Chapter Two: Long Night

Whitefeather community hospital was the crowning glory of the zootopian medical community. Established not four years ago, it stood as a model for what a modern medical facility should be. Having nearly five thousand beds for mammals of differing sizes, it provided care for a larger and more varied community than had ever before been possible. Being one of Mayor Lionheart's many initiatives aimed towards bringing the mammals of Zootopia together, at the time it had been considered a great victory for animal kind. Its legacy, though not untainted from the mayor's subsequent fall from grace, remained a symbol to the people of Zootopia, and none could doubt the dedication and care of its staff.

Judy awoke, blinking from a bright light hovering somewhere above her. Recalling the light shining from the vulpine she had tranquilized, she attempted to sit up, but gentle hands held her back. A reassuring voice murmured platitudes, trying to get her to calm down. The voice spoke her name in a deep basso voice, causing her to relax, and she took in her surroundings. She was in a hospital, given the life- saving equipment spread around the room. Her memories began to come back in a jumble. The arrival of the ZPD reinforcements, her and her partner's trip in an ambulance, then blackness as her exhausted and wounded body gave way under the pressures of the day.

Judy's eyes followed the paws on her shoulders, up the hands, to the middle aged beaver they were attached to. He was stocky, with a broad chest, brown fur, and a gentle smile. His eyes seemed to radiate calm, despite the chaotic noises that seemed to be coming from the other side of a drawn curtain, dividing the bed she was lying in from the rest of the hospital. Blinking, thoughts started to coalesce in her mind, as if a picture slowly coming into focus.

"Officer Hopps, how are you feeling," the Beaver said.

Judy grunted as she realized just how much her body hurt. The sharp pains she had felt during the battle were replaced by a steady, bone deep throbbing.

"I'm not sure where all to begin," Judy admitted. She looked over herself, and hissed at the sight before her. Her right leg was swollen from where her foot had impacted with the steering column during her demolition derby impression. Likewise, her left arm was swollen, with an angry purple bruise showing through the fur of her arm.

Her memory started to come back to her as she looked over her injuries. The monster, the ensuing fire fight, and her partner.

"Nick," she gasped, "Is Nick alright? He was injured, and there was…"

The beaver put up his hands in a calming gesture.

"Officer Wilde is fine, just fine. He is in good hands I assure you."

"Now," the beaver said, "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Dr. Woods, and I will be examining you tonight if that is alright with you." Judy nodded her assent, and what followed was a relatively routine medical examination. Nurse Woods proved to be a gentle soul, taking care not to overly distress Judy's multitudinous injuries. Judy winced after he managed to locate an abrasion she wasn't even aware of along her right calf.

"Well, I would say you've certainly been through the wringer," he said after checking Judy's damaged arm. He withdrew a sling from one of the various cabinets in her room, and began to place it around her neck.

"I think it is safe to say that arm is broken. We will need to take a few x-rays in order to be certain of the extensiveness of the break, but in the mean- time, we should keep it elevated."

Judy smiled wanly, and nodded her assent. "Thank you doctor"

"You are welcome officer. Now, if you will excuse me, I have another patient to tend to. A nurse should be in to take you down for your x-ray in a moment."

"Wait, doctor?" Judy looked to the beaver, her ears dropping behind her head as her anxiety bubbled up once more. "Can you tell me Nick's condition? He seemed stable when I last saw him but…" She let the thought hang in the air a moment, not wanting to give her worries a voice.

Dr. Woods smiled sadly and said", I am afraid that H.I.P.P.O. regulations keep me from saying anything definitive to anyone who isn't family."

Anger flashed across Judy's face, but quickly died away into bitter resignation. It still upset her that the law excluded her from inquiring about Nick's health. Normally, he would have given her access in writing, but seeing as how he was likely still incoherent, she was locked out. She started to tap her foot, but stopped when a flash of pain rocketed up her leg. Taking a breath, Judy calmed herself, noting that it wasn't the doctor's fault that these things happened.

Dr. Woods looked around a bit, then in a whisper so low, only a bunny could pick it up, he said, "Room 220, he's stable but sleeping. Concussion."

Judy mouthed, "Thank you," and gave the doctor a smile. Returning her smile with one of his own, Dr. Woods nodded, and headed off towards his next appointment.

Judy sighed, as she leaned back into the examination bed, trying to get comfortable. Her mind wandered, as she waited to be taken down to have her x-rays done. What was it that had attacked her and Nick? What type of animal was it, and why hadn't she ever heard of anything like it before now? Questions for another time, Judy waited to tend to her physical wounds, before she could seek out the answers she needed.

