Third chapter. This officially kicks off the story by including parts of the main character's POV, and will also show Judy Hopps' departure from Bunny Burrow and entrance into Zootopia. The few days before Judy leaves for the city, that is when the clock starts to count down. The upcoming chapters will cover a period of up to three weeks.

Hopefully, the last chapter wasn't shit. In the meantime, I'm gonna try and cut back on these author's notes, just in case people don't like seeing them. :)

Enjoy this next chapter!

Chapter 3: 'Zootopia'

After that night - Honey and I had become a thing, an item.

For a while, for a few good months, we made it work. We never showed any loving affection for each other in public, but once we were back home, there was always time for a cute cuddle.

At night, even more.

...

It didn't last. Honey broke it off just five months in. She wanted to keep making it work. I wanted to keep making it work. And when I said that, she asked me just one question:

"How can we be together if the world wants us apart?"

Sure, there were mammals who approved of interspecial relationships - but that kind of belief was few and far between in the world. In Zootopia, it was hardly a common thing, much less a common subject to discuss. In the world, it was believed that only mammals of the same species could be together, rather than mammals of difference. Even if two different mammals share similar interests or beliefs, having them together was illogical and - biologically - sinful.

Honey didn't believe it, and neither did I.

But the poor girl said she was only looking out for me. I believed her. Ever since what happened with Jackson, not only had she been acting different - in ways - but she was always unsure if I should do any kind of business alone. While we were together, every gig we did was together. Sometimes, Lily had some kind of involvement. We always dressed up and changed everything about us to be sure that nobody believed we were the same mammals. Usually, whenever one of us had done a gig 'alone', the other would usually pretend to be a bystander or a customer.

Nobody ever thought anything of it.

But even then, that wasn't enough to convince Honey that we could remain together.

"One day, maybe things will change. Maybe they'll change and see."

One day, she said.

One day.

...

Three years had passed since she said that, since we broke it off.

Even today, it still hurt, but I mostly got over it. That feeling whenever she would hold onto my snout, cuddle me, tell me she loved me. That feeling of her fur against mine...

I miss that.

Maybe one day, we can...

...Yeah.

It'd been six years since I first joined up with the three of them, five since I met Lily.

She turned 31 today.

It was crazy. To think, when I met her, I was still a rookie in the hustling business, and Lily - 26 then - knew next to nothing about how to do things around here. Nick allowed me to show the otter the ropes, to learn how to make it well and not get caught while she was at it.

Five years later, she's celebrating her 31st birthday with cake, ice cream, and two million dollars in her room.

What could be better than that?

211 Miles Away, Bunnyburrow

"-ZPDs very first rabbit officer - Judy Hopps!" said Mayor Lionheart as he looked on at the row of police graduates.

The mammals in front of him trained, worked, fought, and strained themselves for six long, hard months. Today, they would become members of the Zootopia Police Force.

Including Judy Hopps.

Unlike all known police officers in Zootopia and other cities - Judy was to be the very first rabbit to be given the honor of 'making the world a better place.'

The young, but proud rabbit walked her way up to the stage, in front of her fellow officers, her friends - her family, her mother and father tearing up and smiling, proud of her, proud of what she had accomplished.

She was proud of herself too.

"I am assigning you to the heart of Zootopia - Precinct One, City Center."

Judy tried not to lose herself in her feelings. She stood tall and proud as they gave her her badge and her nameplate. The assistant mayor, Dawn Bellwether, congratulated the bunny personally.

"It's a good day for us little guys."

Lionheart 'gently' pushed Dawn out of the way and stood up next to Hopps. The two took a look at the camera pointed at them.

"Smile!"

With a flash, an entire day had gone by for Judy. Celebrations, partying, fun and games were all about at the Hopps farmstead. And the whole time, she could think of nothing but what she had done. So many mammals, so many years ago, none of them believed she would ever be what she dreamed - today, they cheered her on; they couldn't be more proud of her.

Her parents couldn't be more proud of her.

And, stupidly, a part of her even believed that possibly...well, maybe Gideon Gray was proud of her too. It'd been years since she last saw him, and the last time she did...

Just the memory of it - she held the part of her face where he...

...With those claws.

Maybe he's changed, a part of her believes.

Maybe he's still the ignorant jerk he was then, another part says.

Every once in a while, if Gideon ever came across her mind, she would tell herself those two same things, and never be sure which one to believe more. Sure, it'd been 15 years since then - but she knew mammals - mammals that never changed.

Their body changed - their mind didn't.

She might visit him one day.

Maybe.

After the night had come and gone, Judy was packed and set to leave. When she arrived at the train station, her family was right there, waiting for her. Every brother and sister she ever had. Even her favorite - Jenny. It wasn't to say that the others weren't her favorites...but there was something about Jenny that made her want to be the best big sister she ever could to her.

In the end, it paid off. There she was, right next to her mother and father, smiling and fighting the urge to run up and hug her big sis.

She was always so adorable.

For a few minutes, Judy had exchanged words with her parents. At some point, foxes got into the subject, about how they were nothing but 'the worst.'

Then came the care package. Fox deterrent, fox repellent, fox ta-...

ZAP!

Whoa, why would she need a fox taser?!

Regardless of what they gave to her, she only decided to take the repellent, "To make you stop talking."

Soon enough, the train had arrived and stopped at the station. The doors opened, and passengers came flowing out of all different sizes and shapes. Some were texting on their phones, others were reading books or looking at a map. Or maybe they were simply having a conversation back and forth.

Hopps was well aware that she'd be seeing this every single day soon enough.

She grabbed her luggage and started boarding the train. But that one part of her made her stop in the doorway. She hesitated for a moment, not of regret or other things.

It was forgetfulness.

She put her things down and ran back to her parents. She held them warmly in a hug.

"I love you guys."

And they stayed that way for a few moments. Who knew how long it'd be before they'd meet again?

When they parted, she didn't go right back. She knelt down on one knee, right beside her mother and father - and looked at Jenny. Her baby sister seemed so proud of her too.

That little smile of hers never faded away.

"You look after mom and dad, okay?" she asked as she gently held onto Jenny's shoulders.

