Chapter 14

The next day, around dawn, Nick finally began to open his eyes and sit up from his lying position, because he, along with the others, had to sleep on the floor his body was a little stiff but after a few stretches he managed to loosen up before standing straight up. He glanced down at the human boy near him and smiled when he saw him sleeping.

He glanced to a small opening, which his rabbit partner was currently looking out of with a pair of binoculars, keeping an eye out for anyone that might sneak up on them. He walked over and whistled to get her attention.

"Oh hey, good morning." Judy greeted.

"Morning carrots." Nick yawned as he rubbed his eyes. "So, anything pop up during your watch?"

"No. It's really quiet out there."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, totally, which is good.

"Got that right."

The bunny then glanced at the young human laying on his side in the shadows just a little ways away.

"How is he?" Judy inquired.

Nick looked back toward him. "Still sleeping."

"Good. He needs it." Judy said.

"Yeah, meanwhile we don't have any idea what were going to do next." Nick pointed out.

"I know… Mouser's still looking for us and for all we know he and his men could be on their way here right now." The bunny realized.

"So… what are you saying we do?" Nick inquired, curious.

"I don't know… maybe we should call Bogo?" Judy inquired.

"Are you crazy? The minute we do not only is he gonna yell and fire us but he'll also hunt us down, bury us in coffins and dance on our graves." Nick told her.

"Don't be ridiculous… Bogo would never risk getting caught doing that… and besides with all that's going on we need his help more then ever." Judy stated.

The fox sighed deeply. "Fine, go ahead. But after what Bart told him to do last night, I'm sure he's gonna be real happy to help us." Nick said, sarcastically.

"I'm sure he's cooled off by now." The bunny shrugged as she took out her radio.

"Have you met our boss?" Nick questioned with a raised brow.

Judy paused for a minute before answering. "Ok, I see your point, but still, we have to try. There aren't many mammals out there we can call for help at the moment."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Nick sighed in defeat.

Judy then turned on her radio and waited until she heard a voice. "Hello? Officer Hopps, reporting."

She then heard Clawhauser's voice on the other end. "Officer Hopps! Hey, how ya doing?"

"Clawhauser, can you get Chief Bogo for me? I have a request about finding another safe location for Bart." Judy told him.

"Oh, sure thing! But first I need to get on waiting list for a meet with the awesomest popstar ever! Gazelle herself!" The cheetah said with a squeal.

Judy quickly started to get excited. "Really? Someone get's to meet her? Face to face!?" she asked, getting hyper before shaking her head and becoming serious again. "Never mind that! Just get Bogo!"

"Uh… right!" Clawhauser said before the sound of him rushing off was heard.

Nick, who heard parts of what he said, gained a pondering look on his face. "You know… I can't quite seem to figure out that guy's deal."

Judy turned to him, confused. "Deal?"

"You know; does he like girls or is he… you know… getting all… touchy-feely with other…" Nick started to explain, making little gestures while doing so that Judy quickly understood, making her flustered.

"Yeah, ok, no, I get it. Stop." Judy told him very fast, trying to hide her blush before hearing something else. "Oh! Chief Bogo! Sir! Listen, I think this location we picked to hide Bart might be compromised, we need a safer location for him, sir. Mouser has big plans for him and while we don't know what they are yet, we can't let him have him."

The bunny listened closely as Bogo said a few things that Nick couldn't quite make out as he subtly tried to get closer while Judy turned away and muttered 'Uh-huh', 'yes', 'I see' and 'but' a few times before finally…

"Yes, sir, I understand, we'll get right on it." The purple eyed rabbit said before turning off her radio.

"What? What did he say?" Nick questioned, expectantly.

Judy covered the other end of the radio and leaned to Nick. "He wants us to confine Bart to a more safer location."

"Like what?" The fox asked.

"Well… it's… kind of the place where we found all those missing predators… remember?" Judy inquired, hesitantly.

Nick's eyes quickly widened as the memory came back to him. "Wait… the asylum? Are you kidding me?" he questioned.

Unbeknownst to them, as they were talking, Bart's eyes suddenly opened and narrowed as he turned his head slightly and listened to the rest of their conversation.

"I-I know it's drastic but… maybe it's for the best…" Judy reasoned.

"He might not go for it…" Nick noted.

