-Mary Anne Wilde's Rainforest District Home-
"Mom! Dad!" The voice of Larry called out as he opened the door to Mary Anne Wilde's home. Mary slowly got to her feet, taking her cane in her paw, the vixen's advanced years slowing her down quite a bit. "You two have fun?"
"Uh huh, sure did!" Judy Wilde-Hopps said, giving the gray squirrel a hug. She gave a small sigh, feeling slightly relieved that even as a teenager, he wasn't against being hugged by his adoptive parents.
"I'm sure you would have liked the cruise, kiddo," Nick gave a small, apologetic smile, "sorry we didn't take you along."
"Oh now, Nicholas," Mary gave a small smile, "it was your tenth wedding anniversary after all. We all need some time to ourselves on such special occasions."
"Yeah, staying with grandma is cool," Larry gave a happy shrug, then a knowing smirk, "besides, I bet you two had more 'fun' on the cruise without me, am I right?" Judy's mouth hung slightly agape and Nick shot an accusatory look at his mother.
Mary chuckled at the stare. "I did not say a thing, Nicholas." Nick turned his gaze back to the squirrel.
Larry held his arms out. "Aw, come on, dad, I wasn't born yesterday!" Nick smirked and shook his head.
"That may be the case, but it's still not polite to-" Judy interrupted herself by looking at the table Mary had risen from, "are those poker chips!?"
"Oh yeah, grandma and I were playing pokerrrrr-uh..." Larry looked off to the side. "Uh, blackjack? No wait, hearts! That was it."
"And this is why you can't win at poker, little squirrel," Mary laughed, "you are a terrible liar."
"Not that that's something I'm eager for him to learn!" Judy said with concern.
"As if you two are the most pure-hearted little angels," Mary smirked with her eyes lidded.
"I'm seeing where the Wilde snarkiness comes from," Judy returned the smirk, folding her arms.
"Mother, poker? Really?" Nick shot a disparaging look to his aged mother.
"Oh come on," Mary chuckled swiping the air gently with her paw. "You were doing less savory things when you were younger than him. It's important to have a good poker face in this world. And this one's still needs a bit of work!" She gently tapped her cane on Larry's cheek.
"Awh, grandma, I'm trying to get better," Larry groaned.
"Well it's a good thing we weren't playing for anything but chips, or else you'd have lost that tiny shirt!" Mary chuckled.
"You about ready to go back to our place, Larry?" Judy asked.
"Okay, mom," Larry nodded, jumping onto his chair, then the table, then walking over to give Mary a kiss on the cheek.
"Aw, thank you dear, please come back soon!" Mary smiled.
"You sure you're doing okay here by yourself, mother?" Nick asked with concern. "Think we should hire someone to help you, maybe?"
"Oh, we can have that discussion another time, Nicholas," Mary shook her head, giving him and Judy small kisses as well, "I have your number if anything goes wrong."
"If you're sure," Judy nodded. She, Nick, and Larry left the house as Mary waved after them.
-Zootopia Police Department Headquarters, Chief Bogo's Office-
"You wanted to see us, sir?" Judy entered the buffalo's office with Nick after the morning briefing.
"Yes, hope your vacation was pleasant and all that," Chief Bogo said dryly, looking over some papers. "I'm afraid I have a rather dubious welcome-home present for you two. A bit of news. Dawn Bellwether was released from jail yesterday." Judy made a face of distaste.
"Oh, goodie," Nick said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Right, well, thought you'd enjoy that," Bogo said just as flatly, "also this: almost as soon as she got into the public eye, she was attacked."
"Attacked?" Judy blinked and her eyes registered the barest note of concern. "Attacked how?"
"By a Night Howler pellet, if you can believe that," Chief Bogo explained. Judy gasped.
"You've heard it said that the goddess Karma is a female canine entity, right?" Nick smirked, his hands behind his back.
"This isn't funny, Wilde-Hopps," Bogo grunted, checking some papers. "She wasn't able to injure anyone before she was detained, but regardless of our feelings about this... sheep... Night Howler being in circulation again is a serious concern."
Nick did not like where this conversation was headed. "But, you've already got some of our guys on the case, right?" Nick held his arms and paws out cautiously.
"I do," Chief Bogo drew in a large breath and sighed, "and I am loathe to ask you two this, but-"
"You want us to interview Dawn, don't you?" Judy finished.
Chief Bogo's mouth twisted. "Yes. As you two have the most experience with the first Night Howler case from fifteen years ago."
Judy shrugged. "Okay, sure. Is she still in the hospital? Nick and I can go visit her right now if you like."
"We can- WHAT?" Nick did a double take, glaring at Judy in astonishment. "Lest you forget, my dear partner, she tried to kill you. With me." Judy smirked with a hint of malice.
"I do have reservations about this," Chief Bogo confirmed. "You are to interview her, not interrogate. She's unfortunately the victim here."
"Oh, I know," Judy said in an airy voice. "I've been trying to be a bit more subtle about my vindictiveness lately."
"This from a bunny who's idea of subtle involves mouse riots and train explosions," Chief Bogo said flatly.
Judy laughed nervously. "Haha, noted! Don't worry, Dawn will survive the interview unharmed!"
"Keep her in line, fox," Chief Bogo took his eyes off the two.
"Me?" Nick gestured to himself incredulously. "How about someone stronger, like Grizzoli or Francine? They might be able to hold her back."
"Just sharpen that tongue of yours and cut her down a peg if she gets uppity," Chief Bogo grumbled, "and get out of my office."
"This is shaping up to be a fun day!" Judy smirked, rubbing her hands together.