The young sister beamed at her, nodding.

"Okay."

She wouldn't let it go that easily.

"Pinky swear?" Judy held up her pinky pad to Jenny with a little smirk.

Her sister giggled and held up her own pad, pressing it against Judy's.

"Pinky swear."

They both grinned back at each other as they embraced one another in a warming hug. Jenny leaned into Judy's shoulder and held her tighter.

"I don't want you to go," she said.

Judy rubbed her back. "I know. I don't wanna leave you, either."

They stayed that way for another few moments.

"But think about it - I can make the world safer. For you, for mom and dad-...for everyone.

"That'll be good, won't it?"

She felt her sister nod in her shoulder.

The station's intercom played. "Final call for Zootopia."

"Ooh, gotta go," Judy said as she pulled away. As she did so, she kissed her sister on the forehead.

"Promise me you'll take care of them?"

Jenny nodded with her own request. "Promise you'll come visit?"

Judy nodded back with a grin.

She parted from her little sister and ran back to the train. Through the doorway, she picked up her luggage, just in time for the door to shut behind her only moments later. As she turned back to the door window, she watched as her family all waved her goodbye - her father crying next to her mother.

"I love you!" her sister shouted as she waved along.

The rabbit waved back to all of her siblings, all of them wishing her good luck, happy travels, to be safe-...

The train began to move forward, and as it did, her brothers and sisters began to move forward with it, faster and faster, until the train was faster than them, and they disappeared from sight. She still looked back through that window, hoping she would see one more glance at them.

But the train was too far gone, and before she knew it, the train had already left her home. The sign that promoted the land of Bunnyburrow passed her by, the numbers of residents ticking up with every second, until that too was far gone.

She was really alone for the first time in her life. And she wondered if she loved it.

Of course she did.

Make the world a better place.

Always her motto. It always would - even if her family wasn't by her side all the time.

This was her time now. This was her time to really make the difference she dreamed.

It started today.

Two hours later, after watching mountains and plains and rivers and lakes go by in a blink - there it was, shining and glistening in the day sky, just as she had dreamt it would.

The great city of Zootopia - where anyone can be anything.

She always believed that.

When the train pulled into Grand Central Station, she - luggage in her paws, a grain on her face, and an urge to bounce up and down like a child - ran out the doors as they opened, and was immediately mesmerized by the complete diversity of everything, of everyone. Tigers, Giraffes, Hippos, Rats, Lemmings, Dogs and Wolves-...

The list went on and on and on, and kept going on as she walked through the place and saw everything as it truly was. Mammals were going to work, slurping down smoothies, relaxing on a bench or enjoying a meal. The station itself was a bustling mass of residents, up and down, left and right, tall and short.

But when she skipped her way out of that building, she took in even more of the vastness that was the city itself. The buildings soared into the sky, tall as could be. The mammals walked in all directions around her.

And all she could do was stand there, smile, and really appreciate it.

As she looked up at one of the tall, closer buildings, there stood a giant electronic billboard, almost as tall as the building itself. And as she stared at it, there was the image of the most famous mammal in all of Zootopia. And with that strong voice, she spoke to the masses.

"I'm Gazelle. Welcome to Zootopia."

If she truly wanted to, Judy would find herself back at this same spot, every single day, just to hear her say those words, over and over again, and every time, she would still be amazed and giddy whenever she'd see it.

But today, she didn't have that luxury for the moment.

For an hour, the young bunny found herself wandering the downtown area of the city. Tall, small, slim, and wide buildings surrounded her at every corner. An assortment of shops, restaurants, offices, hotels, apartments - whatever she could possibly think of, Zootopia had it all.

She wished, she really wished, that she could take one of the big, beautiful apartments she had always seen in the advertisements and in the papers. But she hardly had any money, a few belongings, and the clothes on her back.

If she wanted to get there, she had to start small.

And that meant buying one of the cheapest, smallest apartments she was able to afford.

It didn't take long to get to it, just a few blocks from the station. She merely wanted to get a good look of Zootopia for the very first time, in person.

When she arrived at her building, she was escorted to her apartment by the owner of the building - an old, but sweet looking armadillo named Martha. When they reached the apartment and opened it up, she was greeted with a small, but workable single room with everything she could need - a desk, a microwave, and a bed. There was even a door that led to her own little bathroom, as well as its own shower.

When Martha had given Judy her key, she instructed her, very clearly, "Don't lose your key."

Just moments later, she met her neighbors as they walked by.

At first glance, she assumed them to be an average gay couple.

Nope. They were brothers.

It's a good thing she never had the intention to tell them that.

The rest of the day went off without a single hitch. She took a walk around the neighborhood, had a decent meal, went home and listened to the radio before showering off and going to bed.

Come five-thirty in the morning, she wakes up, shows off in her new uniform - of course, to herself - and heads out the door. With enough time to kill, she calmly strolled herself along. When she first left, the city was only beginning to wake itself up, mammals few and far between. By the end of her walk, cars filled the roads, and the mammals filled the sidewalks.

As she walked on, she passed by an average-sized dog who had been listening to the radio with what appeared to be his friend. She stopped for a moment to listen in.

"-And in other news, you better hope you've gotten your flu shot. There's been news going about of a possible flu outbreak. Reports are coming in from a few nearby towns of mammals getting sick from what they're calling a strange virus. So, if you're not feeling well, head on home, sit on the couch, drink some soup, and watch some TV. At least, that's what I do when I get sick."

Another radio host, female, remarked, "That's definitely what he does, you guys."

The two laugh it off for a few moments. With a few chuckles, the first host continues.

"But to be serious, everybody, if you're feeling sick, go home and take care of yourself. Don't get your fellow workers sick, now."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

Another exchange of brief chuckles before they go back to discussing previous topics or the upcoming song, but Hopps didn't stay to listen. She continued on her walk. Several passersby also seemed to be enjoying the view or the cool air - or perhaps just things in general.

Soon enough, Judy stopped in front of her destination and paused. She got a good view of the building in front of her, in all its glory - The Zootopia Police Department.