"He doesn't have to like it and really he doesn't have much of a choice in the matter, if Mouser gets his paws on him who knows what could happen." Judy stated.

"And yet in the process we put him in a place that he's been avoiding his whole life." Nick pointed out.

"Cliffside isn't a prison, it's a mental hospital."

"Yet was used to hold predators infected by the Night Howlers. You remember those glass cages? With the giant toilet that we had to flush ourselves down? …Try getting that out of your head… Anyway, it might has well be a prison."

"But this time the holding of someone there will be approved and with all of the other ZPD officers there we can better protect Bart. No one will get in, and no one will get out."

"So we just keep him locked up? In a glass cage? With guards outside of it and the asylum?" Nick pressed on while Bart fearfully wanted for an answer from Judy, who looked a bit hesitant but eventually did speak.

"Yes. If that's what it takes." Judy answered, firmly.

A look of betrayal and sadness slowly appeared on Bart's face as dark images of police chasing him, his parents hitting him and being cornered by unknown assailants flashed in his mind before his fist clenched and cracked in anger.

"Well… I guess it would be safer for him…" Nick admitted.

"Exactly. Until Mouser is dealt with Bart is not safe, not even around us and we can't risk him going off on his own again." Judy pointed out.

"Yeah, he is notoriously reckless… guess it comes with being a thief." Nick quipped.

Bart's fist shook with anger before he began to stand up straight and walk towards them, still in the shadows. They still didn't seem to be aware that he was awake just yet.

"Not funny, Nick." Judy scolded, quietly. "And be quiet, your gonna wake him."

"Little late for that." The human spoke up, startling them.

"Oh, Bart! Your awake!" Judy said, surprised. "Listen uh… we need to head somewhere else now, this place isn't safe."

"You mean some place like a nut house?" Bart questioned with an edge in his voice.

"Uh-oh…" Nick muttered, getting a good sense of what was about to happen.

"W-what? What are you…?" Judy began.

"Ah, don't play dumb! I heard you, Judy! On the phone! You guys wanna lock me in a cage just that Mouser does!" Bart accused.

"No! It's… it's not like that see…" Judy tried to explain.

"We just figured that you'd be safer if you were confined somewhere safe… until we arrest Mouser that is." Nick added.

"And by 'confine' you mean 'cage'?" Bart questioned further.

"He didn't say that." Judy stated.

Bart turned away. "He didn't have to," he said before he began to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Judy questioned.

"Any place you guys aren't." Bart said, sharply.

"You can't! Mouser is still after you!" Judy reminded him.

"I handle myself!" Bart stated.

"Oh, like how you've been handling yourself since you ran away like a baby?" Nick questioned, doubtfully. Judy gasped in shock while Bart froze with a look of anger on his face that the other two couldn't see at the time.

"Nick!" Judy hissed, appalled.

It took the fox a little while before he realized what he just said aloud. "Oh… that was a bad choice of words, wasn't it?"

"Yeah." Judy scowled.

"Listen fox, I ran away because I had to!" Bart snapped.

"And we're doing this because we have to as well!" Judy told him as she approached the human and took his hand. "Come on, Bart."

She started to pull him away but before they could get very far, Bart swiped the pair of pawcuffs from her belt and got one around her wrist, catching her by surprised, as well as Nick.

"Yeah… I don't think so," he said darkly before he swung Judy around and then tossed her into Nick before they both collided and slammed into a wall together. As they laid on the floor groaning, Bart got the other cuff around Nick's wrist, attaching them to each other before taking Nick's cuffs as well and putting one on Judy's other wrist and the other around a pole, trapping them.

They soon realized what Bart had done upon getting to their feet and struggled to get free, but it was no use.

"Hey! Kid! What are you doing!?" Nick questioned.

"I'm sorry… but I can't be locked up again, Nick…" Bart shook his head, sadly.

"Bart… Bart, please… don't do this!" Judy pleased. "Your better then this!"

"You don't know me!" Bart yelled. "And you don't care about me either!"

"Yes, we do! Honest! We just…" Judy tried to explain.

"I trusted you guys! I would have put my life on the line for you both! But deep down your just like everybody else; you only see the thief inside of me. Thinking I'd be better off locked up! Well I'm not!" Bart said, sounding hurt and angry as he turned and began to stomp away. "Should have figured, when it comes down to it I'm on my own!"

