"Would you mind telling me what the hell is going on here!?"
The doors to the conference room had just burst open, revealing an imposing silhouette in the darkness of the hallway with glimmering, golden, predatory eyes. Alexandria "Sandy" Lynx stepped forward, clutching a sheaf of papers in her arms. It was hard to believe that less than ten years ago, she had been nothing more than a feral bobcat drinking from an ordinary-looking stream. Since then, the sharp-minded feline had passed Animalia's examinations with flying colors and was quickly rising through the ranks, becoming the first uplifted Animalian to pass the bar. She'd recently been appointed as the District Attorney for the twin cities of Lyre–Animalia, and there were whispers that her ambitions didn't stop there. After all, there was a mayoral race coming up in '26. But right now, none of that was on the front of her mind. She was furious.
"Ah, Ms. Lynx, come in," drawled the balding, rotund man sitting at one end of a long conference table. There were several others standing and sitting around in various corners of the room - all Human, and all men, for that matter. "We weren't expecting you here. But please, take a seat," he continued, gesturing at an empty chair on the opposite end of the table from himself. "What seems to be troubling you, kitty?"
As if she wasn't already pissed off enough. This was one of those moments where Sandy remembered just how easily she could rip a man's face off with her bare paws. But it definitely wouldn't do to lose her temper at a time like this. She clenched her paw-like hands into fists as she sat down in the chair she'd been offered, trying to will her fur to stop standing on end. She had to be careful not to sit on her own tail, too. In any place designed with Animalians in mind, of course, all the chairs would have an amply-sized hole in the back for tails to slot right through. This was not one of those places.
"You know full well why I'm here, Dale," the bobcat seethed. Some of the men at the table seemed intimidated by her, but not the one she was staring directly at. "This virus exposure case suddenly gets pulled out from under us and sent to the guys in Vegas - you think I don't know who makes that kind of call? We were hard at work putting together our opening argument for The Civilization of Animalia v. Marcella Walker-"
"I think I see the problem right there, miss," the other lawyer butted in calmly. "In case you haven't noticed, this was not a crime against Animalians. Everybody involved was a Human until after the crimes had already been committed." Sandy could almost hear the capital "H" as he spoke, the emphasis he placed on that word every time he said it. "And both of the girls involved would just as soon become Human again - if only your egghead scientists would come up with a method to do so. I don't see why a case as important as this one should be left in Lyre's paws - or, uh, hands."
Sandy had been taking deep breaths the whole time he was speaking. "First of all," she replied as politely as she could muster, "Desert Flats is in northern Washoe County. That's firmly within our jurisdiction, regardless of the species of the people involved. And need I remind you that the key component of the crime, the theft of a vial of the Animalian virus worth several thousand dollars, took place at a community center in Animalia proper? We already have the security camera footage."
"Very impressive," the man said, as if he was watching a demonstration of "Stupid Pet Tricks" on the Late Show. "But not what I was getting at, I'm afraid. This is the biggest case the county has had in years. The reason I applied for a change of venue is that I'm just not convinced a little town like Lyre can handle it properly."
"Don't give me that," Alexandria snarled. "You and I both know that Lyre has grown tremendously since the last census. We're the third-largest city in Nevada now. And this wouldn't be the first high-profile case our office has handled - don't act like you don't remember. Mary Piper? And I seem to recall another one that was called the crime of the century at the time. Heather goddamn Wilcox!"
"Ah," the man chuckled. "I'm glad you mentioned Heather Wilcox. See, that's exactly what concerns me. Ms. Wilcox was up on attempted murder, trafficking, a whole litany of very serious charges. She was trying to eat people! And what did your office give her? A few slaps on the wrist, a little bit of 'humiliation' ritual, and suddenly she's treated like a trustworthy member of your 'civilization'. No prison time? No serious consequences? That just doesn't sit right with me, Ms. Lynx. I felt the only way this case could be taken seriously was to send it down to the big-leaguers in Clark County."
"But our system works!", Sandy pleaded. "Every person who's had the Four Punishments applied to them has been rehabilitated, by any reasonable standard! We haven't had a single re-offender since we introduced it. I know you're sick of hearing me talk about criminal justice reform, but if other cities applied the lessons we've learned, there could be an incredible-"
"You're right." The man waved her off. "I am sick of it. Ms. Lynx, I was elected by the people of Washoe County to this position, and it's my responsibility to represent the people above all else. And I think the people of the whole great state of Nevada made it clear what they want from their leaders this past November when they re-elected our former president. They want serious people who will be tough on crime, who understand that our justice system is built to deter criminals, not coddle them. And if you Animalians don't start listening to the Humans around you - who completely outnumber you - your perfect little 'civilization' might find itself under a lot more federal scrutiny when the new administration comes into the White House."
The Bobcat Animalian just glared at him, but he still seemed completely relaxed. "I'm appealing this decision," she said as she got up from that uncomfortable chair, gathering the papers she had put down on the table in front of her. "I'll take it all the way to the top if I have to. You're setting a dangerous precedent here."
The man just smirked as she stormed out of the room. "Hey, would you leave those briefs with us?", he called after her in a noticeably mocking tone. "I'm sure the boys down in Vegas could really use your evidence when they convict the Walker girl. It would be a shame to let all your hard work go to waste."