A/N: Max got so many positive comments from last chapter. I'm so glad that I wrote it. I apologize for it being too short but it's just that I really wanna focus on how I should explain his life was last chapter. Anyway, let's get on with the chapter.
Disclaimer: Zootopia and the characters belong to Disney, but Max is mine.
Judy slowly opened her eyes and sat up, lazily. She rubbed her eyes and found Nick still sleeping behind her. She smiled and got off of bed, stretching her arms and body.
When she exited the room, the first thing she saw was the back of Max's head, facing the TV. He was watching anime. She slowly walked up to him and yawned.
"What're you watching?" she said.
"One Punch Mouse," he answered. He chewed on his chocolate slowly, focusing on the show.
She turned to the show and realized it was in Japanese. "Can you even understand?"
Max nodded. "A little though."
She then turned her attention to his gloves. He was still wearing them. "I'm sorry about last night," she said.
Max turned to her with a smile. "Daijoubu, daijoubu," he said.
She giggled. "What?"
"It means 'It's alright, it's alright'." He turned back to the TV and watched as the hero tried slapping a mosquito.
Judy was really impressed at how much he recovered. Almost as if it didn't happen before.
"Is Nick awake yet?" Max interrupted her thought. "We're moving as soon as he wakes up."
"Where are we going?"
"Up north. A place in Pantheroma Drive." He took another bite off of his chocolate. "I got a friend that might actually help us. She's a little feisty but she's the only one I know who can get info on someone real fast."
Few hours later after Nick finally got up, the three were on their way to Pantheroma Drive. Nick was actually still asleep at the back.
"So who are we meeting?"
"A wolf. Cheryl. Very talented at getting words out of everyone. Hears a lot too. And charming especially towards males."
"Were YOU charmed?"
Max shrugged. "She can be annoying though. Because I owe her a date as well."
Judy laughed. "How many more dates do you owe?"
Max opened the glove compartment and gave her a notepad. Inside were names of animals with addresses. 6 pages even.
"Whoa…"
"I know. So I think… 81? Some are even from another country so it's even tougher for me to meet up with them."
Judy also noticed that there were male names too. "Even males?"
Max sighed. "Yep. I always keep my end of the bargain. Gay or straight, doesn't matter. As long as it's not a one night stand, then I'm okay with it."
Judy laughed again and puts it back. "How many more do you think you'll have before finding your bunny friend?"
Max shrugged. "Hopefully not 100."
The three arrived at a bar called 'Living Pelts'. Judy frowned in disgust from that name. Max noticed this.
"If there's anyone offering you a drink, just say no," Max reminded.
Judy nudged Nick, waking him up. He quickly sat up and yawned.
The three entered the bar. The bar was such a small place. The counter was literally in front of the entrance and on the left as they entered, was a pool table with a dart board behind it.
The door chimed and the first thing they saw were a wolf and a panther fighting. The two fought each other very slowly from being drunk. They could barely stand but their fists were up weakly.
"Oh, hey there, Max," said a female wolf, cleaning up the counter.
"Sup, Cheryl," Max replied. He watched as the two fought and turned back to her. "How long have they gone at it?"
"Since last night."
"And who won last time?"
"Chester."
Max walked towards the panther and slammed the back of his head to the wall, putting the panther to sleep. He then raised up the wolf's paw. "The winner is Jeffrey," he said. The wolf, known as Jeffrey, cheered in victory, still drunk. Jeffrey then fainted from being drunk for too long and fell asleep.
Judy frowned at Max's action. He walked back up to the counter and she shook her head. "Why'd you do that?" she said.
"Trust me," he said taking a seat, putting on his hood. "If they kept going, they're gonna wet themselves."
"True that," Cheryl said. "What can I get you for?"
"A glass of water for me."
"Um… Do you have any carrot juice…?" Judy asked, her ears dropping.
"We don't got juices," Cheryl replied, cleaning a glass.
"Just give them the same thing," Max ordered.
Nick lay his head on the counter, still asleep, and snoring even.
Cheryl came with their drinks and the first thing Max did was grabbed his glass and splashed water on Nick's face which woke him up immediately.
"Wh-what the heck?!" he said.
"That help?" Max said putting down his glass.
Nick, who was sleepy earlier wiped his face and in an instant, his eyes were wide opened, feeling slightly fresh. "A little…" he said giving one last yawn before wiping his face. Max faced back to Cheryl.
"Give me some soda," he said. "Coati Cola. Bottle too."
Cheryl smiled and gave him a glass bottle one, taking off the bottle cap too. "Now that's the Max I know," she said. "I was wondering why you wanted water too."
