Hey, everybody! I'm back with two new but long chapters and I hoped y'all had a great three months since I was away. Anyway, since some of you are probably confused as to why the last six chapters (except for the prologue) are taking place in Zootopia and why I haven't put this story into the "Zootopia" category. To rephrase what I said in chapter 1, the first part will focus on the movie Zootopia with some added in original parts here and there by yours truly with a twist. Once I finish with that, the main character will hop over to a different world and begin the process for part 2. Which means I'm going to be working on one movie at a time before working on anything original based on anything from the movie but won't take place on the main plotline. This also means I'm gonna have to work my butt off to work and finish this first part before jumping to the second.
Now then, before we get started, time for me to answer some reviews:
grapejuice101: Oh, trust me, once this part is over, you'll be surprised at world Tracy will go to next. Believe me, it's going to get epic and fun.
elaineme33: Thanks, I'm glad you've enjoyed them! Who wouldn't love or like Zootopia? I know I like it. Also, I have to finish Zootopia first before I could jump into another Disney movie. But I hope you'll continue to enjoy the other chapters until we reach the end of part 1.
Yohan: I'm glad you liked the prologue along with the other chapters so far and I used to remember reading a little bit of "The Magic Treehouse" book series where the main characters say "I wish I can go there" and the treehouse spins, sending the main characters to wherever place they want to go. But I barely remember much on that since I was little. Anyway, I already have a lot of fans throughout my other stories and I think I could get a lot more with this one. Who knows?
Elaine: Well, I do have an imaginative mind and can be a bit descriptive sometimes, but other times I like my readers to imagine the other things on what they want to see. Be it like a person or a place. Anyway, once Zootopia is over and done with, Tracy will jump to another world and universe. Believe me, you're gonna love what universe I've chosen for this story. ;)
s82161: As you can see on my explanation above, you can see why. But you're right about one thing, it was random. Tarzan and Snow White are good examples for Tracy to start-off in. However, I've had a bit of experience in mystery. So, I wanted to start-off with Tracy having to find out what her purpose is being sent to the multiverse and what does she have to do. Not to mention the biggest question as to why this concerns her or what she must do first the moment she steps into a new world. The Great Mouse Detective would've been a great start, but it would feel out of place and too similar to my other GMD story which I highly suggest you should read as that story gave me inspiration to write this one in a much different way. That's when I decided to do Zootopia. Because one: This had potential and I believed this would be a great start to Tracy's journey. And two: There was even mystery behind it and that's what drove me to start with this one. Although to be completely honest, there was a dozen movies ranging from the main animated movies, to Pixar, and even anything else that's related to Disney. I guess you can say that this one got lucky to be chosen.
With everything done on this part, I just want to say I don't own any of the characters within the Disney universe, especially Zootopia since I'm starting-off here. Those go to their respective owners. Now for the main character, Tracy, half of the credit goes to retro mania for creating her name and a small description while the rest I did myself. Sparx and any of the original characters belongs to me.
Enjoy!
Chapter 7: Never Let'em Get To You
Tracy remained sitting cross-legged in her cage, courtesy of Chief Bogo who still carried her inside. He wasn't kidding about what he said. The moment she landed on his front car window, he took her by the scruff of her neck and brought out a cage from the trunk of his police car, which he kept just in case he needed it for smaller mammals, and stuffed her inside. Now she understands what a caged animal feels like.
Judy leads them to where the arctic wolf and Manchas was while hoping they were still there, or maybe the arctic wolf was as he was probably dead and the jaguar was doing to God knows what to his corpse which would be evidence for her on this case if it ever happened with Chief Bogo, four rhino cops, a single tiger cop, and Nick following her. "I thought this was just a missing mammal case, but it's way bigger," the rabbit cop said. "Mr. Otterton did not just disappear. I believe he and this jaguar, they...they went savage, sir, and I think this arctic wolf, whoever he is, is somehow responsible for what's happened to them."
"Savage?" Chief Bogo said. "This isn't the stone age, Hopps. Animals don't 'go savage' or any mammal in this world could make someone become savage."
"I thought so too, 'till not only did I saw this, I also witnessed what this arctic wolf could do."
She moves the leaves to show Manchas and the arctic wolf, but there was no one there, much to Judy's shock. All that was there was the damage that occurred from both the arctic wolf and Sparx. "What? They were right here!"
"The 'savage' jaguar and your arctic wolf?"
