The sun is up, emitting a nice, warm, and orange glow. It's a new day for Zootopia. Judy got up, took a shower, and changed into her casual clothes: a brown V-neck sweater and blue denim jeans with a white belt.
Judy went with her daily breakfast routine: a call to her parents back in the Hopps family farm, a carrot, some homebrew coffee, and a cream cheese bagel. Judy grabbed her duffel bag containing my uniform and equipment, locked the apartment, and headed to the bus stop.
She got on the bus and made her way to the police station. As soon as she enters the station, Nick arrives and he's standing right behind the rabbit. Before she turned around to greet Nick, Judy saw Clawhauser already walking to his desk along with a box of a dozen donuts. She turned around and acknowledged Nick, who seems to have easily recovered from the wounds he sustained from the chase.
"Hey, Nick. How you doing?" Judy greeted the fox with a lively attitude.
"Feeling great as usual, Carrots. What about you?" Nick replies with a smile on his face.
"Same thing. I hope that it isn't going to be more stressful than two days ago. Well, I gotta go change. I'll see you in the briefing room!"
Judy went in the change room and took her uniform out of her duffel bag. She still feels the same strong sense of pride wearing it for six months. She left the change room and met with Nick in front of the debriefing room.
"Ready, Judy?"
"Are you?"
Nick and Judy walked into the debriefing room. Chief is there standing in front of the room and waiting for everyone to take a seat. The two went to the seat in the front of the room and shared it like they did in Nick's first day. Chief Bogo clears his throat and speaks.
"Alright, everyone. It's a new day in Zootopia. Once again, we're here to keep it safe for the whole day and make sure that every mammal is safe and sound."
"Good god, Chief! You've inspired me with astounding confidence… or was that an excerpt from the inspiration book I e-mailed you after my graduation?" Nick joked as the whole room chuckles.
"Grr… Whatever. Alright, here are your first duties for the day." The water buffalo clears his throat, adjusts his glasses and reads the paper in his hands.
"Officers Zoey, Quagmire, Delgato. You will investigate the abandoned fishery." The tigress, lion, and wolf officers stand and leave the room.
Snarlorf, Higgins, Wolfurd. Investigate the car accident in Sahara Square." The polar bear, hippo, and wolf officers also left the room.
"McHorn, Sanders. You two go to Tundratown. Investigate the commotion in there regarding the mafia." The two rhino officers got off their seats and headed straight to the door.
"Hopps, Wilde. You two go to the max prison wing and interrogate Doug. I want all the information inside his tiny head about his recent activities. That is all." Like the others, Nick and Judy stood up and left the room.
The duo arrived at the prison wing. This place is the definition of danger. It was dark, cold and the sound of sobbing and maniacal laughter echo across the empty hallways. The jail guard, Officer Wolfe was asleep by the dark wooden desk until Judy rang the brass bell on the table. He abruptly woke up, fell off his chair. Somehow, he was unfazed and accompanied us to Doug a few rooms down. Doug is there in a white room, sitting quietly and somehow staring at us, even though Wolfe said it was a one-way mirror. It only had a desk chained to his leg, his hands cuffed to a metal bar on the tabletop and two wooden chairs opposite of him for Nick and Judy to sit on.
"Okay, Judy. Let's do this the old-fashioned way. I'll be the bad cop; you'll be the good cop. Officer Wolfe, please get me a hair trimmer and a power sander. We're gonna give this ram a makeover." Nick planned right outside the interrogation room.
Wolfe nods and leaves the prison wing as he fetches the tools. Nick's still pissed off at Doug after the chase two days ago. The officers entered the room and were face-to-face with Doug himself.
"Hello, Doug… How's your stay?" Judy asked with a smile.
"…"
"Don't talk much, do you? I need you to answer these questions. What's in the fishery? What's the serum made of? Why did you shoot Mr. Big? Who hired you?" Nick asked with an angry tone on his voice.
Doug never said a thing. He just stares at Nick then spat on his snout, which he wipes off right away.
"You wanna play this the hard way? Perfect, we've got that set up just for you." Nick says with his eyes staring directly at Doug's eyes.
Nick nods to the one-way mirror and Officer Wolfe comes in with the hair trimmer and the power sander Nick asked for. Nick plugs the hair trimmer in. Judy didn't know he has knowledge and experience about this kind of thing.
"Last chance, Doug. What's in the fishery?" Judy asked with concern for his safety.
"…"
"Okay. Have it your way!" Nick shrugged.
Nick proceeds to shave off Doug's upper body, who was helpless. Judy covered her eyes. It was a bit messy, but now, he looks like a half-baked cookie.
"Come on, Doug. Just answer the questions and we can stop this. Please?" Judy ask him whilst using her bunny eyes. The ram completely ignores her.
"What's the serum made of?" Nick questions him once again.
"I'm not telling any of you..." Doug responds.
"And I'm telling you this. You're testing my patience, Doug…" Nick says again.
"…"
Nick plugs in the power sander and proceeds to smoothen Doug's horns. It was even messier, but now, he looks like a cute Christmas tree ornament! Judy giggled as Nick mocked the disgraced ram. Judy even heard Officer Wolfe chuckling outside.
"Anything?" Judy asked again, trying to hold back a laugh.
"…"
"I'm out of ideas. Judy, you got any?" Nick asks the innocent bunny.
