Disclaimer:

The following is a fan-based fiction. Zootopia and its characters are owned by Disney. The songs I reference here belong to their respective artist as well.


(The song Clint Eastwood by the Gorillaz begins to play)

Chesterization proudly presents

A Zootopia fanfiction

Wild times with Wilde

(Song ends)

Chapter 3: An old friend

Alex returned as the midday sun pierced through the dirt-stained glass roof. His left hand held a plastic bag wrapped around two takeout boxes. His other hand dragged the gym bag across the ground, whipping up dust as he went. His head reached up and yelled. "Ey, I'm back. Have you given up yet?"

Nick in his casual shirt and jeans did not answer. Not because he was too busy with the finishing touches for his model, but because he had answered that question so many times. A fox could only say "No" so much. Nick was at his "work table". His eyes concentrated on the collection of small wires and plastic pieces, while his hands gripped tight to a tweezer and a glue tube. Beside him were a handful of drawings, notes, and tools.

Alex did not pay much attention to Nick's model. He just laid the plastic bag on one of his workbenches. This one had a dissected flip phone on top. "Okay, I brought lunch, as usual." He shifted to a patronizing tone. "Have any intention to pay today, Mr. Wilde?" He took out one box, opened it to reveal a dozen of coconut worm larvae (alive and swimming in red sauce). "IOU it is." He picked up one larva and ate it whole. "Umm, you know, Nick. I'm starting to think that is just your elaborate prank to get me to feed you." Alex pulled out one of his cracked phones and type in the number 8.65.

"Kid, patience is a virtual and so is silence."

"Pf, yeah, yeah." Another larva was gone. "Anyway, what do you got there?"

"It's a model for the park. You cannot pitch an idea without some form of illustration."

Alex turned his head and finally paid some attention. It somewhat resembled the dome that they had been living in the past few days. Except it had brighter colors, a few meticulously cut out of palm trees and a miniature sign decorated by small functioning Christmas lights. The sign said, "Wild Times with Wilde". However, the "with Wilde" were dangling and seem out of place. "Wow, it looks, adequately impressive." He ate another larva and swallowed it, before saying, "I have underestimated you, Mr. Wilde." He then squinted his eyes. "There is something wrong, though."

"Really? Where?"

Alex pointed. "Isn't the whole "with Wilde" thing kinda redundant? I mean, can't you just cut it?" Alex slurped some of the sauce.

"I was thinking the same, but the name "Wild times" could be a common thing. It might be copyright protected." Nick's respond nearly made Alex spat all the sauce.

Alex wiped the corner of his mouth. "Nick, we are building an amusement park without proper permits and a non-existing fund. I'm pretty sure copyright is the last thing we should worry about."

"In that case" Nick used a wire cutter and snapped off the "with Wilde" in two clean cuts. "All right, I think we are ready to go."

Alex's ears perked up. "Already? Good." He wolfed down the rest of his larvae along with the sauce. The red sticky liquid dropped and rolled on his hoody like blood. "Finish your lunch and hop in the car."

Nick covered his model with a thin veil and picked it up. He turned to Alex. "Alex, I got something for you on the couch. You need that for today."

"Oh, really? As long as it's free, I'll take that."

The cat approached the worn couch while Nick walked to the fully fixed truck. He laid his model in the back seat, carefully locked it with the seatbelt. Nick turned around and saw Alex, fully dressed in the last suit made by "John Wilde and son". The cat scratched on various parts of the sleeve. "Kinda itchy, but, I'll take it. You know what? I'll scrap those IOUs just for this one."

It took a while for Nick to register what had happened and said. "How, did you, change that fast?"

Alex just shrugged. "I have practice, for, reasons. Don't mind that, just go have lunch and dress nice, I'll wait in the car. Oh, don't forget the forms I printed out for you." He pointed at the printer.

Alex walked to the back of his truck and picked up a plastic shell shaped like a cat's leg. He put it on his right leg and locked it tight. The thing gave the illusion of his leg being prosthetic. He needed that to match the disable tag he put on his car.

Nick shook his head and said. "When will you live true with yourself?"

"When it pays well."

