Well this took me a long time considering that I have been at it almost non-stop. The following chapters may be smaller than the last two but hopefully they will take me less time to write. Well here it is, enjoy and leave a comment if you want (but you probably don't give a shit let's be honest) telling me how much you love and worship me. But more seriously I do welcome comment both positive and negative, as long as they are constructive I will try to do as you propose.

Beep! Beep! Beep! Bee… Stump!

The clock didn't have the time to ring a fourth time before the bunny silenced it by slamming her paw on it with might and righteous justice. Judy wasn't the type of bunny whom you needed to ask twice to get up in the morning. Growing up on a farm had it's advantages sometimes.

"Good Morning Zootopia!"

She whispered the greeting as not to wake up her neighbours. The walls were thin and she did not care to be yelled at, at 5:30 in the morning.

After a quick morning routine hastily made, Judy was ready to go to work. When she moved in she made sure that she lived in the closest apartment to the police station she could afford. The proximity to her work place was the only reason she was able to support living in this hole. Since she didn't own a car, she ran to the precinct everyday. That way she had no need for a ZTA card and she could keep up her shape she had gained from her days at the academy.

The run was like most day up until the point where she came across a blocked road. Sometimes it surprised her how the city's worker could create a massive construction site over one night, and yet take weeks to finish the work. It was no big deal really but she had to take another route which made her arrived later than expected at the station. When she arrived, she headed straight to the female locker-room and took a quick shower. Sadly due to her having to take a longer route she didn't have the time to properly dry her fur.

This resulted in her being still wet when she walked in the bullpen. It wasn't to the point where she was dripping, but it was still enough for her clothes to soak a small part of the humidity. Her ears, while still up, were slightly bended due to the additional weight of the soaked fur. On many parts of her body stood little agglomeration of hairs.

When Nick saw her walked in he was pleasantly surprised. He honestly thought that she still looked good her fur full of water. He had to repress a strange feeling that he could not tell exactly it's origin.

"Well isn't this a cute little wet bunny that we have here."

"What have I told you about the c word." She said while still smiling.

"You know you like it when I call you cute. Don't try to hide it."

She actually did like it. However no force in this world would have made her admit it. But Nick didn't need for her to say it. He already knew from the way her body reacted. Her nose , leg and ears all twitching at his words. No he did not need any more signs than those he already had. Nick turned his head, smiling at the effect he had on her, to the door on the other side of which stood a large angry mammal.

"ATTENTION!"

The crowd of police officer started cheering as usual when their superior entered the room.

"Alright shut up. SHUT UP for god sake."

The crowd went silent.

"We don't have time for announcement today so screw those involved. Early this morning, officer Honey and Stripe discovered a murder victim while on patrol."

Whispers crossed the room as the officers took in the information.

"We have a mammalicide on our hands so today is going to be a big day for everyone."

The chief took a pause while he went through the assignments files for the day.

"Officer , Rhinowits, Wolfard, Hopps and Wilde. You guys are going to secure the crime scene. Nobody gets close and if Coon and Porkins need anything, you comply. Sniggens, Snarlow, Tunkerbee you go on patrol and search the area. If the killer got rid of anything in the proximity I want it found. Finally Office Grizzoly, Fangmeyer and Delgardo you get ready to make search warrant on the victims frequently visited location. Go see Coon he will give you the information you need. Dismissed."

The officer all stood up and went to the garage to get in their respective ZPD SUV. Not long after that, they were all driving in a convoy with the sirens on. Bogo was right this was going to be a long day and they all knew that.

"Hopefully the guys will have an easier time cracking this case than the last one." Said Nick to the driving bunny next to him.

"Yeah it's always demoralizing to see a case go in the unsolved pile."

The Drive was a quick one, this case being the priority and all. When they arrived at the abandoned factory the officers standing guard changed place with those already there from the night shift. Judy and Nick were positioned on the inside while the rest took their place on the outside perimeter.

