Zootopia had indeed became calmer in the last week. It were seven days straight without another protest in the city or in the neighboring areas. It really seemed that everyone had calmed down after the interview.

However, there were still some mammals who insisted to make a fuss.

As Nick and Judy approached on foot, they were soon able to make out the form of mammals that composed the group that was trying to form another protest. It should be a little over dozen or so of them, and they were holding some signs that read things like: "[b]God Hates Magecraft[/b]", and "[b]Mages Go Home[/b]".

"Well, these guys actually go by the book." Nick said as he and Judy walked to the group. "They lack imagination, but I guess that you can't go wrong with the classics."

As they continued to approach, they could also hear them seeming to be chanting a motto:

"Mages leave our city!" They chanted, over and over again.

"Look at that, they even have their own battle cry." Nick said as they approached, and Judy simply remained silent, until both of them were near enough for her to try to talk to them.

"Excuse me. Excuse me, sir? Ma'am?" The bunny tried, but she was drowned by the voices of the agitators. "Will you… I just want to… Hey. Hey!" The bunny continued trying, and Nick was about to say something to her, when she finally lost he cool and she screamed out on top of her lungs:

"SHUT UP!"

The scene immediately froze, as all eyes turned to the bunny. Most of them were looking shocked for that small bunny being able to scream with such force. Nick was among them. He was not really surprised, but it still got to him just how loud Judy could be when she truly wanted to.

Judy took a deep breath, and she looked at the protestors. "Ladies and gentleman, could you all please listen to me for a second?" She said, and there was no answer, so she continued, "I'm Officer Hopps, and this is my partner Officer Wilde." Nick gave everyone a salute as he was presented, "We would like to know what is the goal you all have in here?"

"Ain't that obvious?" Said a voice, making Nick and Judy turn to it.

"We want to help others see that these mages are dangerous and that they should not be allowed to be among righteous mammals." Said the female armadillo, who had brownish-grey coloration on her body, stood on 3'4'' feet tall, and was dressed in a kind of "grandma style". Judy recognized her instantly.

"You!" The bunny said, and Nick was not far behind.

"Well, look at that, if it isn't the armadillo lady." Nick said, "So, I never got to ask you how was that tea you said you were going to drink."

The armadillo glared at him. "First of all, my name is Eunice Armadill. [i]Mrs. Armadill[/i] to you, fox." She said, rather aggressively. "Second of all, what I do in my free time is none of your business!"

"You don't talk to my partner like that." Judy said to her. "Now, I'd really like to know what is your goal doing all of this? Are you trying to start another protest? Because this would count as disturbing order."

"We are merely expressing ourselves." Said Armadill. "We are letting our opinions on these witches and sorcerers clear. Ain't that correct?" She asked the crowd, and many agreed with her.

"Oh, so you're not a fan?" Nick asked her, and Mrs. Armadill glared at him again, and she seemed ready to say something to him, but one gaze at the bunny who was with him was enough to make her change her mind.

"Are you going to arrest us?" the armadillo asked the two cops, but she seemed to be deliberating avoiding to look at Nick or address him specifically. "Because we are in all rights to express our opinion."

"Yes, you are." Judy agreed with her. "As long as you do so in an organized way. The constitution defends the right to protest, as long as these protests are made without any violence, and as long as you respect the rights of other mammals."

"Oh, so we are doing something wrong because we are not respecting the rights of a bunch of devil worshippers?" The armadillo asked, seeming like she was quite outraged by the bunny. "What about [i]our[/i] rights? What about the right of knowing that we are safe from someone who will cast a curse on us and turn us into stone? What about our right to know that our children and grandchildren will not be at risk of becoming target to some mage who decided to have a little fun at the cost of some innocent mammal? What about out rights to be sure that we don't live in the same place of some evil animal who kills chickens and uses their blood to paint a pentagram on the ground?"

As she spoke, many of the small crowd were agreeing with her. All the while, they got curious looks from many mammals who were passing by. Judy had listened to the talk of Mrs. Armadill, and she wanted to say something to her, however, the memories of the ritual that she caught being perform a little over a week before was something that still clung to her head.

"Wow…" Nick said, getting the attention of the two females. "You really are quite uptight, aren't you, Mrs. Armadill?"

"Excuse me?" The armadillo asked the fox, who continued to smile at her.

"What was it, did the magician your parents hired for your birthday scared you will he made a pidgeon come out of his hat?" He asked, and the armadillo lady looked pretty angry at him for saying that, "Tell me, what have mages done to get you so angry?"

"They are evil!" The armadillo said, "What they do is not natural, they are dangerous!"

"Well, I'm sure you have your reasons to say something like that…" Nick said, and the armadillo lady was quick to cut him:

"Of course I do!" She spoke to him, sounding really pissed. "Or have you forgotten a few months ago when a mage threatened me!?"

"Well, not that I want to defend the mage, or anything…" Nick said, remembering full well of the episode that the armadillo lady was talking about. "But, it seemed to me that he was only dancing, and he was about to leave without causing problems, until the moment you decided to insult him." Nick spoke to her. "So, he might have been aggressive, but you were being aggressive before he was."

The armadillo looked to be utterly mad at Nick as he spoke that, if the glare she was giving him was of any indication.

"So, yeah, that kind of was your fault." Nick concluded his thought, ignoring the glare. "Maybe that wouldn't have happened if you were a little bit nicer. You know, maybe gave him a coin for performing so well…"

"Now listen here, fox!" The armadillo said, but she was unable to conclude her thought, for Judy immediately interrupted her:

"Mrs. Armadill!" Judy said, causing the armadillo look at her. "Before you say anything that could constitute disrespect with an authority, speciest behavior, or anything else that could account as a felony, I recommend you to think twice!"

"Oh, so you will arrest me now?" The armadillo said to her. "Curious, you didn't seemed very keen on arresting these mages when I told you to!"

Judy didn't answered, and the armadillo took this as a sign that she had made a point.

