Chapter 6: Precinct One
The moment a taxi cab rolled up on the busy pick up and drop off zone in front of the hospital, Judy dashed towards it, waving her paws madly so as to catch the drivers attention. The area, however, being surrounded by all sorts of mammals big and small, gave teensy, easily overlooked bunnies like Officer Hopps a terrible disadvantage when doing this. No matter how quickly she raced, and how wildly she swung her arms about, before long, a buffalo hollered out 'Taxi," lifted an arm high, and beat the rabbit officer to the punch. As the buffalo entered the vehicle, and it drove away, Judy pouted, put her paws to her waist, and started to tap her foot with frustration.
"Dang it," she spoke her very prudent curse. From a slight distance, Nick chuckled sorrily, feeling pity for the rabbit and her desperate attempt. It always seemed that the harder Judy tried, the more sour things would turn out to be.
"Oh Hopps… You silly little bunny," he muttered to himself, before turning to face the pick up zone in hopes of helping his colleague. Doing so, he felt a gentle breeze graze the fur on his face. The day was slowly getting cooler, and that was something the fox officer was more than ready to accept with a smile. He looked further to the west, until his eyes were stabbed by the light of the falling sun. Lifting a paw to his brow, he shielded his sight and looked towards the road where the pick up and drop off zone started, when he suddenly spotted an oncoming taxi cab. Knowing his street-smarts, the officer quickly stepped off the sidewalk with one foot, leaned out as to get in the taxi driver's view, and started to shake his right arm in the air. Quickly, the cougar cab driver noticed the officer, and as he drove up, Nick stepped back and let the car stop in front of him.
"Judy!" he called out at the top of his lungs as he opened the cab door, getting Officer Hopps to look in his direction. Turning towards the fox, she noticed the cab, and let out a deep sigh. Somehow, he always managed to do the little things in Zootopia a lot easier than her, despite the fact that she would put more effort into it, and he would not. Deep in her mind, she knew it would always be this way, despite how long she lived in the city. He was born here, and was shaped by Zootopia since his early years. She figured she may as well take advantage of the fact.
"Wait up!" Judy shouted as she raced towards Nick, managing to get her colleague to stand outside of the taxi a moment longer. Upon reaching the cab, Nick jumped into the back seat, and Judy quickly followed, closing the car door behind her.
"Well, hello!" Nick hollered, as he waved a paw at the cougar that sat on the driving seat, looking back at them from his rear-view mirror. The feline, appearing to be tired from a long day's work, nodded slowly at the fox.
"Hello..." the cat spoke, as Judy eyes rapidly fell on the clock that beamed from the cab's radio: It read 3:27. Realizing how late they were, the bunny officer stood up on the seat, and leaned her body towards the cab driver, getting the cougar driver to look directly at her from the mirror. "Please take us to Zootopia P.D., precinct one, as quickly as you can," Officer Hopps said in a voice of urgency. Keeping his sight steady on her, the cougar grunted.
"Ma'am," he said, in a slow, tired manner. "Please get your feet off the seat, and we'll go." Judy looked down at her own feet, and opened her mouth in awe as she realized what she was doing.
"Oh!" she bellowed in surprise as she jumped down and landed on her rear with a quick motion. "I'm terribly sorry about that. I-it's just that we're in a little bit of a hurry to get back to our department." Smiling nervously, Judy took a hold of her badge, and yanked at it from her vest as she tried to display it to their driver. "See… we're officers of the law." Keeping an eye on her, Nick slapped his forehead, unable to believe how silly she could make herself out to be. Ignoring him, Judy noticed the cougar driver lift his glance back up to the rear view mirror again with an unamused look.
"Interesting," he said in a manner that told Judy he clearly did not care. Dropping her paw from her badge, Officer Hopps looked down, feeling slightly embarrassed.
"Nice, Carrots," Nick teased in a whisper soft enough as to not have their driver hear them. "At least he now knows that if he doesn't drive us quick enough, the law might come down on him." Judy shot a scornful scowl at the officer as a result of his funny little comment. As she gazed at him, she realized how spectacularly ludicrous he looked wearing his recently purchased "I'm going to be a daddy" shirt inside out -with the hems and needlework showing-, and could not help but to feel further irritated. Glancing up to his face, she observed the toothy, sly smile he wore, and, feeling insatiably attracted to him, huffed angrily and she looked away towards the opposite window. And so, for the remainder of the ride, Judy sat in silence, doing all she could to keep her eyes off the fox she knew was glancing at her. Staring out the window, she saw street after street go by, and to keep herself distracted, she attempted to remember the names of as many roads, shops, and restaurants as she could. She made this a mental drill, convincing herself that it would help her with her police work, and would keep her mind off the jokester fox and his… sexy… smile. By the time the cab arrived to the open plaza in front of Z.P.D. precinct one, the officer had identified 214 places and streets she knew by name -she kept count.
