aiw0lf

[aiw0lf]

Confessing Wild

Nick Wilde still did not like being in a courtroom. Even now, a year after the academy, and not really being in the courtroom he found himself fidgety. He was currently sitting in the holding room where they put witnesses awaiting their turn on the stand when the prosecution or defense doesn't want them listening to other witness testimony. The long narrow room had two rows of chairs both leaned with their backs to the opposite walls. Maybe his discomfort stemmed from his lack of entertainment. His normally ever-present, ever cheerful partner was in the courtroom. He wasn't worried for her, no one the prosecution had called to be witnesses today had any reason to be worried. Except maybe himself and the vixen on the other end of the room. Zootopia had always been a clinical place for a fox.

The bailiff standing near the door to the main courtroom was a warning to all in the cramped holding space. They most definitely could not talk about what happened to bring them all together. Waiting who knows how long until they had the opportunity to tell the judge and jury what they uncovered six months ago. Leading to quite possibly the biggest scandal in Zootopia since the Bellweather incident.

Nick leaned back in his chair with a yawn. Crossing his arms over his head, closing his eyes and stretching out his legs to cross them at the ankle. There were 3 other mammals in the room with him. All sat on the opposite wall facing the door. Their means of escape.

Two chairs to his left sat a young lamb reading a romantic mystery novel. She was turned away from him and her posture of one leg crossed over the other and shoulders leaned in was an effort to make her already small frame look smaller. She had pushed herself as far away from him and the others as possible. Nick didn't know if it was due to the subject of her book. When they first were escorted into the room the ewe bumped into the door dropping all of her belonging on the ground. Nick, Judy, and the vixen tried to gather everything up and hand it to the frantic female, and Nick so happened to be the one to grab the book from under a chair. The threatening look from the vixen had him swallow the jokes he was going to make. Which would have been his entertainment now with his partner was in the other room.

Directly in front of Nick was his boss. Chief Bogo made no effort to make himself smaller despite the cramped room. The Cape Buffalo was busy playing a game on his phone while intermittently taking calls from the Lieutenant he left in charge of Zootopia Police Department's Precinct 1 for the day and Benjamin Clawhuser, Precinct 1's dispatcher and front desk cheetah. The Lieutenant and Dispatch were not getting along from what Nick could hear in the half conversations he was privy to.

Two seats from Bogo's right sat someone Nick had known longer than anyone in this city save for his own mother. The red vixen sat with her legs in the same position as his own but her arms were holding her phone which she had been typing on most of the time they had been in this room, her emerald eyes focused on the screen in front of her.

If both foxes were walking down the street together most animals who passed them would only see two red foxes and not think anymore, unless they were pray then 9 times out of 10 they would cross the street away from the shifty preditors. They would not see that both Nick and this female had the same piercing green eyes. They would also not see the minute differences between them either. Nick, like most males of any given species, has a brighter coat then the vixen's. His held more orange compared to her strawberry-like coloring. His ears and tail are tipped with black, hers white. In fact, the vixen's fur heald more white than the average red fox but Nick always assumed that was due to her mother being an arctic fox.

The exasperated sigh caused Nick to open his eyes and look the vixen's way.

"That frustrating hu?" He said trying to muffle a chuckle.

"I sware public education is turning out more helpless freshmen every year," she said closing her eyes and leaning her head back against the wall. Her phone left in one hand down on her lap.

"You could always stop teaching." Said the Buffalo. As he turned his phone to the side. His tongue was sticking out of his muzzle and a look of excited concentration told Nick his boss was playing the racing game that almost every officer in the station had downloaded. He saw the same look on his best buddy's faces during morning coffee break more times then he could count. Granted the Buffalo could not wag his tail like the timber wolf could.

Ignoring Bogo completely the female fox made eye contact with Nick and illiterate, "I left my students with a simple take-home assignment since I could not find a Student-Teacher to cover my class, and I have an email box full of the dumbest questions. Does no one do their summer reading assignments anymore?"

Nick busted out laughing, unable to contain himself of his amusement at the ridiculous question. He knew the vixen was 100% serious in her annoyance. At least the Lamb at the other side of the room looked interested in the conversation.

"Oh, Professor I can attest as a former student of yours the answer is no" the sheep bayed.

But before they could all continue to mock the vixen the door opened and hopping in was the light of Nick Wilde's life.

