It happened again, another chapter longer than I thought :/

I'm sure you aren't complaining though

I call this one 'A day in the life of Noct'

Chapter 7

In the centre of Zootopia is Downtown and a veritable forest of skyscrapers. Currently it was mid-morning and bright sunlight was shining down on the city. One of the skyscrapers, Chrysalis Tower, was a set of hotels, flats and offices. At the very top of the building was a penthouse suite. It belonged to a Mr. Clement and had done since the tower had been constructed six years ago. It was an odd situation as the other residents of the tower had never seen the person who lived there.

Due to the construction of the bedroom and the orientation of the tower, the sunlight had only just reached the bed despite it being nearly 11 o'clock. As the sunbeams slowly creeped across the bed they warmed the fur of its sole occupant. Before the sunlight could reach their head however the mammal reached over and hit a switch on the wall near the head of the bed. The bedroom windows darkened and cut out nearly all the morning brightness.

Noctis Lacerda growled slightly as he stretched, and as a panther he did a pretty mean stretch. There was a dull aching in his head but a grin graced his lips.

I expect Nick is feeling it a lot worse than me

Noct sniggered lightly to himself as he hauled himself off the bed. He padded to the bathroom in nothing but the fur he was born in. Inside was a shower, bath and a jacuzzi along with a full wall mirror. Noct considered it for a moment before deciding against washing, he still had some things to take care of today. Instead he poured himself a glass of water while he opened one of the cabinets hanging over the sink.

Noct fumbled around in the cupboard for a moment before removing a single black tablet and dropping it into his glass of water. As he carried the glass back into the main room of the penthouse, the tablet dissolved rapidly and quickly turned the water the same shade as ink.

The bedroom and bathroom were on the upper layer of the penthouse and a sweeping staircase led down to the living quarters which actually took up the floor below. Actually, the penthouse took up three floors but the rooms on the bottom-most floor were more… specialised. Noct walked up to the window, the living room had one large bay window covering three quarters of that floor of the skyscraper.

Leaning on a railing he looked out over Zootopia, from the positioning of the Chrysalis Tower and the wide window you could see all of Zootopia apart from the Rainforest District. This was in the design of the building since the Rainforest District was normally covered in cloud and fog anyway. Noct turned his head to his right and looked out over the urban jungle of Savanna Central. His gaze then slowly moved left across the distant sands of Sahara Square. Eventually he looked out onto the swirling blizzards that hid Tundratown from view.

Noct glanced down and realised he hadn't had his drink yet. The pitch-black colouring did not faze him in the slightest as he downed the entire glass in one go. Whatever he had added to it had no taste and within a few moments the dull pounding in his head faded away.

Turning away from the window Noct walked to the room directly under the bedroom, placing the empty glass onto one of the many, small tables in the room. It was one large wardrobe and Nick would have been shocked at the shear variety of clothes on display. Nick would not have been shocked when Noct walked to one of the corners and selected a familiar black shirt, trousers, and red tie combo. Dressing quickly Noct checked his appearance in another giant mirror.

Stepping back into the living room Noct glanced around his home. He had arranged all of this on what he convinced himself was the slight off chance he would ever return to Zootopia. But the effort put into this place only served to reinforce the fact that, deep down, he was always going to return eventually.

Empty…

This thought would drift through his mind whenever he looked around his accommodation, be it a penthouse suite or a shady motel room. Shaking his head Noct walked out of the penthouse and locked it behind him. Not that there was much point in that as it was very difficult for anyone unauthorised to reach the front door. Since he was the only resident on the top floors there was actually a private elevator that ran solely between his oversized flat and the lobby and that was the only way in the building to reach the top floors. Unless you climbed up the outside…

Noct grinned as he stepped into the lift, there were quite a few… obstacles if someone decided to try and enter that way. Pressing the lower of the two buttons in the lift Noct waited for the doors to close and for the feeling of freefall as the elevator rapidly descended to the bottom of the Tower. The lobby was fairly quiet by this time in the morning, current residents had mostly started their day and it wasn't time for new customers to arrive at the hotel yet.

"Good Morning Mr. Clement" Noct was greeted by the respectful receptionists as he stepped out of the private lift by the front desk.