Half an hour later

Alex flashed one of his "collected" parking tags on a digital reader, which was placed outside the Lemming Brothers bank's parkade. The machine let out a quick bleep, giving Alex the permission to enter Zootopia's largest bank. "Ha, would you look at that. Not so petty now, isn't it Nick."

"Yeah, just remember to lock the truck tight. Don't want those to go missing when we get back."

A few minutes later, Nick and Alex were standing in front an elder lemming in suits. Nick put his model on the desk, while Alex presented him with a loan application form. Alex then hung a printed plan that included rides and attractions on a canvas that he had "borrowed". With a nod from each other, Nick began.

"You know they say you can't put a price on happiness. To them, I say you can. Bang!" He slapped a small yellow tag that said 19.95 on his model. "There it is 19.95 per ticket. I have a building line up, I have the plan, I have the staffs. "Nick pointed toward Alex.

Alex added. "There will be more of us."

Nick continued. "I have the dream. The only thing I don't have is a loan to make it happen, friend." Nick stuck out his hand, offering a handshake. "Will you help me make it happen?" He said with a wide PR grin.

The lemmings stamped a red "Rejected" mark on the form that both had prepared the day before. Nick sighed and grabbed the model. Both walked away without saying another word.

Later, Nick got into Sahara Saving. Nick did the same demonstration in front of an elephant.

"Will you help me make it happen?"

The elephant stamped a "Rejected" mark so big that the R and –ted were printed on the desk instead.

Later

"They say you can't put a price on happiness. To them, I say, Hogwash."

The owner of Piggy Bank did not take that remark too well. With ink made from mud, he stamped, "Rejected".

Later, a different bank, with a giraffe behind the desk

"Will you help me make it happen?" His voice echoed in the giraffe's ears.

A stamp with an extra-long handle answered: "Rejected".

Afterward, Alex suggested. "These guys have probably heard those buzzwords like millions of time. Try something less, salesman-ish."

Later, in front of three Koalas

"I want to introduce you into an untapped market-predator. Yes, they are only 10% of the population, but 10% of a few million is still a large margin. With this amusement park being the first and only of its kinds, imagine the profit that this would bring if we charge 20 dollars per ticket. This idea literally pays itself. So, what do you think?"

One of the Koalas asked.

"What kind of attractions do you have in mind?"

"The wildest kinds."

The Koala raised her finger. "I have to stop you there. Shouldn't the T.A.M.E. collars be a factor that hinders the enjoyment?"

Alex dragged his finger across his neck

"I mean, mild entertainment?"

"We are done here." She stamped the word "Rejected" on Nick's paper.

Alex whispered to Nick as they left. "So close."

Later, at the Borrow Burrow, which was owned by a band of bunnies. Nick looked straight into their round yet empty eyes. "I want to put this on the table." He pointed at them. "You don't like mammals like me, and I do not like mammals like you, but what do we both like? Money." He rubbed his fingers together. "You have it, I want to borrow it, and then we both make a lot of it." He gritted his teeth. "Huh?"

With their tiny hands, they stamped "Rejected" in unison.

Later, in front of a moose

Nick tried to act as laid back as possible "Desperate, ha, I'm not desperate."

The moose did not buy that and stamped "Rejected".

Later

"I am desperate." The first thing he gave to the zebra in the next bank, and "Rejected" was the last thing the Zebra gave him.

Later, at the "Very Small Business Administration"

"Look, I get it, no one wants to throw money down a rat hole, eh, and by that I mean no disrespect"

With a stamp made of cheese, the mouse stamped "Rejected".

Later, at JP Mare-gan

"Look I don't want to beat a dead horse here. Ehhhh, I'm just gonna leave, over and over again." The female horse put her hoof down, stamped the word "Rejected".

Afterward, Alex applauded. "Real smooth Nick, real smooth."

Nick let out a long drawn breath. "Yeah, I don't know what I was thinking. Oh, my god, this is getting ridiculous."

"We can only stop here."

"No, let's try a few more."

An hour later, after a mind-numbingly long meeting with a bank run by sloths, both of them returned to the car. Nick was leaning in his seat; his hands covered his forehead. "Okay, this is a little harder than what I expect it to be."