"You know, I used to like your definition of 'fun'," Nick rolled his eyes, heading out of the office with her. "Getting into a shouting match with a psycho sheep? Not sure about that one."
"I can handle her," Judy said dangerously.
-Zootopia Mercy General Hospital-
"Oh, great," Dawn Bellwether said with equal parts disdain and disgust as Nick and Judy headed into her room. Nick held an even look on his face while Judy looked rather insufferably smug. Dawn sucked at her teeth as she lay back in her hospital bed.
"Why hello there, former assistant mayor and briefly actual mayor Bellwether," Judy said obnoxiously, "what's it been, fifteen years?"
"Is this your idea of a joke?" Dawn sneered at her. "Get me a taste of my own 'medicine' and then come here to mock me?"
"Oh, don't pin that on me," Judy smiled sweetly. "I was on a cruise with my husband at the time." Judy looked lovingly with her eyes half-lidded at Nick.
"The fox from... an officer... your..." Dawn's incredulous look faded, then she started to look like she was dry heaving.
"Yes, yes, we all know how you feel about predators," Nick grumbled in annoyance.
"Any more breeches of the natural order you'd like to inform me of?" Dawn asked the smirking bunny.
"Breaking laws, you mean? I suppose you wouldn't know anything about that," Judy breezily gave a light laugh.
"Please. A predator and prey together? That's vile. You wouldn't have gotten away with that had I stayed in office," Dawn grumbled lowly.
"Yes, well, your irrelevant opinion aside, we're here about the crime that happened to you, to see if we can narrow down who might have done it," Nick said with barely masked irritation.
"Though that must be a very long list," Judy bat her eyes.
"They couldn't have sent any other officers to do this?" Dawn shook her head. "I have little faith that you two of all mammals would want to find whoever did this to me unless it was to praise them."
"Oh, on the contrary," Judy looked hurt, "unlike you, Nick and I actually stand for justice and what Zootopia believes in. We're just here to do our jobs. You know, if you had kept to doing yours maybe you wouldn't have had to rot for a decade and a half in jail. Think of the time you've wasted! You could have been winning political victories! Spreading your deplorable message! Maybe it would have gotten to the point where you ironically fell in love with a predator and had to hide it from your brainwashed voters and it would have exploded in a huge scandal; that would have been fun to watch!"
Dawn ground her teeth in fury. "Get out."
"I think you're enjoying this a bit too much, Judy," Nick had the barest of smirks.
"We're not going anywhere, Dawn, so why don't you just start talking about who, besides every predator in Zootopia and several preys, would want to do this to you," Judy folded her arms and finally looked serious.
"Fine," Dawn relented, thrusting her head back against her pillow in bed. "I received a lot of lovely 'fan' mail from you hateful preds right before I got out of jail. I think my favorite was from an anonymous but well-written letter that said they would 'ice' me if I ever went near Renato Manchas again."
Nick and Judy exchanged blank looks, but their eyes carried a note of concern to each other.
Dawn thought for a moment. "Anyway, if you want my opinion on all of the people I ordered to get darted, it's probably the Ottertons." Nick and Judy looked shocked.
"Um, we did not want your opinion, thank you," Judy frowned.
Dawn smiled smugly as she saw she finally scored a hit on Judy's mood. "Oh please, Judy. Who's the one that's been in jail all this time? I've had plenty of opportunity to think of all the revenge scenarios that could be wrought against me. Of those involving Night Howlers, who would have easy access to them?"
"Not a couple of law-abiding florists, that's for sure," Nick folded his arms. "Night Howlers are illegal for even their few beneficial uses, thanks to you."
"Something being illegal never stopped anyone before," Dawn smirked.
"Maybe not you," Judy sneered, "but the Ottertons are-"
"Oh blah blah blah," Dawn rolled her eyes and opened and closed the fingers of one of her hands, "all they need is means and opportunity. Anyway, I don't have any better ideas, so why don't you do your little job somewhere else?"
"We will," Judy was frowning, "and trust me, we're doing it just to spite you."
Dawn looked confused, she tapped one of her fingers on her chin. "Yeah, bringing a pred in for my sake is supposed to be sticking it to me? I'm not seeing it."
"No one's above the law, Dawn," Nick nodded. "It all has to catch up to us sometime or another. I'll take down a fellow predator for doing this crime to you, because I'm not a biased miscreant."
"I'm 'flattered', pred," Dawn looked at him with hatred. "But what's the public going to think if you do catch the criminal?"
"Hopefully, that the ZPD isn't so biased as to turn their heads the other way just because the victim is a hateful waste of wool," Judy snapped, then motioned her head to Nick and the door, and they left. Dawn was left with her mouth agape, offended.
"Well, I'm a bit ambivalent about that," Nick shrugged. "Talking to her is like talking to a brick wall, and it'll take more than a big bad wolf to blow that thing down."
"Nothing I said was untrue, Nick," Judy explained. "Some mammals may balk at us helping Bellwether, but what if other small-time criminals see that the law will be on their side as long as they are the ones wronged?"
Nick actually smiled, taking his phone out and typing into it. "Nice to know that in fifteen years that wide-eyed idealism hasn't narrowed, given how much time we spend with our eyes half-open."
Judy half-lid her eyes reflexively in response to this, barely smiling.
-A Taste of Pawaii-
Nick, Judy, Larry, and his ferret girlfriend Kara all sat down at a table at the Pawaiian restaurant that was making quite a name for itself in Savanna Central. It offered exotic and often spicy foods from the reptilian, island nation of Pawaii. The Wilde-Hopps knew a server at the restaurant; a pleasant leopard gecko named Jiji. She looked delighted to see them, as they specifically asked for her.