While the rabbit cop ran to where they left Manchas and the arctic wolf, the other police mammals were a little shocked to see the damage. A rhino cop whistled as he said, "Whoa, what happened here? It felt like someone just threw a bomb here and destroyed the place."
"This was no bomb," another rhino cop said as he already bent down and rubbed the scorch that was on the ground. "This was definitely a lightning strike." He looked at the rest of the damage. "But I've never seen lightning do this before."
"I hear ya," a tiger cop said, agreeingly. "Looks like a storm just came out of nowhere and tore the place apart."
"I think it's more of a tornado that did it," another rhino cop said.
"Nah," another rhino cop said as he crossed his arms. "More like a hurricane is more like it."
Chief Bogo cleared his throat as he looked at them, eyes narrowed. His look told them to keep their mouths shut, which was exactly what they all did. He looked back at Judy, who was looking on the ground as if searching for something. What he didn't know was that she was searching for any sign of a struggle that resulted in blood, but there was nothing, not a single drop or even a trace of it. Her eyes widened, a thought crossed her mind. She stood up and looked to the sky, hoping that he might be still there along with Manchas. Again, there was nothing.
Nick noticed Judy looking to the sky, having the same idea as his eyes looked up. He wondered what that arctic wolf was doing to that poor jaguar. That arctic wolf was pretty mad as he was denied the chance to kill them when Manchas got in the way. So there was no telling what he was doing to him, even while standing there. "Sir, I know what I saw," Judy said as she turned her attention back to Chief Bogo. "They almost killed us!"
"Or, maybe any aggressive predator looks 'savage' to you rabbits."
"Sir, you don't understand. This guy is extremely dangerous, he even had a fox with him that also tried to kill us."
"A fox?" Chief Bogo points a hoofed thumb behind him. "You mean that fox over there who tried to kill you?"
The five mammal cops turn their eyes to Nick, who could only gaze at them nervously as he thought that he might be arrested for the wrong reason. Judy quickly waved her paws to fix the situation while telling the chief, "Nononono, not him!" The five mammal cops turn their attention back to her and their chief. "This fox was a teenager. No bigger than Tracy's age and he was being controlled by that arctic wolf."
"Controlled?" Chief Bogo raised an eyebrow. "And how, pray tell, was he being controlled?"
Judy sighed and shook her head. "You wouldn't even believe me if I told you."
"Try me."
"Judy," Tracy muttered quietly for her to hear. "Don't tell him."
The teenaged cat had a feeling that the chief wouldn't believe her, but her plea to listen was ignored when Judy answered, "He was being controlled by magic, sir."
Chief Bogo smiled, then threw his head up and laughed. He turned his head towards the other five mammal cops and laughed as they too joined in. Tracy sighed and shook her head while placing a paw at her eyes. However, as Nick noticed something and Judy or Tracy did not, he could automatically tell that the chief's laugh was a fake. Why was he fake laughing? This doesn't make any sense.
"Sir, this isn't a joke! I'm telling you the truth!"
"Oh really now, Hopps," Chief Bogo said as he stopped his fake laughter. "Did this so-called teenaged fox have a spellbook that casted spells and was flying in the air?"
Nick had a suspicious look while his eyes narrowed slightly. Tracy's right ear twitched when Chief Bogo mentioned the young fox flying and having a spellbook which was actually his grimoire. Both the teenaged cat and fox somehow had the same thought. Does Chief Bogo know about magic from Sparx or possibly the arctic wolf? If so, then why? "Yes," Judy answered. "I saw it with my own eyes."
Once again, the five mammal cops laughed while Chief Bogo gave her a look that said "I don't believe you" and placed a hoof on the side of his waist. "Is that so?"
"I know it sounds crazy, but it's the truth!" She didn't notice a rhino cop trace a circle around his ear with another rhino nodding in agreement while Judy continued, "Look, this is what I got from that fox." She showed the chief the cut she received. "He tried to kill me with his katana."
"A katana?"
"Yes! And he and that arctic wolf were after Tracy."
"Really, and what did they want from her?"
"They were after King Mickey's grimoire. The one that she still has in that bag."
Chief Bogo sighed and said, "Anything else you wish to tell me, Hopps?"
"Yes, there was a mouse by the name of Mickey. He was there to help Tracy."
One of the rhino cops giggled and whispered to the tiger cop, "A mouse named Mickey?" He shortened his hoofed fingers until they were nearly touching each other. "A tiny mouse this big?"
"More like an imaginary mouse for a crazy bunny," the tiger cop giggled a little.
Nick glares at them. Judy wasn't crazy, he was right there when it all happened!