Alex said, with a softer tone. "Look, Nick, it's not a little harder, it's impossible." Alex raised his index finger. "Hear me out. It's not like that there's something wrong with the concept. Okay? Yes, it's horribly flawed in some areas but makes economic sense; even if we scrap the "totally wild" part. But, here is the thing. To these preys, we, predators don't exist. See where I'm getting at?" He put his hand back on the shift gear.

"I do."

"Good." Alex turned the key. He then tried to exclude all the cynicism in his mind before saying. "You tried okay. No one is accusing you of it. It's admirable that you even went this far. But, in the end"

"Alex, honest question, do I exist to you?"

Alex turned off the engine. He chuckled. "That's a strange question." With his eyes opened as wide as possible, he looked straight at Nick. "But, I do believe that you might be a personality that I hallucinated. A voice in my head that would soon convince me to break more laws and eventually bring down the social order as we know it. Luckily, there is an easy way to verify." He flicked his finger across Nick's forehead. The fox recoiled a bit, more from annoyance than pain. "Yup, you exist, so what?"

Nick said while rubbing his forehead. "So, we just need to look for predators with money. Problem solved. Who said predator can't have them?"

"Hahaha, that's rich. The only predator with that kind of money is…Kos ehhhhhhhh, nope" Alex's brain rang a siren, forced him to close his mouth, quickly.

Nick crossed his arm. He flashed the traditional sly fox expression at Alex. "Who is it, Mr. Mieu?"

Alex glued a grin on his face. "Never mind what I have said, sleep depravity is making me delirious and talk funny."

"No, don't you dare run away. Tell me, who is it?" Nick pointed at him, his left eye pierced into Alex's core.

Alex took a deep breath then let a drawn out breath escape. "Arghhhh. This is not going to end well. Okay, let's get to the Tundra Town."

After some time, both were climbing on the gigantic steps of a luxurious hotel named "Winter Palace". Most buildings in Zootopia then to have modern structures and designs that tried to distance themselves from nature images. However, that was not the case with the Winter Palace and the Palm Tree hotel. Both seemed to embrace nature and set to send out the message of "Nature=Luxury". While the latter structure resembled a humongous palm tree that supported the heaven, the former bore no different from a real glacier.

Witnessed the size of the hotel, Nick asked. "How did you know this guy?"

"I have written a few, "special" computer codes for him, in exchange for getting some paperwork done."

"Okay, I guess that somehow explain why you spray-painted yourself?" Nick addressed the dark gray color on Alex's white fur.

Alex said, his voice trembled a bit, from both the cold and something else. "I can't see him as Alex, Nick. From now on, refer to me as Harry, just Harry."

"Why do you need to be so worried? You did something for him he returned the favor. I don't see why you need to make such a big deal."

Alex said through his teeth. "You don't get it, Nick. Doing favors for the mafia is like showing your mother how to use the Internet her new smartphone. You think you only need to do it once, but you are dead wrong! She will always ask for more. In this case, instead of sulking, your mother is willing to maw your body in half if you don't continue. See the point?"

"Okay, I can see why." Nick had a second thought. "I should be in the clear right? I'm just asking for a loan. As long as I pay, it's good, right, right?"

"There is no telling with Mr. Big. So prepare yourself for the worst."

They entered the hotel. The inside was surprisingly warm and one could say, welcoming. The red fabric, furniture and world-class paintings of nature made the inside more vibrant and lively than the dull crystal walls of the exteriors. From the walls, the sound of Tchaikovsky's Le Lac Des seeped through. There was no line in front of the receptionist, giving Nick the chance to get right to business. As Nick approached mountain goat receptionist, she asked, "Do you have an appointment, Mr"

Nick gave that fox face again. "Wilde, Nick Wilde. I'm here to make a request to Master Koslov or Mr. Big."

She turned to her right, jerking her head as a signal. A polar bear nearby stood up. "Hum, you seem to be at the wrong place, Mr. Wilde." She flashed a sinister looking grin.

With his hands on the desk and his head closing in on her, he said. "I have a request that would definitely interest him."

