The Time Traveler's Guide to Zootopia

Chapter 37, Part 1: One Small Favor

Charity and I had a wonderful time last night.

Among the many conversations we had, I remembered the one we had outside her home.

We were standing on the treehouse front porch, admiring a kaleidoscopic batch of flowers growing on a nearby tree branch. She gently picked one and showed it to me.

"Is this...real?" I asked.

"Of course, it is," she smiled. "Why wouldn't it be?"

I carefully examined it. "It looks too good to be real."

She then held the flower closer to my nose, causing me to sneeze. We both laughed.

"Wow... it is real."

"And it matches your eyes," she said, wagging her tail.

I blushed at the compliment, trying my best to hide it. I never expected to be associated with such an exquisite hydrangea flower - mainly due to the type of world I came from, where there were no flowers.

Later that evening, we watched a funny movie, relaxed on the warm sofa, and enjoyed one another's company during a heavy rainstorm. Her treehouse shelter made for an ideal setting, protecting us from the elements, standing 170 feet above the forest canopy, offering spectacular views, showcasing lush green foliage, and carrying natural aromas that rejuvenated the senses. We couldn't have asked for anything better.

Perhaps I should move to the Rainforest District someday. So I thought as I sat up in my apartment bed.

Such a place would've cost a fortune in other worlds... but Zootopia had common land access for all of its animal inhabitants. As a result, not only can anyone be anything... but anyone can be anywhere.

The other districts were just as impressive, but Rainforest had something special. It wasn't too hot or too cold; it was just suitable for the most part. Plus, it had more than triple the vegetation. Even though City Hall was kind enough to grant me a place to stay in Savanna Central, I wanted to change the scenery quite a bit, mostly because I've lived in vast mega-cities for most of my life. Thus, my eyes were set on the forest - a magical place with a myriad of majestic waterfalls and massively lush trees.

Making that plan come to fruition wouldn't take long. Maybe not days... but not years. Assuming I worked overtime for the ZPD, I could potentially afford to transition between districts in less than a month. That was the goal... but thinking about it made me feel exhausted. It was easier said than done. Working as a police officer in Zootopia wasn't a walk in the park as I initially thought it would be.

Now that it was Saturday morning, it was time to take full advantage of the remaining weekend before resuming any police work on Monday morning. In other words, before heading back into the zoo.

I called it a 'zoo' because animals were always on the loose, needing to be thrown back into their steel cages, and remain locked up for good. Such thoughts weren't culturally appropriate for this world, but my inner human justified such grievances toward those who truly deserved it. Namely, those razorbacks.

Those despicable, oversized beasts.

They were all over the morning paper. The same ones from before. Not only did they steal nearly 1/3 of Zootopia's golden reserves during last week's failed highway chase, but they've also managed to ransack various warehouses scattered throughout the city, all within the last 48 hours. Tundratown Labs, the Palm Hotel Tech Convention, and even the Natural History Museum were all recently hit. Hardware crates disappeared, antique props were taken, and a couple of lobbies were flooded with water.