When Judy finally found herself in room 220, she did so with the help of a crutch given to her by one of the hospital staff. They hadn't put her arm in a cast, as her arm was far too swollen, but they had wrapped it in a brace. It was late, and she wasn't sure whether Nick would be asleep when she got there, but she needed to see him. Despite the reassurances she had received, she still felt protective of her partner, and needed to hear that he was alright from his own mouth. It should have come as no surprise though that the vulpine was not only awake, but had somehow found a pudding cup that he was eating. Her ears perked up as she took him in. His uniform had been traded in for a hospital gown, and his head was wrapped up in thick white bandages. Other than a few minor cuts and scrapes, he looked no worse for wear. Judy smiled to herself in relief, and knocked lightly on the door.

Nick paused, spoon lifted to his lips, as he turned to see his partner. A smile blossomed on his face, as he said, "Well, if it isn't Officer Fluff? Glad you could come by. Listen, you want a pudding cup?"

Judy shook her head, and hobbled over to Nick's bed. Ignoring the chair in the corner of his room, she hopped up next to him and held out a paw. Nick's emerald eyes sparkled as he put down his spoon, and passed her an unopened pudding cup.

"Where did you even get these Nick," she ask incredulously.

"Hmm," he said through a full mouth. He swallowed and said, "I know a guy."

"Of course you do," Judy drawled, and clinked spoons with him. They sat in companionable silence, eating pudding, and taking comfort in each other's proximity. After a few moments, they had each finished their cups, but the silence was starting to weigh heavily on them.

"So," Nick began, "Close one tonight."

Judy sighed, "Yes Nick, I noticed."

"You wanna talk about it?"

"Not particularly."

"…I'm… sorry Judy."

She turned to him, her nose twitching, as she sat dumbfounded for a moment.

"Nick, why should you be sorry."

Nick went to scratch his head, but checked the motion. Putting his arm down, he cleared his throat.

"I wasn't there for you in the end. I heard that whatever it was that had attacked us fled. If not for some kind of freak electrical accident, you could have died." Nick breathed heavily, his voice cracking as he spoke. "I…I can't…"

Judy turned fully to her partner, and put her paws to either side of his face. Nick stopped trying to speak, and just took deep breathes. With some gentle coaxing, she got him to look her in the eyes.

"I can't do that…I just…"

"Nick. It's ok. I am fine. You are fine. That creature was… stopped. You did your duty to the city, and to me, and it all worked out. What might have happened doesn't matter. What matters is you were there. You threw yourself in harm's way multiple times for me, and no one could ask for more.

Nick breathed deeply again, his eyes glistening. Perhaps it was his injuries, but Nick felt vulnerable. He was tired, and he was shaken that he nearly lost his partner. But Judy's paws were warm, and her smile was genuine. Slowly, Nick closed his eyes, and nodded. Judy rubbed her hands on his cheek ruff, and dropped her hands to her lap.

"Sly bunny," Nick said with a smile.

"Dumb fox," Judy retorted.

Nicks smirk returned, and he said, "You know that you love me."

Judy gave him a flat look, but before she could respond, there was a knock at the door. Officer Wolfard walked in, his gray fur ruffled, holding a clip board. He raised his paw to the two cops, who instinctively slid farther apart from each other.

"Morning guys," he said in is faintly accented cadence. Wolfard's ears drooped as he stifled a yawn.

"Hey Jonathon," Nick said, "Chief got you burning the midnight oil?"

The timber wolf nodded, and stifled another yawn. "Yeah, we're still trying to figure out what happened to that large predator you guys were fighting. It just up and vanished. We've got the whole city on alert, but no one has seen a thing."

"Want a pudding cup," Nick offered smiling.

"Honestly, Nick." Judy pushed the nurse call button inset into Nick's bed. A few moments later, and a male otter with dark grey fur walked into the room.

"Mr. Wilde, did you need something?" The otter looked disapprovingly at the two other officers in the room. Hospital regulations were that guests had to be out by 8 PM, and it was nearly 3 in the morning. However, being a peace officer had its privileges, Judy thought.

Judy spoke up," Yes, he was wondering if there was any coffee available for Officer Wolfard here."

Nick nodded, and said, "That's right. Sorry for inconveniencing you like this." Nick put on his best, snake charming smile, and said the magic word, "Please."

The nurse, nodded, and said, "Sure," giving the officers one more disapproving look, and headed down the hall way.

Wolfard sighed, and said, "Thanks for that. The chief sent me to collect your statements about what happened. You will need to turn in an official report of course, but that can wait until you guys get back to work."

Judy perked up," I can be in tomorrow." Her eagerness though was diminished as she let out her own deep yawn.

