Working at Disneyland sounded like one of the best jobs Sarah could get. Or at least, that was what she had been thinking before the big day arrived and she had to wait for an hour in an empty lobby for her interviewer to turn up. At least the wifi was good enough to let her watch a few cartoons on her phone.

“Are you Sarah?”

The voice in the silence was quite a shock, and no less of a surprise was who Sarah assumed to be her interviewer. She looked barely older than her and had hair curly enough to be a brunette version of Miss Frizzle from The Magic School Bus.

“Yeah.” Sarah stood up, glad to have the chance to stretch her legs.

“Sorry about the wait.” The interviewer said in a bored tone, glancing at the clock. She motioned for Sarah to come with her down a hall that was ominously dark for mid-morning.

“Just follow me, we’re heading to the dressing room.”

“What for?” Sarah’s curiosity was a bit piqued. There hadn’t been many details provided on the application she’d filled out- just something about caring for zoo animals, she recalled.

“You’re gonna be one of our mascots.” answered the interviewer without slowing down. “You don’t have to do much, don’t worry. Just make sure you know where the rides are so you can help our visitors around.”

“And I’m supposed to just guess?” Sarah scoffed.

“Oh, no. I’ll find the map somewhere.”

The interviewer paused at the entrance to what looked like an open closet with about a hundred different costumes and coats hanging on a vast rack. She strode ahead of Sarah and, with some difficulty, found the one she would be wearing- a surprisingly convincing outfit of Nick Wilde, the snarky fox from the movie Zootopia.

“The change rooms are unlocked, put this on and meet me outside.” the interviewer instructed, rifling in a jammed cabinet for the right slip of paper. Eventually she deposited a thick piece of paper on a nearby dresser and left the room, closing the door behind her.

“Not quite what I was hoping for…” Sarah muttered, hoping the suit wouldn’t be too hot in the sun. The fur was too soft and silky to be fake, but at least the inside felt more like cool rubber. There was barely enough room for her to peer through the hood, but she had to admit it looked like quite the likeness to the fox himself. It was a good thing it fit as well, since Sarah was rather small for her age and had been expecting to wear something with the feet dragging wherever she walked.

Leaving her old clothes folded neatly on a chair, she rejoined her guide only because she could hear her voice somehow, even past the thick fur and rubber. Clutching the map, she followed with the tail attached to her suit swinging wildly.

“Come on, it’s almost opening time.”

“I’m right behind you.” Sarah said with a groan, frowning at how her voice was muffled. “I sure hope they can hear what I’m saying.”

“You won’t need to say much, just point out where to go through the gates. You shouldn’t run into any problems. If you have any questions I’ll be waiting at the tables.”

“If you say so.”

It was so bright outside Sarah had to shield her eyes for a few seconds, and reminded herself to bring sunglasses for her next shift. Even though there wasn’t much more than a few dozen kids and families strolling around the hot pavement by the entrance to the rides, they sure were making a lot of noise. Sarah could practically identify each stranger by the sound of their voice right off the bat. Her interviewer’s voice was right in her ear when she asked her to wait by the table closest to the gate and make sure she knew where everything was by now.

Squinting at the map, Sarah wondered why it was printed in black and white. It sure didn’t help identify which place was which, but she had no time to worry because the throng had advanced. A small boy grinned and pointed at her costume, and she found a friendly wave from somewhere.

“Mommy, that’s the fox! From the movie!”

“Right this way to the park.”

With surprising ease in the black gloves Sarah pointed to the blur of color against the blue of the sky, wondering if she would be permitted to lower the hood for a moment. It really was much too warm inside and she turned her head to see where her interviewer had gone, but she was already busy checking passes and another employee was corralling a rambunctious pair of toddlers to their parents.

“Keep up the good work, Mr. Wilde.” A smiling coworker said, and for a moment Sarah was indignant until she remembered the suit.

“Thanks, I’ll try.”

Again, her voice sounded curiously deeper, as if she had a very sore throat. She wouldn’t doubt it in this head. It can’t hurt to let my hood down down for a moment, Sarah thought, watching with a grin as the line cleared into the park. She hunted for the zipper and tried to pull it down, but it caught fast after an inch. She examined the metal bits for something out of order, but there was nothing- no visible threads or dislodged spikes. Trying again had the same result- the zipper wouldn’t move forward or back.

Stifling panic, Sarah sighed in frustration and looked for someone to assist. Thankfully there was someone with a pair of scissors right at the next table that would do in an emergency. She tried once more to undo the zipper, her hands feeling nothing but fur. Searching all the way from her collar down to her ankles revealed nothing. The zipper hadn’t jammed, it had disappeared.

“What’s going on…”
Closing her eyes and wiping the sweat off her forehead, Sarah was relieved when someone put up an umbrella to block out the sunlight. Whoever it was said a calm

“You look like you could do with a drink, sir. Hot day, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, that would be nice.”

Meaning that very much, Sarah realized the person in front of her was wearing a costume too. This one was a bipedal rhino, and she marvelled at the detail- even the tiny ears stood up and thick lips moved as he hummed to himself. Eventually he handed her a glass of chilled water. About to take a drink, Sarah nearly dropped the glass once she looked into it.

“Here you are, Mister Wilde.”

It wasn’t just a costume anymore. Her nose- Nick’s nose- had turned into a foxes’ muzzle, complete with tiny whiskers, and her blue eyes had turned narrow and yellow. He reached up to his forehead and felt his own short, dense fur and pointed ears that stood up, realizing with a start that his hearing had vastly improved. The tiny specks moving in the colorful distance were all different animals, and each voice sounded clear as if they stood next to Nick in a conversation.

“How’d this happen?” he said in a hoarse whisper.

“Well, there’s a fountain right here.” the rhino said patiently. “Water’s free, but you’ll have to have change for coffee. I’m awfully sorry. We’re working on a free drink menu.”

“No, not that!”

By now Nick had started to get used to his own voice, but not the hypersensitivity of his new nose. “I mean… How’d I get here?”

“Did you walk? I believe we have a bus route that goes through here twice a day.”

Nick’s paw collided with his face before he was able to respond. “Oh, never mind. Thanks for the… uh, drink.”

He shuffled off, disconcerted by the friendly rhino’s wave. So he was in Zootopia now. It all seemed familiar enough- the strange shapes of the buildings, the fact that he could identify a variety of species strolling along the sidewalks, and of course by his own tail moving behind him. That was one strange costume- had this been what his job was really supposed to be?