"How curious that you didn't wanted to arrest these trouble makers and one of them turned out to be one of these dangerous mages, who do things like black magic and casting curses on others! That is unacceptable!" She said to them, and the two cops only looked back at the armadillo. "This goes against moral and good customs, and we are not going to simply lower our heads and accept this!"

As she spoke that, many of the crowd agreed with her, and Nick and Judy only looked. Nick had a mask of indifference, but it did bothered him that so many mammals could act so ignorant. Judy was clearer on her dissatisfaction through her unamused expression. However, there was nothing much that they could do…

Suddenly, a sound of clapping filled the air, accompanied by a voice.

"Very good!" The voice said, "What a nice speech!"

Everyone turned to look, and the eyes of the three small mammals widened. Of the armadillo lady in particular, who looked like she had just seen a ghost.

The horse stood in there, clapping his hooves at the armadillo lady. He had changed his clothes for a white shirt and red jacket, as well as a pair of long crimson pants. Still, it was possible to recognize the horse. The armadillo could not forget the mammal who threatened her with a heart made of flames, and Nick and Judy still remembered the horse perfectly well from the night on the storehouse.

Percy smiled at all of them. "Oh, how fancy is it that we all shall meet again in a situation like that!" He said to the three, and the crowd looked at the horse, some of them rather confused.

Nick and Judy had been quick to turn to him and reach for their weapons, and they pointed it at the horse as he approached. They soon saw that the horse was not alone, as Evan, the blue-furred dog, was with him. They both looked at the small cops.

"Hello, once again, officers." He said to the two, "You look particularly good, Officer Hopps, considering that you have been stabbed into the stomach."

"Hold it there." Judy said, pointing a dart gun at him.

"Oh, don't trust me, huh?" Percy said, "Well, can't really blame you, once my friends threatened you…"

"Yeah, they certainly did." Nick said, remembering full well when Judy had been stabbed by that possum. "Where are your friends, by the way?"

"Oh, they are dealing with a few things." Percy said, "Things were a bit crazy ever since that night, they are still giving Butch a hard time for letting himself be darted… Oh, hello there! How you doing?" He said to the armadillo lady, who looked ready to faint as she looked at him.

"A-arrest him…" She said, starting to duck behind the two officers. "H-he is a mage! Arrest him now!" As she spoke that, the rest of the crowd reacted, as many now looked at the horse, and he only smiled back at the crowd with a smile. He took a hoof to his lips and blew a kiss. This kiss produced a violet flame that took the form of a heart, and floated into the air.

Everyone backed away at this. Nick and Judy were even more at attention, and the armadillo lady squeaked and she almost tripped on her own feet as she stumbled backwards, it seemed that she as ready to curl in a ball.

"Don't move!" Judy said to him. "Please, do not try anything!" She said as she pointed the dart gun at the horse. He simply chuckled, and the flaming hear started to float around him.

"Don't worry." He said to the bunny cop. "I don't plan on getting on trouble with anyone today… unless I get pissed off again." He said, giving a look at the armadillo lady, who squeaked once more, and this time she did curled up un a ball, rolling backwards. This caused Percy to laugh.

The cops continued to point their dart guns at him, and he looked back at the cops.

"Yeah, I really wanted to apologize for both of you for that night at the storehouse." Percy said to them. "It was really nothing personal."

"Oh, really?" Nick said to him, "So, stabbing mammals and threatening them is not personal?"

"It were orders from the boss." Percy said, "When she tells us to do something, we gotta do it. Seriously, you have no idea what that woman does with who doesn't listen to her…"

"Yeah, we are not really interested in it, Percy." Nick said to him, "By the way, it is just 'Percy', or do you have a surname? You know, so we can make the arrest a bit more official."

The horse looked at him for a few moments. Then his face brightened.

"Oh, yeah!" He said, "I never truly got to introduce myself, did I? How rude of me…"

As he said that, he gave a step back, and he seemed like he was ready to formally introduce himself. And he did:

"Known as 'Lord of the Flaming Rainbow' and 'Rebellious Joker', member of the Black Vipers, I am Percival Colter, of the Colter clan." The horse said, bowing to the two officers, all under the eyes of the watching group of protesters and of many curious mammals who had already fished their phones out and were recording that. He got up from the bow and added:

"Or at least I was until my parents kicked me out."

"Wow… that is something." Nick said, still aiming carefully at the horse, all the while he kept his eyes in the dog that was on the background.

"Yeah, mages have the tradition of introducing themselves to others, including their associations and their titles, when they think it is worth it." The horse said to him. "We are very keen on traditions, you know… well, most of us, anyway."

"Charming." Nick said.

"Yeah, we try to be charming with others." The horse said with a smile. Meanwhile, nick still kept an eye for the dog on the background.

"What about him?" Nick asked, "Ain't he gonna introduce himself?"

"Yeah, I'm not much like that." The dog said, and Percy agreed.

"Yeah, Evan used to be a technocrat." He said to the two officers. "These guys are a bit more serious than mages, if you can say so. They don't take presentation and formality much in account."

"How interesting…" Nick said, still masking his worry as he heard that, and kept his eyes into the two mammals, Judy still by his side. "Technocrats are the super sci-fi guys, right? They don't like to appear as much as mages, so?"

"They are a bit more formal, if you say so. Kind of like scientists, they don't have much time for things like formal presentations and ceremonies." He said to them, "Not as much as mages, anyway. Between us, I think that deep down all mages have a certain flair for the theatric."

"Yeah, I can see that." Nick said to him, "For guys who lived a long time hiding, it seems that some of you guys actually like attention…"

Colter chuckled. "Yeah, some of us actually enjoy being at the center of attention, even if it is not for our magecraft. We enjoy being recognized by others and to have others admire our skills. Of course, some mages have this more than others, and some of us actually go as far as to try and get attention. That can lead to trouble."

Percy said, and he looked up. "Can I be totally honest?" He asked to the two small officers, and he looked at them. "I am kind of glad that we got exposed."

The two looked at him, and the horse chuckled.

