Hey everyone. Back once again. Again thanks to Elite Shade for writing for me on this. He and I are still working toward continuing this story. So let's continue this long awaited fanfic.
"OH! Nick, look at the time! We were supposed to meet with Chief Bogo like half an hour ago!" Judy said, now dreading how the meeting is more than likely going to start. The fox looked at his watch, and rolled his eyes.
"Oh boy. Okay, I have an idea Carrots." Nick said.
"Oh this is gonna be good." she said while crossing her arms and looking at Nick expectantly.
"We blame Paul." he said casually, while gesturing to the human. That made Mike burst out laughing, despite the sour look Judy was giving her partner. After dinner, they had all moved to the lounge, mostly at Leodore's beckoning. Whatever questions, casual or otherwise, that the mayor was looking forward to asking were immediately set on the backburner of the conversation, which had immediately been dominated by Mike. The younger lion's line of questioning all revolved around a general outer-space theme. It was only after Paul had answered, for the third time, that he had never been inside of a black hole that Judy had looked to her watch.
"It's a shame to see you both go already, but you both have your jobs to do. Plus, I'm the mayor, and even I don't like the idea of getting on Bogo's bad side." Leodore said with a chuckle. Judy didn't seem to share the casual attitude of Nick and the mayor, as far as Paul observed. "However, I would like it if you both were there for Paul's big reveal. In fact, having two of ZPD's finest, and most well known officers to stand by, might be even better to help introduce Paul to our beautiful city. What do you say?" Leodore said, already assuming a yes from the too, and whose tone reflected that belief.
"Uh, well, we would have to ask the chief first." Judy said.
"Oh, I'll set it all up! No problem." he said, his tone now clearly stating his belief in the current matter being closed.
"Well of course we'll be there." Nick said while leading Judy by the arm. The rabbit looked at him curiously, and he signaled for her to zip her lips, before calling back "See ya tomorrow Paul." With that, the two left. Paul felt a little nervous about being alone with the mayor of this strange new city and his family, and took a breath. He then felt something soft and warm resting on his arm, and looked to see that it was Laura, giving him a sympathetic smile.
"So Paul, what are you're parents like? Or is it more of a pod-person situation for your species?" Mike piped in.
"Mike..." Leodore began in a stern tone.
"I actually have parents..." Paul said in a soft voice.
"We don't...get along very well."
Leodore and Leona shared a look. "What do you mean Paul?" Leona asked.
"...Well...nah it's alright, I don't wanna bother you guys with the detail. Just dumb family." he said, suddenly feeling a little guilty.
I'm not here to dump all of my problems onto these people after all. He thought to himself.
Everyone simply nodded and remained silent for a moment after that, with Laura gently squeezing Paul's shoulder. Then Mike decided to chime in.
"Family? You got parents? I thought you were hatched from an egg!"
"Michael Leon Lionheart!" Leona admonished, until Paul started to chuckle.
"It's alright Leona. I don't think he meant anything by it." Paul said, making Mike relax. He, like so many other children at one time or another, knew full well that the only real reason parents gave you a middle name was to let you know when you were either in trouble, or about to be. Leona looked to Paul and then to Mike, and decided to let it go.
"So Paul, is there anything that you would like to discuss about the interview tomorrow? I want to make this as easy as possible for you." Leodore said, reaching over to clap Paul companionably on the back, almost completely knocking the human out of his seat. This made Mike giggle uncontrollably and Laura roll her eyes.
"Uhh...is there anything I probably shouldn't say or just keep to myself?"
"Any future invasion plans should probably be avoided altogether or just downplayed." Mike said without missing a beat, making Paul, Laura, and Leodore burst out laughing before Leona could scold the young lion.
"I'll keep that in mind Mike." Paul said before ruffling his hair, much to Mike's slight annoyance. However, since Paul just got him out of a three minute lecture on politeness, bare minimum, he let it slide.
Paul and everyone else visibly relaxed after that, and continued to talk for another hour, with Mike interjecting more questions now and again that were mostly alien related, but also included one question about what it's like to have the warden throw him into the hole (MICHAEL!), and one about what college was like when Paul explained that he was working towards a degree.
"Well, it's actually pretty nice. Back in high school, there was always someone being a nuisance in class or just looking for attention. But in college, everyone's there to learn...and when some one is being a nuisance it's actually funny." Paul said, now recalling one instance in Algebra back in high school, where he was trying to take notes while a student in the back was making smartass remarks about the teachers accent. (True story)
"Ah...well then, I think I can arrange it so that you can continue your studies here at U of Z! You'll probably have to take some tests, but those shouldn't be a problem for you Paul! I mean you may be stuck here for a while but that's no excuse to skip out on some sort of education, even if you are in different universe or whatever science gibberish we were talking about." The mayor said while sagely nodding his head. Laura was going to roll her eyes at this, but Leona beat her to it.
"Oh...uh well, thank you sir-I mean Leodore." Paul said, now feeling a little unsure. He always strove to do his best, mostly out of a desire for his parents to actually appreciate him for once.
"OH! That reminds me," Laura said as she suddenly shot up and out of her seat. "I gotta get started on something for school!"