"Hello! What a surprise it is to see you here!" Jiji smiled her winsome smile at them. "Ah, I do not believe I have met this ferret! I am Jiji, yes?"
"My name is Kara," the honey-and-white colored ferret said politely. "I've never seen a leopard gecko before!"
"I hope it is not the last time we will meet," Jiji said, and gave Larry an inquisitive look.
"Yeah, she's my girlfriend," Larry confirmed, nodding. Kara gave a shy smile that he was so forthcoming with this.
"How wonderful!" Jiji seemed pleased. "As a carnivore, much of our menu is open to you. There are many foods to try, yes? Hmhm, shall I get the usual for you three?" The bunny, fox, and squirrel nodded. "Water for you three, yes? And you?"
"Ah, I'll have water as well," Kara nodded, looking the menu over as Jiji left. "Wow, everything's in reptilian. They don't even offer that as an elective in high school... lots of this stuff looks really interesting, though, hm..."
"So, Kara, your teeth are finally out of prison, yeah?" Nick smirked at her.
"Well, kinda," Kara laughed, taking her retainer out. "I may not have to wear braces anymore but I wear the retainer so often they might as well. My orthodontist basically performed a miracle on me." She instinctively ran her tongue across her freed teeth.
"They're looking very nice, Kara," Judy smiled. "Love your new glasses, too." Kara took off and squinted at her new glasses which had shorter, clear rectangular lenses and soft pink rims.
"I thought the neon pink fully rimmed ones were a bit too nerdy, even for me, right Larry?" Kara giggled.
"Uh, I like them both?" Larry shrugged.
"Good answer," Nick chuckled as their waters were brought out.
"Have you had a chance to look at the menu?" Jiji tilted her head at Kara.
"Um, I don't even want to try pronouncing this, else I'd feel kind of stupid..." Kara pointed to a place on the menu near the end. Jiji began to look nervous. "Could I have this?"
"Ah... well," Jiji's eyes darted to and fro, "I am afraid that is, ah, just a section of the menu, not an actual item..." Kara felt her ears grow hot, and Nick and Judy couldn't help from laughing. Larry had to bite his tongue and look away to keep himself from joining them.
"Okay, I see feeling kind of stupid will be unavoidable..." Kara grumbled. "Do you recommend anything?"
"If you can tolerate spice, I would recommend the triple cricket dinner, it comes with three types of spicy gravy drizzled over three skewers of crickets, very tasty!" Jiji said brightly. "It is my favorite, yes?"
"Okay, let me try that," Kara said, trying not to feel self-conscious. Jiji nodded and gathered their menus. Kara decided to quickly change the subject. "So um, I heard Dawn Bellwether was released from jail recently?"
"Ugh, she was?" Larry made a face. "I was hoping she'd stay in there longer."
"You know about Bellwether, Kara?" Nick looked surprised.
"Oh yeah, the Night Howler incident actually recently made its way into the Zootopia History curriculum," Kara smiled. "I'm basically eating dinner with a couple of historical figures!"
"That's uh, a bit humbling," Judy looked a tiny bit meek. "You never told me about that, Larry."
"Well, I thought you knew!" Larry shrugged, smirking. "I always ace those tests because of the stories you've told me about that wacko."
"So uh, I guess the ZPD knows about that incident where she herself was attacked by the Night Howler pellet right out of jail?" Kara inquired. Nick and Judy nodded slowly.
"Ha, serves her right!" Larry said.
"Larry!" Judy looked at him with a reproving face.
"Are you going to scold our son for his righteous indignation?" Nick teased. "Because if we had a pocket mirror I could show you where he gets that from."
Judy rolled her eyes, grinning. "Okay, okay. Now, you're not going to like this, but Chief Bogo actually put us in charge of the investigation as to who attacked her."
"What? Why?" Larry seemed offended. "You told me she nearly killed both of you!"
"As police officers we have to uphold the law, Larry," Judy said firmly, "we don't get to choose who it's applied to."
"Well ugh... couldn't the Chief have given it to someone else?" Larry folded his arms.
"He could have, but no one knows the Night Howlers better than us," Nick explained. Kara shifted in her seat, looking a bit uncomfortable from where she'd driven the conversation. "The police can't just look the other way if something goes wrong, even if it's for a loathsome, hateful sheep."
"It's a horrible example, for you and for the rest of Zootopia," Judy agreed. Larry didn't know whether to marvel or be disgusted by this. Jiji brought their food out and there was a small silence.
"Psychologically speaking, I think they're right, Larry," Kara nodded, carefully trying some of her food. "Ooh, not bad. I mean, uh, hatred begets hatred, right? If no one takes a stand to stop hating, it will just keep spreading."
"Not to say we're going to become friends with that awful mammal," Judy smirked.
"Hm, so Night Howlers. Hey mom, you busted Duke Weaselton, right? For having them?" Larry dug into his own food, which was thick noodles with fresh spinach, other crunchy vegetables, and soy sauce.
"That's right," Judy smirked sheepishly. "What an occasion that was."
"Kara's good friends with his daughter," Larry said offhandedly. "Maybe she can get her to ask him if he knows how they've come back."
"Uh, this is the first I'm hearing of this," Judy's brow furrowed. "You know Duke Weaselton's daughter?" Kara nodded slowly.
"Hey, I knew about this, Larry came clean to me about who he was hanging out with," Nick shook his head. "She seems decent, from what I've heard. The daughter shouldn't have to inherit the sins of the father, after all."
"I guess not," Judy's mouth twisted, and she ate some of her food. Kara turned to Larry, looking displeased. Larry's eyes grew wider.
"That's absolutely right, Larry!" Kara said firmly. "Why would Kerry know anything about the Night Howlers? You think just because the Weaseltons have had dealings with them once that they're automatically involved?"