"How sure are you, about this, request?"

"I'm willing to bet our lives on it."

Alex or Harry's ears perked up "Wait, did you just said our?"

"Excuse me." The goat smiled and walked to the back, obscured from Nick's vision. Before Alex could complain, she returned. "Master Koslov will see you shortly, please, follow me."

Nick said, rather smugly. "Looks like we are in".

Alex whispered. "In deep, that's where we are."

She led them to a basement, filled with hundreds of locked doors. The one at the very end was their destination. It was a humongous door, more than enough to fit the biggest of polar bears. The goat opened it, allowing Nick and Alex to step in.

They were now in a room with the only light source being the lamp above a large table. Standing at the opposite side to Nick were two polar bears, both donned black suits that usually associated with mobsters in movies. "Have a seat." The polar bear in the left said. Nick and Alex complied; they shared the giant chair that the bears had laid out. Alex felt chill across his body, except for his back, which was sweating like mad. With Alex's reaction and the piercing glares coming from the polar bears, Nick was starting to feel anxious.

Another polar bear stepped in. He was bigger than any mammal in the room. He sat down on his chair, sending a vibration across the floor and rattling the golden chain on his neck. His accent bore tremendous weight. "You walked into my Palace and demand to see me like this. Your courage is most commendable, but it is better worth my time. Tell me, what is your "request"?"

Nick said with a small smile. "Mr. Big, sir, I just want a small loan for a special project of mine."

The bear ran his claws across the edge of his chin. "Project? What kind?"

"The best kind there is. I will build an amusement park, exclusive to predators. The place where all predators are free to be themselves and be wild. I'll call it, Wild times. With this being the first and probably the only one of its kind, success is almost guaranteed."

Koslov had a look at him then said. "Ambitious indeed. Hum, how much do you need?"

Alex pulled out his phone and turned the calculator app on. After a series of typing, he said. "Well, follow my calculation, we would need, this much."

"Give that to me, Harry." Nick then snatched the phone away. Nick looked down and decided to change the previously agreed number. "Sorry, I just need to double check the numbers." Nick subtracted some numbers, then presented the phone to Koslov."Here you go, Mr. Big, sir."

"Pass it to me," Koslov ordered one of his henchmen.

The polar bear on Nick's right approached him and picked up the phone in the most dedicated way he could muster. With respect, the bear showed the phone to Koslov. The mob boss gave it a quick look and said. "Reasonable. Give it to them." The bear with the phone then went to a room to Koslov's left.

"With the scope of what you have in mind, I expect you to pay up in three months." Alex and Nick then looked at each other, expecting a word from each other. Koslov chuckled. "Have some faith, boys. If success is indeed almost guaranteed, then this deadline should not be a problem."

The bear then came back. In his hand was a wad of money slightly thicker than a softcover romantic novel. Attached to the wad was Alex's phone. He threw the wad on the table. Alex reached his hand out and took it. Koslov snapped his fingers. "Listen, if you two ever thinking about running away." The two bears lifted the table up, revealing a large hole on the floor. Nick could see his distorted reflection on water surface reside within the hole. He swore that there were faint shades of orange underneath the water. Koslov continued. "You are free to join your brethren." The implication was clear to Nick. His body reacted upon this realization with a numbing shock down his spine. "Understood?" Koslov ended his sentence by shooting a glare at Nick.

Koslov's last question made both yelped in unison, "Yes sir."

"Good, you two are free to do." Koslov fanned his hand, telling the two bears to escorted Nick to the main door.

Once outside, the bears then gave both the standard sent off for Mr. Big's lesser guesses, tossing them to the snow below the steps of "Winter Palace". Fortunate for the both of them, the only thing that got hurt was their pride. Nick got up first and dusted himself. His suit showed slight hints of damp. Alex raised his head from the snow, leaving some of his gray paint in the dent of his face. "Oh my god, we're still alive!" Nick offered him a hand, and he took it. Alex then gave Nick the wad of money. After a quick look on the phone, he said. "Nick, this money is not enough. It barely covers the land."

"I know. But if I ask higher, we wouldn't be able to pay up."