"Do you even have any proof of these claims?" Chief Bogo asked.
"Yes."
"Then where is your so-called mouse named Mickey?"
"I don't know," Judy admitted, then she pointed to the teenager. "But she does. She was the only one who was with him and even has the proof in the form of a message." Her eyes turn to her and whispers, "Tracy get out Yax's message and tell us where Mickey is."
She was about to do that, but Chief Bogo said, "You think I'm going to listen to a little troublemaker?" His narrowed eyes looked at the teenaged cat. "Whom I told her to stay out of this case and not cause any trouble."
"But Chief Bogo, Judy is telling the truth!" Tracy said as she brought out her bag. "I've got the proof, you need to lis-"
She didn't finish as Chief Bogo smacked her cage, causing her to yelp a little. "Shut that tiny mouth of yours right now, young lady!" He points a hoofed finger at her. "You're already in a heap of trouble as it is!"
Tracy could only glare and hiss at him.
"Sir, please," Judy said as Chief Bogo looked back at her. "I know it's hard to believe, but you need to understand the situation. Whoever this arctic wolf is may be the connection to the missing mammals. And not only that, he has a fox child as a hostage, and probably has the savage jaguar and has taken them both somewhere. Worst of all, he's a threat to Zootopia! We need to go on high-alert and bring every available cop and SWAT unit to go on a wild mammal-hunt for this guy and stop him before it's too late!"
"Are you listening to yourself right now?" Chief Bogo placed his hoof on the side of his waist again. "What your saying is just a bunch of hysterical made-up delusions."
Tracy was shocked by what Chief Bogo said while Judy says, "This is not made-up, chief, and I'm not crazy! You need to listen-"
"No, you listen, Hopps!" Chief Bogo points an angry fingered hoof at her.
Tracy sighed aggravatingly and opens the bag, then she whispers, "Mickey, come out."
The ball of light of Mickey comes out of the mouse symbol of the grimoire and he said to her telepathically, What's going on, Tracy? He noticed that he and Tracy were inside an animal cage. And why are we in a cage?
She sighed and answered him telepathically, Don't ask. Listen, I need you to show yourself in front of Chief Bogo. He needs to know that Judy isn't lying.
I can't.
Her eyes widened in shock. Why not?
Well for one, there are too many witnesses. And two, unless your friend over there is threatened in any way, that's when I'll make my move.
"Let me get this through to that tiny skull of yours!" Chief Bogo said as Tracy looked back to him while he continued to berate Judy. "There is no such thing as magic, grimoires, or mammals flying through the air!"
Tracy noticed him blinking his eyes when he mentioned "magic", "grimoires", and "mammals flying through the air". You noticed it too, didn't you? Mickey said.
She nods and said, Yeah, the moment he was blinking his eyes, he was lying through his teeth.
She couldn't figure out why Chief Bogo was lying to Judy, even after she witnessed him bringing out the king's grimoire while making the bag a little bigger. Not to mention, he even knows about these Guardians. What else does he know that he's literally holding out on? "And there's no such person as Mickey!" Chief Bogo once again blinked as he lied again. "He doesn't even exist!"
"Well then, how do you explain all of this?" Judy motioned her arms to the damage that still remained around them.
"That was probably the storm that did it a while ago. It has nothing to do with magic."
"Chief, storms don't cut lamplight poles clean," Judy pointed to a pole that was cut down by Sparx. "And they don't destroy railings unless there was a fierce wind." She then pointed to the bamboo railings which remained torn apart by the arctic wolf's magic. "Sir, I am telling you this was done by-"
She didn't finish as Chief Bogo leaned in towards her with a scowl, surprising her a little as she tripped and fell on her rear. "If you say 'magic' one more time. I will literally throw you off this bridge and see if you fly like a bird, Hopps!"
Tracy glared and said to Mickey telepathically, Is that threatening enough?
Close enough. I'll handle this.
The ball of Mickey went to the bars and bent them, just enough for him in that form to go through, much to Tracy's surprise that he was able to do it while remaining in that form.
He flew towards Chief Bogo's face, gasping in surprise as he stood up while Mickey said to him through each word, "That. Is. Enough!"
The five mammal cops looked here and there when they heard a mysterious voice appearing out of nowhere while one of the rhino cops said, "What was that?"
Nick chuckled a little as he recognized Mickey's voice and crossed his arms, saying with a smug grin, "Oh, he's in trouble now."
