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Felica Briggs, Traffic control officer of the Zootopia Police Department was not a happy camper.
Normally around now she would have been on her usual traffic route, making certain that people were parked properly and that in general people were obeying the rules of the road. Not walking under the city in cramped sewers filled with noxious odors and offensive matter flowing past the small walkway she walked gingerly along. But she was one of a small group of cops, cherry-picked by Police Chief Bogo to head to the unofficial “Deep-Downtown” district of Zootopia to follow up on a lead on the theft of various medical supplies from Zootopia Central Hospital.
Hamlin was leading the expedition because he was born down here. This meant he knew the territory better than any other officer on the force. In her own case, the recruitment was a matter of inches… in other words she was one of Zootopia’s smallest cops and thus would not be at a major disadvantage in the tight quarters.
In Bogo’s own words, “I would be an idiot if I didn’t make use of all my resources. Besides… can you imagine Officer McHorn or Grizzoli down there? No, it’s best if we use officers who… fit the terrain.”
Of course she couldn’t say no. Part of putting the badge on was knowing that sometimes you got the mucky jobs. Even ones that flew in the face of every feline instinct she had. She could practically FEEL the smell being absorbed into her fur. However there was ONE plus side to this situation.
“Sweet cheese and crackers! I just stepped in some… thing.”
She wasn’t alone down here.
Officers Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde were also along for the ride, and Judy was turning out to be more squeamish than she was.
“I WARNED you not to wear your good shoes, Carrots.”
“I thought you were making fun of me not wearing shoes at all, Nick. Ugh… this is so gross.”
“Hey, you only have yourself to blame for this, Judy.” the fox smirked. “The rest of us packed rubber footwear and protective tail-socks as needed.”
“I know. I know. I guess my brain just… thought the sewers would be like the ones in the movies.”
“Oh. THOSE sewers.” Hamlin interjected with an evil chortle. “THOSE cinematic sewers would most likely be storm drains. FAR cleaner than what we got down here. Hope your shots are up to date, miss Hopps.”
Felicia couldn’t help but feel a tingle of schadenfreude watching Judy cringe from the reminder that she could pick up something from her unsanitary surroundings. She had nothing in particular against Judy or rabbits in general, it was just her own misery was being alleviated by Judy’s greater discomfort. Yes, Judy had remembered a light source in the form of a bunny-ready miner’s helmet but her open-toed police issue uniform was far from ready for the many unpleasantries down here.
It was at this time Nick held out a shopping bag to her.
“Here. Don’t you ever say that I never got you anything.”
“What’s this?”
“This isn’t my first time down here, Carrots. You learn to be prepared. I’m just glad the thrift store had something in your size.”
“Oh Nick. You are SUCH a lifesaver!”
“Which flavour?”
The contents of the bag turned out to be a pair of Bunny-sized galoshes and a box of baby wipes. Both of which were probably worth their weight in gold to Judy right now. Felicia smirked as their group came to a stop long enough for Judy to clean each foot and slip them into the rubber boots. The rapport between Nick and Judy was cute to watch.
The causal banter, the playful jabs between them. It was almost like flirting… although it was hard to really tell if there was something between them that was more than friendship. Inter-species relationships were very tricky, even in Zootopia. No matter how many similarities people had there were always differences. Forget diet, sometimes the context of culture would be the cause of some major speedbumps. She couldn’t say that Nick and Judy would evolve into a serious relationship… but she might be rooting for them if it happened.
“No offence Judy but I thought you Bunnyburrow types wouldn’t be adverse to getting a little dirty.” Felicia pointed out.
“Dirt, this is not.” Judy explained with a grunt. “This isn’t even compost and it barely qualifies as nightsoil. What we have here is just plain filth. How are YOU handling all of this so well?”
“The faces you’re making helps. Also the thought of a nice hot bath and fresh laundry really makes a difference.” Felicia chuckled before getting her mind back on the task at hand. "So... Where is this lead on missing medicals taking us?"