In the middle of the factory laying on the dusty floor was the body of a large grey wolf in a ripped business suit covered with bruises that indicated a fight. Surrounding the body were a team of technicians, illuminated by large spotlights, photographing the corpse to document it. On the other side of the room, were Coon and Porkins. They were talking with two officers, a bear and a zebra, that looked extremely sleep deprived. Judy and Nick were only to watch not intervene, this time they were not part of the case. Their job right now was to ensure the integrity and privacy of the crime scene. Once they were finished with the two officers, the investigators told them to go home and rest. One of the technicians, probably the one in charge, spoke to them.

"Okay we're done, you can inspect the body."

The other technicians began to pack their equipment. At the same time the two investigators headed towards the dead mammal. On the way there they handed their cup of coffee to one of the intern technicians that was leaving. The young sheep glared at them obviously confused and a bit insulted to be treated as a cup holder.

"Hey you know the rules… No liquid this close to the body." Said Coon.

The intern just shrugged and walked away obviously defeated by their logic.

"It would be nice for once if a murder could happen in the daytime instead of the first hours of the day."

"Yhea, strange." Replied Porkins. "It's like there was something about darkness and the lack of people that appealed to murderers."

"I'm just saying, I am about to ask Bogo to include coffee as business expense."

"I doubt that's a discussion you want to have with him."

"So what do we have here?"

The two investigators opened up the front of their leather shoulder holster to allow them to bend down.

"Multiple claw marks all over the body. I'll have the pathologist confirm they were the cause of death." Said the the pig.

"If our friend here was in a fight we might find his killer's DNA under his claw."

Coon lifted the victim's arm to check his claw but then stopped in his track.

"Holy shit!"

"What? What is it?"

"Porkins you have to see this!"

The pig went to the other side of the wolf to join his friend.

"My god!"

Coon popped up his head and looked around the room as if he was searching for something in a panick. When he saw that Judy and Nick were among the cops present he called them out.

"Hopps, Wilde, you got to see this!"

"What is it Coon, if you can't stand the sight of blood maybe this isn't the best profession for you."

"This isn't the time for jokes Wilde just get your fat ass over here."

Judy snickered at the raccoon's remark just enough so that Nick could hear her. However all desire to make jokes quickly faded away when she saw what the two investigators were so shocked about. A feeling of dizziness took over her as well as feeling light headed.

"Looks like the case isn't dead after all." Said Coon.

Right there, under the wolf's left armpit there was a tattoo visible through the ripped suit. A black diamond with a circle inside.

Only Nick was able to answer.

"Shit!"

The four cops were immobile for a while in complete silence still trying to fully grasp the meaning of this.

"We are working with a serial killer." Said the bunny.

"I'll bet you that those claw marks will have the exact same dimensions has the one on poor old panda Po." Coon added.

It was Nick's turn to interject.

"So who is this guy anyway we haven't been filled in on what you know about this case."

"His name is, or at least was, James L. McArfur. He worked for the ZMB as a manager / high level accountant or something like that."

The ZMB (zootopia mammal bank) was the largest bank in zootopia. This meant that if the victim was one of their managers he must have been living with a high income.

"No remaining family, a few friends, married to his job really." Coon reached down into the victim's pocket and pulled out a wallet. He opened it and proceeded to a search. "Again, everything is there cards, money et ceteras."

"Wait! So hold on…" Porkins said. "Our killer is going around, targeting people of some weird mysterious gang/society because of… What exactly? A vendetta?"

"Well it sure looks like it. It also looks like the culprit used the same modus operandi. There is no blood that show up under the blacklight and I am ready to bet you what you want there has not been one hair shed."

"Thanks but i'll pass on the bet. Me and carrots over here already have one going on."

Judy punched Nick in the arm which only resulted in him smiling even more. She wanted the bet to be a private thing but it was already too late, Coon had jumped on the occasion.

"What is it about?"

"The game this weekend." Said still grinning Nick.

"Oh well thats doll, the boogies don't stand a chance against the snows."

"Are you kidding me?" Replied Porkins. "The boogies are clearly the best of the two teams."

