Zootopia: A Tale of Two Foxes

Chapter XIV: Anger and Jealousy

There are often many times where one feels so confident that he did something perfectly right, or that there was no possible way that he could be wrong in the situation, and that if there was something wrong, it was all somebody else's fault. And yet, so many times in these situations, that person could not be more wrong. For two animals within Zootopia, this was the situation that they both were experiencing, and neither one would be satisfied with their initial results.

* * *

Alex came into the ZPD, looking and feeling confident. News had already spread about how the ZPD had successfully taken down a crime boss' stronghold, and even the mayor himself has sent his congratulations to Precinct 1. Clawhauser had even offered him a donut as he passed by his desk, for which Alex was rather grateful. As he entered into the bull room with all of the other officers, he could see that nearly every officer was there, ready to begin the work for that day. Alex situated himself into his seat, noticing that Jack was sitting at the front of the room. Guest honors, I guess. Alex thought to himself. Officer Wolford situated himself next to Alex, and Alex was glad to have a wolf companion next to him early in the morning. Now Bogo is going to come through that door and give us our orders for the day. Alex knew, anticipating the big buffalo to come walking through the door being his normal, gruff self. Right before Bogo made his appearance, Alex felt a strange tingling feeling inside, an uncontrollable "sixth sense" of sorts which seemed to signal something to him. As he looked around the meeting room, Alex recognized that the atmosphere for some reason seemed different. Why does something not feel right? he thought to himself.

Before he could investigate the room any further, Alex heard the chief enter through the door, being his gruff old self. Bogo took his place at the podium, quieting the other officers as normal, "Alright, alright, settle down everyone. Shut it!" The moment those last two words were out, the officers quieted down. Bogo looked around the room for a brief moment before speaking, "Officers, yesterday we managed to find and take down a crime boss' lair, helping our city slowly put an end to the crime wave that has recently swept over it. However, this would never have been possible if our newest help, Mr. Savage, had not successfully gotten the information we need from those polar bears. As such, I believe it is only appropriate that we honor him today." Every officer gave a hearty cheer for Mr. Savage, and Alex could tell that the jackrabbit was soaking in every ounce of praise, his face filled with a heightened smugness and pride. Man, he sure looks proud. Alex thought to himself. "Moreover, according to what Mr. Savage told me, Alex was one of the first responders to help him take down the hostile polar bears in the area, doing so single-handedly. I believe it is only appropriate for us to give our thanks to Alex for his bravery."

Of all things, Alex least expected this kind of praise at a meeting such as this. He didn't exactly feel heroic, and he knew that the only reason he took down those polar bears so easily was by sniping them, not by tackling them with his bare claws! Nevertheless, he felt Fangmeyer and Wolford give him a good slap in the back, followed by many other officers giving him a high five. He expected that Officer Hopps and Officer Wilde would also congratulate him, since they were good friends and all, but it never came. Finally, it struck Alex, fast and vivid like a roaring river, Where are Officer Hopps and Officer Wilde? No wonder he had felt as if something was off at this meeting. They weren't late for the morning meeting, were they? Wasn't this one of those meetings you just couldn't miss? Alex was not sure, but he hoped that Bogo would make everything crystal clear for him.