NO Wilde. Partner, friend. That's it, put back on the hustle.

The internal monologue he had to repeat several times a day kicked in before Judy Hopps saw him. He calmed his face to show a half-smile just in time for the first bunny cop's violet eyes to look his way with a warm smile, she turned away from Nick and her smile faded to show more sympathy to the vixen.

"They're calling you next Amie." Judy said her hands bunched up in front of her and ears down.

The vixen stood and smoothed her navy pencil skirt before tugging the matching blazer in place, ears erect on the top of her head. Bogo and the sheep's eyes passed between her and Nick and he knew they were all thinking the same thing. If the prosecution wasn't calling Nick right after his partner then they weren't going to call him at all and hope the defense doesn't notice the 2 foxes with the same name.

Amie walked into the quiet courtroom and didn't waste the sideways glace to check out the gally as she headed to the witness stand. It was certainly filled with reporters trying to get the scoop on the newest "Trial of the Century". She buried the regret that started to bubble for deciding to wear the form-fitting navy suit and not a white lab coat once she saw the todd in the jury box directly in front of her stair her up and down. She sighed internally and pushed her glasses up her muzzle as she reached the bailiff that would swear her in. Once under oath, she climbed the two stairs to the witness stand and gracefully sat to face the prosecutor who stood from behind his table and sauntered in her direction. The Bloodhound buttoned his suit jacket before lifting his eyes to her and asked his first question.

"Please state your full name, title, and occupation for the jury."

"Doctor Amelia Natalie Wilde, I am a professor of Forensic Sciences at Zootopia College and University." As Amie spoke she leaned toward the microphone on the edge of the witness stand.

"What degrees in relation to this case do you hold Doctor?"

She suppressed the chuckle from how painstakingly the questions was worded and instead decided to rattle off the previously approved list as quickly and clearly as possible. In the witness prep she did with the bloodhound they focused on how to not bore the jury by going though her whole educational background but also impress upon them her abilities.

"I have a bachelor's in Forensic Science, a Masters's, and a Doctorate of Forensic Toxicology. I also recently completed a Masters Certificat in Criminal Justice Administration." Emerald eyes passed over the 12 mammals in the jury box. She knew exactly which parts of her education made her not only the perfect expert witness in the case but also why she was asked to do what she did for the ZPD six months ago.

She was sure once the Prosecutor was felt the jury could trust her education he then had to jump the hurdle of proving she was contacted because she was the best option not currently working in the department and not her relation to one of the investigating officers. Hopefully, that relation would not come up.

"Very impressive," the prosecutor's pause was thick in the air leading Amie to look out at the audience to see more than one skeptical face, "do you have a specialty in regards to toxicology, Doctor Wilde?"

Zootopia was not used to foxes with extensive degrees. It happened but rarely in criminal justice. Nick just got on the ZPD force barely a year ago and that would have been a media nightmare if Judy hadn't made sure to highlight how much he helped her with the Nigh Howler attacks. Even as a hero in the city his hiring came with plenty of push back.

"Objection" the defense, a hyena, hackled.

"Under what grounds?" The judge's eyes narrowed on the laughing canine.

"The prosecutor has made it quite clear the Doctor has an impressive education."

The bloodhound turned to the bench and placing on his most innocent face possible "This will be the last question to the doctor's capabilities your honer."

"I will allow it, but this better be the last one, or the female will start to sound like she is bosting. You may answer the question Doctor." The judge, a male koala said with a pass of his hand. Amie clicked her teeth to herself and sat up straighter before answering.

"I am able to identify the most popularly used narcotics on sight" Amie said after she turned from the judge back to the prosecutor.

"Would this ability of yours ever be used in substitute for testing a possible illegal drug sample in a criminal forensics lab?" The Prosecutor's eye went wide. The game had finally begun.

"No."

"Would you ever encourage your students to not test possible evidence in a criminal case because proper toxicology reports are expensive to the ZPD?" With more than little theatrics, the representation of the people turned and walked towards the jury box as he asked this question.

"No."

"And Doctor, If a recently graduated student of yours came to you with knowledge of a high ranking individual in the ZPD Criminal Forensics lab refusing to test evidence; sighting your unusual talent and the price of constantly testing multiple samples, what would you tell that former student to do?" the twist towards her put him directly in front of the jury. As she looked at him she could see their faces. He had them hooked. Now to deliver.