"My old neighborhood, actually." Hamlin said guiding them around a corner. "Deep-Downtown is the largest concentration of rodents in Zootopia outside of Little Rodentia... and unlike Little Rodentia it's mostly rats."
“He’s not just whistling Pixie and Dixie there, Briggs.” Nick added. “You’ll find that in Zootopia rats are the driving force down here keeping things uh, let’s say ‘flowing’. That however doesn’t make them welcome in Little Rodentia. Everyone likes having plumbing but no one wants to think about the business end.”
“A little harsh.” Judy observed as they began moving again. “I mean, I get it but I’m sure that no self respecting sewer worker would go shopping without a shower and change of clothes first.”
“You should see the looks on their faces when I show up on the streets of Little Rodentia in uniform.” Hamlin snickered. “No matter how many times I do it, some locals still don’t believe it. Often they assume I’m a singing telegram or something.”
“Oh! Do you go there often, Hamlin?”
“Not often, Hopps. District has one of the lowest crime rates in the city, but when something goes down the Chief calls me in ‘cause… you know…” he glanced back at her with a frown. “Last thing they need is some GIANT running about, knocking over buildings, inciting a scurry… throwing doughnuts at one another.”
“Ooh, ah… yeah… sorry about that. I was just…”
“Nah, I get it. And to be honest you were the second best choice for the matter. Anyone else might have caused complete and utter devastation… and in the end, if you hadn’t have pursued Duke Weaselton in there, our entire city might be a VERY different place today.”
"Very true, Hammy. Never mind the fact she saved lives by keeping those buildings from toppling."
“Thanks Briggs. I’m just glad things worked out in the end… I wasn’t exactly going by the manual in my first week.”
“I know.” The rat said flatly. “I can say with complete certainty that Internal Affairs was NOT happy at first… Your little adventure skirted the edge of legality and even crossed that line once or twice. To this day I don’t know what Nick said to them, but it certainly changed their final report to something more… understanding.”
“Wait, what? Nick?”
“What?” Nick asked innocently as the conversation and team all turned to him. “When they approached me for MY side of the story I just reminded them that if you hadn’t have done what you did at the time, the entire city would be up to an elephant’s armpits of hurt with inter-species strife, public panic, chemically-induced maulings and a corrupt mayor. In fact I made it crystal clear to them that there were quicker and less painful ways to commit political and occupational suicide than to lock up the one cop in the city that every mammal in Zootopia owes their lives to.”
“And that’s why the reprimand file of Officer Judy Hopps says ‘Extenuating Circumstances’ on it and you are doing hard time on Public Relations rather than hard time being Bellwether's cellmate.” Hamlin extrapolated. “Of course you probably ENJOY visiting schools and hospitals so… you know. Happy ending for you.”
“That’s such a relief. Thanks for sticking your neck out like that for me Nick.”
“You were the nicest person to me since Junior Ranger Scouts, Judy.”
“Woah, woah, woah. Wait a moment there.” Felicia said, bringing the group to a stop and looking Nick square in the eye. “YOU were a Junior Ranger Scout? Forgive me for saying this Nick but... you just don't seem the type.”
“Uh… Well it was a long time ago and… I tried but I... “ he hesitated a moment, but Judy made a ‘go on’ motion to urge him to open a little. “I got bullied out of the troop. Turns out they didn’t want a carnivore in the pack and hazed me into leaving. ...And after all the trouble I took to memorise the Junior Ranger manual too.”
“Memorised…? You really wanted to be a Junior Ranger Scout, huh?”
“I was young, and wanted to be part of a pack, Briggs. They’ll never know what they were missing.”
“Actually you wanting to be a Junior Ranger explains a lot about how well you’re making your transition to being a cop.” Hamlin said with a nod. “The oath to be Brave, Loyal, Helpful and Trustworthy is very similar to our own motto of Bravery, Integrity and Trust. ...Of course the “Helpful” part is kind of a given.”
