A few hours earlier.
Judy woke up in her medical bed. 'If I ever come here again, it will be too soon.' She sat up and looked at her arm. "Yup, definitely broken still. I was supposed to go to my parents but noooo, instead I go and break my arm." She looked at her cast, and observed all the different doodles that were inscribed. Many were from friends and family, but there were a few that were from the ones that knew what has happened officially, of course she never told anyone what has happened and she refused to speak. One was from Silver, reading 'To the most badass bunny I know. Get better.', another was from Waller, "Hope to see you in action soon, but until then, try not to find a reason to beat me up... again.'.But the one that was missing for her was one from Nick, he never visited. It wasn't like he didn't know where it was, since even Sharla her childhood friend came.
She sighed knowing what it meant. He was distancing himself from her. He didn't want to come visit her. He has stopped caring. He started to think deeply about the events that have occurred and thought out loud, "Was I really that bad?"
Then her thoughts were stopped by a knock on the door. "Hello." A grrussian sounding elephant came in with his notepad. "I've returned to provide nourishment and to ensure you are healthy. So please eat food."
"Thanks doc. I'm starving." She smiled sweetly as a red tray of food was placed on her lap.
"Maybe not hotel level but is great service, right?"
Judy giggled a bit, "Yeah, don't even have to get up."
"Lucky you."
"I was meaning to ask, how is your native country?"
"Good question, I remember sweet babushka but I really don't remember much, it was really long time ago. But if the news are true, it might not exist for long, due to Felcanidenia. Is taking Grrussian land. Such a long name as well. I don't understand." He sighed. "I lived here for very long time, about 40 years now and I am 46 so you can work it out." The elephant forced a smile then left."Goodbye." He said cheerfully.
"Bye." Judy replied with, equal if not more, enthusiasm. "Back to my regularly scheduled nothing, how long until I get to leave." Judy ate her oatmeal, which in all honesty she was quite fond of, and then ate the fruits that were given on the side, giving a slight sweet tang to her meal and a little bit of moisture, which she lacked. She tried to stay positive but she knew this was the worst possible outcome.
30 minutes later
Three mammals entered, the elephant from before, Jack Savage and Skye Frost. "Good morning Ms. Hopps, we would like to discuss some business with you, of which includes signing this document." Jack looked stern, seemingly annoyed at this exchange. Skye looked much more happy. That was probably why she was speaking. The doctor then left the room to give the three some privacy. "Funny how we meet again in such circumstances."
"Am I arrested?" Judy asked worried.
"Arrested? No, by our mutual." She stared at Jack and gave a slight distasteful look. "'Friend'."
"Who? Who could physically stop you from arre-" She paused for a second. "You're kidding. N-Spectre?" The two looked up for a second. Jack glared deep into Judy's soul. They both clearly caught the slip-up.
"Yes, The Spectral Showman is the reason you are still a clean civilian."
"Skye, we really shouldn't have listened to that damned criminal. We could've taken him on."
"You know you can use your real names with me, right? I assume you know Spectre knows them at this point."
"We know, and that is very dangerous information." Skye sighed, "At least it is for us."
"But what if you are bluffing about knowing it? We know the Spectre is a lone wolf... fox but still, he trusts no-one and no-one knows why." Then the two turned to Judy, who was drinking from her juice box that she still had. She noticed the two staring at her with wide smiles.
"What? Oh err, I don't know anything?"
"Judy, please, he can't hurt you if you tell us. We assure you, you will be under our protective custody."
"Lilly," she stated trying to show it was trust not fear. "I assure you, he won't want to hurt me ever. It's more that he is very enigmatic. He is like a book with no pages, you can't read him. He seems to be acting in one way one second and the next, he is well like a sociopath." She looked back at the two, "But there is something there. A kind of diamond in the rough known as the spectral showman."
"You know we can arrest you and throw you away for the rest of your life or even kill you and stage it as an accident, don't you?" Jack questioned emotionlessly.
"On what grounds? I don't know anything, I really don't." Judy explained, trying to hide her cover.
"Ugh, we are getting nowhere, there's no point. Ms. Hopps, just sign this document and you can leave."
Judy smiled once again. "Please, call me Judy, we are friends after all." She took the document and read it carefully. She knew better than to sign something haphazardly. There was a lot of fine print in this and a lot of stipulations. Most of them revolved around keeping quiet about the events that have occurred. "So, you want me to sign this and what? Stay forever quiet? What if I don't? Neither of us are truly in a position to make demands, so what if I refuse?"
