Reborn Mini-series

Chapter 3

"...can you hear me?" There was something shining in my eyes. I had finally awoken from darkness into extreme light. Suddenly, the bright light stopped. "Sir? Can you hear me?" I blinked a couple of times, hoping I gave them the right answer. "Okay, can you tell me your name?" I nodded as best I could. My eyes finally adjusted, and now I could finally see where I was: a hospital bed. I looked over at the nurse next to the bed, who was an antelope, and said "M-my name is Matt." She looked at me like I had said something wrong. "Do you have a last name?" It struck me that I had never chosen a last name in this world. I was too caught up in trying to explore, I hadn't thought of my identity. "Its..uh...Growler. Matt Growler." She looked approvingly at me, then looked down at the chart in her hooves. She looked back at me after a while, and asked me a few standard questions. "Do you know where you are?" It took a second for me to remember where I was, but I said "Some hospital inside of...Savannah Central?" I wasn't sure if I was correct, so I had to ask the last two words. The nurse nodded. "Yes, Zootopia General to be specific." Relieved, I tried sitting up, but found I was unable. I looked around, and found my left paw was strapped to the bed. I think the nurse noticed, as she said "Sorry. It's procedure for savage mammals. I think we you'll be okay though." and removed the straps. Wait, savage? "Um, miss, when did I get here, and when did I go savage?" She looked like she was about to say something, but was cut off when we heard someone knocking on the door. The nurse went to the door and opened it, revealing a bunny and a fox, both in police uniforms. My brain was still pretty slow, so it took a while to think. Meanwhile, the nurse was informing the two officers about my situation. Finally, my brain recognized the two officers, and as they got to the bed, I said "You two wouldn't happen to be Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde, would you?" Nick looked at me, before putting on a grim that I can only describe as smug, and replied "We would happen to be, but I think Carrots here uses then name of Wilde, now." That stunned me. Judy and Nick got married? "I'm so happy. Congrats you two. Anyways, I'm guessing you're here for me." They looked at each other, then me, and nodded simultaneously.

The silence lasted for a quick moment, before Nick spoke. "So, first thing to know is who you are." I now noticed that the antelope had left the room, leaving me with the two ZPD officers. I looked back at Nick and said "My name is Matt Growler." Both mammals nodded, before Judy started questioning me.

"How old are you?"

"17. Next."

"What is your birth date?"

"August 24th, 1998. Next."

"Where are your parents?"

That made me pause. I realized I had left my world, and had no adults in my life anymore. I sighed and said "Gone."

I heard Judy gasp, and when I looked up at her and saw a worried look in her eyes. I guess Nick saw it too, because he immediately said "Judy, no. We don't have room. Granted he's taller than me, but there isn't enough room in our apartment." She looked at him, but before she could say anything, I interjected. "Look, guys, it's really nice of you to offer. But I think I'll find my own apartment. By the way, what is the age here that a mammal could get a residence on their own?" Again, they gave me a look of surprise, until Nick's brow furrowed. "Wait, you said your parents were gone. What happened to them. I'm sorry for being super blunt but I've never seen you in Zootopia. Ever." I knew this was coming, and I still hadn't prepared myself for it. "I..um..I..dang it, I can't lie to you guys," I looked at Judy. "mostly because Nick would be able to tell if I was lying. I'm terrible at it." Nick just gave a grunt of confirmation to that statement. I sighed and relented the information. "Fine, you want to know what happened? They were killed in a foreign county a couple of days ago. I lived in a town way outside the mileage of Bunnyburrow called Concord. I never needed anything from Zootopia, so I never came here, but after they died, I started trekking towards Zootopia to seek help. You guys happy?" By this time I was speaking way faster than I needed, but I was scared for real. Talking about what happened to fake parents made me realize what my parents were going through. The room was agonizingly silent. Both officers looked at me, each with different emotions. I wasn't up to trying to solve it anymore, I just wanted to get out of here. I suddenly realized what I was missing. "I do want to know, did you guys happen to have my clothes and stuff? I kinda need to check something." That snapped both out of their dazed state. Nick jumped and went over to the table next to my bed. "Right here." He held up a plastic bag and said "The nurse that was here kept your stuff in case you woke up. You were kinda out cold." I reached over to the table and started searching for my pants. I eventually found them and started searching through the pockets for my phone. I reached into my front left pocket and pulled it out, headphones still somehow connected. I tried turning it on, but found it was dead. Too bad I hadn't asked for a charger. I turned back to Nick and Judy and said "Hey Nick, if you're okay with it, could I maybe stay with you guys until I enroll in school here and get a job? I need some place to stay until I turn 18, then I'll be out of your ha-fur" I waited for a response from them. Finally, Nick sighed and looked at me. "Fine, but only because Carrots is going to kill me if I don't. Anyways, welcome to Zootopia, Snowy." He chuckled before leaving the room. Judy came up to me and said "Don't worry. We'll bring the car around for you. I'll let you get dressed while I get the release papers." She happily turned around and walked towards the door. I was left in a hospital room, alone, with my mind still trying to fully grasp my situation. After a moment, I ready to leave to start my life as a new mammal.