He was technically a part owner of the building as that was the only way to get his way with building his house on the top floors. Since the staff were well aware of that they were always very polite when dealing with him. Though Mr. Clement had only been present in Zootopia very recently the staff had found him a quiet and kind mammal.

Walking out the front doors of Chrysalis Tower, Noct stretched in the morning sun. He had two main things to do today and was wondering what order to do them in. After thinking for a brief moment though it was fairly clear which of the two would be easier. Luckily Peak Street was just around the corner and that had a major train station.

Stopping only to buy a cricket and cream cheese bagel from a street vendor, Noct leisurely made his way towards the public transport hub. He didn't have anything like a railcard, or many kinds of ID actually, old habits… so he bought a day pass as he had quite a bit of travelling to do.

First stop, Sahara Square.

The train quickly left behind the urban city centre and Noct found himself surrounded by rolling sand dunes. Slightly out of place, off to the left in the distance, you could see the boundary with Tundratown and the blizzards dancing in the air. The train was obviously well air-conditioned given the multitude of environments it needed to travel through so there was no discomfort as it travelled deeper into the scorching desert.

A uniformed deer was pushing a large trolley down the carriage. They were selling refreshments as well as any accessories that may be needed, waterproof ponchos for the rainforest or scarfs to block desert sands for example. Many of the animals bought the latter as the train was headed straight for what was close to the middle of the desert area. Noct politely shook his head and waved the deer on when they reached him earning a puzzled look, he wasn't really a desert creature when you look at him.

Five minutes later and the train pulled in at the station for the Oasis Hotel which was the closest Noct was going to get on this train line. Following all the other animals Noct vanished into the crowd. The panther didn't reappear till he'd walked some way away from the oasis itself. Here the temperature rose and the humidity dropped and naturally the crowds thinned as well. Noct strolled the streets looking far more at ease in the heat than he really should be.

It took him a little while wandering around Sahara Square before he recognised where he needed to be. Climbing up a hill, the street disappeared down into a crevice bringing blessed shade. There weren't many people around here, some animals wearing full robes squatted in the shadows, but none of them showed any sign they noticed as Noct walked past.

Slowly counting the doorways Noct reached the one he wanted and knocked a few times in an odd pattern. When there was no reply Noct reached out and knocked once more. This time there was a sound of movement and the door opened revealing a large camel. Noct stared at him in silence for a long moment before dipping his head slightly.

"My apologies, I appear to have the wrong place" Noct turned to leave.

"Wait" said the camel squinting at him "Nobody comes here without a reason, what was yours?"

"Just looking for someone I used to work with" said Noct not turning back quite yet "they do not appear to be here anymore"

"Here" the camel fumbled behind the door for a little while before holding a piece of paper out to Noct.

The panther took it, nodded to the camel and walked off without looking at what he had received. After leaving the crevice Noct took a few twists and turns. Glancing around he turned to his right and scaled the side of the building next to him, claws digging into the stone and masonry. Feeling better once he was safely sat on the rooftops, Noct opened the note he had been given.

Bakari

26 Palm Street

Noct frowned.

Palm Street he thought to himself scratching his head that just doesn't feel right.

Still it was the only thing he had to go on right this second so Noct shrugged and walked to the edge of the roof he was on to get his bearings. Palm Street was right in the greener area near the Oasis. Noct flowed over the edge and disappeared back into the warrens of alleys that he had been expecting to find his acquaintance in.

This was not where I would have thought to find them thought Noct as he walked down the main road of Palm Street. There were shops, crowds, cars, noise… not where he had been expecting to visit this morning. 26 Palm Street turned out to be a small door seemingly trapped between two department stores.

Figuring he had nothing to lose Noct knocked on the door. His ears picked up the sound of movement and he waited patiently. Eventually, after what sounded like a lot of work, the door was finally opened by a doddery looking old lady oryx.

"Well hello dearie" she said, her voice as shaky as she looked "what can I do for you?"

Noct simply held out the note he'd been given for her to see.

