Case Number: 489-231M

Category: Missing Mammal

Lead Investigator: Judith Hopps

Incident Description:

Multiple missing mammals from various locations in the city. Rainforest District and Savannah Central appear to be the most common. All victims share similar traits, suggesting correlation. No suspects or leads have been found at this time. Investigation is still ongoing.

Investigation Progress:

"Hey Carrots, what sound do porcupines make when they mate?"

"Oh, sweet Serendipity, I swear, Nick…" Judy's paw tapped anxiously on the steering wheel, her eyes fixated forward at the intersection. It was nearing the end of their shift. They had one more stop before they could call it quits. Their most recently assigned task was yet another missing mammal, adding onto their growing pile. Over the past few weeks, citizens of Zootopia had been vanishing without a trace. It had all begun slowly starting a few months ago, with the occasional incident here or there. Now, they were ramping up; it was starting to feel like a new animal went missing every week. And as the dynamic duo had done so well on the last one, Bogo hadn't thought twice about assigning the investigation to them.

Unfortunately, much like the first time around, they were having about the same amount of luck. Arguably less. Which meant that her partner was understandably annoyed. And Boredom, frustration, and caffeine was a lethal combination when trapped in a car with Nicholas Wilde. Add a red traffic light to the mix, and the result was guaranteed agitation.

"Come on. Humor me, Fluff. What sound do they make?"

She didn't even need to look at him to know he was wearing that look on his face. Eyebrow wiggling playfully set atop a pair of lidded eyes, all traveling down to a precocious smirk. It was the sort of shit-eating grin that he always gave her when he was about to make her life difficult. He wasn't going to leave her alone until she answered him. He knew it, she knew it, and he knew that she knew it, which was exactly what he was counting on. After another four seconds of silence — which Nick counted down in his head — she finally gave in with a resigned sigh. "…Okay, fine. What sound do they make?"

"Ouch!"

"Ugh…" the sound of her own groan was drowned out by his cackle of laughter, her head falling forward and slapping against the steering wheel. The sight of the bunny lying there, ears lopped over the wheel and onto the dash, had him howling. Judy's reactions to his jokes were often so much funnier than the humor itself.

"Oh, come on, Carrots, that was a good one!"

"You are such an ass…"

Judy could hear the sound of his tail thumping happily against the seat. "Oh ho! Have I finally managed to get a swear out of the priss and pristine Officer Judy Hopps?"

"It's not a swear, Nick, it's an equine."

"You're no fun." Despite his words, a tiny smirk adorned his muzzle. He didn't need to look over to know that hers did also. He knew Judy far too well.

"You still love me, though," she shot back.

"Yeah. I really do."

When the police cruiser finally slowed to a stop out front of the address, Judy put the vehicle in park. Shutting off the engine, Judy leaned back against her seat with a tired sigh. She didn't get out of the car; she took the time to steel herself for the coming encounter. Nick let her. After performing this song and dance so many times, it was hard not to lose morale. Honestly, he would have been worried if she wasn't feeling discouraged by their lack of progress. And chances were, this interview would be the same as every other one they had conducted that week.

After collecting herself, she looked to her partner, her grin returning. "You get it all out of your system?"

"Yep."

"Then, let's do this."

"You're the boss," Nick replied with a smirk.

Hopping out of the cruiser, their foot paws splashed on the ground. Moving into the middle of winter, the rainwater was cool in between their toes. The temperature regulation system in Zootopia was truly a marvel; it managed to keep a fairly consistent climate, even during the changing seasons. Of course, that didn't do much to lessen the frustration of sopping wet feet. They would never understand the appeal of the rainforest.

Nick stepped forward to ring the doorbell; being the taller of the two, he was closer to reach. They waited for a few moments of silence. At least one of the residents was home, he was sure of it. His partner's ears were shifting around like satellite dishes, which meant she was picking up movement from the inside. A few moments later, the knob turned, and the door opened. The pair slowly drew their eyes upward. Standing in the doorway was a large mammal, a female leopard with emerald eyes. Eyes flitting over the uniforms with suspicion.

"Can I help you…?" she asked uncertainly.

"Are you Olivia Clawson?" Judy asked.

"I am… may I ask what this is all about?"

"I'm Officer Hopps. This is my partner, Officer Wilde. We're here to discuss your son. Do you have a moment to speak with us?"

