Finnick rolled over with a groan and buried his head under the soft pillow he'd been sleeping on. It took him a minute to remember where he was and why it was so bright in here. He'd fallen asleep looking out the large bedroom window of the loft apartment at Nick's house and had forgotten to shut the blinds before rolling over and falling asleep.
With an irritated growl, he rolled back over and sat up. Putting a hand over his sensitive eyes, he waited for them to adjust. He still couldn't believe Nick had invited him over. Of course, hearing he and bunny cop were chasing each other's tail was even more shocking. Rubbing his eyes, Finnick tried to take stock of the shocking events of the day before. Had yesterday evening actually happened? Had bunny cop actually asked him to become a P.I. so he could help her and Nick on cases?
Dropping his hand, Finn reached over and grabbed his phone and unlocked it. Pulling up his photos, he saw the picture he took of Cottontail when they were out on the porch, and there was the video he'd taken at the diner. Tapping on it, he watched bunny cop lay into the specist buck, and then watched him freak out when Nick growled sub-vocally at him. Laughing heartily at the dumb buck who thought he could compare to Nick, or that he could steal bunny cop away from him, Finn sent the video to his love-struck friend. It was obvious to him last night at dinner that bunny cop had eyes only for Nick.
He still couldn't believe Red fell for a bunny or that the bunny fell for him. They made such an odd pair, and had started out with such a rocky relationship, and yet now . . . he really couldn't see Nick with anyone else. And after watching the pair interact, he really couldn't see bunny cop with anyone else, either. She and Nick moved together so naturally—it was like clockwork. He'd never seen anything like it. The fact they were a pred/prey couple made it even stranger.
Wondering how the two got on after they arrived home last night, Finn rolled off the bed and stretched. No matter what bunny cop said, and remembering how touchy-feely Nick said they were, he seriously doubted they were 'going slow'. Rubbing his head with both paws, Finn still couldn't believe how quickly Nick had fallen for the determined ball of fluff. He always stuck his nose up at relationships, and never gave them a second thought—and now. He literally couldn't keep his paws to himself—and she encouraged him!
Still thinking about his lovesick friend and his unlikely relationship with the bunny cop, Finnick decided to take a nice, long, hot shower before finding something for breakfast. He forgot to buy anything for breakfast at the store last night, so he would need to raid Nick's kitchen when he was done—and maybe do some snooping while he was at it. With a grin, he turned the hot water on and stepped into the steamy stream.
….
Chief Bogo sat down in his chair and turned on his computer, then clicked on his emails. He'd gotten stuck in traffic and was now running late. There were several things he needed to get ready before roll call at 7 and he hoped to get everything together on time.
Seeing an email from Friedkin he immediately clicked on it and opened up the video she'd sent him. His eyes grew round as dinner plates as he watched the tiny ball of gray fluff knock a rhino out cold in a sparring match. Clicking out of the video, he brought up another one that showed Hopps defeat several other cadets in later sparring matches—wolves, tigers, and even a bear—she defeated them all. Not with brute strength, but with speed, agility, and strategy.
Sitting back, Bogo ran his hooves over his face as he recalled treating the undefeated champ as just a token bunny. Being so much smaller, Hopps had to think outside the box and adapt to the different challenges in order to win, which was a crucial ability to have as a cop, and one he realized his own, more seasoned officers, were now lacking. That needed to change—and it would start by showcasing Hopps's abilities. Saving the videos to the USB drive in his drawer, he pocketed it, then went in search of Higgins to set up the rest of the stuff he needed.
…..
Judy rolled over and yawned. Going by the light shining around her window curtain, she knew it was very early. Picking up her phone, she saw that it was a little before 7. She wanted to roll over and go back to sleep—her dreams of Nick were heavenly—but she knew Bogo was expecting them in a few hours, so she needed to get up . . . And wake Nick up, too.
With a grin, she decided to wake him up personally instead of using the phone. With crutches in hand, she made a quick stop in the bathroom, then hobbled quietly into Nick's room (she was glad he'd left both their doors open last night) and over to the side of his bed. He was laying on his stomach while hugging his pillow, and Judy thought he looked so cute (and quite handsome) in the pale morning light filtering through a crack in the curtains. With a sly smile, she leaned the crutches against the wall, then turned around and climbed onto the bed.
Nick's ear twitched as she crawled over to him and his nose huffed as he breathed in her scent. Turning his head, he subconsciously chased after the delicious scent of his bunny. Rolling over onto his side, he released his pillow and curled his body towards the tantalizing smell.
Judy reached over and let him smell her paw so he knew it was her (it was never a smart idea to startle a predator awake), then caressed his cheek, whispering, "Nick, it's time to get up."
