"—and then I got your letter," Judy concluded. "I met Bogo, and...well, now I'm here."

The two brothers stared at her as the room settled into quiet. Only the fire kept them from silence. Lucas rested his snout on his paw, while Pierce drummed his fingers on his chair's armrest, apparently searching for words. Finally he looked up and asked: "Judy, do you mind if we speak to you alone?"

She glanced at Bogo, who was watching her for her response. "Sure…" She kept a wary eye on the wolves as Bogo got up and left.

"Take your time," he nodded as he went out the door. The moment it clicked, Lucas leaned forward and began to speak.

"To begin, I'm just wondering...do you know anything about us?"

Judy racked her brain for any memory of their names, or the Canisson family in general. "I think I've heard of you on the news a couple times? And, just coming here…" she looked around. "I'd guess that you're very rich. Probably inherited, it seems like you've lived here a while. And, considering that you were just having dinner with Miss Gray and that Bogo wanted me to tell you all this, you hate Bellwether just as much as I do."

The two brothers looked at each other and raised their brows. "The chief wasn't lying," Lucas said. "Very impressive."

"Thank you, but...well, I feel like I should get the chance to have some more solid answers too?"

At this, Pierce dug into his coat pocket, pulled out a small pill bottle, and tossed it to Judy. She read the label.

"'Cud-B-Gone: Digestive Aid for Bovines'?"

"Turn it around," he looped his finger.

She did so. In small print on the back, she finally found what she was looking for: "'Patent held by Canisson Laboratories.'"

"That's right," Pierce leaned back and pointed to his brother. "Lucas is head of development, he's the brains behind the science. I take care of the business side of...well, the business. Between the two of us, we have seven patents that are behind a lot of medicine being used nowadays."

Judy began to put the pieces together, and to see the opportunity that lay in front of them. But opening one door had led to more closed ones. "You don't like Bellwether, I get that...but why did Bogo bring me all the way here to tell you about her? There must be a reason he thought you'd believe me."

"Lucas, I think we should start with your story."

Lucas nodded. "Well, um...I feel like the best place to begin is with a little bit about myself. I'm a doctor of biochemistry, and on top of my work in our company I'm a professor, at ZooTech downtown?" Judy nodded to indicate she knew what he was talking about, and he continued. "Back when the savage predators were first brought to light, I was shocked to hear about Dr. Honey Badger's involvement. She was a close colleague of mine, and I wouldn't have suspected her of working on illegally detained mammals." He fell quiet. "Do you know how I first found out she'd been arrested?"

"No."

"She called me from the jail. She said to me, 'Something really big is happening, something really bad.' Then she gave me the info to log into her portal, get her research. And what I found was, frankly, terrifying — fifteen predators had suddenly turned into monsters, like they'd been thrown back about ten million years. Honey Badger seemed to conclude that these predators had had some ancient switch thrown by some chance…" He shook his head. "I had a different hunch. I thought some new stimulus, like pollution or something along those lines, had caused it. Of course I needed the data to back up my hypothesis. Luckily for me, the fifteen mammals had been transferred straight to the school for study. I requested permission to draw blood samples."

He smirked bitterly, and Judy guessed what he was going to say. "They didn't let you?"

"My first email, ignored," he nodded. "A week went by and I sent another one. Same thing. In the end I was able to catch our department head and ask him personally. I got a flat out denial; only approved personnel could have access. Considering my work, I was a little surprised that I wasn't approved."

"And that's when you realized something was wrong?"

"I started to have my suspicions, yes, but what really got me was a couple months later, a little after you were attacked. I decided to host a lecture on the biology of predator and prey, open to the public. I hoped to quell some of the rising panic in the city." He paused and took a deep breath. "A day after I announced the lecture, the dean of the school emails me, putting me on indefinite leave. When I ask him why, I again get silence. I end up storming into his office, and just so happen to find him in a meeting with a Mr. Clive Hoofer. Now, I don't know if you know who he is—"

"I do," Judy didn't want to linger on the memory, "I had the pleasure of meeting him in Bogo's office."

"There we go then. You have an idea what he's like. And I sat there, and listened to him explain to the dean why predators should not be allowed on the research team. And over my objections, the dean listened to him." The bitterness lingered in the air for a long time. "That's when I knew something was wrong, that the mayor and her cronies were taking advantage of the situation to promote their own agenda. But I wouldn't have guessed they were actually behind it…"

"Which only makes our current mission," Pierce broke in, "all the more important."

"Yes. Judy, thank you for coming out to meet us. I hope you have a good night."

Judy took a moment to process his sentence. "Wait wait...that's it? You said you wanted my help, you said you were going to save Nick!"

"You've already helped," Lucas answered. "And we will, don't worry. We just have to put everything together."

"I hope that 'we' includes me too." Judy slid out of her chair and walked up to the two of them. "Because otherwise you're telling me that you dragged me all the way out here, just so I could spit out a bit of info, and then stand off to the side?"

Pierce tried to interrupt her. "Judy—"

"No no, let me finish!" She didn't know if it was months of frustration getting bottled up inside her, or the fact that it was past one in the morning, but her head spun and she had no intention of slowing down. "I have been trapped in a hospital room for weeks, I had to lie every day to get out of there, all while people I care about were getting hurt! And now that I'm out of there, you're telling me that there's nothing I can do?"