It didn't take long to get ready, but waiting to be discharged was agonizing. Finally, Judy came in, smile on her face, and said "Alright, lets get you outta here. Nick's waiting out front." We both left the room, and I followed her as she lead us to the front entrance of the hospital. On the way, I happened to ask what day it was. "Oh, it's March 7th. Why do you ask?" I hadn't meant to ask, but not being able to check for myself kinda bugged me. "Oh, no reason. It's just that I hadn't check the date in a couple of days." We both continued our walk and exited the building, right to a Zootopian version of a '69 Dodge Charger. As we got in, me in the back and Judy in shotgun, I couldn't help but sigh in content. I was free from the medical machines, and able to start over. As we drove away, I asked Nick about the car. "Oh, I got this a few year after I got my license. I was hustling still, but it worked for what I needed." He glanced at Judy before accelerating, causing all of us to be forced to the very back of our seats. He stopped after about a minute, but the result was Judy giving him a punch to his right shoulder. I chuckled at this little display, then went back to observing my surroundings. I need to learn to be more observant if I'm going to survive this city.

When we finally got to their apartment, I was oddly very tired. As we got out, I asked Nick about my sleeping arrangements. "We've got a pull-out couch in here. I hope that will work for now. We'll have to get you some more stuff later in the week." I nodded and followed them to their apartment. The apartment was not as small as Nick made it out to be, granted I am shorter than him by an inch. It had a kitchen, adjoined dining room, slightly larger living room with the fold-out couch, and down the hall was a bedroom and bathroom. I think I saw another bedroom, but I was too excited to make sure. I went back to the living room and sat on the couch, trying to calm myself down. Back on Earth, when I got really excited, my chest would always feel like it was exploding, specifically around my heart. Here, that same feeling was happening, but at felt weirder than on Earth. I guess they noticed, because no sooner calmed my breathing, they sat down on either side of me, Judy on the left and Nick on the right. "So, you like it? It's not much, but hopefully it'll do. You kinda acted like Carrots when she goes to a Gazelle concert. All happy and such." I was smiling at what he said, and looked over at Judy. "Yeah, I'm okay with it. Thanks again." Suddenly, Nick's last statement hit me. "Uh, you guys wouldn't happen to have an extra phone charger around here for me, would ya. I kinda left it back at my house in Concord." Both mammals shook their heads, and I sighed realizing I'd have to go bye one. "Okay then, I'm gonna go to the gas station down the street to buy one. I'll be back shortly." At that, I got up and riffled through the plastic bag for my wallet. Once I found it, I left the apartment and started my trek to the corner station I had seen on the way here.