"Well, when it comes to the Weaseltons, the extended family has been in trouble with Night Howlers... more than once, actually," Judy said carefully, holding a finger up tentatively. Kara looked surprised.
"Well, I know Kerry's not into anything bad," Kara said firmly.
"I'm not saying she is, or even her dad," Larry shrugged, "but maybe I can help get mom or dad a clue from asking her."
Nick chuckled as he brought his fork to his muzzle. "Uh, kiddo, you're not a cop or anything. You don't have to do a thing. Just be a kid. Er, teenager. Kinda hard to tell since barely anything's changed on you but your voice." Larry smirked wryly.
"Hey dad, if I can help, I want to," Larry explained, "I'll prove we can be better than that dumb sheep."
"That's the spirit," Judy giggled. Nick looked at her. "What, it couldn't hurt for him to ask, could it?"
"Ah, I'll try to get together with her and Heather for lunch tomorrow," Kara nodded. "Things between us have been a bit strained lately as our personalities have become more distinct from each other, but I think we're still friends... ish..."
"Okay cool, I'll see you at lunch tomorrow, then," Larry smiled.
"Aw, our very own ZPD Junior Detective," Judy clasped her paws together adoringly.
"Don't push it, Judy," Nick smirked.
-Squeakendale High School, Lunch Period-
"Well, look who it is!" Kerry Weaselton gave an impressed grin as she saw Larry sit down across from her, Kara, and a white stoat named Heather. "The Larry I met in sixth grade wouldn't have had the guts to sit down with one girl, let alone three!"
"It never hurts to be confident," Heather grinned. "Is Chet's attitude rubbing off on you?"
"Well, he's not calling himself the Lare-ster yet or anything, so maybe not," Kara giggled.
"As much as I'd like to say I'm here just to have lunch with these three lovely ladies, I'm actually here on business," Larry gave a small smirk. The three mustelids gave him little smiles.
"Oh, look at you!" Kerry said, lacing her fingers together and resting her chin on them. "What a little charmer! What can we do for you? Homework help? You should know by now that that's Kara's field. Need someone beat up? I'm sure Heather can take care of it. And well, if you need someone taken down a peg or two emotionally, that would be my specialty." Kerry looked at her claws of one hand smugly.
"Well, I do need your help specifically," Larry nodded. "Do you know anything about Night Howlers?"
Kerry blinked. "What's this, all of a sudden? Those are illegal, you know." Her jaw dropped. "Wait, is this because my dad's... Hey! Listen. Just because my dad's the only one of ours who isn't a freakin' paragon doesn't mean I know anything about any crime!" She folded her arms, looking at the other three. "I mean what do we got here. Your dad's a cop, hers is a medical examiner, and Heather's is a sports hero. So right, mine's a petty criminal. Obviously I must know about whatever crime's happening in Zootopia."
Larry paused for a moment while there was an uncomfortable silence. "Well I notice you didn't quite answer the question."
"Kuh!" Kerry leaned over, placing a a paw on the table. "You have some nerve, squirrel! I think I liked you better when you were more timid." Larry kept his face even.
Heather turned her head to look at Kerry. "You're being evasive, Kerry. Do you know anything, or not?"
Kerry tilted her head upwards, letting loose a sigh of aggravation. "Fine. I'll tell you what I know. But don't let any of this get out to anyone else in school, okay? I'm doing my best to keep my own nose clean."
Larry nodded rapidly in agreement. "Right, you can just call me secret squirrel." He smiled, but it quickly waned when all three of the mustelids gave him curious looks. "Uh, on second thought, maybe don't call me that."
"My stupid aunt is back into Night Howler dealing," Kerry rolled her eyes, pushing slightly away from the table. "Can you believe that? Aunt Duchess had barely got out of jail for the same thing and's already back into it."
"Jeepers," Kara said, putting a paw to her mouth. "What's she want with them?"
"Eh, what else? To make money," Kerry rubbed the claws of one hand together. "That stupid weasel hasn't done an honest day's work in her life. She tried to... ugh... she tried to get me to sell them."
"Here at school?" Larry asked in a harsh whisper. "Is she trying to get into even more trouble? Why on Earth would anyone buy Night Howlers anyway?"
"Well I'm guessing straight-edge kids like you wouldn't know this, but..." Kerry began, looking off to the side, "Night Howlers are making a comeback as an illicit substance. There's a trend where you chew just one leaf from a Night Howler. It gives you an aggressive buzz, lowers your inhibitions, and goes away after a few hours. They're trying to give em to jocks and kids who are too afraid to make the moves on someone they got the hots for." Kara and Larry both looked alarmed. Heather, meanwhile, looked furious.
"What!?" The stoat angrily slammed the table, then quieted down when she attracted attention from some other kids. "You're saying I've had to put up with cheaters in school sports and haven't even known about it? I come by all my strength and skill honestly!"
"Yeah, I knew this'd cheese you off; it's why I haven't said anything about it," Kerry grimaced. "Anyway, I've never touched the stuff. I have a reputation to keep up too, and I'm not gonna sully it for some dirty drug money."
"Hm, so I guess the important thing is that someone could get their paws on Night Howler if they really wanted to," Larry nodded, looking like he was going to get up. "Thanks for the information, Kerry."
"H-hey, Larry," Kerry said tentatively, "could you not have your folks bust my aunt unless she's directly involved? And uh, c'mon, just sit with us for lunch this time. You sit with Chet like every day. Look, it's your girlfriend, c'mon." Kerry gave a nervous look over to Kara. Kara waved softly.
"Okay, I promise, I won't have them go directly after your aunt," Larry nodded, and smiled at Kara. "And yeah, eating lunch with the ladies sounds fun."