"These aren't our demands, but our boss's, he doesn't know, which could get us into hot water later but that is a digression, just sign the document."
"No, I will then live as a puppet for the government. That's not okay. I refuse."
"Fine, fine, fuck it, you win Judy. I'll make a few calls and then we'll see what happens." Jack left while pulling his phone out.
"Ignore him, he is just annoyed that Spectre got to manipulate us the way he did."
"Did he ask for anything for himself?"
"No, he didn't. At least not that I remember. Most of his demands were for you." Skye smiled. "When you leave, go to this address." She handed a small slip of paper to the rabbit. "Talk to the owner of the place, that's all he told us." She sighed. "You know, not everyone gets away from us, actually no-one does. We are the best of the best in this place." She then started to look down a bit. "But you and everyone who was still alive there, got to leave scot-free as if they did nothing. Do you know how painful that is? Your streak ruined by tied up or unconscious mammals." She was clearly annoyed at that fact. "Damned red, he couldn't just be selfish one more time. We had to falsify paperwork and documentation. Luckily there was enough dead bodies to fill a neighbourhood and the head of one side was present. We got away with it, barely." She looked back at the rabbit and was about to open her mouth but the door swung open again.
"Lucky bunny, damned left foot." This garnered a chuckle from the two females in the room. "You don't have to sign anything, apparently you are a special case, since you don't know anything and were clearly only a victim, you had nothing to speak out about. I don't believe it." Jack slumped into a chair on the side of the room. "Just go. I'm not bothered anymore." He looked defeated. Judy stood up and walked to the upset jackrabbit.
"Hey, it could always be worse."
"Is this what failure feels like? Is this what quitting feels like? Lord, I hate it."
"Cheer up, there's always the next one."
"You're not helping, leave before I start deciding that the bottle is the best thing for me."
"Jack, you don't mean that, do you?"
"I don't know." Jack looked down to the floor. "I just want to get to the next job."
Judy headed for the door. "Wait, what happened to the rest?"
"Oh boy." Skye muttered.
"Of course you ask." Jack groaned. "What happened to them? Nothing, that's what happened, they all just left and did their own thing. So they returned to murder, grand theft, kitnapping, drug dealing, treason. You know the things that regular old criminals that we should be locking up do." He then punched a wall. "But of course, the worst one walked away right in front of us back in October. That smug bastard. Sonuva bitch just made a list of demands and then walked away. He blackmailed us and just left. We should have his fucking head but noooooo, lets be cowards and just listen to him. I hate myself for that. I really do. And now, the worst part is, we have a treasure trove full of information about him but we just let her go." He buried his face in his paws and fell to the ground in a heavy thud and a groan. "Does that answer your question? Good. Now leave."
"Jack calm down."
"Calm down? For all we know, that is the second most dangerous mammal in the criminal underworld and we just let her go. Skye, you should be on my side."
"I am and as much as it pains me to say this but you're right. That probably is the second most dangerous criminal in the world but what can we do? The most dangerous attacked our identities, if he wanted he could hurt us in ways we can't imagine. We will arrest him when it is safe."
"It was safe then."
"No it wasn't, he was buzzing on the adrenaline of the previous fight. Clearly a bloody one since we found the boar's heart chewed up in his mouth. And the teeth marks were of that same boar. Do you want the same fate? No good." Judy cringed slightly at that fact but then cringed more at the fact that she was somewhat okay with the actions she just heard. Was she getting desensitised to the information now? No, no, she couldn't be.
She decided that now was he perfect time to leave. She walked down the corridor and headed for the exit. The doctor from before sat at a desk and noticed her. "Hey, leaving already? Well, belongings are there. You can take. I will sign you out then let you go." He started to tap viciously in the keyboard in front of him. "I love technology, it makes everything easier, wouldn't you agree?"
"Yeah, it does." Judy responded, still gleeful. She waited a few seconds. Then the doctor gestured to the door, insinuating she could leave. She hopped to the door, making her family name proud. As she reached the door, she pulled the handle, excited to finally see something that was not the inside of a medical room. She looked around, glaring at the blue sky she didn't see for a long time. She taken a deep breath through her nose and released the air in a satisfied sigh. She was happy to finally be outside.
She then pulled out her phone to search up the location she was told to go to. As she was doing that, someone approached her. She looked up and took a defensive step back. "Ms. Hopps, it's great to see you again."
