Judy POV

I strained to open my eyes against the bright light shining down on me but my eyelids felt heavy. Machines beeping filled my ears along with hushed voices and the sound of many bodies moving around a tiny space. There was a prickle in my arm when I moved it, more prickling ran up my leg when I tried to wiggle my toes.

"Ms. Hopps, hun, if you can hear me right now I need you to not move." A gentle female voice said next to my ear. I tried to respond to her but my mouth wasn't working right. "I need a little more anesthesia, she's coming out of it."

I tried to open my eyes once more but a cool feeling flooded my brain and the world faded back into a dark oblivion.

*O*O*O*

I was so thirsty, my mouth felt completely dry with a bit of a metallic tang to it. I needed to get up and grab a glass of water.

My eyelids fluttered open and I took in the unfamiliar room around me. Was I in a hospital? White walls with medical charts filled my vision and my eyes struggled to focus in the dim light. I rolled my head to the side to get a better look at what was casting the glow. There were multiple monitors by my bedside.

Lines bounced across two screens, changing with the numbers next to each one. Numerous wires connected the monitors to my arms and chest. An IV was set up nearby that was slowly dripping a clear liquid. I shifted my arm a little and felt it pull where the tube went into my arm.

"Ms. Hopps? Are you awake?" A soft voice broke the silence on my side opposite the machines. I let my head roll to that side and met the eyes of a young looking raccoon in nursing scrubs.

Her bright blue eyes reflected off of the screens and she laid a gentle hand on my arm. I tried to speak but nothing came out, a reminder of my dry mouth and throat. I mouthed the word 'water' and she rushed to a cart in the corner of the room, returning with a small paper cup.

"Here, sip it slowly," she said, helping to tip the cup back against my lips. The cool liquid helped ease the scratchy feeling in my throat. When the cup was empty she crushed it in her fist and tossed it into a tiny trash can next to the bed.

"Better?" She asked. I nodded and she went to the door at the front of the room. "Ms. Hopps, I'm gonna turn the lights on now, you may want to close our eyes." I complied.

When I heard her shuffle back to my bedside I let them open up again. The nurse had a clipboard in her hands and was quickly scribbling notes in it while glancing up at the screens across from her.

I tried my voice again, this time getting a scratchy whisper. "How long have I been out?" The nurse set the chart at the foot of my bed and gave me a worried smile.

"You were brought in nearly two days ago. It was really touch and go with you for a while. You lost a lot of blood and needed quite a few stitches in your leg. You worried a lot of people. Which reminds me, someone has been quite insistent on seeing you as soon as you woke up. I can go see if he is still in the waiting room if that's alright with you?"

I nodded and she scurried to the door and out of the room before I could ask who it was. My mind immediately went to Nick. If I was unconscious for multiple days, they might have already been able to cure him. The nurse said 'him' not 'they' so it wasn't my parents and I couldn't think of anyone else who would visit me in the hospital.

While I waited I carefully inched the thin sheet back from my legs. My right leg was wrapped in thick bandages with a metal brace holding it in place. I wiggled my toes, wincing at the sharp pain that shot up my leg.

There was a gentle knock at the door and someone on the other side cracked it open before I could respond. I held my breath as a tall figure stepped into the room. Chief Bogo.

Of course, I thought. He would need to get my statement right away. I tried to hide the disappointment from my face while he pulled a small stool out from an alcove in the wall.

"Hopps, how are you doing?" He asked, cautiously. His eyes drifted to my leg, now covered again by the blanket.

"I'm okay. I think they are probably giving me something for the pain. My leg really only hurts when I move it." I pointed my head to the IV.

Chief Bogo nodded and pulled a worn looking notebook from his belt. "That's good to hear. I know you just woke up but it is essential we get your statement from the other night."

He clicked the pen and met my eyes, waiting for my response. Right to the point, I see. I rolled my shoulders a bit, testing out my range of movement before propping up on one elbow to see him better.

"Of course Chief," I started, "but first I have to know how Nick is doing. Is he here?"

The tall buffalo clicked his pen again and slid the clip into the top of the notebook. "Nick?" He raised an eyebrow. "The fox that attacked you in the museum?"

"Sir, it was not his fault, please you…"

He held his hand up, telling me to stop. "I know, I know. He was shot with the serum Bellwether had in that gun. Same as the other savage predators. I just hadn't realized you actually knew the fox." He removed his pen from the notebook. "Wait, was that the same fox who was with you in the rainforest? The mouthy one?"

A small smile tugged at the corner of my mouth. "Yes, sir, he was. And he played a major role in helping with the case before he was shot. Is he okay? Is he still… do they have an antidote yet?"

