Chapter 10: Homeward Bound

The news anchor sat behind his desk, a look of solemnity on his muzzle. Images of an industrial building played behind him, then shifted to rows and rows of body bags, being loaded into the backs of ambulances. "Last evening, there was an incident at the Mewling Brother's factory in Savannah Central that resulted in the deaths of 16 mammals." The moose news anchor shifted in his seat, antlers swaying so they rested parallel to his shoulders, while the image beside him shifted to that of Precinct 1. " The ZPD hasn't released the names of the victims, but in a statement to the press, Police Chief Bogo of Precinct One confirmed that the perpetrator of the crime is in custody, and reaffirmed the commitment of the ZPD to keeping the mammals of Zootopia safe. ZNN will get the whole story once the investigation has concluded..." Bogo turned the television off, and turned to appraise the officers in his office. They were both tired, emotionally drained, and angry. As far as cases were concerned, this was turning out to be a bad one. But it was their duty to see it through, and if he knew anything, it was the tenacity of his senior officers. The pair waited patiently for their chief to speak, ready to accept whatever criticism he had to offer. "So, where are we on this case?"

Jonathon Wolfard cleared his throat, then gestured to allow his partner to answer.

"We've got the suspect, but no idea why he is the way he is." The Rhino tossed his head.

"Nothing from the lab yet," Wolfard added, his throat sticky from the copious amount of coffee he had been guzzling since the previous evening. It had been a long day. He had barely gotten 8 hours of sleep over the past 72, and the methods he had been utilizing to stay awake were really starting to get to him.

"Naturally." Bogo muttered, and turned his attention to the papers on his desk. "We have another case of a savage predator and little explanation. Has anything turned up at the crime scene?"

McHorn's frown deepened, and he shook his head in the negative. They were no closer to solving this mystery then they had been two days ago. There was only one thing they knew for sure. "It isn't Night Howler serum."

Bogo nodded, "It seems we're clueless here." His nose flared, and he looked up from the papers, the personal files of each of the victims. "Go home."

Wolfard started, and turned to see the puzzled expression on his partner's muzzle.

"You heard me. You two need to sleep. Take a day to recover yourselves, the report back to me. In the meantime, Delgado and Fangmeyer will take over the investigation. I will see to it that you are informed if anything major comes up during your absence.

"Sir, with all due respect…" McHorn began.

"Save it," Bogo said, cutting him off. "I need you two sharp for this and you've been running all over the city for three days. Get some sleep, see your families, and report back."

It looked as if McHorn was going to argue, but one look to his partner silenced his complaints. Slowly, Wolfard shook his head back and forth at the Rhino. McHorn sighed, then nodded. The pair stood then, and saluted the Chief, before turning on their heels and striding out the door.

Once they were gone, Bogo allowed himself to slouch into his chair. A chief had a duty to his mammals. He could not afford the luxury of showing fatigue in front of his officers. Now that he had a moment alone, however, he allowed himself the courtesy of an exhausted yawn. In truth, he had barely managed 6 hours himself over the past three days, and in time, he knew he would have to pay the piper. For now though, he kept himself going through grim determination if nothing else. He turned to look at his map. The spot in the middle standing out to him, even as it blended in with the others. For now, he had work to do.

Once more in their shared office space, Officer's McHorn and Wolfard were collecting their gear, and preparing to head home for the afternoon. Wolfard smiled to himself, imagining his wife's pleased expression at his returning home from work earlier than expected for a change. Furthermore, he would be able to collect his pups from school in the police cruiser. They always loved when he did that. Adding to the fact that he was going to have an unexpected day off, and it was shaping up to be a day of pleasant surprises. If it weren't for the case overshadowing everything, it would almost be what he would have considered a very pleasant day. Finishing up, he headed to drop off a few more papers for Clawhauser to sort through, his partner besides him. "Here's the report from last night's investigation." He said, handing over the papers to the portly cheetah.

"Try not to get sprinkles all over them this time." McHorn gave the cheetah one of his rare smiles. It seemed Wolfard wasn't the only one looking forward to getting some rest.

The cheetah made a pouting face, then handed a sealed manila envelope to Wolfard. "This came for you while you were meeting with the chief." He scowled at McHorn, who stood chuckling, with his various accoutrements tucked under one paw.