"But how are we supposed to round up the last of the money? We are still one amusement park short. I don't think the left behind scraps are gonna cut it."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it. Take me to the South East. I have to gather a few things."

Another half hour had passed

"Eh, Nick, where is this place? Look like a freaking retirement neighborhood for my childhood nightmares" Alex asked while looking at the moss-covered part of the city. He received parts of his answer after noticed the "something-hn Wilde and son" sign.

Nick said. "It's my home slash office slash tailor house. I'll just grab something real quick." He then unlocked the door. "Mayor Bellwether has been eyeing this location for a while now. Sooner or later, I have to give it to her, might as well do it now."

The realization made an impact in Alex's mind. "Eh, hey, Nick, listen, that means, should this thing fail, you will lose everything."

Nick tried to maintain a smile. "Can't say it's a fluke if I give it everything I got, right?"

"Nick, this is no joke."

"I would never joke at desperate times. I've already made up my mind, so don't delay it."

"Agh, fine. Do you need any help?"

"Sure, get a bag or something."

Nick stepped in the place, for the last time. He opened up the bottom drawer of the stack and took out a few envelopes. He had a quick flip through the documents. Some of them carry his name; some of them carry the name of him and his father. He put all the documents in his suitcase. He dug his hand in the drawer again, trying to clear it through. What he came across were pieces of his father paper model of "Suitopia" the concept name of "John Wilde and son". The pieces of paper brought back some eerie memory. Eerie in just how similar what had happened to his father was back then, to what Nick had experienced that day. He and his father both tried to go from banks to banks, asking for a loan to make a dream come true. Nick felt thankful that he did not get into any trouble with the security. Unlike back then, when Nick's attempt to help one of the preys to stamp the word "Rejected" was considered a threat.

Nick shook his head, snapped out from the memory and put the paper model pieces in the suitcase. He looked around, tried to find something else that would not trigger a memory. He failed in that regard when the photo of him and his father came into view. The photo was taken way before the time they moved into Zootopia. Back when Nick's biggest ambition was being a boy scout. Nick put his hand on the photo frame. A weird sensation ran across his back then plagued through his body. It was warm at first, but the feeling turned cold and crippling real fast.

Alex, having practiced moving from place to place multiple times, have all of Nick's tailor tools in his Elkea bag before Nick even touched the photo frame. He was about to say "All clear." like a terribly programmed NPC in some knockoff video game. However, seeing the way Nick look at that collection of wood, glass, and paper, he took the bag out and laid it on the truck. Soon enough, Alex automatically tasked himself with stripping the place clean, while Nick was still lost in the echoes of his past.

It was now 4:30 PM

Nick finally finished up with the place and head back to the truck. The fox said. "Thanks for helping out, sorry I couldn't do much."

"No problem. We all been there." Alex paused. "So, should we head back or you want to get this whole thing done today."

Nick, half closed his eye and locked his hands loosely, said, "Just, take me to City Hall, please."

"Will do, strap in." Alex turned the key. The car jerked a bit, making Nick's items screamed in protest in the back of the truck.

It was nearly 5 PM when the truck reached the heart of Zootopia. Alex expressed his dismay toward the devices littered these pavements. "Oh, Seriously? Coin parking meters? This is a rip-off if I ever saw one. Who the hell use coin anymore?" He then turned to Nick. "Okay, Nick, I know your mind is experiencing a lot of turmoil right now, but can you hurry the hell up?"

Nick answered, severely lacking in motivation. "Sure, I just want to get this over quick anyway."

Alex was disappointed in the lack of clever remarks there. "Kay. Sure, I'll wait." Alex said as he put in all the coin that he had into the machine. "Okay, we have half an hour, let's hope that the line in there is not too long."

Alex headed back in the truck and crossed his arm. His hand gripped his arm tight, squeezing close to the bone. No matter how badly his mind wanted him to stay awake, his body simply turned to sleep mode. He sat there, arm crossed and head drooped as low as his neck permitted.

Inside the mayor office

"Mayor Bellwether, you have a." A feminine voice popped up from a telephone.

