Serendipity's Shadow

Rated T

Chapter 26

"Ding~ Dong~ Ding~ Dong~" A prisoner who was pleading 'mentally insane' sang relentlessly. His voice echoed down the hallway in a never-ending rhythm.

In a cell found near the end of the corridor a young, dangerously charismatic, stoat sat bored on his bed. A rubber ball had been gifted to him from a partially sympathetic guard. This small object gave him a small form of entertainment. But he much preferred when he had a cellmate, they would make great toys. But those toys never lasted long enough for him to enjoy them to the fullest. After a few toys, a guard figured out what his 'playtime' consisted of. After that, he was never given a new toy. So, much to his displeasure, he missed his most desperate toy, Dean.

"Ermine!" A guard yelled a few cells down.

The stoat sighed heavily annoyed at the idea of conversing.

The guard made his appearance, looming threateningly in front of the cell door. He was a large rhino with a big enough ego to match his figure. Ermine loved teasing this guard the most, but he just wasn't in the mood today.

"Hello, Gate Keeper. Sorry…but I don't know where the Key Master is." Ermine joked.

"Shut the fuck up you sick bastard!" The guard ordered. "Wrist out!"

Oh?

Ermine lazily threw the rubber ball under his bed before standing up. He flashed the guard a wry smile before approaching the cell door.

"Wrist out." The guard ordered in a low tone.

Slowly, while still smiling, Ermine placed his arms through the small opening of his cell door. Immediately he felt the cold tight metal clasp harshly around his wrists.

"You have a visitor." The guard stated.

Probably Dean…

The guard shoved Ermine's wrist back through the slot while the doors slowly slid open. Ermine continued to smile in an almost condescending tone at the jail guard. The guard really wanted to smack the smile off his face. But that could cause problems with the court date so soon.

Ermine walked a few steps ahead of the rhino as he was directed where to go. And in a few short minutes, he comfortably walked through the doors of a private meeting room. He was amused to find it empty. So, he made himself comfortable never ceasing his smile. The guard attached the cuff chain to the table. Before leaving in a small huff, annoyed he had to interact with the criminal.

Ermine sat still twiddling his thumbs while starring at the security. He was perfectly comfortable, complacent even as he waited for his visitor. That is until the security cameras turned off and the door opened. His wry smile remained but it lost its aloof effect as his eye glared at the visitor.

A fox dressed in a green tropical shirt and brown khakis sat comfortably on the other side of the criminal.

"Hello, Clifford." The fox greeted with an amused smile that hid a dark look in his eyes.

"…You know my name, but I don't-"

"You can drop the pretend act." The fox stated waving Ermine off. "No one is watching or listening."

"…"

"…"

"Hello, Nick." Ermine eventually greeted.

"…Fancy meeting you here."

"Is it? I thought my face being plastered all over the news station wouldn't make it that surprising. Maybe your just too…slow."

"Maybe. But then again, who's the one behind bars?" Nick countered.

A heavy silence filled the air while they starred at each other promising death with their gazes.

"…Something about you irked me from the very beginning, Clifford." Nick sated.

"I could say the same thing."

"So, I hope you don't mind I had a little friend of mine do some digging."

Ermine remained silent as he observed Nick.

"Clifford Ermine isn't the name you were born with, is it…Trevor Shorts?"

A noticeable twitch happened to Ermine as his ears flattened.

"Son of Amelia Ermine and Clifford Shorts…the sniper that killed my father." Nick leaned back in the chair losing his amused smile. "I thought I took care of you and your family during my purge. Somehow you slipped my grasp."

"What can I say…my father was always known to be quite slippery. One of the only things I ever learned from him."

"And I guess you learned how to be a slut from your mother?"

Ermine was losing his cool as his face turned into a deep frown.

"…I guess you no longer wonder why I'm actively trying to bring you down a peg…or two." Ermine leaned onto the table. "Are you here to kill me Shadow?"

Nick smiled at the stoat before standing up from his seat.

"Leaving so-GAH!"

Nick grabbed the back of Ermine's neck thrusting his face against the hard surface of the table. Then he applied pressure around Ermine's jugular making it hard for him to breathe.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure not to leave any bruises."

"So…You are…going to…kill me." Ermine stated between gasping for air.

"…No." Nick released his hold coming to stand behind Ermine.

Silence passed while Ermine rubbed at his sore throat. He hated this, he was weak, just like when he was a child. He remembered it was his mother's birthday. His father made a rare appearance to celebrate with the only woman he ever loved, or so he claimed. When their apartment was barged into by a crew led by a fox no older than ten. Before they could process what happened the fox killed his father. Ermine's mother was allowed to run for a good minute before Hunters were set on her. Before she was killed his mother threw him out the window. The loud crash of the window breaking didn't go unnoticed by the fox and his crew. The sound of the gun going off a second time ringed in his ears while Ermine laid stunned in the grass. While he tried to process what was happening the fox appeared in the window frame. Without even blinking the fox aimed his gun at Ermine and pulled the trigger. Luckily for him, their neighbor was an underground doctor who was able to save the young stoat's life. The only proof of this incident that remained was the huge scar on the left side of Ermine's chest.

"Killing me would save you a lot of trouble." Ermine stated still rubbing his neck in discomfort.

"True." Nick agreed as he grabbed the back of Ermine's chair then leaned down to speak into his ear. "But where's the fun in that?"

Ermine ignored Nick's killer instincts and continued to look ahead.

"See…not only did you challenge me. You went after my rabbit. Which is a big no, no." Nick took a deep breath tired from wasting his breath talking to such a pathetic animal. "So, I'm gonna make sure you have a comfortable stay here until your day in court. And when that day comes… I'll make sure you end up back in here, one way or another. Then I cut you off from any form of help, complete isolation, as my people will slowly break you…piece by piece."

After his threat, Nick made his way to leave.

"How did it feel?" Ermine asked as a small smile graced his lips.

"…How did it feel to…what?" Nick asked, curious as to what Ermine had to say.

"How did it feel to hold her dying body?"

"…"

"Did it hurt?" Ermine began in a taunting laugh. "Did your blood run cold? How did it feel to be so completely helpless as Miss Judy Hopps laid there dying in your arms?"

Something snapped in Nick Wilde, Zootopia's Shadow. He lost his composure and lunged towards Ermine grabbing him by the collar of his shirt.

"Careful now." Ermine laughed. "Hurt me and that won't look so good in court…especially for your precious little cop."

Nick made no further advances against Ermine. But he didn't release his grasp either. If eyes could kill Ermine would be dead three times over.

"…You've already dug your grave. But now…you just secured your first-class seat to be my personal punching bag when this is all over." Nick dropped Ermine letting him collapse back into the chair.

"I told you, didn't I?" Ermine laughed manically. "It would be easier for you to kill me."

Nick ignored Ermine as he pushed the door open.

"One more thing." Ermine yelled after the fox. "You might want to have a chat with that Chief of Police you own. It concerns my day in trial."

Nick sent one more glare at Ermine before leaving the room completely.

As soon as the door shut, and silence filled the room again. The once quiet security camera buzzed to life again, someone turned it back on.

"Back to your cell you rotten son of a bitch!" The rhino guard bellowed his order.

Ermine could care less about his guard as a severe sense of carnal joy filled his body. With little control over his body, he laughed aggressively and relentlessly. His own laughter drowned out the sound of the criminal singing Ding Dong.