Are We Out Of The Woods Yet?

A Zootopia Fanfiction

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Chapter One:

(Supposed To Be) Just Another Mission

"What type of 'holiday' does this one fall under, then? Certainly not one that I know of..." He heard her grumble into the phone, which was pressed against the inside of his ear, and tucked between shoulder and neck.

"Would you stop complaining? They're calling us in for a reason."

He sighed as the rabbit huffed through the mobile device. Judy was always cranky when she was woken up this early, with no expectancy, such as the current moment. It had always some-what warmed his heart that she had only ever openly admitted this to him.

Nick pulled on his police cap, grabbing the odd tub of blue-berries to eat In the car while he went to the Police Station. He locked the door with one swift twist of the keys, tucked them in his pocket, and raced outside. Lifting a paw to shield his eyes from the sudden switch of light, he squinted up at the sky. Honestly, could he blame the rabbit? The sun was barely up. She had probably slept little the last night, too, which didn't help.

As he spoke into the phone and drove, Judy continued to grumble and whine to him. "I mean, come on. Some of us want to sleep! Chief is SO gonna get it when we get there..."

"No punching the Chief, carrots." Nick didn't hide his chuckle. "That would definitely get you fired."

He could practically hear her roll those bright violet eyes through the phone, amused, as she stopped the car at the traffic lights.

"Nah," she said carelessly, "He loves me WAYYYY too much for that low blow."

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you say."

"Hush."

The fox laughed, driving up and parking in the car lot. He stepped out, locking the car door. "How long until you get here? I'm there now."

"Can't give you a certified answer, probably five minutes. The lights are being annoying again."

"Aren't they always...?"

"True." She laughed a little. "I'll see you then. Don't have any fun without me!"

"I wouldn't even dream of it." He remarked, and then hung up, deciding he'd lean casually against the wall for Judy.

It couldn't be that important of a situation... Right?

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Unfortunately, he wasn't right. It was a serious case, and by serious, it was on the level of dead serious.

Alright, so there weren't really any dead bodies to what they knew of, but it was that grim sounding. An entire civilisation, a whole town gone mysteriously silent and lifeless, according to the data.

Nick and Judy were sat in their black and white police car, driving down the dark tunnel. Orange lights were hung on the walls, passing by in bright blurs.

They had been going down their route for quite some time, thirteen hours. There was still another six to go before they reached their desired location, the small town of Barrencago. Yeah, not the most warm or welcoming of names. Just from that alone, it sounded rather... Well... Barren.

But puns aside, it was described as an actually suitably nice place. Wrapped in a peaceful and calming atmosphere, surrounded by thick woods and mostly clear blue skies, it was a simple place, no grand city like Zootopia, but not to be neglected for that. It seemed like the perfect getaway. Apparently it only had a small population, about five hundred citizens, although it gained a heft amount of tourists for the beautiful sight-seeing that could be done. The houses, buildings and hotels were mostly stone or sturdy timber, giving it an almost camp-like feel that was very low on technology. It wouldn't be surprising if it had a few camping sites.

"Isn't this all a little extravagant? Can't they just call them in some manner?" Nick asked, driving the wheel.

"They already tried..." Judy mumbled, awfully quiet and troubled by it all. The fox had most certainly noticed, but kept it to himself, having no desire to upset his friend further. "That's partially why we're going... No one's answered."

"...No one? As in, literally no one?"

She nodded, solemnly staring at the passing stone walls of the tunnel. Her head was tilted on side, her ears drooped. She held it up with a single paw.

He sighed, and glanced at her. "Come on... Out with it."

"What...?"

"What's wrong?" He asked, and she sighed heavily, looking away again, ears slowly falling back. "This isn't like you. Even in the serious times, you always manage to keep a positive hope shining. What's going on..."

Judy huffed. "Firstly, I'm fine. Second, I aren't your always happy-go-lucky, find your happy place sort of bunny, and lastly, I'm fine."

Shocked at her outburst (that came out much harsher than she probably realised), Nick pulled away a little bit.

Now, he was only more certain that she was upset from something. The fox just wished she'd give in and tell him what it was. She had never been one to keep things from him. "Whoa, whoa... Calm down there... No need to snap."

His quieter, more sincere tone must have brought her back to reality, her previous words repeating in her mind. She let out a tiny gasp, and looked at him, her eyes bigger and much more innocent. Nick almost made a soft comment about how that looked much better, when she came rushing out with her apologies, one after the other. Had he not been driving, he probably would have raised his paws to halt her.

"Calm it down, carrots." He said, looking at her with kind eyes. "I aren't mad at you. But honestly, just... What's going on right now?"

She sighed and stared down at the seat she sat on. "It's just..." Judy looked up at him. "I'm scared."

"Scared...? Why?"

The rabbit couldn't keep her gaze on him and spoke quietly. "The last time animals went missing..."

"Judy," Nick said, "That was about two years ago. It's nothing but a faded, yet terrifying past crisis. It's over now."

"I know... I know... Doesn't help, though. My parents-"

He sighed. "-Said the same thing?"

She nodded, one foot thumping nervously on the floor. His ear twitched, but otherwise he left it unnoticed.

"It'll be fine." He assured her, smiling softly. "I'm here to protect you, okay?"

She laughed weakly, smirking and putting a paw on her hip. "I don't need to be guarded, sly fox."

"Maybe, but that's just what this particular sly fox does; protect dumb bunnies from the big, mean, nasty bad dudes." As she chuckled a little, Nick smiled, glad he could bring her out of the miserable stupor. Silently, he added in his mind, even if it kills me.

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Author's Note (A/N): Hey there, Zootopia fans!

Some readers may possibly already know of me from all my How to train your Dragon fanfictions, but last night I watched Disney's latest (I think) animated masterpiece, and GODS, I can't believe I waited that damn long!

I do apologise if Judy, Nick, or any other characters feel or sound out of character, I need to watch the film a couple more times.

But I have a few fanfics planned for this fandom, so, yep. I hope that you enjoy this story, wherever it goes- I've got its plot figured out, but I dunno if anyone's gonna actually like this, so... Meh. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

Thanks for reading!

-Crystallion12