"Many would be mad at me for saying something like that, but I [i]am[/i] glad that we are no longer a secret, and that the cone of silence has fallen." He said to them, "Now, I can get to do a lot of things that I've always wanted."

"Really?" Nick asked him, "Like what?"

"Like…" The horse said, turning to the flaming hear that was still floating around him. "This." He said, poking it with his hoof, and making the heart react. The thing swelled a little bit, and started to change colorations. Now the heart was burning more intensely, and it was changing to all colors of the rainbow. This gathered a reaction from all of the mammals around, some of which gasped, and some of which were amazed by what they were seeing, and the two cops were even more on the edge.

"And also… this." Colter said again, and snapped his hooved fingers, creating three puff of flames. Each one took the shape of a specific form. One was shaped like a diamond, one was shaped like a suit of clubs, and the last one shaped like a suit of swords. All of them burned in a kaleidoscope of the colors of the rainbow, just like the heart.

The horse smiled, and he made gestures with his hooves, making all of the shapes that he created to dance around him, with a lot of elegance, it could be added. After a few moments of dance, all of the flaming suits of cards gathered by his sides. The horse snapped his hooves, and all of the symbols swelled and exploded in a great rain of rainbow-colored sparks.

Many mammals reacted at this, with some of them actually clapping at the show that the horse just gave them. Colter even went along with it and bowed to the mammals around.

[i]Yeah, flair for the theatric.[/i] Nick thought as he looked at the horse, and he had to admit that it was rather impressive. Meanwhile, Judy still pointed her dart gun at him, and she was now reaching for her radio.

Meanwhile, nick noticed movement from behind, and he saw that the dog had his eyes on the bunny, and that he was doing something with his paws, as he looked as if he was tapping on an invisible keyboard.

"Dispatch. This is Officer Hopps requesting back up, Officer Wilde and I have just met a… situation." Judy said, but there was no answer from the radio.

"Dispatch, Officer Hopps, requesting back up." Judy tried again, but not answer. "Clawhauser, are you there?"

Nick looked at her, and reached out for his own radio, and tried it, but it was silent. Nick instantly knew what had happened. It was the dog. It was just like in the storehouse back them when their radios had gone mute. Nick looked at the dog, who had a sly smirk as he looked back at the fox.

"Darn!" Judy said, and she continued to point her dart gun at the horse. "Okay, Percival Colter, you are coming with us."

"Really?" The horse said, "Under what charges?"

"Cruelty with beasts, for killing the crocodiles back at that day in the storehouse." Judy said, "Also for threatening officers and innocent mammals, in the same night."

"Oh… these are actually some good charges." The horse admitted.

"Yes, and you are coming with us." Judy said, and the horse looked back at her.

"I don't think so. I have other things to do." The horse said, and the bunny gave a step forward.

"Mr. Colter, are you resisting prison?" The bunny asked, and the horse smiled at her.

"You can think that if you want." He said casually, "And I really recommend that you let me go."

As he said that, something was glowing on his hoof, something that both Nick and Judy noticed.

"What is that you have?" Judy asked, "Hooves where I can see!"

"We'll be leaving now." The horse said, raising his hoof, to show that he now had a card-shaped rainbow flame in it. "And you will be letting us go, if you know what is good for you."

"You have just added threats to cops." Judy said to him. "Now, put down… that thing, and place your hooves in your head."

The horse looked at her, and he smiled, and gave two steps in her direction, a very clear provocation, that immediately caused a reaction. Judy gave a shot with her dart gun, but the horse didn't minded this, for he swiped the card on his hoof, and sliced the dart clear in half midflight, causing both parts of it to fall to the ground.

Immediately after, the horse made a gesture to the side, tossing the flaming card into the air. The thing then described perfect curves in the air, and flew to the two officers. Before they could react, the card passed by their guns, one after the other, slicing through them clean, making their from part fall to the ground while the rest of it remained in their paws.

Both Nick and Judy jumped back at this, as well as many mammals who were watching. The cops were not harmed in any way, but their dart guns had been rendered useless. The card continued to sail through the air, and it returned to the horse, who swiftly grabbed it in his other hoof.

Nick and Judy looked at their dart guns, and then shared a look. They looked back at the horse, as he clasped his hooves together, and opened them in a wide gesturing, generating a myriad of rainbow flaming cards, which now flew in front of him, and they formed some kind of barrier of moving fire cards between the cops and the two mammals.

"They will fly to you if you try to advance." The horse warned them. "I recommend keeping your distance." He spoke, and turned to the dog, "Evan, we will [i]vanish form the party[/i] now."

The dog nodded, and tapped a few more keys on his invisible console, and soon, a screen of blue light, identical to that of the night of the storehouse materialized. The horse turned back to the cops.

"It was nice seeing you two again. Especially you, Mr. Russet." He said to Nick. "But, I have to say, it is a little cliché meeting a fox named Russet. It would only be more cliché if your mother was named 'Vixen'."

"Yeah, I imagine that." Nick said to him, and Judy looked like she was trying to calculate the right moment to jump to avoid all of the flaming cards and go for these two. Nick would probably have to hold her if she tried. "But luckily, my mother's name is Sophie."

"Sophie, huh? Well, that's a nice…" The horse said, but suddenly he stopped, as if he had suddenly realized something. "Wait, 'Sophie', as in… Sophie Wilde?"

Nick looked at him, "Yeah, that's her name, why?"

The horse looked at him for a few moments, and suddenly, he let out a neighing laugh. Nick had an eyebrow raised as he looked at him.

"You…" The horse said, in between laughs, "You are the son of Sophie Wilde!? Oh man, that is rich!"

Nick continued to glare at him.

"Why is that so funny?" Nick demanded, and the horse recovered a little.

"Oh boy! I gotta tell Zane this! We all thinking that you were just a poser, when you actually are the son of the infamous Sophie Wilde! The guys will love this!"

That was all that the horse said, before turning around and walking to the screen that the dog had created. Meanwhile, Judy noticed that the cards were dwindling away and vanishing in the air.

