Heyo, Last here

This chapter is coming up Judy as we get to know Officer Furle a bit better

Plot is starting to roll

Chapter 3

Judy left the bull pen and jogged towards the shared offices. Each of the ZPD officers had their own desks situated in several shared rooms. The desks, of course, were designed for animals up to the size of elephants so Judy and Nick shared a desk. As she was late out of briefing the room was already empty as the other officers had gone to take care of their assignments for the day.

Judy hopped up onto the chair which she would normally share with Nick.

Not thinking about that

She busied herself with sorting the small amount of paperwork on the desk, a few reports she and Nick had finished but hadn't handed in yet. Thankfully everything there was completed and just needed filing away in the suitable pigeon-holes. Which meant that she didn't spend long enough in the office to really feel the absence of her partner.

Come on Hopps she thought You can catch up with Nick after your shift finishes and get the insider scoop then.

Perking herself up, Judy tidied the desk one more time before leaving the now empty office. Now that the paperwork was out of the way she needed to go find Clawhauser. Officers always carried a tranc gun with them at all times, a cop was never really off duty, only time they didn't was when they were on suspension. Other than that, all Judy needed to do was grab the keys.

Oh, and a jacket Judy kept forgetting to wrap up warm whenever she went to Tundratown, probably because she mainly only travelled there to see Fru Fru and Mr. Big I wonder if Officer Furle has been issued with winter gear yet.

Judy thought for a moment before nodding to herself and heading on a slight detour to the building's quarter master. She was very motherly looking elephant called Mrs. Ivory, who cared very deeply about all her officers. Not that the giant mammal should be underestimated, oh no, she was an ex-SWAT captain. Add to that the fact that the storerooms she looked after also contained the department armoury, and you find that the quarter master's territory was probably the safest part of headquarters. Judy knew for a fact that there was always at least two tranc guns and a live fire rifle within easy reach below the counter.

Mrs. Ivory was far too caring of her officers to care about the fact that Judy was a rabbit and had been one of her staunchest supporters from the beginning despite their little contact.

"Hi Mrs. Ivory" said Judy walking up to the free counter as the elephant leant forwards and broke out into a warm smile "I need a winter jacket, and could you get me one for a female wolf as well, I don't know if the new officer has visited you yet"

"No she hasn't been by yet Judy dear, I'll be right back" the elephant stood up and walked down the aisles of shelving visible behind her that contained all kinds of equipment. Her trunk allowed her to reach equipment at all heights and she very quickly returned with two different sized winter jackets "Here you are, do you need one for your partner too? I haven't seen him today"

"Nick isn't in today, he has some family issues to deal with"

"Oh dear" gasped Mrs. Ivory, her motherly instincts kicking in "Do you know what's wrong?"

"N,No I don't" said Judy slightly faltering, her ears drooping. But they perked right back "but I'm sure I'll find out later"

"Of course you will Judy dear" said the elephant smiling warmly "I don't think I've ever seen the two of you apart, with a friendship like that of course he'll tell you about it once it's all sorted out"

Judy felt a burst of warmth at that and felt a lot happier. She grabbed the jackets from the counter, her own was fine but the one for Officer Furle covered her almost completely. With a muffled "Thank you" to Mrs. Ivory Judy staggered towards the dispatcher desk where she would find Clawhauser.

Thankfully the quarter master's counter was located only one corridor away from the main auditorium so Judy didn't have to struggle for too long. Clawhauser watched the walking pile of jackets approach his desk in a rather wobbly path and raised an eyebrow. Only when the jackets tumbled to the floor to reveal Judy did he realise what was going on and let out a little chuckle.

"Do not push your luck Benjy"

Something about Judy's tone of voice made the overweight cheetah sit bolt upright in his chair and purse his lips in silence.

