Credit

* All Zootopia characters in this chapter belong to Disney

* Sonic, Tailsko, and the mentioned of Ivo Robotnik in this chapter belong to SEGA/Sonic Team

* The mentioned of the small Thoroughbred character belong to me, serves their purpose for this story

The full title is "The Fastest Thing Alive, Always Late" due to the characteristic limits in the Chapter Selection.

I simpered as I watched Judy cover her eyes with her paws. She laughed at my kissing joke. Her muzzle became soaked as she let her tears run down her white fur. I was thinking that she really took 'let it go' too literally… nah, maybe it's just me. We reached the bathroom - and the guest room - once again, but this time, we turned to the guest room and went into that room. I shut the door behind me while Judy went to the bed made for a rabbit and sat there. I looked at the side table, saw a box of tissues, and pulled a couple tissues out. I gave one of the tissues to her so she could dry her muzzle. Uh, I passed two more to her. I realized that she was sitting at the back of the mattress rather than close to the side table or pillow. I sat in middle next to her and glared at her.

"So, are you going to earn the title; 'Waterfall Bunny'?" I inquired, hoping to get her talk.

She snorted, throwing one of the balled tissues at me, which bounced off my shoulder. She responded, "Really funny, Sonic. I haven't laughed this much in a long time."

"Ah, is that because of Nick's snarky attitude is outdated since he failed to order better batteries, like Dicyemida Ultra Alkaline AAAA?" I questioned, flinging my left paw in the air.

She turned her head to me, playfully scowling at me. She shook her head with a light chuckle, "We are not what you are thinking. But you're right, he's little too predictable to be funny anymore. I will let him know about his attitude and have him control in the future."

"Good to know," I nodded, dropping my paw onto my lap.

I turned my head to her as she pawed me the balled, wet tissues. I tossed them into the trashcan beside the side table. I felt the damp on the tips of my digits from the tissues, so I wiped them on my clothes to dry them. I felt the atmosphere changing.

She spoke with a concentrated tone, "So… are you two the only members on the team hunting Robotnik down?"

"Nah," I shook my head, disagreeing with her question as I gained information, "The only survivors. We had a team. And your guess is as good as mine, Robotnik is crueler than ~Censored~. He went as far as to get my friends robotized, with exception of Tailsko, then dismantled them into pieces."

I heard her gasp then she spoke, "I am sorry… for what happened to your friends."

The weight beside me got lighter then she sat on my lap, sideways. Her left paw nearly hit my muzzle as she wrapped her left arm around my neck. I lifted my right arm to hold her up while her left side rested on me. Our noses bumped and rubbed each other as we embraced each other.

"Thank you. Though that was several years ago. Tailsko and I relied on each other to survive," I said, adding the reason I survived the worst.

I practically felt her curling her mouth into frown against my muzzle as she spoke, "That's one more reason to arrest Robotnik as soon as possible. And I can't believe that I am taking a 'running break' tonight."

"Yes, indeed. You can't perfect your skill in one day. But the sooner we catch him, the better. So, don't panic and try to hurry your acquisition of knowledge," I said, simpering.

She pulled her head from my muzzle and scoffed, "Says the one running around looking for Robotnik."

"Hey, I didn't know that you would fall into the same pool that I was… uh, swimming in," I said, defending myself.

I blinked when I felt her left arm shifting position, so her forearm was resting on my shoulders. I turned my head to her and our eyes met. We stared at each other for few seconds then she closed her eyes and exhaled lightly.

"You're right. I haven't grasped it well…" Judy admitted, resting her right paw on my chest.

I simpered and scratched her back lightly, getting her attention back to me, "Don't worry, Judy. You will get it right as rain. While it took Tailsko a month to grasp the speed warp, you got a hold on the basic of it in only an hour or two."

"… Yeah, thank you for the compliment that I don't need," she grimaced, resting on my chest and right shoulder.

I realized that she had exhausted her willpower to stay awake - that's something that impressed me. But sooner or later, she would have to rest in order to improve her newfound speed warp power. I felt her paw leave my chest and caress my muzzle. Theeeeeeeen she's out. Her eyes closed while the back of her paw rested on my chest. I suddenly held her closely. It had been a long time since I felt another mammal's physical contact, beside that with Tailsko. I got that she went out of the way to comfort me by listening to my distracting past and offering me her hospitality. For a minute, I could sense her comfort and acceptance. But I couldn't stay still any longer so I loosened the embrace and gently laid Judy onto the bed. Once my legs slid from the underneath of hers, she rolled over to her left side, away from the door.