"Oh I see, you must be one of Bakari's friends, do come in" she slowly moved out of the way so Noct could enter "Bakari's room is the first on the left upstairs"

Noct nodded his thanks and climbed the stairs, the oryx looked back from closing the door and was surprised to see Noct gone, after all the stairs creaked terribly and she hadn't heard anything. On the landing Noct followed the stairwell back on himself before arriving at the door. Sniffing a few times Noct grinned. He knocked on the door hoping this would be the last one. There was no reply but he could hear some familiar sounds when he put his ear up against the door.

Of course, the door turned out to be locked. Not that that had ever stopped Noct before. Extending a single claw, there were a few clicking sounds and then the door opened cleanly. Stepping inside Noct's eyes flashed. The room was dark, no lights on and one window which was heavily covered by curtains, the only illumination came from the wall to his right. There were six separate computer screens set up along with a large amount of accompanying technology.

Curled up in an expensive looking chair in front of the computers was a cat. She was a Caracal, a desert cat with tufted ears which stuck up above the back of her chair. She was holding a game controller which she was using to play on one of the screens. Her toes however were nimbly dancing across a keyboard writing some sort of post on a message board on another screen. Another screen had various news feeds open and another seemed to be following the stock market.

The sight was very nostalgic for the panther stood in the shadows and he stood there for a few minutes slightly dazed before he came back to himself. Noct reached across and flicked on the lights.

The Caracal called Bakari twisted in her seat glaring at Noct over the top of her chair. She let out a threatening hiss at the sight of someone inside her locked room. However, the hiss soon faltered out as her face drained of colour. Bakari threw herself off the chair towards the window like her life depended on it. A paw grabbed her by the back of the neck and hoisted her into the air before she could reach it though.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no" moaned Bakari "this is not happening, not happening, please tell me this isn't happening"

Noct swivelled the smaller cat round in his hand to face him.

"What shouldn't be happening Bakari? You don't look very pleased to see me again"

"AAAaaaahhh" groaned the cat louder "You're dead, you're dead, you're deaaad, you can't be talking to me cos you're dead" the Caracal burst into sobs.

"Bakari" said Noct sternly as he plonked her back in her chair "do I look dead to you?"

"But, but, but you disappeared and then the Lacerdas were all killed off and you never came back and I thought you were deeeaaad" Bakari burst into tears.

Noct sighed and waited for her to get everything out of her system. Just when he thought she'd calmed down she burst out louder than ever. Bakari leant forwards and grabbed hold of Noct crying into the front of his shirt. He shook his head to himself and gently patted the cat on the back.

"Alright Bakari" said Noct quietly "see, I'm not dead"

Eventually the caracal calmed down and sat back in her chair. Noct sat down on the edge of the bed that was about the only other thing in the room.

"But the Lacerdas" began Bakari before Noct interrupted her.

"Are dead? Yes, yes, they are. However, since when was I considered a Lacerda in anything but sharing the name"

"Then why haven't you ever come back?" sniffled Bakari.

"Life is complicated, you know that" Noct smiled lightly "but I'm back now"

"So, what are you going to do?"

"Well, actually, I'm going to reopen Broken Clockwork, I'll be relying on your skills more than ever now"

"You mean since your fox became a cop?"

"Oh, you been keeping tabs on my brother?" asked Noct with a grin "dangerous game kitty, you might get caught"

Bakari might look young, even after not seeing each other for ten years, but she was a computer genius. If it existed digitally then Bakari could find it given enough time, she had been a vital source of information for Broken Clockwork when they were still running. She agreed to help out again on the condition that Noct owed her a favour. A rare thing to ask for and a rarer thing for Noct to agree to. The smaller cat was just as inquisitive as he remembered and bombarded him with questions about everything that had happened to him over the last ten years. Answering some and evading others, Noct waited for Bakari's vast reservoir of curiosity to run out.

"What are you doing here rather than back in your old place?" asked Noct in a pause in the rather one-sided conversation.

"Ah this place, there was a terrible sandstorm a few years back and that crevice actually got completely buried" Bakari grimaced "Luckily, I always have a stash of supplies so I survived just fine till we were excavated. Buuuut I didn't like the idea of it happening again so I searched for a new place. Took me a while to find this one, landlady keeps to herself and I have access to good internet and that's all I can ask for"

The two talked for a little while longer before Noct decided that he needed to start moving. He made sure he had a few ways of messaging Bakari before letting her get back to her computer wizardry. He didn't see any sign of the old landlady as he left so made sure the door was locked securely behind him.