Max raised his glass as if he said 'cheers'."So anyway," he said. "Anything you found?"
She looked around and gave him a picture of a beaver. "This guy right here," she started. "James Buckner. He came from Los Horserus last night. Heard him said something about someone leaving the factory right before the police came while on his way to this side of the town."
Max took the photo. "Where is he?"
"Bearstow."
Max sighed. "Of course…" Max turned the picture around and there was an address behind it. He knew what the address meant. He got off his seat and put down his hood. "Thanks for the info, Cheryl."
Nick and Judy finished up their drinks and Max paid for all of them. Including the water he used to splashed Nick's face.
"And remember, you still owe me that date," Cheryl reminded before they left.
Soon, the three got back in the car and began their journey again.
"So what's Bearstow like?" Judy asked, looking at the map.
"Total dump," Max answered. "Residents there are good-for-nothing animals. Very speciest. Corrupted sheriffs. Lousy businesses. But because of that, even the cops from Los Horserus won't dare to come to a place like this." Max pointed at a prison on his left. "That's proof that this part of the world is crazy."
They stopped in front of a train track and waited until the train passed them.
"What's Voxroy like, by the way?" Nick asked, looking through his phone.
Max stayed silent for a minute, trying to think as the train pass by them.
"Well, he's… A jerk towards prey, that's for sure. He was so happy about joining the Robin Hood crew too because all of us were predators. We call him the planner because he plans everything. From what I heard, he works under the government so he had so much better access about the places we were gonna rob. He always seem to have something towards foxes though."
"Foxes?" Nick's ear immediately stood up and he turned to Max.
"Yea… Wonder if he knew I was one already after we got seperated… Maybe that's why I'm still alive till now…" Max clenched his fist. "Dammit…"
The train was finally gone and they continued on.
For a few minutes, nothing. Just total silence. Nick didn't wanna ruin his friend's mood again but Max seem okay with it. Since Max is mostly known as unemotional after what happened with his friend, Sophie.
Max realized how quiet it was a put his iCarrot on the holder and played a song. The song started with an electric guitar tune and the lyrics afterwards begin to come into play. Japanese. At first, Nick and Judy didn't understand, but as soon as the chorus hits, their heads bobbed with the tune.
"You guys like it?" Max said, smiling.
Nick and Judy didn't even have to answer it because their paws were dancing with the tunes anyway.
Max laughed and kept driving letting the two enjoy his taste of music. Max mostly loves the classic songs but he listens to Japanese songs to brighten up the mood for everyone. And surely enough it worked.
After a few songs, they passed a sign that said 'Welcome to Bearstow' and Max turned off the music.
"Aww, come on," Nick said, looking at him. "That song sounded catchy too."
"I'll send it to you once we're free from all these," Max said, driving slowly looking for the beaver.
He stopped at the address given on the picture and parked the car. The three walked up to the house and Max knocked on the door.
"Mr. Buckner?" he called.
The door opened slowly and the beaver peeked out. "Y-yes…?"
"I heard that you saw someone last night in a rundown factory last night on your way here? Can you tell me about this mammal?"
His eyes widened and he shut the door quickly. "Go away! Get out of here!"
Max knocked on the door again. "Sir, please! I just wanna know a few things!"
He opened the door slightly. "Go away, fox!" he shouted. "Or I'll have you reported to the sheriffs along with your friends!" And with that he slamed the door shut, locking it.
Max sighed.
"What's gotten into him?" Nick said.
"Probably afraid of predators," Max shrugged. "But I don't think we'll get any answers if we keep pushing him."
"What do we do now?" Judy asked as the three entered the car.
Max thought for a second and snapped his fingers.
Moments later, they were at a diner. They all sat at the furthest corner with Judy and Nick facing the same way as the entrance. Max however wasn't worried about his face being seen.
"You sure this is safe?" Nick whispered, glancing around.
"Like I said," Max answered browsing the web with his iCarrot. "These animals are lousy. They don't give a bowels about anything. So... Just be prepared about what you're gonna eat."
"What does THAT mean?" she whispered loudly.
Max chuckled. "You don't wanna know. And besides, no need to cover your faces. Almost every TV in Sheepiyou County are cabled and not a single antenna or satellite here. Except that huge satellite dish at Pantheroma Drive, but… Whatever."
"Hi there," said the waitress, a sheep, wearing a pink dress, holding a pen and notepad. "I'm Trixie, your waitress for today. What can I get you three?"
"Chicken burger, please," Max said. "With some locust bits in it?"
Nick and Judy looked at the menu.
"Er… Fish sandwich?" Nick said.
"I'll just have a bowl of salad," Judy said.