Just as the taxi car came to a sudden stop, the cougar driver turned half his body, looked back at Judy, and stuck his paw out in her direction.
"That'll be 14.25," the driver said, prompting the bunny officer to look his way. Having distracted herself for such a long time had made her forget she was even riding a cab she had to pay for.
"Oh!" she called out yet again, as she cleared her mind and thought of paying the driver. "Umm, sure." Reaching into her pocket, Judy tried to draw out the wad of cash she had crumpled up in her pants early on in the day after paying for the jungle juice she got in Otterman Lane; but before she could, Nick managed to take out a nice, crisp-looking 20 from his pocket, and handed it to the driver. As the driver took the cash, and went to retrieve the fox's change, Judy's turned her attention to her partner. It was Judy who had convinced Nick that they needed to get a taxi cab, instead of radioing the P.D. to ask for a pickup. She had argued it was the fastest way to get back to Precinct One, and that they absolutely needed to be there as soon as possible; as a result, she assumed she would take the responsibility of paying for the trip. "You didn't have to do that Nick, I could have covered it," she remarked, as she retreated her paw from her pocket. Nick smiled, as he eyed Judy with a tender look.
"Well, you were kind enough to accompany me to the hospital, which is something I know you weren't technically obliged to do," Nick replied in a gentle, welcoming voice. "And to add to that, you waited until I got released to head back with me. It's the least I can do." Judy blushed, craning her head down. To her, accompanying Nick WAS an obligation, even before she realized that she liked him. Officer Wilde was the one thing she held closest to her in Zootopia, and that was truer at this moment than it was any time before. Nick, however, showed his generosity -as he very often did-, and that made him seem more attractive.
But just as Judy thought of jumping into his lap and covering his entire face with kisses, the cougar driver turned back towards Nick and handed him his change. Smirking mischievously, Officer Wilde gestured towards Judy's door, that faced the plaza.
"After you," he spoke to Judy, before looking over to their cougar driver and adding "Oh, and sir? Miss Officer of the law and I would like to thank you for the ride." Quickly, Judy glared at Nick, before hastily turning and reaching for the door handle. Opening the door, she jumped out, and turned and wait for Nick, while still appearing to be unamused. The fox slid out to the exit with slick grace as he snickered impishly.
"Dumb fox..." she remarked, getting Nick to chuckle coyly as a result.
"Who, me?" he teased, as he walked past Judy and flicked his tail near her face. Having dodged the tremendous amount of fluff that was her colleague's tail, she shook her head as a crooked smile grew on her visage.
You coy little devil... she thought to herself, picking up her pace in order to catch up to Nick. As the cab drove away, both officers hustled through the plaza towards the police department. On a weekday like this, young adults and parents alike would busy themselves with work during the day, but would head out to enjoy Zootopia's public parks and plazas in the afternoons. Being that most mammals ended their day's work shift no less than an hour before, Friendship Plaza -the plaza in front of the police department-, was starting to get crowded. As Nick and Judy hurried past the many fountains, ponds, and open patches of grass in the plaza, they saw large and small families alike, letting their children run free, while the teens and young adults around gathered near the "coolest" places in to "chill." About them, both officers could hear laughter, friendly conversation, and general merriment, all terrible temptations that beckoned them to slow down and enjoy the end of the day. To make matters worse, Judy and Nick walked by a food Kiosk with a sign that read "Nutty Nutters." Making their way past this stall, the scent of freshly honey-roasted nuts assaulted their noses, and made their stomachs quake with hunger. They had not had food all day, Nick's stomach brutally reminded him as he turned to look at the kiosk, and the line of smiling folks around it. Except for the doughnut and coffee Clawhauser had offered them just before they went on patrol, he and Judy had eaten next to nothing.
"Boy, that smells good," Nick remarked, as they moved on, and went towards the precinct department in a hurry, knowing that, unfortunately, they did not have the liberty to be sidetracked.
Not long after, Officers Hopps and Wilde reached the steps in front of the police department. Scampered up, they encountered three fellow officers -a bear, a lion, and a jaguar, whose names were Grant, Terill, and Joan, respectively-, taking their coffee break outside. They each held a mug in one paw, and a bag of chips or a doughnut in the other, and were busy with a light conversation they held together. As they noticed their fox and bunny colleagues, they all smiled simultaneously, and waved their paws at the two. Judy and Nick waved back at them hastily, meaning to race past them and heed little to no attention to their actions. but just as they did, both Hopps and Wilde could not help but to notice Grant bump shoulders with Terril, and inch his face close to his ear.
