A/N: If you're reading this right now I want to thank you for giving this story a chance. I'll try not to disappoint you. I've always had stories to tell but am horrible at getting them out, and this here is more or less my first successful attempt at telling a full length story.

I want everyone to know that this story is gonna be full length, and full of far more than Adventure and as the categories have listed it. Kinda stinks you can only have two categories…

For any returning readers, you should notice there are some major changes and just everyone should know in general that I now have an editor! If he had any stories I would demand go check them out because he is a phenomenal editor and I can't thank the guy enough. He and I have put countless hours into fixing the mess that is my writing. On the previous version of this chapter, it took us around 8 hours to fix everything!

So all in all, if you like this story, aim a TON of thanks to my editor uomoape! And welcome to my story. I hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Zootopia, only this story and the original characters I have created for it.

The Faded Line

Chapter 1: Welcome To The Jungle

Zootopia isn't the most densely populated city in the world, but more times than not there would be at least some mammals around.

With the twelve different ecosystems and districts to accommodate for the vast variety in animal species, it can be expected that someone is always going to be enjoying themselves not far from where you are.

BUT

This time, it could truly be said they were out in the middle of nowhere. Far into the mountains located in the Rainforest district, what mammals generally refer to as 'out of town.' If anyone would head out there, it's usually to visit the Cliffside Hospital. So, sure there were mammals a few miles away, but from here to there? No, not really.

So it's only natural that one would question why there was a group of mammals in the middle of nowhere.

Well to start answering that, the scraggly looking fox leading the group is Nick Wilde. Not your average mammal by any means. Normally it could be expected of him to be conning animals out of their money, but considering there was no one around, probably wasn't the case this time. No, this time he was doing something rather out of character. He was fighting for a cause. A cause that will help all predators in Zootopia… Eventually… Maybe... That was the plan, anyway. However, months after he joined the group, no change was achieved. The only thing that changed was his opinion of his comrades and their idea of 'predatory rights' and how to fight for them. Thus, the seed of doubt was planted in his head about this whole mess.

What he did not question however, was how he felt about the treatment of predators in the city of Zootopia. Where the slogan "anyone can be anything" was both accurate, and yet the farthest thing from it. Accurate for prey perhaps, not predators.

Not since the TAME system was introduced. For the peace of mind of all prey, predators were required to wear a shock collar once they reach a certain age or stage of physical development, whichever comes first.

It makes sense that prey would be cautious of predators given their nature and the instincts imbedded in everyone, but for them to oppress more than 10% of the population which is around several million... There's no good reason for that. Not even the occasional nutjob is enough to warrant such a treatment.

And yet, there's still an absurd level of fear gripping Zootopia. Even with the collars on all the predators, the city was in a constant state of paranoia. Paranoia is basically fear under the skin, and fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and that leads to even further oppression. As if there wasn't enough of that already.

To add insult to injury, having collars made it very difficult for predators to find a decent job, which has led to poverty rates skyrocketing. Because of all this, prey now commonly view themselves as superior. They have treated some predators, for example a young red fox who was just trying to join a cub scouts pack, as nothing more than a pelt.

Stuck up snobs...

Certain animals will even go so far as to purposefully irritate predators so the shock collars will go off, sometimes even physically assaulting them. And of course said predators couldn't fight back else they would get shocked more. Cause how dare they actually defend themselves from the prey. Or is it the predator now...?

So naturally there were activist groups attempting to fight for the return of rights for all predators and the removal of shock collars. Some groups tried to go political, only to quickly get shut down by the vast majority of voters. Others have gone criminal only to get shut down even faster by the ZPD. And then along came this one.

Nick wasn't sure where to categorize these fellows. And that thought alone helped convince him to join their cause. They weren't like the others, so maybe they had a chance. Before they appeared in his life, the fox had convinced himself that he was perfectly happy making an ok living off of all those judgmental prey with his tricks and cons. Then some shady looking preds approached him after observing a successful con and brought up the common fantasy of life without the collars.

As an adult mammal of 33 years old, and wearing a collar for almost two decades, he wasn't new to this prospect. He would've had an argument with them over the futility of their effort, and how no other activist group managed to even come close to such a feat, only to find a bag on his head as they drove him somewhere. Nick must have somehow lost consciousness, because when he awoke he was in a warehouse and NOT wearing his collar.