“Hold on there, Hamlin… you didn’t even have to THINK to recite the Junior Ranger oath.” Nick said as a smirk curled across his lips. “You didn’t strike me as a Junior Ranger either, and yet…”
“That’s ‘cause I was a Junior Rust Scout. Affiliated with the Junior Rangers but almost exclusively Rats.” Hamlin said giving him a scout salute, which Nick was happy to return. “We didn’t go to the jamborees often. A lot of chances to get stepped on that the scoutmasters were too worried about, but in another time and place maybe we could have met.”
“Huh… small world.” Felicia said with a smile and saluting the two males in the familiar gesture. “I was a Junior Tiger Scout, troop 515. Usually all feline, but we were willing to make exceptions. Mom never let me go to the Jamborees… same ‘underfoot’ reasons.”
“Well now. What ARE the odds three cops were all scouts, in one form or another.” Nick said amusedly. “The only thing that could make this even more interesting is if we had a four of a kind.”
Fox, Cat and Rat all turned to look at the Bunny who blinked at the sudden attention. Then after a few moments she broke down.
“ALLRIGHT! YES! Yes I was a Bunny Scout. You happy?”
“That depends Judy.” Briggs snarked. “Did you bring any cookies along?”
Another moment passed and Judy hung her head in shame and held up a package of Bunny Scout Cookies (Carrot-cake flavoured), much to the amusement of her colleagues.
"Aw, man, why'd you bring those down here? You know they're gonna be ruined by da FUNK down here," Felicia said. "What? Carrot cake Bunny Scout cookies are the best! Closely followed by chocolate chunk, and mint wafers. Don't at me."
“H-hey, the bag is still sealed! They’ll be fine… really! As for bringing them along, I kinda got hit up by some Bunny Scouts on the way to work. They figured me for a soft touch.” Judy stuttered, “They were right.”
“Well now, aren’t we just the regular Scout troop. Good thing for you guys I have my Sub-metropolitan orienteering badge.” Hamlin said, leading them around a corner. “Welcome to DEEP-Downtown.”
Felicia wasn’t certain what to expect from Deep-downtown. Well, other than very small housing facilities, but that was just for the size of it’s occupants. It was just that this was a community in a sewer and she really didn’t want to judge. Maybe if she had’ve come down here before meeting Hamlin she might have judged, but certainly not now.
She turned the corner and took a moment to take it all in.
There was kind of a Shanty town vibe to it all, but only if the shanty town were built by people who had the skills, and drive to make it all work. Pieces of zootopia’s cast-offs were taken and reassembled to create a rather breathtaking microcosm. Metal cans, wooden boxes, old toys and more had been completely repurposed into beautiful homes, apartment blocks and businesses.
Felicia guessed that this room was an old sewer utility junction. The ceiling had been painted like a blue sky, illumination was provided by an old theatrical spotlight, almost like a miniature sun. Strings of holiday lights hung through the streets, giving the areas in shadow some modest light. The fact the place was just lousy with rats went without saying. She saw rat venders hawking their wares. Rat children played on rat-sized play equipment in a rat-sized park. Rat grown-ups went about their rat-sized lives in their rat-sized world… And running the length of one wall off to the side was a control panel, blinking constantly while Rats in small work helmets and coveralls ran across its surface, checking readouts and giving orders to others who immediately scurried off to deal with whatever issues the panel revealed to them.
It was really quite mesmerising.
"Whoa...This is amazing," Felicia said in awe.
“Welcome to the neighborhood.” Hamlin said proudly.
“And what a neighbourhood it is.” Nick added in his typical slightly smug tone. “I wonder if Steamer’s Coffee Shoppe is still open. Place had some of the best espresso in this quarter of the city.”
Judy blinked and gave Nick an incredulous look before speaking.
"You sound like you've been down here before, Nick."
"Well, I did say I’ve been down here a FEW times. It’s not like it was a habit or something."
"HEY, NICK!" The voices of what sounded like the entire community calling out in recognition echoed through the chamber.
"Just a few, eh?"
"Ok ok, but I told ya, I know everybody."
"Guess those connections can come in handy," Felicia observed.
“You would be surprised.”