"Hey, look," Judy and Nick heard Grant mutter in what could hardly be considered a whisper. "Officer Wilde is back, and Hopps is with him." Terril chuckled haughtily, lifting a paw to his belly as he eyed the two small officers.
"I can't wait to hear what the chief has to say to her," the lion remarked.
Seeming to ignore their comments, Judy walked on, but Nick lifted an eyebrow as moved closer to his colleague. As the electric doors to the entrance opened, and the two officers entered the department, the male fox nudged his partner's side with an elbow. Judy jolted, taken by surprise, but she quickly buried this beneath her tense face.
"What, Nick?" the bunny officer asked in a hushed voice that hinted irritation. Lifting a paw to the top of his head, Officer Wilde began to rub his fur.
"Are you in trouble with the boss?" he asked, picking at his hairs. "Because if you are, and it's my fault, I am terribly sorry." Judy briskly exhaled air from her mouth, and then shook her head.
"Don't worry about it," she remarked. "I can handle Chief Bogo."
"Are you sure?" the fox inquired, putting the paw he had on his head in his pocket. "'Cause you have a knack for getting on Bogo's bad side." Chuckling, he nudged her with his elbow again. "And that's saying a lot, considering the fact that I'm the one he calls a clown." Looking up at Nick's face, the bunny officer noticed he wore his crooked, artful smile. Vexed by the fact that his grin irked, and seemed tremendously attractive to her, Judy quickly shot her glance forward again.
"As I said," Judy replied while sighing. "Don't worry about." Focusing her attention on her surroundings, Officer Hopps examined the department lobby, and realized it was particularly active for the hour. On the first floor, police officers of all sizes walked in bunches while they shared case information with one another, or dragged suspects to the back of the building, where the station cells were held. Up on the second floor balcony, Judy saw the precinct captains gathered together just outside their department office, having a heated conversation. She then looked back down and directly in front of her, where she suddenly beheld Clawhauser.
… Clawhauser… the cheetah she had told her secret to...
The large, plump feline looked straight at the two officers while sitting behind his desk. He held the folds of his cheeks with both paws, and wore the biggest smile he physically could while staring at the oncoming officers. While Nick took this as Clawhauser being the flamboyant, curious fellowhe normally was, Judy was more than aware of why his grin was so large.
…he was Clawhauser… the talkative, expressive cheetah she had told her secret to...
"Hello Officer Wilde!" the plump cheetah shouted as he lifted and waved a paw energetically. Turning his attention to Judy, he puckered his lips, and pressed his other paw against his blubbery cheek again, making the bunny smile nervously.
...he was behaving like Clawhauser, the talkative, expressive, and easy-to-read cheetah she had told her secret to...
"And hello to you, Officer Hopps," the feline greeted her, making Judy's smile seem more nervous as she shyly shook her paw back at him. Nick approached the counter, and put his paws on it's surface.
"Benjo!" Nick started, pointing a friendly finger at the cheetah from where he stood. "Banjo-Benjo Clawhauser. Tell me, buddy, how's today treated you so far?" Clawhauser chuckled, shaking his head as he did. As he leaned forward to get a better view of his fox colleague, he shot a quick side-glance at Judy, and winked at her. Officer Hopps swallowed hard…
...he could not stop being Clawhauser, the BIG MOUTHED, expressive, and easy-to-read cheetah she had told her secret to...
"The day's treated me well, Nicky-Nick," the cheetah officer replied in a mirthful voice, putting a particular emphasis on the fox's nickname -which Clawhauser had started using after Nick had chosen to call him Benjo-. "How's today treated you?" Still grinning slyly, Officer Wilde shrugged his shoulders.
"What can I say," the fox remarked, lifting both paws up, palms open. "I got to lay down and rest for a while at a hospital." The fox's tail began to dance behind him as he said "how often can you do that during a work shift?" Clawhauser perked his body up as he lifted an eyebrow.
"Oh, did you?" the cheetah said in a voice that signaled concern "I heard you got hurt, but why did you go to the hospital?" Nick took a step back, and gave the cheetah a look askance. Judy also cocked her head to the side, surprised to hear him ask what he did.
"You don't know?" Nick asked, as his ears dropped to his side and he rubbed his neck with a paw.
"Umm..." Clawhauser nervously remarked as he cupped his paws, and began to repeatedly push the tips of both of his index fingers together. "You… sprained your ankle?" A crooked, confused smile grew on Officer Wilde's face, as he wondered how Clawhauser, responsible for receiving the majority of the radio calls sent back to the P.D., had managed to remain unaware. Noticing the fox's reaction to his answer, Benjamin frowned, and leaned his body towards Nick again. "What happened?" he asked again, aware that he had guessed poorly.