"Bart! Come back!" Judy called out. "We were only trying to protect you!"

"Leave me alone!" Bart shouted as he ran off ahead and exited the building, with tears in his eyes.

"Bart!" Judy cried, before she began to struggle to pull the cuffs that attached her to Nick apart but to no avail.

"Ow! Ow! Carrots, easy! That's my arm! I plan on using it later!" Nick told her.

"Then help me! We can't let him go out on his own! Mouser's guys are still out there!" Judy exclaimed, getting panicky while trying to pull the cuff that attached her to the pole apart.

"I know! But just try and think! Do you have the keys?" The fox inquired.

"Yes I…" Judy started to say before she saw that it was on the floor a little ways away from her. "Oh no… I must have dropped it when Bart grabbed us…"

Nick looked toward it. "Hmm, I think I can reach it…"

"Really?" Judy responded, surprised.

"Yeah, just give me a second…" Nick said as he began to reach forward, moving forward bit by bit as he tried to get closer to the key.

Judy waited anxiously before her eyes suddenly widened before her face fell flat. "Nick, hands off the merchandise, please," she requested very calmly.

Nick froze, turned and saw that his other paw, the one that was cuffed to Judy's, was grabbing onto her rear for balance and he didn't even realize it till now. He chuckled nervously before moving it up and away, despite the feeling of being stretched too far that he was getting.

"Heh, heh… sorry…" he quickly apologized before he reached even further, the pain in his body increasing, before he managed to put a claw on the keys and move them closer to them. He then brushed it even closer to them using his tail and bent down to pick it up. "Got it!"

"Yes!" Judy said, pleased as Nick used the key to unlock the cuffs attaching him to Judy before using his own to detach him from the pole. "Finally! Now come on, Bart's getting away.

She and Nick then ran in the direction he took off in but upon reaching the exit they couldn't see Bart anywhere outside. Judy tried listening for him with her large ears but she couldn't seem to hear him anywhere. "Where did he…?"

"Oh no… what have we done?" Nick asked, saddened.

"We should have talked it over with him…" Judy said, her ears drooping as depression befalls her. "Ugh! What was I thinking?"

"Hey, you were just doing what Bogo ordered us to do Carrots, that's all." Nick tried to comfort her.

"Yeah, well… sometimes orders… just aren't orders…" Judy muttered, solemnly. "We should have talked to him about it… and not do it behind his back like we were trying to keep some stupid secret from him…"

"Yeah… plus that was a really bad use of the word 'confine'…" Nick muttered to Judy.

"Not now Nick, we have to find him!" Judy stated, firmly. "Come on!"

The bunny quickly ran off ahead down the steps and while the fox looked a bit annoyed, he followed.

"Ugh… why do I get the feeling that bunny is gonna be the death of me?" he asked out loud as he started to run also.

Later on, Bart was making his way down a series of steps that presumably lead up to the observatory and didn't slow down as he began to enter the edge of town, clearly still steamed after his rough argument with the ones tasked with protecting him. He had no idea where he was going and at the moment he didn't care, he just continued to angrily mutter to himself the whole time he was walking.

"Who do they think they are? Thinking they can lock me up. That it'll keep me safe. I'll bet they've been wanting to do that since the day that I…" he began to say.

The sound of distant running steps made him freeze he looked back up the steps, but he didn't see anyone there. Still, that didn't keep him from being suspicious.

"Listen, guys, I already told you-" he began to say as he started to turn back around only to find his path blocked by Mr. Pierce. He gasped, startled.

"You really think you can handle us on your own?" he inquired, disbelievingly and amused.

Bart glanced back and saw Mr. Pigg landing behind him with a loud, 'thud!'. He snorted at the young human.

"Oh sweet cheese and crackers…" Bart gulped.

"Guess it was a good thing that the Doc made us wait till you were alone, eh hothead?" Anton remarked.

Bart took a few nervous steps backwards before turning and remembering that Rocky was right behind him and pawing at the ground, making an angry growl. The human quickly readied himself for a fight while Anton looked at him amused.

"Ha! I'm I supposed to be scared or something?" he remarked as he held out his arms. "Come on, bring it!"