"I would inform that student they needed to report their superior for criminal misconduct." Green eyes meet the heated amber of the hounds and she knew he wasn't going to leave it to her word.

Assistant District Attorney Anthony Roolf crossed the courtroom in seconds to the evidence table and lifted a bag off of it. He read the evidence number off of the bag and walked steadily closer to Amie on the witness stand.

"Doctor Wilde do you recognize this document?" he gently laid the unbagged paper in front of her.

She picked it up and read a few lines to herself. "Yes, it is a print out of an email exchange between myself and Miss. Woolard."

"And what was the context of this conversation?" Roolf pointed to the paper.

"Miss. Woolard, after graduating from ZCU with a Masters in Forensics was working at the ZPD forensic lab in Savanah Central. She had noticed her superior, the head of the lab Mr. Mustelidae" Amie gestured toward the defense table, "excepting evidence. Marking it was tested with the findings of containing illegal narcotics, and then delivering that finding to the Police without ever testing the sample for its true chemical contents."

"OBJECTION!!! The witness is testifying to hearsay!" The hyena practically jumped across the defense table to get to the judge.

The judge slammed his gavel once in warning to the defense before turning eyes to Roolf.

"Doctor Wild is not testifying to hearsay, she is stating the start of the timeline of events that lead up to Mr. Mustelidae's arrest. Without the Doctor receiving this email the injustice occurring in Savanah Central Criminal Forensics Lab may have never come to light."

"I agree." said the irritated marsupial. "Another outburst like that from you Mr. Banzai and I will though you out of my courtroom." Shaking his gavel in the defense's direction.

"Yes sir." The hyena said as he sank back in his chair.

No more of ADA Roolf's questions to Amie were objected too and the questioning continued. Amie described how she knew Miss Woolard from teaching her in several classes and how she responded to the initial email. Insisting the young sheep report the badger who was destroying the sanctity of the criminal justice system. She did not know what transpired after her correspondence with the former student and before Chief Bogo walked into her office with a newly promoted police patrolmammel Wilde, but she did know that once the Cape Buffalo approached her she was going to be dragged into the mess whether she wanted to or not.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Six Months Earlier

Amie was sitting at the professor's desk in an empty classroom grading papers with her headphones in her ears. Her body swayed with the music as she underlined and x'ed papers with a red pen. She was obviously focused on her work to the point Nick wished he wasn't in uniform carrying heavy ZPD equipment standing next to Chief Bogo. He was missing a prim scaring the pants off of the vixen moment. Instead, Chief Bogo cleared his throat loudly. She didn't even stop swaying.

"Ah, yeah boss let me try." after Bogo grunted his approval. Nick put down the equipment and picked up a balled-up piece of paper that didn't make it into the wastebasket. He then expertly pitched it at the vixen's face like the little league superstar he was. It made contact with its intended target. Amie's face reacted instantly as the paper landed in her hands after toppling her glasses and causing an earbud to fall out of her ear. She turned to Nick and Bogo gasping at the insult. She made eye contact with Nick first.

"Why you little. . ." She threw the paperback at Nick. "That is not how you say 'hay I came for an unexpected visit' twerp." Nick caught the paper as it started to sink in front of him a few inches short of his chest. Bogo cleared his throat again causing her to leave her revenge and acknowledge the Chief of ZPD Precinct 1 was addressing her. "I am sorry Doctor this is not a personal call." Nick saw her shoulders slump as she took the males in. Nick realized it was the first time she had seen him in his duty uniform.

"How can I help you, officers?" Amie suddenly sounded more professional then Nick ever heard her, and he watched her present her dissertation.

"Doctor I would like to have a piece of evidence tested on camera," Bogo said gesturing to the film equipment near Nick's feet. Amie's eyes narrowed on Nick and he gave a light shrug. Why Bogo wanted her to do it was plain. She was the best Toxicolgest at the university. Why he dragged Nick across the city to the university to have an expert unconnected to the ZPD test the sample Nick knew but it was an open investigation so could not share with one of the few mammals he trusted with his life.

"I'll have to cancel my 7 o'clock class" Amie clicked away on her phone presumably emailing her students the change in plans. "It will take several hours for the results." She peered out from the side of her eye at the males still in the doorway of the classroom. Bogo lifted an eyebrow but only said "That will be fine."

