Judy took the fastest route to City Hall, which the GPS had told them would take ten minutes. Instead, it took about four—five minutes shaved off due to the fact that it was a police car they were driving, and another one because Judy took many turns far faster than was safe.
Nick protested every single time, and every single time, Judy reminded him that they were responding to a Code 34. "Code 34. Aggravated battery. It's one step short of being an all-out attack, and it is happening at City Hall." The speedometer read that they were going over 80 at this point. "The mayor is there. The new assistant mayor is there. Half the ZPD is there—and they called for backup, which means that whatever is going on, they are not handling it well on their own." She let off the gas only to take another turn, this time causing the left two tires to leave the ground, and three seconds later, she spun the vehicle around a group of parked cars, finally hitting the brakes.
Nick's shades nearly flew off his face as the cruiser came to a sudden halt. He stared straight ahead, eyes wide open, barely aware that they had arrived at their destination. City Hall stood high and mighty in front of them, stretching out to the sky like proud antlers. Or horns. Or bunny ears. Or…
Pain in his paws caused him to realize he was gripping the dashboard, claws buried up to his fingertips in the rubber. He forced himself to relax long enough to remove his claws, before looking himself over for a second to make sure he was uninjured.
He was fine, despite Judy's efforts. "And you're sure bunnies aren't all bad drivers?"
Judy rolled her eyes, before the two of them unbuckled their seatbelts and threw open their cruiser's doors. Before either of them could step out, however, they were stopped by a blur of figures making their way toward the cruiser.
The movement was so fast, Judy didn't have time to react before she felt herself being pushed out of the seat and further into the vehicle, quickly being squished up against Nick. She was vaguely aware of the rear doors opening, the cruiser rocking back and forth violently, and then the doors closing just as suddenly.
The two were so shocked by the ordeal, they failed to realize for several moments that the commotion was actually caused by ZPD officers. Somehow, half a dozen of them had managed to squeeze into the back of the cruiser. A quick headcount from Judy told her it was actually the entirety of the detachment sent as security for this event—with the exception of Officer Trumpet, who was instead ducked behind the back of the cruiser in a hiding position, unable to fit inside the cruiser with the others.
Even Chief Bogo was inside. He was the one who had shoved Judy to the side, and was now sitting in the driver's seat. He, being the large mammal he was, seemed quite cramped as a result. His horns dug into the ceiling, much like Nick's claws had dug into the dashboard, which limited his movement even further.
And he was not in a good mood. "Hopps. Wilde," he mumbled in acknowledgement, not even giving them a glance with his eyes. He reached down, ripped the PA microphone from the console, and held it up to his mouth.
"Chief," Judy spoke up from her place under Bogo's elbow. "Can you at least give us a status update? What's going on that you needed our help?"
Nick's face was pressed up against the side window. He tried to speak up, but his words were lost to everyone in the car.
Bogo snorted; he may not have known what Nick said exactly, but he could guess. "No more wise cracks today, Wilde. My patience is already spent."
"Chief?" Judy asked again.
Bogo held up a finger, before turning on the PA and speaking into it. "Okay, listen up, tiger." His voice echoed outside, thanks to the cruiser's PA system. "You've had your fun, but there's nothing left for you. Everyone is secured inside City Hall. There's nobody else for you to terrorize. Give yourself up now."
As soon as his finger left the button on the mic, he turned his head to Judy and Nick, ignoring the pieces of car ceiling he scraped off with his horns. "Mayor Lionheart was in the middle of his press conference. He had just announced his new assistant mayor." Nick muffled something into the window. "No," Bogo replied, "it wasn't any of the frontrunners. I think everyone was a little shocked when he announced it was going to be Fred Rolfe, a wolf from the Nocturnal District."
The other officers scrunched together in the back moved as a group when Wolford spoke up. "I approve of the choice." The dead silence that followed was enough to make him sit back apologetically.
Bogo grumbled, "I should have given them a bigger car today," before clearing his throat and continuing. "When Rolfe made his way to the podium to give his acceptance speech," he pointed out the windshield toward City Hall, still a hundred yards away, "this tiger started going crazy. He rushed the podium himself, and before any of us could stop him, he grabbed a baseball bat and started attacking the assistant mayor."
Judy gasped. Nick moaned, trying to feel his way to the window button on the armrest. "Why?" Judy asked. "Was he jealous? Did he know Rolfe?"
"Don't know," Bogo replied. "At this point, don't care, either." He pressed the button again. "If you give up, tiger, put your arms where we can see them, and approach the police cruiser slowly."