The detour he'd had to take, along with spending sometime catching up with Bakari, had set back Noct longer than he'd planned. The sun was already past its highest point in the sky and Noct was feeling a little hungry.

Well, I guess I'm already a bit late, no harm in getting some lunch on the way

He considered going the whole hog and sitting down in one of the many restaurants or cafes on Palm Street but decided against it. He much preferred to eat on the move, saved time, and… old habits. Unfortunately, due to all the eateries there weren't very many street vendors selling food. Noct had nearly given up and was going to wait till he reached his next destination when he found one vendor who, quite intelligently, had set up outside the train station.

A few minutes later Noct was sat on the wonderfully air-conditioned train happily munching on a bag of cicada chips. The big cat purred slightly as he licked his fingers, as nice of vegetables could be he was definitely more a fan of protein. Satisfied for now Noct looked out into the desert through the window, memories of when he used to live in Zootopia flashed through his head.

Destroying blackmail material, gathering confessions, planting evidence, protecting famous mammals, intimidation…

The list went on, but the most important thing was that, while some of these actions seemed bad, Broken Clockwork was very stringent on choosing their jobs. Both Nick and Noct, while they pushed the line with the law, had a deeply ingrained set of ethics and rules. And you couldn't hide things from Broken Clockwork or twist words to make yourself the victim. They would find out and their retribution was often far worse than whatever they had been hired to do in the first place.

Noct blinked suddenly realising that the golden yellows that had been visible before had been replaced with cold blues and whites without him noticing. He shook his head ruefully as he now gazed out over Tundratown.

I keep getting distracted, I'll need to get that all out of my system soon, it's unprofessional

The train stopped at a familiar station and Noct disembarked slowly. He looked around, his mind flashing back to a dark, snowy night ten years ago. He could almost see Nick and himself walking along. Stepping outside into the snow, the scenery was close enough that he could recognise. Some of the shops had changed, there were some new buildings and some missing buildings. But it had been ten years and Noct knew that a city was a living, breathing thing, constantly changing.

Slowly he followed the same route as that night long ago. As if reading his memory, the snow howled louder as visibility dropped. It wasn't night time now however and Noct's black and red colour scheme stood out in the blizzard. After walking in thought for several minutes Noct suddenly stopped. The snow calmed just as abruptly leaving a clear view ahead.

On the roof of a building at the end of the street a moose in winter gear was packing away a rifle and fitting it into a briefcase next to him. He was awaiting a call from the three wolves who were supposed to be on clean up. He didn't notice a shadow slipping over the lip of the roof and sliding up behind him. The first thing the moose did notice was a sharp pain at the base of his neck and a few points down his back. Before he could reach a hand back the moose suddenly found that he couldn't move at all. His eyes widened as a panther slunk out of the dark in front of him, a panther that he had previously only seen down the scope of his rifle.

Noct shook his head to clear his thoughts. This was probably the one place in Zootopia that could get to him like this.

Still, that's all in the past he thought You're back, you've made up with your brother, everything's fine

Nearly everything…

Cracking his neck a few times, Noct shook himself to dislodge the snow that had landed on him while he was lost in the past. Ahead was a building very close to his heart, a mansion that still looked exactly the same as it did in his memories.

Mr. Big was sat in his office, he was listening to the latest report from one of his subordinates, a polar bear called Kevin. He was not best pleased.

"Which means profits are down 15% this month" carried on the bear "last of all, we managed to catch the people who keep raiding the east warehouses on camera"

"It was a squirrel and a brown bear wasn't it?"

If Kevin was surprised at Mr. Big's prediction his face didn't show it.

"Yes sir, we've identified them as Richard Dreyson and Steven Kodiak"

The arctic shrew was silent for a minute before he let out a small sigh.