"Hm," I sighed, turning to the door and opening it to leave the guest room.

I turned to the door and closed it gently, so I wouldn't startle Judy, then I jogged to the living room. I peeked in the living room and saw the foxes cuddling in the middle. I reflected on Judy's words and considered that she was right about letting them be for now. I turned around and worked my way back to the guest room. I looked to my right and found an alternative exit, which I used to leave the building. After ten seconds of a quick jog at warp speed, I was back at Precinct One, sliding past the radio dispatcher undetected. In two seconds, I was in the chief's office and Chief Bogo jumped at my sudden appearance.

"Gee, Hedgehog. Thought I told you to scram," the cape buffalo grunted once he straightened up.

I nodded, walking to his desk, "Indeed, you did. But I would like to know where Judy's residence is. That's all."

"Ah, let me see," he looked down at his desk, pulling out a drawer. He brought File H up and scanned through it then responded, "Her address is 'Grand Pangolin Arms 12345 Prey Street Rd'. Her door number is 307 by the way."

I stood a few paws away from his desk, nodding as I memorized the address, "Hmm… Yup, thank you. And I am now 'scramming' out of here as you requested."

I turned to the door and left the office before the chief could lift his digit to me. Once I got out of Precinct One, I ran toward the address to make sure. Once I arrived at the address, I stopped on the street across from the apartment. I glared up to the building and considered that this building was, indeed, Judy's residence. Once with my mind settled, I turned to the street and started my daily 'nerve-relieving' exercise.

~Afternoon Skipped~

After twelfth lap around the center of Zootopia, which i practiced parkour, with zip, roll, and hard stop, I ran my way back to Nick's home and got in using the alternate entrance. I was about to open the door to the guest room when I heard my name called. I turned toward the sound and sped up. The foxes were now in the kitchen, making vegetarian meals.

"Can you please get Carrots ready for dinner?" Nick inquired. I nodded yes.

I ran back to the guest room and opened the door for real this time. I laid my eyes on the bed, I saw Judy remained in the same position that I left her. I moved to her and gentle shook her, waking her up.

"Dinner's ready, Judy. And you sure have a knack of missing the fun," I said once I saw her purple eyes.

I saw an energetic bunny in front of me - I was right to let her rest. She got off the bed. She responded, "Funny. I didn't think you were the type to sit still."

"Touché," I said with a hint of sarcasm as we walked back to the living room.

We sat on the couch that we had occupied earlier. Dinner was served immediately. I glanced at the first bunny cop as I heard Nick talking but I ignored him. I saw that her cup of tea had finally served its purpose, though it was now cold. We ate dinner together for the next fifteen minutes. We made idle chat during the meal, saying nothing special. With the plates completely cleaned, I simpered as I got up.

"Thank you for your hospitality, but I think that it's time for Judy to get back home. And Tailsko, you can rest here. One girl to take care at a time, ya'know?" I said, helping Judy back on her hind-paws.

"You got it," Tailsko nodded.

I walked with Judy, leaving Nick's home. Once we were outside, I looked at Judy, recalling her words from lunchtime. Once her eyes were on me, I offered her a simper. She simpered back then moved to me and wrapped her arms around my neck. I took that she accepted my offer of a ride back to her residence.

"Wait… have you got my apartment address?" she inquired, stopping me in middle of deciding which way to hold her.

My paws were on her curves as I nodded. I felt her body turning to my left, allowing me to pull her legs onto my right arm. I responded, "Yeah, I asked the Chief for your address while you slept like Sleeping Beauty. I also confirmed the building with my own eyes."

"Good, let's get that apartment as soon as possible," she said, leaning her face onto my neck and - if I could believe - closing her eyes.

I felt her arms firmly around my neck, her knees folded on my forearm, and her body became stiffer. That confirmed to me that she was ready for the next burst of speed. As I entered Speed Warp, I spun my hind-paws and my sight suddenly blurred as I ran back to her residence. I slipped through the lobby and up two sets of stairs to the third floor. Once I exited the stairway, I got out of Speed Warp. I slowed down, focusing on each door as I moved past them. I was searching for number '307'. When I reached the seventh door, it was, indeed, the room where Judy resided. I stood beside that door and let Judy's legs slide off my forearm. As soon as her legs left my arm, her muzzle pulled from my neck and she left my frame and proceeded to unlock the door. She entered the room while I waited on the spot where I had stopped. The door shut after she stepped into the room. After a long time with Tailsko, I knew to give the girls their private time to change their clothes. I learned that what she wore was called 'pajamas' later on.