Nick noticed the shift in her scent immediately as every muscle in her body tensed. "Y-Yes, of course. Please, come in."

The officers followed the leopard into her home. Nick looked idly around at the décor; it was a nice place, cozy, quaint. Soft grey walls and hardwood flooring leading into the living area, which was carpeted, also in grey though a lighter shade. Olivia offered them a seat, which they gratefully took. As it was rather large, they were able to sit side by side as they often did. Once they were visibly settled in, she leapt directly into their conversation. "Have you found my boy? Please, tell me you've found something."

Judy slowly shook her head. This was exactly what she had been preparing for. It was one of the few aspects of the job she couldn't stand, delivering bad news. "I'm sorry to say we haven't… that's why we wanted to speak with you today. To gather more information that may help us find him.

"I see… I will answer however I can."

With her agreement, Judy nodded her head, plucking her notepad and carrot pen from her back pockets. A quiet click sounded with the press of her thumb, signifying she was ready. Her partner, understanding her meaning, quickly took the reins. "That would be very helpful." The leopard turned her attention to the fox, and her eyes softened immediately. Her muscles became less tense as she visibly relaxed, a familiar display. "Mrs. Clawson —"

"Please, call me Olivia."

"Olivia… what can you tell us about the night your son went missing?"

Judy looked between the two of them frowning for a moment. Her ears lost some of their stiffness, drooping slightly forward. Technically, as his superior officer, Judy was in charge of the case and as such, should be taking the lead on their investigations. But in the field — at least for their most recent cases — she would stand back, letting her partner handle interactions with their interviewees. If there was one thing that working together as a predator-prey pair had taught them over the years, it was that mammals tended to feel more comfortable with kin. Prey animals preferred to speak to Judy. Predators preferred Nick.

"It was the same as every Thursday night," she began. Judy's ears perked up again, pivoting in her direction with laser precision. Her paw started moving, scribbling across the page. "He normally comes home around 5:30, 6:00 p.m. He has practice, those nights."

"So, he was out at practice then. Okay. And did you hear from him at all?"

"I did. He sent me a text message; said he was going to hang out with his friends for a little bit."

"Was this typical for him?"

"It was. He normally stays out for a few extra hours after practice, then gets back by around 8:00 or 9:00… Just his normal routine. But that night, he just… never came home."

Judy took diligent notes, each detail listed in concise bullets with the occasional side note. Thursday nights, practice. Return by 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. Visit with friends, back by 8:00 or 9:00. Maybe stopped for dinner?

Nick nodded his head. "Can you think of anywhere he might have gone? Anywhere he frequented?"

"They sometimes go down to the coffee shop over on Kapok Street."

"Paws-a-bilities?" Judy interjected.

"That's the one."

Nick paused for a moment to let the rabbit finish her notes before continuing. "And what about these friends of his? Did any of them notice anything? Anything strange or suspicious before his disappearance?"

She shook her head. "They were the first ones I asked. I spoke with their parents as well, but they all said the same thing. From what they tell me, he and Jeremy — that's his teammate — got into a heated argument."

"An argument?"

"Yes. They say the two of them were yelling at one another. Their other friend, Todd; he deescalated the situation before they could come to blows. Then, Adrian left. They assumed he was going home."

The pair exchanged a knowing look, their minds operating on the same wavelength. Her information so far corroborated with what they had learned from all the other animals.

"I don't know what started it, honestly. Adrian was a little testy after practice, but we didn't think much of it. Next thing we know, he and Jeremy are at each other's throats. I managed to stop the fighting, but Adrian stormed off."

The stories lined up and bore resemblance to rest of the cases. Using that knowledge, Nick segued into his next line of questioning. "Olivia… your son. Did he have a history of this sort of behavior?"

"My Adrian?" she stared back at him almost appalled. "No, never! He's a kind boy, he rarely got into disagreements with anyone, let alone fights."

"So, you would say this behavior is atypical?"

"Yes, very much so."

"How has he been at home? During the time leading up to this incident, was Adrian acting strangely? Was there anything else unusual about his behavior?"

"Well… he had been complaining of headaches for a little while, and he was having trouble sleeping. He would take some Tylenol-Pred for it, but that was the only thing different."

"Headaches… not out of character for an athlete."