Letting out a battle cry Bart leapt forward and prepared to land a flying sidekick on the giant pig. It would have been a direct hit, except for the fact that at the very last second the pig did a lightning-fast backhand strike and knocked the boy away. He landed flat on his back and groaned in pain.

"Ha! Not so tough without your bodyguard's, huh?" The pig taunted.

Angered, the human got back up and glared at him. "I'll show you tough!" he snapped as he lunged forward and tried to strike him but Anton quickly grabbed his fist before it made contact, squeezed it and twisted his arm in process, causing him to cry out in pain.

"Wow. You showed me alright." Anton remarked, deadpan before swinging Bart one way before tossing him into a wall, making it crack a little upon impact.

"Careful." Rocky warned his partner.

"Right, we need him alive, sorry, forgot." The pig apologized as he and the elephant began to approach the young street thief threateningly.

The human got to his knees and looked at the duo fearfully before scooting backwards then standing up and rushing into a building. He slammed the door behind him, pressed his back against the wall next to it and panted heavily.

"Man… Judy was right; some help would be good right about now…" Bart admitted to himself before a three fingered fist burst through the wall next to him.

Soon after, the entire wall was suddenly smashed into pieces and Bart was sent flying across the room along with chunks of rocks as Rocky burst through it, presumably by shoulder slamming it.

Bart groaned as he slowly picked himself up, the power of the forced enterance and the force from being sent flying across the room caused a great deal of pain throughout his body but still he managed to stand while the pig and the elephant both entered. He turned and tried to limp out but he was suddenly struck in the back by something that sent a shock through his body that knocked him out and caused him to land on his face.

Behind him, Anton revealed himself to be the one who shocked him unconscious using a taser with two long cords. He and his partner both approached the human and loomed over him.

"And that's a wrap." Anton declared before preparing to grab Bart.

A little while later, Judy and Nick arrived at the spot where Bart, Rocky and Anton previously were and while the bits of rubble and a hole in the wall were evidence that they were once there, it was clear that they weren't anymore, due to how empty the place was.

"Whoa… what happened here…?" Nick wondered

"Looks like… signs of a struggle…" Judy observed. She then looked down and gasped when she found a piece of red cloth on the ground, which she picked up. "Part of Bart's hoodie…"

"And look down…" Nick said as he pointed to the ground, which had multiple footprints from three different animals all over.

"Tracks… left by…" Judy started to say.

"An elephant and a pig." Nick finished, grimly. "And their fresh too… this happened just recently…"

"That means…" Judy began to say before gasping in shock and realization. "Mouser's guys must have taken Bart!"

"Oh ya think?" Nick remarked. "Now the only question is; where did they take him?"

"Well, they couldn't have gone back to the base where you rescued me…" Judy mused. "So where…"

Judy and Nick thought and pondered long and hard before Nick finally opened his mouth wide, took a deep breath and said…

"I got nothing." The fox shrugged.

Judy's eyes then lit up. "I got it!"

Nick looked at her surprised. "You know where he is?" he asked.

"I might… hold on." Judy said as she took out her phone and began to call someone. "Hello? Oh hey! Good! I'm glad you're there!"

As the bunny turned and began to indistinctly talk to whoever it was on the phone, Nick tried to listen in but couldn't get hear more then every fifth word that was said.

"Yeah? Yeah? Ok. Ok, thank you, thank you! I'll pay you back for this, I promise. Ok, bye." Judy said to the individual she was speaking to before hanging up. "Alright! I now know where they're keeping Bart!"

"Really? Where?" Nick asked, surprised.

"It's another base, located in the rainforest district." Judy informed.

"Another base?" Nick said, stunned.

"Yes, and they're already half an hour ahead of us so we gotta move before they do who knows what to Bart!" Judy stated.

"Right! But first… we're gonna need some backup and… some gear." Nick said.

Judy quickly whipped out her radio. "I was just thinking the same thing, partner," she smirked. "As for gear, there's no time, Bart needs us. Even if he doesn't think so."

The fox sighed. "Yeah… your right, Carrots. Now let's go get our boy back."

Judy nodded with a smile, which Nick returned before the two glanced toward the city with determined looks on their faces as gray clouds began to cover the sky above them. Surprisingly enough, the rest of the city was quiet, as if it was just the calm before the storm…