"Chief Bogo," Tracy said as she already crossed her arms while having a smile on her face and the chief looking at her. "I want you to meet, Mickey." She motioned an arm towards the floating ball of light.
Chief Bogo's eyes widened when he looked back at that floating ball that turned out to be Mickey, after he already gave the chief a little bit of space. He reached out towards that ball, hoping to gently grab it with his hoof, but the ball gave a small flash and he grunted a little, feeling a small bit of shock as he shook his hoof. "Ah, ah, ah, I wouldn't do that. Only Tracy is allowed to touch me unless she says otherwise."
Tracy was confused when Mickey said "her saying otherwise". What did he mean by that? The mammal cops' eyes widened while one of the rhino cop's jaws dropped in shock. Did that floating glowing ball just talk to the chief? The ball of Mickey floated down to where Judy was, then the ball spun and took shape as stardust surrounded it, and Mickey was back to physical form with his hand offering to the rabbit cop. "Are you alright, Judy?"
"Yeah," Judy answered while taking his hand as he lifted her up. "Thanks."
The five mammal cops looked at one another when they saw the ball magically transformed itself to Mickey in physical form. They realized that Officer Hopps wasn't lying about that mouse or magic. So what the heck was going on here? "Hey, Mickey!" Nick said as the mouse turned to face him. "Where were you?"
"I was inside the king's grimoire till Tracy called me," Mickey answered.
Judy and Nick were a little surprised that he was inside the grimoire this whole time. As for the five mammal cops, they were once again shocked to find out that this strange mouse came out of this "grimoire". However, they were wondering about something. Since they heard the name Mickey and Officer Hopps mentioning King Mickey, is this strange but alien-looking mouse that king the rabbit was talking about? He sure didn't look the part.
"Now…" Mickey turned his attention to Chief Bogo with his arms crossed, his face unamused. "What do you have to say to your men since you just lied to them?"
"Chief," one of the rhino cops said. "What's he talking about and what's going on here?"
"I second that," another rhino cop said. "Officer Hopps could be right about something. Storms don't cause this kind of damage." He points to the scorch on the ground. "Not even a lightning bolt this close to the sky trams could pull this off."
"Yeah," another rhino cop said. "So why don't you tell us what your holding out on us?"
The five mammal cops erupted in a jumble of voices behind Chief Bogo's back. Some were taking Judy's side as she had already pointed out what had happened before arriving. Others wanted to know what the chief wasn't telling them and needed his answers. Bogo could only clench his one hoof while the other tightened as it was holding the cage in aggravation, then turned his attention towards them with narrowed eyes and yelled, "Alright, shut it!" Their voices ceased and the chief pointed at them. "Will talk about this later." He turned his attention back to Judy and Mickey. "As for you, Hopps…" He took a deep breath and sighed. "Alright, Mickey is real and so is magic. So what? Does he even have any proof of where this arctic wolf is or maybe your young fox?"
"I'm afraid I don't know where they are," Mickey answered for Judy. "But I do know that this arctic wolf is really dangerous and must be stopped at all costs. I can give you the information on what he looks like." He tilts his head towards the teenaged cat. "And Tracy can back me up."
Chief Bogo looks at Tracy, who the cat quickly nods. With another sigh, he looked back at Mickey and said to him, "Well, in that case, I'm taking you in."
This surprised Tracy, Judy, and Nick. "Why? For what reason?" Mickey asked.
"Wanna know why?" He points to the side without looking. "That's why!"
Mickey and the others, except Tracy since she couldn't see it through her cage, saw the smoke over the distance where Sparx used his thunder magic to cause a forest fire. The firefighters of the Rainforest District had managed to control the fire before it spreaded any further, but the damage was already done. They even saw half of the lights of Zootopia still having no power and yet to be fixed due to the shockwave caused again by Sparx.
"I had a feeling that Tracy was somehow behind this, but I can bet my horns that you too played a part in this as well!"
Tracy glared at Chief Bogo. How could he blame her for something she never did? Mickey sighed and said, "Yes, it's true, I did play a part in what happened." He looked back to the chief. "But I can assure you, I was trying to do my best in protecting Tracy."
"By what? Causing a forest fire, nearly putting lives at risk on the highway, and putting the entire city of Zootopia in a near-state of panic from that shockwave."
"Maybe the city should be scared. As long as that arctic wolf, whoever he is, and Sparx are out there. Nobody is safe! We need to gather as much help as we can and find them before this gets out of control! If we don't find them, then it just won't be Tracy that's in danger…" He points to the smoke over the distance and the city of Zootopia. "That right there won't be another forest fire or lights going out. It could mean the end of your city as you know it along with not just one life, but countless other lives if we stand here doing nothing."