-Zootopia Police Department Headquarters-
Nick poked his head into Judy's cubicle. "Skip said she had something for us, Judy."
Judy hopped off of her chair and sighed. "Can you believe this? A brand new generation getting into Night Howlers. It's like we haven't learned anything."
"Well, to be fair, most of the kids that are 'in the market' were babies or didn't even exist during the Night Howler incident," Nick folded his arms. "The distributors are preying on the ignorance and insecurities of their buyers."
"How repulsive. Abhorrent, even," Judy made a face, and Nick nodded. The two stood next to Karen Skippel's workstation, the arctic hare lead technical officer of the ZPD HQ.
"Hey, you two," Karen started, "Bellwether was attacked again yesterday, but this time we have it on camera. The suspect is no criminal mastermind, that's for sure." She gestured at the footage. Dawn was in a store, shopping, when a tiny blip of a projectile hit her cheek and she started to go savage; the large security on staff was able to detain her easily, and then the video ended. "Even though this video is in black and white, the frames-per-second rate is good enough for me to estimate that the projectile was delivered very low-velocity. Maybe some sort of straw, even."
"Is the suspect on the camera?" Nick narrowed his eyes, looking at the footage. Karen nodded, backing up the footage to the point of attack and pointing at the projectile's origin. Judy's jaw dropped as she took in the shape of the suspect's body, which was unmistakable even though they were wearing all black.
"No, no no no!" Judy put her hands to her cheeks and tugged downwards. "That could... that could only be an otter!" Nick cringed a bit.
"The Ottertons were a part of the Night Howler incident," Karen recalled, nodding, "it's likely one of them."
"Rgh!" Judy whirled around, looking away from the screen. "This can't be. We gotta... we gotta see if some other officers can interview them instead..."
"After that big old speech we gave to ourselves, Dawn, and Larry?" Nick sighed a bit. "We'll be hypocrites if we back down now, just because they're-"
"They're lovely people, Nick," Judy protested, her mouth twisting. "They did the flowers at our wedding. How could we accuse them of-"
"Skip?" Nick turned his head to Karen. "Do you find me irritating?"
"Yup," Karen smirked. Nick grinned, then turned to Judy.
"How about you?" Nick gestured to Judy with his paw.
"You can be uh... a bit annoying at times, I guess?" Judy shrugged. "But deep down you're a lovely, wonderful fox, and that's why I married you." She looked very honest when saying this. Karen smirked and rolled her eyes.
"Exactly," Nick pointed at her. "Just because of who I appear to be, even to the vast majority of people, won't change who I am on the inside."
"Nick!" Judy's jaw dropped. "Are you seriously suggesting that the Ottertons are evil, deep down?"
"No," Nick shook his head firmly. "I'm suggesting they have the capacity to want to cause Bellwether to feel what they felt. In a way, it's a kind of justice, though illegal."
"I just..." Judy held her arms out helplessly, "I just don't want Dawn to be right. She's the one who suggested the Ottertons in the first place."
"Well, maybe you of all people could get them to confess if they did do it," Karen shrugged. "If not them, we basically have no leads. We'll have to go bark up an otter tree- another. No, no, I did not just say that..." Karen put her head in her paws.
"Ah!" Nick pointed and grinned broadly at Karen. Judy had a weak smile.
"I can't believe this," Judy grumbled. "We're about to go treat old friends like enemies, while we treat our most hated foe like a cherished pal. Another fine mess I've gotten us into."
"That's my wife," Nick grinned. "Always charging in without thinking." Nick hoped Judy would come back at him with a snappy quip, but his grin wavered as she just closed her eyes and let out a slow sigh.
"Honestly, I don't know why you put up with me sometimes," Judy said in a hollow tone.
"Got a list on my phone, actually," Nick brought out his phone and waved it.
"No, I don't believe that," Karen said, "and also, smack me if I ever get that sappy."
"Let's go drive to the Otterton's, I guess," Judy smirked softly, heading off with Nick. As they broke from Karen, Judy's head slowly turned to look at Nick. "You don't... you don't really have a list like that, do you?"
"Do I have a list detailing the things I love about my bunny?" Nick stated evenly. "Why yes, yes I do."
Judy had a small, embarrassed smile. "I um... I don't suppose you'd mind reading me a few of those on our way over?"
"I'd be happy to," Nick grinned, taking his phone back out.
-A Bevy of Flowers-
Judy let out a long, protesting groan as she parked the police cruiser outside of the Otterton's shop. They lived on the second floor of the shop, which cut down on the number of stops Judy had to make.
"On a list of things I really don't want to do, grilling the Ottertons about a crime is worse than having Flash read me a cake recipe," Judy gave a desperate look to Nick.
"I hear you," Nick nodded, "let's make this quick." The two leaped out of the cruiser and headed inside. Mrs. Otterton greeted them immediately.
"Nick! Judy!" Her expression was warm, and she clasped her paws together. "What a treat!"
"Er, I'm afraid we're not here for a very pleasant reason," Judy looked off to the side. "Could you tell us where you and Mr. Otterton were last evening?"
"Of course, he and I were right here!" Mrs. Otterton smiled. "After the Night Howler incident we were suggested to install cameras to deter thieves until Night Howlers were outright banned." The otter slinked over to her counter and showed her their computer, and pulled up the relevant footage. "There we are. Quite a boring night, really."
Judy's expression immediately brightened. "Great, that's fantastic! Thank you so much!" Mrs. Otterton looked a bit wary at the sudden relief in her face.
"Wait, you said you weren't here for a pleasant reason, what's the trouble?" Mrs. Otterton cocked her head. Judy let loose a large, uncomfortable smile.