"You know Porkins this is the reason why I am technically in charge."

"Yhea yhea whatever you say."

"Okay girls, can we go back to business now." Said the irritated bunny.

"Yeah sure. So we are going to finish examining everything here, then we'll pack the body and anything we find so the egg heads in the lab can work their magic. After that you two can go and ask questions around his office. Meanwhile me and Porkins are going to check out his apartment."

"As the boss says…" Said the pig.

"Shut up Porkins."

Finishing examining the crime scene took a few more hours. They didn't find anything more and they didn't expect to, but the protocols were clear they had to make sure they didn't left anything behind. Once that was donne the technicians finished packing any left equipment and the ZPD closed the area to make sure no curious mammal would get in. Coon and Porkins had called Bogo earlier to inform him about their findings. If they were in fact dealing with a serial killer that meant that their could be more murders. This made solving this case the number one priority at the ZPD and so Nick and Judy didn't have to report in. They were actually heading straight for the victim's workplace with the permission of the chief. McArfur was working in the bank's hq on whale-street. Their office was in one of the largest tower that loomed over the landscape of Zootopia. When they entered the large glass tower they were greeted by a young antelope that occupied the reception desk.

"Hi how can I help you?"

The desk in itself was quite high. It needed to be able to accustom animals of multiple height and Nick and Judy were considered part of the smaller animals. Thus the desk was higher than them and the antelope that was seated behind it was looking down upon them. To her it must have been funny to see these two small mammals looking like police officers. However she did not let any of this show on her face. Instead she just kept smiling as she was probably asked and paid to do.

They both showed their badges and Judy spoke.

"Hi we would like to talk about one of your employee. To whom should we speak for that?"

"That would depend upon which employee."

"His name is James L. McArfur." Said Nick.

"That would be the CEO himself , I'll see if he can see you."

The receptionist dialed a number and picked up her phone.

"Yes sir, there is two ZPD officers in the hall that wish to speak to you... Yes I know sir, I am sorry... Hmm... They say it's about … Yes I'll tell them."

The last pause was longer than the other ones. As if the mention of the wolf's name had a particular effect on the CEO's decision.

She hanged the phone and turned to them.

" is on his way, he will meet you shortly."

Bearly 30s after she finished her sentence, the doors of an elevator opened and out came a wolverine. Despite the fact that Wolverines and foxes were off relatively the same height, this one towered over Nick.

"Good day officers, I am , what can I do for you?"

"Hi we would like to talk to you about James L. McArfur…" Judy didn't have the time to finish her sentence she was cut by the CEO.

"He's dead to me. First he slacks on the job, then he doesn't show up and now he brings police to our office. If you see him you can tell him he's fired and I don't ever want to see his sorry ass here again!"

"Heu… Sir.." Judy started but it was Nick that finished.

"Sir, McArfur is actually dead. ZPD found his body early this morning. We think he was murdered."

The businessman was shocked.

"Murd…. Murdered?"

He looked around him to make sure no one heard the conversation.

"Come with me, we'll talk in my office."

The three mammals took the elevator from which the wolverine had first appeared. When they got in Nick and Judy remarked that there was only two button in the elevator. Up and down. Noticing their confusion the CEO explained.

"This is my personal elevator. It goes between my office and the lobby."

When the doors of the elevator opened, they could see the office in question. It was an extremely luxurious one on the top floor of the tower. Behind the imposing wooden desk was a large glass panorama that offered an incredible view of the city. The office was clearly too large for what it truly needed. The wealthy predator went to a small bar on the right side of the room which was overlooked by a large painting of himself simply labeled in golden letters "Logan S. Clawson"

"Can I serve you anything officers?"

"No not on the job."

"Of course." The wolverine poured himself a glass of scotch. " Please take a seat."

There were many chairs of different sizes for different animals on the far left but the two chairs that stood facing the desk by default were already of the right size. took a seat in front of them as he took a sip of his drink.

"Sir we would like to ask you a few questions about ."