By the time the horse had gone through the screen, the last card vanished from the air, and Judy immediately sprinted forward.

"Judy!" Nick called her, but she ignored him.

"Stop now!" She cried out, but the horse had already gone, and the dog followed him through the blue screen, which soon vanished in thin air. Judy stopped in the place where the screen had just been, looked around, but she saw absolutely nothing. Not a single clue of both the horse and the dog.

"Crackers!" Judy said. She could not believe that these two had been right on their sights and disappeared like that! It was so frustrating!

"Wow! Did you see that!?" Someone around said.

"Totally! They crossed some kind of dimensional portal!"

"That is so cool!"

"Mages are awesome! I wish I could do that!"

"He was threatening the cops! These mages might be cool, but they are also dangerous!"

While the mammals all around talked among themselves about what they had just witnessed, some of them already uploading the videos on their phones in the internet, Mrs. Armadill was still curled into a ball on the ground. With the silence out, someone nearby could hear her voice asking:

"Are they gone yet?"

[center]**********************[/center]

Their radios were working again after a few minutes, and it was enough for Judy to give a call for Clawhauser and tell him to send the forensics team to investigate, after giving a brief resume of what had transpired. The cheetah had been worried at them, but Judy assured him the everything was okay.

After all was solved, Judy and Nick both went back to station, and after filling in requests for new dart guns, they both went to make their reports.

Paperwork. Nick's personal nemesis. That was something that probably would not change. Well, at least now Nick could make an honest paperwork of his meeting with a mage, once he knew that Judy's report would say around the same thing, and that people would be less inclined on calling him crazy.

Nick made his best to work on his report, however, his mind kept going back to what the horse said right before vanishing.

"The infamous Sophie Wilde."

What did that even meant? Nick was not sure what to think of this. Could it be that the horse was just trying to tease him? To get into his head? Could it be that he only wanted a reaction out of Nick? Still, the way that he had spoken that…

Nick barely noticed time pass, until he finally was able to finish his report, and he gave a look at the clock, seeing that it was now very close to the end of their shift.

Sighing, Nick finished what he had to do and decided to go pick up his partner.

He found her right where he expected, on her cubicle, working on her own report. Nick knew that she had picked up the noise of his footfalls, as he saw the movement of her ears, and he just stood by her side, taking a look at the report that she was writing. Which seemed to be almost twice as long as the one that Nick wrote.

"Wow." Nick said, "Now that is a thorough report."

"Well, I did wrote down everything that I could remember." Judy said, "It all might be important if we cross paths with that horse again."

"Yeah, it would be nice for us to know that he can create killer flaming cards… that even sounds like something out of one of the Nipponese cartoons."

"Aaaand done." Judy said, as she finished her report. Nick asked her if he could take a quick look, and she agreed.

The bunny had backed up his story, as he knew that she would do. Nick was surprised at the amount of detail that was written down in there.

"Yeah, you always do a very thorough job, Carrots." Nick said as he looked at detailed descriptions of the horse, of the dog, and of the things that they done, as well as some lines of the words that were spoke back there. Some of them word-by-word.

"You know, I still get amazed by how good your memory is." Nick admitted to the bunny. "You sure you don't have photographic memory or something?"

Judy chuckled, "No, Nick. I just have a really good memory." She said to him. "I guess that is just how I am."

"It is really cool." Nick said to her. "I wish I could remember things so well like that."

"Well, you could try some way of focusing." Judy said to him. "When I want to remember something that I think I forgot, I always try to focus on a glass filling with water and them spilling."

"Really? And that helps?" Nick said.

"Yeah, for some reason it does." Judy said to him. "I don't know why, but every time I picture that in my mind's eye I can remember nearly anything."

Nick nodded at her, and he said:

"So, we are both done with our reports, and just in time for the end of our shift." Nick said to her, "So, wanna get out of here?"

"What? Already?" Judy said, looking at the time and seeing that it was, indeed, the end of their shift. "But we still have things to do. We need to check with forensics if they found clues on the horse and the dog."

"We can very well do that tomorrow." Nick said to her.

"But, Nick." Judy said, "They are both mammals who seem to be inclined to violence! They were part of a group that attempted against our lives and of others! Not to mention that they were obviously with shadowy intentions and related to the tiger and coyote who tried to attack you! We need to get to the bottom of this and find the rest of their group!"

"And then do what?" Nick asked her, "Judy, I don't know if you remember well, but last time we tried to face some mages they kind of got over us easily. What happened today is only another proof that we don't really stand a lot of chance against mages. At least not on our own…"

Judy was forced to agree. She could perfectly remember how easily the horse had them both overpowered, even because she wrote a whole report on how the whole thing went, with a richness of details. She still could barely believe that they were dominated so easily. It all happened so fast.

"Yeah, I imagined you would see my point." Nick said to her. "So, I say that we take a while to rest today and get our strength gathered for another day of work tomorrow. Even because, we do have something important to do today…"

Judy looked up to him, and she saw the face of the fox, it was dead serious.

"We need… to have our movie night." The fox deadpanned.

There was a long silence after this, as Judy only stared at the fox. Suddenly, Judy burst into chuckles.

"Oh, Nick… you dumb fox." She said to him, and Nick smiled at her.

Soon after, the two mammals were moving back to the changing rooms, getting ready to trade their police uniforms by their civilian clothing, and get ready to go back home.

Both Nick and Judy were not the only officers that were changing, and the ones who were changing often talked among themselves.

Nick could very well hear the officers around talking to each other around him.

"Yeah, my brother suspects that his neighbor is a mage." Someone said, and a voice answered:

"Really, why?"

"He says that the neighbor is weird and don't talk to others, and that he doesn't own a cellphone. He thinks that the guy must be a mage, because they are antisocial and hate technology."

"Yeah, maybe, but thinking that the guy is a mage only based on that? He needs a bit more evidence before thinking something like that, don't you agree?"

And these two were not the only ones who were talking about it.

