Chapter 7: Reunion
"So, how have you been enjoying Zootopia so far?" Quinn asked as he sipped some of his coffee. I snorted loudly and rolled my eyes, was he serious? Did he seriously think I enjoyed being here? I guess it wasn't so bad, but the fact that some of the animals looked at me like I was some kind of crazed, feral beast pissed me off to no end. You could say I shouldn't let it get to me, but that was easier said than done. "I guess it's been pretty rough for you huh?" He asked.
"What was your first clue, the snorting or rolling of eyes?" I asked in a bitter tone as I drank the rest of my coffee. I checked the clock and noticed that I would have to be at work in twenty minutes, I wasn't sure why I decided to take Quinn up on his offer for coffee, maybe I thought it would make me feel better, or something like that. Quinn took another sip of coffee and sighed.
"Well, I'm sorry you feel that way, I really do, most of the animals that call Zootopia home are some of the sweetest creatures you'll ever meet. That being said, there will always be someone who doesn't like the fact you are different." Quinn said looking out the window we were seated by. I just shrug and glance out the window as well. The city was alive and active, with hundreds, if not thousands of animals going about their daily lives, whether it be cleaning the street, making important business decisions on the phone, or even selling food to other animals. In a way, I felt jealous of them, being normal in their own right, and here I was, god knows how far from home I was.
"It's no big deal, I used to that kind of stuff back home, being around large groups of people isn't really my forte." I said honestly, it had been a couple of days since I heard from Judy and Nick, I wasn't worried about them. They could take care of themselves, but still. It made me a little feel a little better, knowing that I didn't have to worry about them constantly. True they were some of the few animals that looked to me as a friend, and I guess you could say I considered them my somewhat friends. I mean, they didn't scream and run away in horror when I came walking down the road, so that was always a plus. I checked the clock once again, no, not time to leave yet, Why did Quinn suggest we sit down and talk? Didn't he know I had work to get to? Not that I didn't like having some off time, Quinn seemed to notice that I was distracted and sighed. "You need to stop worrying about the little things, Wade. Only worry about things you can control." He said, I look at him with an unreadable look, what a strange thing to say, it was so out there and out of place, I just shrug to myself and look back at him, if he says so I guess.
"Yeah, whatever I guess." I said with a sigh, I finish off the rest of my coffee and stand to my feet, I better get to work. It probably wouldn't be a good idea to get Valorie pissed. She seemed like one you wouldn't want to make upset, despite her often cheerful and happy go lucky demeanor. I remember one of the first days she had me working. I was complaining about something, couldn't remember what, but I do remember the look she shot me when I turned to look at her. Her eyes wild, her left eye twitching, her teeth clenched, she seemed to be taking long, deep breaths. I shut up pretty quickly after that. Moments like that made me think my boss had Borderline Personality Disorder, or something like it.
"I got to get going, Val will probably kill me if I'm late." I said flatly, making my way to the front door.
"Of course, be a pal and open the door for me, will ya big guy?" Quinn asked in a relaxed manner. I nodded and opened the front door, taking a deep breath and almost choking on the disgusting smog that I had inhaled. The fact that the air in this city was nothing like the clean, crisp air back home made me yearn for home even more. I watched Quinn walk through the front door before I followed him through, closing the front door harder than the German Shepard who owned the shop probably would've liked, eh…not my problem.
"Well…I guess I catch you later kid, I got to get to work as well…take it easy…and keep your chin up." Quinn said, before strolling into a large group of mammals, heading off to god knows where. I scoff before turning away and making my way towards work. It was going to be busy today, or so Val said. I didn't know what exactly she had planned, but it must be something big. I make the turn that led onto the road that housed the nursery, damn I was going to miss this place when I got home, I mean, I would have to get home eventually right? I couldn't stay here all my life right? I walked in through the front, noticing Val behind the front counter, apparently doing some kind of paperwork, fun. I chuckled to myself and headed to the back room to clock in and put my smock on. A few moments later I emerged from the back room and walked up to the front counter. Val looked up and gave me a small grin, not her normal, larger than life grin. I smiled back and leaned forward, using the counter to balance myself. "So boss…what's the plan today boss…mulch, flowers, maintenance?" I ask in a bored manner, looking at a stray flower on the counter.
"Inventory…that's the plan Mr. Grubbs." Val said smugly, I groaned and slumped a bit, I hated inventory, it was so tedious and time consuming. Then again…if I did inventory, that would give me some time to…gather my thoughts and try to figure out what was going on, regarding that damn letter I had received a few nights before. I grunted before rising back to my full height and made my way to the loading bay, there was probably a truck there or something like it. I opened the door to the loading bay, reminding myself that I would need to oil the damn thing. I turned my attention to the bay itself and groaned aloud, the place was almost completely covered in all sorts of shrubbery, trying to do inventory was going to be a nightmare in itself. I took a deep breath and grabbed the checklist we had hanging up on a lone hook. Might as well get this over with.