"Please go ahead, I would love to help as much as I could." Said the wolverine with a fake smile.

"When we first met, you talked about not coming in or slacking at work. Did he have any strange behavior of the sort lately compared to how he was usually."

"Yes for sure. For a few weeks now he was distracted at work. Sometimes he arrived late always exhausted. This morning when he didn't come in I assumed that he had overslept again. When I confronted him about his behaviour, he told me it was because his mother was extremely sick so I dared not ask further."

Nick and Judy both knew that this could not have been the case. Coon and Porkins told them earlier that the wolf had no living family members anymore.

"When did he first start to adopt those comportement?" asked Nick.

"About five weeks ago. The only reason I let him get away with it for so long is because he was one of my best employee. It had been 32 years since he first started to work for this company. Although those year he always had been so hard working and he was climbing up the ladder fast for his age."

"Five weeks, that is just before Po's death." Said the bunny cop.

"I am sorry what did yous say?"

"No nothing. did you know if James was part of some kind of organisation other than this company or if he was part of some group outside of work?"

"Not that I know off, but then again I didn't really know him on a personal level."

"Did he have any friends or colleague that were closer to him that you know off?"

"Hum yhea I believe there was some guys on his floor he talked to."

"May we speak to is colleagues?"

The CEO stop for a second, unsure of what to say.

"Hum.. Yes I guess you could. He was on the 40th floor, You shouldn't have any problem going there since it's an average sized floor. You can take the second elevator, It's linked to all the floors. I will call Arfur's secretary. He was the manager of this floor she will show you to his office and answer any questions you have."

They did just that, and when the doors to the elevator closed, Nick spoke up.

"This guy is a fraud."

"What?"

"I've seen the type of guy before on the street. He is all heart and good intention on the outside, wanting to help the good police officers and all. But you saw how he talked of McArfur when we first met him. And you also saw when he hesitated before allowing us to talk to his colleagues. The reality is that this guy doesn't give a shit about his employees. If we just left, he wouldn't have told anybody about McArfur just because he doesn't want people to do something else than their jobs like if they were drones. His hospitality is just a lie so we think he still has a soul. I saw plenty of this type of guy, he's just in another playing field."

"And you know all that how?"

Nick just shrugged with a smile while looking at her.

"I did trick you into buying a jumbo pop for me didn't I."

Judy remembered with a smile the first time they met. When she realized how he fooled her she was so mad. She would have never thought that this fox would become her partner and closest friend. At that moment the doors of the elephant sized elevator made to accommodate all species, opened to a floor clearly not made for elephant. The building had many floors and all were made to fit a specific bracket of animal size. This one being for wolfs and similarly big animals. Nick and judy were smaller than most of the animals and their furniture here but not so much for it to be an inconvenience. A female wolf about the same age as the victim came to meet them. She handed down her paw at the small officers in front of her with a smile.

"Hi, you must be the officer told me about what can I do for you?"

"Hi could you please show us the way to 's office?" Asked Judy while shaking her paw.

"Of course please follow me."

The young wolf was still smiling probably as she was asked to. However it was apparent that she was uncomfortable, even worried.

"May I ask a question officers?"

"Please go ahead." Said Nick. He was kind of surprised but at the same time not, that people here needed permission to ask questions. It was obvious that the big heads of the company did not like too many questions.

"Why is James not here? Why are you here?"

The use of his first name didn't go unnoticed. Announcing the death of someone to their family, friends or loved ones was never an easy task. Nick and Judy were lucky that they almost never had to be the ones who did it. However it did happen in the past. Judy remembered her first time doing this. She was accompanied by an older officer who had done it many times before to make sure she wouldn't crack. At first she didn't understand why he was there, after all even if it was a sad thing to do it wasn't a member of her own family that died. She remembered standing in front of the house's door at night. She remembered it opening to reveal a mother armadillo. She remembered opening her mouth trying to tell her that her son had been killed in an accident by a drunk driver, but she was unable to utter a single word. And even without being able to speak the mother still had collapsed in tears. The older officer had pushed Judy, with a sad expression, to say the dreaded words so her job could be officially done and the announcement acknowledge. Now she was faced with the same situation. With her head down she quietly said.