"Debole, it would seem I have been too lenient on those two. Find them. Ice the first one you catch, it has been a while since we reminded people why they do not mess with us"

Kevin the polar bear nodded and quietly let himself out of the office. Mr. Big sat in silence, he was never alone, Koslov was always guarding him. For some reason, since the Shade had appeared and stirred up the murky waters of Zootopia's underworld, he had become distracted by thoughts of the past. The shrew looked up as someone knocked gently on the door. The mafia boss could recognise all of his subordinates from how they knocked on his door and knew it was the butler, Wesley. Sure enough, the badger quietly pushed open the door and entered the room.

Stopping a respectful distance away the badger bowed.

"There is someone here to see you sir however you do not have any scheduled appointments" Mr. Big was about to wave them away "they say they are here representing Broken Clockwork".

That was a name that the shrew had not been expecting to hear again. Looking down the little mammal saw his paw tremble slightly. He really had been stuck in the past recently.

"Bensì, very well, show Mr Wilde in"

"It's" the butler hesitated slightly "It's not Mr Wilde, sir"

Mr. Big frowned but still gave his approval and waited for the butler to return with this mysterious guest. He did not have to wait long before someone could be heard outside the door. They sounded nervous, shifting about slightly before knocking on the door. Mr. Big waved to Koslov to go receive them while he tried and failed to recognise who had knocked. The giant polar bear walked to the door and opened it, his face visible to his boss. Koslov glared as he opened the door and stared down at whoever was there.

Gradually he frowned, though this was more thoughtful than intimidating, before a glimmer of recognition appeared in his eyes. Mr. Big noticed this of course and leant forwards in his chair slightly as Koslov stepped aside. A figure stepped into the office, hard to see in the dimness of the room, they slowly walked towards Mr. Big.

A panther dressed in a smart black shirt with matching trousers and a crimson tie walked out of the shadows. He stopped in the middle of the room and dropped to one knee. Mr. Big raised an eyebrow, while any who met him were polite, not many acted like this.

"It has been a long time, sir" said the panther in a low voice.

A tumble of memories swept through the old shrew's mind.

They are here representing Broken Clockwork... It's not Mr Wilde, sir... A panther... It has been a long time, sir...

"Sei tu, Noctis, you have returned" whispered Mr. Big as he got up from his chair.

The panther looked up at these words feeling a flush of warmth that he was remembered. Noct stood as the mafia boss gestured him closer. He very gently brushed his nose on either side of the shrew's muzzle before standing back up again. The small mammal in front of him meant a lot to Noct. Mr. Big had taken him and Nick under his wing when they were first living on the streets. The shrew, while only being distantly involved in their lives, was more of a father figure to Noct than any in his own family.

"First my Judy came to visit and now you have returned from the grave" chuckled Mr. Big as he lowered himself back into his chair "this has been quite an interesting week so far"

Noct's ears pricked up, Judy? He remembered Nick talking about his rabbit partner and how she had saved Fru Fru's life, earning the gratitude of Mr. Big.

"When news of your family reached us, we feared the worst, it is a happy day, la gioia, that you are safe"

"None of that had an effect on me" said Noct smiling "however, with my name, I felt it would be safer to lay low for a while. I travelled the country for many years but it would seem that Zootopia was always calling me back"

"You are safe and well, Noctis, and that is all that matters" the shrew tilted his head slightly "have you seen your brother?"

"Nick?" Noct smiled "Yes, I saw him yesterday" the smile faded from his face, replaced with nervousness and guilt "I would like to apologise for the actions of my brother in the past, sir"

Mr. Big looked at him carefully, the tiny eyes seemed to stare into Noct's soul.

"Perdonato, it is in the past. Though I expect Mr Wilde would not have acted in such a way if you were still present"

Noct bowed his head, it was true, at the time he had felt the only option was to leave. But that may have caused consequences that he had not intended for his friends and acquaintances.

"Do not worry about it, Noctis" said Mr. Big calmly "now, you came here as a representative of Broken Clockwork?"