"I agree," Judy said as she nodded. "We're wasting time! We need to find them and the savage jaguar before more lives are in danger."
Chief Bogo sighed and said, "You're right about one thing, we are wasting time. I will help find this arctic wolf and this...Uh, what is that young fox's name, Mickey?"
"Sparx."
"Right. I will do whatever I can to find them."
"Yes!" Judy cheered while whooping in the air, finally seeing that they were getting somewhere.
"However," Chief Bogo said sharply, cutting off her short celebration. "Does Mickey even have any evidence concerning your so-called 'savage jaguar'?"
Mickey gave an odd look. "Savage jaguar"? He thought. What's that?
I'll explain later. Tracy answered him telepathically.
"Well, no, but I-"
"Then we're done here," Chief Bogo cuts off Judy before pointing a hoof at Mickey. "As for you. You're coming with me." He turned his attention to the rest of the mammal cops. "The rest of you, let's go!"
Tracy could only give a worried look to Mickey before her cage was turned around and the mouse clone started to follow Chief Bogo. Don't worry, Mickey assured her, telepathically. I was going to go with him willingly for your sake.
Tracy sighed and said to him telepathically, Thanks.
"Wait, sir," Judy said as ran to him and slid to a stop. "Me and Tracy weren't the only ones who saw the savage jaguar." She turned her attention towards the fox and whispered, "Nick!"
"Nick, please," Tracy whispered to him as well. "Back us up here."
Chief Bogo scoffs and says, "You think I'm gonna believe a fox?"
"Now hold on!" Mickey said as his eyes glared at him. "You're not being fair! Let him-"
"You be quiet, round ears!"
"Sir, listen to him," Judy said. "He too is a key witness and I-"
"I gave you an order," Chief Bogo cut her off while showing Tracy still in her cage, "to keep an eye on this girl. And what did you do? You let her out of your sight and let her cause a bit of chaos here in Zootopia!" He then points to Mickey and adds, "What's even worse, she brings. That. Mouse! To cause even further chaos to the city!"
Mickey crossed his arms and tapped his fingers, his glaring eyes never leaving him while Judy said, "Okay, maybe you're right about one thing, about Tracy bringing Mickey here, but the rest of it is not-"
"And two days, Hopps. Two days to find the otter, or you quit. That was the deal." He holds out his hoof. "Badge."
Mickey was a little confused at first when Chief Bogo mentioned "two days" and an otter. Now he could vaguely guess what was going on and somehow Judy failed on her task. As for Nick, he could only look at the rabbit cop and the chief in shock. Now he understood why Judy was given forty-eight hours to solve the case of the missing otter. At first he thought it would be fun to see her and Tracy fail at their task, but now he realized that Judy literally put her badge on the line.
Judy exhaled and said, "But, sir, we-"
"Badge!" Chief Bogo said it again, this time sharply.
Tracy looked at the chief and Judy, then she turned her attention to the mouse clone and said to him telepathically, Mickey, do something!
I'm sorry, Tracy. Mickey gave her a sympathetic look. There's nothing else I can do for her. Judy chose this path. Now we must honor her choice. He gives her a small smile. But there is one thing I can give her. He placed a comforting hand on Judy's shoulder, surprising her a little as he said to her, "I know we've only seen each other once and we may never see each other again. Just know that you should be proud of yourself that you at least tried. So go with a smile on your face, knowing that you did your part in helping whatever way you can."
Judy sighed and gave a small smile from Mickey's comforting last words. "Thank you."
Mickey was right about one thing, she was a trier. Even if she leaves the police force, she could always remember the small bit of experience she felt when doing her service. The only regret she'll have was never knowing enough about Tracy. So far, she figured out that Tracy wasn't from this world and could probably guess that she might be an alien or something. The only thing she wanted to know about was what she was here for. Now she'll never know, but at least she had a very good run with that kid. With that, she slowly reached for her badge, ready to accept her resignation while keeping her dignity intact. However, before she could even pull it off her vest, the fox said, "Uh, no."
All eyes turn to Nick with Chief Bogo saying to him incredulously, "What did you say, fox?"
"Sorry, what I said was 'no'." He shook his head at the chief. "She will not be giving you that badge."
Chief Bogo grunts irritably.
"Look, you gave her a...a clown vest and a three-wheeled joke-mobile." He walked towards Judy and Mickey until he was standing behind the mouse clone. "And two days to solve a case you guys haven't cracked in two weeks?"