"Tylenol-Pred…" Judy muttered, her pen moving quickly across the paper. She paused, shifting back to another page, and circling some bullets before continuing her writing. "Headaches… atypical behavior —"

The leopard huffed impatiently. "I'm sorry officers, but is this relevant? I fail to see how any of this will help you find my boy."

"Every detail is important, ma'am," Judy said. "We need as much information as possible to formulate a hypothesis; to recreate that night and get any leads as to what may have happened."

"What may have happened?" The leopard narrowed her eyes. "What happened was someone took my son."

"That's what we're trying to confirm."

"Confirm? What is there to confirm? Are you implying that my son may have run away?" The low growl beneath the end of her sentence didn't go unnoticed. Judy tensed, looking to her partner to deescalate. This was exactly why she didn't deal with predators. It wasn't that she had a problem with them, so much as they often had a problem with her.

Nick stepped in. "Do you believe that could be a possibility?"

"Not at all." Her answer was immediate, full of conviction. "Adrian would never do something like that. He would have no reason to."

He nodded, turning to his partner with a solemn nod. They weren't going to be finding anything more here. "Thank you for your time, Mrs. Clawson. We'll get this back to the station immediately."

"Thank you… please, find my boy."

. . .

The cruiser was silent on the way back to the precinct. A thick tension hung in the air like a cloud of uncertainty heavier than the rainforest mists. What they had learned today was confluent with the other cases they had investigated over the last week. They were starting to form an emerging pattern. Unfortunately, it hadn't brought them any closer to solving the case. They were no closer to finding the missing animals. Primarily, because there was nothing left to find. Belongings? Missing. Witnesses? None. Footage? Non-existent. It was maddening.

The only thing more disheartening than the missing mammals themselves was dealing with the loved ones they left behind. It was something that had been nagging at Judy for some time, but she often didn't feel sure she should address it. In all honesty, she didn't know how to. But their most recent interview threatened to finally push her over the edge. "… Hey Nick?"

"What's up, Carrots?"

She didn't answer right away. She paused quizzically, as though considering whether or not to backpedal her thought. Her fingers drummed nervously against the steering wheel, but her ears were flat against her back. "Is…" Another pregnant pause. "Nick… When you look at me, what do you see?"

That threw him for a loop. It was about as far as possible from what he had been expecting, so much so that he spent the first few moments just staring at her. "You mean besides a tiny little bunny with big, huge dreams?"

"I'm serious," she replied. Her tone said that for certain. It wiped the smirk right off his face. "What do you see? Am I… reliable? Trustworthy?"

"What — are you kidding? You've got to be the most reliable, trustworthy person I know. Hell, that anyone knows. Judy, you're the super bunny hero cop that saved Zootopia from one of the most corrupt politicians the city has ever seen. You're the rabbit who succeeded against all odds, even when everyone around you wanted you to fail. I don't know why you would even ask me something like that."

He saw the slightest hint of a smile tug at her muzzle before she sighed. "It's just… I don't understand why other animals don't… trust me."

"What?" Nick's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "You're going to have to explain this one because I legitimately have no idea what you're talking about."

"Like, with that leopard back there, Mrs. Clawson. She was so cordial with you from the moment we walked through the door. But with me, she was just…" Judy shook her head. "It's always like this… Predacious mammals are always so tense around me, and I don't understand why. I mean, I don't come off as apathetic — at least I don't think I do. I just don't understand —"

"It's not you, Fluff," Nick stopped her, understanding finally dawning on his features. "I mean, you're not wrong about the hostility. They probably don't think you care all that much."

"But I do! Nick, I've been up every night working on this case, trying to find these missing mammals. I care so much; I'm losing sleep over it."

"I know, Fluff. You've spent quite a few of those nights at my place," he attempted, hoping to get a smirk out of her. He didn't. Sighing, he leaned back against the seat. "Mrs. Clawson, and all the others… they've all lost someone precious to them. And this case has been going on for weeks, before Central even got involved. She's probably sat down with different cops over and over, day after day, night after night; and I can guarantee you most of them have been exactly as you described."

"What? What do you mean? Like, apathy?" she asked.

"What I mean is that these cases, they aren't taken as seriously as they should be, and mammals know that. So, when they look at you, they probably see just another indifferent cop."

"But they don't look at you that way."

"Because I'm a predator."

