The Time Traveler's Guide to Zootopia

Chapter 23: In the Nick of Time

Indeed, it was a fox.

He was a slender animal covered in red fur with a cream underbelly up to his muzzle. He had dark auburn fur on his feet, his hands, the tips of his ears, and the tip of his tail. The fox's eyes were forest green, and his nose was dark purple.

I felt like I had seen him before, albeit the younger version of him from Bunnyburrow.

On his body, he wore a dark blue police uniform with a black tie, a badge, a ZPD patch, a standard utility belt, and aviator shades, resembling the ones from Top Gun, resting on his chest pocket.

The other two officers behind him were giant rhinos also in blue police uniforms and black utility belts, except they had black-plated body armor and a stoic-like personality; hence, the shadow silhouettes they cast earlier.

Only two rhinos and one fox.  Not a threat.

The rhinos positioned themselves sideways, one leg forward, their horns directed at me as if they were waiting to charge. Even with years of combat training, I doubted my ability to dodge an incoming rhino tackle simply because I'd never done it before. Even though the rhinos towered 1.5 feet over me, they remained cautious, treating me as an equal threat as I slowly turned around to face them.

I looked back down at the red fox in front of me who kept his tranquilizer gun in the paw, ready and aimed at my chest. Despite my towering stature, he didn't seem to care. What surprised me the most wasn't necessarily his size but rather the overconfidence he seemed to possess. Instead of quivering with fright and retreating back like most creatures, he became curious and took another step forward.

Did this fox really think he could take me in? The rhinos should've led the charge, preparing the arrest, but the red-furred creature took the initiative. I couldn't help but shake my head in both confusion and admiration at him.

"Well, well. I don't think we've met," the fox curiously observed me up and down.  "That's funny because I know everybody."

I scoffed at his small size. How could a small, cunning animal like himself even be considered a police officer? It made no sense.

"And I also know that you're not from anywhere around here." he stated the obvious.

"No shit." I said.

"I see," he replied nonchalantly, crossing his arms as he returned a long, suspicious gaze. "Well, it looks like I'm gonna have to take you in, buddy," and pulled out a pair of cuffs from his utility belt.  "Put your paws up. You're under arrest for committing aggravated assault against this young tiger here"

"He's a criminal," I declared, sternly pointing at the striped, injured feline being escorted into the police car by one of the rhino officers.

"Criminal or not, that's not how we treat our fellow mammals." the fox said, shaking his head. "Nope. Not in Zootopia. That's not what the ZPD's all about."

"Why?" I questioned. "He got what he deserved."

With the tranquilizer pistol still aimed at me, the fox gave a sly gaze, seemingly unafraid of what I could do to him.

"Careful, Wilde," the rhino warned, shooting me a suspicious glance as it moved towards the tiger. I've never seen any kind of suspect like him before."

The fox simply looked me over and casually shrugged. "At ease McHorn, I got this."

With one paw keeping the tranquilizer pistol pointed at me, he used the other paw to reach for the radio on his utility belt. "Wilde to Dispatch, we've found both suspects from precinct 2, over."