Nick and the Cheif only arrived on campus at 5 pm and had to stop in with the Campus precinct before locating Amie. It was now 5:45 in the evening. As they left the classroom they found the vixen in she left a note on the Whiteboard.

Doctor Wilde's 6pm lecture canceled. Online discussions still due tonight!!!

Tonight was underlined 3 times, and Nick wondered how many co-eds will complain they didn't know the assignment wasn't pushed back. The three mammals walked down the hall to the elevator and took it down two levels to a floor of just laboratories. Nick tried not to remember his freshman chemistry class that was on this floor but when the old walrus that taught the class passed them he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Hay didn't I light that guys lab coat on fire 7 years ago?" Nick asked once he was out of earshot.

"Yes, and he won't let me live it down. Any time the science department plans a school-wide event he makes sure to say I'm not to go near a bunsen burner." Amie said giving Nick a dirty look. Bogo seamed confused for only a second. Then mumbled under his breath. "So you are related."

Amie stopped in front of a door where though the tinny window near the top only darkness greeted them. Above that door forensics lab, 1 was engraved. She turned the lights on as she strolled in and placed the bag she was carrying on the desk meant for the professors. Nick placed the digital camera case and tripod on the ground next to it and Bogo walked around and whistled.

"No wonder we can't hire you. You have all the shine toys right hear." Bogo said while stopping in front of a piece of machinery Nick couldn't even guess at what it does.

"What do you mean? Most of this stuff is a decade old?"

At Amie's words, Nick and Bogo exchanged a look that could only be described as telling. If Amie noticed it while putting on her lab coat she didn't say anything. She taped a piece of paper to the 2 doors of the lab and locked them. Nick figured they said something similar to the note left on the whiteboard in the classroom, and that she locked the doors because most mammals don't read signs. Working in traffic for the past few months solidified that as a fact in Nick's mind for good.

"What do we got?" Nick watched the Cape Buffalo hand the evidence bag to Amie and he started setting up the tripod. She looked at it briefly before handing it back and started sliding around the lab, turning on machinery and setting up equipment in an almost dance performed by someone who knew where everything they needed was and when they would need it.

The camera was rolling in no time and Bogo handed the bag back to Amie after she identified herself for the camera and he himself. She then described the bag as a ZPD evidence bag read off the case number and that it was initially collected by Officer Nicolas P. Wilde and then tested by an Edger Mustelidae, found to be over two grams of pure cocaine. After saying that out loud Amie looked up from the front of the bag and made direct eye contact with Nick. Her face had a professional what the fuck look to it. Nick again shrugged. Amie clicked her teeth and flipped the bag over in her hands to describe the first evidence seal on the bag had not been cut as it should have been by procedure. Instead, the bag according to her appeared to have been ripped open on the side. This time she looked at Bogo, who just nodded.

She did confirm the yellow evidence tape meant to reseal it was covering the possible hole before cutting into the red tape Nick put on the bag that morning before taking it to the Savannah Central lab. Inside of the bag was another much smaller plastic bag with a zip-top. It was as full of a yet to be determined white powder as it was this morning. Amie emptied the contents of the baggie into a small metal bowl and weighed it. Nick zoomed in on the scales readout as Amie read it out loud.

The vixen continued to her examination of the contents of the baggie. Including putting a small sample of if under a microscope before putting some in a test tube with a soluble solution and running it thought the Mass Spectrometer. As the three waited for the computer to finish analyzing Nick, Bogo, and Amie chatted. Mostly Bogo tried to convince Amie to take a position with the ZPD lab and Amie tried to make fun of Nick's uniform. As a patrolmammel he was wearing the same uniform Judy did. Once they became Corporals or higher they would ware the dress blues to work. Like what he wore to his graduation. Nick knew she knew that, but it didn't stop her from teasing.

"Wheres Judy anyway?" Amie finally asked Nick.

"She went to Bunny Burrow to visit her folks." Nick said not giving the Doctor eye contact. The vixen knew from the moment he got off the graduation stage at the academy he had a crush on the bunny, but he did not want her to know how far he let his feeling go. She knew him better than anyone and instead of pushing the subject she just started to hum. The same song she hummed at the picnic his mother brought for after the graduation. Judy and Nick's mom thought the song choice was related to being a cop would give Nick the opportunity to make the world better when the other females commented on the tune.