"You can come in now," she called out, letting me know that she finished changing her clothes.

I reached for the doorknob, turned it, and opened the door. I walked in the room and shut the door behind me. She wore a navy-blue t-shirt and navy-blue sweatpants, which were her night clothes. I could see that they referred to her dream job - being a cop. She was sitting on her bed as I walked to her. I sat on it beside her knees.

"Thank you for the ride. I needed that, despite my earlier attitude," she admitted, putting her paws on her lap.

I simpered, "No problem. And if you worry about Speed Warp while you're sleep - just give it a rest… just… just tell that pal to take a nap somewhere else."

"Acknowledged, but what if I entered Speed Warp… indirectly, you know?" she nodded, throwing out the next question almost immediately.

I tilted my head, "Then you will be stuck there until either Tailsko or I enter Speed Warp and get you out. However, being in Speed Warp can exhaust you fast."

"Got it. Really. I appreciated your concern. I will do my best to not get trapped in Speed Warp. … Good night," the bunny replied, wishing me a good night.

"Good night," I said, getting off the bed and starting walk out of the room, I continued, "I will be on the roof, just in case I need to get you out."

"Yeah, you're welcome to take refuge up there," she said, her voice seemed far away.

I smiled as I pulled the door open, left the room, and closed the door behind me. I dashed to the roof and attempted to rest there for the night.

~Night Skipped~

I was 7 AM in the morning, I decided to go check on Judy. I got out of my comfortable position and slipped back inside the building. As I reached for Judy's door, she opened it and walked out in her civilian clothes.

"Ah, right on time. I would like to have a little jog with you. Going to Snarlbuck?" she said, glad that I was present.

I nodded, watching her close and lock the door. We turned to the stairs and worked our way down to the first floor. Her landlady startled at my presence, flabbergasted at Judy as we passed out of the building.

Once we got to the street, she spoke, "I think I could get Speed Warp under the control now. That can help me not have to wait for the bus to get there."

"Certainly. I will follow," I nodded, agreeing to her morning plan.

We entered Speed Warp, which made everything surrounding us seem to move at a quarter of its regular speed, even others reactions. I allowed her to take the lead as we started to jog toward the 'Snarlbuck' building.

"Here we are," she said as we approached the cafe.

We stopped on the street outside the 'Snarlbuck' cafe and looked around a little bit. After a little bit, I noticed Judy's anxious eyes glancing over the place and a frown on her muzzle. I picked up that she didn't have full control of her Speed Warp yet. I reached her shoulder and she turned to me with a worried gaze.

"Hey," I said, holding her shoulders as we faced each other, "Take your mind off the speed. Relax. And you will be out of it."

She huffed and puffed lightly as we slowly exited from Speed Warp. I simpered then let her shoulders go. We went into the cafe to get our morning meals. I grimaced when I saw her plate - an extra large salad that was meant for a cow. We spent five minutes eating breakfast after she paid for the meals. It was the first time I was with someone other than the vixen long since my friends were robotized, I had never see a mammalian devour a meal so fast, even with the plate made for a cow. With our plates cleaned, we went back on the street. Judy wanted to try Speed Warp again with me coaching her. Just to be safe I continued to remind her to control her breathing. We ran toward Precinct One. Along the way, I had a question in my mind that had bothered me the whole night.

"By the way, what were those dresses you wore last night, when I warned you how to deal with Speed Warp?" I inquired.

I could almost hear the gears in her head spinning for a couple seconds before she answered, "Those are pajamas. Night clothes. I am surprised that you didn't know what they are."

"I lived during the war, ya'know?" I mumbled, reminding her of the hard life I had lived.

She peeked over her shoulder, clearly picking up my words with her ears, "I see. Robotnik must be at fault for making your life rough."

"Yep," I nodded, hoping that her attention would return to the street.

We arrived at the entrance of Precinct One and we got out of Speed Warp, which made the zootopians seem to move at a normal pace again. I watched her exchange 'good mornings' with the radio dispatcher as she walked to the locker room. I could see that she could hold her Speed Warp in for now. I jogged my way to the private meeting room as I had a feeling that we had to skip greeting the chief this morning.

"Good morning," I said, entering the meeting room. Tailsko had entered the room earlier - it's her bad habit of get anything ready as early as possible.

She simpered, sitting on her seat, "Good morning!"

