**Note** This is my first ever Zazu fanfic. As I've mentioned a few times, his character is undergoing a personality change, into a more Hannibal Lecter persona. Gentleman, genius, monster, etc. Hope you enjoy it!
At All Costs
Zazu Birdly gritted his teeth as he looked at his idiotic opposition in the courtroom. He had been in process of completely obliterating his opponent's defense, when the man had called for a witness that had could back up his alibi. Zazu pressed his lips into a thin line and nodded curtly as the judge approved the man's request, calling the court adjourned for the day.
Mr. Birdly's opponent gave him a smirk of triumph as he walked past him out of the court, and Zazu's insides twisted with hate. The man was innocent, of course, but Zazu hated to lose a case. He had knowingly defended a large number of guilty men, and had also sent many innocent men to a long stay in prison for crimes they didn't commit. Yet, he still slept well every night.
Zazu had the unique ability to simply turn off his conscience. He so hated losing, that he was willing to do almost anything to ensure his success. Even if that included actions that weren't exactly legal.
Zazu clenched his jaw as his opponent, Hans Milliner, patted his witness on the back, and the duo laughed aloud at something, most likely making a jab at the infuriated prosecutor. Zazu inhaled deeply to calm himself, and strode out of the courtroom; smiling tightly at Mr. Milliner and his small, sickly looking witness.
The man looked as though a strong wind would blow him over. However, Zazu mused after he had started his drive back home, the small, weak man would provide a testimony tomorrow that would kill Zazu's case. And he couldn't let that happen. Zazu furrowed his brow, deep in thought as he pulled into his drive, killing the engine.
A frown stayed on his mouth as he contemplated on how he would fix this problem. His lightning fast mind threw ideas at him like bullets, most too ridiculous to even consider for a moment. Bribery? No, too risky. If things went wrong, Zazu's reputation could be tarnished, and that wouldn't do. Threats? That wouldn't work either; the witness could easily bring in protection for himself. There was only one other option…
As Zazu opened the door and hung up his suit coat and hat, his mind continued to whirl. He had less than 24 hours to solve this issue, and he was hoping he wouldn't have to go with his final option.
"Zazu, baby? Is that you?" a soft, melodic voice wafted in from the kitchen, and Zazu smiled in spite of himself.
"It's me, Ellie." He called out, walking towards the source of the voice. His girlfriend, Ellie Fredricksen, turned and smiled at him as he entered the kitchen, wiping her hands on a towel and stepping forward to greet him. Zazu smiled as she stepped into his arms, wrapping them around her and drawing her tight to his chest, eagerly leaning down to kiss her. He closed his eyes as his tension melted away at her kiss, greedily taking in her warm, delicious scent.
Ellie chuckled softly and pulled away, smiling.
"How was your day, honey? You're home awfully late. Faline's already in bed." She said to him. Zazu nodded and sighed.
"It was… very long. And frustrating. But it's over now." He said softly. "I missed you." Ellie smiled and kissed him softly again, stepping out of his arms. Zazu frowned and followed her.
"That's no good. But I missed you too. Are you going back to court tomorrow?" she asked. Zazu sighed as her words brought back the pressing issue he had to face.
"Yes, but hopefully it's the last day. The defendant is proving to be difficult to work with." He admitted. Ellie chuckled as she handed him a plate full of supper, kissing his lips softly.
"Well, I'm sure that Zazu Birdly, the greatest lawyer ever, can figure it out." She whispered to him. "If it's proving too stressful for you, I can certainly take your mind off of it for a while…" she winked and turned, walking to the bedroom they shared. "Eat quick, baby. Don't keep me waiting." She called over her shoulder.
Zazu usually took time to enjoy the meals that Ellie cooked, but not tonight. He barely paused to chew as he inhaled his food, practically sprinting to the bedroom and closing the heavy oak doors behind him.
Quite a few hours later, Zazu lay silently beside the sleeping form of Ellie, idly playing with a strand of her hair, listening to her quiet breathing, smiling at her soft little satisfied smile. He ran a hand over her side and kissed her forehead gently, careful not to wake her as he slipped out of bed, dressing quickly in the dark. He threw on a pair of jeans, a black t-shirt and an old sweater, closing the doors behind him as he crept out.
Zazu walked through the house silently, retrieving his trusty Harpy knife from its compartment in a drawer, tucking it into his pocket. He also grabbed a few heavy-duty garbage bags, along with an old tarp. Zazu loaded these items into the trunk of his car, starting the engine and pulling out of the drive.
He hadn't wanted to pursue this plan originally, but not because he had any moral qualms about it. He simply didn't like the extra effort on his part, along with the precautions of hiding the waste from the endeavor from the authorities. You see, Zazu Birdly was planning on killing the witness.
It was a very simple solution, actually. In a big city like Baltimore, people went missing all the time. The fact that this particular man didn't show up for court tomorrow would be but a tragic event, nothing more. Zazu was very particular about cleaning up after himself, so no evidence would be left pointing to him.
He made a quick call to one of his contacts, and learned that the sickly witness was attending a dinner party tonight, and also his address. Zazu parked across the street from the mans house, and waited with the patience of a python. After about half an hour, he saw a small, thin figure shuffling towards the apartment complex, and Zazu smiled in the dark. This was too easy.
He quietly exited the car, waking a ways down the sidewalk before crossing the street and turning so that he was following the small man. He kept to the shadows, barely making a sound, so not to alarm his quarry. The man shuffled along slowly, so Zazu caught up to him quite quickly. He slipped his knife out of his pocket, flipping the blade out with a flick of his wrist.
He tapped the man on the shoulder, and he turned around, eyes wide in the gloom, startled at Zazu's sudden presence in front of him.
"Good evening." Zazu said politely, before grabbing the mans shoulder, pulling him close and burying the razor sharp knife in the mans abdomen. He clapped a hand over his victim's mouth to quiet any noise, driving the knife deeper, waiting patiently for the mans feeble struggles to stop. Zazu was a very strong man, and he easily kept control as the thrashing slowed, and stopped, the body going limp. He looked around the street once, and withdrew his knife from the man's already cooling body, slinging the corpse over his shoulder and carrying it to his car.
He laid the body on the sidewalk and opened the trunk, retrieving the garbage bags and the tarp, arranging them so that the man's stiffening corpse was tucked neatly inside the garbage bags, and wrapped securely in the tarp. He lifted the body and stuffed it in his trunk, clicking it shut and climbing into the driver's side.
He smiled as he drove away. The whole business had taken less than half and hour, not counting the drive, and had gone as smoothly as possible. He drove quietly to the waste processing plant, the Ferrari's engine purring softly as he found what he was looking for, the metal crushing machine. He parked and retrieved the tarp from his trunk; first looking to make sure the plant was deserted.
He carefully made his way up to the loud machine, swinging the body into the pile of metal next in line to be crushed. He turned and whistled a tune as he climbed back in his car, beginning his drive back home, looking forward to crawling back in his warm bed with Ellie.
The next day, no one would notice the dark red stain on the chute of the crushing machine. Zazu would try his very best to hide a satisfied smirk as the judge ruled the court in his favor, adding another victory to his list. He would, however, allow himself a wink at his seething opponent as he strode out of the courtroom.
- End -