And for the first time in a long time, Nick felt free. Free to laugh, free to run around screaming with joy like a kit on Christmas morning, and free to feel powerful emotions. And so, he smiled the most genuine smile he had for as far back as he could remember.

And then it came back on with a resolute CLICK and an uncomfortable tightness around his neck.

A second later he heard and felt the collar charging its electric shock against his neck. His fur and tail bristled in response and he fell back into a familiar state of dreariness, one that accompanied him for two decades.

Of course he wanted more of that delicious freedom, every sane mammal would, but that meant he had to join a cause. Something Nick was not much for after... That one incident. He was about to walk away from them and their hopeless cause when someone he hadn't heard or seen before materialized to his side.

Nick couldn't see much of him as he was wearing baggy pants like him and a sweater with the hood on, but he was a red fox. Just like him. And man, did he have a similar story. Except he wasn't one to give up so easily, and that made him think. Maybe Nick could be more like him, maybe this wasn't just another sinking ship fighting against a hurricane out on the ocean... With a broken mast... And a limited crew. Maybe they'd actually do some good.

Maybe...

So he joined them, and for a time everything was well. They didn't make any colossal breakthrough, but they were gaining a massive following, and that motivated them enough. A few things have happened in the following months that have made him doubt his decision though, like the incident with the otter a month ago. 'Whatever, I'll figure it out soon enough' he told himself, trying to remain the most positive he could. Perhaps he still hadn't seen an accurate representation of them yet.

Not that Nick could fairly judge them considering his own way of making a living, but almost all of the mammals that he's encountered in this little group have seemed too shady for even his liking. Like that polar bear with a Russian accent who always looked far too murderous for Nick to be comfortable around. Or that deranged raccoon with a serious mental health problem centered around stealing and pickpocketing.

And then there's... well Nick didn't know what to call him to be fair. But the other fox. Nick had yet to really work with the guy as he was unsurprisingly the coordinator and therefore worked behind the scenes. In the time Nick had interacted with the other fox, he seemed a ton like him. Witty, sly, clever... Nick really just wasn't sure what to think in general of these guys. There's bad and there's worse.

What of course compelled Nick to stay with them was the promise of more freedom from the collar. Especially the curious fact that the other foxes' was broken or something. He only wore it while in public and the little light didn't even flash anymore.

It's not like the things were hard to remove. They were rather simple devices really. And in all honesty they were designed to be comfortable. That was the one and only adjustment activist groups were able to achieve before getting unceremoniously shoved back under the societal rug.

The reason it wasn't a good idea to remove them is that they must had had some sort of sensor in them that alerts some building in some place, somewhere. Then they'd send some enforcement agents to capture them and bring them to a sort of jail. And they always found them somehow. They would be seen again though, usually a little worse for wear, but unharmed and with a new collar on them.

'Stop reminiscing and focus Wilde,' Nick chastised himself. He was getting lost in his thoughts, and he couldn't afford that, since even the smallest detail could give him away. Like that stupid blinky green light on his collar, it would be a dead giveaway that someone was lurking around the shadows. Like a fox during the night for an example. So for the mission he, and the others he was with, put little covers on the stupid light.

The target was the building ahead of them that was surrounded by a chain link fence. An ex-military one apparently, like some old technology testing facility or some such. Whatever it was, it once had a large enough need for secrecy that it was built way out here in no-mammals land. The building looked like it was forcefully placed here as all the surrounding wildlife was trying to take back its property. All the vines, branches, and plant life was only trimmed back a few feet from the fence line.

Nick's group, which comprised of two wolves and himself, were told a specific reason as to why they were here, but he knew it was a lie. He himself is a liar. When you know how to get away with a lie, you know how to detect one. A fox couldn't fool another fox...but he could fool the dumb dumbs next to him...

Who wouldn't. Stop. TALKING!

Stupid timber wolves... Nick never was fond of them. He was lucky they didn't start howling for no good reason, but apparently, it being a full moon tonight IS a great reason. Hence the debating, since they weren't so dumb as to think it'd be a good idea, but were considering it nonetheless.

Currently they were just waiting in the dense foliage of the jungle until the shift changed. Then the plan was that Nick would sneak in through a backdoor that an inside source would leave open for him, while the two timber wolves would... do... something he hadn't been told. Compartmentalization so said ol' what's-his-face.