"I still don't believe it." Said Meerkovits, "To think that all this time mages were among us and were kept a secret by a worldwide conspiracy? My brother is going crazy over this, he is a conspiracy theorist, you know? Though he actually believed in aliens…"

"Yeah, it seems that nothing will be the same again." McHorn said, "Now we know that there are mages like that who can create flames out of thin air and throw them at others. I'm not gonna lie, I'm still a bit nervous…"

"You should be." Said McChill, as the burly polar bear changed from his police uniform. "If mages are half as powerful as they say, then I guess all of us have good reasons to be worried."

"Yeah, but the ferret girl said that mages have their own laws and police." McHorn said back at him. "I guess that should make us a little safer, right?"

McChill scoffed, "Yeah, as if you can believe the words of a ferret. I don't doubt that she lied to us at least about part of what she said."

Nick could only roll his eyes at this. Of course that the polar bear would continue to be the same speciest jerk of always. The revelation of the existence of the supernatural would not get him to change."

"Be a little more speciest, will yah?" Wolfard said, as he walked close, he now was only on his boxers. "Anyway, I gotta admit that knowing that are some mages like that makes me a bit nervous, because there are some among them that do not respect rules. Wilde and Hopps met with a mage today, and he threatened them with flames. Seriously, is on the internet. The guy is a horse."

Nick sighed. Of course, it would be on the internet. It was no surprise, after all, mages are still a big thing, and any video of them posted online about them would be some hot stuff. That craze would still take a while to go away, if it went away at all.

"Yeah, I saw it!" Fanghanel said, "This guy dared to threaten Zootopia's darlings! He is lucky I was not there! Otherwise I'd have punched him in the muzzle! But don't worry, Judy is fine, I just came back from the female changing rooms."

"You were in the female locker rooms?" Someone asked, and the wolf said back:

"Of course, I had to check on Judy to see if she was okay!" He spoke as if it was the perfectly reasonable thing to do. "These mages better keep away from them! I don't have anything against mages, I kind of like their magic and stuff, since I was a pup, but if they dare try to harm them or my pumpkin, by my ancestors fangs, I'll give them beating!"

"Yeah, but you were really in the female locker room?"

"Yeah, I was, and the placed is cleaner than ours… Well, as far as I could see, the girls practically dragged out of there by the tail…"

Nick rolled his eyes, and he continued to change.

Once he was back into his civilian clothes, he met up with Judy, who also had changed. She smiled at him in her green shirt and jeans pants. As they walked in direction to the exit:

"Nick! Judy!"

They both turned around to see Benjamin running to them. He too had changed, as he was wearing a pink t-shirt and a pair of pants that looked a little snug on him. He was rushing to the two, and he was panting a bit as he stopped in front of them.

"GuysIjustsawthevideoareyoutwookayomgoodnessIcantbelivethishappened-"

"Clawhauser. Benjamin. Ben!" Judy said, getting the cheetah to stop his frantic talking, "Take a deep breath." Judy said, and the cheetah obeyed, breathing deeply and puffy his cheeks in a comic way, before he let it out, and then he resumed talking, this time more calmly.

"Guys, I just saw the video online." He explained to them. "How you two met up with a mage on the street and that he threatened both of you… How he destroyed your equipment with fire. Are… are you paws okay?"

"Yeah, no burns or anything, and no missing fingers." Nick said, massaging his paw. "But I gotta say; it did gave us a scare."

"Oh, I'm so glad you two are okay." Benjamin said to them. "I still can't believe that the horse did that! Using magecraft against non-mages like that is not nice! It is illegal! The Codex forbids things like that froooooooom…" Benjamin was saying, but he stopped when he saw the way that the two smaller mammals were looking at him.

"W-well, I assume that it forbids from using magecraft against others like that…" He said to them. "I mean, there are laws against killing, so there must be laws against using magecraft as a form of aggression, unless it is for self-defense… I mean, it is the same with weapons on our laws, right?"

"Yeah… I guess you are right." Judy said, and she seemed to accept it, however, Nick was still looking at the cheetah with a raised eyebrow.

"Anyway, I'm so glad that you two are okay." Ben said, "So, you two leaving already?" Ben asked them, "Well, I'm leaving too. I just finished my shift and Blackhorn has just taken my place at the front desk. Maybe we can all go together."

"Yeah, sounds nice." Nick said to him, "But, I have to ask, what Buffalo Butt thinks of you leaving sooner?"

"Buffalo Butt has no problem with it." Said a voice, and Nick turned his head to see the familiar form of Chief Bogo approaching them. "Mainly because he will be leaving early as well."

The Chief had changed clothes as well, as now he was wearing a pair of black pants and a red shirt. It kind of looked good on him, but both Nick and Judy admitted that it was strange seeing him out of his uniform. However, it was not stranger than the fact that the Chief was leaving early from work.

"What?" The buffalo asked as the two officers stared at him as if he has grown an extra pair of horns. "I finished my own business early today, and I have the right to give myself a break from time to time, don't I?"

The two were forced to admit that it was truth, and while it was strange seeing the boss leaving work like that, they knew that he too needed a break.

"I see… so, you gonna tag along with us too, Chief?" Nick asked, and the buffalo looked at him.

"Not likely." The chief said, "I'm going somewhere else tonight, as a matter of fact…" he said as he checked his cellphone. "My Zuber will be here in a few minutes."

"Zuber, huh?" Nick asked, and Judy was the one who asked the next question:

"And, where are you going, sir?"

"I'm going to mind my own business, Hopps." The buffalo said, "As all of you should." He said and he walked away, not even bothering to look at any of them three mammals who only stared at him as he left.

The silence lasted for a few moments, before the cheetah broke the silence.

"Soooooo, you guys wanna share a cab?"

"Better the train." Nick said, turning to him. "Cheaper, and with more space of all of us."

"Yeah, the train really is better." Judy said, and Ben agreed with them, as they were all taking the train.

"I wish I knew what the Chief is going to do now?" Judy said, "Think he will go see his family?"

"Yeah, I guess that is kind of it, Carrots." Nick said to the bunny. "More precisely… I have the feeling that he is going to follow your advice."