"All right, bunny, I'll say it," Nick gave a small smile. Judy shook her head in protest. "We're here on a case involving one 'Dawn Bellwether', if you've heard of her."
"Oh, I have," the warmth drained out of Mrs. Otterton's voice.
"Nick, please, she doesn't need to know..." Judy's eyes looked troubled.
"She deserves to know why we're here," Nick shook his head. "Bellwether was attacked by Night Howler pellets, twice now."
"Oh," Mrs. Otterton nodded, "I see why you're here, then. Obviously anyone related to the case like myself and Emmitt would be a suspect. It's okay, Judy dear, really."
"But it's not just that," Judy gave a wince, "we have security footage of her attacker, and it's... well, unquestionably an otter."
"Ah, I see," Mrs. Otterton looked upset, "that is troubling... but I can assure you, Emmitt and I stand for peace and understanding. As awful as that sheep is, I would not wish harm on her; it wouldn't solve anything."
"Exactly, exactly," Judy nodded. "I'm so sorry to have to trouble you like this."
"I'm afraid I can't be of any more help," Mrs. Otterton shrugged, "both of my oldest boys, Arthur and Emerson, are in separate colleges in different cities, and Eddie is only in ninth grade. Oh! Would you like to search the place?"
"Ah, we actually can't!" Nick brightened. "We don't have a warrant or probable cause to think any of you have committed a crime, so I guess we're... done?"
"Oh, thank heavens," Judy gave a relieved sigh, placing a paw to her chest.
"I will talk to my husband about this and I'll let you know if I've heard of anything strange happening in our extended family," Mrs. Otterton nodded.
"Thank you so much, bye!" Judy quickly made her way back into the cruiser with Nick and collapsed into her seat. "Whew! Never have I been so relieved to be completely stymied on a case! That was pretty bad, but not as bad as say, uh, Flash doing dental work."
"Ooh, that would be pretty bad," Nick admitted.
"I guess the bad news is that we're back to square one," Judy mused, starting the engine after the two put their seat belts on. "What otter in Zootopia could have done this? Who'd have a motive?"
"Eddie Otterton," Nick said calmly.
"W-what!?" Judy voice sounded choked.
"He's the only one not on the footage," Nick shrugged. "We have to figure out what he was doing that night."
"Do you really think..." Judy's jaw dropped. "He's a year younger than Larry! He wasn't even alive till after the incident was over."
"It's a stretch, but I think we have to consider it a possibility," Nick grumbled. "Let's flip this around for a minute. Imagine we were already a couple at the time and I was hit. You went for weeks without knowing where I was, or even if I was alive, to find me a feral, uncontrollable beast. You had as good as lost me and had no way of knowing if you'd get me back. Think of how Larry would feel if he even heard of that story."
"I see what you mean," Judy nodded solemnly, "Larry's already empathetic enough to hate Bellwether even though he had nothing to do with the case; he's a prey, even! And then, when he learned the truth in your hypothetical situation, he knows that you were targeted on purpose, for a reason, just because of a hatred of what you were."
"And the seeds of hatred are sown anew," Nick agreed.
"Eddie goes to Larry's school, right?" Judy sighed. "I guess we need to call upon our Junior Detective again..."
-Squeakendale High School, Freshmen Hallway-
"Okay, I see Eddie, Chet," Larry said to his chinchilla friend. "You ready to do this good cop, bad cop thing?"
"I dunno, Lares," Chet winced, putting a pair of sunglasses on, "you know how hard it is to accidentally do something on purpose?"
"C'mon, Chet," Larry gave a smirk, "running into people in hallways is practically your signature move."
"I thought it was the Chilla Thrilla," Chet laughed. "Okay, let's do it." As soon as Eddie looked like he was going to start walking, Chet briskly walked right into him.
"Ugh!" Eddie rocked a bit, but didn't topple over.
"Oof!" Chet grunted. "Hey, watch where I'm goin', freshmeat! Upperclassman on the way through!" Eddie winced at the chinchilla, even though he was half his size.
"Hey, don't be a jerk!" Larry rushed over. "You okay?"
"Yeah, just a bit startled is all," Eddie said.
"Apologize to this otter!" Larry frowned at Chet.
"You gonna make me, lil' squirrel?" Chet got up close to Larry and the two glared at each other. Larry narrowed one eye, having steel in his gaze and a firm frown, and Chet was actually trying very hard not to laugh with how genuinely angry the gray squirrel looked. He decided he had to split from them before he blew the whole thing. "Okay, whatever, dorks." He waved and was off.
"Thankfully, not all of us sophomores are like him," Larry smiled. "Hey, are you uh, one of the Ottertons?"
"How would you know that?" Eddie looked surprised.
"My parents are the cops that took down Bellwether!" Larry said proudly. "They tell me stories about it all the time."
"Really? Huh, that's cool," Eddie nodded, then his mood dropped. "You know she's out of jail, right?"
"What?" Larry made a disgusted face. "She should have been in there way longer. She tried to kill my mom and dad!"
"Right?" Eddie agreed. "Don't worry though, someone as awful as her, she's gonna get what's coming to her, and soon, hopefully." Larry tempered himself to not react to the way Eddie said this.
"Yeah, I bet!" Larry had a determined glare. "So, anyway, uh, you got any plans for after high school?"
"Well, unlike my other brothers, I think I actually want to go into the family business," Eddie said. "Flowers and stuff. Taking some agriculture now. ...Eh, pretty lame, right?"
"Ah, no, thinking stuff is lame is lame!" Larry smiled brightly. "I'm kinda uh, still entertaining the thought of being a race car driver in the tiny league. A little bit childish, huh?"