"Well, let's just say that..." Nick started, tilting his head to the side as he thought of a clever way to describe what had happened. Realizing he could not think of anything good, he decided to say it in plain words. "I was shot." Immediately, Clawhauser's stood up and gave Nick a wide eyed, open-jawed look of utter shock.
"You were shot!?" he asked shouting, making Judy jump back from the sudden outburst. Nick, standing still, grinned as he suddenly realized how inappropriately cool it sounded to say he was shot. Putting his paws in his pocket, he shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, and feigned a look of disinterest, trying his best to appear to be like the kickass cops in the best police movies.
"Yup," Officer Wilde remarked coolly, as he glanced at Judy from the corner of his eye. Noticing his cool cop demeanor, Judy rolled her eyes. "And it hurt like a porcupine's needles to the butt. But hey! At least I'm here to tell you about it." Keeping his jaw open and his eyes wide, the plump cheetah officer dropped back onto his chair. Nick's words had reminded Benjamin of how air-headed and sincerely naive he could be, and that made him feel terrible. Suddenly lunging himself forward, he placed his head on the counter, and covered his face with his arms. Nick quickly dropped his cool cop demeanor, fearing the cheetah may have passed out from the sudden news.
"Benjo, are you okay?" he asked. For a moment, there was no answer, and it did indeed seem like he had lost his conscience. "Benjo?"
"I'm such an idiot," Clawhauser muffled in a dramatic tone through the opening between his arms, confirming he had not passed out after all. Looking back at Judy, Nick gave her a look of confusion.
"Why would you say that, officer Clawhauser?" the bunny asked, as she moved closer to the feline.
"Well!" the feline bellowed as he rose to an upright sitting position. "Our Nick was shot! And I didn't even know about it..." He dropped his shoulders, as a frown grew on his face. Looking over to the Gazelle album he had on his desk labeled Friends and Lovers made him feel even worse. Gazelle would never betray a friend like that, Benjamin thought. Oh, the cruelty.
"Some friend I am..." the feline remarked, drooping his head down.
"Heey... don't worry about it. Its not like I expected you to have a bouquet of flowers and a card for me," Nick said in a gentler, empathetic manner. . "It's okay, Benjo, really." Lifting his head, the overweight cheetah revealed his sorry face.
"Is it, really?" Clawhauser asked in a sulken voice.
"It is," Nick replied, winking at the feline. "I mean, I at least you knew I was hurt."
"Yeah, I did hear that," he began to explain in an apologetic manner. "But from John, who was taking the radio calls while I was on a bathroom break. He didn't tell me exactly what had happened, except that you were hurt, so I assumed you had simply sprained yourself, or something of the sort. I never considered the fact that you'd be getting shot!" Nick chuckled in a light-hearted manner once more, trying to convince Clawhauser he did not feel any resentment at all.
"Oh yeah?" Nick asked as he lifted an eyebrow.
"Yeah. Then the chief came back," Clawhauser continued in a faster voice. "But I was foolish enough as to not ask him what had happened, thinking again that it could not have been too bad. And then, I had a little snack break, but didn't ask anyone what had happened while I was in the break room. And then you sent me that text message," he added, turning his eyes to Judy, who, upon hearing the word "message" felt her heart sink. "And then we started talking about you and N-."
…Clawhauser, the BIG MOUTHED, OVER EXPRESSIVE, AND OBVIOUS cheetah was about to reveal her secret to the last person who she wished to know!
...She had to stop him, fast!
"Benjamin!" Judy interrupted the cheetah with a loud shout, interrupting him successfully before he could speak the name she knew he was about to say. Side-glancing at Nick, the bunny officer discreetly looked for signs that her colleague knew what Clawhauser was going to say. Her partner observed the cheetah with a puzzled look, easing Judy into thinking he was unaware; but in truth, he knew... It was too obvious to him what he was going to say…. "talking about you and Nick..."
Very prudently, Officer Wilde turned to observe Judy, and as she caught sight of this, their eyes locked. In her visage, Nick could see hints of what the vixen doctor had said to him: She observed him with a fondness, despite the fact that she put all her efforts into making it seem like this was not the case. The way her eyes scanned his face, however, revealed it all. After showing a quick smile, he turned to look back at the cheetah, prompting Officer Hopps to do the same. "You don't need to worry… as Nick said" she said, clumsily justifying why she had suddenly shouted with her words. Cupping her paws together, lifting her ears, and smiling, she tried to hide any evidence left of her face that indicated why she had really silenced the feline."He's okay." Nick nodded, in agreement with Judy, easing the bunny into thinking that she had managed to do the impossible task of stopping Clawhauser in his tracks while not making things awkward.