"I still haven't forgiven you for earlier, it's messed up my whole morning, you can forget about me buying you those donuts now"

Clawhauser seemed to sag at the thought of not getting those donuts when he ran through what Judy had just said in his head. Judy was glaring at the big cat but her expression faltered when she saw the same smirk from this morning appear on his face as Clawhauser leaned towards her.

"And just how was your morning messed up, Officer Hopps?" asked the cheetah with a twinkle in his eye.

Judy's eye twitched as a blush started to run up her ears, hurriedly she turned her back on Clawhauser and stood there, arms crossed with her left foot thumping on the tiles. And that was how Officer Furle found them, one rather distressed looking rabbit with scarlet ears and a portly cheetah with a twinkle in his eyes.

"Ah, Officer Furle" said Judy going back to her normal self at the sight of the wolf "I wasn't sure if you'd been equipped properly yet so I grabbed you a winter jacket, Tundratown shouldn't be underestimated"

Officer Furle stared at the bunny for a few moments before shaking her head slightly and accepting the jacket with a small smile.

"Please just call me Lunette" said Officer Furle with a voice that brought to mind icy water rushing through a green and white forest "thank you, not many Officers are that thoughtful back where I come from"

"What a lovely name" exclaimed Clawhauser with his usual enthusiastic squeal "where are you from Lunette?"

"This is Benjamin Clawhauser, receptionist, secretary, dispatcher…" Judy frowned as she looked at the cheetah "What exactly is your job Benjy?"

The cheetah just waved Judy's introduction and question aside as he waited for Lunette to answer.

"I transferred here from Los Antleres" said Lunette softly at which Clawhauser's face fell abruptly.

"B,but doesn't that city have a huge problem with…" Judy asked quietly.

"Police corruption and organised crime?" said Lunette with a sigh "yes, yes it does. Despite having to get used to a police chief who actually cares about his city, I am very glad that Zootopia is home now instead"

"Well we're very happy to have you here Lunette" said Clawhauser returning to his normal cheery self "especially the other wolves on the force" Clawhauser winked at her.

"Well you can let them know I'm taken" said Lunette with a small frown, she had certainly noticed the attention she had received in the bull pen this morning.

Judy noticed the squeal of joy that was building up inside Clawhauser and grabbed Lunette by the arm and marched her towards the door before their ears could be shattered. Clawhauser noticed and internalised his happiness.

Oh you are telling me all about this later miss Furle he thought as he reached under his desk for the keys that he knew Judy had come for and now forgotten "Judy" he said loudly as he tossed the keys in her direction.

Officer Furle looked back at the noise in time to see something shiny and metallic fly at them. Her hackles rose as she prepared to dive out the way when Judy jumped lightly into the air and grabbed the keys out of the air without looking. Lunette realised what had happened and felt slightly embarrassed, this wasn't Los Antleres anymore. She also looked down at the little rabbit next to her with more respect, Judy's action seemed small but the skills and reactions needed were no joke.

Watching the bunny in front of her Lunette realised that there was probably a good reason for the talk Chief Bogo had given her. She followed Judy to the police cruiser they were using, modified so that Officer Hopps could drive it of course.

Judy took a deep breath as she sat in the driver's seat, sure having someone else sitting next to her was helping but she knew deep down that it wasn't Nick.

"Are you okay Officer Hopps" asked Lunette slightly concerned.

"If I'm calling you Lunette then you are calling me Judy" said the grey doe slightly exasperatedly "you may have noticed that my partner is not present today, I, I guess I just miss the dumb fox"

"Fox?" Lunette stiffened slightly in surprise.

"Yes, Nick Wilde, first fox police officer in Zootopia" said Judy slightly icily as she gripped the steering wheel harder "is there a problem with that?"

Judy looked over to see a very complicated expression on Lunette's face, Judy relaxed slightly, it seemed there was more than just prejudice behind the wolf's reaction.

