The Fire Triangle -- Part II, Oxidizer

The Fire Triangle: Book II - Chapter 1

Part II, Oxidizer:  Main Theme:

Disclaimer: Zootopia stories, characters, settings, and properties belong to the Walt Disney Co. This story is written under Fair Use Copyright laws.

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The Fire Triangle

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Part Two:

Oxidizer

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Chapter 1—A Rock and a Hard Place
(Part 1)

"Wha...? No, no, nooo...not NOW; I just got to sleep!"

Judy knew it wasn't the alarm-clock, not in the middle of the afternoon; the nagging buzz could only be coming from her cell-phone. That was why she almost tried to ignore it, pulling the comforter into an even tighter cocoon around herself. Ahhh, ohhhh, who could it be? Was it her parents, her sister...how about another prankster; "Pred and Prey, Stay AWAY!?" (She hadn't actually been trolled for more than two days now.)

Or...maybe it was Chief Bogo, calling to tell her she was good to come back to work.

"All right, allll right...you win!"

She threw off the covers and snatched up her phone from the bedside table.

And then...what the heck?

"Fru-Fru? Why would SHE be calling me...Never mind bunny, pick up quick, before it goes into voice-mail."

Pressing the red 'connect' button, Judy spoke cautiously into the receiver.

"F-Fru-Fru, what...?"

The response was a skull-piercing, silver-tin squeak that made the doe-bunny yank the phone away from her ear. For a second, she thought she'd been pranked again, but then she realized—that wasn't feedback, it was a sob, a high-pitched rodent-sized sob.

She put the cell-phone back against her cheek and tried again.

"Fru, what's wrong?"

"J-Judy," the little arctic shrew's voice was like a nail gouging aluminum siding, "Judy, please...I don't know where else to go. Please, you're my little Jude's godmother; you've got to help me."

"All right, Fru, calm down." Judy slicked back her ears with her other paw, silently wishing she'd never taken this call. Whatever Fru-Fru wanted, it wouldn't be good. "Tell me what happened."

"It's Daddy!" The little arctic shrew's answer came as another feedback squeal, "I-I've never seen him like this. I'm afraid he's going to do something crazy. Please Judy, you're a cop; maybe he'll listen to you. Come to the house, please!"

The paw which had been stroking the doe- bunny's ears now slapped across her face. Whoa, good thing this wasn't a video call; a mob boss...listening to her? There was about as much chance of that happening as there was of Chief Bogo asking Duke Weaselton for advice. Fru-Fru was obviously so distraught that she wasn't thinking straight. Otherwise, she might have considered things from the other side of the discussion.