Chapter 1: That Day

Author's Note: The following story takes place just two days after the events in my other story, "My Turn to Drive" but is barely related to it. Judy and Nick are currently doing parking duty because they wrecked two cars.

Nick and Judy are sitting in their meter maid cart (including full meter maid outfits for both) as Judy is on the phone to her mother. Nick is just watching the conversation unfold.

"Yes mom, I'm doing some meter maid duty for just a short time...No, I don't mind. Y'see I was in a chase and my car got totaled so I'm kinda sidelined unti-...NO! I'm fine! No! No! You do not need to come down with dad! I'm doing great! It was just a little fender bender!"

Nick was getting impatient. "Have you told them about me yet?" He whispered. Judy shook her head no and made a "SHHH!" noise.

"What?! No Mom! I'm not shushing you at all! It was a pedestrian! So how's Dad? Good to hear! His face on what? Seriously? But if Gideon makes them, then wh-"

Nick got sick of never being part of the conversation with Judy's parents. He yanked the phone out of Judy's hands. "Hello Mrs. Hopps! I'm Judy's partner that she never speaks of."

Judy was furious and trying desperately to get the phone back, but Nick's long arm kept her out of reach. "I don't know why she's never spoken of me! Yes, I do agree it's very rude."

"So is stealing someone's phone!" Judy yelled angrily and she was now being held back by Nick's foot.

"May I call you Bonnie?...Thank you! Yes Bonnie, I've been her very best friend in the city for the past year and have been watching her back all this time." he said while giving an angry glare to Judy. "Why hasn't she mentioned me? Here! Why don't you ask her?!" and he let go of Judy and threw the phone in her lap.

Judy held the phone, but she wasn't sure what to say. She looked over at Nick who gave a dirty look to her and then tipped his meter maid bowler hat down to cover his eyes.

She glanced at the phone and finally put it to her head. "Well...it's because...I...I didn't want you to think I couldn't make it on my own. You know how independent I am."

Nick looked away. He was only getting more frustrated.

"And...Oh to heck with it! Nick's a fox! Now, I know how you and dad feel about...What? Calm down! Why are you screaming?! Mom?Mom! Hello?" She then hung up. Judy threw the phone onto the cup holder. "I knew this would happen."

She then looked over at Nick who had his back completely turned from her. "And...since it was gonna happen anyway, I should have told them much sooner. I'm sorry Nick! I'm not ashamed of you, I'm PROUD of you! Can you forgive me?"

Nick tipped his hat back up and gave her a smile. "Only if we trade hats, Carrots."

"Deal" Judy chuckled and they swapped bowlers. Nick loved it. He looked at himself in the mirror. "It's so tiny on my head! I look adorable!"

"I can't see a thing!" Judy chuckled as Nick's hat covered her eyes.

Just then a short Lynx ran up to them. "Police! Police!"

Nick looked around. "Where?!"

"I'm talking about you two!" The frustrated Lynx said.

Nick gave a sly grin. "I'm sorry sir, you must have us confused with real cops. We're meter maids!"

Judy threw Nick's hat back at him. "Knock it off!" She shouted. She then recognized the Lynx. "Oh! It's Harold Housecat!"

"Who?" Nick asked.

"You know! The one from the chase where I wrecked my squad car!"

"OH! The cat who got chased by mice! Your last name is 'Housecat' but you're a Lynx?" Nick asked Harold.

"Not all last names are indicative or puns of their species y'know?!" Harold huffed at Nick.

Nick feigned a sad look. "Cartoons have lied to me."

Judy tried to get the subject back on track. "What seems to be the trouble sir?"

"My convenience store has been robbed for the past four days and I have no idea how! Please help me!" The old Lynx begged.

Nick got out of the car. "Well, we WERE gonna enjoy a quiet day handing out tickets and annoying people, but I guess we could help."

"It's our duty as police officers to protect and serve!" Judy said diligently. Nick mouthed her words mockingly as she'd said this a few times before.

Harold shook Judy and Nick's paws. "Thank you! THANK YOU! Come this way!" and he led them to his store nearby.

Moments later, they were in Harold's store. Judy was interviewing Harold while Nick looked around.

"Is there anything out of the ordinary you can tell us about this?" Judy asked.

Harold replied "Well, that's just it! There's absolutely no sign of breaking and entering. I close my shop at 10PM and open up again at 8AM and there's been no one on camera seen stealing during that time. However..."

Judy was curious. "Yes?"

Harold leaned up to her and whispered. "I've been putting on the monitors overnight and with some scary results! I...I think the thieves are...G-G-G-Ghosts!"

"Now, is that with one 'G' or four?" Nick joked.

"Mock me all you want, but come and look at my monitors! I'll show you proof!" Harold led Nick and Judy to the monitoring room and he played them a tape from the night before. "There! Look! Look!"