" was found dead this morning by ZPD officers… We suspect foul play."

The mouth of the female wolf opened but nothing came out apart from a low yelp. Her face was twitching like if she was a machine not sure how to respond to new information.

"We are sincerely sorry." Said Nick.

"Tha… Thank you. His office is just there in… in the corner. I… I will be in the one just next to it if you need anything."

The female wolf went on her way holding down sobs.

's office was in one of the corner of the floor. Being the manager meant that he had a bigger office and more importantly one closed in a glass room. Although being able to see through the walls nobody could hear Judy and Nick if they talked inside the office. Once Nick closed the door he turned to Judy.

"She liked him. And by like I mean really like you know."

"Yhea I know."

"Do you want to talk to her while I search here. You might be able to get extra information on him if she was in a personal relationship."

"Yhea a girl to girl talk might be best for this kind of situation."

"I'll call you if I find anything."

Judy walked out of the glass room and headed to where the secretary told them she would be. On her way there she could hear sobs that no doubt came from the young wolf. Not wanting to get the drop on her and making her feel humiliated, Judy faked being lost in the office jungle.

"Hi hum… Miss are you there?"

"Over here officer what can I do?"

Judy walked to the office where the wolf was sitting. She could clearly tell that she was crying just moment before but made no move to make it known she understood that.

"Hi is it okay if I ask you a few questions?"

"Yes of course! Wh… What would you like to know?"

" told us that might have had some friends on this floor, is that true?"

"Tha… That would be an understatement. Everybody here liked him. He was a great boss. But of course, that was unimportant to the higher ups."

"And what about you? What was your relation with him?"

The secretary twitched obviously uncomfortable. But it seemed that in the end something clicked in her mind and she relaxed.

"Is… Is it that obvious? I liked him a lot, hell I even think I was in love but… He had no clue about it. To him I was just a colleague and a friend."

She started sobbing even harder.

"I… I think that… I think that it was because I never acted on… on it."

Nick was now alone in the office. At its center was the desk and computer that the late manager was using. The desk was the first thing that nick looked trough since the computer was lock and it would take an ip guy to open it. Most of what was on it were files of the company. A quick look over was sufficient to tell that those were not of any interest. He tried to open up a drawer but it just wouldn't bulge. He tried harder now pulling with all his might.

"Open you… damn it!"

Nick looked around the room as if he was searching for the answer on one of these inspirational cat posters. Making sure that nobody was looking at him through the glass walls, Nick took out his police baton and started bashing the drawer hoping no one would see him and that the office was sufficiently sound proofed. The wood gave away with a sudden crack. Nick used the hole to force open the rest of the mysterious container. In it was a small handbook and a pen. A quick look through revealed that it was full of notes, underlined and crossed serie of numbers et ceteras.

This seemed weird to nick since if just wanted to take notes, he could have done it on his computer. Of course it was sometimes more convenient to scramble a few things on paper when you were talking to someone on the phone. However those were the kind of notes you wrote on the back of the first paper you found, not in a proper note book that, for some reason, you kept in a lock drawer. They would have the time to analyze what's in it later, for now he needed to continue searching.

"Do you know if had any circle of friends outside of work?" Asked Judy.

"N… No he couldn't have. He is… was… married to his job you could say. I… I once asked him if… if he wanted to do anything after work, but… he… he was alway on the job even at home."

"Thank you, take your time I am going to ask question to other people if that's okay. Take care of yourself." Judy spoke as if she was speaking to a sick child.

"O… Officer!" Called out the young wolf as Judy was about to leave her office.

"Life is… is short so if you like someone don't… don't waste your time like I did. Will… Will you do that for me please?"

"Of course."

For some reason Judy couldn't put her paw on, this made her feel weird, kind of… sad. She just shrugged it of as being something odd with the carrots she ate this morning.