"Carrots is right: I am okay," Officer Wilde said in a calm and collected manner. "This little bunny took good care of me at the hospital" he added, while nudging Judy with an elbow, and getting her to blush ever slightly. Being that Benjamin had the ability to change moods like the wind could change directions, the plump cheetah went from showing guilt, to showing adoration. Placing his paws together, he lifted them up to his head, and pressed his cheek against them. He then puckered his lips, as he gazed at both officers with a twinkle in his eyes.
"Aww… you did, Judy?" Clawhauser cooed, further embarrassing Officer Hopps. Knowing, however, that showing bashfulness would only worsen things, she went along with the flow, nudging Nick back, as she smiled pleasantly.
…Clawhauser, the big mouthed, overly expressive, and obvious cheetah who she had told her secret to would not get the best of her...
"Yup! It is my duty to make sure my partner's okay," Judy started, putting a special emphasis on the word duty. Chuckling in a forced manner, she added "You know what they say at the academy… no officers left behind!" Judy and Clawhauser locked eyes, when she suddenly gestured towards Nick with a quick movement of her eyes, and then shook her head no. Benjamin, being skillful at reading silent gestures, finally realized what Judy wanted from him: discretion concerning her secret. Lowering his paws the feline reached for a doughnut he had on a plate next to him, and picked it up.
"I g-guess you're right," Clawhauser replied in a cheerful voice, as he started to follow Judy's current. "What you did was honorable," he added, before stuffing his mouth with the deep-fried, frosted treat he held. Feeling great relief to know that her feline friend had finally understood her, Officer Hopps sighed. At last, she could relax for a moment...but for a very brief moment, for as she loosened her shoulders, she remembered Chief Bogo, and the suspect, and the gosh-darned time! Erecting herself, the bunny stood rigidly as she took her cellphone out of her pocket, and activated the screen. It was 4:17. Dread filled Judy, who shot a horror-struck glance at Nick.
"Nick, we are really late," she said in a tone of desperation, getting the fox to look her way with alertness in his eyes.
"Oh yeah," Clawhauser remarked as he remembered instruction given to him earlier on. "Chief Bogo is expecting you in prep-room five. He radioed me moments before you came in, at 4:00 I think, to see if you had arrived or not." Frowning, he added, "you better hurry, because he sounded a little grumpier than he normally is." Judy lifted her paws, and placed them on the sides of her head as she wondered why Clawhauser had not told them this before.
"Sweet cheese and crackers..." Judy murmured in distress. "We have to go now!" Nick nodded at her, before reaching into his pocket, and retrieving the slip of paper Linda had given him. Turning, he made a small jump, and placed the paper on the front desk counted.
"Here, this is for you to put into my folder," Nick said in a hurried manner, just as Judy raced past him and towards the corridor to Clawhauser's left. Benjamin took the paper, and put it on a pile of sheets that read "To be archived," but as he saw Nick turn and get ready to bolt after his partner, he remembered one last thing.
"Wait!" Clawhauser called out seconds catching Nick's attention just as he was about to leave.
"Yes?" Officer Wilde asked, as he turned back towards the feline officer.
"I'll be leaving at 5:00," Clawhauser started, as he rubbed the back of his neck. "So if you're not done with Bogo before then, what should I do with the toy car you asked me to get yesterday?" A smile suddenly grew on Nick's face as he remembered the toy car. After looking back to make sure Judy had not gone too far ahead -which she hadn't- he hustled back towards Benjamin.
"You're the best, Benjo!" Nick clamoured, happy to know the feline had followed through with his promise. "Do you have it with you?" Nick asked, still holding a grin on his face.
"Yup," Clawhauser replied, reaching beneath the counter and taking out one of the new Z.P.D. branded police cruiser toys the department had started to make to promote themselves. "Right here. Can you take it with you now?" Officer Wilde nodded, as he grasped it with haste and rushed towards Judy, who had made it to the middle of the corridor.
"Thanks, Benjo! I owe you one!" Nick shouted.
"No problem, Nicky-Nick!" Clawhauser shouted back.
Nick caught up to Judy moments after she reached the entrance to prep-room five, and had come to sudden stop just outside the room. Standing in front of the closed door, Officer Hopps had an anxious look decorating her face. She was not sure what to say to chief Bogo, and could not help but to fear what her boss would have in store for her. As Officer Wilde reached her side, she glanced over to him, and noticed that, after he had caught his breath, he put on a face gentle and collected. Judy envied this about Nick. He could keep a calm composure before all adversities, and did not even seem to struggle to do so.