Speaking of him again, Nick really didn't-

His thoughts were interrupted when he noticed two guards leaving through the front door, greeting the replacements as they leisurely walked in. Idly chatting about how boring the place was no doubt. Nick couldn't say he was impressed with how little effort the guards were putting into doing their job.

The guards walking the outer perimeter, who also happened to be timber wolves, were so nonchalant about their duty they might as well had their phones out. Slooowwllly walking down the fence line, looking around once in a blue moon, and then returning to their slouched composure. Nick was confident enough in his stealth abilities, even when the guards would actually do their job. This would be like stealing carrots from a dumb bunny.

Alright. Time to go.

"Hey, ding dong's." Nick hissed over to his right. Both wolves immediately snapped their attention to the fox, ears perked straight up and eyes wide open. "Let's move."

Without another word the three left their hiding spots and Nick ran down the fence line to a point where he noticed none of the patrols were really going: the corner of the perimeter. It was too far for the lazy bums no doubt. Looking up at the fence he noticed that the top had several strings of barb wire. Guess he was going under.

As he started digging under the fence just enough so that he could slip underneath it, he smirked at the stereotype he was sort-of-but-not-really fulfilling. A canine digging under a fence to get out, or get in this time... He wasn't a dog, he was in the canine family yes, but...anyways.

After he wiggled himself through the shrewdly created limited space, he looked around to make sure neither guard was nearby, then bolted the rest of the way to the building.

Nick pressed himself against the wall, and started to worry about how exactly he was getting into the building. The fact that this was once a military compound continued to baffle him. Not only were there no lights around the building, shouldn't there be...

That's when he looked up and nearly jumped out of his fur as he noticed a camera a few stories above, looking right at him. His heart started thumping wildly in his chest, he could practically hear it in his ears. He tensed up and closed his eyes, preparing for the deafening alarm that was sure to go off any second. Hopefully the collar wouldn't go off. It was gonna get really loud, really soon...

Any second now...

But it never came. Nick squinted his eyes open and looked at the camera again. It was still staring at him. So, clearly they saw him... but no alarm.

Perhaps the inside source was the surveillance guy? 'Is hustling mammals just an ability all foxes have or something?' Nick wondered.

Refocusing on the task at hand, Nick unstuck himself from the wall and began creeping his way around the back of the building, keeping an unsteady eye on the cameras perched up high.

As he approached the destination, he heard voices approaching from around the building so he pressed himself against the wall once more. 'WhatdoIdowhatdoIdo?'

His heart started to pound again and even though he couldn't see it, he was sure the shock collar was flashing its yellow warning light. 'Should I run? Fight them? I was never good at fighting. Hustle them?... Possibly.'

The voices were getting louder and he could almost start making out what they were saying. He started preparing himself to talk his way through when-

"Oh, Mack, hold on." A deep husky voice said. "The Watcher just said there are some timberwolves at the front gate causing a scene. Said we should try talking to them. He'll open the back door for us to cut through."

Nick let out the breath he didn't know he was even holding. The Watcher must be their surveillance operator who was on their side. How convenient. Snapping out of his thoughts, he decided that the backdoor would be his way in. Figuring it wouldn't be open for long, Nick swung around the corner and kept low to the ground. Peeking around the corner, he scanned the area looking for the door, and noticed an opening in the wall 20 meters to the left where a large garage door resided, probably large enough to fit two medium size cars side by side. And lo and behold it didn't shut all the way, leaving about a foot gap, plenty enough space for Nick to get through.

As he slipped inside, the fox was met with near pitch black darkness apart from the small sliver of light coming through the opening. It took a few moments for his eyes to adjust even with his natural night vision, and when they did, he couldn't believe what he was looking at. He was in a bloody room of requirement! He had been told it was going to be like a garage but not like this!

Nick sagged his shoulders and neck and groaned at whatever powers are above this world. Nothing in his life was ever easy.

This was a bloody storage room and he was sent to find a needle in this damn haystack. He hardly even knew what he was looking for. No scratch that. He didn't know at all. Apparently it was to be left out for him to find it. Thanks for the specificity buster! Whatever the thing was, it had better be worth it.

There were piles and mountains of miscellaneous junk everywhere in this place. There were more crates than anything else but there were also old antique cars, tools, signs, pieces of art, an old rusty incomplete set of armor. An awful lot of this stuff looked like it belonged in a museum, not some old military facility. What the hell was he looking for?