"Yes sir" Noctis looked back up eyes full of determination "I intend to reopen Broken Clockwork without Nick, I can't just ask him to stop being a cop. My visit here today is to inform you of this"

"Mmm, good, the city has not been the same without it" a rare grin appeared on the arctic shrew "some people in Zootopia's underbelly have gotten quite complacent recently, it will be interesting to see you disrupt any balance they have"

Gaining Mr. Big's approval again meant a lot to the panther and he happily answered any questions his old 'boss' had. Well, almost any. Mr. Big on the other hand was in a very good mood. So much so that he had pushed the disappointing report he'd received earlier to the back of his mind. In fact, since new and old friends had appeared this week, Mr. Big decided that he would organise a gathering for his extended friends and family. Reassuring Mr. Big that he would certainly attend, especially since he still needed to see Fru Fru again, Noct bid his goodbyes and left the mansion.

It was nearing sundown as Noct wandered the streets of Tundratown, thankfully his day ticket had not quite run out and he could catch a late train back to Downtown. The snow and ice soon gave way to glass and steel and, at this time of the day, neon lights. Noct had been planning to return home however he was struck by a sudden urge. He knew it didn't matter much, he should go get some rest and deal with it in the morning, but as the train got closer the urge just got stronger.

With a sigh Noct knew what he had to do. Getting off the train two stops earlier than usual Noct looked around at Zootopia at night. Flashing lights and flitting shadows covered the crowds of animals enjoying their evening. Noct took a deep breath, this was the world he excelled in and he vanished into the crowds unnoticed.

All around him were talking, walking animals living the night. But Noct could see so much more than that, a mugger choosing a mark, many different pick pockets working the crowds, a kidnapping? No, it looked like the poor antelope had offended someone he shouldn't have as he was escorted away. Noct moved through the crowds like a fish swimming with the river current. He could feel the pull in his chest as he stopped still, a sudden rock in the river of mammals.

Noct looked up at the two skyscrapers in front of him, they were joined at the base and were known as the Twin Calypso. One side was a big casino with restaurants, spas and shopping centres on higher floors. The other side was a hotel to accommodate all the mammals visiting this little self-contained paradise.

Noct walked up to the gaudy entrance along with many other mammals who wanted to spend the night gambling and drinking. There was a constant stream of mammals coming and going through the lobby of the two towers. So nobody noticed when a door labelled 'staff only' opened for a brief moment before closing again.

Noct walked deeper into the bowels of the building following his memory. Slinking past a doorway into a bustling kitchen, Noct carried on further down the corridor he was in. Turning the corner Noct could see a very familiar door at the end of the dark corridor and hurried towards it.

A young wolf in a chef's outfit walked around the corner and started to come towards Noct. The wolf sniffed, he could smell someone here, and not a co-worker he could recognise.

"Who's there?" called out the wolf slowing down his pace.

The air felt like it was shaking against his fur, a rumble he could feel more than hear. Out of the dark a pair of emerald eyes shone, they zigzagged in the darkness, swaying from side to side as they got closer. And closer and closer, the green in the dark seemed to fill the wolf's mind.

His eyes began to refocus and he shook his head to clear the cobwebs. He missed the click of a door behind him. Wondering why he'd just stopped in the middle of the corridor, especially when his shift was starting, the wolf hurried off to his workplace.

The doorway at the end of the corridor was one of the emergency exits that led to the tiny courtyard trapped in between the Twin Calypso. It was pitch black down there; the closest light was from some of the windows of the towers but they were too far up to illuminate the courtyard down at ground level.

A shadow moved through the dark, emerald eyes in the night seeing clear as day as they approached a small building built at one end of the courtyard. Noct walked up and stood in front of the door with frosted glass, gently running a paw over the gears etched into it. Reaching inside his shirt Noct pulled out a black key on a black chain that he always kept round his neck. There was a click as the lock turned and the door opened. Noct disappeared inside shutting the door behind him.

A few minutes later, with a little flicker, the small light above the door, one that had been dark for ten years, switched on. It was just a little light, barely comparable to a firefly in the grand scheme of things, just a tiny star among countless others if you were to look down on Zootopia from high up above. But this weak little light was a spark. One that, from the moment it turned on once more, would spread a wildfire through the underbelly of the city.

There was no other sign of activity from the office of Broken Clockwork. Many more minutes passed, the little courtyard effectively cut off from the rest of the world. Till a furious roar from within broke the silence of the night.