"The bigger racing leagues are pretty boring; I don't know how anyone can watch that," Eddie shook his head. "My oldest brother Arthur was into that. They just go for pure speed. But the smaller leagues have those complex, compact tracks where you have to do all the fancy cornering."
"Yeah!" Larry grinned. "Exactly. Hey, you want me to walk with you to the bus stop to make sure no other clumsy chinchillas ram into you?"
"Oh, uh, thanks for the offer, but I got something to do after school," Eddie waved. "Gotta go now. Nice to meet you, though."
Larry felt a tiny turn of his stomach, but his face remained pleasant. "Yeah, you too!" Larry watched Eddie head for deeper into the complex of the high school, away from the direction most of the teenagers were flowing.
-The Wilde-Hopps' Aardvark Rise Apartment-
Larry waved to his parents as they both came into their apartment, still in their uniforms. Nick patted Larry on the head.
"Any luck, Lare-bear?" Nick smirked.
"I did get to talk to Eddie," Larry said with a confident grin. "I'm pretty sure he has absolutely nothing to do with it." Judy gave a nod, smiling, and headed to her bedroom.
"Hold up, Judy," Nick said with a small grin, giving a single, amused exhale. "Can you call in the search warrant for the Otterton's place?"
"What!?" Larry's eyes flew open and his hands shot outward. "I just said...!" Judy looked a bit confused as well, and she blinked in surprise.
"You're lying, Larry," Nick's smile was convinced, but soft. Larry sputtered in frustration.
"Ugh!" He kicked the ground with his foot. "When am I ever going to be able to get away with anything!?"
"Against me!?" Nick chuckled. "Probably never. Listen, kiddo, I used to lie for a living. I lied every day of my life for longer than you've been alive. Your old fox knows a thing or two about fibbing. As good as you get at hiding the truth, you won't be able to keep it from me." Judy came over to Larry and knelt down besides him.
"Why would you lie about this?" Judy asked him softly.
"I don't want him to get into trouble!" Larry stamped his foot indignantly. "Why should he be the one to have to pay? All this is that sheep's fault!"
"That is completely true, it is," Judy nodded, gently touching his shoulder. Larry rotated it to slough it off, but Judy put it back on and held more firmly. "Listen to me. It's not just about how awful Bellwether is. He was using a straw to deliver these pellets. What if he missed? What if he accidentally inhaled one? What if he mistakenly hit a much larger animal? People could get hurt. Going after Bellwether in this way is NOT the answer."
"I guess not," Larry groaned in frustration.
"So are you convinced Eddie is the one that did it?" Nick asked.
"I am pretty sure," Larry sighed. "I mean, he didn't admit it or anything, but... he said something about Bellwether getting what's coming to her. He's interested in botany, and when I offered to hang out with him he made an excuse and headed back deeper into school."
"That's my Junior Detective," Judy smiled, giving him a hug. "Sounds like he probably wanted to go procure more Night Howler or is even storing it somewhere in the school. I should get on that warrant." She got up and got onto her phone, stepping into the other room. Nick got next to Larry and crouched down.
"Listen, Larry," Nick said to the upset-looking squirrel. "We don't want this otter to get into trouble either. He's as much of a victim as anyone else. But your mother is right about the potential for an accident. What if someone else gets hurt, or worse? What would they or their family think?"
"They'd... they'd hate Eddie, then," Larry said carefully.
"That's right," Nick nodded. "It would never end. We have to try to make him see the error of his ways. And... we have to do our jobs, to protect Zootopia."
"I... I understand," Larry sighed, hugging Nick gently. Nick hugged back.
-A Bevy of Flowers-
"W-we're back!" Judy said brightly. "We have a warrant this time. Just checking all of the boxes, you know?"
"Ah, of course!" Emmitt Otterton said. "Look wherever you need. We have nothing to hide."
"Um, maybe I can get the store down here if you go upstairs and look into the rooms?" Judy gave a slight wince over to Nick.
"Of course," Nick nodded and headed up the stairs.
"So while I'm here, tell me about some of these lovely flowers!" Judy smiled as she looked around.
"Sure!" Mrs. Otterton smiled and nodded.
Nick smiled faintly as he saw Eddie standing in front of his room. The fox squinted a bit; his height was already up there with his father's, though he had his mother's coloring and body type. He pretty much exactly matched the shape on the video. "So kiddo, you want to do this the easy way?" Nick placed his hands on his hips.
"What do you mean?" Eddie said, his eyes shifting.
"Let me into your room," Nick said softly.
Eddie's face twisted in a sad sort of frustration. His voice was hushed. "Why are you doing this? ...She tried to kill you."
"That's true," Nick said. "However, what's being done to her now has the potential for collateral damage. I sure wouldn't want that on my paws." Eddie sniveled slightly, opening his door and leading Nick to a chest in his closet with lamps and Night Howlers.
Nick smiled sadly. "Atta boy." He sighed slowly and took out a small pair of handcuffs.
"Whuh- what's going to happen to me?" Eddie asked quietly.
"Hopefully not too much. Please don't say anything else about this, okay? You know you have the right to remain silent," Nick said. "I'll make sure I recommend your folks a good attourney. With your heretofore clean record, you being underage, a sympathetic jury likely being easy to come by, and your target, I don't think you'll be in for much punishment."
Eddie gave a shaky sigh in response.
"This is not the answer, Eddie," Nick said firmly. "Your parents are going to be very upset when they hear about this. Flowers are supposed to bring joy to people's lives."
"I know," Eddie said quietly. "The stories Arthur and Emerson told me about how scared they were when dad was gone, and then figured out he went feral... they gave ME nightmares. I couldn't believe she was getting out of jail... I just... I wanted her to pay..."