4 hours later
After what seemed like an eternity in that jungle of a loading bay, I emerged from the dense green ocean of vegetation and plopped down on a chair. I groaned loudly and leaned back in the chair. "Hey Val…I got inventory done." I called out. I waited a few moments, seeing what she wanted me to do next. When I got no response, I frowned. That was strange. I stood to my feet and opened the door leading back into the store, the door screeched on its hinges. "Hey Val!" I called again, closing the door behind me and waiting for a response, nothing. I was starting to get a little annoyed, sometimes Val would ignore me when she was focusing on a task that involved paperwork, maybe she had trouble with crunching numbers? Heh…I wouldn't blame her, math was never my forte in school. I made my way to the front of the store and froze, it was empty. Val wasn't behind the register, she wasn't up front, where was she?
"Heya Val! Where are you?" I called out, still nothing, I growled in irritation, getting more and more…worried, Val could be mischievous, but something felt off. I was about to head outside when I heard, whimpering. I frowned and felt a twinge of…panic, did Val hurt herself? I was always telling her that if she needed help with reaching something, she could come and get me. I turned around and tried to locate the noise, it sounded like it was coming from the break room. My heartrate increased tenfold as I drew closer to the door. It wasn't until now that I realized…I was covered in something. My uniform and smock were drenched in it. I slowly looked down, as soon as I did, I had to fight the urge to vomit. Was that….blood?
Some strange red liquid stained my smock and my white undershirt, my uniform seemed saturated with the stuff. I inhaled shakily and slowly opened the door to the break room.
I instantly fell to my knees and felt my heart crash into my ribs. I opened my mouth to say something, but all that could come out was a scream of utter horror.
"Ahhhhhhhhhh!"
Meanwhile…
It had been an exhaustive search, but Judy and Nick had finally found the home of Marvin Wilde, Nick's estranged father. It had been a few days since they had received their first real break in the case. That mongoose they had spoken to said something about a group called "Dark Horizon", whatever that was. Judy had never even heard of the group, not even in urban legends, and from what she could gather from Nick, he was unaware of this secretive organization as well.
They stood just outside a small, one floor house in Tundratown. It wasn't the most luxurious place in Zootopia, but it was certainly didn't stick out like a sore thumb, definitely a place you want to live if you didn't want to attract attention to yourself. Judy looked over at Nick, gaging his reaction. From what she could tell, he seemed to be donning a bitter scowl, his eyes seemed to hold a certain contempt for his father. While Judy was unaware of the history between the two, she did know that Nick was raised by a single mother
"Nick…you okay?" Judy asked, a little concerned for her partner. Nick inhaled sharply, before sighing and turning to his rabbit partner.
"I'm fine Carrots…let's do this." He said with an uncertain smile. She nodded and headed up to the front door, Nick following closely behind her. When they reached the front door, Judy noticed there was no doorbell, but instead the door had a heavy iron knocker. She reached up and grabbed the handle, giving the door a few solid raps. They waited a few moments, before Nick stepped forward and pounded on the door. There was still no response, Judy glanced over at Nick, his normally calm demeanor was replaced by a look of…Judy couldn't make it out.
Nick took a step closer to the door, his gaze softened a bit. "D-dad...it's me dad, N-Nick." He said softly, rapping his knuckles lightly on the door, Judy was confused. Did Nick honestly believe that would work, there was no way Marvin would be able to hear Nick's plea. "Dad please, open the door….Zootopia's in trouble…we need your help." Nick paused once more, his expression changed once more, this time becoming more…heartbroken. "Dad…please…I, I want to see you." He said quietly. When he got no response, he turned to Judy, "Typical, even when lives hang in the balance, he still doesn't want anything to do with me, let's get out of here." Nick said bitterly. Just as they left the front porch, there was a sound from the front door, it sounded like…the door, opening.
'Nick…is that…really you?" A quiet voice asked, Nick stopped in his tracks and stared at his feet. Judy took a few steps off to the side, unsure what would happen next between the two foxes. Nick slowly rotated around and looked up to see an almost identical looking fox, except thirty years older.
"Da-dad?" Nick asked, taking a small step forward. Not really believing what he was seeing.
"Hello Nick…it's been a while." Marvin said, smiling awkwardly.
Oh Shit! After falling of the face of the planet, I'm back baby, and must I say…It's good to be back!
Joking aside, I apologize for going off the radar for these last few months, College has been keeping me busy, as well as work. Plus I've just had…..a lot on my mind to put it lightly, and I seemed to never be in the mood to write. With that said, I'm glad to finally get this chapter up and start working on the next chapter in the next few days.
Keep an eye out for the next update, which I plan to post by Friday, until then, stay classy!
