nick Wilde, open up this door right now!" She tapped her foot, twitched her nose, and pounded on the door again. "Don't make me get a warrant!"

She took a step back and drew in a shuddering breath. "Look, I'm sorry, okay. Is that what you wanted? I understand the way you feel about this. Really, I do. But Nick . . . you're an officer now. I've learned to . . . to let go and . . . so why can't you just . . ." She stomped her foot. "Let me in, you dirty little fox!"

No answer.

Her hands slid off her hips and she sank to her knees. Down the hall, an elderly sheep carrying a sack of groceries entered her apartment. She took no notice of the distraught bunny a couple yards away.

Judy sighed. "Seriously, Nick, nothing? I know you're in there, and I know you can hear me!" You're in there, right, Nick? She'd already checked down by the bridge and all of his other favorite hangouts. The only place left to look had been his apartment, but the door was locked. She seriously considered going back to the station and getting a warrant.

She decided to take the desperate angle—she was desperate, after all. "Please. Nick, I don't want you to be mad at me. A-And I don't want to be mad at you. Just let me in. Let's talk about this together. Not as officers, okay, just as friends? Please?"

Still no answer. Complete and utter silence. Though sadness still held the primary role in her heart, she could feel the anger rising up alongside it. She stood, twitched her nose again, and shouted, "You're gonna have to come in tomorrow either way! If you won't come out now, I'll see you in the morning."

He didn't show up in the morning.

She sat through the briefing—she had only paperwork to fill out involving their latest case. She didn't like it, especially since the case was still open, but she needed to get all the facts straight before they could continue. Unless something big came up, she would be stuck in her cubicle.

She should've been stuck in there with Nick.

When Chief Bogo came around to ask where her partner was, she had no answer for him. He narrowed his eyes, but he didn't ask any more questions. Officer Clawhauser told her later that all attempts to call Nick had failed. He wouldn't answer to any of them, and that only made Judy angrier.

At the beginning of lunch break, she pulled out her own phone and gave her friend a call. As suspected, it went straight to voicemail.

"I know you're mad at me," Judy said, getting right to the point of her message, "but seriously? You're blowing off your job and all your friends? What's your deal, Nick? Does this case really make you that mad?" She paused for a moment. "I'm coming over to your place after I get off of work. If you don't open the door, I will get a warrant."

She ended the call and sighed. As hungry as she was, she knew she wouldn't be able to eat until this had all been settled. No time to head over to Nick's apartment before she had to get back to work, but she knew a place where she might be able to find a clue.

It was a bad part of town, an area she'd been to on plenty of occasions yet still couldn't quite enjoy. The conditions of squalor simultaneously broke her heart and put her on edge. Obviously she didn't want to stereotype everyone there, but no one could deny the large number of criminals these streets produced. She shrugged all that off and kept walking, straight into the run-down pizza joint.

"Jack? Jack Wilde?"

The fox behind the counter grinned and swung around, expecting to find a costumer. "Yes ma'am, what can I—oh, it's you."

"Yeah, Officer Judy Hopps, ZPD."

"You've mentioned that . . . every single time we've met. Here to ask more about those shaved animals? Because I don't know a thing."

"No, but I'll probably be back to ask you about those later."

"I'm sure you will."

"This is about Nick."

Jack's face softened. "Look, I'd love to help you, but unless you buy something, you're loitering."

"Fine. I'll take one personal carrot pizza."

"Saw that one coming."

After she received her pizza, she sat at the counter so she could carry on her conversation.

"Is Nick okay?" Jack asked before she could say anything.

"I don't know. That's what I came to ask you. We got into a fight yesterday and—"

"About me?"

"Huh?"

"Was your fight about me?"

Judy's brow furrowed. "It doesn't matter. The point is—"

"So it was about me."

"Let me finish!" She glared at him until he shrugged. "He got mad at me and stormed off. No one's seen him since. He didn't come in for work and no one can get a hold of him."

"Have you tried going to his apartment?"

"What do you think? Of course I have! He won't answer the door."

Jack gave a slow nod. "And you think I might know where he is?"