The trip had been very short. The station was mostly empty, plus the cashier was quite nice to me. As I had suspected, the charging cords were at the cashier counter, so I bought a cord and outlet block so I can actually charge it. Would be pointless to buy a cord and no block. Any-who, the return trip to the apartment was peaceful enough that I wasn't too worried, just a few weird looks probably about my fur. The near-spring weather blew wind that ruffled fur that was exposed of my wrists and tail. The feeling of a tail is something I'll have to get use to. The breeze today wasn't so bad, but it still felt weird. I finally made it back to Nick and Judy's apartment, but upon entering I found no rabbit and fox, just an empty apartment and a note on the dining room table. I walked over to the table and plucked the note off, before reading it.

'Matt, we had to head back to work, but we'll stop for some things for you on our way home. I hope you get comfy and like Zootopia better than Concord. There's assorted fruit in the fridge, as well as some juice. See you at 5:30, bud.

P.S. Nick is still trying to come up with a nickname for you. *Smiley* ~Judy'

"Well, I guess that decides my day, better go plug my phone in." I voiced the thought, only because no one was here, before walking over to the wall outlet near the couch and setting up my charger. As soon as I plugged it in and turned it on, it went off with multiple notifications. A couple texts, all from Gazelle, a time zone change warning form the phone itself, and a system update. I checked the texts first, hoping that Gazelle wasn't like one of the girls back on Earth.

'Hey Matt, It's Gazelle. How are you doing?' That was the first message, fairly simple.

'Okay, I guess you're busy right now. Text me when you get a chance.' Yay, not clingy. A 19 year old pop star that act more mature than a 17 girl back on Earth. I texted her back, not want her to thing I was ignoring her, since the last message was from earlier this morning.

'Hey Gazelle, It's Matt. I'm okay, just had a weird first day in Zootopia, and ended up in the hospital. Nothing too serious, but I missed the rest of yesterday because of sedation. Anyways, how've you been?' Fairly straight forward, right? No too detail revealing, since I still can't remember the events that landed me in the hospital in the first place, while being friendly. It sent off, and while I waited for an answer I went to check what we had in the fridge. As I looked through, my craving for strawberries came up, and thankfully my hoodie, which I still had on for some reason, kept me warm while looking for them. I finally found the plastic container of them in the bottom drawer on the fridge, and on my way back to the couch I grabbed a plate and knife. I failed to notice the tops were already cut out, leaving the cone shaped opening of a gutted strawberry. As I got back to the couch, my phone lit up with a text. I set down the plate and knife and checked the message.

'Hey Matt. It's good to hear from you. What did you mean by first day here? You were in the hospital? Anyways, I've been fine, but nervous about my next show. It's on Friday, and I've got a new song to practice for that show. Wanna hear a sneak peak?'

I chuckled before replying, interested in what this new song was about. To be honest, she has the same voice as a pop artist from Earth, so this will be interesting.

'Yeah, I'm from a town called Concord, and one my first day I kinda got attacked. I don't remember much, but I'm okay for now. Plus, I'd love to hear a snippet of your new song.'

After I sent the message, I laid back and started munching on the strawberries. I finally noticed that they were already gutted, so the knife remained untouched. After a few minutes of eating, my phone dinged signaling a new message. I picked it up with my clean hand, and unlocked it, before tapping the voice file she sent me. I leaned back as a guitar riff started, marking the beginning of the song. As I listened to the snippet, I realized the song had a small hint of dubstep mixed with trap, but what really got me were the vocals. She had gotten the lyrics to a long-forgotten song from Earth, and modernized it here. Added with her small accent, it made the song all than much better. I was stunned, and started singing along. When it ended, I immediately texted her back, because of the sheer joy in my body.

'O M Goodness, that was amazing, I love it. Where did you find that?'

Her reply was almost immediate, but it felt like forever.