Wolfard snorted, "Yeah right Hopps. The Chief also wanted me to remind you that department policy dictates you to have 24 hours for medical evaluation before returning to work. That goes for both of you." Wolfard emphasized his point by gesturing towards the fox in the hospital bed with the edge of his clip board.

"Sounds good to me," Nick added his own yawn to the crowd.

"So," Wolfard pulled out his pen and set to writing, "What the hell happened tonight?"

Nick and Judy told him. Half way through their story, the nurse came in with Wolfard's coffee, and he thanked the otter graciously. By that point, Judy had made her way over to a chair sitting in the corner of Nick's room. Judy continued, deciding to leave out some of the details. She still wasn't sure how it was the white furred vulpine had been able to direct that electricity, but she knew telling Wolfard he had conjured it out of thin air would make her appear unhinged. Even as it was, Wolfard seemed to be having a hard time believing what he was hearing.

"So you're telling me that this thing was…what, covered in some kind of armor?"

"No," Nick replied, "It wasn't wearing armor. It was part of its body."

"Uh huh," Wolfard said, making a note. He looked up at the bandages covering the fox's head, and nodded. He turned to look at Judy, "Officer Hopps, did your observations match that of your partner?"

Judy nodded, and said, "What Nick said was accurate."

Wolfard wrote something more down. "You see, we were thinking this was a Polar Bear or some other large predator. The claw marks in the ground look like it could have been done by a polar bear. What do you think about that Officer Hopps?"

Nick's face took on a surprised look, before he schooled his expression into an impassive mask. He turned to look at Judy, waiting for her response.

Judy paused, uncertain how to respond. If she insisted that what she had seen was no mammal, it was possible that the ZPD would assume she had cracked. She knew that what she had seen wasn't a polar bear, but without a way to prove it, she was trapped. Frustrated, she blew out a breath, and shrugged.

Wolfard nodded, and said, "Ok guys, I think I've got it. You two get some sleep. The rest of the details can wait till you turn in your reports."

Officer Wolfard bid them goodbye, and headed out of the room. After a few moments, Nick looked back over to his partner and raised his eyebrows at her.

"Officer Hopps. Did you just fail to give a full and detailed report to an officer conducting an official inquiry?"

Judy grimaced, and said, "I told him what we knew. If I start insisting that we saw some kind of monster, Internal Affairs will have us put away. We can let them think what they want until we can find out what really happened.

Nick looked incredulously at the doe, his ears standing straight up. Hmm, almost like a bunny, Judy thought to herself.

"Officer Hopps… did you just… LIE… to an Officer on official ZPD business?"

Judy scowled at Nick and his smarmy tone, "No I did not LIE. I just didn't give him all the details and let him come to his own conclusions."

Nick's face blossomed into the smuggest look she had ever seen on the fox. Even more than the time he was purposely delaying her at the Zootopia DMV during the night howler case.

"Judy," Nick said," You are so hot right now."

Judy felt her cheeks warm, as she tossed a pillow at her partner. It managed to hit him on top the head. He let out a gasp of pain, and fell back to the bed grimacing. Judy made a choking sound, and tried to rush over to his bed side, forgetting for a moment her own injuries. Judy started to topple, and she moved to protect her damaged arm and leg, taking the impact of the fall on her undamaged shoulder. She let out a hiss of pain, as the impact lit tiny fires of agony throughout her body. She heard Nick start to laugh, and despite herself, she laughed too. The laughter, after such a long and troubling day, felt good.

"We are so cool," Nick said still snickering.

Judy laughed, "Totally."

Judy picked herself up off the ground, and worked her way over to Nick's bed once again. Once more, she snuggled up beside him, and lay her head on his shoulder. Turning slightly, she whispered into his ear, "mind to get the lights slick."

"You know, you're still in your uniform right?"

"Don't care. Sleep now."

Chuckling, Nick pushed a button on the side of his bed, leaving them in darkness. Judy felt the fur between her ears ruffle as Nick planted a kiss between her ears.

"Night love."

"Night"

Despite what some people might think, bravery isn't the opposite of fear. It isn't a mastery of fear, nor is it an absence of fear. There have been many instances when I have been afraid. I know all too well the emptiness that swallows all traces of logic and reason. When Mayor Bellwether was put on trial, a recording of her was admitted as evidence into court. In that recording, she said that fear always works. That it can drive people to desperate actions, and drive them to hatred. Unfortunately, she's right. There is however, a weapon that we can wield against fear. A tool that we can use to uplift us when the times are most desperate. In my experience, it is knowledge that we can use to conquer fear. We are hard wired to fear what we do not comprehend. It is instinctive to shy away from the unknown, too avoid the dark places in the world. But knowledge gives us familiarity. It provides us a measure of comfort. It doesn't prevent us from feeling the fear, but it does provide us the chance to take action. If I know why I am afraid, I can take a course to resolve it. I suppose that is also why it pisses me off when I can't figure something out. I hate to be afraid.