Chief Bogo looked slightly ashamed. The fox wasn't wrong. He and everyone at the police force were having a hard time trying to crack a case that hadn't been solved for two weeks now. He thought that not even a rabbit like Officer Hopps would solve it, even by herself. However, he never thought for a moment that a little cat like Tracy would arrive and butt-in on the case, especially that fox which was completely unexpected for him.
"Yeah, it's no wonder she needed to get help from a fox." Nick points to Tracy. "She's already got a good samaritan volunteering to help her." He then pointed his thumb to Mickey. "And she even brought this guy to give us some extra help." He motioned his arms to Chief Bogo and the other mammal cops before pointing to the chief. "None of you guys were gonna help her, were you?" Chief Bogo was about to speak, but Nick cut him off. "And another thing, don't you know that it's illegal to put an underage samaritan in a cage? All because of what? For what?" He points to the smoke over the distance and the city of Zootopia. "Because of that? Come on, use your head, chief!" He taps the side of his head to simplify what he said before bringing his arms towards the cage Tracy was in. "How could a single cat cause all that…" He points his thumb back to Mickey again. "When it was clearly obvious that this guy was the one who did it." He looks at the mouse clone and quickly adds, "No offense, Mickey."
"None taken," the mouse clone shrugged.
"He's not wrong, chief," a rhino cop said as he crossed his arms. "I mean look at her, she's completely harmless."
"I agree," the tiger cop said. "She's just a kid for crying out loud. There's no way she could've pulled off all those stunts. And she's too young to be in a cage."
"You see," Nick said. "At least they agree with me. Now, you gave Officer Hopps the forty-eight hours so, technically, we still have…" He counts for a moment before holding out his paws. "Ten left to find our Mr. Otterton, and that's exactly what we're gonna do. Speaking of 'we'..." He placed a paw on Mickey's shoulder and shook it a little. "We are gonna be taking this mouse with us because we're gonna need his protection just in case." He turns his attention to Tracy and bends down while smiling. "And as much as I want to see the little kitty cat be in her cute little cage…" Tracy glared at him and was about to say something, but the fox cut her off and pointed at her. "Be quiet!"
Stunned, the teenaged cat's eyes widened and thought, Deja vu. Mickey looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Don't ask.
"Would you kindly please let her out while we wait for the power to come back and-Oh, what do you know." He points to the city of Zootopia. "The power's back."
All eyes, except Tracy as again she couldn't see through her cage, saw the power return to the city of Zootopia. The sky trams that were connected to the city returned to power as they began moving again. Chief Bogo sighed and looked at Tracy, then sat her cage down and opened it. She quickly ran out of her cage on all fours as the chief closed it and picked it up. No sooner had he done that. Reow! Reow! He jumped and gasped as Tracy had already hopped twice and swiped her claws at him while hissing. He goes around her and backs away from her. Reow! Reow! He quickly backs away from her even further as she hopped twice again, swiped her claws at him for the second time, and hissed. However, she hissed a little too hard and gave a small cough.
The five mammal cops and Nick busted out laughing. Not because Tracy gave out a small cute cough, but because of the way Chief Bogo reacted. Even Mickey laughed a little while Judy snorted and covered her mouth with a single paw.
Chief Bogo glared at his men while Tracy massaged her neck and Nick walked over to her, ruffled her head a little, and said to her, "Alright, tigress, you showed him."
They heard a sky tram bell ring as it began its descent.
"Now, if you'll excuse us," Nick said to Chief Bogo. "We have a very big lead to follow and a case to crack." He gives him a two-fingered salute. "Good day."
Mickey places an arm around Judy and leads her while saying, "Let's go, Judy. We have work to do." He looks behind and adds, "C'mon Tracy!"
"I'm coming!" she called out. Before she followed them, she looked at Chief Bogo with those glaring eyes, then turned her head up. "Hmmph!" With her tail up, she dusts the back of her feet, her way of insulting him after he locked her in a cage, and strutted her way back to the group on all fours.
Chief Bogo and the other police mammals could only watch in silence as the group of mammals and a single round-eared mouse waited for the sky tram to appear. "Oh, yes, before I forget," Nick said as he turned around to face the police mammals. "That arctic wolf and Spark or whatever his name is, they both wear black robes. You can't miss them. I even highly suggest bringing in an army of cops or else it's gonna be really difficult to deal with them." The sky tram arrives and the fox opens the door while motioning his arm. "Officer Hopps." Judy steps inside first. "Tracy." The teenaged cat became the second to go inside the sky tram. "Mickey." The mouse clone became third before the fox joined him last and closed the door. The sky tram clanged its bell and began its ascent, carrying its passengers towards the city of Zootopia.