She entered the building and met the officer at the front desk. Benjamin Clawhauser was his name - a cute-ish looking cheetah with a liking for donuts. Hopps saw him as slightly strange, but overall, he was generally nice. He pointed her to where she needed to be, thanked him, and she was on her way.

"That little bunny's gonna get eaten alive."

She heard it. She didn't scoff.

But she would prove him wrong. She knew that.

Later after that, Judy, out of all of the officers in that room, would be the only one assigned parking duty by her leader, Chief Marcus Bogo, highest in command at the ZPD. She didn't argue, but she had to point out that she wasn't "some token bunny."

But as he said - he didn't care.

One-hundred parking tickets before noon, he requested.

She would spend the rest of that morning doing two-hundred instead - including her own car.

Of course.

And that was when she met Nick. The first moment she saw him, he seemed...shifty, to say the least. He looked as if he was sneaking about, into this one ice-cream shop. She snuck right behind him.

When she entered, the owner was definitely having some sort of small scuffle with him - and the repellent was at the ready.

Then she saw his kid, and immediately felt bad. She heard that they only wanted a Jumbo Pop - one of the largest popsicles this side of the country. However, no matter what, the owner refused to serve neither the father or the kid.

And at some point, it turned into an argument between her and the owner himself.

When she mentioned the ungloved trunks, the health-code violations, and the warnings - she knew he had no choice but to give it to them. She ended up paying out of her own pocket, but it didn't matter to her. She was willing to help a troubled dad out to make his kid happy.

And that was enough to make her happy too.

...

Well, until she found out that the father wasn't actually a father - and that the kid was actually a man in his...what, forties?

She followed the duo around for a few hours, all across different parts of the city, from Savannah Central, to Sahara Square, to Tundratown. They must've gone to every part of Zootopia.

All that trouble just to make some small looking popsicles. They were named 'Pawpsicles', if the signs were any indication. Popsicles shaped like their paws, frozen from the cold, and sold to a bunch of parched little lemmings for what seemed to be a few bucks each.

When the two had departed, she confronted Nick.

And she tried, really tried, to tackle his own counter-arguments. But he had the documents, letters, parchments, whatever it was, for everything she argued against. She followed him for several minutes, and he would just keep on going, keep on talking.

But nonetheless - he was able to beat her at her game.

"Sly fox - dumb bunny."

"I'm not a dumb bunny," she remarked with a stern look.

"Right...and that's not wet cement."

She looked down, noticing that she was ankles deep in wet, freshly placed cement.

And the red fox just walked on by her.

"You'll never be a real cop."

Farther away, he continued to yell to her.

"You're a cute meter-maid though! Maybe even a supervisor one day! Hang in there!"

And like that, Nick was gone.

She didn't chase him anymore. She hopped up out of the cement, drove the car back to the ZPD, and took the train on home. When she entered her darkly lit apartment, she had this...feeling of...

Well...she didn't know what feeling it was. Depression? Emptiness?

Whatever the feeling had been, she wasn't as joyful in the evening as she was in the morning - she was all spry and happy and excited...but now, right now, that was all gone.

And the poorly timed songs on the radio weren't helping.

After her dinner had dried and shriveled up like a grape - she was out of options. Nothing to do, and all that the radio had been playing was nothing but sad, calm music.

Soon enough, she had decided that...maybe it was time to give her parents a call, maybe update them on how things were going.

Pulling out her phone, she looked over her contacts and saw her mom's number. She pressed it and selected 'video call'. The phone rang a few times before her mother picked up. Her face was in full view, seemingly excited to see her. At one point, even her father had joined in on the call. They started asking her about how the day was going, how the city was, how nice everybody was.

And, of course - she lied. It wasn't that she wanted to lie. The last thing she wanted was to lie to her family.

But she also didn't want them to see her as a failure, or that the real thing was truly too much.

So she lied, and they believed her. At first, nothing seemed all too bad.

Then they noticed her meter-maid outfit, and they began praising God, thanking him that "she's not a real cop."

A part of her wanted to hang up there and then. How could they say that? In front of their own daughter? The daughter who had been dreaming of this for fifteen years?

She stopped their celebration.

"You know what, it's really late. I should get some sleep."

"Of course, you rest up now, bun-bun," her mom said.

Her dad, however, butted in, "Those meters aren't gonna maid themselves!"

She wanted to roll her eyes, but didn't want to risk upsetting her dad. They started to say their goodbyes - but before they were able to hang up, Judy stopped them.

"Wait, wait. Do you think...I could talk to Jenny for a little bit? You know, just to see her?"

Her mother shook her head slightly in a somewhat upset manner.

"Jenny's sleeping right now, hon. Tsk, poor girl's been feeling sick lately."

Sick?

"What kind of sick?" she asked, remembering that radio news from earlier in the morning.

"Oh, it's that flu that's been going around lately, the one they've been reporting in the news in the past couple days?"

Her father added in, "Ugh, it's all over the place. They're saying a lot of the towns have got it the worst, mammals coughing and sneezing all over the place - it's a mess!"

"A lot of your brothers and sisters have got it too!"

Hopps was a little bit concerned. Why had she only now found out about this?

"Are they gonna be okay?"

Her mother smiled and laughed it off. "What do you mean? They're gonna be fine, bun-bun. They're saying it's not that bad, just a common flu. It'll pass over, trust me."

The father also gave a chuckle.

"Guess you got lucky too! From what they're saying, Zootopia's got the least amount of mammals getting sick! So you'll be just fine."

Judy gave off a smile. "Yeah - I hope."

With a happy-like sigh, her piped back up.

"Well, it's late. You really should get some sleep, honey. Another big day tomorrow, right?"

Judy slightly scrunched up her mouth into a small smile, and nodded her head.

"Yep. Maiding meters and...all that."

"Well, alright. Sleep well, okay? I love you, bun-bun."

Her mom and dad waved her goodnight, even blew her kisses.

"I love you guys too," she remarked, blowing her own kiss. "Good night."

With a press of a button, she ended the video chat and put her phone on her desk. For a moment, she stared at the wall, lost in brief thought. One part of her was glad that her parents cared about her, about her wellbeing. They seemed somewhat happy for her.

At the same time, they were happy for the wrong reasons.

