The Time Traveler's Guide to Zootopia

Chapter 43: ...And Back Again

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(One Small Favor: Part 5/5)

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Hopefully, there will be no more surprises from here on out. 

In other words, no more favors...

Since Cody and Penny were safe and secure, I reunited with Mrs. Bianca and Bernard from the Rescue Aid Society at the end of the west side river in Rainforest District to give them an update. Both were very delighted with the news. After receiving confirmation from the jackals' parents that the kids made it home, the two mice later spoke with Mayor Lionheart, who signed off on the case to consider it closed.

He looked up from his desk and asked again, "So you found the two missing mammals, huh?"

I nodded. "We did, sir."

"Goody," he stamped one last document with his signature and passed it over.

"Give this to the girl," he instructed, referring to the panther secretary outside his office. "Thank you, bye-bye."

Per our deal, the Mayor finally signed the papers and all other pertinent documentation to grant filming permissions for Corey, the Choreographer. I returned to the Palm Hotel, which was undergoing extensive flood repairs. From there, I went to the tiger's office and delivered everything to his desk.

I had never seen a tiger's tail wag so fast and outstretched.

"Wow," he was exceedingly astonished. "This... this is great! Not only did the Mayor grant me filming permissions for the Canyonlands district, but he also authorized me and my stunt crew to work by the delicate arches for my upcoming sequel. It's perfect!"

"You're welcome," was all I said.

The tiger picked up his phone again and began texting his producers like crazy.

I cleared my throat.

"Ah, right, I almost forgot," Corey said, facepalming with his fist. "Let's head on over to the theater right now so that I can get Porsha trained for Zootopia's downtown musical."

We left his office, took the elevator, and headed outside.

We got inside his spacious tiger-striped limo and took a luxurious ride to the downtown theater. While Corey and his executives indulged in a fine selection of alcoholic beverages to celebrate their next production phase, I sat in the back seat and applied rubbing alcohol to my wounds.

Once we arrived at the theater, the stage manager awaited us by the curb to let us in. We funneled our way toward the front of the auditorium, ducking and dodging under animal crew members carrying a variety of stage props and neon-colored costumes.

"Corey, you made it!" the koala announced over the megaphone, excitedly sliding down the banister and jogging over to us. "I take it you're here to help us out with Porsha?"

"The weeping girl huddled in that corner over there?" the tiger pointed at the grey wolf behind us.

I sighed, "Yep. That's her."

He took out his pen to jot down a few notes on his clipboard. "I see..."

"Yeah, her friend really wants her to be on the show," the director said, referring to Porsha's lonely cheetah friend on the far side of the stage. "I mean, we've tried and tried...." the koala nervously laughed. "...but Porsha can't really act."