He tried to spot anything that was obviously left out for him to take as he walked down the crudely carved out paths in the mess. As the minutes ticked by, Nick started walking faster and faster. He might not have much time. With the pressure growing on him, the fox became quite frustrated, quietly growling at the ridiculousness of this task.

The place wasn't too big, a bit larger than a standard football field. But when filled to the brink with piles of junk that reached the height of an elephant, it suddenly seemed A LOT bigger. Nick's fur and hackles were rising from how frustrated he was becoming as more time passed. Couldn't they have made this easier!?

He wasn't on a strict time limit but he needed to hurry up and find it before-

CLANK! Flip. Buz buzz buuzzz.

Before that. The guards from before returned and turned on all the lights. Nick slammed his eyes shut from the sharp change in brightness. Being a fox and an animal with night vision, his eyes were a bit more sensitive to strong lights than others. That's gonna cause a headache, he thought. Where were his sunglasses when he needed them? Who woulda thunk that he'd need them during a nighttime operation?

Nick opened his eyes the tiniest amount so he could move around. With his vision still distorted, he crouched down and tried to orient himself so he could determine where the exit was. Considering he was in the middle of a storage room that looked like a hurricane had blown through it, there was really no reason to be nervous. There was no way those dumb dumbs would notice him. NO way at all.

But just in case he turned a wrong corner or they came across him, Nick got up and slowly started moving. The paths through the junk weren't straight and organized like streets, they curved and split off and it was just a general maze. Nick was doing his best to stay out of their way while also heading back to the door when-

"Wait, Gary, hold on… You smell that?" Scat. They smelled him. Shoulda thought of that. Welp, time to abandon ship.

Feeling a surge of adrenaline, he was about to bolt for it when he heard a loud TING followed by a yell. Then some more grunts and sounds of a fight taking place along with a lot of yells. A few moments later, moments that felt like ages with the adrenaline, it calmed down.

Once he was sure it was over, Nick started creeping his way through the maze once more. He nearly jumped out of his fur when he quite literally ran into another mammal. It was another red fox. No, not just another red fox, it was him, the cute little groups' leader.

Who wasn't really the easiest fellow to recognize considering he was, and has always been, wearing a dark grey sweater with the hood on. But as far as Nick has ever been able to tell this fox's fur was a bit redder than his own. His snout longer and pointier if that was possible to imagine. The most recognizable of his features though were his blood red eyes. Foxes didn't usually have red eyes; he'd only ever seen a weasel with that color. All in all he looked much more predatory than Nick.

While Nick fought to compose himself, the other fox just stood there, glaring at him. "And what are you doing here?" Nick breathlessly said, then took notice of the metal bat in the fox's right paw. It even had a little blood on it...

"Saving your sorry tail. I heard from The Watcher you couldn't find your IOI. Let's move before more guards show up." The other fox gruffly said as he walked away and quickly out of sight.

"Eye oh eye? What a cute military like codename there Red. Care to speak in english?"

"Item of Interest!" He called out from somewhere in particular. Sound bounced off of everything in here, it'd be impossible to location someone with hearing alone.

Instead of following him, Nick curiously searched for what happened to the guards. Not too far away he found them. They weren't dead, or at least he didn't think so, but they didn't look good. One of them was a cougar. Completely sprawled out on the floor, face down and a little bit of blood on the back of his head, clearly showing up with his beige fur. 'A stealth knockout', Nick surmised.

The other was a coyote. He was mostly hoisted up onto a nearby box, hind paws just barely above the ground, snout facing to the side. As Nick got a closer look at him, he saw that this guard clearly put up a fight after his partner went down. His face was bruised, probably a black eye forming and perhaps some damage to his snout as there was a little blood trickling out. And that was just his face; his torso could be rather battered too for all Nick knew. He was no doctor.

While his ally did just save him, Nick couldn't help but feel some remorse and even anger that there had to be some collateral damage. Their mission was to help all predators overcome the weight that society has put on all of them. Just like everyone else, these guys were wearing shock collars as well. Which no doubt really put them at a disadvantage against their attacker.

"We are all on the same team here," the other fox had once told him. Nick scoffed at the thought. Sure didn't seem that way. While this was the first time Nick had personally witnessed any casualties, there was another mission about a month ago, Nick's first big one to be exact. The mission was to capture and interrogate an otter when some members found out that he wasn't supportive of them and was instead more on the side of prey.