She spent her whole life wanting to be a cop, to help others when they needed it, to do good in life.

She wanted to make the world a better place.

And her parents were glad that-...that she wasn't doing...any of that.

"She's not a real cop!"

That thought hung in her mind for a moment.

They were happy that she wasn't making the world a better place. Or, at least, that's what it sounded like.

She wanted to be upset, frustrated - hell, maybe even angry at her parents for thinking that, making her believe that they believed.

But at the same time-...she couldn't. They were her parents. How could she be mad at them?

And that flu, that sudden flu...Yesterday, she didn't even know that it was a thing or a common issue, and suddenly - it's all over the news, the internet, in several towns, several cities. And now some of her family's got it, all of a sudden?

Even Jenny?

"Hey rabbit!" her neighbor Bucky yelled through the wall. "Turn off that depressing music!"

Even as she did that, he and his brother argued back and forth about it for a moment or two, and all that she could do was promise herself-...

"Tomorrow's another day."

"Yeah, but it might be worse!"

And with what went on today and what she found out, they could very well be right about that.

That same night, the poor rabbit didn't sleep well. She laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling, with nothing but her stuffed animals to keep her company. Her mind was flooded with a plethora of thoughts, maybe even regrets. Of what she regretted, not even she knew.

Maybe it was leaving her family behind, maybe it was...leaving Jenny behind, or...

Well...she didn't know. It could've been anything.

All she could hope was that things got better.

But they didn't. In the morning, she woke up tired, exhausted. But she just went on about her day, on with the parking duty. Everything was the same, but her job suddenly felt less satisfying, less happy than it was yesterday. And the mammals calling her out or using typical sarcasm on her did her no favors.

The morning lingered on slowly, achingly slow - it was making Hopps actually lose confidence in herself, and the fact that nobody enjoyed what she did...the fact that she didn't enjoy what she did...

Was she cut out to be a real cop, or forced to just put tickets on cars all day long until somebody appreciated her work?

She asked herself this question all morning.

But it wasn't until she came across a weasel named Duke that she decided to ignore the question. She chased him several blocks through the city, even through Little Rodentia. Even as little rats panicked and ran along in circles, even as he tried to demolish their entire homes just to stop her, she kept on going.

Eventually, she was able to bring justice to the thief, even resorting to bringing him to the ZPD, trapped in a giant donut.

But even then, even after that effort to jail even one more criminal in the world - Bogo was not pleased, not even a little. Even as she tried to explain her true job, Marcus instead explained her actual job.

And even as Octavia Otterton walked into Bogo's room, begged for help - even just a little bit of help - to find her husband.

"Please...! There's gotta be someone to find my Emmitt!"

She had been begging for ten straight days, the same thing over and over again. At least, that's what Judy had overheard.

Hopps agreed to take the case - and like everything else, the moment Octavia stepped out the door, Marcus was insistent on firing the rabbit, kicking her out, and easing his own mind of her 'insubordinative tendencies'.

But due to Dawn Bellwether being there at the right time - he gave her another chance.

48 hours worth of a chance to redeem herself and find a loving father, reunite him with his family, truly be a cop.

But - on the condition...if she failed, she resigned and went back home.

What other choice did she have?

She took the deal, took the case, took the chance to really prove herself.

And once she had a proper lead - she knew just who to look to.

Wilde.

20 HOURS AGO

Today's gig was, more or less, a bit on the casual side of things. Sure, we had the customers, the resources, and the measures we always took - but things seemed much more...chill, as a way of putting it lightly.

We weren't as spunky or spry as every other day.

Well, I wasn't, at least. Honey had been in her usual go-to mood, but today was just one of the worst days to really cash in.

Maybe it was the emptiness of the place, or the amount of time it took to get everything that we needed.

Though, it could've also been the fact that I was wearing a jacket in Sahara Square.

I wore it with the idea that we were doing our business in Tundratown. Instead, Nick and Finn had decided to change it at the last minute while they were busy melting that giant-as-all-hell Jumbo Pop.

Jeez, I'd been living here for six years, and I never even saw a Jumbo Pop until today. I always thought they were like a popsicle, but...you know, slightly larger - not the size of an elephant's head.

Regardless, as they did so, they considered having us put up shop here. I did complain about that, mainly because of the heat, but they did mention raising prices because of said heat.

Still, I wish we could've done it in Tundratown.

After we froze the Pawpsicles there, they returned us to Sahara Square, and we were pretty quick in setting things up. It was only a matter of time before they were just a huge staining heap of sticky juice.

Luckily, setting up our shop didn't take as long as we thought, and we were able to sell a Pawpsicle for ten bucks each. There were a few complaints from some of the customers about it, but generally, the great number of them were fine with it.

As long as they could cool themselves down somehow at this temperature, they didn't care if it was fifty dollars.

But - we decided against that, no matter how tempting it was.

By four o'clock, we were done and paid well. We called Finnick, told him we were done, and we waited.

Though, that wait was spent inside.

In a cool shop.

Cool cool.

After twenty or so minutes, the van pulled up where our stand had been. We left the shop, whistled to him, and started putting our things inside the van. Lily, having already been picked up, helped us out with our things and making sure everything was in.

Once that was done and we shut the back doors, I noticed that Nick wasn't there.

"Where's Nick?" I asked.

"Walking home this time."

"Why?" Honey asked him. "What'd he do?"

Finn pointed to his forehead. When it came to that, it didn't take long for us to know what he was getting at.

"Pfft, again?" I asked him as I hopped into the passenger seat of the van and shut the door. "Surprised you haven't chewed him out yet."

"Hmph," he mumbled quietly. "I'll be doing some chewing, alright."

"I'd pay to see that," Lily remarked.

I gave out a little chuckle as Finn started driving forward. Along the way, I asked Finn how his and Nick's day was.

"Not too bad," he started. "Though, at first, we got into a bit of a hassle."

"As in...?"

"The guy was being stubborn. Wouldn't serve us, stereotyped us, and even tried to kick us out."

Finn gave out a little chuckle as he continued. "Heh, if I didn't know any better, I'd say he was that Jackson guy in an elephant costume."

I lifted my head from its resting position on my paw at the sound of that particular name.