"I take it that you accepted Nick as your mate, eh?" I inquired, sitting on the chair next to hers.

She turned her snout to the table, considered, "… Yeah. But I am not sure if he's a keeper this time around."

I laid my palm on her shoulder, helping her ease her nerves.

"Hey… he survived the worst, didn't he? I think that he's a keeper this time around," I said.

I could see her muzzle producing a small smile. I withdrew my paw from her shoulder and we sat in the meeting room for a few minutes of silence. I had thought about it, Judy had impressed me when facing the culprits. It didn't let her down that easily. I blinked when I heard Judy and Nick walk into the meeting room and take their seats on the other side of the table that we occupied.

"So, let's get back to the case. Nick, you mentioned something in your head during lunch yesterday. And you also said that it's related to this case… so, let's get it out of your head and use it for the case, if you please," Tailsko said, reminding Nick of what happened during his 'one-minute power nap'.

"Ah, yes. Alright," Nick said, getting started on the case as he closed his eyes, "It's about you girls… well, we were all in the battle, but mainly, it's me, along with you…

"At the start, it was us battling against 'Ro-butt-nik' all together. It seemed like a grand ending, but… the true end wasn't right there. ~Censored~ will be robotized as i have picked up his head, and only his head. After that battle, Tailsko and I have gotten settled together. However, Tailsko was robotized shortly after that… And Carrots, from what I can see, went through various changes, included becoming a robot herself."

I glared at Judy, whose produced a grimace at Nick's last sentence. I could tell that it was bad news, but I had a feeling that it wasn't the case.

Nick finished his long-winded talk; "Once I was past there, Tailsko and I have a future together, where we were surrounding with a sea of our kits… and grandkits. And that's where I was forced to wake up."

I immediately got in Speed Warp, checking on the expressions of the ladies. Judy had her grimace becoming a creepy expression while Tailsko's had gone pale. I glanced at Nick's face for a split-second, seeing that his eyes were still closed. I made up my mind and got out of Speed Warp.

"Ladies, I know that of what Nick saw in his dream is creeping you out, but we have to close this case by finding Robotnik and ~Censored~ as soon as possible. Ok?" I pointed out, clearing out the oncoming conflicts.

The fox cop nodded in agreement. The rabbit cop led and spoke, "Alright. I will go with Tailsko here while you boys have fun on the ground."

Tailsko and I nodded in agreement with the idea of switching the partners. Tailsko pawed me the file that she received from Chief Bogo. Oh, talking about being presented early. We entered Speed Warp as our heads were close enough that our speech was for our ears only.

"Told ya, he's a keeper," I grinned.

She gave me a daring smile then she backed out of Speed Warp. I got off my chair and sped to the chief's office. In two seconds, I was in the office, startling the cape buffalo. I pawed him the file before a word rolled off his tongue and I left the office in record time. By the time I reached the hall where I expected to rejoin my friends, I found nothing. I blinked as I realized that the time around me had stopped. The mammalians and anything they carried with them were as if the pause button on a remote had been pushed. That was rather ironic that my advice to Judy last night had bit me on my tail. I told Judy to be careful when she crossed into Speed Warp in her sleep and here I was - trapped inside Speed Warp where no one could get through at all.

"Hmm," I considered what to do, crossing my arms and arching my eyebrows.

I unwound my arms, dashed back to the meeting room, and learned that they hadn't left the room. I dashed out of Precinct One using the back exist and ran up the wall to the roof. For five minutes of the time freeze, I dashed all over the roof tracing various designs, like a five-pointed star, a swirling line, an oval, and lastly, the shape of the bunny head. Each time I finished an image with my hind-paws, I looked at the birds flying in the sky. They were almost unmoved in their location. By the time I finished the bunny head, the birds had moved to my right, confirming that I was out of the Speed Warp lockdown. I stood tall and took a several deep breathes so I could control Speed Warp once again. I opened my eyes, feeling relaxed for the first time today. I ran toward the back of the building and slipped down to the ground using the rain drain. I entered the building and went to rejoin my friends. They were in the hall where I expected them to be. I saw that the foxes wrapped each other in a one-armed embrace. We walked out of the building by the front entrance. Once we were quite a distance from Precinct One, Tailsko playfully shoved Nick away from her, which startled me and drew my attention to her with a questioning expression.

"Oh, you sly jester, you," the kitsune said, trying her best to be scared of him.