Nick himself didn't capture the poor mammal but he helped orchestrate the operation by learning the schedules of the shop, getting to know him as he knew everybody, and had gotten in at the last minute it was open. After he had been taken, Nick took some time to observe the cute little flower shop, it was nothing too special. What bothered him was the picture of the otter and his family behind the counter. All dressed in knitted sweaters, one of the two kids holding a soccer ball and all smiling warmly at the camera... One happy family. They all just looked so...friendly. So peaceful. Even with the collars on them. They didn't need help. And Nick's new group of friends were a far cry from helping them.

But at the time Nick brushed it aside, giving them the benefit of the doubt that they'd have better intentions for everyone in the future.

The other fox suddenly appeared in front of him and in his right paw was a large black cauldron. "How exactly did you not find this? It was RIGHT by the door like it should have been."

Of course it was. Since there was no other obvious place to put it in a room like this, put it right by the door. Nick was about to berate himself for being so stupid when a realization dawned on him. "Wait is that what we came here for? A frickin' POT?!"

"Yup." The other fox said, holding it up and smiling broadly at it like a child who just found a new toy. "Isn't it beautiful?"

All this trouble for something you could get at a Targoat!? Nick gritted his teeth and reached his paws forward and imagined himself strangling the life out of the other fox. Said fox didn't even notice. "Alright," he said, looking back just as Nick tried to look normal. "Let's go then."

The two foxes ran down the heinously cluttered paths, dodging and weaving their way through what felt like a junkyard obstacle course. Making their way through the mess via their own respective paths, Nick felt like a rivalry was forming and did his best to stay ahead. The other fox seemed to have similar thoughts and purposefully jumped into Nick's path so he couldn't get ahead. Shortly after, an old car that was hoisted a foot or two above the ground came into their path and instead of going around it, the other fox used his momentum to slide under it.

Nick was about to do the same thing when-

ZZZTT!"Gah!" Nick yelled out as the shock collar activated and delivered a shock to his neck. The little competition between the two had caused Nick to forget to monitor his heartbeat. Rut this thing! Nick mentally screamed.

Unfortunately because of the pain, his eyes instinctively closed shut and the fox tripped over his own paws, causing Nick to NOT slide under the obstacle and instead faceplant into the metallic husk.

...Rut this thing too. Nick groggily thought after a moment when he may or may not have seen stars.

For a moment or two Nick just leaned against the car in defeat. He'd catch up to the other fox later... but he did need to go. Trying to compose himself he detached his flattened face from the car... and just about fell over in the process.

"Mind the car!" The other fox called back, amusement evident in his voice. He must've heard the resonant THUD when Nick hit the damned thing. "And the laser trip wire by the door. It reactivated since you took so long."

Nick sniffed resolutely and put a paw to his aching face. After he reminded himself once more he needed to get going, he slowly ducked under the car while giving it a glare for good measure and stumbled the rest of the way to the exit.

Since the lights were now on, it was obvious where the trip wire was coming from and Nick was about to step over it and get out of there when something stopped him.

His conscious.

Nick grumbled at that revelation. Since when did he have a problem with anything morally questionable? He's been conning mammals out of their money for years and has never felt more than a little tinge of guilt. So what was it? Just that those were predators back there and he had promised he'd do all he can to help all predators alike? Was it the added frustration that it was all for nothing? All they came for was just a frickin' pot!

...or was it just the way his face ached and tingled from just a smack, and he figured those guys back there were in a far worse condition right now?

He looked back towards the direction of the downed predators. Both might be in need of medical help... Making up his mind, he accidentally swept his foot through the laser that was right before the exit.

Immediately the alarm went off and red lights started flashing inside the room. RANG! RANG! RANG! RANG!

Cringing at the sheer volume of the siren and pressing his ears down to his skull, he almost didn't notice the garage door beginning to shut. Reacting quickly he log rolled under it and continued running towards the fence and the dense jungle. Before he managed to reach the fence, the other fox appeared by his side and demanded, "What happened?! I told you to watch out for the-"

"Something else must have set it off!"

"Well then what took you so long?"

"What, you don't trust me?" Nick asked while placing a paw over his heart, "I'm hurt buddy. I was just taking my time stepping over it so I wouldn't set it off."

The other fox just rolled his eyes at Nick's antics and replied in a lower voice than usual. "Fine, but I'm not your buddy, friend."

