Chapter 1: Prologue! The Gray Bunny With Great Potential!
It was the same as it had been for the past few years now. Around this time of year, veteran Zootopia Police Department officer Alex Moon, who was dedicated to helping the city, had been selected by Bogo once again to go to the Zootopia Police Academy and scout out the cadets who had the greatest potential.
They had seen some fine recruits in the previous years, but Alex felt as if they were lacking in variety. Most of the officers on the force were medium size to large size herbivores and carnivores, such as rhinos, elephants, wolves, and bears. Not to mention the cheetah Clawhauser and the tigers.
So it had brought great pleasure to Alex when Lionheart had announced the Mammal Inclusion Initiative. This legislative program, if passed, would allow animals of all sizes and species to be accepted to jobs, and the employers would not be allowed to refuse an animal's application based on their species. Instead, they would have to be judged on their merits and job skills.
Alex drove in his police cruiser down to the Zootopia Police Academy. It was a little ways out of town, about an hour and forty-five minutes away from Bunnyburrow. The drive lasted forty-five minutes itself, and when Alex drove up to the entrance, the guard at the gate recognized him and gave him a salute before letting him pass through.
Once he parked his car, Alex checked in with the polar bear Major Friedkin and stood by her with a smile as the recruits walked in for their first day of training. Most noticeable among the recruits was a gray bunny rabbit. The moment he laid eyes on her, everything changed. As Alex gazed into the beautiful amethyst eyes of the rabbit, he felt his entire reality shift. A flummox of emotions shot through him, and a blazing feeling welled up within his very soul!
Alex was heavily confused, and if he was being honest with himself, a little scared. Nothing had ever evoked such a reaction like this from him… what was so special about this bunny that was making him feel this way? He was brought out of his dazed stupor by Major Friedkin's yelling. "Listen up, cadets! Zootopia has twelve unique ecosystems within its city limits. Tundratown! Sahara Square! Rainforest District - to name a few! You're gonna have to master all of them before you hit the streets or guess what? YOU'LL BE DEAD!" The polar bear officer shouted at the top of her lungs, giving the bunny a ferocious and unsettling glare. The bunny rabbit held her ground, but looked a little distressed.
Alex chuckled at this. "Oh come now, Friedkin. Very rarely do we have animals die from the harsh elements of the districts. Only a fool goes to Sahara Square without stocking up on water, and there's water readily available there unlike in a real desert. We have extra scaffolding and preventative measures in place to try and keep animals from falling in the Rainforest district. And the city has several warmth centers set up in Tundratown to combat hypothermia and the freezing waters," Alex assured all of the trainees, some of them visibly relieved by these revelations.
"However! This academy doesn't have those special amenities! Tough luck, kiddos. Back in my day, they didn't have all those safety measures in place," Major Friedkin scoffed. Alex smiled darkly and nodded his head in agreement. "That's indeed true! Hell, they didn't have those until about eight years ago! Oh, what I would have given for a warm place to stay when I was living on the streets…" Alex wistfully said.
"Scorching sandstorm!" The polar bear announced the first climate simulation exercise. The fans were blowing sand into the cadets faces. The bunny attempted to push through the sandstorm, but got knocked down and covered in sand. "You're DEAD, bunny bumpkin!" Friedkin yelled.
"One thousand foot fall!" She announced. The rabbit swung across from bridge bar to bridge bar before losing her grip and falling into the mud. "You're DEAD, carrot face!" The ursine screamed.
"Frigid ice wall!" Friedkin hollered out. Now this was one that gave most animals outside of Zootopia trouble. Most animals had never encountered such a cold substance as Tundratown ice. Expectedly, she fell off while trying to climb the ice wall. Prey animals often struggled with this, especially if they lacked proper claws.
When she fell into the ice water, Alex ran and got her a warm blanket, helping her out of the wet water. "You okay?" Alex asked her. She nodded her head. "Yes, sir! I'll be fine!" The bunny automatically said, standing up and giving him a salute as he handed her the blanket. Alex gave her a thumbs up. "You got guts, miss…?" Alex started telling her, indicating for her to tell him her name. "Hopps. Judy Hopps," The bunny introduced herself.
Alex smiled warmly at her and nodded his head. "Officer Hopps… I gotta say, that has a nice ring to it. Good luck, Judy," Alex told her, before he got up and walked away. "Alex, you shouldn't be so soft on the bunny," Friedkin sighed. "And you shouldn't be so hard on the cadets. Especially her. I noticed how every time she failed, you singled her out," Alex pointed out.
Friedkin grumbled, realizing that Alex was right. "Just trying to look out for her. I'd hate to have her graduate and then days later read that she became a bloody smear on the pavement, or froze to death in Tundratown. If she's going to be the very first bunny officer on the Zootopia police force, she's going to have to earn it," Friedkin growled.
The rest of the training for the day went about as miserably for Judy as the previous parts, with her failing at every exercise, yet she still pressed forwards. Alex had to admire her tenacity. Then came the part where they were supposed to fight a criminal. Everyone was partnered up with a different animal, but Judy was partnered with a rhinoceros!
"Major Friedkin, it's her first day. Shouldn't she be fighting someone closer to her size?" Alex asked. The polar bear groaned in frustration before picking up a pair of gloves and throwing them to Alex. "You want to test her so bad?! Freaking do it yourself, Alex!" She yelled at him.
Smirking, the white wolf put the boxing gloves on his paws before walking out to the ring, sliding underneath the ropes of the edges and assuming a fighting stance as he grinned at the bunny who would be his opponent. "Officer Hopps! Good to see you again," Alex called out.
Judy smiled and waved back at him. "Good to see you too, Officer…?" Judy asked. "Alex! Officer Alex Moon, at your service. Now, we are going to have a fight, and you are not going to hold back whatsoever! My colleagues regrettably do not see your potential like I do. They do not think you can become a ZPD officer. I want you to prove them wrong! Give me everything you've got, girl!" Alex called back.
"A brawl is certainly brewing… NOW GO!" Major Friedkin announced. Alex and Judy started running towards each other, ready to fight. Alex threw a punch at Judy, which she ducked under and socked him hard in the knees. "Good, good! Keep going!" Alex encouraged as he kicked outwards and tried to hit Judy. To his surprise, the bunny backflipped out of his reach and he ran towards her, connecting a punch with one of her own blows. She got sent backwards a little bit, but rubbed her nose and grinned.
"Come on, Hopps. I know you want to impress everyone! If you want to have people believe in you, you can't just keep doing what you're doing! You gotta do something bold!" Alex insisted as he threw another punch at her. Judy sidestepped his attack once more, and ran up to the edge of the ring, pulling back the ropes and using them to launch herself at Alex, pulling her leg back for a kick. She was intending to land on his stomach… but Alex straightened up, and she ended up accidentally kicking him in the balls.
"OH SWEET CHEESE AND CRACKERS! Officer Alex, I'm sorry!" Judy squealed as the wolf doubled over in pain. "Hahahahaha… HA HA HA HA!" Alex cackled in delight, holding up a paw indicating for Judy to stop apologizing. Groaning, he got back up to his feet, and smiled at her. "God damn, that is exactly what I was talking about. You have the courage of an officer. I see great potential in you, Judy," Alex chuckled. Judy's eyes sparkled as she heard him compliment her.
"You think… I have potential?" Judy excitedly said. "Damn right I do! You have the potential to be one of the finest cops on the force," Alex answered.