With a sigh, Chief Bogo set the notebook in his lap and looked past me to the window. "He's alive, he is in a secure wing of the hospital with the rest of the savage predators. As far as his state of mind, I am really not sure. The doctors tell me they are very close with an antidote but they aren't ready to administer anything yet. Hopps, I need that statement."

Nick was alive, the double dose of the serum was not lethal and they were working on an antidote. That would have to be enough for now. I tried to recall everything that happened from the realization at my parents farm to the moment the police showed up in the museum the best I could remember.

The end was still a little hazy but it seemed to be enough. Chief Bogo took down careful notes, stopping me every once in a while to ask clarifying questions. When I was done he explained how they knew Bellwether was behind everything without the confession we were trying to provide.

After Lionheart was arrested he gave information that led the ZPD to be suspicious of the lamb. They knew she was behind everything but needed some physical proof or to catch her in action. Since she didn't want to get her hands dirty, they hadn't been able to get anything concrete on her until the museum.

Her prints were on the gun and the remaining orbs of serum matched the serum on Nick's fur. It was enough for an arrest at the moment, they were just finishing up details before her trial.

Chief Bogo tucked the paper back into his belt and made his way to the door. "I still mean what I said to you earlier, Judy, we need good cops like you in the ZPD. I will personally sign the paperwork if you decide to come back."

Minutes after he left, the nurse from before returned, followed by a wolf in a long white coat. The nurse smiled at me and began removing some of the wire from my skin while the doctor washed his hands in a small sink.

"Good morning, Ms. Hopps, I'm Dr. Fangford. It's good to see you awake. How is the leg feeling?" He carefully pulled the sheet back and began removing the bandages from my leg.

I winced as I felt a pull on a few bits of my fur. "It doesn't hurt too badly."

The nurse joined him with a plastic tray in her hands. On it was a pile of new bandages, some oily looking tubes, jars of liquid, and a few metal tools I didn't recognize. He took a damp cloth from the tray. "That's good. This will hurt a little, just a warning."

The cloth was cold as it touched my skin, a sharp stinging caused my body to shudder. I yelped in pain but clamped my teeth together to hide it. The pain was quickly replaced by a warm numbing.

"That should feel better in just a second. Your stitches are looking really good and I don't see any signs of infection. We can probably get you discharged from the hospital in another day or two. How does that sound?"

I nodded at him, straining a bit to see my leg before he replaced the bandages with clean ones. The fur had been roughly shaved from mid thigh to my foot. Four angry jagged lines crossed one cleaner, more shallow cut. Each of the jagged marks had a number of dark stitches. Wet blood glistened from the spots between the stitches but was no longer flowing from the wounds.

The doctor finished wrapping it and removed his gloves before returning to the sink. He took the clipboard from the foot of the bed and began writing. "Before you leave, I was wondering if you knew anything about the antidote they are working on for the affected predators?"

He stared at me from over the clipboard but didn't stop writing his notes. "I'm sorry Ms. Hopps, there is a completely separate team working on that. I don't have any information for you." He set the clipboard back into place and gave a small nod to the nurse. "Nurse Band here will get you something to eat if you're hungry. If not, I would suggest getting some more rest. I know you have been out for a while, but it will help with the healing. I will be back in a few hours to check the dressing on your leg again."

Nurse Band gave him a smile as he left and then turned her attention to me. "I'll be back in just a few minutes!" While she was gone, I felt around for my phone but it was nowhere near me. I would have to call my parents soon, no doubt they would be worried sick by now. I just hoped the truck hadn't been towed.

True to her word, the bubbly nurse was back just minutes later with a tray of hospital food. She helped me adjust my bed so that I could sit up and set the tray across my lap. Instead of leaving the room again, she pulled the little stool back out and perched on it.

"Did you know any of the savage predators or are you just curious about the antidote?" Her blue eyes locked onto mine and a gentle smile lit up her face.

"A friend of mine, he was shot with the serum. I am really worried about him." I looked down at my tray, guilt suddenly taking over my mind as I thought of Nick. If I was brought in two days ago, that means Nick has been like that for two days. Would he be aware of what was going on? Would he remember any of this?

Nurse Band scooted her stool a little closer to the bed. "Your friend Nick?" She asked.

My eyes snapped to meet hers. I nearly dropped the spoonful of carrot soup I was lifting towards my mouth. "How do you know that?"

The young nurse put her hands up defensively and gave me a small laugh. "You were talking in your sleep a bit when the anesthesia started to wear off. It was mostly gibberish but you said the name Nick a few times. It was just a guess." Her eyes drifted to my leg. "Was he the one who did that? Doctor Fangford said your injuries were from a savage fox."