"Thanks Benjamin." The pair started for the door, with the timber wolf awkwardly shuffling his things in order to open the envelope. They started out the door, into the bright afternoon sun, when Wolfard suddenly froze, his eyes going wide in shock. He stood there for a few seconds, lanky form blocking the door.

"What is it?" McHorn asked, immediately copping to his partner's distress.

Wolfard let out a low snarl and handed the contents of the envelope over to the Rhino. McHorn followed suite a moment later. "That son of a bitch!" The pair, moved back through the door, all thoughts of a quiet day off evaporating. They stalked over to Clawhauser, who had shrunk down a little behind his desk upon seeing the two's expressions.

"Who brought these in?" Wolfard demanded, his hackles raised.

"A courier, why what's wrong?" Benjamin's voice was flat, containing more than a little apprehension. McHorn slid the contents of the envelope over wordlessly, a snarl working its way out of his muzzle. Clawhauser looked down to see what had gotten the pair of typically composed officer's to lose their cool. The picture wasn't particularly clear. Whoever had taken it had done so in a hurry, the image blurry around the edges. In the picture's center, however, was the unmistakable form of Daniel Coleman, taken from behind. Something hidden in front of his body was spewing out a gout of flame, coating the wooden wall of a dilapidated warehouse in a sheet of red hot fire. Twisted bodies, lay somewhere in the background, their shapes consumed in roaring flame. The species of the figures was impossible to distinguish, but there mammaloid shapes were unmistakable.

"Benjamin," Wolfard said, his voice positively arctic. "Please get on the phone with the D.A. and get me a warrant for this bastard."

Judy watched Nick with a sidelong glance as they headed for their apartment. He sat aloof, as was his way in such situations, but there was a scowling paling at the edges of his muzzle. Furthermore, his ears were stuck at rigid attention, making his frustration patently obvious to those who knew him. Judy had told him about her meeting with Big, but had refrained from voicing her concerns over the implications he had made regarding the ZPD. That conversation would come once they had a moment alone. In the meantime, they sat in silence, quietly contemplating how complicated life had gotten in the past few days. Judy let out a soft groan, as she considered what exactly she would do in the coming week. She couldn't really imagine what the little shrew was going through, and felt woefully inadequate to the task. Furthermore, the situation at work had become infinitely more complicated with the realization that the supernatural world existed. She felt a pang of regret then, which she felt ashamed to admit. She wished, deep down, that she had taken Daniel's offer to simply back out of the situation where it stood. Of course, Judy wasn't delusional. She knew should have made her decision even given what she now knew. Still, she was beginning to appreciate that life would never be simple for her or Nick again, and part of her mourned the passing of that phase of her life.

The cab pulled over to the front of their apartment building, and the cabby tipped his hat to the officers. Apparently Mr. Big had paid for their transport quite handsomely, and the badger in his flat cap and cheerful expression, had earned a significant bonus off the books. The cab left them then, and they moved up into their apartment, equipment in bags slung over their shoulders.

Nick groaned as he threw his weight into their apartment door. It gave way from his onslaught slowly as the swollen wood gripped the floor of their apartment with a perverse glee. The door opened, he stepped back, and allowed Judy to move through the door, her equipment swaying at her uneven gait. The doe had stubbornly refused to continue using the crutch, and so she had to continue to limp everywhere like a geriatric. She dropped her pile of equipment on the floor and moved to the couch, dropping into it with a sigh of satisfaction. Nick likewise entered their apartment, and shut the door, all the while refraining from scratching the newly applied stitches between his ears. He moved over to join Judy, slipping his tired body into the plush cushions and contributed a sigh of his own. They sat there for a time. Neither making any sound. The soft ticking of a clock sounded in their hallway, as if measuring out the seconds before the discussion would commence.

"I'm sorry." Judy began, without opening her eyes.

"It's fine." Was Nick's response.

"I didn't ask you." She added.

"Didn't need to."

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

Silence again, the calm before the storm.

"Nick."

"Yeah."

"Are there dirty cops in the ZPD?"

Nick sighed, and turned to look at the doe. Her eyes were open, questioning. He didn't see any of the judgment he had anticipated, but he did see hurt. It ate at his heart, seeing her look at him like that. Long ago though, he had made a promise to the doe. No lies. No deception. In all things, honesty. Today, that promise would cost him. "Yes." Pain, flared in her expression then. And betrayal. Owe.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Her question was quiet, but there was emotion behind it. And no small amount of anger as well.