Nick huffed as his ear twitched again and Judy reached up and caressed it. Nick flicked his ear away from her, then settled with a sigh. Scratching the base of his ear, he whined happily and leaned into her touch. With a smile, Judy leaned close to his ear and repeated, "Nick, it's time to wake up. Come on, up and at'em, Foxy-Loxy."
Nick took a deep breath, then his emerald eyes popped open to look at her.
With a bright smile, Judy warmly asked, "Hey, Slick. You ready to get up?"
Nick didn't immediately answer—and Judy wondered if he was really awake—then his arms darted out from under the blanket to grab her around the waist and pull her into his chest. Judy 'eeped' at the sudden movement, but Nick ignored her while mumbling, "Five more minutes."
Judy immediately relaxed into his embrace and snuggled into his chest while breathing in his musky fox scent with its hint of violets. "Maybe just five," she agreed, not really wanting to move now that she was wrapped in Nick's foxy embrace. With a deep, relaxing breath, she quickly slipped back into sleep.
….
Finnick walked through the back door a few minutes later and was sorely tempted to snoop around upstairs but knew that would be encroaching on Nick's territory. And Finnick had no desire to tangle with a territorial Nick now that the red todd had his mate in the house (even if it wasn't official yet).
With a shake of his head at his twitterpated friend, he dug out a fold-up stepstool from the broom closet and moved around the kitchen, gathering ingredients to make pancakes. He knew they had a meeting today with the Chief Fuzz, and by the sound of the silence, he didn't think they'd have a lot of time for preparing a satisfying breakfast themselves. Since he was up and had time, he figured making breakfast was the least he could do. Judy really had made his time with them last night enjoyable. She'd easily pulled him into their conversation with her questions and quick wit. Being made such a large part of the conversation was a happy change for him and he wouldn't mind hanging out with the bunny cop again.
As he turned the stove on to heat the pan, he began mixing the batter together and wondered when Nick would be down. If he wasn't down by the time the pancakes were done, he'd have to call and wake him up.
….
Chief Bogo walked into the bullpen at exactly 7 O'clock and after settling down his officers, he stared at them for several minutes of tense silence. This put his officers on edge as they knew from experience that they were not going to like what he had to say.
"As you know, Bellwether has been taken into custody and many of her co-conspirators have been apprehended, along with a few of our own."
This brought a wary look from many of his officers, but Bogo pushed on. "We are still in the process of catching the last few, but the media has finally gotten wind of Bellwether's arrest and the knowledge that she was behind all the savage attacks. This will make our job of catching the rest a bit harder now." A murmur went through the room and Bogo raised his hoof to calm them down. "Shut it." Once silence returned, Bogo said, "We'll discuss her agenda in a moment, but first,"—he paused a moment until he was sure everyone was focused on him—"I wish to discuss the two mammals responsible for discovering her savage plot and her subsequent capture."
Another murmur went through the room, some curious, a few with resignation, and several with disdain. Bogo could guess that the last group were thinking of the fox. With an inward sigh, he continued, "As you know, Officer Hopps, with the help of the fox known as Nick Wilde, took only 2 days to find our missing mammals 3 months ago. 2 days with no resources and no support from those she thought she could trust. The only person willing to help was a shifty street fox. Many of you thought this was just a fluke, that Officer Hopps merely got lucky. I'm here to tell you that her finding them was not mere luck, nor did she simply stumble upon them."
This brought more wary glances from his officers. With a heavy breath, Bogo said, "A few of you were with me when Officer Hopps claimed to have gone head to head with a savage jaguar." This brought a snort and chuckle from several of the officers, as no one believed she could have survived such a confrontation, even if she later proved that predators were going savage. "Yes, I thought it was ludicrous, too." Turning to the flat screen tv hanging in the corner of the room behind him, Bogo turned it on and accessed the USB drive plugged into it.
"I think it would do us all good to see what really happened during that confrontation." As the files popped up on the menu, Bogo clicked on the first one. "This is the video taken from the jam-cam and shows the whole altercation."
As the video began playing, it showed Hopps and Wilde running across a wooden bridge closely followed by a savage black jaguar. It showed them being chased into a hollowed-out log, then showed them jumping. The camera switched to one near a sky tram that showed Hopps slipping over the edge while Wilde ran for a waiting sky tram. Bogo paused the video here and looked over his officers. It was obvious the scene disturbed them.
"Does anyone still think she was crazy or blowing everything out of proportion?" There was several head shakes and a soft murmur, and then Bogo pointed out, "We have two mammals here who have some very strong stereotypes dictating how they should both act while facing such a dangerous, life-threatening situation. Officer Hopps is a rabbit. Society says that because she's a rabbit, she must be weak, timid, and unable to think clearly in fearful situations. That she'll be seized by fear and unable to act."