Judy couldn't believe her eyes. Bags of chips and cookies appeared to be walking on their own. A wax cup floated over to the drink dispenser and filled itself up with soda. They then seemed to be floating away and into the air vent near the ceiling.

"Unbelievable!" Judy exclaimed. "Nick, do you see this? Nick?" Judy then realized Nick had left. She then heard a terrifying scream from the front of the store.

"Carrots! It's horrible! Terrible!" She heard Nick yell. Judy then ran to the front of the store. "What is it?! Are you okay?!"

"This blueberry Freezie tastes nothing like blueberries!" Nick said with a grin while holding a small cup of Freezie in his hand.

"Would you be serious for once?!"

"Hey! I am serious! When it comes to blueberries, I'm a regular connie sewer."

"That's 'connoisseur'!"

"That's what I said!"

Judy was getting frustrated. "Look! If you could take two minutes to stop joking, we need to find out who or what's been taking those snacks!"

Nick looked over at Judy. "Well, what do you think it could be?"

Judy puzzled for a moment. "I'm not sure. Tiny mice? Chameleons? Geckos? Really strong ants?"

Nick rubbed his chin. "I don't think so. There are no holes around the floor for mice and they would appear on camera. Chameleons and Geckos use camouflage but there's no reptiles in Zootopia. They'd have to come all the way from Scaleburg and that's 300 miles away! Also, reptiles and ants can't float in the air."

He then took a good look at the air vent. "I can't fit in that air vent, but you can Fluff. Let me give you a lift and you can go look around there."

Judy wasn't too keen on the idea. "M-Me? Alone? Are you sure?"

Nick looked down at Judy. "Why officer Hopps? Are you actually afraid of some spooky spirits in the air vent?"

"O-Of course not!" Judy replied. "I aint' afraid of no ghosts!"

Nick picked up Judy and headed her toward the air vent. "That's a double negative AND you used the word 'aint'. Did you fail grammar at the academy? Anyway, up you go!"

Judy was hesitant. "Wait! Maybe we could think of a better plan?

"No time." Nick replied.

"But!...But!...But!"

"Yes, yes. It's a very cute butt. Now get it and the rest of you in there!" and Nick shoved Judy into the air vent. She used the flashlight on her cell phone to look around.

"See anything yet?" Nick asked.

"No" Judy replied. "Just candy wrappers and some spilled soda. I'm gonna go ahead further!"

"Okay!" Nick shouted. "I'll be right out here!"

Judy looked around nervously. Her light just shining a few feet ahead where the air vent turns. She then heard a terrifying, low voice.

"Get Out!" It bellowed.

Judy was frozen in fear. "W-W-W-What?"

"GET OUT!" It screamed again. Judy then heard some kind of screeching noise and looked to her right only to see the words "get out" being scratched on to the side with no one around.

Judy screamed at the top of her lungs. Nick looked concerned. "Judy! Are you okay?!"

He could hear her scrambling back toward the air vent entrance. "I'm getting out! I'm getting out! Catch me!" She then leaped into the air, but got caught on something for a brief second. "Ack! Spider webs!" She yelled and dropped into Nick's arms where she held onto him tightly.

She was trembling in his arms. "It's okay Carrots. You're safe now. You can let go." Nick said. He then tried to pull her away but her grip was too tight. "Or you can cling to me for awhile. That's a good option too."

Harold ran up to them. "What happened?"

Still clinging to Nick, Judy turned her head. "Whatever's in there. It told me to get out in a deep, scary voice and it even wrote 'get out' on the side of the vent!"

Harold looked sacred. "T-Then it IS ghosts!"

Nick chimed in. "Ow! Carrots! I didn't know bunny claws could dig in so deep!"

"S-Sorry Nick!" She finally jumped off Nick and onto the floor.

Nick then turned his attention to Harold."Sir, can we talk in the back please?"

Harold led them back to the monitoring room. Nick looked around and noticed there wasn't any air vents. Just a grate in the back that let air in from outside. "I don't want the umm...'ghosts' to overhear us."

"What can we do?!" Harold said in a panic.

"I have a plan." Nick said. "But we'll need to be here just before you close."

"We're coming back tonight?!" Judy yipped nervously.

Nick shushed Judy. "Yes, but keep it quiet!"

Harold couldn't believe his bad luck. "First those mice, now this! I must've been a horrible person in a past life to deserve this!"

Judy and Nick then headed back to their car. "Do you really think they're ghosts?" Judy asked nervously.

"I dunno Fluff. I'm not sure what they could be!" He replied. But actually, he knew EXACTLY what they were and he had a plan.

"But I'll tell you one thing Carrots. Tonight, we're doing some ghost busting!"