As it continued to ascend further away from the mammal cops, Chief Bogo said to his men, "Alright, listen up. Anything you've heard or seen, keep it to yourselves. Not one word must come out of this district no matter what. Let's move it, we're going on a mammal hunt!"
Before Chief Bogo could move past his men, a rhino cop stopped him by placing his hoof on his shoulder and asked, "Chief, who are these mammals and what're we even dealing with?"
Chief Bogo gently pulls away his shoulder and answers, "I'll explain everything along the way, let's go."
The five mammal cops looked at one another before following their chief. However, they were about to be unprepared for what they were about to hear from him.
Meanwhile on the sky tram, Mickey was sitting at the back with one leg crossed and both arms inside the sleeves of his robe. Judy, who was at the front with Nick, watches Chief Bogo leave, turns her attention away, and breathes deeply. Tracy was also at the front in between Judy and Nick, wrapped a single arm around the rabbit's waist and nuzzled her at the side. Judy smiles and scratches her ear before the two girls look at the fox. "Thank you," the rabbit cop said.
"Yeah, thanks for standing up for us," Tracy added.
"Well, don't just thank me," Nick tilted his head towards Mickey. "He too also stood up before I did. But…" He breathes deeply. "...never let'em see that they get to you."
"So…" Judy said. "...things do get to you?"
"No, I mean, not anymore, but I was small and emotionally unbalanced like you once."
She rolls her eyes sarcastically and looks away. "Har-har."
"No, it's true." Judy looks at him. "I think I was eight or maybe nine, and all I wanted to do was join the Junior Ranger Scouts."
Nick thought back to his younger days when he was still just a cub. His mother who was identical to him, wore a violet shirt and crimson skirt, both stood at a mirror. Young Nick wore a light-green shirt that had badges stitched together on it, dark-green pants with a belt, and a light-green hat with a badge that had a tree symbol stitched on it that said "Zootopia Junior Rangers". His mother had already fitted him in his red neckerchief, completing his uniform. He stands straight, trying to look fierce, but his mother tickles him from behind, causing him to flinch and giggle.
"So, my mom scraped together enough money to buy me a brand-new uniform, because by God I was gonna fit in. Even if I was the only predator in the troop. The only fox."
Young Nick runs towards the steps of a building that had a sign that said "Zootopia Junior Rangers Troop 914", then heads inside. He goes downstairs where he meets other scouts; a zebra, a hippo, a woodchuck, a goat, and an antelope. "Okay, Nick," the woodchuck said.
"I was gonna be part of a pack."
"Ready for initiation?"
"Yeah," Young Nick said as he went down the rest of the stairs with a confident smile on his muzzle. "Pretty much born ready."
"I was so proud."
"So what happened, Nick?" Tracy asked.
"Well, it was that one moment that changed my life forever."
Young Nick slaps palms with the zebra, then the woodchuck snaps his fingers and the lights go out. The woodchuck shines a flashlight on Young Nick's face, causing him to briefly wince from the light. "Okay," the woodchuck said. "Now raise your right paw and deliver the oath."
Young Nick raised his right paw with two fingers up. "I, Nicholas Wilde, promise to be brave, loyal, helpful, and trustworthy."
The woodchuck's smile suddenly fades. "Even though you're a fox?"
This confused Young Nick. "What?"
The woodchuck turns off the flashlight and before Young Nick could process what was going on, he was roughly shoved to the floor by him. He groaned while his hat came off and was held down by the zebra and goat. "No, no! What did I do wrong, you guys?!" All the other scouts were glaring at him as the hippo passed a muzzle to the woodchuck. "No, please! Tell me! What did I do wrong?!" The woodchuck placed the muzzle on him. "What did I do?!" Young Nick's voice became muffled by the muzzle. "No!" He shook his head, trying to get rid of the muzzle, but it remained strapped to his face.
The woodchuck laughed at him darkly. "If you thought we would ever trust a fox without a muzzle." The zebra and goat let him go. "You're even dumber than you look."
Young Nick runs out of the room, terrified, while the scouts laugh at him cruelly.
"Crybaby!"
"Aw, is he gonna cry?"