'I got it from you. Your phone was playing that song when I accidentally ran into you. I looked it up when I got back to my house, and I decided to create a cover and release it after the concert. I'm glad you like it. BTW, would you like some tickets?'

I was stunned. I hadn't even remembered that it was playing until she mentioned something about it. I guess when you're focused on something you tend to forget your surroundings. After I recovered from that stunning revelation, I replied to her.

'From me? Wow, I guess allot of things happened that day. Anyways, yes please I would love a ticket to see the show on Friday, provided I'm not in trouble. *Knock on wood gifmoji*' I then remembered Judy's admiration of Gazelle. 'Actually, could you add two more to that, I'm kinda staying with the Wilde's right now. Judy's a huge fan of yours. But anyways, I'm gonna go take a proper nap, since I was sedated for the past night. Talk later?'

I waited for her reply before laying down on the couch. I took off my hoodie and turned it into a gray pillow, ready to use. My phone dinged with her text, and I started taking a nap after I read it and replied.

'Okay, I'll get them to your house, just need the address. Have a good nap, I've gotta go anyways. C ya.'

'383 Barker Street, Apartment 113. C u 2.'

I drifted off to a very natural state of sleep, in a attempt to get my body on track with normal sleep, and not have to be an insomniac. My nap lasted far a long while, because the next sensation I felt was a paw on my shoulder, shaking it. I jolted awake, dazed and confused, the light outside was almost gone, the sunset casting weird shadows inside, and the next mammals I saw were a rabbit and fox; Nick and Judy were home. I looked around, still dazed, but finally sat up once I cleared the gunk from my eyes.

"Hah, there he is. The Great White has awoken. You snore pretty loud for a fox that's smaller than me." Nick chuckled, probably at the whole statement I was still trying to regain my bearings. I looked around at the small apartment, and looked at Judy.

"So, how was your day when you guys got back to the precinct?" She looked at me, then sat next toi me and sighed.

"Not all that good, Matt. We had to let a ferret go, just because I keep forgetting he's an informant. Chief talked my ear off about the informant's list." the rest os the day we were doing paperwork. Nick especially hated it." Nick gave us an auditory confirmation as Judy continued. "So, how'd you do?" I smiled, then looked over at my phone, now fully charged, then back at her.

"Eh, I think I handled myself pretty well. I also talked to a girl, she and I sorta bumped into each other on my first day here, and it turned into a number exchange. We talked for a bit, and then I took a nap." I decided against telling Judy who it really was, just because she I knew she was a huge Gazelle fan. "I ate allot of the strawberries we had, so it might be a good idea to get some more."

Judy giggled. "You're like Nick and blueberries. He loves 'em, so we're almost always out." I laughed, and then sighed in content

Suddenly, I remembered something. "Oh, uh guys, do any of you know where a good high school is?" School was very important, and I wanted to get a jump on grades in case the grading schedules were the same here as back on Earth. I also wanted to just get high school over with, which seemed to be the 'too-cool-for-school' side of me urging this conversation.

Judy seemed slightly startled. I'm guessing because of work. "Oh, I don't actually know. Nick, do you know?"

I saw Nick poke his head up from his phone, probably browsing Furbook. He looked to be musing at the thought. "Um, kinda, I don't know if it has what you'll like though, GW." I was about to answer, but then I realized what he called be.

"Dude, did you just call me GW, or Great White?" He smirked, that same half-lidded smirk he put on in the movie, and replied.

"Yep. Took me all day to come up with that one. I called you that earlier, when you woke up from your nap, but you didn't say anything." I groaned, slightly out of annoyance and amusement. I knew he'd come up with one at some point.

"That was because I was still half-asleep you dolt." I chuckled then said "Anyways, back to my original question of good high schoold. Do you know any?"

He nodded, then started typing at his phone before saying "Zootopia Central High. It is the best high school in the city, and has the highest graduation rates. The inside does look a bit worn, though." I shrugged, not really caring. I was about to answer when my phone dinged with a text message. I looked over at it, and noted it was Gazelle.