"No, I don't have any problems" said Lunette as Judy started the engine and the cruiser pulled out of the station "I apologise for whatever impression I gave. Los Antleres may be the biggest pile of crap to live in but almost because of that there isn't really any discrimination based on species, or pred/prey. I guess that's why the Night-howler case shocked me so much. I have nothing against him for being a fox, nor feel there is anything wrong with him being friends with a rabbit."

Judy felt herself warm up to the wolf as she listened to her tales from another city, one a lot worse than Zootopia.

"I'm not even surprised that he's a cop" said Lunette softly "there are quite a few fox cops back in Los Antleres, often in positions of power. It's just… I've never seen one that wasn't involved in police corruption" Lunette hurriedly raised her paws as she saw Judy's face growing stormy again "I,I'm not holding it against him, really, this is Zootopia not Los Antleres. It's just a little… hard for me to forget my past experiences"

Having heard her reasons Judy felt like a weight had risen from her. She had a good impression of the wolf so far and she didn't doubt that she was a good cop or Chief Bogo wouldn't have accepted her transfer.

"Don't worry about it" said Judy focussing on the traffic "I'm not saying Nick isn't an asshole sometimes but… he's my best friend and I trust him with my life, so just give him a chance"

"You two seem very close" said Lunette with a gentle smile.

"Y,yeah I guess we are" said Judy very quietly almost sinking into her seat "What about you?" she asked to divert her attention "You told Clawhauser you were taken, that was a bad idea, he will get the whole story out of you eventually"

Judy's expression fell as she saw the sadness on Lunette's face "I'm sorry, I didn't… you don't need to talk about it"

"It's okay Judy" said Lunette sadly rubbing her eyes "I'll tell you at some point, it's just… very… complicated. So, tell me about our assignment today?"

"Well you see…" Judy started retelling the Night-howler case from when she saved Fru Fru in Little Rodentia, to discovering that she was Mr. Big's daughter, to being made Godmother of Fru Fru's baby "and now Mr. Big has essentially declared me part of his family"

Lunette had been following this tall tale in amazement as she listened to Judy's adventures with Nick. She couldn't help bursting into giggles "So, the great Judy Hopps actually turns out to be part of the mafia"

Judy's ears started to burn up again "What do you mean the great Judy Hopps?" she asked curiously.

"Oh come on Judy, news travels, especially something like the Night-howlers, they don't just grow near Zootopia you know" said Lunette calming down a bit "the case was spread as far as possible as was the antidote just in case anything happened in other cities"

"You… you mean?" asked Judy very quietly.

"Oh yeah, you are known in just about every city in the country" grinned Lunette as Judy seemed to steam next to her "of course some don't believe a rabbit could have done it and that it's all a publicity stunt, but just as many know all about the heroic Judy Hopps" Lunette sighed slightly "Los Antleres was one where they didn't believe it, I'd like to apologise for how I thought about you at first. Good thing I got to meet you huh"

Judy hated all the media attention she could get even now and the thought of more cities was a bit much for the little bunny. She tried her best to shove her discomfort to the back of her head as they crossed the border into Tundratown and suddenly they were in a snow flurry.

Lunette's ears perked up as she excitedly looked out the window taking in the sights. Judy noticed this and wondered what it was that made her a little confused.

Ah I see she thought grinning I guess this is how Nick felt when everything seemed so new and exciting to me. It still is exciting for me...

If Nick's there…

Lunette looked over in concern as the grey doe next to her smacked her head into the steering wheel.

"I'm fine" groaned Judy waving a paw at Lunette "I'm just not happy with Clawhauser right now" she blushed slightly at Lunette's quizzical expression "anyway, have you never seen an arctic district like this before?"

"Not really" said Lunette excitedly looking back out the window again "there aren't many cities as advanced in climate control as Zootopia, the closest you can find in Los Antleres are indoor snow domes for certain mammals to cool off in. I grew up in the city so I've never seen snow quite like… this"

The childish sense of joy coming off Lunette was rather infectious and Judy could feel her own mood improving drastically. The two of them moved away from these rather serious topics and just chatted to get to know each other a bit better. Judy found that Lunette was delightful company, gentle, filled with a sense a justice like her own, with a sense of humour that fit with Judy very well. Lunette on the other hand discovered just who the real Officer Judy Hopps was as a person. The two of them were fast becoming firm friends as Judy pulled up the car outside the looming walls of a large mansion.