"Ready to face Mr. Grumpy-boss?" Nick asked, branding his face with a toothy smile. Taking comfort from her colleague's ease of mind, Officer Hopps smiled back.
"Sure." And so, Officer Wilde reached past his partner, took the door handle and opened the door. Looking inside the room, they noticed Chief Bogo pacing to and fro behind a metal table, looking ponderous. Staying as quiet as they possibly could the two officers stepped inside, feeling the chill of the room's air conditioning hit their faces as they did. Despite their silence, however, chief Bogo noticed the arrival of the fox and bunny and turned to look at them. For what seemed an eternity to both Officers Hopps and Wilde, Bogo remained unmoved, contemplating them. Suddenly, however, he looked away, and continued to pace back and forth in silence. This gave Nick and Judy a slight moment to observe their surroundings: On the metal table, the bag Judy knew she had confiscated from their suspect lay on its side, while what she assumed was its contents were laid out in front of it. Among the contents of the bag, the officers noticed a lip balm stick, and a small mirror, alongside what seemed to be two large rolls of paper money, and a written note. Next to all this sat the gun Officer Hopps had removed from Franklin Longtail's paws. A magazine stood upright next to the firearm, and the gun itself was set in a slide-locked position. Looking over to the left toward the two-way mirror on the wall, Nick noticed the otter they had captured sitting behind a table in the interrogation room, alongside two guards that stood behind him. The suspect had his head down, but from seeing the shape of his face, and the slickness of his fur, Nick was knew it was his old friend.
"You're late," Chief Bogo remarked in a deep, serious tone as he ceased to walk, and turned to face his fellow officers. Judy felt a knot build in her throat as she thought of something… anything to say.
"We're sorry, Chief Bogo…" Judy started in an apologetic voice, as she put a paw to her chest and frowned. "When you called me, Nick was about to be re-" Before she could continue, the chief rose a paw, prompting Judy to close her mouth shut.
"It doesn't matter," the chief remarked. Lowering his paw, he put it on the metal table in front of him. "What matters is that you're here, and that you brought Officer Wilde with you." Hearing Bogo's words, Judy felt almost like all the tension dropped from her shoulders. Perhaps, she was saved by bringing her fox colleague after all. Nick smiled in a toothy manner, which he knew his boss found oddly unamusing.
"Hey, boss," Nick greeted Bogo, getting him to shoot his sharp glance in the fox's direction.
"Wilde," the cape buffalo spoke in return as he straightened his back, and made himself tower over the two smaller mammals, giving himself an undoubted look of authority. "I'm glad you're okay and that you're here with us. Tell me, are you allowed to work?" Keeping his smile, Nick pointed a finger gun at his boss, and made a "click" noise with his tongue. As a result, Bogo grunted.
"I sure can, boss," Nick replied in a smooth voice, as he taunted the chief with a wink. "The doctor gave me the green light." Holding his urge to roll his eyes, the bovine decided to sigh instead.
"Good, I'm glad..." Bogo said in a voice that hinted slight irritation. Knowing that he could push his buttons just a little further, Nick did the paw gun gesture again.
"The best cops just don't give up, you know," he joked, prompting Chief Bogo to lift an eyebrow, and give Nick a look of drudgery.
"I see..." he remarked, showing little interest in playing games with the jokester fox. Focusing his attention on the male officer's shirt, the buffalo realized he wore it inside out. "Is there a specific reason for why you're wearing your shirt incorrectly?" he asked, tilting his head as he did. Nick smiled sheepishly, as he tucked his paws in his pockets.
"Well, they cut up my uniform, as you might remember," he started, winking as he spoke the word might. Looking back and forth between Nick and Bogo, Judy's stomach sunk deeply as she wondered when Nick would cease to take the bull by his horns. "And so, since I didn't want to come back shirtless and indecent, we bought a shirt at the hospital's gift shop." Lifting his shirt up, he partially tucked the inside outwards, revealing the message the shirt had stamped on it. As he did, Judy stole another glance as the fox's abdomen, which was partially wrapped in gauze from below his ribs, up to his pectoral muscles. "This shirt, however, had a message that simply wouldn't do." Letting go of his shirt, he let it cover his exposed fur, and then smiled. For a moment, the chief stood in silence, processing the oddity that was Nick and his mannerisms; but finally, he forcefully blew air out of his nose as he shook his head.
"Very well," he remarked. "Getting back to business… I assume officer Hopps gave you the 411 on our current situation. Am I correct?"
