Judy needed to sit down. Oh, she was already sitting down. Nick stroked her ears, smiling at her. He seemed so happy. Oh! They had been promoted. That happened. She almost forgot. Bogo was stepping in as mayor? But who would be the chief? Who would she answer to? Would she thrive under new leadership with new ideas, even temporarily? Would the new, temporary chief be complicit with the relationship Judy had with her partner?
Wait, if they were both promoted to sergeant, they would be acting in supervisory roles. Didn't that mean they couldn't even be partners? Judy closed her eyes, ears actually ringing from the sudden influx of new information and worries. The newscaster on TV was still talking about the incidents, the murders, the police action in the Interior and the investigation within the ZBI, but Judy just looked up to her partner.
"It's gonna be okay, right?" she asked him, eyes pleading. Nick was certainly that their partnership might not be permanent, as a promotion would likely change that. They had discussed it both when he became an officer, and when they started dating. But now that it was a reality, it frightened Judy. Nick continued to stroke those graceful bunny ears and smiled down to her.
"It's gonna be different, but we can handle it. We're still a team, no matter what." He whispered. That fueled Judy's confidence a lot and she pulled herself up closer to her fox. Her primary worry sated just a bit, she became more focused on what was going on around her again. Bay and Honey had gone upstairs to print some pictures and save video clips for the file to be provided to both the ZPD and the ZBI. The moment Bogo had made his critical announcement, Rosette got on the phone to call someone important to discuss that. Judy wasn't really sure who she called, but the cat had gone out on the back porch to have a quiet phone call. The four hyenas went upstairs to just think about the part of that news conference that meant something to them. Ukweli had been the reason that a terrible crime committed in his homeland over a hundred years ago could finally be investigated and known for the terrible thing that it was.
It happened so long ago that none of the original perpetrators would likely be alive, but the corporation who intended to continue covering it up was going to answer for any real part they played. This included the infiltration of the Interior Affairs department, by appointment or by money. They played dirty and the Lanolin name would burn away faster than any village they had attacked a century before. The idea that there had been a massive conspiracy at the heart of all of this by sheep didn't set well with Judy either. It was obvious that only those really involved in the cover-up were responsible and culpable. However, between the Bellwether plot and this new terrible secret, it was not going to be fun to be a sheep in Zootopia for a while. It wasn't right, but she knew it was going to be the truth.
The lion sisters were in the dining room talking with Vivienne. They were suddenly very interested in who she was, where she came from, and where she learned to use a bow. Cassie predictably asked what Nick was like as a kit, and a picture saved in the vixen's phone gallery was shown before Judy's partner could do anything to stop it.
Jack and Skye had gone out on the front porch to talk quietly on the swing. They had been very close to one another the entire time, and seemed intent on being closer still. The buck's vow made a difference in his vixen, and Judy was encouraged to see that as well. They were so nice together.
"I bet they make Mayumi Tora the new acting chief until Bogo gets back." Nick said, snapping Judy's attention back on him.
"Tora?" Judy asked, "But she only transferred in like... two years ago from the island. She has almost less experience with the City of Zootopia than I do."
"Yeah, but she was still the Assistant Chief." Nick argued.
"In training." Judy countered.
"Can we take a bet?" Nick asked.