"Isamu? Hi, we haven't seen each other for so long." He was dressed in casual clothes for the first time since they met. He wore clean black jeans and a navy shirt. On top of the navy shirt he had a dark grey jacket.
Isamu bowed as an introduction, Judy reciprocated, understanding the cultural significance. "Sensei sent me to help you reach your destination safely." Judy shook her head.
"Where is he? Where is Spectre? I wanna talk to him."
"I-I don't know, he just disappeared after the events but otherwise everything is fine."
"Then how did you know to come to me?"
"He left a note to come here at this time."
"Always has to be 10 steps ahead, doesn't he? How's everyone else?"
"You probably shouldn't know. You are trying to be civilian now so it would be best to avoid such mammals."
"Yeah, what about you?"
"I'm a ninja not an organised crime syndicate member. What I know and most of what I do is legal. Also I now work in protective services." He smiled. "It is a successful job. Many like the idea of being protected while not being visibly protected. I even helped the renowned Gazelle at a concert." He smiled.
"I watched the concert on the television I had in my room. Did you really protect her? How was she? What did she smell like? Was she just as nice in mammal as on the screen?"
Jiro was bombarded by many questions and he struggled to form a single train of thought. He finally had a second to answer them. "Yes, she was nice and hospitable, she smelled like a lot of perfume, yes." He then sighed. "I take it you are a big fan."
"Am I? I love her music." She started to get giddy. "You have a lot to tell me on the way there."
Isamu groaned, "Lets just go to where we need to." Judy then seemed to get deflated. "Our ride is here." He pointed at a taxi that was nearby. "We go to the next place."
"Is this a job for you? Sorry I just need to know."
"Well yes, but actually no. Yes in the sense that Sensei actually paid me, no in the sense that I would've came anyway if I knew." He opened the door for the one armed rabbit. "I just have to be a bit more professional now."
"But you don't have to hide."
"No, I don't." He seemed to be relieved at that fact. "But that doesn't mean I can relax." The two sat down and Judy gave an address.
The driver looked at the address. "Ah, the flower shop, having a quick bite?"
"Flower shop? If that's the case, I might." Te taxi drove to the location they were given.
"So, when did you two meet?"
"A few weeks ago, he was on duty and tried to kill someone to protect someone else." Judy twisted the truth a bit to try and hide their past. "Now he is sent to protect me."
"You? Are a special in any way?"
"No, we're just good friends and I just came out of a hospital so he's willing to take me to the place I was told to go." Judy looked around the outside. "It's great to see the outside again, drab walls are just getting so boring." She looked outside to the rooftops, for no explicable reason then she saw the silhouette of a fox leaning over the edge of a rooftop and watching their taxi. She recognised the silhouette almost instantly. "STOP THE CAR." She called out. "Please wait, thanks." The taxi stopped and Judy ran out, trying to get to that rooftop.
Isamu was about to follow but decided against it. Instead he waited in the cab and spoke to the driver. "Peculiar, isn't it?"
"Yeah, she seemed to run after nothing." Isamu then looked at the rooftop that she was heading to.
"Maybe not. Maybe she did have a reason." Isamu smiled "Hold the car, we will return shortly." The driver nodded. Isamu then ran to get up the building.
Judy pulled herself up to the rooftop. There stood the fox she didn't see in a long time. "Nick, why didn't you come?"
"I couldn't, the agreement didn't apply to me and well, I am who I am. But also because I wanted to protect you. You aren't safe next to me."
"Bullshit, I'm not safe at all." Nick shook his head.
"You don't understand. I'm trying to help you. There are many that want me dead and you by proxy." He then smiled one last time before turning around and jumping onto a different roof and then sprinting away.
Isamu just climbed up. "Sensei just left, didn't he?"
"Yeah, he did. He may be gone for a while, but he won't be too far away. At least, that's what I think." Judy retorted, smiling towards where she saw the damned fox run. The two returned to the ground and back into the taxi. "Can we continue, thank you."
"Sure thing lady, so to the original destination?"
"Yes. Please." The taxi then continued, driving down the road. After a few minutes of silence as Judy was contemplating what she was going to do, they arrived at a flower shop.
