Chapter Three guys!
Okay, so I will warn you, this is rated T, as there may be some violence the further down the line it goes, but nothing too graphic. Also, now that the plot is set in motion, the pace will start to pick up so please bare with me.
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"Hopps," said Chief Bogo, "can I have a word?"
Judy's ears fell back in nervousness, wondering what she had done wrong, only the Chief chuckled and assured her she was fine. He had gone a lot softer on her since the Savage Case, for she and Nick together had done an undeniably good job. She was eternally grateful, having also gained the respect of her fellow co-workers, who had once seen her as nothing more than a useless bunny.
She followed the buffalo into his office, feeling Nick's curious eyes on her back from their desk. Her chief carefully shut the door behind him, surprisingly delicate despite his rough and tough size. He looked down at her, something proud about his stance.
"You know how you've proven to be a worthy cop, Hopps, and I applaud you, as you know," he looked over she shoulder, back towards the door and through the glass, gazing fondly at his force. "You've changed things for the better around here, and you should be proud of that."
"I am, sir," she murmured, eying his quizzically. "But something tells me you didn't call me in here for a praise."
He chucked. "Nothing gets past you, now does it?" He then moved heavily behind his desk, up along the wall filled with files and cases that had either defined the force or have changed the nation. Among the files was a blue folder, not very think but with perhaps twenty or more pages in it. He placed it down on the desk, watching the young rabbit very carefully.
"I cannot trust the others to handle this delicately."
"Handle what delicately?"
He opened the file. Judy felt bile in her throat when he revealed the first image to her. A hedgehog, lay in a hospital bed, bruised to a pulp with scratches all over his body. He looked so defeated, so ready to give up, had it not been for the little paw placed in his just out of the shot, no doubt his wife at his bedside.
There was another image, one of a sheep. She was unconscious, with the same wounds if not worse. Balls of her woolly fur were violently missing, her left eye out of action having been slashed to the point that sight was out of the question. She had one leg bandaged, but that didn't stop the blood from seeping. She looked helpless in her bed, unresponsive to the help she was being given.
The final image was one that Judy could barely stomach. A hare, a cousin of her fellow rabbit species, attacked to the point that he no longer looked animal, only furry rags.
"Is he alive?" she whispered, daring to look at the image again.
"Barely. Intensive care; they're doing everything they can."
Judy nodded stiffly. "What happened to them?"
"These are only a selection of the attacks. They started a month ago, outside of Zootopia. All of the victims have been prey, taken in the night from the homes and dragged to somewhere vast, such as Mister Prickle being found in the heart of the woodland near his home. The attacks are becoming more vicious, and I worry that the next victim won't make it to the hospital in time."
"What other connections are there, other than them being prey?"
"None. At first we thought the attacks was done by a savage, and checked them all for Night Howler traces; perhaps someone was trying to continue the work of Bellwether. Not one single trace was found, and the victims told us they didn't act vicious in the way the infected predators had. The attackers spoke to them, and then attacked; they knew what they were doing."
"Did anyone see anything?"
"Blindfolded. Taken out in the night, threatened, and then released of their blindfold and chased until they ended up like this. When put in that kind of situation, the panic would have been blinding." The Chief sighed heavily. "They're not being done by one animal, either. The victims have told us both male and female voices were heard."
"How many victims?"
"Eight." The Chief looked her in the eyes, his tone sincere but careful, like this was a lot to ask. "I want you to identify the culprits, and I'll do the rest. Do not pursue them, Hopps, only identify. I will not have you putting yourself at that kind of risk."
"I can handle myself, Chief," Judy murmured, yet she couldn't keep the fear out of her voice. Never before had she seen such an occurrence; the new world, ruled by predator and prey alike, didn't see this kind of thing. The Night Howler was a first, and that was where it should have ended. And no one got hurt. But this, this was out of her expertise. She didn't want to believe that this could happen to anyone. But she'd said it herself; the world was messy, and sometimes the glass of peace would shatter into fragments of chaos.
"I want in."
Judy started, staring at the door where Nick prowled, glaring at the pair.
"Wilde, I didn't call you in here." The Chief snapped, closing the files and hiding the images within.
"No, you called my partner in, with means what's her business in mine. I want in."
"It's a delicate matter."
"I'm aware; prey getting torn up by an unknown culprit, and you want to put a rabbit in the firing line? No. Either I help or you can hand that case over to another department." Nick shut the door forcefully to prove his point of not going anywhere. Judy would have been angry, but the interference was a relief. She didn't think she was brave enough to handle this one on her own, simply due to its nature. She, along with any other species of prey, were in danger.
"I'm going to need help, sir," Judy murmured.
The Chief glared ferociously at the fox, who stared coolly back. Everyone in the room knew that Nick had gotten his way, he always did.
"Fine. Hopps, Wilde, find these vicious attackers, name them, and then leave the rest to us. No pursuing. Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir." The pair said in unison.
"Were you really considering on taking that case alone?" Nick demanded once they were outside, heading for a break to figure out what their first move would be.
"Maybe. I don't know." she shrugged, trying to be nonchalant. Of course her friend didn't buy it, though.
"You should have said no."
"And let more animals get hurt? I think not."
"You can't always be the hero, you know, you have limitations."
"And you don't?"
"I have teeth, you have a fluffy tail."
"Teeth won't bring down a serial attacker." She shook her head stubbornly as they walked. "Besides, we're only locating, nothing else."
"What's the fun in that?" he asked, sounding playful. He jumped in front of her, walking backwards in time with every step she made forward, holding his shades at the tip of his snout as he quizzed her with his eyes. "Come on, Carrot. You remember the fun we had on that Night Howler case; the investigating, the running, that thrill of catching Bellwether and seeing the look on her face when we fooled her with our amazing acting skills?" The pair stopped in the middle of the path, Nick poking Judy in her belly. "Admit it."
She glowered at him, yet couldn't keep the smirk from plaguing her mouth. She had missed that. The adrenaline of that case had been like nothing she had ever experienced, the running building up so much power in her body she thought that she had never caught a breath. For the first time she had felt like she was making a difference, catching a culprit, and having too much fun in the process.
"I see that smile," Nick teased, rocking on his heals in satisfaction.
She sighed, utterly defeated, and yet determined to be defiant. "Nick, I admit how much fun that was. But," she jabbed him back in his own stomach, "this one is more serious. Animals are getting hurt, frightened out of their wits, taken from their homes in the night. There's no fun and games about this one, not this time."
"Oh, how dare you, Officer Hopps," he said, eying her mischievously. "You work with Zootopia's expertise hustler, Officer Wilde, who knows anyone and everyone; we're gonna have tons of fun."
"I work with a dumb fox," she teased, elbowing him as they began walking.
"Don't make me laugh." He smiled, but then looked at her sincerely. "But please don't ever consider taking on a case like this alone. We're partners, remember? I've got your back so long as you have mine."
She smiled at him. "Better get some research done then, hadn't we?"
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