"Jackson..."

That brought some memories back. None of them good - but kind of funny, in a strange way.

"Fuck...I haven't thought of him in years, at least not since what happened at Juicy's. I wonder how he's doing?"

Finn added, "Well, last I heard, he's still doing time."

"Think he's still mad at me? Well, rather, Alexander?"

Lily joined in on the chat.

"Well, Alexander did manage to shut down his business - so I'd say he's probably still pissed."

Another chuckle from Finn, he remarked, "I guess we'll find out in two years."

"Hmph, hopefully I'll be," I paused briefly as I raised my paws in quotes, "dead by then."

The young fennec turned to me in slight disbelief. "You really gonna go with that route? Faking your death?"

"Well, it's either that or I pretend to move out of the country. I mean, sure, the latter would work, but what'd be the chances he'd find me skulking around after I supposedly moved back to Kingdom Island or something?"

"That's what the fake IDs are for, right?"

I leaned my head towards the window. "Well, yeah, but...I don't know, if he found out I was still pulling the same little gimmicks that got his stupid shop shut down, what if...you know, tried to-"

"He wouldn't."

I raised an eyebrow as I looked towards him.

"Finn," I started, "he beat the shit out of me, gave me a black eye. I thought he even broke a couple ribs - thankfully, he didn't, but he tried to really hurt me because of it. Not to mention, he hurt Honey!"

I finished that sentence as I pointed to Honey, watching us semi-argue about the moose. She never said anything, just looked at me as I looked at her briefly.

At first, Finn said nothing, but soon enough, he spoke again.

"Trust me...if he really was that crazy, he'd have been in jail years ago. And I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be getting out for a while."

I hesitated. I looked to him, then looked forward, out the windshield and into the streets. I tried to think of my own response, but I could only get out some words.

"We-...I-I guess, but..."

Even then, I couldn't figure out what to say.

"Look-...kid. Don't worry about Jackson. He'll be in there for a little while longer. For right now, just take a deep breath, relax...don't get so tense. There's a million foxes in Zootopia who look just like you. He could walk up to any of them and do the same stupid thing."

He...had a bit of a point.

He stopped talking for a moment, focusing momentarily on his driving, before continuing on.

"If I had to guess how he knew it was you that day, it was what you said. The two of you," referring to Honey and I, "were both together, selling something with Sasha in it. Just a couple hours before that, he met similar looking mammals who were also happening to be looking for Sasha. Then he put two and two together."

"You both haven't done that many gigs together in the past couple years. I'd say there's a low chance he'd recognize you, even if you were together. And with five years gonna come and go-...that makes it even harder for him to realize."

That was another point. I did get a bit taller, my voice got somewhat deeper, and some of my fur even grayed a little - not from age, just general body change.

Honey looked more or less the same, but taller by a few inches.

Would that moose recognize us after all this time?

Would we even recognize him?

Finn spoke again.

"So just relax...okay?"

I was. I did feel a bit more relaxed than before. Even then, I still felt somewhat worried. Even if Jackson was still two years away, I always dreaded the day he would get out. I knew he likely had more of a grudge against interspecials than hustlers, but-...

But I still felt that I might've really fucked it up.

Nonetheless...

"Okay."

Finn was right. Even when I lied, he was still right.

I had plenty of time to think things over.

We got back to the docks within about fifteen minutes. Once we parked the van, we got out and put our things in the storage room, before heading to the living room area.

I immediately fell on the couch and let out a yawn, stretching out as far as I could go before curling up in a tired ball.

"Guess that heat took a lot out of you, didn't it?" Finn remarked with a slight smirk on his face.

I mumbled slightly, but spoke enough for him to understand.

"Tomorrow, I'm gonna do Tundratown. I suppose you don't have a problem with that after today?"

He shook his head. "Not at all."

When he walked into the kitchen, he added, "It was Nick's idea, anyway."

Sly fox.

More like a sly dick.

"Then he's doing Sahara tomorrow!" I yelled to him from the living room.

"No problem with that!"

I gave out a gentle laugh as I straightened myself on the couch. For a minute, I sat there, trying to compose myself, maybe catch my breath a little. Lily had gone to shower, and Honey was most likely in her little 'bunker'.

Well...it was a bunker, but nonetheless, she was definitely doing something down there. I'm guessing she was processing those pictures she took of those two sheep earlier today. I always wondered, "Why sheep?"

What made it so bad that she always thought, "Hey, one day, the sheep are going to take over the world and put us all into slavery!"?

My guess was some kind of childhood experience gone bad. Maybe she had a friend who betrayed her-...or for all I knew, she had a family member who died at the hands of a sheep.

I mean...sure, it'd be awful, but...that'd be too predictable.

I'd have to ask her sometime.

For the moment, I decided to simply relax - just like Finnick said.

I reached for the remote, held it in my paws, aimed it towards the television, and turned it on. For a good hour or more, I flicked through different channels. Many of them were the typical 'modern comedy' that wasn't really a comedy, just nothing but slapstick humor and constant laugh tracks over every word they said.

And yet, shows like 'Two and a Half Bears' were televisions #1 comedy!

And I'd scoff every time.

Eventually, I just settled for the news. I hardly liked the news, but it was always interesting to see what was going on in the world.

For a while, they talked about more local things, like today's soccer game, or the newest potential celebrity - typical media nonsense. But once they got into the world-wide side of things, then I started getting less bored.

The segments usually consisted of talking about Zootopia's president - that'd be the country's president, of course - discussing diplomatic relations with Yakistan's leader, or how the stock market did better or worse than yesterday or last week, or about the constant wars going on in the east, the same ones that had been happening for years and "how there's no end in sight for the violence."

In a not-trying-to-be-rude manner, wouldn't that be a good thing for networks like ZNN?

Regardless, these segments would go on for several minutes, before they switched to the next one or went to commercial.

However, it wasn't the wars or the stocks or even the president that piqued my interest.

It was the last segment of the hour.

"And in other news, it's been labelled as The Microscopic Boogeyman. Experts at the Disease Center in Buffalo City have been unable to confirm the origin of a mysterious virus that has broken out in remote areas across the country over the past few days."

