It was a rather unusual day in London, Judy Hopps, Dr. Wilde and Professor Dastardly were doing chores while Mrs. Otterton planned to go out for a couple of weeks.

"Now, Judy, you and the boys didn't have to do that" the otter protested.

"No, Mrs. Otterton" Judy answered gently. "We insist. For once, you will get a nice day off. We can't let you do everything for us and do the chores ourselves."

The motherly otter smiled and hugged Judy tightly.

As soon as Mrs. Otterton left, Judy, Wilde and Dastardly started the chores.

The first chore was they had to hand sew their torn clothes from previous cases. Judy had no issue but Wilde and Dastardly, on the other hand, kept pricking their fingers.

"Ow, drat!"

"OW!"

Wilde and Dastardly complained again as Judy stopped for a moment to face Wilde.

"How does Mrs. Otterton do this?" Wilde asked. "I know she has webbed paws, but how is she not bleeding?"

"Years of practice, Wilde" replied Judy. "I see her do it everyday with every detail."

"Less talk, more sewing, Hopps!" Dastardly groaned. "I'm losing feeling in my fingers! Ouch!"

Judy resumed sewing.

Once they finished sewing, they moved to other chores. Dastardly washed the dishes and Judy mopped the floor, using the brushes on her feet to skate around the wet floor.

"Hey, Dastardly, did you ask someone to chop the firewood?" Wilde asked. "I swear I was gonna take care of it."

"No" replied Dastardly.

"Well, someone did."

He picked up Bladebeak.

"I hate being at the house by myself!" complained the chicken-axe hybrid.

"I told you already, oddball, you're not allowed to come with me or Muttley unless it's an emergency!" Dastardly snapped. "Now, go home!"

"But my wife- -"

"Are you deaf? I said go home!"

"But there's no- -"

"GO HOME, GO HOME, GO HOME!"

"I don't have to take this. I'm going home."

Bladebeak then waddled away.

"Gosh! What a chicken!" groaned Wilde.

Judy shook her head, annoyed.

Soon, the telephone rang.

"Hello, Judith Hopps of Baker Street" the rabbit answered.

Wilde, Dastardly and Bladebeak leaned close to Judy as she listened carefully.

"Sweet cheese and crackers" groaned Judy. "Sure, I'll be there soon."

"Another mystery?" Wilde asked.

"I don't know, but it sounds like it. Wilde, you'll have to come with me. Dick, please finish our chores and I'll give you £25 as an reward when we come back. And Bladebeak?"

"Yes?" squawked the axe-chicken hybrid.

"Go home."

After a long train ride to the countryside, Judy and Wilde arrived at an old cottage, far from London.

As they pass by a water well, they saw an old washerwoman, in her late 70s though youthful looking, doing the laundry by using a wooden barrel rolled around the well, drawn by a horse.

Judy was amazed and hopped toward the crowd.

"Wow!" she gasped in awe. "I never imagined clothes being clean this way, aside from an old friend."

"Thank you" smiled the washerwoman. "And you must be Judith Hopps the great rabbit detective."

"Yes. It's an honor, ma'am."

"Oh, please. You don't have to act like that to an old friend."

Wilde frowned, confused.

"I don't recall knowing you, ma'am" the rabbit twitched nervously.

"Judy, it's all right if you don't remember me" the washerwoman said softly. "Twenty four years ago, your parents introduced me and my two sons to you as an infant. I'm Richard's mother, Delilah Dastardly."

The rabbit detective's eyes widened in shock.

Judy continued to stare until Wilde spoke.

"You're Dastardly's mother?!" he yelped.

"I don't believe it" panted Judy. "I remember you now, but I don't believe it. Dick told me that you abused him and hurt him."

Delilah shook her head. "No, it was all Sneekly. He attacked us on the night you left for London."

"But the newspaper said you went to jail!" Wilde protested angrily.

With a heavy sigh, Delilah threw powder into a boiling kettle in the fireplace and smoke swirled around, creating images of a teenage Dastardly and Delilah.

"When I got the news that you children saved the orphanage" she began, "I couldn't have been more proud of my son. He came back with the dog whom you rescued. And when he asked if he could keep Muttley, I said yes."

Judy and Wilde shared warm smiles as the smoke then morphed into a traveling scene.

"A few days later, it was time for you to move to London" Delilah continued. "The boys and I were on our way to the party that your family had set up. But then, night fell and something attacked us."

The smoke images showed Sneekly, as a black dog, attacked the Dastardlys; scaring them! Delilah and the younger twin Dread Baron escaped, but Muttley was caught and Dastardly went back for him, only to be clawed in the stomach.

"My own son was kidnapped right in front of my eyes" cried Delilah. "The newspaper sent out about an abusive mother was not me, but Sneekly dressed badly as a woman."