"Maybe… I can bring in some of the officers to… try their artistic skills… on him?"
Doug stares at Judy viciously, and Nick stares right at him.
"Ooh! Good one, let's go ask Chief for help."
Judy and Nick approached Chief, suggested the idea, and laughed at it. Still, he asked if any off-duty officers could meet them on the maximum prison wing. About six officers showed up and were given art supplies from the storage room. They all went in and made Doug their living canvas. They all left at the same time and the two returned…
Doug looks like a mess. He has rainbows on his cheeks, red markers across his lips, some makeup, and even one of the officers tied his smooth horns with ribbons. He looks like he's about to break.
"Well? Is there anything you wanna say?" Judy asked yet again.
"…"
"No? Okay then." Nick warns him.
Nick looks up and thought of the evilest idea ever and he whispered it to Judy's right ear. Her ears and mouth dropped.
"…Hey, Clawhauser. Can you come to the max prison wing? I heard there's a massive Gazelle fan in here. He's very secretive of it, so can you make him show his fanboy-ism to us?" Nick says on his radio as Doug's eyes fill up with rage.
Soon, there was a loud rumble approaching the prison wing. It's a running Clawhauser, and it looks like he has a radio, sheets of paper and a happy yet zombiefied expression on his face!
"Nick! Judy! Where's the fan?!" He says as he pants at the same time.
Nick points toward Doug. Clawhauser quickly runs into the interrogation room. Judy is afraid of what's gonna happen, so she headed out for a water break.
Clawhauser immediately pulled a chair and sat in front of Doug. Doug seems to be losing his mind. Clawhauser shows him his poems and songs, all related to Gazelle. He wouldn't stop talking and Doug looked like he wanted to die.
Judy came back to see Nick smiling while Clawhauser is still inside, talking about Gazelle and even singing her songs and his own written songs, with a voice so sharp that it can pierce even the gates of Heaven. Doug and Wolfe, on the other hand, look distraught.
"Okay, Clawhauser. That's enough. Thanks for the help!" Judy barged in and told Clawhauser, whose gigantic smile turned into a gigantic frown now that he has to go. Nick returned to the room.
"Well? Anything?" Nick asks him one last time.
"…"
Judy came up with one last idea. It sounds ridiculous, but it just might work!
"Well, if you don't say anything, I guess we can go tell Ms. Bellweather that you like her… Where is she again? Oh, right! She's also locked up in here! Maybe we can bring her in here and set you two up on a very awkward date! I'll go get some brunch for you two!" The sly bunny told Doug with a smug look on her face.
"Wait, what?" Nick looked at Judy, confused.
"…NO! NO! DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT! I GIVE UP! I GIVE UP!" Doug cried out with a cherry red blush on his fluffy cheeks.
Unbelievable. It actually worked. The two officers were stunned.
"Well, well, well! It looks like even hardened mercenaries like you have a soft spot for others, too!" Nick snickers and looks at him.
"See, Doug? That wasn't so bad!" Judy comforted Doug.
"Okay, tell us what we want to know. First, what's in the fishery?" Nick questions as Judy took out her carrot pen and notepad.
"…It's my hideout."
"How do we enter it?" Judy asked.
"It doesn't have any buttons. Only a motion sensor camera that's carefully hidden."
"Okay. Why did you naturalize Mr. Big?" Nick questions as his eyes lit up.
"Well, my contractors told me to! I don't have any grudges on that man. I'm just a mercenary, for god's sake."
"Next question. What's the naturalizing serum made out of?" Judy ask the blushing ram yet again.
"I don't know! My contractors supplied them!
"…And exactly who ARE these contractors?"
"They call themselves 'the Circle'. I was hired by one of them, who seems to be wearing a brown blanket or something. He smelled pretty bad, too."
"Judy, you got all of that?" Nick asks and she nods.
"Alright, Wolfe. Looks like we're done here." Nick says to the one-way mirror.
Wolfe walks in and takes Doug back to his cell, which appears to be beside Bellweather's, who is just sitting in there, staring at Judy with vengeance in her eyes. Doug appears to be whimpering on his cell, sitting as far away as he can from Bellweather, avoiding making any kind of visual contact with her.
"Wait!" Doug screamed as they were about to leave. "If you want to enter, you need to do this gesture in front of the wall."
He spreads his arms, then makes a ball with his hand and crushes it.
Nick and Judy left the prison wing and reported to Chief Bogo with the information they got from Doug.
"Good job, you two. I still have a bad feeling about that fishery. Go there and join Zoey, Quagmire, and Delgato. I'll inform them ASAP." Bogo stated.
"Okay, chief. We're on the way." Judy replied.
As soon as they left Bogo's office, Judy couldn't stop wondering of how Nick was able to know such brutal things. With a hint of curiosity, Judy turned to Nick when they arrived at the parking lot.
"Hey, Nick. How do you know all those interrogation techniques?"
"Well Carrots, I was taken in by Mr. Big's grandmama when I was young. It wouldn't be surprise if I told you that I learned a few tricks from her, would it?" Nick replied.
"Ohh… okay, I get it. Anyways, let's go to the fishery."
The officers got inside a cruiser and drove back to the docks.
"I can't stop thinking about it. Who are 'the Circle' and who's the smelly person in a brown blanket?" Judy thought to herself as she looks over at the rising sun shining on Zootopia.
