Chapter Seven

Morning soon came to the Wilde house as Ella got up and got dressed in the same usual clothes she wore yesterday before brushing out her hair and tying it into it's usual ponytail again. She then walked out of the room wand descended down the stairs, making her way to the kitchen where she saw her dad and Judy sitting at the table eating breakfast.

"Morning Daddy, morning Judy." Ella said.

"Morning sweetheart." Nick said with a smile before he continued to eat his scrambled eggs.

"Well, looks like your back to your old self today." Judy said with a smile after she finished eating her pancakes "Did you have a good sleep last night?"

"Yep." Ella said with a nod as she got some juice from the fridge and started making herself toast "I'm going to be hanging out with my friends all day today."

"That's good." Nick said "Just make sure you and your friends don't get into any trouble while your out, alright?"

"Don't worry, I won't and I promise to phone you guys and tell you where I am." Ella said as she poured some juice into a glass before asking her dad and Judy "What will you guys be doing at work today?"

"Well, your dad and I have a big lead to follow on that circus that we have been researching on the other day." Judy replied with a serious look within her eyes.

At the word 'Circus' Ella flinched before she turned to Judy and Nick, becoming curious about what the bunny cop had said.

"What do you mean?" Ella asked.

Nick finished his scrambled eggs and looked at his daughter while placing his fork down on the plate.

"Well... we've read a report experiencing accidents time to time with rumors going around ever since the... uh, you know what humans joined the big top." Nick said, being careful not to mention the word feral in front of his daughter or she might become upset again "And at every town they go to there are human handprints found at every crime scene."

Ella became curious about what her dad had said.

"You don't think a human could be doing this, do you?" she asked as she grabbed her plate with two pieces of toast and glass juice before walking over to the table and sitting down at it.

"It's possible," Nick said "But there's also another case that we need to look at as well. About a certain circus performer and her past."

"What's her name?" Ella asked.

"Her name's Kiana." Nick said.

"And we are going to ask her something that's related to the Great Hunt many years ago." Judy said.

"What do you mean?" Ella asked fearfully.

Judy took in a deep breath before answering Ella's question "Ella... we believe that Kiana's ancestor may have helped cause the Great Hunt.

The news shocked Ella to her very core after hearing what Judy had just told her. An animal helped cause the Great Hunt that had made humans and animals fear each other all those years ago?

"Do you really think that Kiana's ancestor could have really done that horrible act?" Ella asked

"We're not really sure sweetheart," Nick said in an honest voice "That's why me and Judy are going to go to the circus ourselves and see if we can't ask Kiana that question ourselves."

"Will I have to come with you?" Ella asked fearfully.

"No." Nick replied with a shake of his head while he reached over the table and placed a comforting paw on his daughter's hand. "Not unless you want to come with us willingly, but for now you should hang out with your friends today."

Ella felt relief when she hears what her dad said, but soon asked another question that was bothering her.

"What animal was Kiana's ancestor?" Ella asked.

Nick was a little hesitant to answer but soon took in a deep breath and, in a soft, sad voice, he said "It was a fox."

Ella's eyes widen at this news before looking down at the kitchen table. A fox caused the start of the Great Hunt all those years ago? Ella felt sadden that her favorite animal was the cause of such pain between humans and animals, but she was glad that not all foxes were like Kiana's ancestor.

"Kiana's family believed that their ancestor had caused this terrible crime," Judy explained as Ella turned to look up at her "That they decided to become part of the circus so that they could hide from the shame that their ancestor had created."

"I feel sorry for Kiana," Ella said softly "I just can't believe a fox would cause such a crime that would put a rift between humans and animals."

"Ella, we're going to figure this thing out." Nick said as he gave Ella a reassuring smile. "We're going to see if it's true on what Kiana's ancestor did many years ago. So just leave it to me and Judy, while you hang out with your friends."

Ella nodded as a small smile appeared on her face. Soon the doorbell rang and Nick left the table to see who it was. When he opened he door he saw Stan standing before him with a smile.

"Hey Mr. Wilde," Stan greeted "Is Ella home?"

"Yeah, she's just finishing up her breakfast." Nick said with a smile.

Ella soon appeared from out of the kitchen and made her way towards Stan with a smile.

"Hey Stan." Ella greeted "I'll just get my shoes on and then we can head to the park."

"Alright," Stan said.

"Now you two be careful," Nick advised as Ella tied on her shoes "Make sure you stick together and don't do anything stupid."

"Don't worry Mr. Wilde." Stan said "We're just going to hang out in the park for a bit before heading over to Susan's vocal performance."

"She's really taking pride in her singing, huh?" Judy asked as she walked to the door.

"Well, it is Susan's dream to become a famous pop star like Gazelle." Stan said with a shrug of his shoulders "And she's considering Isabella to be her costume designer once the time comes."

Nick and Judy chuckled at that statement before Ella finished tying on her shoes and giving her two caretakers a hug.

"See you guys later," Ella said before she gave them each a kiss on the cheek.

"Stay safe kiddo." Nick said as he watched his daughter run down the street with Stan as they headed toward the park.

"You know, Stan has a pretty good head on his shoulders." Judy said with a smile.

"Well, his parents are great neighbors to get along with," Nick said as he looked at his friend with a smirk "I wouldn't be surprised if Stan ends up becoming part of the ZPD one day."

"Maybe," Judy said with a shrug "Come on, we better get into our uniforms and head to the ZPD.

Nick nodded his head before closing the front door behind him as he fallowed his partner back into the house.