Several nods and murmurs of agreement were heard, and Bogo continued. "Next we have a red fox, which society claims is an untrustworthy, conniving, backstabber." There was a louder murmur of agreement, and Bogo asked, "So what do you think our two mammals will do in this situation. A savage jaguar is trying to kill and eat them. What will they do?"
There was a knowing snort from several officers, then Grizzolli stated from the back, "That's easy. That shifty fox is going to hop on that tram and leave Hopps to her fate."
"Yeah, and Hopps will freeze up and take a tumble off the platform," Johnsen stated. "She was found hanging upside down by the vines above the road below." There were several other officers who weren't there, but still agreed. There were also some backslaps and shoulder punching as the officers assumed what had happened. There were only a couple of officers with thoughtful expressions on their faces.
Bogo let them have their misguided fun for a moment, then said, "And yet it was Hopps and Wilde who were hanging upside down from the vines. Kind of hard to achieve if the fox left her to her fate, don't you think?" This shut the group up and Bogo pushed play again and let the rest of the scene play out, then commented on it. "If Wilde lived up to his stereotype of a shifty, untrustworthy fox, he wouldn't have hesitated to jump on that sky tram—and yet he didn't leave. He was worried about Hopps and lost his chance to escape. And if Hopps lived up to her stereotype of a weak, timid rabbit Wilde would be dead right now. Hopps kept her wits about her and protected a civilian, just as she was trained. And Wilde, because of his worry for Hopps, did not escape and was able to distract the jaguar long enough for Hopps to neutralize the threat."
He let these thoughts sink in for a bit, then asked, "How many of you would have kept your cool if a much larger predator was trying to eat you?" There was an uneasy murmur that went through the room, then he switched videos. "Many of you think that Hopps is small and therefore weak, making her a liability in a confrontation. I mistakenly thought that, too. This is a video of her time at the Academy." He first showed the video of her knocking out the rhino, then switched over to the video of her taking out the much larger predators. When the second video finished playing, he didn't immediately comment as he took in the shocked expressions of each and every officer in the room.
"I hope this proves the point that size is not always the determining factor in a fight." There were several stunned nods, and Bogo continued. "Now about Hopps and Wilde solving the Savage Mammals case—and here I hope to prove my point that Hopps and Wilde closing the Missing Mammals case was not a fluke."
Gripping the podium, he said, "The second day Hopps was on the force, she caught a weasel stealing what I assumed were moldy onions. Hopps was able to accurately determine they were a class C botanical flower. While home, she learned that Nighthowlers was the common term for this class C botanical flower. With this clue, she knew that the predators weren't going savage due to biology, but that they were being drugged to go savage. She also knew that if she found the weasel, she'd know who was making this drug."
Bogo held up his hoof, pointing diagonally towards the ceiling. "Hopps, like any excellent detective, was able to link seemingly random clues together to paint a larger picture. Random clues she obtained three months ago and was nearly fired and killed for." He paused, then regripped the podium and leaned forward to ask, "Which of you could do the same? To realize the petty crime that nearly got you fired, and a word from a mammal that then went savage and tried to eat you, were the two clues needed to crack this case wide open?"
There was an uneasy silence as the officers glanced at each other. Everyone wanted to believe they could figure it out, and yet everyone laughed when Hopps brought the weasel in and no one thought anything beyond it. And the savage jaguar attack—everyone scoffed at that story, too.
"Now, once Hopps figured out the clue in Bunnyburrow and returned to Zootopia—did she bring the information to the ZPD? Did she tell one of you what she found out or what she planned to do?" At a murmur of "no" and after several head shakes, Bogo then asked, "Why?" He stared hard at his officers and then repeated, "Why? Why did Hopps go to a fox she picked up off the street with such critical information instead of turning to her family in Blue?"
This time, most of the looks he saw were ones of guilt. "I'll tell you why. Because we failed her. We did not bring her into the ZPD family. We did not show her a helping hand. And we did not give her any encouragement. We merely tolerated her presence. I admit that I treated her no better when she first arrived. We belittled her. We laughed behind her back. We scoffed at her attempt to do her job. And I tried to fire her when she actually did her job. And when I was forced to give her a case, I set her up for failure." Bogo took a deep, tense breath. He hated admitting he was wrong, but the changes he wanted to make had to start with him.
"So Hopps did not come to us for the help she needed. Instead, she went to the one mammal in all Zootopia she knew she could trust. The one mammal who had the resources she needed to track down her leads." And here Bogo tapped his head to show where Wilde's resources were. "And the one mammal she knew had her back." Straightening up, Bogo looked out over his officers and met their eyes one by one. Taking a deep breath, he regripped the podium and stated, "Hopps sought Wilde out when she returned to the city and asked for his help, and you better be eternally grateful that he accepted."