They left and the taxi drove off. An otter stepped out of the flower shop. The two saw him and both reacted by taking a defensive stance. "Woah, woah, I won't hurt you." The otter stated. "My name is Emmitt Otterton. As you can see I'm a florist. I will assume you are Judith Laverne Hopps. Please come in." Isamu and Judy looked at each other for a second. Then Judy shrugged and walked in. Isamu followed shortly behind. Inside, the two smaller mammals sat down, while Isamu stood at the back leaning against a wall.
"So, do you have any siblings or something?" Judy asked curiously.
"Umm." Emmitt responded awkwardly. "Yes, but I don't know what they are doing right now. Why do you ask?"
Isamu then answered. "You look familiar or at least similar to an otter I saw before. She wasn't as friendly." He calmly held the sheathe of his blade while talking, standing in the back of the room.
"Hmm, my sister, I presume." Emmitt sighed. "I don't want to talk about it. I just want my easy life that I have here and just sell flowers."
"That is fair, do you have a bonsai? I would wish to buy one." Emmitt chuckled at the request.
"Of course I do, I shall let our newest hire sell it to you." The two looked confused. "Call it a favour for a friend. Judy, there is a very kind fox, who has helped me keep this place. His name was Nicholas Wilde and he asked to provide a job for you, while you heal." He stated pointing at the cast. "I, of course, agreed. So, Ms. Hopps, would you like a job here?"
Judy would've said no but heard that Nick got this all set up. 'What is that fox planning?' "Well, since it is so graciously offered, it would be rude to decline."
"Great, there is no uniform but please try to look somewhat professional for when you work." Judy nodded. "Now, I heard you have a past in agriculture, which although isn't horticulture, should be good enough to sell this dear customer the plant they are looking for. Would you please serve this customer." Isamu glared awkwardly. Judy nodded and proceeded to search for the plant in question. She found a bonsai tree and placed it on the counter.
"Would you like anything else?" She asked, having some experience since she worked on the stands from time to time in her past.
Jiro stood confused for a second before finally answering. "No, that would be all, how much does it cost?"
Emmitt then stepped in and answered, knowing that she wouldn't know the cost right now. "It is 25 zoollars." Ismau pulled out 25 dollars and handed it over. He then bowed as he received the tree. Then the two behind the till declared. "Thank you please come again." Emmitt looked at the rabbit and smiled. "You are pretty good. Seems you have past experience." Isamu left and ran off down the road.
"Yeah, kinda happens when you live on a farm, have a fruit stand and sell for the day. Feels similar to this."
"Well, that's because it is similar. But can I ask, who is that? He seems nice but also easy to aggravate."
"Oh, that is a friend of mine. Jiro Isamu. He works as a freelance bodyguard. Said he would help me when I left the hospital."
"I see, he is a good friend. Remember to keep those types of friends close to you as they are the ones that will help you out later." Judy nodded. "Well, sorry to do this but we need to sign a few documents for legal reasons."
"I completely understand." The two walked to a small side room, where Emmitt pulled out a contract.
"Please read through it and sign it." Judy accepted the contract and read through it.
"Seems fair, I don't see any issues with it. Wait, do you mean it? While I work here, once per week I can take a flower?" Emmitt nodded. "Well, it will probably be good for lunch then." She joked, kind of.
Emmitt chuckled. "Of course you think of eating them. It's so funny, every other mammal sees a flower and thinks 'ooh pretty' then there's rabbits and they think 'ooh tasty'. I meant no offence in that statement, I just wanted to point out what I know."
"Well, we do like flowers a lot. So I do agree with what you say. But it is also rooted in certain traditions, such as the preparations of certain festive meals." Emmitt smiled. Judy smiled the contract and handed it back.
"With all the legal stuff out of the way, you are now officially an employee. I look forward to working with you." Emmitt handed Judy his number. "For now, I would say go home and rest." Judy nodded and waved good bye. She left and started to walk home. She started to have a nagging feeling that someone was watching her. She looked around and didn't see anything unusual. Then she turned left and saw Isamu coming back.
"Hello."
"Hey, you're back already?" Isamu nodded. "Well, what now?" Isamu shrugged.
"That's up to you to decide."
"Well, we could go home, or we could do something fun. I kinda don't want to just go back home. I was laying in a hospital bed for so long now." She then started thinking. "You know what, how about a walk in the park. That seems like it would be a good idea."
Isamu nodded "It would be peaceful." The two start to depart from the small flower shop and head towards the local park. "Bored of the inside? I believe I would be too, if I were stuck inside for a month."