"Probably gotta plan how she's coordinating her outfit for tomorrow." Mike whispered to Paul, snickering as he did so.
Shortly after a few more questions from Mike, which felt more along the lines of interrogation at this point, everyone else decided to retire for the night. As Paul was about to head upstairs, Leona gently grabbed his hand and turned him to face her.
"Paul, please know that if there is anything at all that you need, we will be happy to help in any way we can." she said while giving his hand a light squeeze. Paul was a little surprised, but smiled.
"Thanks Leona, but I'm good. Really." Paul said. Leona continued to hold his hand as her eyes looked him over closely, a small amount of worry etched onto her face. Then she smiled warmly and let go.
"Of course. But if you ever do need anything, or even just to talk."
"Thanks Leona." Paul said before heading up the stairs. Not being used to that kind of interest in his general well-being, Paul had been thoroughly thrown through the proverbial loop. So much so that when he reached the top of the stairs, he accidentally found himself in Laura's room. Paul froze just as the teenaged lioness did.
Laura was currently bent partially over what looked like a chemistry set on her desk, with test tubes and beakers...what kind of science lab has he walked into? Her hair was done up in a ponytail, and she was currently wearing a pair of goggles. In place of her tank top was a somewhat worn and stained grey sweatshirt several sizes too big for her slender frame. There was also some clear plastic covering her desk.
"UH...I-I-T'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!" she yelled in fright as she tried to shield the view of her project with her body, failing miserably.
"I'm so sorry for interrupting you Laura, I swear I just got turned around!" Paul said as he quickly turned around to run out of the room. Unfortunately, his left foot ended up getting caught under a small rug just inside Laura's door, causing Paul to trip and hit his head on the doorframe with an audible THUNK! Luckily he was able to quickly regain his balance, just as his hands shot to either side of his head. He bit back a small yell that tried to escape his lips at the moment that the pain first set in. Once the initial shock was over, Paul attempted to regain his composure. Before he could say anything, Laura was there, pulling his hands away and looking over the spot where his head had impacted with the wood.
"I don't see any blood, or any swelling, but then again it did just happen. I'll go get you an ice pack, wait on my bed." she said in a no-nonsense voice that sounded an awful lot like her mother's. Paul did as he was told as Laura, her shock and embarrassment clearly forgotten for the moment, ran down the steps to retrieve a baggie to load with ice. Paul sat on her light blue comforter and tried not to look around, in an attempt to not invade her privacy any more so than he already had.
That being said, Paul couldn't help but take note of his surroundings. On a bedside table next to a simple black lamp was a bright pink book that Paul guessed was Laura's diary. It even had a little lock on the side. Up on the wall were a couple of posters. One was for what looked to Paul to be an all goat boy-band called New Kids on the Block, which instantly made him chuckle, and one for a singer called Gazelle. Just then, he heard pawsteps as Laura came running back up the stairs.
"Here, put this on the spot where you got hurt." she said as she herself pressed it onto the side of Paul's head, making him wince. "Oops, sorry."
"It's okay, really." Paul said as he took the bag from her and gently held it to the sore spot.
"So...you like chemistry?" Paul asked hoping to break the awkward silence. Laura said nothing to this, and instead just blushed.
"Um... well...y-yes. I think that it's pretty interesting...and I like learning about it but…" she trailed off as she continued to blush and look away. Then something clicked in Paul's mind.
"Are you worried about looking like a nerd?"
"Uh well... a little..." Laura said in a small voice. Paul just sat there on her bed while she blushed and looked away.
"But why?"
"Well...I guess I'm a little scared that my friends will stop hanging out with me and make fun of me for it." Laura said.
"I actually get that, if you can believe it. But, and I know exactly how corny this sounds, if they're really your friends, they won't care if you like chemistry or not."
I hope I don't sound too much like one of those cheesy after-school specials. Paul thought to himself.
"Heh, you kinda sound like one of those after-school specials." Laura said with a smile as she sat down on the bed right next to him.
Dangit!
"Maybe, but that doesn't make it any less true." Paul said.
"Maybe...but it can be hard to make friends...and it would really suck for the ones that I've been hanging out with since we were kids to just stop being friends with me."
"Yeah that's true...I know how that goes from my own experience. It really can hurt but that's really something that shouldn't stop you from doing something that you love." Paul looked nervous and blushed. "I mean I don't mean to preach. I'm just a stickler for giving advice and helping people with issues. It's a Bad habit of mine"
"No! It's okay, really." Laura said suddenly. "I've actually been thinking about this year's science fair. First place winner gets a scholarship for ZIT! I've always wanted to go there!"
"But wait, couldn't your parents afford to just send you there? I mean." Paul gestured around him to indicate the rest of the house. Laura shook her head at that.
"They've got the money sure, but ZIT doesn't just take anyone with the cash to go to school. Not only does someone have to maintain a regular 4.0 GPA and show some sort of background in scientific research. Like officially." she said with a wide grin.
"Oh wow, that place sounds like it's your dream school." Paul said, causing Laura to instantly snap back to reality from whatever daydream she had apparently been having. She blushed a little more.