The beaver gave them a smile after finishing writing down their orders.
"Max," Nick called. "I've been wondering. What are you gonna do if we DO find Voxroy?"
Max stopped scrolling and turned to Nick slowly. "I'll be honest, personally I wanna kill him. But…" He looked out the window for a while. "If we can catch him and turned him in, at least it'll prove both your innocence."
Nick smiled. "Hey, can I have those songs just now that you played?"
"This is suppose to be scramble?!" shouted someone behind them.
Max looked up and over the couple's seat and saw a gang of bikers, all predators, scolding a beaver.
There was a tiger, hyena, wolf, jaguar and a few others at the table behind them. They were all wearing black jackets with a ram skull at the back.
The tiger than flipped the plate of scramble eggs over the table angrily. "Why are you preys such lousy cooks?!" roared the tiger.
Max saw this and breathe for a moment. He rolled his right paw into a fist, and puts on his hood as he walked up to them.
"Max! Max!" Nick whispered, and covered Judy, hoping the gang wouldn't see her.
"Hey, excuse me," Max said calmly to the large gang of bikers. The turned to him.
The tiger noticed Max was a fox. "Go away, fox," he said. "This doesn't concern you. Only preys."
"Of course not," he said. "Which is why…" Max took out a fat load of cash from his jacket and offered to the gangs. "I'm giving you this, so please leave."
The tiger took it and checked. All 100 bills and it looked as if there was thousands of pieces. He turned to the beaver. "You're lucky we have something else in mind," he said, standing up from his seat with the gang. They all head out and left with their bikes leaving loud vrooms on the way.
"Are you okay?" Max said, offering the beaver a handkerchief.
"Yes, thank you so much," she said, wiping the eggs off of her. "Our cook isn't even a prey and they blamed a waitress for it?"
Max chuckled. "Well, they won't be back for now. Glad I could help." He walked back to his table and noticed Nick covering Judy. "What's with you?"
Judy was squirming underneath Nick and she pushed him away. "Nick! I can handle myself!" she said.
Max laughed and shook his head.
"By the way, Max," Nick said. "How did you… Get that much money?"
"Oh those? They're counterfeit."
Judy's ears stood up, her eyes and Nick's widened. "What?!" they said in sync.
"Relax," he assured. "I only use real money when paying. But no way I'm giving a single penny to jerks like them. Which is why we're leaving the moment we finish up before they come back."
After their meal, the trio exited the diner all full and ready to take on the world. Max stretch his arms and neck from all that sitting down with Nick and Judy doing the same too.
"Excuse me?" said someone behind them. It was the beaver that Max protected just now. "Just asking. Do you think you could send me home?"
"Why?"
"It's just that… Those bikers aren't the only ones bothering me. Especially when I have to walk home."
Max didn't say anything and opened his car door. "Hop in," he said.
She smiled and gladfully got in the front.
"Max," Nick whispered. "You sure? I mean, we barely know her."
"I know. But I feel like she's not a problem."
"What?!"
"Just a feeling. I always trust my instincts."
Max got in the car and start up his engine. Judy however, held Nick's paw.
"At least we'll have the back seat to ourselves," she said to him.
A smile formed on Nick's face slowly and he turned to her. "I guess you're right."
Max drove for a few minutes, listening to the beaver's directing. When they came to a halt, the fox realized that it was the house they visited just now. Mr. Buckner's house.
"This is your house?" Max said.
"Yea, why?" she frowned.
"How ironic. We came to visit someone just now."
"You mean my dad?"
Max nodded. "Do you think that maybe… We can talk to him?"
"Well…" She thought for a second. "I DO owe you for saving me. I guess I can try."
"Thank you so much."
Judy and Nick looked at Max. "Trust your instincts indeed…" Nick complimented, coming down from the car.
They walked up the porch slowly and the beaver knocked on the door. "Dad!" she called. "I'm home!"
The door opened slowly. The same beaver from before. "Oh, Amy, you're home…" he said. He looked up and noticed Max. "What's this fox doing here?!"
"Dad," she said. "He saved me from those gang of bikers. I think it's only fair that we give him a chance to talk."
He looked at Max for a while. "You saved her…?" he said. Max nodded. "Why?"
"Not all predators are jerks, sir," Max answered.
The beaver looked at him in disbelief and nodded. He opened the door letting the four of them inside and closed it, locking it tight.
The place was dark with the curtains all shut. The only light source they have was from the TV. Amy went into her bedroom.
"Dad," she said. "You seriously need to turn some lights on in here." She closed the door behind her and her dad sat down.
"Okay, so what do you wanna talk about?" Mr. Buckner said.