"Maybe."

"What, you think I kidnapped him or something?"

Judy scowled. "I wouldn't put it past you."

Jack only laughed at her. "Look, I know you hate me and think I'm a terrible guy, but even I wouldn't stoop so low as to kidnap my own brother."

"You don't seem terribly upset that he's missing."

"He's not missing; you're freaking out about nothing. Look, my brother always liked to be by himself as a kid. He's probably just taking a breather while he cools down."

"His personal mantra is 'Don't let them know they get to you.' This isn't like him!"

"Who here is related to him?"

"The same guy who's been missing for sixteen years and just came back this month. You don't know Nick at all, not really."

Jack narrowed his eyes. "Look, of course I'm worried about him. But be patient. Man, you bunnies are so jumpy."

She wiped her paws on a napkin and drank the rest of the soda. "I need to get back to the station. I'll be in tomorrow to ask you about those shaved animals."

"I'm counting on it!" Jack called after her as she left the building.

Judy stood back in front of Nick's door, her body quivering. She had stood outside, completely silent, for several minutes. She didn't hear a sound coming from the apartment, and she had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. As a cop, she'd learned not to ignore her instincts.

Judy knocked once, but she didn't wait for an answer. She knew she wouldn't get one. Instead, she ran out of the building and into the back alley. She located the window to Nick's apartment and hurried up the fire escape.

The chilly night air rustled her fur as she frowned at the shutters blocking her view into the room. She pursed her lips and pushed up on the frame, hoping against hope that fate would be kind to her.

The window popped open and she sighed with relief. Now she only had to hope she wouldn't be convicted of breaking and entering. She had probable cause . . . right?

Judy slid through the shutters and into Nick's dark apartment. A quick scan told her that she was alone. She tried to flick on the lights, but they didn't work. She pulled out the flashlight on her phone, her heart pounding her chest.

"Nick?" she hissed.

The sinking feeling in her gut grew worse with every step she took. This went far beyond an angry friend. Something was wrong here and she was determined to prove it.

Aside from the lights and every other electrical item in the room being in an inoperative condition, nothing looked out of place. No claws marks on the walls, no misplaced objects, no sign of ransacking, nothing. For some reason, that only made Judy feel worse.

"Where are you, Nick?" she muttered.

She walked over to the bed and knelt down, shining her light under it. Nothing. She did the same under the nightstand, with the same result. Finally, she checked under the dresser. This time, her light shown off some kind of paper. She pulled it out and held it under her phone.

The first noticeable thing about the paper was the slit down the right side surrounded by a red stain. She convulsed with dread. The . . . stain covered up some of the words, but she could still make them out, thankfully.

The date of the day before sat in the top corner. The note was written in Nick's sloppy handwriting, and the words, coupled with the stain, only served to strengthen her fear—especially when the words ended so abruptly.

All the lights went out two minutes ago. My door's jammed and so is the window. My phone hasn't been working for fifteen minutes, or else I would've called someone. I'm probably just paranoid, but I've had a weird feeling since this afternoon. If everything's fine in the morning—and I'm sure it will be—I'll destroy this note. But if someone actually found this, congratulations! You've probably also found my dead body! And if this note is all by itself, something even worse happened to me. Gosh. Is this what it's like to be so afraid? I really hope no one ever finds this note. And if you do, can we keep this between you and me? No one else needs to kn

I feel like it's not the best. Ah well. Yes, more will explained as it goes on. And yes, that drop-off ending was on purpose.

Gah, I really hope that note sounded all right. Getting Nick right on paper is hard.

Speaking of Nick, he's also my favorite character. If anyone has read my other work, you know that, well, my favorite characters always wind up in some terrible situations where they're physically and emotionally beaten up. Sorry, Nick. That's what you get for being so stinkin' adorable.

If you're still reading this, thank you so much. Reviews are appreciated but not required. Letting me know what you thought of the chapter and of the plot idea overall really helps me grow as an author. Be honest with me!

I'm not entirely sure when the next chapter will be up, but hopefully soon. Thanks again for reading, all! See you later!