"Well...kinda." Laura looked away.
"So then that means that your little chemistry assignment here is more than just some homework, right?"
"Ugh…Okay you caught me." Laura sighed exasperatedly and stood up.
"Is it alright if I ask what your project is about?" Paul noticed that at first Laura's eyes conveyed a clear sense of nervousness...however, that was quickly replaced as excitement shone through instead.
"Well, so far in my chemistry books, I came across a type of chemical reaction called Metathesis. It can also be known as a double displacement reaction. That's where two compounds switch their ions to become different compounds altogether! I'm currently trying to create a triple displacement reaction! I know that a highschooler probably isn't going to just up and make a great scientific breakthrough all of a sudden, or even if this would count as a great scientific breakthrough at all for that matter, but I'm still excited to try it and log all of the data!"
Paul was impressed. This clearly meant a lot more to her then she had initially let on.
"Wow. You're smart. Haha." He simply said not really knowing how to respond intelligently.
Laura blushed. "Well, I admit that when it comes to actually practicing it, I'm still something of a newb. But! It's something that's always interested me, and whenever I could sneak it in, I would often study whatever books about chemistry that I could get my paws on! I really think that the amount of my research might really impress the judges too! What about you Paul, what were you studying in college?"
"Well, I've always wanted to be a game programmer. My dream is to make a gigantic fantasy world! With adventure, exploration, treasure hunting, fighting of enemies and monsters, that sorta stuff. Coming to Zootopia is kinda like that for me." Paul said, now blushing himself.
"I've always loved fantasy sci-fi stories, especially ones that blend the two. And I always loved games with great and compelling stories as well...so naturally, combine the two for me."
Laura perked right up. "I love those kinds of stories too! I even have the entire Mechanical Moon saga! Well, what's been published so far. Clockwork Crescent comes out this fall!" the lioness said excitedly as she quickly went to her bookshelf and pointed out fifteen books in a row. She then pulled one off and showed it to Paul. The picture in the dust jacket showed a full moon floating over a horizon with an aurora borealis of many different colors, which changed colors depending on how it caught the light. The moon itself appeared to be mechanical, as the name of the series suggested. There were gears and sprockets and springs clearly visible, giving it a very steampunk look. In the dead center of the moon was a clock, with 13 hours instead of twelve. And below it, hovering above the landscape were what appeared to be small fairies, each one holding what looked like an old fashioned lantern. And in the distance, a city with smoke stacks just barely visible. Paul was immediately intrigued, which Laura instantly noticed, much to her delight.
"Here, this is book one, Wind-up Rising! You can borrow it if you want." she said before pushing it into Paul's hands before going into a quick explanation about the series story, without using any spoilers.
"Well thanks, it sounds really cool!" he said, making Laura smile. She sat back down next to him and the two talked for a while. They talked about their favorite books and movies and songs and games. Then Paul got up to leave, his head no longer hurting.
"Thanks again for the bag of ice and for letting me read your book Laura."
"No prob! Thanks for talking to me about, you know." she said, blushing again.
"Anytime." he said before wishing her good night and excusing himself. Once she was sure Paul had left and wasn't about to come right back, Laura quickly went over to her diary, and pulled the key from the charm bracelet she wore on her left wrist. She flipped through the pages, grabbing a pen from a side compartment of the diary. She stopped when she came to a page with a series of drawings. They all looked like caricatures of what humans are supposed to look like, drawn by someone who has never seen one before. She then got to work sketching out an excellent likeness of Paul, before she started writing beneath it.
Dear Diary,
Today, I met the "special guest" that dad has been talking about non-stop since yesterday. Now I know what he meant. above is an image of Paul, who claims to be a member of a species known as "Hewmans". This is AMAZING! He's a little taller than myself, which would put him over the six foot height. He doesn't appear to be overly muscular. And he has only one patch of fur that I could see, which is on the top of his head. He claims to have somehow gotten to Zootopia by falling through the Mystery Falls., I had always thought there was something weird about that water fall and Paul could be the key to it all. But I shouldn't get ahead of myself here. It's also possible that this previously undiscovered species is just living in a location that simply has them cut off from the rest of the world. I'll definitely be sure to ask him more about it tomorrow! (Assuming that Mikey doesn't beat me to the punch.) Also, personally, he seems very nice. He has given me a LOT to think about right now, and it was just easier to open up to him than it is for anyone else I know. Also, he's a total fantasy/sci-fi nerd like me! And he says that he want's to design games for a living!
Back in Paul's room...
Paul was laying on his new bed with the book Laura had given him open before him. Already he was three chapters in. He could tell that he was going to be VERY into this series, and smiled at having something else to do other than just sit and nervously think about tomorrow. Also, the bed that he was currently laying on was WAY better than the one he used when he was sleeping back in the holding cell. He looked at the clock and saw that it was indeed not too late yet, so he resolved to read only a couple more chapters. Of course, he knew that he was going to reason that he had time to read a few more after that.
For Some dumb reason wouldnt let me upload this Document. UGH.. Was supposed to come out Halloween but noooooo.. Sorry Yall