With a hard glare, he stated, "Because if he hadn't"—Bogo raised a hoof—"Hopps would not have lived to get a sample of the serum so an antidote could be made." He jabbed his hoof on the podium. "Hopps would not have met Bellwether and figured out she was behind the attacks." Again, Bogo jabbed the podium. "And Hopps would not have survived nor had the means to get a confession out of the psychotic sheep." He jabbed the podium one last time.
"When next you see that fox, you show some respect because if he didn't follow Hopps, if he wasn't the trustworthy, loyal, courageous mammal she knew he was, then by this time next year every predator in Zootopia would be wearing one of these." Bogo reached down to pick up several devices from a tub on the table next to him, and then held them up so everyone could see them. Four collars sized for a bear, a lion, a tiger, and a wolf were clearly seen. "Every predator in this room would have one of these nasty devices strapped to their necks. And every time you got angry, or felt fear, or pain, or excitement of any kind, this device would send a shock through your system that would have you writhing on the ground."
Shaking them in the air, Bogo explained further, "That's right. These are shock collars. Bellwether labeled them tame collars and had one made for every predator in Zootopia"—he held up a thick stack of papers that had rows of names on them—"which means that not only would you be collared, but your mates would be collared, your kits from 5 years old and up would be collared—every predator would be collared." There were growls heard now from the predators in the room as they imagined their wives and kits collared and shocked into emotional apathy.
Returning the papers to the podium, though he kept the shock collars up in the air, Bogo stated again, "So be grateful Wilde did not live up to his stereotype as a sly, conniving, backstabbing fox, because I assure you, he had plenty of opportunities to run away. But he didn't. He proved that he was more than a filthy fox just as Hopps proved she was more than a timid bunny. And because they trusted one another, believed in each other, and worked together, you will not be wearing shock collars"—he looked at the predators in the room—"your mates and kits will not be wearing shock collars, and our fair city of Zootopia will not be turned into a hate-filled Dystopia under terrorist rule."
Bogo let these thoughts sink in for several minutes, then dropped the hated collars back into the tub. "Now I just have one more thing for you to hear. This is Bellwether's confession and I think you'll find it interesting to hear how Hopps was able to pull it off." After hitting play for the audio file on the USB drive, he watched his officers listen to Judy's confrontation with Bellwether, the mayor's plans to dart every predator in Zootopia to keep her reign of terror going, and then how she darted Wilde in order to kill Hopps.
As the audio file finished and silence returned to the room, Bogo once again looked over his officers as they shifted uneasily in their seats. Being told how evil Bellwether was, was one thing. Hearing it straight from her mouth—something else altogether. And then listening to how Wilde acted savage to get a full confession, and that Hopps went along with it—it left them all in deep thought.
Jabbing the podium with his hoof again, Bogo said, "I think the audio file speaks for itself. Bellwether is a murdering terrorist of the worst kind. Hopps is cop material if ever I saw one. She kept her cool and thought out a plan to bring a criminal mastermind to justice. Wilde proved his loyalty and integrity, as well as an ability to think quickly on his feet, even in the face of possible death, just as Hopps did." Gripping the podium, he leaned over it slightly and added, "And I don't think he'd make such a bad cop himself."
This last statement brought a shocked gasp from the room, then several officers made their disbelief heard. "You can't be serious!" followed by, "A fox cop! No way!" And finally, "Unbelievable! You actually want a filthy pelt in the department."
Bogo's eyes narrowed at the rhino who made this last comment. "That fox just saved the city, or did nothing I just say sink into that thick skull of yours?" The rhino's ears flattened at the reprimand, and Bogo continued, saying, "Wilde has proven that he has everything the ZPD stands for: Trust, Integrity, and Bravery. And saying he can't be a cop simply because he's a fox is the same as saying Hopps can't be a real cop simply because she's a rabbit. It's all about whether or not they can overcome their stereotypes. And whether or not we can see past their stereotypes."
Straightening back up and putting on a smile that did nothing to reassure his officers, Bogo stated, "And on that note, I will be implementing changes in the department over the next few weeks. I won't go into them right now but be looking forward to them." Picking up the files for the cases they were currently working on, he said, "Now, the assignments for today."
After dolling out all the cases and assignments, Bogo gave a heavy sigh and picked up the tub of shock collars and list of predators that lived in Zootopia and the surrounding towns. Making his way wearily back to his office he sat down and rubbed his hooves over his face. The day was just starting and already he had a headache.
WingedKatt here, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Some more plot threads appeared and Judy got to snuggle with Nick. Yay! Next chapter will show Finnick having an interesting conversation with Nick, followed up by him asking Judy some very pointed questions resulting in some unexpected answers.
Chapter 28: Most Important, will post on Saturday. As always, if you have any thoughts or comments, I'd love to hear them. Have a great week.