A sheep's finger pressed hard on one of the phone's buttons. "I know, I know, dear, just let them in. I'm ready." The sheep mayor tried to straighten up the fluff of wools on her head. The post-it note "Must not show any sign of breaking down toward anyone" was in her view the whole time. She looked away from the note and focused on the door. She plastered on a smile fitted for a mayor. That smile deteriorated slightly when she recognized her new guess. "Oh, Nicholas, what brings you here?"

"Not much. I'm here for the offer."

"Oh. You finally decided?" The mayor reached down for something while keeping eyes contact with Nick.

"It's inevitable I guess. No demand, then what is the point of keeping the supply?"

"I'm sorry to hear that." The telephone beeped with hostility. "Argh, please excuse me."

"Mayor Bellwether, there is another" The same voice spoke out from the phone.

"I know, please, put them on hold. I'm having someone." The mayor sighed while her left arm keeping her head from slamming into the mahogany desk.

"Something's wrong, Mayor?"

"No, it's fine. It's mayor's things." Her cheek desperately tried to maintain the mayor smile. "There are always too many things that keep piling up. Anyhow, I'll get your check ready in a moment."

She took out an empty check and started writing. "This should help you get a decent apartment and something for a startup. You can always build something new. Doesn't have to lean on the past for too long, hum?" She said.

"I concur, Mayor Bellwether."

Upon hearing that someone finally agreed with her for once, the mayor said "Thank you. I'll make sure that your, sacrifice will be worthwhile" with a smile. She then handed him the tiny piece of paper that represented the value his home.

Alex crashed his head into the steering wheel, setting off the horn. His neck tightened, forcing his head to pull up. Dazed, he looked to his left, seeing the red piece of plastic that said "Expired" inside the meter. "God dang it." He screamed. His collar turned red and zapped him. To make matter worse, he caught the vision of a ticket on his windshield. His collar set up another discharge. That did not deter him from stepping out of the truck and yelling out. "Aw c'mon, I'm a disable for crying out loud!" The collar shocked him a bit more. He looked at his phone, checking the time." I was only 42, 43, 44 seconds late. Hey, meter maid, are you listening to me!" Alex addressed to the bunny who was preparing to print the next ticket.

The bunny turned to him. She tried to address Alex in a calm voice; her mind ran through the script that the chef had given her. "Sir, if you have any grievance, you can "

Alex's collar shocked him again. Its inner surface touched one of his veins. The shock was starting to blur his vision. Soon, he could not see far enough to notice the three small scars on the bunny's face. "Argh, dang it!" He shook his head then pointed at her. "Listen, I'm not going to court for a gosh dang parking ticket. I have all kind of digital tags on this thing. Digital, modern stuff, that I, I paid good money for."

She latched the ticket dispenser on the back of her belt. "You should have known about the City Hall area. It's pretty obvious."

"But what is the point? With everywhere in this city use digital cards and nearly no one use coin anymore. Why this place is so bloody special?"

"Sir, I'm just doing what the law tells me to do. "Expired" prompt means ticket." The bunny slowly reached for something strapped on her belt.

The collar shocked him again. After each shock, he appeared more agitated. This struck at odd for the meter maid, since all the instructions and manuals had told her that the collar should make predators calm down. He made a face. "Argh, Lady, I, have no intention to stand around for this absolute b"

Nick's voice entered the scene. It backed to the laid back and sly tone. "Calm down a bit there, Alex. You are making a scene. Think of the children."

Alex turned around. The fox's sight brought him some relief. "Nick, no, you don't understand."

"No, no, I do know, let me handle it."

"Nick, what the hell are you doing? This car is" In his mind, Alex was about to whisper "borderline unregistered".

"Precious to you, I know. Alex, calm down, it's just a ticket." Nick winked at Alex. "Just head to the car, I'll have a talk with her."

Alex exhaled, his muscle loosened up. "Fine." And like a victim of hypnotism, he followed Nick's requests. Behind the closed door, Alex anxious observed the conversation, which was nearly soundless from his end.

Nick said. "You got to excuse my friend. He is a little bit emotional."

"I wouldn't call that a little bit." Her hand gave up taking whatever else was on her belt.