Now, this should be interesting.

"A number of reports have claimed that the virus originated in multiple locations, many of those areas being farms, commonly in the crops. Other reports claim that the disease had been first reported in South Zootopia. It may never be known where exactly this virus had suddenly appeared - and while experts are saying for the moment that there is nothing to fear, they sit in worry.

"Dr. Madge Badger, working at the Zootopia Center of Medical Sciences, has studied the virus since its discovery just a couple days ago."

Footage of an interview of the supposed Dr. Madge - which, oddly enough, looked a lot like Honey, though clear enough of a difference - played on the screen, having been recorded only a few hours ago.

"The common aspect," she begins, "about most viruses today, commonly the typical flu viruses - is that they are highly mutable. They can be perfectly harmless one day, mutate, then become a deadly assassin the next day.

"That doesn't necessarily mean that this particular virus could become deadly. For the moment, it gives people chills and coughs, but that's it. But then it could mutate, and now they've got diarrhea or migraines.

"And, of course - despite it scaring others - it could also mutate and start to kill its hosts. Again, we don't know. Mutations, though highly frequent and predictable, are - at the same time - difficult to predict what mutation it could be."

The reporter in the recording asked her, "Do you believe it could mutate again soon?"

For a second, Madge hesitated, as if unsure what to say next; but soon enough, she answered his question.

"Well, we're very certain it will mutate again. The real question is 'when' and 'how'. Could it mutate to become more infectious, more contagious? Could it mutate to become deadlier? Or could it mutate and end up being completely harmless? For the moment, we don't know much. However, we will continue too monitor it to the best of our abilities, and we will be sure to keep the public informed if anything else occurs."

The recording of the interview ended after that, going back to the current reporter. He continued to speak.

"Dr. Madge has also stated, that if you or others begin to feel sick, head home immediately - be sure to lower the risk of spreading the sickness to others. The DC has also put up a current up-to-date list of symptoms that could indicate that you could be sick. It's up on our website, be sure to check it out, for your safety - and for others.

"Until then, this is Peter Moosebridge bidding Zootopia farewell until tomorrow. Have a good night."

And like that, the news hour was over. What came afterwards was an action-packed horror show, but I dismissed it and turned down the volume, not wanting to hear explosions and cheesy poor acting. The overly-flashing screen got to the point where I turned the television off altogether and just slouched down on the couch.

It was bad enough that I had to sit out in the desert sun for several hours and sell half-melted Pawpsicles with the risk of heat stroke - now we had a flu going around?

And according to those doctors, not just a flu - a flu with the risk of mutating into something bad?

Then again, the news always over-exaggerated things that weren't as serious as they 'proclaimed'. There was a drought in Paws Angeles a few years back - 2008, I think, and it wasn't even that bad, either - and the news jumped all over it, acting like it was the end of times, like the city was going to burn to the ground and all of its citizens were going to start killing each other for food and water.

Then literally a few months later, the problem was resolved and it was business as usual.

Then about a year after that, during flu season, mammals on Preddit were posting news articles about the Pig Flu that went around during the 2010-2011 season. The moment other mammals started getting sick, users were shouting and spamming, "The end is nigh! Repent to God!"

Blah, blah, blah - five years later, and we were still here, and so were they - posting 'apocalypse this' and 'conspiracy bullshit' that.

I bet this flu was getting the same exact treatment as every other one before it.

It'll get old - but, I had to admit - it was fun to watch idiots embarrass themselves about it.

But...at the same time, they were also getting to me. It was clear that one day, they'd finally be right, rub it in our faces, and-...

I stopped my whole goddamn train of thought right there.

I was putting way too much thought into this.

"I need a drink." I said it to myself, out loud, to nobody else.

Well, unless Honey was listening in on me again or something. Sheep things.

I walked into the kitchen, through the doorway. As I did, I happened to see Finnick sitting at the table, drinking what must've been coffee.

Or was it whiskey in a coffee cup? It was always back and forth with him and that.

As I opened up the fridge and took out one of the few sodas left, Finn looked towards me from the newspaper he had been reading. For a second, he said nothing, but when he did-...

"Thought you were Nick for a second."

With a sip, I turned to him, eyebrow raised. When I swallowed my bit of soda, I remarked:

"Didn't know I was red." I chuckled briefly. He laughed a bit too.

Our ears both perked up at the sound of the door opening up in the other room.

"Speak of the devil," I mumbled to myself.

What was the chance that would ever happen?

"Hello?" I heard the fox call from the lobby - well, lobby/living room mix.

"In here!" I hollered to him.

I heard the small, slow 'step-step' of his paws on the floor, then the carpet, then on the floor again - closer, this time - until he was standing in the doorway, wearing his seemingly signature green Swaylili shirt and tie. Ever since he got it two years ago, he'd worn it so many times in a single month.

It was the reason I started using the Alex fursona more often and openly.

"What took you so long?" I asked.

Speaking of long, what time was it, exactly? As he started talking, I briefly checked my phone to see that it was only a few minutes past seven. A lot later than I thought, jeez.

"Well, I would've gotten here sooner, but I got into a bit of an argument."

I tilted my head. "With...?"

I took another sip of my drink as he turned to Finnick.

"You remember that bunny cop that thought you were the cutest little thing ever?"

The small fennec snapped back. "You remember when I wasn't?" Then he immediately was the calmest as he could be. "But yeah, I do. What about?"

It was always interesting to see how he could go from looking like he's about to bite Nick's face of to-...

Wait.

"Wait," I stopped them both. "Did you say bunny cop?"

Nick turned back to me with an interested smile. "Yep. Officer Hopps, first rabbit cop in the world."

He gave a smug little chuckle as he added, "-Or should I say, 'first rabbit meter-maid'?"

Why did that sound familiar?

Oh. Oh!

"You're talking about Judy Hopps, right? Of the Bunnyburrow Hopps? Valedictorian of her ZPA class, that's the Officer Hopps you're talking about, right?"

Nick and Finnick looked at each other, somewhat bewildered - maybe a bit shocked? Maybe even a little uptight, at least...that's what it seemed like.

The red fox turned to me, holding up a single paw.