"Yeah, it was so mind-numbingly bad to be just laying there. I was waiting to finally be able to leave. Now that the day has arrived, I'll see what I'm going to do."
The two walked, Judy smiling as she now saw the park in her sight. She started to run from the excitement of seeing something that wasn't the drab walls of pale white. Isamu ran after her, understanding why she acted the way she did. "You don't want to waste time, do you?" Judy shook her head. Isamu sighed, "Considering the time, the won't be many kits, so it could be quiet."
The two walked in, seeing large fields with trees dotted around. On one side was a playground that was mostly abandoned. The other was fields, ones filled with either grass or flowers.
Isamu walked to under a tree and sat. Judy sprinted to the flower patch and then tiptoed around to avoid crushing any of them. When she reached the middle, she sat down, crushing some plants. "Oops." She then sighed from relief. "It's good to be here again."
Then someone else came. A wolf. "Hey, you two." He then turned to the rabbit. "You know that those aren't supposed to be touched."
Isamu unsheathed his sword, being careful about the situation. Judy turned while about to apologise. When she turned, she noticed who the wolf was. "Hey, Waller, what are you doing here?"
"Well, I saw you here and wanted to ask what's up. So, 'sup?"
"I'm finally out of there and in the outside world. It was so annoying and restrictive. What about you? How is life treating you?"
"I don't know if I can tell you." He looked around and saw that there was no-one around. Then he looked at the fox's face, who was clearly disapproving. "Well, we are just um... setting up, since um... you know... that thing happened about a month ago... but um... mammals are warming up to us since um... we are um... nicer than the last guy. Finnick is not too happy and our contact is fragile since he thinks we could be errr... changed."
"Oh, that's interesting."
"Ahem, Isamu, how's your whole schtick?"
Isamu stood up and stared the wolf down. Eventually he gave in, clearly nothing bad was going to happen. "I've protected a few VIPs and business is successful. You'd be surprised how much celebrities like a bodyguard who isn't there." Waller nodded. "I mean, I protected some well known individuals including Gazelle." The two quickly turned their head at the fox and opened their eyes wide in disbelief. "Really, I did."
Judy stood up and rushed at the fox. She then jumped up and grabbed the fox by his collar of his jacket. "Tell us about it." She stared directly into the soul of the fox through his eyes. "Now." Isamu chuckled and picked the rabbit up.
"I will, but I didn't tell you anything for legal reasons."
"Is she as nice as she seems on screen?"
"Yes and no. Depends on her mood, mostly yes, she is very kind but when she exhausted, she is quite grumpy. The security detail was also very good as they were able to spread out and cover a wide area. The concert was good, I guess but I'm not a fan of her music." This comment made him get death stares from the other two mammals in the area. "Oh what sue me."
Then from the side another voice joined in. "Maybe it's just that foxes have a higher cognitive brain function that they are able to appreciate more tasteful music. Don't worry I agree with you." Everyone turned. Isamu and Waller taken their weapons and aimed it at the newcomer."Sorry about before Serenade and Ninja, I had a few things to deal with. Also is that how you treat anyone who comes by?" The three turned to see the Spectral Showman. He just smiled, looking at the group of mammals before him. "I want to talk to you two." He pointed at Waller and Isamu. "We have a few issues."
"I can help." Judy added, hoping she would be involved. Spectre was just about close enough now to sweep his leg and drop the rabbit. He proceeded to do so then grab the rabbit's shirt.
"No, you can't." Then Isamu taken his sword and placed it next to Spectre's neck. "You would've avoided it if you were in tiptop shape." He then turned to Isamu. "But that was why you are a bodyguard. Well done." He chuckled before leaving. "See ya guys, you two will get a call soon. And Judy, stay away from all this. You have a chance to leave all this. Trust me, take it."
"No, I told you, I'm staying with you."
Nick turned around. "No, you're not. I'm sorry but it's too dangerous." His tone was aggressive and unusual. He then walked away.
"Damn you N-Spectre, why do you treat me like this?"
"Unimportant." Nick responded, trying to not turn around and hug her, explaining everything. The truth, however, still hurt him. "Just don't go." He then left, feigning his cheery self.
A/N: So, Nick is a bit weird here. We'll see where this goes.
Otherwise, another chapter and another question to answer. What is really going on? Also smaller ones like, What's going on with shorty or with Silver? Only time will answer such questions.
With that I don't have much else to say so Have a good one guys. Bye.