"Now I need to go over a few things before we go in" said Judy very seriously as the two of them put on their winter jackets. Lunette could hear Judy's tone of voice and listened carefully "Do not say anything if you can help it while we are dealing with Mr. Big. If you do remember to be very polite and respectful. Stay close to me, no wandering or touching anything. If we get some time with Fru Fru then you can relax but otherwise… please just be careful okay"

Lunette felt herself warm a bit despite the cold at the rabbit's words, she could tell Judy did consider her a friend from the concern. Lunette nodded and the two of them exited the car into the surging snow and wind. Lunette gasped at the sudden cold and pulled her hood tighter around her head. Luckily it was bright and sunny despite the snow storm so Lunette could still find Judy's silhouette and follow her into the mansion grounds.

As they approached the impressively sized mansion Lunette could make two large shadows guarding the doors. As they approached they could be seen to be two polar bears standing as if the snow didn't exist. Lunette felt rather nervous as they got closer but before anyone could say anything the two bears opened the door and let them straight in.

What on earth? wondered Lunette as they entered a large, beautifully decorated and most of all warm entrance hall ah, I see, an animal that small wearing ZPD gear could only have been Judy. I guess she really is considered family here.

A badger dressed in a smart butler's outfit who Judy greeted as Wesley politely took their coats away to be dried. Other than this the two police officers didn't meet any other mammals as Judy led the way deeper into the mansion. Something in the building was gradually eating at Lunette's nerves but she couldn't figure out what it was. Eventually Judy stopped in front of a large pair of double doors, faint voices could be heard from the other side. Judy knocked on the door and stepped back while Lunette stepped a little closer behind her, Judy looked back and gave her a comforting smile that made the wolf relax a little bit.

The voices on the other side of the door stopped and movement could be heard. The door in front of them opened a crack and a hulking polar bear in a black suit over a black turtle neck loomed over them.

"Hi Koslov" greeted Judy warmly "Is Mr. Big available?"

Lunette was frozen in place, this was the scariest looking bear she'd ever seen, and she'd seen quite a few in Los Antleres. The bear's face didn't change as he saw Judy but his eyes warmed slightly and the pressure Lunette could feel dropped considerably. Koslov closed the door for a moment and more quiet voices could be heard. The next time he opened the door Koslov stepped to the side and gestured for them to enter.

Judy happily walked inside with a bounce in her step while Lunette hurriedly stuck to Judy's back like glue. Inside was a dim room with wood panelling around the walls with tasteful paintings hung. Sat in his chair on top of the gorgeous hardwood desk in the middle of the room, with Koslov stood guard behind him, was Mr. Big.

The arctic shrew's face melted into a smile as soon as he saw Judy, gesturing for her to come closer. Judy motioned for Lunette to stay still and approached the mob boss. She kissed him on both cheeks as was customary before he let her step back to get a better look.

"Mio Bambino, Judy, it is wonderful to see you again my child" said the mafia leader kindly "what brings you to my humble abode while on duty? And who is your friend" the shrew gestured at Lunette.

"It's good to see you as well Uncle Big" the shrew seemed very happy that Judy called him that while Lunette's tail started shivering "This is Officer Furle a friend of mine"

"Anyone Judy calls a friend is welcome in my home" said Mr. Big "Ricevere, welcome"

Lunette felt as if an entire mountain had been lifted off her shoulders as she relaxed and her tail resumed its gentle movements.

I need to buy Judy a drink later Lunette thought to herself before paying attention to the rest of the room again.

"While I'm glad that I got to visit again I'm afraid I do have some work to deal with as well" said Judy a little sheepishly.