Normally around now she would have been on her usual traffic route, making certain that people were parked properly and that in general people were obeying the rules of the road. Not walking under the city in cramped sewers filled with noxious odors and offensive matter flowing past the small walkway she walked gingerly along. But she was one of a small group of cops, cherry-picked by Police Chief Bogo to head to the unofficial “Deep-Downtown” district of Zootopia to follow up on a lead on the theft of various medical supplies from Zootopia Central Hospital.
Hamlin was leading the expedition because he was born down here. This meant he knew the territory better than any other officer on the force. In her own case, the recruitment was a matter of inches… in other words she was one of Zootopia’s smallest cops and thus would not be at a major disadvantage in the tight quarters.
In Bogo’s own words, “I would be an idiot if I didn’t make use of all my resources. Besides… can you imagine Officer McHorn or Grizzoli down there? No, it’s best if we use officers who… fit the terrain.”
Of course she couldn’t say no. Part of putting the badge on was knowing that sometimes you got the mucky jobs. Even ones that flew in the face of every feline instinct she had. She could practically FEEL the smell being absorbed into her fur. However there was ONE plus side to this situation.
“Sweet cheese and crackers! I just stepped in some… thing.”
She wasn’t alone down here.
Officers Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde were also along for the ride, and Judy was turning out to be more squeamish than she was.
“I WARNED you not to wear your good shoes, Carrots.”
“I thought you were making fun of me not wearing shoes at all, Nick. Ugh… this is so gross.”
“Hey, you only have yourself to blame for this, Judy.” the fox smirked. “The rest of us packed rubber footwear and protective tail-socks as needed.”
“I know. I know. I guess my brain just… thought the sewers would be like the ones in the movies.”
“Oh. THOSE sewers.” Hamlin interjected with an evil chortle. “THOSE cinematic sewers would most likely be storm drains. FAR cleaner than what we got down here. Hope your shots are up to date, miss Hopps.”
Felicia couldn’t help but feel a tingle of schadenfreude watching Judy cringe from the reminder that she could pick up something from her unsanitary surroundings. She had nothing in particular against Judy or rabbits in general, it was just her own misery was being alleviated by Judy’s greater discomfort. Yes, Judy had remembered a light source in the form of a bunny-ready miner’s helmet but her open-toed police issue uniform was far from ready for the many unpleasantries down here.
It was at this time Nick held out a shopping bag to her.
“Here. Don’t you ever say that I never got you anything.”
“What’s this?”
“This isn’t my first time down here, Carrots. You learn to be prepared. I’m just glad the thrift store had something in your size.”
“Oh Nick. You are SUCH a lifesaver!”
“Which flavour?”
The contents of the bag turned out to be a pair of Bunny-sized galoshes and a box of baby wipes. Both of which were probably worth their weight in gold to Judy right now. Felicia smirked as their group came to a stop long enough for Judy to clean each foot and slip them into the rubber boots. The rapport between Nick and Judy was cute to watch.
The causal banter, the playful jabs between them. It was almost like flirting… although it was hard to really tell if there was something between them that was more than friendship. Inter-species relationships were very tricky, even in Zootopia. No matter how many similarities people had there were always differences. Forget diet, sometimes the context of culture would be the cause of some major speedbumps. She couldn’t say that Nick and Judy would evolve into a serious relationship… but she might be rooting for them if it happened.
“No offence Judy but I thought you Bunnyburrow types wouldn’t be adverse to getting a little dirty.” Felicia pointed out.
“Dirt, this is not.” Judy explained with a grunt. “This isn’t even compost and it barely qualifies as nightsoil. What we have here is just plain filth. How are YOU handling all of this so well?”
“The faces you’re making helps. Also the thought of a nice hot bath and fresh laundry really makes a difference.” Felicia chuckled before getting her mind back on the task at hand. "So... Where is this lead on missing medicals taking us?"
"My old neighborhood, actually." Hamlin said guiding them around a corner. "Deep-Downtown is the largest concentration of rodents in Zootopia outside of Little Rodentia... and unlike Little Rodentia it's mostly rats."