Judy looked at her, a bit confused.

[center]**********************[/center]

Bogo had his Zuber arrive very shortly, much to his pleasure. However, he felt a little of tension as he walked inside of it, for he knew that he was going to do something that was hard. He knew that in the moment he gave the address to the driver, as if it was a confirmation for himself that he was really going to do it.

Bogo's house was in Savannah Central, as it had been for years now. It was a good neighborhood, not very expensive, but a good place. However, the address that he had just given the driver was different, and it led him to a more distant part of the city.

Bogo looked out of the window, as he thought on what he was going to do tonight. He saw the buildings move past as the scenery changed. Soon there were less buildings and more trees. It was normal, once they were getting really close to the Rainforest District. However, they were not going into the district, but actually on a border between Savannah Central and the Rainforest District. It was a place that had most of the urban look of Savannah Central, but also got a bit of the vegetation and of the humidity of the rainforest. Kind of welcoming, if you were made for that climate.

It was actually nice to look at. However, as the Zuber took a certain road and started to drive down it, the scenery gradually changed. The vegetation started to look rougher, more wild. Also, the buildings and constructions started to look more worm out. They were moving out of the center of the city and into the borders, where things were… a bit rougher than at downtown, where most of the action was.

It was not like suburbs, as it looked to be more like a form of ghetto. Yes, Zootopia also had places like that, as most cities had. Places were the development didn't arrived properly, and that housed poorer mammals. Places like that often had a greater crime rate, but they were actually not bad to live. It was not like they were like the Nocturnal District, but it was the kind of place were a small mammal would not feel very safe, unless they were in a group.

Normally Bogo would not go to a place like that unless it was in business, however, there was something that he needed to do.

Soon, the Zuber was stopping, and Bogo paid for the ride before stepping out. This patch of the street was particularly run down, with some houses in there looking to be in quite bad conditions, both from the lack of care and from the vegetation that was infiltrating and causing damage. The side of the road was cracked, as some trees had their roots go under the asphalt and broke their way up. The moistness was in the air, and Bogo felt like he could get a little damp if he stood in the street for too long.

The buffalo looked at the house that was in front of him, looking somewhat more rundown than the rest of the ones around. It actually kind of looked like a shack made out of pieces of old homes, with the "ceiling" actually being made from plaster sheets that were made waterproof. The place was a bit rusty, and it didn't looked very stable. Still, it was good for someone to live in. Although barely.

Bogo walked forward, until he was standing right in front of the door of the house, which was just as run down as the rest of it, although it still seemed to be quite sturdy.

He stood in front of it… for a few minutes.


  [i]Go on, you wuss. Just knock the door. You came all the way here for this.[/i]


Bogo took a while to convince himself, but after taking a deep breath, he was able to raise his hoof, and knock at the door.

A sound came from the inside, as if someone was fumbling at stuff.

There was a silence after that, and Bogo knocked again.

Another sound came from inside, but this time it was a voice.

"I'm going!" The voice said, sounding annoyed. Steps could be heard from the inside, followed by the sound of the door being unlocked. One lock. Two locks. Three locks. Four locks were unlocked, and then, the door opened, and Bogo was left face to face with the one on the other side.

He was a cape buffalo like himself, and he actually looked quite similar to Chief Bogo. He had the same strong features, the same dark fur, the same snout. However, while Bogo had dark eyes, the eyes of that buffalo were of the color of honey, and there was also the fact that, while Bogo had two proud horns, this buffalo only had one, as the left horn was broken, leaving a stub where it once was, which was involved in bandages, mostly to keep the insects from making a home in there. The buffalo was wearing a white tank top and old brown shorts. He was muscled like Chief Bogo, but while the chief was a pure muscle physique, that buffalo actually was more of a "muscle gut", with a prominent belly showing.

For a long moment, the two buffalos only stared at each other. Before Chief Bogo finally broke the silence.

"Hey…"

"Hey." The other buffalo said back, looking to be indifferent to him.

"May I… come in?" Bogo asked, and the buffalo looked at him for a few moments.

"Is this going to end up like back in January? Because my neighbor already complained of the noise this week, I don't want them to complain about screaming."

"I just want to talk."

"You said that back in January."

"Tim, please!" Bogo said, putting his hooves together before he knew that he was doing. The buffalo was quick to put his hooves down, but the other one was already looking at him.

"Wow… the proud ZPD chief, Mansa Bogo, begging to someone… Never thought I'd live enough to see this." Tim said, and Bogo looked down. After a few moments, Tim stopped aside.

"Come in."

Bogo said nothing, and he simply walked past the door. Tim was locking the door, all of the four locks, while Bogo took a look at the place where his brother lived.

He had already seen it back in January when he came last time, and it was pretty much the way that he remembered. Run down, with greasy walls, old and worm out furniture, and three big boards that looked to be filled with newspaper articles and printed things. It looked pretty much like the evidence boards that they had back in the precinct, but while theirs' were filled with things related to crimes and investigations, this one was filled with things that were related to the supernatural.

Bogo knew that because he had been in there months ago, and he had taken a close look in much of what was pinned to that wall. However, looking now, Bogo could easily see that there was considerably more paper in there than back in January.

"You… have been working on your boards." Bogo said, looking for something to say.

"Yeah, I have been busy lately." Tim said as he walked to the table on the corner. In which, there was the only things in the house that didn't seemed old and run down: a laptop and a printer. "There has been a lot more of material for me to look into in the past months, and in the past week, by the way. Of course, not that any of that is anything serious that would be worth the time of a reasonable mammal."

Bogo said nothing, and he looked at the other buffalo walk to the table and sit on it, tapping away in the laptop.

Bogo eventually walked to him.

"Tim. I came to talk." Bogo said as he approached, to which Tim answered:

"I'm just finishing a thing in here." He said, "It will only take a minute."

Bogo would have been mad at any other mammal who had dismissed him like that. However, at the given moment, there was something that prevented him from getting mad. It was mostly his conviction of not letting things escalate like they did on the last time he came to visit his brother.


