Disclaimer: Zootopia and all affiliated characters are property of Disney, and Lethal Weapon is property of Warner Brothers.

Chapter Five: An Explanation

Happytown

The meatwagon finally arrived on the street corner where two detectives were engaged in a gun battle. Several uniformed officers stood around the crime scene while others prepared to remove five dead cats from the rusty fire escape. The wolf on the other paw, found himself being sent to Zootopia General to remove the bullets that Nick gave him and was to be arrested immediately after he recovered.

"Haven't seen hardware like that in quite awhile," said Nick to Riggs, "only the really rich and powerful assholes seem to carry that kind of shit." "I've faced far worse than that back in LA," replied Riggs, "but I can be certain that this 'Dawn' character that he mentioned really wants to kill the shit out of you."

"I'm almost flattered," said Nick, "Dawn Smellwether hates me and fluff more than the entire predator population." "Wait," said Riggs, remembering the briefing from that morning, "isn't that the prisoner that the Chief wants us to bring in? What exactly did a tiny lamb do?"

Seven Years Ago

"So that's it," asked Judy as Bellwether circled the pit in the Natural History Museum with her and Nick, who was turning savage from the nighthowler dart, trapped inside, "prey fears predator and you stay in power?" "Pretty much," laughed Bellwether. "It won't work," said Judy. "Fear always works," said Bellwether, "and I'll dart every predator in Zootopia to keep it that way!"

Present Day

Nick remembered the first trip to the museum vividly. He could only imagine how terrible it would have been if they didn't think to switch the darts with blueberries. The bunny that would become the love of his life, he would've mauled her to death without a second thought. Then he would have certainly been euthanized. The highly political nature of the trial combined by Judy's best efforts to see good in even a massive piece of shit like Bellwether was ultimately what kept her from facing the chair.

"I hate her just as much," replied Nick to Riggs, "had her scheme gone right, my life would be so much worse." "Example," asked Riggs. "Example," Nick thought about it, "well they were seriously considering reinstating TAME Collars for about two months." "TAME collars," asked Riggs. "You know," replied Nick, "they'd force us to wear them around our necks and we'd get a nasty shock if we got too… what's the word I'm looking for?" "Angry," asked Riggs. "No it was more than just that," said Nick, "I believe if it was too much of any emotion you'd get zapped."

"Oh," replied Riggs, "I once wore a shock collar back in LA as part of a bet." "Why on God's earth would you do that," asked Nick disappointingly. "The straightjacket trick got old," replied Riggs. "What would you do with a straightjacket," asked Nick. "About a year ago," replied Riggs, "I dislocated my right shoulder. Eventually, I figured out how to pop it in and out of place at will." "You crazy sonofabitch," interrupted Nick. "I get that a lot," said Riggs, who continued, "it became a neat party trick back at the precinct where my buddies would take bets on how long it'd take me to get out. I can even make it out in under a minute." "Cool story," said Nick, "but that still doesn't explain why you or the other guy appeared in Zootopia just days after the number one criminal escapes prison."

Savannah Central

"Automatic weapons huh," said Judy into the car radio. "That's what it said on the report," replied Clawhouser, "it's entirely possible that Bellwether's escape, the discovery of a new species and your husband getting into a firefight like back in the day is a coincidence." "Remember what they said about coincidences back in the academy," inquired Judy. "They take a lot of planning," answered Clawhouser, "every part of me thinks that Bellwether is behind all this. The big question is how." "Just keep on her trail in cyberspace," said Judy, "I've got Murtaugh accompanying me on the ground." "Over and out," said Clawhouser, who then cut the transmission.

"So this Bellwether character's a big deal," said Murtaugh, trying to start a conversation. "Most evil mammal I've ever had the misfortune of meeting," said Judy, "she held this city hostage with fear for two months, turning ninety percent against ten. Some innocent predators were drugged against their will," she continued, "then they attacked some innocent prey mammals. What happened next were some of the worst race riots this city has ever seen."

"So she got caught," said Murtaugh, "but now she's out. What can she possibly do now that everyone knows who she really is." "Dawn never came across as a fighter," said Judy, "but she's an expert at getting other people to do her dirty work for her. And some of the mammals she associated with before I busted her happened to be cold blooded killers working for a mass-murderer that hated all predators. Now that she's back out," Judy thought deeply, "with all the mammals she can hurt, the lives she can end, I'm thinking that maybe if Nick and I died back there and she got the death penalty, this never would've happen."
"Don't ever think like that," said Murtaugh, "don't even consider wishing death on yourself. You always have a chance to get your life back if you're still breathing. But if you're like how Riggs used to be, psychotic, depressed and gave no fucks about his own safety, then you're a danger to yourself and others."

That was deep for Judy, who hadn't faced a truly life threatening situation in awhile. It's been a few years since her last tussle with death when her terrorist brother almost fatally beat her before nuking the city. She remembered Nick, the sly fox with a silver tongue that conned her out of twenty bucks when they first met, only to be stuck together for another forty-eight hours, eventually falling in love many months later while working an extremely dangerous case. If they didn't switch the darts and Nick killed her, she wouldn't have him, her adopted son Gabriel, or her baby boy Junior.

"Damn," muttered Judy, who was never big on swearing, "you're right. I guess my life is better than I let on." "Take it from a guy that nearly got blown up on his own toilet," said Murtaugh. "That happened to you too?"

Author's Note: So I've been busy these past couple days. I wanted to stay sort of on schedule though and get this done. I may add more to this chapter tomorrow or I'll just get a new one. Until then, enjoy the story and I'd really like to hear the thoughts of my readers.