Era of the Tame Collar

Animalia

The sun was barely peeking over the skyline, and the Zootopian night life began its cycle. The air was cool, and the lights from the city made the dark sky look lighter. Prey and Predators of all kinds began showing up in droves outside of Animalia. Judy and the rest of them decided to stay near the middle of the crowd that was walking down the sidewalk towards the theater. Nick pulled his jacket over him more, not wanting to risk being caught by anyone who might know who he was.
"This is it, our last time to see each other before we head inside." said Judy.
She looked at her phone. It had taken them nearly an hour to get close to the building due to the crowds that were already lining up at the doors. But that didn't surprise her. Who wouldn't want to see a free concert by Gazelle?

"Keep your weapons hidden, but make sure they're easy to get to if needed. Once we reach the doors, us four will split up with the rabbit, and we'll meet again near the bathrooms so no one gets suspicious of a rabbit following a group of predators around." she said while she itched her neck where the collar was strapped around.

Everyone nodded in agreement, and they could see in another five minutes and they would be at the doorway.

Judy looked around. Everyone had come to see the performance. Lions, zebras, horses, tigers, bears, bats, kangaroos, rhinos, antelopes, giraffes, foxes, you name it. Any predator from a lion to a otter, and every prey from an elephant to a mouse was attending tonight. Judy closed her eyes in thought. Half of these animals were going to be told tonight to leave their homes and get out of the city. She couldn't let that happen to them. She knew after everything her and Nick had gone through in the past couple of days that the collar wasn't necessary. She just had to prove it to the rest of the prey citizens of Zootopia.

Finally, they reached the entrance. There were only twoguards at the door, both of whom were warthogs. They were muscular, and had sharp tusks jutting from their mouths. Judy knew she didn't want to mess with these guys, because they could crush her in a second, no matter how tough she was.

Nick passed the two without looking up, trying to blend in. Honey got nervous that one of them would ask for him to take his jacket off, but luckily, no one bothered. They could still see his fluffy tail dragging along behind him, but that didn't mean anything. He was just another fox. Another predator going to see the show.

One they were inside, Judy scooted closer to Nick, attempting to not get stepped on by the enormous amount of animals in the stadium. The stage glimmered, it was black and sat in the middle of the large room. And animals of all sorts gathered around it, cheering for their favorite singer to come onto the stage.
Nick pushed Judy to the side gently, and motioned with his head towards the bathrooms that were way in the back of the stadium. Judy nodded, and then did her best to maneuver around the giant feet that were stomping all around her.

Nick and the others made their way quickly towards the back, trying to pass all of the other animals.
"Hey man! Take your coat off! My goodness!" shouted a rhino who was chatting with a couple other mammals nearby. Nick didn't reply to them. He just grabbed the sides and pulled it over him more, lowering his eyes to the ground. The only thing anyone could see was the green light of his tame collar.

Finally, they could see the restrooms, and luckily not many were gathered around them. He caught sight of the small gray bunny standing next to the doors.

He walked a little faster, wanting to get to her as soon as he could. The others tried to keep up the pace so they wouldn't lose their friend in the crowds. Nick stopped walking quickly and slowed to a stop in front of Judy. The others came close behind him.
"Alright, so Carrots, what's next?" he asked. His tail moved back and forth nervously across the cold floor.

"Well, once Gazelle goes on, you and I..." Judy stopped to see the two warthogs that were guarding the door coming their way. They were intimidating. Nick turned and saw them too, and he turned around and faced them, trying to remain calm. Honey just sighed, and Finnick stood behind her. Clawhauser tried to look normal.

"Hey, chompers, why don't you leave this little lady alone and get back to where you need to be." said one, who spit on the floor.
No one did anything. Nick stood his ground.

"Hey. I said, why don't you PREDATORS leave this rabbit alone!" he said loudly, stepping closer.

Judy stepped forward.
"They're fine. I was just asking them where the restrooms were, and they offered to show me. Besides, I can take care of myself." she said, gesturing to the small gun in her belt.
The two exchanged glances, then growled.

"Suit yourself, little lady." said one, and they stomped off, leaving the five to themselves.

"Gaah..My heart was racing.." said Clawhauser as he let out a breath and wiped his forehead with his paw. "I think my collar was even about to go off from the nervousness."

Honey sighed. "That was close. Now, I''m sure Gazelle will appear any moment with the tigers, so be ready. You'll have to find a way up there onto the stage."

Everyone was listening when Judy peered over Finnick's shoulder, seeing a certain pig disappear through a doorway.