  [i]It can't end at screaming and me slamming the door on my way out. Not this time.[/i]


Bogo decided to stand by his side, but at a respectful distance. However, he was close enough to be able to look at the screen.

Now, one thing that the two brothers always had in common was that they didn't had a very good eyesight. Now, Tim had a slightly better eyesight, being able to read at close distances, while Bogo required glasses for reading. Still, Bogo was able to see enough of what Tim was looking at the screen to be able to see something that called his attention…

"Wad… baff…" The buffalo tried to read in a low voice, but it was not low enough for Tim not to hear him.

"Mad_Buffalo." Tim said, startling Bogo slightly. "It is my username online for most things. Kind of fitting, don't you think?" He asked, but Bogo did not answered.

"After all, I spent a lot of my years being called that." Tim continued. "'Look, is the Mad Buffalo! Run!'." Tim said, "'Oh no! Is Timetri Bogo! The Mad Buffalo!'… Yeah, the kids back in school loved saying that every time I walked near." He said, sounding a bit bitter in relation to that, and after a few moments, he was done with the computer, finally leaving it and getting up, to look at his brother.

"So, what is it that you want to talk about?" Tim looked at his brother. Bogo looked back at him, for a long moment, the two brothers only looked to each other.

"Well?"

[i]Come on, say something[/i]. Bogo said to himself in his head. [i]Now is not time for your pride, just say it.[/i]

"So, it is it to be a guessing game?" Tim asked, "Like we used to do back when we were calves? We would just look at each other and try to guess what the other wanted to say?" The buffalo looked at the other, "Well, I'm not in the mood for this. We are not calves anymore, and it you are not going to say what you want to say, then we could just-"

"I AM SORRY!" Bogo shouted out with a booming voice. A heavy silence followed these words, as the two buffalos only looked at each other, not one of them saying anything to the other, until Bogo was able to take a deep breath and say again, this time with more control:

"I am sorry…"

Tim looked at his brother. "Really? For what?"

Bogo looked at his brother, his face was a mask of indifference. Now, Chief Bogo was not an easy mammal to intimidate, but the indifference in the face of his childhood hero was not something he could take with the same indifference. He looked down, avoiding his gaze.

"For… everything…"

"Oh, right…" Tim said, "And by 'everything', you actually mean [i]everything[/i]?" He asked the other buffalo. "Including the fact that you never tried to defend me while the other kids called me 'Mad Buffalo'? Or that you never tried to talk to mom and dad when they sent me to all that therapy? For a few months ago when you called me a nutcase yourself and told me that I should put myself in some madhouse to fix my brain?"

Bogo flinched with each thing that his brother said.

"For breaking the promise that we made to each other?" Tim asked, and this time Bogo did looked up. Tim looked at him deadly in the eye.

"The promise we made when we were calves." Tim said to him, "The promise that we would always support each other and be on each other's side. We promised that we would always be supporting each other, even if it means being just the two of us against the world. The promise that, even if everyone else was against one of us, we would always stand together."

"Well, that day had come after that night." Tim said to him, almost accusingly. "After that night, everyone started to call me crazy. No one believed me when I told them what I had saw in the forest that night! Not my friends! Not mom and dad! No one! And my brother, the one mammal that I had expected to be by my side, was not there to support me!"

"You were telling a story that no one would believe!" Bogo said, as if to defend himself. "You were speaking about a wolf who made other mammals explode just by touching them! We all knew that this was impossible! Everyone said that it was impossible, including mom and dad! What was I to do?"

"You should have stood by me!" Tim said accusingly. "You should have known that I would not make up something like that! You should know that I would not invent some story to call attention, and that if I was telling something like that it was because it really happened! You should have stood by me like we had promised!"

After the buffalo was done with his tirade, he only glared at Bogo as he panted. The police chief remained silent as he looked at the other buffalo.

"I… I couldn't…"

Tim looked at him, "Yeah… because if you did, they would call you crazy and liar as well, right?"

Bogo didn't answered, but he flinched with the way that the other buffalo spoke that to him.

"I am sorry." Bogo said again, and Tim only looked at him for a while, before sighing.

"Well, I guess all of that is past now." Tim said, still sounding indifferent, but there was something else in his expression. "To be honest, I was kind of expecting you to come visit at some time, when all that was happening finally convinced you. Took you long enough."

Bogo said nothing, for some reason, he was not as fiery as he normally would be in a situation like that. Somehow, Bogo almost felt like he was a little calf again, especially in the face of what his brother was saying.

"So, what was it that finally made the proud Mansa Bogo to admit that his deranged brother could be right and come talk to him?" Tim asked, and Bogo could not look up at him. "Come on, I'm dying to know."

Bogo wanted to disappear. He wanted to sink into the ground and not have to answer. However, there was a part of him that wanted to go ahead and talk, a part that remembered Hopps' words, and wanted to follow them, even if it hurt his pride more than anything.

"I…" Bogo said, raising his head to look at the other buffalo. "I… met mages a little over a week ago…"

"Oh, really?" Tim asked, and after a moment his eyes widened. "Wait, you mean… the Mage Chaser's were telling the truth?"

"What?"

"They have been telling people for the past week or so that they had a meeting with mages and that they had lost the fottage when the mages had threatened to kill them. And they said that there were cops in there, including the Chief of Precinct 1… Were they telling the truth?"

Tim looked right at Bogo. "Mansa… they tried to kill you?"

Bogo looked in the eyes of his brother, and he could see genuine worry. This caused a strange feeling in his chest, almost as if it warmed his heart.

Bogo ended up telling Tim a briefed version of that fateful night. How he answered to the call of two officers and arrived in time to see mages performing some kind of ritual with crocodile blood. He told of the event with the butterflies, and how he got a wound on his shoulder from a pebble shot like a bullet.

When he heard of this, Tim soon wanted to see his shoulder, and asked him if he was okay. Bogo assured him that he was fine.

"The ferret healed it."