Judy and Nick sat while Max decided to stand, leaning on the wall, with his arms crossed. "Well," he said. "I heard that you saw someone at the factory when you were on your way here?"
The beaver sighed. "I was visiting one of my brothers because he said he needed help with something. But apparently it was nothing but renovating that darn house of him. So I got ticked off and went home. And during my way home, I stopped at the junction by that factory, waiting for the light to turn green. Then I saw someone walking out with a gun. I didn't wanna get involve at first but…"
Max raised his paw to tell him to stop. "It's okay sir. I just wanna know what he looked like."
"Well… I didn't see much. He was wearing a black trench coat and a fedora hat. His tail was bushy though. Black I think. He didn't see me so I just pretended like I didn't see anything."
Max bit the tip of his thumb softly in disappointment. "Thanks for the info at least," he said.
"Er… One question, boy," Mr. Buckner stopped him. "How did you know that I saw him?"
"I have friends that can see and hear everything. Both preys and predators." Max then showed Nick and Judy, who were holding paws and each other side by side. "These two are my friends. And they're dating each other."
The beaver's ears dropped in disbelief as he witnessed how intimate the bunny and fox couple was.
With that, the three exited the house and thanked the beaver for his time. Max leaned back in his seat and sighed. "I thought for sure we'd get something solid."
"What now?" Judy asked.
Just then, Max received a text message from Cheryl.
"Come to the bar, now."
He frowned. "Looks like we got some new info," he said, starting up the engine.
Half an hour later, they made it back to the Living Pelts. They entered in and the door chimed.
"Alright, Cheryl what is it…" Max stopped midsentence when he saw… Him… Voxroy.
He was wearing his utility muzzle with a black trenchcoat. He was holding a gun in his right paw, his left arm around Cheryl's neck and her phone in his left paw.
"Hello, Ghost…" he said in a demonic voice.
Max frowned at this. He always hated listening to that voice. "Still with the demon voice huh?" he said.
"Very funny. I gave you an order… The Diamond. And you screwed up. Big time. So I got another request for you and this time, I'm giving it in person."
"And what makes you think I'll agree?"
Voxroy smirked. "I'm glad you asked…" He let go of Cheryl, turned her around and shot her in her stomach.
She gasped in pain. Max's eyes widened in shocked, Nick's mouth hanging opened slightly with Judy covering her mouth from seeing what just happened.
Voxroy pointed the gun at Cheryl's head after she fell down. "Don't worry…" he said. "She'll live. That is if she can hold on, that is."
Max tightened his fist, looking at her helplessly. "What do you want…?" he said.
"Splendid. You see, there's going to be a very important cargo on the way to Camelipatria on a train soon. It's said to be a very priceless artifact. I'd say in the next 3 hours? I'm giving you 5 hours to meet me at Mara Bay once you get the package. I'll send you the exact location to where we should meet once you're done. Don't disappoint me. Or every innocent animal will be involve."
With that, Voxroy took the back exit and left the bar. Max quickly bent over to Cheryl and shook her.
"Cheryl!" he called. "Come on, don't die!"
And just then, a police officer entered the bar in a hurry. "What happened here?!" he said.
The three turned to the officer. However, Nick and Judy knew him… Officer Wile… The coyote.
Max however glared at him. "This officer came in too soon…" he thought. "Is he… Voxroy…?"
Wile slowly grabbed for his tazer, assuring the three suspects that he wasn't going to harm them.
Max afterwards threw a smoke bomb and grabbed the two out and into his car. He quickly start his engine and drove off as fast as he can.
"Max, what's wrong?!" Judy said. "We could have explained everything!"
"I don't trust him…" he said. "Isn't it too much of a coincidence that a cop was there? Especially when Sheepiyou County only has sheriffs."
Nick and Judy looked at each other. Max was right… A cop, here? Especially when he was from Zootopia…
But the only thing Max could focus right now was to get that artifact Voxroy forced him to get. Max saw this as an oppurtunity. He was going to do it… But only to catch the one who betrayed him and his crew.
A/N: I spent a lot of time writing this. Because the heat has just begun. Very soon, the end will be here, guys and gals. Also, here's more info about Max that I forgot to put in the last chapter.
Max's info: Grew up in Tigerly's orphanage centre and was adopted by a wolf couple at the age of 4. That explains his good nose. Went to the same school as Nick until he was 10 before moving.
Oh and also, if you all are wondering what songs Max played in the care when they were on the way to Bearstow, it's 'Warera Omou Yueni, Warera Ari' by Kishidan. In Zootopia, they're Kishidan is known as Tanukishidan.
Also, sorry if there is any grammar mistakes or spelling mistakes. Ciao!