"Of course, I expect nothing less from that old buffalo, for you to come here in uniform"

"There have been reports that a major underworld character has entered Zootopia" said Judy seriously "Chief Bogo is hoping that you know whether there is any truth to these rumours"

"Hmm, beninteso, of course. I can tell you for a fact that there is definitely one animal from the underworld who has arrived. However, this person is an information broker, the best, and your chief does not need to worry about them. In fact, if you can find them they are very likely to help you as they are what we call a Carattere Grigio" Mr. Big waved his hand vaguely "a grey character, they are not a criminal per se. More worryingly there are rumours that one Perseus Albicauda has come to Zootopia. Even we have only heard rumours so far but I very much would like them to be false, Albicauda is a dangerous animal"

"Thank you Uncle Big" said Judy beaming "This means a lot, really"

"It is nothing to help you out a bit my chil-"

"He was here" interrupted Lunette, there was a deep growl coming from Koslov for interrupting Mr. Big and Judy's ears fell flat. Lunette however was not paying any attention to that and was sniffing deeply around where she stood with her eyes closed. Mr. Big watched on in silence, his thoughts hidden "He was here, the Shade" said Lunette opening her blue eyes and looking straight at the mafia boss.

She couldn't work out what exactly it was about the mansion that had been grating on her the whole time. And now she knew, it was the scent, she could smell him, especially in this room.

"Do you know where he has gone?" she asked Mr. Big her voice shaking slightly.

The mob boss waved at Koslov to calm down while staring intently at Lunette. He could see that she was no longer standing nervous in his presence, there was adrenaline and many complex emotions running through her eyes.

"Esattamente, just so" said Mr. Big slowly "I have met with the information broker known as the Shade, I asked him to look into the rumours about Perseus Albicauda, but I will not tell you anything else, so what will you do?"

Lunette stared down the crime boss for what felt like an hour to Judy before she spoke "I will keep looking by myself, I have come this far without assistance"

There was a tense silence filling the room, Koslov's eyes were extremely cold and Judy was twiddling the ends of her drooping ears.

Clap, clap, clap, clap…

Mr. Big was gently clapping his hands while looking at Lunette approvingly. Judy realised that things hadn't devolved as much as she thought.

"Judy, my child, you have a very good sense of people" said Mr. Big with praise "look after her, she'll make you a fine ally"

"JUDY!"

Everyone turned to look at the door where the excited shout had come from. At the bottom of the door another smaller door had opened revealing another arctic shrew.

"Fru Fru" called Judy happily as the little mammal shot across the room towards her.

"Look at you in your uniform" said Fru Fru who had run up Judy to stand in her hands "very athletic, figure hugging, I expect the guys are all over you"

"Fru Fru" Judy glared at her little friend.

"Oh alright" said Fru Fru dramatically rolling her eyes before leaning in to whisper "we both know you only have eyes on one mammal"

"Fru Fru!" came a shocked meep from Judy her ears starting to blush as a flash of red shot through her mind.

"So, who's your friend?" asked Fru Fru deciding she had teased Judy enough… for now.

"This is Lunette" said Judy her ears drooped over her face to cover her blush till she calmed down

"You, are, beautiful" squealed Fru Fru "how do you get your fur like that?" Lunette lowered her head bashfully while her tail was wagging "Have they finished talking to you Daddy?"

"Yes, yes" said Mr. Big happily "you children go have fun"

Judy led Lunette out of the room still with her ears held flat against her head to hide their red colour. Fru Fru's excited voice could be heard echoing down the corridor as they moved further away. There was silence left in the room as Mr. Big steepled his fingers.

"Are you perhaps wondering why I did not tell Judy everything?" said Mr. Big quietly, he could easily feel the confusion in his subordinate, Koslov nodded slightly "As dear to me as Judy is, and I consider her a sister to Fru Fru, I cannot be giving up all my secrets to that old Buffalo now can I"