"And I'm not your friend, pal." Nick said with just as low of a voice.

Even with the alarm going off in the background and the urgent need to get out of there, for a moment the two of them stopped and just stared at each other, neither backing down. Then they both smirked, though for their own different reasons.

Without another word between them they both took off towards the outer perimeter of the grounds and to relative safety. In the distance Nick could see their fellow agents also retreating from the front gate, after the guards ran back inside the compound to investigate the alarm.

Mission successful… 'But did it matter? All we got was a piece of junk. Is this worth fighting for? Did I do the right thing?'Nick's mind was flooded with these questions as he ran. He wasn't sure he liked having a conscious. Best get rid of it.

The two foxes made their way back via the interconnected trains to the Savannah district, which they needed to traverse to reach their destination. Happytown. The sardonically named section of the city that is largely inhabited by the further repressed predators of society.

Each time Nick had a meeting or a call to action with these guys, they'd meet at a different location and time. One time they all met in a predator friendly park in the middle of the day. Families walked around, mammals were running and the sun was shining. None of the predators gave them a second thought. But of course every prey gave them the stink eye for being in a group out in a socializing location. Because how dare they.

After going down and out an alley the foxes came to a stop in front of an old worn down warehouse. On the front wall above the large dual doors was a rusted sign with faded paint that once no doubt held the title of the place. The walls had paint peeling off them and rust forming in its place. Many of the windows on the front and the side were broken and if they weren't, they had dirt or mold covering the majority of its surface. Given that they were pretty close to the bay now, the area had a distinct rotting wood smell.

"Lovely place..." Nick mumbled, giving it a look over.

The fox next to him sent him a sideways glance and then grunted as he slid one of the wooden doors over so they could enter. Once Nick was inside he turned back to see the fox closing it behind them.

Inside was a sparse collection of wooden crates that had been sitting in the damp climate for far too long, and right in the center of the room was a big and rusty cradle, large enough to fit a small fishing boat. The ceiling was pretty high above them and Nick had to wonder if the second floor just had more crates in it. Considering how dilapidated this place was, Nick was slightly curious why they were still so many wooden crates. Maybe they acted as shelters for the numerous homeless.

This was definitely an old boat maintenance warehouse given the proximity to the bay. Things like fishing, boat maintenance and shipping were this district's primary function in the city of Zootopia, before it became the predator's refuge. Once the TAME system got approved by the government the bay area of Savanna Central was restructured and became Happytown.

"Hooonneeey I'm hoooome!" The other fox suddenly yelled out, startling Nick out of his reverie.

Then all at once, several overhead lights turned on that Nick had definitely noticed were there, and a bunch of animals appeared from behind crates and other hiding spots. Nick noticed that a weasel, quite literally, popped out of a tall crate. 'Pop goes the weasel,' Nick thought with a smirk.

They all started talking quite animatedly at the same time, asking questions about how the mission went like a bunch of excited kits at Christmas. Without a word, the other fox slowly brought the black cauldron into view. Nick couldn't believe it; as he slowly moved it into view, everybody went silent. Dead silent. They all looked so eager to see the reveal.

Then with a quick flourish, he held it up above his head with both hands and everyone started cheering... for the attainment of a pot. Nick grimaced at the noise, feeling a bit of a headache from earlier and shook his head. 'These guys are nuts'. When he saw the weasel that popped earlier joining the crowd, Nick's jaw just about dropped to the floor as he recognized the matted fur and the toothpick sticking out of his mouth. 'You've got to be kidding me... they really are nuts.'

The weasel started talking to a tiger, but Nick walked up to him anyways and said, "Well well well, look who it is. Duke freakin' Weaselton. What're you doing here?"

At the unrecognized voice, the weasel immediately spun around and crouched low to the ground, ready to spring into action, as in... Running. But once he saw who it was, he stood up and responded with a sneer.

"What's it to you Wilde, shouldn't you be meltin' down a Popsicle instead of doing something useful?"

"Ha." Nick laughed, though without any humor behind it as he crossed his arms with a smug grin. "You call terrorizing random prey and stealing pieces of JUNK useful? What've you done so far huh Duke? Sold a pirated movie or two and added on a few words about our savvy group? I, in fact, do do more important things than that Wesselton."