"You have to understand. Traveling halfway across the globe with a bad leg, having to learn and adapt to Zootopia 's culture, it's hard for him. Do you know in Hon Dao, it is an up most disgrace to get a parking ticket?"

The bunny racked her head. She reminded herself that she had heard of Hon Dao at a random point in her life and that was the end of it. "I did not know that."

"Now you know."

"Well, tell him to pay the ticket on time. Added fee for a late ticket could get him into trouble. That's would be a bigger disgrace."

"Oh, I will, definitely remember that." He paused for a moment then said. "I know this sound weird but is that you Judy? Judy Hopps?"

The bunny eyes widened slightly. "Yes, that's me, a lucky bunny with a pun surname."

"You don't remember me, like at all?"

"Well, should I? I mean, I do know a fox back in Bunny Burrow, who was a big cry baby."

Nick rolled his eyes. "Nice try, Judy, nice try. But for your information, I was nine at the time and you were not that much better."

She gave him a hug, which Nick gladly accepted. "Nick, it's been so long. You know, I had my doubt when that cat called you by name."

"Heh, and I had my doubt when I paid 15 bucks for that fortune teller. Look like he deserves it."

"Yup, that's you all right. How is Mister Wilde?"

Nick's eyes shifted to the upper right corner. "Uh, he is in a better place."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Judy's ears drooped down.

"It's okay. Anyhow, is your shift over? Because this random reunion needs to be celebrated. "

"Yes, but"

He gently nudged the bunny's back, steering her toward the nearest coffee shop he could find. "Great, let's go. A cup of coffee over chat wouldn't hurt."

The shop Nick chose was a place called "White Palette", a typical café where aspiring writers with their expensive laptops spent time writing their novels. Judy managed to snatch a table next to the window, instead of next to some abstract works of art with lines and squiggles (or photographs with nothing but negative space). Both ordered the cheapest cup of coffee on the menu.

(The song White Palette by Tigerlily begins to play)

The first time Nick noticed about her was the scar on her face, but seen he did not want to end all this way too soon, he asked, "How are things at your end, Judy? Are you still trying to make the world a better place?"

"Yeah, that's what I wake up to every day."

"Are you still on your way to becoming an officer?"

"I already am." She moved the "meter maid" outer vest to reveal a shining badge.

"Nice. Wait, so does that means."

Her eyes now too, shifted to the upper left. "Oh, the, parking duty is just, you know, newbie things, everyone has to do it."

"Oh. I'm sure it will work out for you. Anyway, congratulation, I knew you would pull it off."

"Really? Aw, thank you."

"Nah, I'm just saying that to be polite." He leaned back in his chair, a preemptive attempt to avoid a friendly hit from Judy. The bunny did try to go for the hit but stopped when Nick said: "But yeah, it's nice to be wrong from times to times."

She smiled and said. "Thanks. So, what about you? How is the fancy suit for all mammals business going? Seeing how you are still in one. Look really nice, by the way."

Nick paused. "I gave up on it, recently."

"What, why?"

Nick scratched the back of his head. "You know, sometimes, dreams just don't work. Sometimes it is best to let go and do something else. Not everyone is as strong willed as you."

An article popped up in Judy's head. The wall of texts online that essentially told her unemployed predator is more likely to turn to crime. "Nick"

"But worry not, I have a backup, a good practical job. I'll bounce back."

"Phew. That's good to hear."

A deer teenager then put two tiny cups of coffee on their table, then left without as much as an "Enjoy"

Nick shrugged. "Well, at least it's good enough for one toast." He picked it up and said. "To the future."

"To the future," Judy said and let her cup touched his in a shy clank.

Both then quickly got the roasted bean juice in their systems. The taste left so much to be desired.

Judy said. "Do you have a phone number, Nick?"

"Oh-kay, that's a little straight forward. Yes. But why?"

Judy pulled out her phone. "Nothing, it's just, I have just moved into Zootopia, so, you know, it's nice to have a friend in the city."

"Sure, I'm fine with it." He waited until she got everything set up.

Her face seemingly lit up. "I'm ready."