"I didn't want to…"

"You didn't want to tell ME?" She interrupted, pain ripped from her body, giving her words volume and pitch. Hot, angry tears welled in those purple eyes, and hung there, clinging to the fur around her eyes.

"I didn't want to know." He correct, emotion embellishing his own words. He kept his face schooled, but the sight of his partner, and her look of betrayal was almost more than he could stand.

She blinked, the tears dropping to the couch. She breathe, and in a quiet voice said, "Explain please."

He had to look away then, the raw emotion causing his throat to bunch up and his eyes to water. "I knew that Mr. Big, and many others had contacts in the ZPD. I never learned more than that and I never wanted to."

"Why?" It came out as a shout, but neutered of any real heat. There was only pain.

"Because." Nick swallowed past the lump in his throat. "Because I wanted to believe as you believed. I wanted to think better of the ZPD than what my instincts told me. I thought that if I didn't look for it… it wouldn't matter. It never stopped us from making the world a better place, so why worry about it?" Judy shook her head, and stood, a grimace playing across her muzzle. She paced, and turned to look her partner in the face. Disappointment was evident, as well as a modicum of suspicion. Double Owe

"Nick… I need to know right now. Have you been involved with anything?" Hot anger blazed from Nick's belly then, as he considered what she had just implied. His face looked shocked, then his eyebrows shot into an angry glare.

"Excuse me, but what…" his hands flew up into an angry shrug. "Are you implying here?"

"Please Nick, just tell me."

"Unbelievable… No Judy. This fox, has not, been up to illegal activity." His heart ached, as he spit out the bitter words.

"Nick, I am sorry. I am hurt, and confused, and overwhelmed." She shook her head, tears fully coming from her eyes. "I need you to tell me what is going on."

"So your first instinct is to accuse ME?"

The hurt in his expression ripped at her heart. Why had she assumed the worst of her partner? The anger welled up her own heart as well. "No Nick, my first instinct was to TRUST you. Which you then abused by not telling me there are crooked officers working with us."

He jumped up, his hackles raised as he stood. He glared at her, and her at him, while the clock ticked softly in the background. But then Nick thought about things from her perspective. Her implications still hurt, as well as the implications of her accusation. Still, he acknowledged that she probably had a reason to be upset. Damnit, I should have told her. Then, he took a breath, and smoothed his fur. "Judy, I am sorry. I wasn't trying to hide anything from you. I made a mistake, and I am sorry for hurting you."

Judy nodded, and also took a calming breath. She realized that perhaps Nick did have honest intentions in this, but it still hurt that he hadn't told her. "I know. I trust you. I'm also sorry for accusing you. I know you're not involved with that anymore. I was just shocked, and hurt."

Nick's muzzle drooped at that, as if her words were heavy chains dragging it to the floor. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you, Judy. I just…wanted to leave that world behind."

She nodded. "I'm still hurt. But I think I understand. I need time on this, Ok?"

"Ok. Ditto."

"Ditto?" Judy laughed, shaking her head. Nick shrugged, eyes still on the floor. "I love you, Nick."

"I love you too."

They stood that way a moment, till Judy worked her way over to the vulpine, and placed the top of her head into his stomach. She felt his arms wrap around her then in a tight embrace. He shook a little, as the intensity of their argument worked its way through him. Years ago, Judy had asked her mother how it was she and Stu had managed to stay so happy together. The advice she had been given, know how to fight, had taken Judy by surprise. "Disagreements, and anger are part of every relationship Bon Bon." She had said. "The trick is to learn how to fight, without trying to hurt the other person. It's about listening to each other, and the telling them why you are upset. It's not a competition, or to prove who is right. It's a form of communication. If you can make it a mutual effort, and speak truthfully to each other, you can make it through anything." Bonnie Hopps, was a wise mammal indeed.

"We need to get ready for Fru Fru and little J." Nick said, wiping the remains of tears from his eyes.

"Yeah."

"I'll get our stuff put away, if you want to start on the spare bedroom."

"Ok Nick."