"Sorry guys, but it's the girl I was talking to earlier, and it seems to be important." At that, I got up with my phone and went to the far room, properly the guest bedroom, improperly an office. I leaned against the closest wall and read her message.

'Okay, 3 tickets on their way to the address, with a one of my Tiger guards. You never told me you got to know Judy Hopps. Well, now Wilde I guess.'

It took a minute to type a reply, my paws still not properly complying to my movements. 'Okay, I'll get em from him. Have a good night." I turned off my phone and went back to the two mammals, who were now in the living room.

"So, everything okay?" Judy asked with a little pep in her voice. I could tell she was angling for info, but I had to sorely deny her.

"Sorry Judy, but I'm not sharing details with mammal's I just met today." I gave her my best 'I'm such a condescending jackass' look. She was about to answer, but a knock at the door stopped her. I checked my phone for the time, 7:22, and went to the door. I looked through the peephole and saw a tiger in a business suit standing outside the apartment. I opened the door and nodded to him.

"Are you Matt?" I nodded, and the tiger handed me an envelope then said "From Gazelle. She also says that there is a note inside. Have a good night." At that, he turned and walked back down the hallway towards the stairs. I turned around and walked back into the apartment, only to find Judy looking at me with a happy gleam in her eye and a wide smile of her face.

I chuckled and said "I'm guessing you heard that?" She nodded, and I sighed. I took the envelope and opened it up. Imagine the shock when I saw three VIP tickets for Gazelle's show on Friday and a folder sheet of paper with my name on it in the envelope. I heard Nick laugh, which brought my attention to them, only to see Judy silently fan-girling in her seat. "Okay, okay. I have tickets to Friday's show, but you guys are going to love this," I held up all three tickets, careful not to reveal the note and continued. "they're VIP." Judy squealed and Nick just chuckled, while I was just smiling at the scene in front of me. After a little bit, I said "Okay, I'm gonna go put these on the fridge, then head to the back room for a bit to let you calm down." I walked over to the fridge and stuck the tickets under a magnet, then headed down the hallway of the apartment with the envelope still in paw. Once I got to the office room, I sat down in Nick's chair and started reading the note.

'Dear Matt,

I was excited to hear that you like the song, and that you know both Judy and Nick personally. When I learned the you were staying with them, I got pretty excited, considering the fact that I've only met them once, and it was last year during my New Years Eve concert. I do have something to ask though, after the concert, would you mind meeting up? I wanted to talk for a bit. Text me your answer please. Well, have a good week and I hope you enjoy the concert on Friday.

Sincerely, Gazelle'

I took another look over the note, then smiled. VIP concert tickets, one-on-one with Gazelle, and things seem to be looking up. I walked back to the living room, and sat down next to Nick and Judy. I think Nick noticed the smile on my face, because he chuckled, then put a paw on my shoulder, before stopping and giving me a serious look.

"Matt, we need to talk."

A/N: Heyo! I'm so happy this is done. I'm sorry to those who fell prey to my April Fools chapter. I have since removed that chapter and want to issue an apology to those who were not happy about that. I also want to make a note: Reality Check is currently on hiatus, due to other factors of my life getting in the way. If you guys want me to keep writing that story, please let me know. Anyways, Let's see the stats right now:

880 views

18 Follows

11 Favorites

Now that is what I call popular. Now to address the reviews since Chapter 2.

~WolfDragon: Well, I'm impressed.

~Mari: Good to see you again, and yeah, chapter 4 goes through the whole ordeal. Remember: Murphy's Law.

~Number1ebaystoregmail: Thanks. Enjoy this one?

Lastly, the DeviantArt user HarleyHeartless has offered to draw Matt together with an OC of her's. I want you all to go check her art out, because this was of her voluntary choice, and because her art is amazing. Anyways, have a great day everyone.

~1's-n-0's