Chapter 7

Otter's Note: Happy Halloween everyone! I am currently listening to Ice Nine Kills. "Freak Flag" is extremely underrated. I turned the volume up really high for that one. Also, "Hallo" means "Hello" in Norwegian.

I woke up the next day, wearing a shirt that wasn't from a band. Just hearing about what happened to Emmitt, I could still not believe that this was happening. What was it?

Ashkii and I went downstairs, barely hungry for breakfast. I just had a protein bar but that was it. The TV was on in the TV room. Corey and Piper were both playing. They were still young and couldn't fully understand what was happening and all.

"There is going to be a press conference with Officer Hopps on TV about what happened," Ashkii said.

"Okay," I said, "Hopefully we can find some truth about the incident."

We changed the channel to ZNN. The press conference was coming up soon.

"Corey, Piper," Ashkii said, "we may soon know more about Emmitt."

Soon, the press conference started. Chief Bogo was on TV (Ashkii had told me about him the other day and how he was not so nice).

"Fourteen mammals went missing, and all fourteen mammals have been found by our newest recruit," he said into the microphones.

"Hopefully, she can tell us something," I said, "she was pretty nice on the train."

"Good thing to know that they are all in good health," Ashkii said.

Soon, Chief Bogo introduced Judy Hopps to the podium, and she came up.

"That's indeed who I met on the train," I said.

All the reporters tried to get their questions in. A beaver reporter asked if she knew anything about the savage mammals, including Emmitt.

"Are they all different species?" Hopps said, "Yes, yes they are."

When asked if there was a connection between all of them, she responded by noting that they were all predators.

"I mean they are," I said, "but who knows?"

She was asked once again, and said that she didn't know, but then suggested that it might be because of their "biology."

"What does she mean?" Ashkii asked.

She then suggested that since predators used to survive by attacking and eating prey species, that they might be reverting back to their ways.

"What the fuck?" I asked.

"I didn't think she was like this," Ashkii said.

"She's starting to sound like residents in Muskegon. Everyone was afraid that predators might one day return to their primitive ways. Even my parents believed that, despite being predators themselves."

"She must be on something," Corey said.

"This is not her," Ashkii said, "there must be something wrong. Shit like this doesn't happen."

"Wait, mom," Corey said, "Did you just say the s-word?"

"I guess I did," she said sadly, "With all of this going on, I might as well do it more. Even the two of you are allowed to say it."

"So I can actually say 'shit'?" Corey asked.

"Yes," Ashkii said, "and other words as well."

I knew that soon Corey would teach some of those words to Piper.

"Does she really believe in this?" Ashkii said, "I mean, maybe it was something ingrained into her by her parents, but I would think she would have let this go."

"Maybe," I said, "she will say something to us. I still know she invited us to see him in the hospital. Maybe there she will tell us."

"Hopefully," Ashkii said, "I haven't heard this belief too much in Zootopia. It was relatively common back where I grew up in Virginia."

Just like me she is also from another country. The Zoonited States is a large country that contains both Michigan and Virginia. Zootopia, however, is a city-state and it's own country. It's like Singapurr but even bigger.

"This seems suspicious," I said as I got off the couch and walked around the room, "I mean, one would not just go savage without some outside factor. One would not just suddenly evolve back into their primitive ways. Someone is definitely in control of this."

"A WIZARD!" Piper shouted.

"JUST LIKE VOLSEMORT!" Corey said, as he picked up a broom and rode it, "I'm Harry Otter!"

"Maybe not that," I said. My cousins were still too young to fully grasp the difference between fantasy and reality.

"Then what could it be?"

"Maybe this is all staged," I said, "Maybe someone is trying to make them look savage."

"Who the fuck could it be?" Ashkii asked.

"I have no fucking clue," I said.

"Neither do I," said Ashkii.

"But," I said, as my ears perked up, "maybe if this is all staged, there can be a way to stop the whole thing. We can get our Emmitt back."

"Oh Alister," Ashkii said as she went up to hug me, "you just got a light above your head."

"I mean, that's what happens in the movies."

"No, seriously."

I looked up. The light above my head did actually just turn on. It has been going on and off throughout the day.

"Hopefully," Ashkii said, "but we still don't know."

"I can keep up hope," I said, "but I'm still unsure."

There was no time for celebration just yet.