I knew that kind of trick she pulled on him was the same as she had done to me whenever she felt 'hungry'. I shook my head slowly. With a quick glance at the red fox, he shrugged with a sly smile while Tailsko giggled in her palms. I walked to Nick, taking Judy's suggestion I partner with him for today. Judy left us, guiding my 'sister' away.

"You males go and do your jobs, please," the first bunny cop reminded us. Nick and I turned from the girls and jogged down the street.

"I preferred to talk and ask around rather than riding on you," he explained, giving the reason why he jogged instead of straddling on my back.

I grinned, "That's fine - I needed a break from that. It's nice to not be a taxi cab, twenty-four slash seven."

"Ah, that's good to know" he replied.

As the morning rolled by, Nick stopped at each zootopian within the sector and asked them if they had seen the main suspects. I saw all of them shaking their heads. I dashed all over the sector, searching for the suspects. Empty-pawed. Bah! Once we cleared a sector, we moved to next sector and repeated the same action. Since we decided to work separately, it took us fifteen to twenty minutes to clear each sector. And by the time we covered the third sector, I noticed that Nick was thirsty, so I left him to look for a bottle of water. In less than a minute of searching, I found a bunch of plastic bottle of water with the price that was… Free? Ah well, I grabbed one of them and dashed back to Nick.

"Here you go," I said, halting in front of him. I felt him shuddering when I did that.

He took the bottle from me, glaring at it then drinking it. He discarded the plastic bottle into the nearby recycle bin. He mumbled, "Thank you."

"No problem," I grinned, leaving his side to continue searching.

We kept doing that for two more sets of three sectors but were still empty-pawed and it felt harder and harder. I had to go out of the way to grab two more plastic bottles of water for Nick to stay hydrated. It took at least two and a half hour, due to my horrible knowledge of mathematic. I was now worried about Nick's condition.

"Do you realize how far we are from the center of Zootopia?" I reminded.

He huffed and puffed heavily, looking at the tower that marked the center of Zootopia. I focused on that tower. I blinked as I saw a black dot no bigger than Judy's 'claw' moving from the top of that building toward the ground through the air. I suspected that this dot was Judy Hopps. I started to ran back to the center of Zootopia as fast as possible. I entered Speed Warp and sped through traffic. As I approached the tunnel, I noticed that the dot was falling in the same speed as I was. That demonstrated that she was currently in Speed Warp. I entered the tunnel, ran up to the ceiling that made vehicles blur above my head, doing my best to avoid the traffic that obstructed my path. That lasted a second and I was outside again, turning myself upside down and landed on my spinning hind-paws. When the buses were in the way, I had to jump over them like they were fences. I went around some buildings along the way. By the time I was right next to the tower, I saw that she was at least ten paws above the empty road.

"Hmph," I grunted.

The muscles of my abdomen and legs were crying out and burning as I pushed past my limit. She was at least four running shoes above the road, falling head first. I stretched my good paw to reach the first rabbit cop. But just as I was about to catch her, the tip of her folding ears touched the surface of the road. With a small boost I jumped forward; I caught Judy in my arms and rolled to prevent our bodies from being a very disturbed mess. My hind-paws hit the road after the third roll and I held her in my arms, bride-style. I huffed as I quickly checked her for injuries. It appeared that my attempt to prevent from harm was in a vain. The damage was done on her head - a simple scratch on top of her scalp. Lucky that her ears were still attached. I grimaced as i watched the blood soak the gray fur of her scalp. I looked around the place, searching for a hospital. I got out of Speed Warp and approached one of the zootopians.

"Hospital? Where is the prey hospital?" I inquired.

The African lion pointed in the direction of the hospital to his left. I looked at my right and started spinning my hind-paws on the spot. I built a cloud of dust behind me. I spoke, "Thank you."

I didn't get a chance to hear his response as I dashed toward the selected hospital, entering Speed Warp along the way. I arrived at the 'Otter Medical Hospital' building and entered through the front doors. After I got out of Speed Warp, I flagged the nurse down. She saw the blood and went to prepare a gurney. I took it that she knew how bad the injury was. I jogged toward the door where she had disappeared, cut the gap between me and the nurse. She came back with a couple of doctors and the gurney. When the gurney was in front of me, I laid Judy on it.

"Nurse… please, do the best you can to stabilize her bleeding," I told the nurse with a solemn tone.

She nodded, acknowledging how serious it was. After all, I knew that Judy Hopps was one of several celebrities in Zootopia, being the mammalian who cracked the biggest case in history. In one second, I turned to the entrance and in the next I was outdoors, beginning my hunt for the emerald.