“He’s not just whistling Pixie and Dixie there, Briggs.” Nick added. “You’ll find that in Zootopia rats are the driving force down here keeping things uh, let’s say ‘flowing’. That however doesn’t make them welcome in Little Rodentia. Everyone likes having plumbing but no one wants to think about the business end.”
“A little harsh.” Judy observed as they began moving again. “I mean, I get it but I’m sure that no self respecting sewer worker would go shopping without a shower and change of clothes first.”
“You should see the looks on their faces when I show up on the streets of Little Rodentia in uniform.” Hamlin snickered. “No matter how many times I do it, some locals still don’t believe it. Often they assume I’m a singing telegram or something.”
“Oh! Do you go there often, Hamlin?”
“Not often, Hopps. District has one of the lowest crime rates in the city, but when something goes down the Chief calls me in ‘cause… you know…” he glanced back at her with a frown. “Last thing they need is some GIANT running about, knocking over buildings, inciting a scurry… throwing doughnuts at one another.”
“Ooh, ah… yeah… sorry about that. I was just…”
“Nah, I get it. And to be honest you were the second best choice for the matter. Anyone else might have caused complete and utter devastation… and in the end, if you hadn’t have pursued Duke Weaselton in there, our entire city might be a VERY different place today.”
"Very true, Hammy. Never mind the fact she saved lives by keeping those buildings from toppling."
“Thanks Briggs. I’m just glad things worked out in the end… I wasn’t exactly going by the manual in my first week.”
“I know.” The rat said flatly. “I can say with complete certainty that Internal Affairs was NOT happy at first… Your little adventure skirted the edge of legality and even crossed that line once or twice. To this day I don’t know what Nick said to them, but it certainly changed their final report to something more… understanding.”
“Wait, what? Nick?”
“What?” Nick asked innocently as the conversation and team all turned to him. “When they approached me for MY side of the story I just reminded them that if you hadn’t have done what you did at the time, the entire city would be up to an elephant’s armpits of hurt with inter-species strife, public panic, chemically-induced maulings and a corrupt mayor. In fact I made it crystal clear to them that there were quicker and less painful ways to commit political and occupational suicide than to lock up the one cop in the city that every mammal in Zootopia owes their lives to.”
“And that’s why the reprimand file of Officer Judy Hopps says ‘Extenuating Circumstances’ on it and you are doing hard time on Public Relations rather than hard time being Bellwether's cellmate.” Hamlin extrapolated. “Of course you probably ENJOY visiting schools and hospitals so… you know. Happy ending for you.”
“That’s such a relief. Thanks for sticking your neck out like that for me Nick.”
“You were the nicest person to me since Junior Ranger Scouts, Judy.”
“Woah, woah, woah. Wait a moment there.” Felicia said, bringing the group to a stop and looking Nick square in the eye. “YOU were a Junior Ranger Scout? Forgive me for saying this Nick but... you just don't seem the type.”
“Uh… Well it was a long time ago and… I tried but I... “ he hesitated a moment, but Judy made a ‘go on’ motion to urge him to open a little. “I got bullied out of the troop. Turns out they didn’t want a carnivore in the pack and hazed me into leaving. ...And after all the trouble I took to memorise the Junior Ranger manual too.”
“Memorised…? You really wanted to be a Junior Ranger Scout, huh?”
“I was young, and wanted to be part of a pack, Briggs. They’ll never know what they were missing.”
“Actually you wanting to be a Junior Ranger explains a lot about how well you’re making your transition to being a cop.” Hamlin said with a nod. “The oath to be Brave, Loyal, Helpful and Trustworthy is very similar to our own motto of Bravery, Integrity and Trust. ...Of course the “Helpful” part is kind of a given.”