"Shh," Nick put a finger to his own lips, gently cuffing Eddie. "No more, okay? For what it's worth, I totally understand you. But we can't take matters into our own hands like this. Someone like Bellwether? She'll probably mess up again. And there's less sympathy for repeat offenders. You hear me on that one?"
Eddie gave another soft snivel, nodding.
"Listen, I know you're probably a great kid," Nick said, putting his hand behind his back. "The Ottertons are your parents, after all. But the first step to being even better is to make sure you let don't let hatred fester in your heart until it breeds action."
"Okay..." Eddie said. "How did you know it was me? Did your son figure it out and give me up...?"
"Nope, I read it out of him," Nick closed his eyes, smiling softly. "If you want to be upset with someone, be upset at me."
"I can't do that," Eddie shook his head. "We're both on the same side."
"Now listen to me very closely, this will be the most important thing I say to you before we go down to your parents," Nick said firmly. "There are no 'sides'. There's no 'us' or 'them'. There's only right and wrong."
"All right..." Eddie said, and Nick gently led him downstairs.
-Maulgreen's-
The Otterton's had been quite upset, of course, that one of their children could be a criminal, however justified any of them felt he was. Judy and Nick had assured them that they would recommend the best lawyer they knew to the family to try to get Eddie the lightest possible punishment. Judy sighed as her mind was clouded by how disappointed Mrs. Otterton had looked. She hoped the sorrow in her face would discourage Eddie from trying anything like that ever again.
Judy's mind was so absent that she clashed her shopping cart in the grocery store against another. Snapping back to the present, she saw Dawn Bellwether standing in front of her. Dawn smiled darkly.
"Oh, how wonderful," Judy said sarcastically. "Guess I'll need to change grocery stores."
"Don't bother," Dawn's smile turned into a frown, "I'll be moving to Greener Pastures before the month is out."
"Whatever for?" Judy sneered, folding her arms.
"Gee, maybe it's because I've been attacked twice already," Dawn rolled her eyes. "Figure that if a tiny otter brat could do that to me there's no telling what the rest of those preds could do if they got their claws into me." She smiled darkly again.
"Tch," Judy's teeth showed.
"I was right," Dawn's merciless grin widened. "I was right. It was one of the Ottertons. Saw it all on the news. How sad for you, huh? Your precious little squeaking pred family had a black 'sheep' after all. Thank you so much for taking care of him for me."
"Shut your mouth!" Judy shouted, making Dawn flinch. "You brought this all on yourself! Your repulsive conduct, your campaign of hatred! You are right though; you're lucky predators have had the self control not to squish you into a fine paste by now!" Several onlookers started filing into both of the ends of the aisle.
"What's going on?"
"So much shouting!"
"What's that, a bunny and a sheep?"
"Should we call the police?"
"Quiet!" Judy snapped, looking back at the mumblers. She flashed her badge. "I AM the police! Judy Wilde-Hopps, ZPD. And I hope you all know who this is!" She gestured grandiosely towards Dawn. There was a small silence.
"Is that... Dawn Bellwether?" A pig sneered.
"The former mayor?" A tiger grit his teeth.
"Why's she even out of jail!?" A bear protested.
"Go fleece yourself, sheep!" A deer yelled out. "My best friend is a wolf!" Dawn winced slightly, standing closer to her shopping cart.
"Ah, what a lovely sound," Judy grinned, placing a hand to her ear. "Predator and prey alike, united in their distaste of YOU. Now, since I did something for you, maybe you could do something for me? Shoplift, perhaps? I would love to arrest you. It'd really make my day."
"I bet she's already done something illegal!"
"Don't worry, Officer! If she tries to escape we'll keep her still!"
"She's surrounded!"
"We've all got your back, bunny!"
"Oh, so is mob justice your idea of keeping this city in line?" Dawn sneered. "I will be extra glad to leave." She bared her teeth, gesturing to the crowd. "Mark my words, Zootopians. You think all of this inter-species harmony will last in this city? We're all fundamentally different! You predators have knives for claws and swords for teeth! Violence is in your blood! When one of you wants your way, you can just take it!" She drew her hand across her neck. "Teeth for crushing necks. Claws for eviscerating! The idea of a true, lasting inter-species peace is a farce!"
"Hey, shut up! I never hurt anyone in my life!" A wolf growled.
"You're the one with the problem, sheep!" A goat yelled out.
"She did say she was moving out, right?" Another female sheep asked hopefully.
"It's not always predators you've gotta watch for," a female buffalo punched her hands together. "I can take what I want too, and I'm starting to want to hurt you."
"All right, let's not get too crazy," Judy held her hands up. "Dawn, all of us are very different, it's true. But as long as we can at least tolerate each other, Zootopia will stand as a society. It will prove how far we've come from those prehistoric times of violence. And, it will be better and more special from all of our various abilities and perspectives."
"Nice," Dawn rolled her eyes. "You read that off of the back of one of these cereal boxes?"
"I don't know or want to know what happened to you to make you like you are, and I know you don't want to change," Judy said, smiling. "So, I'm glad you're leaving."
Dawn opened her mouth to say something but nothing came out. She just sneered and headed away from Judy. Over a dozen animals were waiting for her at the end of the aisle, glaring at her. Dawn cowered slightly.
"You all want to prove you're better than that sheep?" Judy called out proudly. "Then stand aside and let her pass! Don't lay a paw on her!" The crowd obeyed Judy and Dawn made it through the throng unharmed. She gave a nervous look backwards and saw all the angry faces, some self-satisfied, but none more so than Judy's.
"Zootopia won't miss you," Judy said coldly.