"It's Weaselton..." The weasel quietly spoke as he avoided eye contact, knowing he was already defeated. Duke had hardly partook in any missions so he couldn't even try and argue. All he had really done so far was relay minor pieces of information and help recruit some new members, even though he was practically a new recruit himself.

"Don't get your tail in such a knot Wilde." Said the friendly rich baritone voice of the tiger that was standing nearby as he leaned down to Nick's level. If the fox recalled correctly this guy was referred to as Delgato. "Duke is a predator just like us, which means we're all on the same team here."

But instead of responding, Nick looked away with a frown thinking of the collateral damage to other predators again. Noticing he was still irritable Delgato frowned and added with a nod behind the fox. "If you got a problem, talk to The Hood. Don't take it out on fellow members or we're all going to have a problem very quickly." When he said 'The Hood' Nick's ears perked up. 'So that's what they call him. Rather uncreative… how'd that conversation go?

"What should we call him?"

"I don't know, he wears a hood all the time so how about The Hood?"

"Brilliant!"'

Delgato gestured to some place behind Nick when he mentioned The Hood, so when he walked off with Duke in tow, Nick turned and looked for the only animal he actually wanted to talk to here.

Nearby one of the walls, Hood appeared to be fiddling with some circuitry and a bunch of wolves were crowding around him. If Nick heard correctly a while back, The Hood was apparently a borderline genius with electronics, so he was clearly educated in some manner.

Nick was just about in talking distance when the object he was working on, a radio, turned on. Unfortunately for him, and everybody else, it was at full volume and since it was hooked up to a speaker system in the building, it also caught some feedback. Nick's ears folded back and he crouched down, holding them in pain. His poor senses were really taking a beating tonight.

After some hasty fiddling, the feedback ended and the radio switched to the station they wanted.

"-for listening to the Bucky and Pronk show on 103.5 ZM, 'Timely Radio'. Next up is a classic hit from a few decades ago, if you know it, be sure to text us at 867-5309 for a chance to win $1000."

As the song started off with a catchy electric guitar solo and everyone around him cheered, Hood stood up with a triumphant smile and Nick saw his chance.

"Hey Hoody!"

In perfect synchronization everyone turned and looked at Nick. No one ever called him anything apart from Hood or The Hood if you didn't count the occasional attention grabber. For a moment Nick was thrown off balance by all the pairs of scrutinizing eyes, but he wouldn't be deterred by a little judgement. When has that ever stopped him... Right?

"I need to talk to you!" Nick yelled out over the growing music. Again like clockwork, everyone turned back to look at The Hood, who just nodded in response and walked on over.

Nick just opened his mouth to start talking when the lyrics of the song started and the group that was surrounding 'Hoody' started singing along as loudly as they could.

Welcome to the Jungle! We got fun and games!

We got everything you want. Honey we know the names.

The Hood turned and smiled at everyone as other animals joined in and just started acting crazy and dancing. A full blown party had clearly just taken off, but Nick was never much for parties and was hardly amused. When The Hood turned back and saw this, his smile vanished.

Without even having said anything yet, the leader of the group already knew what was up.

"Alright, come with me. We'll talk somewhere quieter and maybe get a drink or two." He said as he started walking out towards the doors.

"I don't drink." Nick yelled out in response over the cacophony of noise and music.

"Of course not." The Hood called back as he opened the doors and turned around. After putting a hand on each side of them and leaned in towards Nick, he smiled that smile that must be exclusively a fox thing. "A fox like you is too high and mighty to drink his more troubling thoughts away amiright?"

Once more Nick was finding his own thoughts quite conflicting. He was usually great at thinking on his feet, but tonight he just felt... off. Might have something to do with his poor damaged senses. His mouth hung open a tad as he thought, and was about to respond when all the wolves behind them started howling for some reason.

Nick looked back at them and shook his head in irritation and The Hood just chuckled. "Come on." He said as he walked out the door, leaving it open for Nick to walk through.

A/N: Like always, please do make sure to tell me your thoughts in reviews or something. All artists love feedback.

And you may or may not notice but I always love to plant little Easter eggs in my writing. Just a fun little thing I do for my own kicks and giggles. Usually references in the form of dialogue or some background detail. Tell me if you noticed any of them!

Fun fact: My editor catches 98% of them so that an automatic win.

And so far with what I have planned each chapter is gonna have a name of a classic rock song. 1000 points to you if you recognize all of them (The points don't matter)