There was a moment of silence while the words sunk in. Finally, she turned, fixing him with a hardened stare. "What is that supposed to mean? What, because I'm not a predator, I don't care? This case somehow means less to me because I'm a different species?"

"No, because —" Nick could see her frustration rising; the discomfort growing on her face. "Okay, let me ask you something. Over the last few weeks, the ZPD has been working like crazy on these cases. Wolford and Jackson especially."

"Right…"

"And you've probably noticed that the two of them have had an easier time getting resources for their investigation. It's considered top priority."

"Well, of course it is, it's homicide," Judy replied shortly. As though the answer were obvious. "The animals in Wolford's case, they're dying Nick. Our victims aren't being murdered."

"How do you know that?"

"I —" Her retort died in her throat. He could tell she understood; that she realized when her eyes went wide. During the last missing mammals case, their victims had all been found locked in a secret facility in Cliffside. Every one of them had been found in savage condition, but still very much alive. She had just assumed that the same would be true for this case. It had never even occurred to her that this investigation might be different. Nick was right. They had no idea what was happening to those animals. Only that they were going missing. "I… I don't."

"Exactly. We don't know. We could be dealing with a series of homicides. Only difference is we haven't found the bodies yet. Now, let me ask you something else. What do all of these victims have in common?"

"What, ours? They're mostly male, typically athletes —"

"No, no, I mean, on a base level. For all of these cases, I've been handling the interviews, right? And that's because…?"

"Because…" Judy paused. "…They're all predators."

"Right. And Wolford's victims?"

"…Nearly all prey."

"Exactly. In a city where prey outnumber us ten to one, you can't really be surprised."

"But that's just a coincidence, Nick. That doesn't mean there's a correlation."

"Okay, fair enough. So, how about this? You watch the news, Carrots."

"Of course, I do. You're sitting there watching it with me."

"And how many of our victims have shown up on the news bulletin?"

Judy opened her mouth to answer but quickly fell silent. No words would come out. Because she knew the answer: zero. Granted, their case had been mentioned in passing, specifically in the newspaper or the smaller news channels. But on Channel 5 and other major stations, it hadn't. She couldn't remember a single one of their victim's faces appearing on the screen. And now that she actually thought about it, it made her blood boil.

She wanted to tell him that he was wrong; that in Zootopia all mammals were treated equally. That the police, the investigators, the public, they were all just as concerned about the missing animals as the homicides… but she couldn't. Even thinking back to the Night Howler case, the situation had been the same. The news channels were running constantly during the investigation, but the coverage consisted almost entirely of the aftermath. Never anything leading up to it.

The maulings, the assaults, the homicides, all were running on nearly constant rotation. And not a single one of them mentioned the missing predators; only that they had gone savage. And during their press conference, after finding them, the journalists had questioned her with the same things. Which animals are going savage? Why is it happening? Should we quarantine predators? Are we safe? Not a single reporter had asked about the predators themselves. Whether or not they were still savage, or even if they were okay. No one had asked. All fifteen of them. The only time they were ever mentioned was after they were cured.

Seeing that he had made his point, Nick shrugged his shoulders. "It's just the way of the world. Here are the facts. Over these last few weeks, there have been just as many predator victims as prey. Preds just don't make the headlines."

Judy's ears drooped. They laid limply over her shoulders. What more was there to say? While she would have hoped that relations between species had improved over the years, the simple fact was that they hadn't. If anything, they had gotten arguably worse. Prejudice had always existed in Zootopia. That was something she learned the hard way; Nick had taught her that. But in the past, that prejudice existed, for the most part, in the shadows. Although the occasional store owner would refuse service — which was precisely how she and her partner met — most kept their derogatory thoughts to themselves.

Now, all that veiled hatred had been thrust into the open. Mammals would shoot dirty looks in their direction when they were seen walking together. They would be uncooperative with her partner. They would mistrust him, even when dressed in blue. Those who did behave civilly with him did so begrudgingly. To his credit, Nick took it all in stride. He didn't retaliate and he didn't complain. Perhaps it was because he was so used to it, having dealt with it all his life. But that didn't make it right, and it certainly didn't make it any less rage-inducing for his partner. She hoped a day would come when their species could truly live in some form of harmony. And maybe they could bring about that change, one mammal at a time. But they would have to take that first step.

And they could start by finding their missing predators.