Judy gasped in shock as tears ran down her furry cheeks. It all made sense to her.

The Hopps knew the Dastardlys well and Delilah was the only one in the family who was kind to others despite her struggles with her two twin sons born ten seconds apart. Dastardly was scarred to remember and decided to blame Judy for fifteen years.

Oh, how could I have been blind? Judy thought to herself, Mom and Dad knew Delilah was never an abusive woman.

After a while, Judy dried her tears and stood up.

"Delilah, there's something about Dick" Judy began. "He- -"

She was interrupted a loud thump!

Judy and Wilde's ears perked up, hoping nothing horrid happened.

Delilah didn't hesitate and immediately ran outside and saw people lying in a field of poppies.

"Oh, no" she gasped. "Judy!"

Judy, Wilde and Delilah later walked through the poppy field, their noses plugged by clothes pins. The field was filled with people sleeping peacefully.

The rabbit detective hoped that her parents and her other siblings were safe from the poppies.

"This was where you lived before Baker Street?" asked Wilde.

"Yes" said Judy. "And I did mention I have 275 brothers and sisters."

"You rabbits are too much. Literally too much."

"I'll take that as a compliment. But they all moved to another burrow in Kensington Garden last year."

Soon, they heard a loud gasp, then another thump.

"Oh, please don't tell me" Delilah whispered, twirling her hair curl nervously.

They raced to see Dastardly with Sisu, a woman with messy, lavender hair.

"Ma'am, I can't see where my rabbit friend is" he said drowsily. "I feel sleepy."

"Me too" yawned Sisu. "Maybe we oughta rest."

"Yes, yes. Quite right. Muttley. Where's Muttley?"

Tired, Dastardly carefully crawled to the ground.

Panicked, Delilah ran for her son.

"Richard, please wake up!" she cried. "Richard Milhous Dastardly!"

"He can't hear you, Delilah" Judy replied. "The poppies has a strong hold on him."

Wilde was about to pull out his doctors bag when Sisu fell in front of him, accidentally unclipped Wilde's clothes pin.

"Uh-oh" whimpered the fox. "Carrots, I'm seeing stars… I need some… sleep."

Soon, he fell to the ground, tail in the air.

"Nick!" screamed Judy.

It was getting serious, everyone was asleep but Judy and Delilah.

"Oh, no!" Judy cried. "What we'll do?"

"I don't know!" Delilah answered with panic. "Half of the town is asleep and I don't know anyone who could help!"

Then, Dastardly muttered something in his sleep, chuckling as if he were charming a woman.

"Yes, Elsa, my dear" he giggled. "Anna won't mind if we do."

Delilah groaned in disgust, but Judy remembered something.

"Elsa the Fifth Spirit of Ahtohallan" she gasped. "That's it!"

She began to call out in the air, vocalizing a tune.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah!

"Ah-ah-ah-AH!

"AH-AH-AH-AH!"

Far away in Ahtohallan, Elsa heard the call and saw in a vision of Judy and Delilah with many people sleeping in the poppy field.

Smiling, Elsa placed her hand on the poppy field.

Back in the countryside, it started to snow lightly.

"Judy, look, it's snowing" Delilah gasped in awe.

"Oh, yes!" cheered Judy. "That will wake them up for sure."

Soon enough, everyone was waking up.

Even Wilde and Dastardly yawned from their slumber.

"Usual weather we're having today, aren't we?" Wilde chuckled.

While everyone was playing in the snow, Dastardly lifted his head up and saw Delilah.

"Mother?" he whispered softly. "I'm sorry."

Delilah immediately embraced him in her arms, tears running down their faces. Dastardly looked up at Judy and smiled as if to say thank you.

Three weeks passed and Judy brought Muttley home from obedient school. Things went back to normal expect…

"Ow!"

"BaAAWK!"

"Ow!"

Muttley had to help Bleakbeak and Wilde with sewing Judy's torn casual clothes while Delilah and Mrs. Otterton peeled apples.

"Come on, boys, finish the clothes!" the otter ordered. "Miss Judy and Professor Dastardly are gonna miss the family reunion."

Muttley grumbled under his breath.

"Seriously?!" complained Wilde. "Dastardly and Carrots go on a trip without any of us! Why do we have to do this again?"

Then Judy and Dastardly came into the room.

"Cause it's so much work for Mrs. Otterton to handle" Judy replied with a sly grin.

"And it's a punishment for Muttley" finished Dastardly.

Wilde, Muttley and Bladebeak groaned and resumed sewing/getting their fingers pricked.

Trivia Fact:

In real life, Paul Winchell (the original voice of Dick Dastardly in the 1960s to 1980s) was abused by his mother as a child before getting into ventriloquism and acting.