"Well, why didn't you take him down?" Judy asked. "Aggravated battery is more than enough justification to use—"
"When we approached him," Bogo interrupted, his face flushing the smallest hint of red, "he put his arms up in surrender. But we made the mistake of all coming close at once. Before we knew what happened, he had disarmed all of us."
"Martial arts," Fangmeyer commented in the back. "I took a year of it myself. It's something that tigers are expected to learn at least a little bit. Obviously, this one spent more time on it than I did."
Bogo glared in the back. "If I hear one more interruption, I will put all of you on paperwork for a month! Am I clear?" When nobody else made a sound, he closed his eyes and leaned back in his seat, as if trying to forget the whole thing.
Nick finally found the button and rolled down the window. He stuck his head out and gasped for breath for a few seconds, before he turned back inside and asked the next question. "Where's the mayor and assistant mayor now?"
Bogo opened his eyes again, but remained relaxed in his seat. "The press was kind enough to barricade them inside City Hall while we were dealing with the tiger. Now he's all by himself out there." His eyes narrowed a little. "As a matter of fact…"
The area between the cruiser and City Hall, which had been completely barren up until now, was now occupied by a single individual. The tiger, dressed in a plain white T-Shirt and blue jeans, had his arms high over his head, walking very slowly toward the cruiser.
Everyone in the vehicle was shocked. "That was easy," Nick mumbled, head still out the window.
"That's what I'm afraid of." Bogo turned back to Judy. "Hopps, go arrest him."
Judy and Nick both stared at him in disbelief. "Me, Chief?" Judy asked, not quite sure if she heard him correctly.
"You're the best-known cop in Zootopia. If this is a trick, maybe he will listen to you and give it up."
"And if he doesn't, sir?" Nick asked.
"Well, then you go and rescue her, of course, Wilde!" Bogo snapped. He turned his attention back to Judy. "You had a similar event to this earlier today already, and you told me that it has not impeded your ability to perform your duties. So you go out there and arrest this mammal."
The offer would usually have excited Judy, but she had already gone through an emotional roller coaster today, and this was one more thing to add to the stress. On top of having to go out and arrest a large, dangerous predator on her own—something over half a dozen of her own colleagues couldn't do together—she now had to go and do it without Nick.
But there was something else. Something the chief just said—that she had already done this once today—made her think. Was this a series of coordinated attacks? Were predators being targeted again as some kind of conspiracy? Was there some kind of link between the polar bear from earlier, and the tiger now?
The more she thought about it, the more she felt that there was some kind of connection. And she wanted to get to the bottom of it.
"It's probably a trap, sir," Nick spoke up in her defense. "I'd be much more comfortable if Judy had me to back her up."
"You are a fox, Wilde," Bogo replied, though this time not unkindly. "Need I say anymore?" He turned back to the bunny. "However, if you would like, I will allow—"
Judy shook her head and stood up, ready to do her duty. "I'll be fine, Chief." It was as much assurance to him, and to Nick, and to the other officers in the car, as it was to herself. "When you put it that way, I agree. This is the best course of action." She turned on her heel and stood on Nick's lap, ready to hop out the window.
Nick groaned in pain, surprised by the sudden weight on his legs. "Carrots," he whispered, catching her attention. "How will I know if you need help?"
Judy shrugged. "I guess if I'm attacked, that's your cue to help." She turned to Bogo. "Tell him to get on the ground, Chief." As Bogo prepared to speak into his mic, she added, "And tell him that I'm the one coming to meet him." With that, she jumped out of Nick's lap and through the window.
She heard Bogo's voice over the loudspeaker, and as soon as he was done talking, the tiger stopped in his tracks and lay on the pavement, arms stretched to either side. Judy drew her tranquilizer gun, just in case, and approached cautiously.
City Hall was part of Zootopia's skyline. No matter where you were in the city, you could see it. It stretched several stories into the sky, a symbol of the government's watchful eye over its citizens—both for the better and for the worse over the decades since it had been built. Usually, all sorts of species of mammals, from all walks of life, walked past City Hall in their daily life. Many worked inside the building itself, and it had been made in such a way as to accommodate everyone, from mice to giraffes. It wasn't uncommon for the front lawn to be populated by crowd of mammals throughout the busy day.
Right now, however, the only two mammals to be seen were Judy, walking ever so cautiously, and the tiger, lying flat on his stomach. His head rested on the ground in such a way that he was able to see her approach. When she was within a few yards, he spoke up. "Officer Judy Hopps?"
"That's right," Judy replied, still wary. "Keep your arms where I can see them."