"Wait, wait. You're saying you know this rabbit?"

"Well...if it's the same one we're both talking about, then yeah. I know her."

With a questioning shrug, he asked how I did, how I could.

"Her and I used to go to high school together," I mentioned as I pointed both of my paws towards myself.

Nick tilted his head, somewhat in a mix of disbelief and surprise.

Finnick, however, wasn't.

"Sure you did," he said, almost in a sarcastic manner.

"No, it's true! We met during our Junior year and really hit it off. She always was talking about how she wanted to 'make the world a better place'-"

That seemed to get Nick's attention.

"So that's where you got that catchphrase?"

"Yeah. She said that all the time, whenever she could. Everything that she could talk about, it always even pointed to wanting to be a police officer. It was her favorite thing to talk about, nonstop."

A click came to my head.

"Hold on," I added, "I think I've still got a picture of her from our, uh-...Senior graduation."

As I take out my wallet and start digging through it, Nick asks me:

"Who keeps a picture of someone from high school in their wallet?"

Guiltily, I looked at him.

"I was a bit too poor to buy a yearbook. Ah!"

I grabbed the picture and showed it to him.

"She look familiar?"

Nick took only a few seconds worth to look at the picture before snapping his pads together.

"That's the one," he says.

"Really?" I said, my eyes slightly lit up in hopeful excitement.

I grinned when he nodded, and that grin did not leave my face for a bit. I put my soda on the counter and held the picture in both paws and looked down at it. It was a photo of Judy and I standing together, arms around each other's shoulders, smiling at the camera as the photo was taken. Two were actually taken that day, one by Judy's mother - Bonnie, was it?

And the other one, the one I always kept in my wallet...

Well, my mom was the one who took the photo. I could still remember that day - not as clearly as I wanted to, but enough to remember the sheer positivity of it all. That day, Judy was one of the few mammals who went up to the podium and gave a speech on...well, making the world a better place. A few students - and yes, these were high school students - still laughed quietly, thinking it was silly or ridiculous that her dream was to become a cop.

And I always thought, what was so wrong about that? In many ways, a bunny could be useful in the force.

Judy already showed it a multitude of times over her life - at least, from what she told me.

I always hoped she would make it big. And she did.

"Fuck," I suddenly said, "I'm proud of her."

"I can tell," Nick remarks as he sips on his coffee, "You've been ogling that picture for a solid minute."

Right after he said that, my grin faded. I wasn't sad or upset or angry at all - I was curious about something he said in particular.

"Did you say 'meter-maid'?"

He nodded with another sip. "Not the cop she was hoping to be, right?"

I put the photo back into my wallet and my wallet back into my pocket. As I grabbed my soda, I explained it.

"Well - that's usually what happens to animals who start off in the force. You don't get your first case right away. You work up to it. Easy stuff first, complicated stuff later."

"And if she doesn't get her case...?"

"She'll get a case," I say as I finish my soda and throw away the can. "She's just either gotta prove herself or just wait. They can't keep her a meter-maid forever."

Nick shrugged slightly with another sip of coffee. After another minute, we ended the topic of Judy - even though she was on my mind for the rest of the night - and went on to other things.

Finnick spoke out.

"You hear about that flu going on?"

The red fox shook his head, then asked, "What flu?"

"It's some kind of virus that popped up a few days ago. It's been all over the news lately."

"Really? What kind? Pig Flu? Bird Flu?"

I said with a slight shake of my head and some movement of my paw, "They don't know. The-...scientists are saying this is a completely new thing going on."

"Oh," Nick said with a hint of worry in his voice and on his face, but more of curiosity and interest.

"They said it's not dangerous, but they'll let us know if any more goes on."

Finn looked up from his paper. "Where'd you find that out?"

I pointed to the living room with a thumb and remarked, "They had a five minute segment about it on TV. They interviewed a doctor who said it was harmless for the moment, but could mutate if it wanted to."

"Would a mutation be bad?" Nick asked.

"It depends. A number of things, really," I added.

"That's what they always say...like anything bad's gonna come of it," Finn added to the conversation.

Nick turned to him. "What makes you think that?"

Finn put his paper down and tilted his head while looking up at the ceiling, almost in a sarcastic manner.

Of course, that's what it was.

"Hmm...how about every outbreak since 2000? They always hype those kinds of things and convince animals it's gonna get bad and we're all gonna die. Then a celebrity has a baby and everyone forgets about the damn thing. Nothing ever comes of it, but every year, mammals are telling us to repent and say goodbye. And guess what? Nothing happens.

"Sure, a few mammals here and there die - it sucks. But they're acting like everyone's gonna die."

He did have a point...basically, what I was thinking.

Though, I was curious and asked, "But aren't you a little worried about how fast this one's spreading?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well - they said it appeared just a few days ago, and it's already in-...several towns and villages. They're saying some of the cities have got it too, but-...you know, not as bad, just a few cases here and there."

Finnick looked back to his paper with an eyebrow raised in a way that said, Hmm, interesting.

"Well," he finished, "I guess we'll see then. Maybe this'll be the year when they actually start spewing accurate bullshit."

The three of us chuckled for a moment. We stopped talking about the flu and started discussing...well, anything, really - just whatever didn't seem depressing or annoying to hear about. Lily came in after a few more minutes wearing different clothes and smelling...fresher. She always smelled nice regardless.

We all discussed random topics to keep things or spirits up. When it got late, we decided to order a pizza with extra cheese and just watch something in the living room. Honey came downstairs after a while - surprisingly, not in her bunker - and joined us.

"So," Nick started, "What do you guys wanna watch?"

"How about Battleground?" Lily suggested. "I've always wanted to watch that. Sounds like it'd be a cool war movie."

"Not even close, hon," Finnick responded, "It's just another cheesy romance about a love triangle."

Did he call her 'hon'?

"Seriously?" she remarked, somewhat upset. "Why the hell would they call a romantic film Battleground? Makes no sense!"

I spoke up.

"Surprisingly - it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. Though, it's still pretty shit. Not to mention...misleading."

"Honey, what about you?" Nick pointed the remote to the honey badger.