“Hold on there, Hamlin… you didn’t even have to THINK to recite the Junior Ranger oath.” Nick said as a smirk curled across his lips. “You didn’t strike me as a Junior Ranger either, and yet…”
“That’s ‘cause I was a Junior Rust Scout. Affiliated with the Junior Rangers but almost exclusively Rats.” Hamlin said giving him a scout salute, which Nick was happy to return. “We didn’t go to the jamborees often. A lot of chances to get stepped on that the scoutmasters were too worried about, but in another time and place maybe we could have met.”
“Huh… small world.” Felicia said with a smile and saluting the two males in the familiar gesture. “I was a Junior Tiger Scout, troop 515. Usually all feline, but we were willing to make exceptions. Mom never let me go to the Jamborees… same ‘underfoot’ reasons.”
“Well now. What ARE the odds three cops were all scouts, in one form or another.” Nick said amusedly. “The only thing that could make this even more interesting is if we had a four of a kind.”
Fox, Cat and Rat all turned to look at the Bunny who blinked at the sudden attention. Then after a few moments she broke down.
“ALLRIGHT! YES! Yes I was a Bunny Scout. You happy?”
“That depends Judy.” Briggs snarked. “Did you bring any cookies along?”
Another moment passed and Judy hung her head in shame and held up a package of Bunny Scout Cookies (Carrot-cake flavoured), much to the amusement of her colleagues.
"Aw, man, why'd you bring those down here? You know they're gonna be ruined by da FUNK down here," Felicia said. "What? Carrot cake Bunny Scout cookies are the best! Closely followed by chocolate chunk, and mint wafers. Don't at me."
“H-hey, the bag is still sealed! They’ll be fine… really! As for bringing them along, I kinda got hit up by some Bunny Scouts on the way to work. They figured me for a soft touch.” Judy stuttered, “They were right.”
“Well now, aren’t we just the regular Scout troop. Good thing for you guys I have my Sub-metropolitan orienteering badge.” Hamlin said, leading them around a corner. “Welcome to DEEP-Downtown.”
Felicia wasn’t certain what to expect from Deep-downtown. Well, other than very small housing facilities, but that was just for the size of it’s occupants. It was just that this was a community in a sewer and she really didn’t want to judge. Maybe if she had’ve come down here before meeting Hamlin she might have judged, but certainly not now.
She turned the corner and took a moment to take it all in.
There was kind of a Shanty town vibe to it all, but only if the shanty town were built by people who had the skills, and drive to make it all work. Pieces of zootopia’s cast-offs were taken and reassembled to create a rather breathtaking microcosm. Metal cans, wooden boxes, old toys and more had been completely repurposed into beautiful homes, apartment blocks and businesses.
Felicia guessed that this room was an old sewer utility junction. The ceiling had been painted like a blue sky, illumination was provided by an old theatrical spotlight, almost like a miniature sun. Strings of holiday lights hung through the streets, giving the areas in shadow some modest light. The fact the place was just lousy with rats went without saying. She saw rat venders hawking their wares. Rat children played on rat-sized play equipment in a rat-sized park. Rat grown-ups went about their rat-sized lives in their rat-sized world… And running the length of one wall off to the side was a control panel, blinking constantly while Rats in small work helmets and coveralls ran across its surface, checking readouts and giving orders to others who immediately scurried off to deal with whatever issues the panel revealed to them.
It was really quite mesmerising.
"Whoa...This is amazing," Felicia said in awe.
“Welcome to the neighborhood.” Hamlin said proudly.
“And what a neighbourhood it is.” Nick added in his typical slightly smug tone. “I wonder if Steamer’s Coffee Shoppe is still open. Place had some of the best espresso in this quarter of the city.”
Judy blinked and gave Nick an incredulous look before speaking.
"You sound like you've been down here before, Nick."
"Well, I did say I’ve been down here a FEW times. It’s not like it was a habit or something."
"HEY, NICK!" The voices of what sounded like the entire community calling out in recognition echoed through the chamber.
"Just a few, eh?"
"Ok ok, but I told ya, I know everybody."
"Guess those connections can come in handy," Felicia observed.
“You would be surprised.”
Category Story / Fanart
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 1007 x 1280px
File Size 152.3 kB
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