~5 Hours Later~

Daniel Elias Coleman was not having a good morning. When he woke up, he realized that three things were wrong. First, he had spent the night on what could only optimistically be referred to as a mattress, leaving him stiff and sore. Second, whatever that bunny cop had hit him with had been drugged, and likely proportioned for a mammal much larger than himself. He felt kiln dried, and totally parched. And third he was in jail. Again.

The Arctic Fox groaned, and tried to sit up from a bed built into the side of a concrete wall. He immediately flopped back down to the mattress, as a wave of nausea rushed over him. He warred with his stomach for a few moments as it asserted itself in a most unwelcome fashion. The nausea eventually subsided, but he could still taste bile welling up in his throat.

"What did they do to me," he muttered bitterly, as he continued to fight off the nausea with deep cleansing breathes.

"Tranquilizer Dart," said a rough voice echoing harshly off the concrete walls.

Daniel groaned again, and glared at the origin on the voice.

"Why if it isn't Officer McHorn. I take it you haven't come down to apologize to me on behalf of the department," Daniel said icily.

The rhino cop snorted, and said, "ZPD don't apologize to criminals. I knew this day would come, and I'll tell yah, I'm just happy I was here to see it."

Daniel hissed again, and managed to turn on his side so he could face the much larger mammal. The cell that Daniel was in was actually part of a set, interposed in a pattern, ranging from a smaller cell used for mammals brought in from Little Rodentia, to larger ones capable of housing the largest of mammals. This design allowed for larger and smaller animals to affectively share a space. Currently, Daniel was alone, save for the annoyance of Officer McHorn.

"See what," the vulpine said grumpily," I haven't done anything to warrant an arrest. That is unless you plan on telling me why it was that I was tranquilized and brought in to custody?" The rhino sneered at Daniel, as he literally looked down his nose at him.

"You're a suspect. I don't know how you did all that damage to the street, or why anyone would call in a 10-91 on a runt like you, but you attacked two of ZPD's highest decorated officers. You're finally gonna get yours Coleman, and I sincerely hope that when you do, they throw away the key."

The bottom dropped out from Daniel's stomach. He scrambled to the toilet in the corner of his cell and noisily threw up. As the retching sounds started to dissipate, Daniel wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and looked up to the looming McHorn.

"I didn't attack anyone. I was in the neighborhood of Old Zootopia on a case, and I was attacked."

McHorn scowled, "Right, you were helping. How about this as an alternative. You're a conman, and a thief, and a liar. You got in to it with one of the local scum, and you got ZPD called on you. You resisted arrest, and Officer Hopps tranqed you. Does that sound about right?"

Daniel shook his head and immediately regretted it. It felt like his brain was rattling around like dice in a cup. He snarled in frustration, and stared at the rhino, teeth gleaming in the fluorescent light.

"I take it Officer Hopps accused me in an official testimony," Daniel spit out in contempt. He had been trying to help the rabbit officer, and despite her reputation for fairness when dealing with foxes, it seemed she wasn't able to shake her prejudices. Daniel had learned from a young age that he would be profiled by the police, and it hadn't helped when he began skirting their investigations as a freelance private investigator. He had even had a few run-ins with the police when his methods came in conflict with local regulations. And while he hadn't been trusted, or even particularly welcome in his dealings with the police, he had never doubted that in the end, he would be vindicated. Now it seemed, prejudice was going to get him thrown in prison after all.

The rhino returned his snarl, and stared daggers into the fox's eyes. Daniel quickly looked away, not wanting to deal with the consequences. The rhino snorted again at Daniel's behavior, which many mammals considered to be shifty.

"Not yet she hasn't. She is taking care of her partner, the fox YOU put into the hospital. She should be in tomorrow to give her testimony. Once she does, we will have all the evidence we need to see you put away." The rhino stood straighter, and leveled a hateful smile down at Daniel. "Until then, enjoy your stay on the city."

McHorn ambled out the door, leading to ZPD headquarters proper. He slammed the door as he did so, making Daniel's ears ring, and a headache begin to throb. Daniel groaned as, he settled back down into the mattress, trying not to think how bad things looked for him. He muttered to no one in particular, "Figures." Most days, it simply did not pay to be a wizard.