"Hmm-...how about The Savage? I heard it's a pretty good film."

"Isn't that the film about Jack Savage?" he replies. "You know, that undercover agent that-...like...kicks ass and...uh...

"Okay, I've never seen the film, but apparently, it's a bunny who kicks a lot of ass."

Honey shrugs. "That's pretty much it."

Nick gives a smirk and a chuckle. "Well - my kind of film."

The fox turns to the television and turns it on. It was still tuned to the same news channel from before, only now showing the ten o'clock news, mid sentence.

ONE MAULED, TWO DEAD, it said.

It was when I saw the word MAULED that I told them to wait a minute.

"In recent news tonight - what was supposed to be a routine police call turned into a violent attack, which ended in two dead. A small neighborhood in the district of Hooflyn was stricken with shock and horror tonight, as a male - a polar bear - seemingly mauled his own wife to death. When police arrived at the scene, the man was seen eating his wife's stomach, and even attempted to attack officers, before being shot and killed."

"My god," Lily spoke up, "Why would you wanna hear about this?"

I held a paw up, gently.

"Officers then see the wife stand up from the floor and also attempt to attack officers, forcing them to open fire. Both were confirmed to be killed on the scene. Officers have reason to believe that some form of psychedelic drug could be the cause. Friends of the late wife have also claimed that she had called them and told them that the man had already been dead - just only minutes prior to the attacks. Investigations are pending-"

Finn talked over it. "What does that even mean? What, he was already dead before all that?"

Honey added to the conversation with a shake of her head. "It's probably some dumb Halloween prank by some kids. Someone did that for last year, scared a whole town. Makes it worse that he only got community service, but hey-...at least he got punished."

I looked to her.

"But it's May."

A bit of silence, with the TV playing in the background.

"Oh."

She tilted her head with a suggestion. "Maybe it's some kind of advertisement for a new horror show or something?"

Nick looked at the television with a curious but unamused face, with the remote still in his hands.

"Nope," he says, "It's definitely the news channel."

I suggested, "They did do something like that a few years ago. Somebody paid a news channel to fake a broadcast that something bad was going on. Then at the very end, they showed it was just an ad. A cool ad, by the way, but-...yeah."

With a sigh, Nick replied, "Well, they're talking about soccer now, so it's definitely not an ad."

Lily simply said, "Could be drugs. At least, that's what they said."

"...Yeah," I almost mumbled.

For a second, it got quiet again as we didn't talk. Nick decided halfway through the silence to start flipping channels in hopes of breaking the awkwardness.

Then the door bell rang, which further helped. Honey walked into the hallway to the other entrance door, exchanged words with somebody, and came back with two boxes in her hands.

"Pizza's here," she says almost casually as she placed the boxes on the table.

The rest of the evening was spent trying to draw ourselves away from the thought of the news report and onto less awkward things.

Such as the pizza being goddamn delicious. Or the movies that were playing at the moment being either really cheesy or really good.

By the time we were all ready for bed, it was back to normal. No more awkwardness, no more worry - if there ever was. By midnight, we turned off the television and downstairs lights and all headed to our respective rooms.

"Don't forget your alarms, got it?" Finnick said to Lily. The otter had forgotten to set them in recent days, hoping our alarms would be just as helpful.

They didn't, but she still tried.

"Alright, alright," Lily said as she headed back. "'Night."

We all began to exchange our goodnights back and forth as we all closed our doors behind us and got ready for sleep.

But before I did, I stopped Honey.

"Hey, Honey?" I said to her.

She poked her head through the doorway. "Yeah?"

This was on my mind for the past few hours, so I had to ask her:

"Do you happen to have a sister, by any chance?"

With a tilt of her head, she replied, "Yeah, an older sister, Madge. Why?"

Of course.

"I-...saw her on the news today."

"Really?" her eyes opened a bit with surprise. "What about?"

I hardly lifted my paw and tilted my head. "The flu, that's all."

She clicked her mouth. "Oh."

A nod and a grin from me. "Yeah."

We smiled back to each other. It was silent, except for whatever noise rang in the other rooms. It stayed like that for a few moments. It was never too awkward whenever we talked - guess it just depended on the setting, that's all.

"Well, goodnight!" Honey said as she headed back into her room.

"Night," I said back and went in just as quick.

Well - sometimes, things were awkward. This was only awkward because...

What kind of conversations could you really have in the hallway? And at midnight?

With it over with, I grabbed my money from my pocket and headed on over to the closet. When I opened it up - I was greeted with four bags.

All of them were filled with money.

About five million dollars, give or take.

I was a millionaire.

Still couldn't believe it, and I probably never will.

I opened up the least full bag, tossed the wad in, and closed it, before shutting the closet once more. I took off my jacket and got myself out of my shirt and pants, until I was wearing nothing but boxers.

Something about sleeping in just boxers was so...freeing, in a strange way.

Or maybe it was the fact that my fur just felt so much better when not all bundled up in clothes.

With a gentle hop, I climbed into bed and took a deep breath. I stretched and let out a yawn. It was obvious I was tired, and laying on a bed only helped it along.

As I laid in bed for several minutes, my mind - as usual - played over the day like a record. How it went, how it could've gone, what should've happened and really happened, how Nick could've gotten arrested and yet, he didn't-...

Hmm...

I couldn't stop thinking about it.

Judy made it.

She really did it. She finally did it.

She became a cop.

It was hard not to be proud. So many animals, even her own family, put her down-...because they didn't think bunnies could be cops. There were times where I felt like I was the only animal she knew that actually thought she could do it. I never gave up on that belief.

And now it's been six years.

Now she's here, in Zootopia, living her dream.

Sure, it isn't what she wanted right away - but I know she's patient enough to wait for that day.

I just hope I'll be able to see that day come and maybe-...

...

Oh.

Oh shit.

...

I'm friends with a goddamn cop.

I know the ending might be cheesy or seem rushed. It was 4 in the morning when I finished it. Literature! :D

The news reports of 'maulings' will be rare for several chapter. It won't be until around a week into the story-line, around the time of the peace rally, that these attacks will start to become common. That's when things are kicked into hyper gear.

When the next chapter will be, I'm not sure. :D