"Yes, sir," Judy spoke as she straightened her posture. "I did."
"10-4," Nick added, pointing his finger at their chief. Ignoring the fox's last action, Chief Bogo leaned over the metal table, placing both hooves on it. He then looked over to the interrogation room behind the two way mirror, and eyed the otter suspect. After a second, he brought his glance back at the two officers in front of him.
"Then I also assume you know who is behind this mirror over there," he said, lifting a hoof and pointing it directly towards Franklin. Nick's smile dropped suddenly, and instead, he gave the chief a look of severity. A moment passed, and Nick stood frozen as he felt tension build up within him. Franklin was there, in the interrogation room, and after eight years, he was about to confront him.
"Umm, yes," Nick finally said, kicking his foot subtly as he looked at the ground. "That is Franklin Longtail. I can tell it's him." Chief Bogo took a long breath, before he reached over to the note on the table, and opened it.
"Then let me tell you something you don't know," the bovine said in a clear, loud voice, getting Officer Wilde to look back up at him. "Apparently, your acquaintance was very selective when he decided to commit his aggravated robbery." Lifting his hoof, Chief Bogo shook the open note in front of the two officers. Officer Wilde tilted his head to the side, unsure of why his boss did this.
"What do you mean?" the fox asked, as he took a step closer to metal table. Lowering his hoof, Bogo took the note.
"Upon inspecting the contents of this bag, we uncovered three important details," the buffalo started. "First, we found out that this bag belongs to Julia Diga, wife of Fred Diga." He freed a his hoof by letting go of one of the corners of the note, and pointed to the gun laid before him. "The Digas are known for owning one of the few manufacturing companies that specialize in making firearms for medium-sized to small mammals, just like the gun you see here." Chief Bogo let go of the paper entirely only to reach for his reading glasses, hanging from his chest pocket. Taking a hold of these, he brought them up to his face and put them on, squinting his eyes as he adjusted himself to the way everything looked different. The mannerism humored Nick, as it normally did -mainly because it made the proud, titanic chief look comically vulnerable to have to struggle with his sight. But Nick remained quiet, knowing it was Franklin who they were dealing with. "Second," the bovine continued, retrieving the paper yet again. "We discovered three thousand dollars in her bag, and while this might not be a problem in a general sense, after further inspection, we found out these bank bills had been reported stolen after they were taken in a bank heist in Fortica" The fox nodded slowly.
"That's an hour West out of Zootopia, right?" Nick asked.
"That's right," Bogo replied. "Two of our detectives are doing an archive search to see if there is any information on who was involved in this heist, but so far, they haven't found anything." Judy's ears jumped up high as she lifted a paw and placed it on the tip on her chin. Who would have known that catching a simple purse snatcher would lead to such an elaborate case? Then again, she thought to herself, it was the successful capture of Weaselton that lead Nick and her to the ultimate truth about the Howler Case. Perhaps the two officers were a little more lucky than the average police officer. "Finally," Chief Bogo added, turning the paper he held in his hooves around to show its content to Officers Hopps and Wilde. The paper was mainly blank, with the exception of a small portion of writing right in the middle. Nick and Judy took a step forward, and squinted their own eyes as they tried to read out the message. It read:
A small contribution to your family and business, in hopes that you may favor our work. May this investment be the seeds that bring about a great harvest.
D. O.
Having read the message, both officers Nick and Judy shifted their attention to Bogo again, who had been patiently waiting for the officers to finish analyzing the paper.
"We found this note," Bogo said, turning the paper back around and giving it another read. "Stapled to one of the rolls of cash. It gives us the impression that the person, OR persons who offered this money to the Digas may have been involved in the Fortica heist, and must not be overlooked." Taking a step back, Nick worked his brains around the information he had just received from his boss. As he ran his paw from his cheek up to his ear, he suddenly came to a realization.
"Hold on, chief," Nick said in a firm voice, drawing his boss' attention. "Does this have any correlation to Franklin at all? Perhaps he chose this so called Julia Diga by chance, and has nothing to do with this other case we're building now?" Bogo nodded, acknowledging Nick's reasoning. After placing the note on the table next to the cash, he leaned over the table, closer to Nick.
"One might naturally assume that, Wilde," he started, as he took his glasses off, and placed them back in his pocket. "However, your acquaintance, Longtail, told us otherwise." Nick took another step back.
"He did?" the fox officer asked, shocked. Standing up straight again, the cape buffalo nodded.