Nick had put the handbook in an evidence bag. He was now rummaging through the recycling bin of the office. Most of the papers were boring and made Nick thank destiny he never had a boring job like an office one. One thing that was strange though was the repeated appearance of receipts from a high price classy bar that was on the rooftop of a nearby building. At first Nick had just thought that the wolf had high taste in the matter of drinks but he began to be suspicious. He decided to collect the receipt because he thought it might be worth a look later.

Judy continued to go around the office asking questions. She got the same story every time. was a great boss and everybody liked him. A sheep on the floor even told her that when he first got the job out of desperation, he was dead afraid of wolf. He thought that they were stereotypical jerks bullying smaller preys around. But with time, he learned to like him and even patronize him. Now he had a much more open mind to all species. However, no one knew him outside of work. Every time they would try to have a night out with the rest of their colleagues or friends he would alway deny saying he had work to do. Some thought it was because he was an introvert, other because he wanted to keep the relation with his colleagues professional.

Both of the cops finished doing their part of their job and got back to their police car. They talked a bit about what they had found but none of it made any sense. The day had been a long one and they could go over what they found tomorow with Coon and Porkins. Right now they were exhausted and just wanted to go home.

…

The pig and the raccoon were walking down the corridor of the victim's apartment complex which was way more luxurious the the ones they could afford with their meek police salary.

"So, I wanted to know…" Asked Porkins. "What's your opinion on interspecies relationships?"

Although not illegal anymore like it used to be, interspecies relationship were still a taboo subject and many people were still firmly against it.

"I am not interested if that's what you want to know."

"Haha very funny! But seriously what do you think?"

"Frankly Porkins I don't give a damn. Live and let live you know."

"Good, now that this is out of the way… How long?"

"How long what?"

"How long before they become a thing?"

"Who? Hopps and Wilde?"

"Yeah exactly!"

"I don't know. They clearly want each other but I don't think they have realised what they feel themselves."

"Sounds about right. I say that inside of a month they'll be all up on each other."

"Seems likely." Added Coons.

The duo stopped in front of the apartment's door. Something was wrong, the door was slightly opened and the lock seemed to have been busted. They both looked at each other with a knowing look before pulling out their weapons. Coon knocked on the door pushing it open even more.

"ZPD is someone here?"

Nothing came back.

They didn't have an arrest order but simply a search warrant, so they couldn't just bust in gun blazing screaming on top of their lungs. Instead Coon gave the signal and they entered the room, looking past corners and behind furniture like there training had taught them to.

"Clear!"

Coon and porkins separated themselves. Porkins went into the bedroom on the left of the living room they were presently in, while Coon went to the right in the bathroom.

"Clear!" Shouted the raccoon.

Silence

"Porkins?" This time in a whisper.

Still nothing

"Porkins?!" This time a little louder.

"Clear!" Came the voice from the other side of the apartment.

Relieved the investigator put away his weapon while he made his way over to his friend.

"Well what took you so looooong…"

The last syllables were dropped and stretched as he came to a stop when he entered the bedroom.

"What the heel?"

In front of him was a web of photos all connected by a stream of red tape. Under this fresque which both investigators were now admiring, stood a desk with sheets all over the place. Someone had clearly raided this place looking for something and they were ready to bet they found it.

"What is this all for?"

Porkins who hadn't spoken yet saw a picture in the corner if his eye which seemed to have something familiar on it. When he got a closer look his heart fell in his chest as he took a step back.

"HOLY SHIT IS THAT…?"

Coon saw what his partner was talking about and had almost a heart attack.

"Wait… Do you think that…? My god…"

A moment of silence washed over the officers as they didn't know what to say.

"Porkins?"

"Yhea?"

"We need to go back to Po's place. I think we missed something."

I sure do love my cliffhangers don't I? This chapter is a lot of questions and few answers. But fret not my dear child, the next one should answer a few of them and create new leads. But until then, sleep well and have nice dreams because fluff is coming. (Pam pa pa-pa-pam pam pa pa-pa-pam pam in the rhythm of game of thrones intro)