"Don't worry, I will. I give up." The tiger's face was full of regret. He even seemed to be fighting off a tear. "I didn't mean for it to go this far. I just wanted to…" His voice trailed off, and he went to wipe his eyes with a paw.
"Where I can see them," Judy demanded, training her gun on the tiger's face.
The tiger quickly moved his paw back. "I'm sorry," he quickly said. Judy continued her slow approach. She knew, even now, this could be just a ruse to get her guard down. "I've heard about you, Officer Hopps, and how you saved us predators from Bellwether. You're a real hero to me."
Judy took another step forward, taking a hand off her gun only to retrieve the handcuffs from her belt. "I believe I was also the one who made life so hard for you predators in the first place," she murmured. It was a memory she would just as soon forget.
"But you made it right." The tiger locked eyes with her. "You have made Zootopia a better place, for everyone. You really have." The regret returned. "And now I've just ruined it all over again."
Judy came close enough to handcuff the tiger. He offered no resistance as she put a cuff on one paw, then the other. "Well, things certainly are a mess," she admitted. "But I don't think it will stay that way."
"What do you mean?" the tiger asked.
"Zootopia is only as good, or as bad, as you make it." Judy helped the tiger to his feet. "I've been a cop for over a year now, and that's plenty of time for me to see the best and the worst that mammals can do. I've seen mammals who have done everything in their power to make life miserable for everyone else."
The tiger's head lowered. "Oh?"
She flashed a faint smile. "But, hey, on the other hand, I've seen people from all walks of life come together for the greater good." She turned back to the police cruiser, ready to lead the tiger into custody, when she saw a bright orange object protruding from the side.
Nick's eyes locked with hers, and for a second, she could see he was still worried about him. But when she nodded to him that everything was okay, the worry passed, and a look of relief filled his face instead.
"And I've even met people who have turned their lives completely around," Judy continued, still looking at her partner. "People who realized that they could be more than just a pawpsicle hustler…" She turned back to the tiger. "Everything you've done here today can be forgiven and forgotten. You don't have to be like this. Nobody has to be like this. Because this is Zootopia, and in Zootopia, anyone can be anything."
The tiger smiled warmly. "Thank you, Officer Hopps."
Judy nodded. She began to turn to lead him back to the car, but realized she had not yet recited his Miranda Rights. "Do you have a name, sir?" she asked.
"Tony. Tony Stripes."
"Okay." Judy got behind him and motioned for him to start moving. "Tony Stripes, you have the right to remain silent."
"I just want to say…" Tony began.
Judy ignored him as they kept walking. "Anything you say can and will be used against you—"
"I didn't want to do it," Tony interrupted, stopping momentarily. "I was talked into doing it."
The statement caught Judy off-guard, making her stop for a second, but she pushed Tony forward and started talking again. "Anything you say can and will—"
"Please, Officer Hopps," Tony begged. "It's every important."
Judy pushed him a little faster, but stopped her recitation of his rights. "That's why you have to be quiet now, Tony." When the tiger opened his mouth again, she cut him off. "I don't want for you to incriminate yourself. If you have something to say, say it to a lawyer. Not a police officer."
Tony finally fell silent, and Judy finished telling him his rights. She finished at the same time they arrived at the police cruiser. By now the mammals inside had all managed to come out and were standing around the vehicle, each of them awestruck at the sight of the rabbit leading a mammal three times her size without any difficulty whatsoever. In fact, he thanked Grizzoli when the bear opened the back door to the cruiser.
Bogo stared at the tiger in disbelief as he let himself into the back, sat down, and smiled in gratitude when the door closed. "What did you do, Hopps?" he asked.
Judy held her paws behind her back and stood with pride. "Just helped make the world a better place, Chief," she replied.
Nick, once again by her side, patted her head in appreciation. "Show us your ways, senpei," he sneered.
Bogo rolled his eyes, before turning to the other cops and flicking his wrist. "Everyone, make sure the building is secure." After the officers saluted and began jogging to City Hall, Bogo turned his attention to Nick and Judy. "I'll escort our tiger 'friend' into custody. In the meantime, I'm sure the mayor and his new assistant will be very happy to see you two immediately."
Judy saluted. "Yes, sir."
Nick gave a two-finger salute, barely giving more effort than flicking his phone's lock screen. "Right away, sir." The two of them turned to follow the other officers.
"And Wilde?"
Nick turned back around and smiled at Bogo as genuinely as he could. "Yes, Chief?"
Bogo waved at him dismissively as he turned to enter the vehicle. "Take that meter maid jacket off. You look ridiculous."