"Judy—"

"'Cause let me tell you something," she jabbed her fingers at them, "there is no way I am letting Bellwether get away with this, and there is no way I'm leaving Nick behind. And if you're not going to help me, then stop wasting my time!"

There was a knock on the door behind them, and Judy heard Bogo's voice through the wood. "I couldn't help but overhear the yelling, and I'm just going to say from my personal experience...it'll be easier for you if you let her in on the plan."

"Judy, please," Pierce tried to take advantage of the interruption. "What I've been trying to say is, you're absolutely right."

She finally let herself catch a breath, and the black wolf weakly smiled at her before he called out.

"Bogo, feel free to go home. We have a lot more to talk about than we thought."

Pierce gestured for his brother to stay behind, and began to lead Judy through the mansion. As they walked, she watched the paintings and decorations they passed by.

"It's unfair of us," Pierce continued, "to assume that you wouldn't want to help us. Our plan is going to have to evolve, and it's only right that you have a say in where it goes."

"Well, thank you," Judy nodded. Pierce looked away, thinking to himself. "So...do you have a plan?"

"Well, so far it's been politics. If there's anything to be thankful for, this has happened in an election year. And honestly, Bellwether's plan is effective: she creates a problem, then presents herself as the only solution to this problem, and she wins the vote. Even worse, though, will be if the council ends up the same way. At the moment, she's facing a divided chamber. The Predators' Caucus is large enough to force compromises on bills and act against her. But, if she can get City Hall in her hooves...she can pretty much do whatever she wants."

Judy shuddered. "Zootopia under Bellwether's control…"

"I'm not fond of the idea either."

Pierce paused again, this time in front of a framed photograph. The caption engraved upon the golden frame read: 'Zootopia 1890'. The shiny skyscrapers had been replaced with buildings of brick and cement and steel, only reaching a third of the height as their glamorous descendants. Pierce ran his black paws over the glass.

"The city's been good to us. And it hurts me to see something like happening. That's why we've been helping to fund a movement against her, spearheaded by Miss Gray. We feel like she's the right candidate to represent the ideals we're looking for."

Judy's mind drifted back to "A New Beginning", the lion and zebra shaking hands...

"At the moment, polls show that Bellwether has thirty-four percent of the vote, and Gray has thirty-one." He began to walk again. "With so many people undecided, that gives us a good chance."

"And Bellwether," Judy pointed out.

"Yes, we still have to keep trying. But it's not hopeless," he forced a again, making the scar on his face curve. "If we can win City Hall, then we can undo a lot of the damage." He paused. "Of course, that's only one front of our plan. The other one now is what do about the...Night Howlers?"

"Yes, Midnicampum holicithias."

He blinked. "Leave the big names for my brother."

"Can you two come up with a cure for it?"

They passed in front of another painting, and Judy caught it just as she asked her question. It was a white wolf, sitting in a large red chair, and wearing a business suit. On his knees sat a pair of cubs, dressed up in small child suits of their own. They had black and grey fur respectively, and large grins on their faces. The larger wolf had a more subdued smile, comfortable and contented. Judy looked again at the black wolf cub's face though — it was unscarred. She took it all in with only a second, and they were now walking away just as Pierce answered her.

"We'll do our best. I'm sure we can begin messing with the chemicals in the Night Howlers. And if Tina can win the election, I'm sure she'll let us access the animals that we need."

"A lot of this seems to be riding on the election. It's only a couple weeks away," Judy felt a twinge of worry. "What if we lose?"

"If we lose," he stopped and faced her, "all is lost." Pierce's curt answer drove a spear through her heart. "And I'll be honest, I'm scared. Bellwether is using a powerful weapon, and I've seen it. The attacks have been growing less frequent, but every time one happens, her poll numbers jump up a few points, and we fall behind."

Judy took a deep breath and puffed out her chest. "What do you need me to do?"

Pierce smiled again. "Your focus is amazing."

"You said it yourself: if Bellwether wins, all is lost. I'm not going to let that happen. And you still haven't answered my question from before: what can I do to help?"

Pierce pressed his paws to his lips as he thought. "Well, we can go with a few options. On the one hand, it'd be fantastic to have you openly campaign on behalf of Gray...except the backlash from Bellwether would be enormous. Plus, if you're worried about your family, that would not be wise."

"Maybe I can do something undercover?"

"That...that, yes!" His eyes grew wide with excitement. "If you could go back on the police force, you'd be in a perfect place to help. Laws need to be executed, and if we have someone who's willing to bend the rules to prevent that…?" He gave her a knowing look. "What do you say?"

"If that's what I can do to help," she said, "I'll be there."

"That's all we need. Now come," he began leading her again. They passed by different photographs: Lucas and Pierce posing with their degrees, grinning arm-in-arm; Lucas giving an exasperated smile as he dressed in a lab coat, working with a cylinder in each paw; Pierce kneeling with a team of all different species, the center kid holding a trophy high in the air. Before Judy could see anymore though, Pierce suddenly halted and turned around.

"Now, it's very late, and that's on us for dragging you out at this hour. I hope I can invite you to stay the night with us? We have a guest room available here…"

He opened the door, and Judy's eyes bugged out. The space was three times the size of her apartment, and was complete with bed, dresser, a television, her own restroom…

"You'll have to forgive us, we haven't stocked the minifridge in a while, and the bath's jet nozzles might not all be working. If you wouldn't like to stay, I understand…"

Minutes later, Judy was snuggling under the covers in a bed where the pillows were as big as she was.