I was starting to like her, but the accusatory tone to her voice was quickly changing my opinion. "It was not his fault. He tried to fight against the serum but he was shot twice. He would never hurt me on purpose," I said matter-of-factly.

She recoiled at the harshness in my voice. "Oh, I am so sorry. I wasn't saying it was his fault at all. I was just asking." She pointed to the little cup of pudding on the corner of my plate. "You should try that. The pudding here is actually really good."

Her smile returned but her eyes had a deep sadness to them that I hadn't noticed earlier. "Ms. Hopps, can I ask you one more thing?"

I took a bite of the pudding. It was pretty good. I nodded for her to go on. "Knowing that this wasn't his fault, are you mad at him? Even just a little bit."

She had some personal experience with a savage predator. I reached out and took her hand. "No. I am not mad at him at all." Her hand tensed but she didn't remove it from mine. "Who was it?"

She took a harsh breath in. "How did you… oh, they said you were a cop. You're probably pretty good at reading people."

I gave her a warm smile. "You made it pretty obvious. What happened?"

This time she did take her hand back, twisting her fingers together. "My boyfriend. It was just a few days after Mayor Lionheart was arrested. He was out with his little sister, she's okay but her arm was hurt pretty badly. She was so scared though. Micheal and I grew up together, and I love his little sister like she was my own. When they brought him in, I was so mad. I haven't even been down to see him, it's hard to forgive him."

"You should go see him. And I can't tell you whether you should forgive Micheal or not but I know for me and Nick, there is nothing to forgive." She finally met my eyes again, tears lining hers.

Suddenly she jumped to her feet. "Oh my gosh. I am so sorry! I didn't mean to get so personal, that was so unprofessional of me. I can take your tray if you're done, Ms. Hopps." She reached a hand out for the tray.

I handed it off to her. "It's no problem, really. And you can just call me Judy."

She beamed at me. "Okay, Judy. And you can call me Lyra. Well, maybe not around the doctors." She reminded me a lot of myself when I first started at the police academy.

After being awake for a few hours and finally eating something after two days I was suddenly feeling exhausted. Lyra helped me put my bed back before she carried the tray to the door.

"Oh, Lyra!" I suddenly called out before she got the door open. My phone, did it end up at the hospital with me? I didn't see it.

"She set the try back on the stool. "Right, it's sitting over here with your personal belongings. Well, minus your pants, they had to cut those." She handed me my phone from inside a small plastic bag in the corner of the room. I pressed the power button.

"Cheese and crackers." I cursed under my breath. Of course it was dead, it was sitting uncharged for two days.

Lyra stuck her neck out a little bit to see the screen. "Oh, it's dead? I guess that makes sense. There's a charger at the nurses station. I can bring it in here after I bring your tray back." She picked the tray back up and left the room.

*O*O*O*

A gentle knocking woke me up. I hadn't even realized I fell asleep, I didn't even manage to get the phone charger from Lyra.

There was another knock and then the door was pushed open. "Ms. Hopps, are you awake? It's Dr. Fangford." The doctor poked his head into the room.

"Yes, I'm awake." He gave me a smile and came all the way into the room. I glanced at one of the screens next to me to see the time and noticed my phone was sitting on the little table next to me with a long blue charger attaching it to the wall. Lyra must have plugged it in after I fell asleep.

I didn't have a chance to check on it before Doctor Fangford was at my side, hands already washed and gloved. "I'm just here to change the bandages on your leg again." He said, pulling the blanket back gently. Lyra appeared suddenly behind him, holding the same tray as before.

I was ready for the sting this time but it wasn't nearly as bad. "After you leave the hospital, we will want to get you set up with physical therapy for a bit but I do feel like you will make a full recovery." He replaced the bandages before washing his hands again.

Lyra stalled a bit while she put the supplies back in their designated spot. After Doctor Fangford left the room, she turned to face me. "I can take the charger, if your phone is done. Don't want anyone to get suspicious. We aren't supposed to lend it to patients."

I quickly unplugged my phone and handed the charger to her. "Thank you." I whispered as she left.

When I finally picked up my phone I saw that I had 102 new messages and 63 missed calls. Scrolling through, I saw that 100 of the messages were from my parents. I had one from Clawhauser and one from a cousin of mine. All of the missed calls were from my parents.

As much as I knew I should call them back, I was just too exhausted to explain everything that happened and answer the many questions they would have. Instead I settled for a text.

Hey, mom and dad. I am so sorry I haven't reached out. I'm in the hospital but I'm okay. Just a few scratches. Love you, I'll call soon.

Setting the phone back on the side table I let my eyes close once again.