The Power of a Threshold

~I want you to imagine a circle of light. At the circle's center, imagine an emotion. It can be anything you want. Fear, hope, love, whatever. Now imagine, as that emotion becomes more intense, the light brightens, solidifying into a tangible, potent force. Every emotion has real power in this world. They give us strength, propelling us to succeed when times are difficult. They give us purpose, and provide the necessary justification for the actions we take in our lives. In the case of magic, emotion is energy. It can be gathered, and used in a spell, or it can lie dormant, where it takes on a power and purpose all its own. Even mortals can feel its power. Families are a tremendous source of this emotion, with layer about layer building atop each other, until it creates a veritable fortress of energy. Beings from the spirit world, and other supernatural entities cannot cross this field of energy. This field is called a threshold. Every building has one, though public spaces have a very weak one. The greatest thresholds are those found in private residences. Take a bunnies' burrow. Generations of family, living together, can pile up so much energy that nothing short of a god could smash it down. This applies to us wizards. We're mortals, sure, but we have power as well. Cross into a threshold uninvited, and you'll leave most of your power at the door. ~

Daniel cursed, as his drink fell to the ground, spilling the green tinted liquid to the floor. Some damn fool has pounding on his door, and he would have to tell them off for making him spill his drink, provided he could remember where he left the door. For the previous few hours, Daniel had gotten himself well, and truly plastered. Eva, for her part, had spent the time singing sea chanties with such colorful lyrics, he was glad he didn't have any young children as neighbors.

"Coleman, this is the ZPD. We have a warrant for your arrest." The low basso voice growled angrily.

There was something Daniel realized he needed to do. He wasn't quite sure what, but it was pretty important.

"…and that's how I get my tail!" Eva crooned, balanced precariously on the edge of her glass. She bobbed in an avian way, in time with the rhythm, which further prevented the wizard from coherent thought.

"Coleman, open this door, or we'll kick it in!"

"Might make the damn thing easier to open," Daniel slurred. The door. The wards. "Oh balls."

The wizard shuffled over to the door, making to grab his staff from the wall he had it leaned against. He missed, almost falling down the stairs in his haste. His vision swam, as the room span merrily about him. He scowled at the staff. "Hold still." He admonished, and made to grab it once more. He heard the mammals on the other side of the door, muttering to themselves.

"Kick it down."

"Shit. I'm coming!" He finally managed to grab the staff, and attempted to gather his will. He needed to disable the wards on his door, or else the force of the ZPD's entry would blast them into paste. He leapt down the stairs, taking them three at a time and nearly face planted into the door despite himself. He thrust the end of the staff onto the door, managing the small incantation to bring down the wards right as a rhino sized foot smashed through the door and flung him up the stairs. Stars danced in his vision then, and he realized he had dropped the staff somewhere during his little flight. Then he felt a heavy pressure and another blow has he was thrown bodily onto the stairs leading up into his apartment. "Oof." The stairs cut into his muzzle and chest, as the unrelenting pressure jerked his paws behind his back and secured them with paw cuffs. A mammal was reading him his rights, but he couldn't quite make out what was being said. Subconsciously, he tried to rise and his vision, exploded into stars once again.

"He's resisting," the familiar voice of Rudolph McHorn said, as Daniel's head met stair once again. Daniel did not try to rise again. "I heard another voice, check the apartment."

Daniel felt a presence shuffle past him, moving up into the apartment. A moment later, a voice called back. "Just a parrot. Looks drunk too."

"We can add pet abuse to the list of charges," McHorn added cheerily. He lifted the fox up onto his feet, and whispered. "Finally getting what's coming to you Coleman." Before suckering punching the fox in the stomach.

Pain flared in Daniel's stomach and he began to noisily throw up. Daniel felt the pressure holding him give way and he fell into the puddle of his own sick. He groaned, once more not certain what was going on. A moment later, a final blow caused darkness to claim him, mercifully.

"Rudolph!" Wolfard shouted, leaping down the stairs to restrain his partner. The rhino had kicked the vulpine, causing his head to snap violently into the stairwell, knocking him unconscious. Wolfard grabbed the rhino's arm, who turned to look down at his partner, rage evident in the cold flinty glint in his eyes. "He's down. He's not a threat."

Reason came back to the Rhino then, and he snorted, looking marginally contrite. Then he looked down to the fox, disgust evident on his features. "Let's get this bastard back into a cell and behind glass where he belongs."

Wolfard nodded, but remained tense. The pair lifted up the fox and carried him slumped between them, trying to keep the mess to a minimum. The fox's neighbors peeked out the doors as they hurried him back to their cruiser, shutting the doors as the cops approached. Securing the vulpine in the back of their cruiser, they made their way back to precinct one, as a feline gaze followed their progress down the road from behind a telephoto lens.