"Okay, 555 021 9964, and there you go, one sly fox on speed dial."

(Song ends)

Nick was the first to stand up. "Well, it was nice seeing you, but, I need to go."

Judy looked out through the window. Daylight was leaving. "Me too, I gotta return this before" She reached for the back of her belt; immediately noticed something was missing. "Where is it?"

Nick looked at her. Concern drew across his face. "Something's wrong Judy?"

"My ticket dispenser, it's gone."

"What?"

Her hands pulled the tips of her ears down. "Oh no! It's my day's work. Chief Bogo is going to kill me!"

"Woah, no need to freak out. It could not be far. We just need to go back to where we were."

Her hands released the ears. "Aw. Sorry, for dragging you into this."

"No no no, it's fine, it's what friends do."

Shortly after, both were back on the street.

Nick yelled, "Found it?"

"No," Judy said, her voice was still shaking somewhat. However, a voice in her head reminded her that she was anxious and losing focus. It got her to come up with an idea, "Okay, since it's getting dark, let's split up. We're gonna cover more ground that way."

Nick saluted her. The little gesture brought some sense of amusement to her. Nick then pointed behind him, "Yes, madam. I'll go here, you go there. That little sucker is bound to show up."

Just like that, Nick took his position. He did not need to search anything, for he already knew where the little machine was. From afar, Alex waved at him. Nick had a look back at Judy. She was still occupied by looking underneath each car. Nick demanded a pass with some gestures. Received the signal, Alex threw the ticket dispenser to Nick, who caught it perfectly. Nick then ran back to Judy, keeping his face as happy as he could. "Judy, great news."

"You found it?"

"Yup, here it." He handed it to her. "It got dropped under one of the cars over there."

Judy turned it on. "Phew, yup, still working. Thank goodness." She then looked up. "Oh, and, thank you, Nick."

He shrugged. "No problem," He thought up something and said. "So, do you want a ride home, or"

"No thank you, I have my own, provided by the ZPD. "

"Okay, suit yourself." He then walked away. "See ya, Carrot."

"You're still not letting that name go aren't you?"

"Nope. Bye." He then walked away, not before making the last salute for the day.

Nick was back at the truck. Alex immediately told him. "Nick, remind me to never, ever doubt you. Holy crud, that was smooth."

Nick shrugged. "Yeah, that's just what foxes do."

"You have no idea how big of a bullet we have just dodged. Lesson learns. From now on, I'll avoid City Hall like the plague." Alex then checked his phone; it was time for dinner. "So, did you have everything you need?"

"Uh huh, we can head back now."

"Good, how about something fancy for dinner? It's on me. Today is something to be remembered."

"Hum, sure."

Alex put up a fake British accent "Then shall we depart, sir." He then unlocked the door and got in.

Upon starting the car, Alex asked. "So, who was the bunny? I sense some history there."

"Nothing much. Just a naïve little bunny from my childhood."

"Uh huh. With that face, I doubt it." Alex quickly got the car out and into the vein of Zootopia. They drove passed Judy, who gave Nick a wave. Nick did the same.

"So, Mr. Wilde, what is the plan for tomorrow?"

"Now we can finally get to work. Tomorrow, you contact the guy and get the payment done. I'll introduce you to my friends and we will get this place built in no time."

"Simple enough." Alex then cleared his throat. He tried to make his voice as deep as possible. "And so, with a beacon of hope in our mind, we proceed to"

"What are you doing?"

"Well, I need to put the time I spent in that theater club into use. What are we about to do is building the thing. That is the boring, tedious and hard part. No one wants to hear that. So, I am just trying to make it more exciting with some narration."

"That's cute, but no. Remember, we have three months of mafia's debt looming above our heads."


Author note:

Thank you so much for reading. If you enjoyed what you have just read and wished to see more, please follow or leave a review. They would give me the motivation to write more for everyone. All feedbacks will be appreciated. If you find anything lacking or flawed in my story (grammar, word use, etc.), please tell me in the reviews as well. I shall do my best to update these chapters sooner and make them more polished. This is one of my first stories so please forgive possible mistakes in the future and help me fix them.

Thanks again and have a pleasant day.