"Ferret? What ferret?"

"Zillah Ferron." Bogo said to him, "She was in the storehouse that night."

Bogo told to his brother how the ferret had intervened with the situation and saved their lives. He told him how she healed one of the wounded officers, and then healed his shoulder.

"Enforcer, huh?" Tim asked.

"Yeah, she just had to toss that dagger in the storehouse and these guys thought that she was one of them." Bogo confirmed, and Tim continued to look at him.

"A dagger with a silver hilt." He said, "Ornate and decorated with some gemstones."

Bogo blinked at his brother, as he had just gave a description of the dagger that the ferret had tossed. One that was actually quite precise.

"Tim…how do you know that?"

The buffalo looked back at Bogo. "Because the wolf had a dagger that was exactly like that." He said, "As well as some of the mammals who he made explode. I know because one of them fell right in front of me while I was hiding."

Bogo looked at his brother, not saying a word. The other buffalo sighed.

"Curious how things get stuck in your mind in perfect detail…" He said, as he looked that now he was remembering something. "I still remember every detail of that night. The way the mammals were performing the ritual. When the other group came, claiming to be 'enforcers' and presenting their daggers. How that wolf suddenly started to cause other mammals to explode after touching them… The way he laughed and smiled as he killed them…"

Bogo looked at his brother, noticing the anguish in his face as he remembered these things.

"I'm glad that you are okay, Mansa." Tim said to his brother. "I'm glad that you escaped without a scratch from that, because the mammals of that night were not so lucky."

Bogo looked at his brother, and he saw that he was truly glad that his younger brother was okay. This caused a wave of guilt in Bogo, for all of the years that he spent thinking that his brother was insane. For Bogo now knew that he had, indeed, saw something on that night. That what he told did really happened.

All this time he kept remembering what he saw on the woods, while everyone else thought that this could not be truth. All the times he tried to tell others what he had witnessed, and everyone dismissed this as something impossible, and either got mad at him or tried to convince him that this was not truth. How was it for him to grow up like that, with no one believing his word? Not being able to talk on what he saw to anyone, and having only to keep remembering and suffering alone for all those years? Not having his own family to support him among all of the difficulty?

Bogo felt like the biggest trash in the world.

"Tim, I… I am so sorry…" Bogo said, "Everyone said that what you were telling was impossible, and the way they acted when you kept repeating that… It seemed that they were only getting mad at you when you told them these things… I just… I didn't knew if I should back you up or not… I should have. I am sorry."

Tim looked at him, and he sighed.

"Yeah, thinking about it, the story did seemed to be impossible back then." The buffalo admitted, and he looked at the ground. "Of course, dad did not helped at all. He was the classic no-nonsense guy. He didn't even liked when we talked about cartoons."

Bogo agreed with him. Truly, their father had always been strict.

"Maybe it was for the best that you did not supported me… You probably wouldn't have made it this far in life." Tim said, "I mean, I spend my life trying to understand what I saw on that forest, and look where this got me." He said, gesturing to the place where he lived.

"I live in an old plaster sack. Work in two half-period jobs. Barely have enough to pay the bills of this place. And the most meaningful relationship I have is with that." He finished, gesturing to the three boards that were full of pieces of paper.

"I spend all the free time I have researching supernatural things in all sources I can find." Tim continued. "I spend a lot of time doing that… I have been more active in the past months, with everything that was happening, with the website, and all of the mammals talking about mages and the ones who claimed to have seen them. I'm not even gonna explain to you about the past week, everyone is going crazy now that they know for sure that mages exist. A lot of mammals are still scared, you know?"

Bogo said nothing, and he only looked at his brother, thinking on what to say.

"The attacks and protests have reduced everywhere." The chief finally said, looking at the ground, before turning his eyes back to his brother. "At least it seems that they don't want to exterminate mages anymore."

"Some do." Tim said, and looked at his brother. "There are all kinds of wackos all around the internet." He said, "I should know, I'm am one of them…"

Bogo looked at him, "You are not a wacko…" He said, and Tim looked at him, "Well, not as much as I always thought anyway…"

"Well, now that is a compliment!" Tim said to his brother, now smiling, "For a guy who was called 'lunatic' just months ago, being told that he is not so crazy surely is a very nice thing to say!"

He laughed right after he said that, and Bogo could actually laugh along with him.

Bogo could hardly remember the last time they both had laughed together like that. The last time that he had laughed like that…

After a while, the two brothers continued to smile, however, Tim had a wistful look on his eyes, and he looked at the boards, his own personal research center, in which he worked for during years.

"There are still many questions that were not answered." Tim said, as he looked at the many pieces of paper that he had in that place. "The ferret said that herself, there are many things that she did not told. There are many things that the mages will still want to keep a secret."

Bogo followed his gaze, and looked back at his brother. "Like… what happened in that forest on that summer night?"

"I need to understand, Mansa." Tim said, "I need to know what happened back there… Why it happened… All these years and I still don't understand what that was all about. Was the guy who killed everyone one of these criminal mages that the ferret talked about? Was he an Enforcer? If he was, why would he kill the other Enforcers? Did he betrayed them? Did he went insane?"

Tim seemed to really be pondering in all of these things, and Bogo only looked at him and, for the first time, he realized why Tim was so keen on researching on all of these things that he looked into. Supernatural, conspiracies, mysteries…

He was trying to find answers.

He was trying to understand what he had saw.

He had been trying that for many years.

"I need answers, Mansa." The buffalo finally said. "I need to know on all of these things. I need to understand what that night was about… Why all of these mammals died like that… This has been driving me crazy all of these years…"

Bogo looked at his brother, and instead of saying anything to him, he simply reached out and put his hoof on his back. He patted his back in silence, before he said:

"Yeah… I need too. Now I do…"

Tim sighed, and he simply let his younger brother pat his back. The two only remained in silence in there, both of them looking at the board.

Bogo had looked at that in the past when he was in there months ago. However, right now, he might not even have noticed, but he was looking at it pretty much the same way that Tim also looked…