"Yes," Bogo replied. "After we brought him here, he demanded to know if it was you whom he shot. Naturally, we did not reveal that information to him, for it wasn't our place to do so." Placing his hooves together, he added "after a while, however, he told us that he knew exactly how much money was in the bag, and indicated that he knew who wrote the note we now possess; but he would not reveal this information unless he would get the right to be interrogated by you." The buffalo shook his head, as he let out a deep sigh. "It was a pretty strange request… but after I interrogated him myself, we struck a deal: I wanted to make sure he was not bluffing about what he allegedly knew, so I told him that if he he would indicate how much money was in the bag, and would give me the initials of the mammal who wrote the note, and if he'd get both right, I would promise him the right to talk to you..." A very slight, crooked smile grew on Officer Wilde's face as a result of what he heard.
"That's a little loose cannon of you, don't you think, boss?" the fox remarked in a playful attitude. Judy, shook her head: No matter how serious things could get, her partner could not hold his urge to taunt and tease. Chief Bogo glared at Nick, holding his urge to shout at the jokester fox.
"That's beyond the point," the buffalo remarked, almost growling the words. "What matters is that Franklin Longtail agreed, and was able to indicate both how much money we held in custody, and what Initials were on the note. Having confirmed that he was right, we told him he could talk to you as soon as you were able to do so… I personally didn't imagine you'd be out of the hospital so soon, though." Nick snickered, as he pointed a finger gun at the chief… again.
"Best cops don't give up," he repeated, managing to irk both Chief Bogo and Judy simultaneously. Lifting a hoof up to his head, the chief began to rub his temple.
"Wilde..." he muttered in frustration. After he held his silence for a moment, he lowered his hoof back onto the table. "Anyway… I want to know if you're willing to talk to your acquaintance… perhaps if you can, we can get valuable information about the case we've built so far." Craning his head, Nick glanced to Franklin, sitting quietly in the interrogation room. He noticed how calm he was; His breathing was even, and he kept his cuffed paws in front of him completely motionless. This was not like the Franklin he knew before… The Franklin he knew feared getting caught, and despite the otter's creativity in regards to all the cons he invented, he would always need reassurance from Nick. Also, if ever they would get close to getting in trouble, he would start to panic in front of Nick… The Franklin he knew would have never sat in an interrogation room like he did.
"Yes," Nick said, turning his attention to Chief Bogo with newfound worry painted on his face. "I do want to talk to him." The bovine chief nodded.
"Very well..." he said. "Then let's get you into a uniform." Having said this, Chief Bogo walked around the table and headed out of the room. As the door closed behind the buffalo, Nick walked over to the two way mirror, and stood in front of it in silence. Judy followed her colleague, placing herself next to him. She looked up at her partner's face, and noticed he was sullen and contemplative.
"So," Judy started in a cool voice, containing the excitement she had built up from knowing they faced a new case for the sake of her friend.
"Yes?" Nick asked, looking away from the suspect, towards Judy.
"Are you sure you want to talk to this acquaintance of yours?" she asked. "I mean… I could talk to him myself..." Nick sighed, and shook his head.
"Franklin is my friend," he clarified. "And I do want to talk to him… It's just a bit shocking to me that he might be involved in something deep and frightening." Judy moved closer to her partner, giving herself the luxury of standing side by side with him. Nick noticed the proximity between the two, and was comforted by it.
"Hey," Judy started in a tender voice. "I'm here for you." Nick smiled, feeling a rush of warm, loving emotions fill his heart.
"Haven't you been since the howler case?" Nick asked in a calm, but coltish tone.
"I guess I have," Judy remarked in an equally toying voice, ignoring the heat that rushed to her cheeks as she blushed.
"Well, now we're dealing with another major case," Nick remarked, crossing his arms. "And, from what the chief just told us… it seems that the plot has thickened..."
A/N: Hey guys, shade here! Sorry for the slight delay of this chapter. These last few weeks, I've been terribly busy, and I wanted to make sure this chapter was as good as possible before I put it up, so I did not rush it.
Anyway, I loved writing this chapter for two reasons. 1. Clawhauser is amazing to write, and 2. It has a lot of good, juicy content. With this chapter, the plot has indeed thickened... Get ready for lots of good mystery and action!
I'd like to thank my beta readers for kicking my butt around until I got this baby in good shape for publication.
Here's my special thanks to those amazing readers:
- Tumblr's Vetinarini for her wonderful feedback in regards to the content of the chapter, as well as for pointing out typos I made.
- Reddit user eisbaerBorealis for catching a TON of typos and little grammar mistakes I made, alongside giving me some pointers on how I could improve the last scene of the chapter.
- John Olsen for providing very elaborate feedback in a VERY elaborate way.
- DeviantArt's AIMYY for catching a good amount of typos, and teasing me for them. :P
Please comment. I'd love to hear from you!
Thankies!