Young Nick bursts outside and runs to the side of the stairs. He leans against the wall and pants, trying to calm his racing heart. He tries to pull off the muzzle, grunting in the process, until he manages to pull it off his face and throw it away. He breaks down into tears and sobs quietly, sitting down and rubbing his eyes.
"I learned two things that day. One: I was never gonna let anyone see that they got to me."
Judy, Tracy, and Mickey remained silent and sympathetic over Nick's story until the rabbit cop broke that silence. "And two?"
"If the world's only gonna see a fox as shifty and untrustworthy, there's no point in trying to be anything else."
Judy and Tracy finally understood what Nick meant earlier about the world being against him. Ever since that one moment in his life, he was forced to become what he is now because he was nothing more than a fox to them. No matter what he does, nobody would help him or take his side. No matter what he even tries to say, nobody would listen to the words of a simple fox. It was just so cruel from what he had to go through and what the world had to throw at him for no reason at all.
Tracy goes around Nick until she was at his left side without him noticing while Judy slowly went towards him and said, "Nick, you are so much more than that."
She places a comforting paw on Nick's arm, then Tracy goes under his other arm, surprising him a little as she smiles and says, "She's right, y'know." She nuzzles his neck and purrs. Nick giggles a little and scratches the side of her ear. "You don't have to be what they want you to be. You can only be what you want to be."
Nick feels another comforting hand on his shoulder and turns to see Mickey, who smiles at the fox. "I agree with her. Don't let the world beat you, because there's a very old saying from where the real King Mickey lives: 'Live your life today and there will always be another way'. So matter what happens in life, find the right path. I'm sure that you'll find it someday." He reached over and tapped Nick's chest to where his heart was. "And I know that this will lead you to where you will go."
Nick sighed and gave a small smile at those kind words. He really didn't know what to say, but they started to believe in him. They really seemed like an odd team of mammals with one mouse clone tagalong looking out for one another. Wanting to change the subject, he looks over the side to see the smoke where the fires of the Rainforest District had finally quelled and said with a whistle, "Wow, never thought at this angle that kid who attacked us earlier possessed that kind of power to do damage." He then looked over to the traffic where the highway was being handled by police mammals and tow trucks trying to remove the damaged vehicles from Sparx's chase earlier. "And boy, oh boy, look at that traffic. You really did a number down there Mickey with that kid chasing you." Mickey cringed a little, then Nick added, "How about we go to Chuck in traffic central?" He puts two fingers up to his ear, imitating a reporter. "Chuck, how're things looking on the jam-cams?"
Tracy and Mickey giggled a little from Nick's joke. However, something crossed the teenager's mind. The traffic cameras. She thought.
Mickey looked at her oddly. What?
Tracy looked at him. Don't you remember the traffic cameras from when we were flying earlier on the highway?
There was a look of familiarity from the mouse clone. Actually yes. I did see them earlier.
"Nick, I'm glad you told us," Judy said.
Nick had the same idea, even without knowing it from Tracy. "The jam-cams…"
Mickey's eyes widened when something clicked. You don't mean…
Tracy nods her head.
"Seriously, it's okay."
"Wait, Judy," Mickey said. "The traffic cameras!"
"What?" Judy said to him, confused.
"Mickey's right and he's catching on!" Nick said excitedly. "There are traffic cameras everywhere!" He points to a fake palm tree that had two cameras. "All over the canopy!"
"Whatever it's seen through that's happened earlier-"
"-and whatever happened to that jaguar…" Nick added for Mickey.
Judy understood Nick's idea. "The traffic cams would have caught it!"
"Bingo!"
"Ho-ho, pretty sneaky, slick!" Judy playfully punches his arm.
"Yeah, however, if you didn't have access to the system before, I doubt Chief Buffalo-Butt is gonna let you into it now."
"I agree," Mickey said with a nod while leaning back on a bar behind him with his arms crossed. "After what just happened now, I doubt he'll be willing to help at all."
"Maybe not," Tracy said. "But we got both an ally and a friend at City Hall who might be able to help us."
Judy nods in agreement with her while Mickey uncrosses his arms and says, "Well, before we even start heading to the City Hall once this ride ends. First things first. Tracy, you might wanna take out your badge and start listening to King Mickey's message."
"Why?" Tracy asked, confused. "I mean can't it wait till after the case is done?"
"I'm afraid it can't," the mouse clone slowly shook his head. "This could mean the difference between life and death if you're not prepared." He bends down with a serious look. "So you need to be prepared for the battle you will soon face sooner or later."
Tracy could only sigh while Judy and Nick looked at one another.