The computer's chime brought Nick out of his thoughts and had Amie pushing off in her rolly chair to the screen. "Well, it's not coke. Boys" Amie clicked on the mouse twice and started to roll back to the 2 police officers. Midroll she grabbed a freshly printed page off the printer and presented it to Bogo. Nick was already standing and bringing the camera which they left recording to zoom in over Bogo's shoulder. "Corn Starch, Talc, Magnesium, Silicon, and a bunch of other things but what it boils down to is Baby powder. I can't say brand yet, but I could by tomorrow if I downloaded the composition into the product database." Amie stated smugly.

"No need Doctor. Can you email this to me?" Bogo said standing and giving a good stretch.

"Yes, I can Cheif. It was nice working with you." Amie said shaking paws with the buffalo. Amie resealed the evidence with the ZCU evidence tape and handed the bag back to the chief after signing it, and started cleaning up what was left out. Most of what the Doctor used had already been cleaned and put back while they waited on the mass spec.

"Come on Wild. I'll give you a ride back to the precinct." Chie Bogo yawned and looked at his watch. "My wife is going to kill me."

"If you don't mind Chief I'll take the train in the morning. I think I want to grab some bad Chinese food with the Doc." Nick said. Bogo shrugged. Nick's day off was tomorrow so it didn't matter to his boss what he did that night.

________________________________________________________________________________

Present Day

"Doctor Amelia Wilde." The hyena rolled her name over his tong "You wouldn't happen to be related to Officer Nicolas Wilde of the ZPD? The very officer who investigated the allegations your student Miss Woolard place on my client."

Amie was not surprised by the question. If the defense attorney was worth anything he would need to ask that question.

"Yes, I am related to Officer Nicolas Wilde."

"How?" He smirked as he leaned in close to Amie.

"Our fathers were brothers. We are first cousins." Amie did not mention Nick was the closest thing to a little brother she would ever have or that they were very close as kitts.

Banzai started himself on a roll and he wasn't going to stop until Amie's credibility was shredded.

Don't give them an inch honey.

Amie's mother's voice in her country accent said in her mind.

Or they will take a mile.

Amie put on her best nonchalant face and peered at the cackling hyena through hooded bored eyes.

"You said earlier Doctor that you have the ability to tell "the most popularly used narcotics on sight" is that right?" He asked quoting her own words.

"Yes."

"What narcotics are you referring to in this statement?"

"Powdered cocaine, Nepeta cataria or catnip dried or leaf, and heroin from anywhere from liquid to crack." A female somewhere in the room gasped. "Oh, you do not get to turn the tables on me." Amie thought as she tried not to grind her teeth and struggled to keep her face the picture of professional disinterest.

"How did you acquire such a skill?" Every tooth in the Hyenia's head was visible.

Amie wondered if the hyena was banking on her pleading the 5th and thus discrediting her entire account. Instead, she clicked her teeth, sat back in her chair, and looked up at the defense.

"A professor in my doctorate studies would not sign off on your degree unless you can properly identify three illegal substances on sight. I identified every substance he placed on the table during my final exam. There were 5. One of them was lemongrass. I repeat this test as extra credit to my master's students." She watched Banzai's face fall as he moves away from her as if her words burned.

"No more questions for the witness." The defense said and sat down in his chair.

Mustelidae tried to whisper in his defense's ear probably trying to figure out what just happened. As Amie came down from the witness stand she gave a light smile to the jury. What she saw told her two things about the trial going forward. The jury believed her, and Nick was going to be called to the stand by the defense.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Nick was surprised by how long his cousin was out of the room and started to really worry. He didn't know when he got up to start pacing the room, or when Judy's nose started to twitch but combined with Bogo no longer playing his game just answering calls and watching the clock with ears down pressed by his head. Had Nick feel dread climbing up his throat ready to explode when the door finally opened. "Aims! Straight Aim talk to me!" Nick pleaded, calling her by the nickname only he used. The vixen passed him in a daze, ears down tail dragging behind her, she spilled in the chair directly in front of the door as it closed.

"That bad?" The chief asked looking at the door and swallowing hard.

"No, it went rather well actually." She said sitting up straighter ears perking up. "I just really need a beer"

Nick burst out into laughter. "Well good thing I know a place."