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Chapter Text

               Nick walks to the passengers side of the squadcar with a drink in each hand, struggling to open the door, before giving up, putting his coffee down, and opening the door with his free hand.

"Thanks" he says with a smile. Judy continues staring into the distance.

"Dispatch to Lieutenant Hopps, got a copy?" he teases. Judy snaps to attention.

"Oh...Nick.. sorry" she says, laughing coyly at herself.

"You ok Fluff? Not like you to be staring off into space... that's my job" he says as he hands her a drink.

"I'm fine..." she says, eyes still distant, "...just thinking too much".

"About anything in particular?" he prys, sipping his coffee.

"You remember when we took the truck back to Bunny Burrow?" she asked, with a puzzled expression.

"You mean when 'I' took the truck back to Bunny Burrow? You were so exhausted after the case you barely got us out of the City, I'm sure your leg wasn't helping that any though" Nick teased, swirling his cup.

"My leg... it wasn't cut that bad..." she said as she pulled away from the curb.

"You really don't remember?" he asked, concerned.

"..." Judy was silent, her increasingly puzzled look made him more concerned.

                 The truck neared the northern exit of the City, streetlights barely reflecting off the old paint, Nick and Judy have a spirited debate inside.

"I can't believe you won't let me take you to the hospital!" Nick barked.

"It's not that bad, and your handkerchief is holding up just fine, and if I don't get the truck back my folks might have issues getting some work done." Judy replied reassuringly. Judy starts to yawn just as the highway narrows, marking their official departure of the City. Nick looks over to her with a grimace, she rolls her eyes and smiles back. Nick sighs.

"At least let me drive then, you need some rest..." he pleads, giving her a stern look.

"Oh all right, if it will make you feel better, dumb fox..." she teases, returning his stern look before reverting to her smile. The truck pulls over to the side of the road. Nick gets out of the passengers side while Judy carefully scoots over. Once settled she starts scribbling notes on a scrap of paper.

"Here, follow these directions, don't use the GPS on your phone, it'll put you on a closed road, just make sure you make this right turn outside of Badger Brook, it's easy to miss" she says, pointing to the directions.

Nick smiles "Will do, you just worry about some shuteye Carrots, I'll wake you up when I get you home". Nick barely gets them back under way, not five minutes goes by before he glances over to see her fast asleep, head tipped down against the window. Nick smiles and shakes his head. Not much further, as the truck is driving down a hill, Nick hits the brakes a bit hard, and makes a hard right turn onto Burrow Brook Rd, causing Judy to fall away from the window.

"Oh no you don't, I got you..." Nick still managing the turn, reaches his arm out quickly to catch Judy's shoulder, before slowly lowering her down onto the seat. He's amazed she didn't wake up.

"There you go Fluff, now you won't wake up with a pain in your neck... you pain in the neck" he jokes.

After another hour, Nick sees a sign, Bunny Burrow, 82 miles.

"Still a ways off, but your almost home...." Nick glances down to see Judy has fidgeted in her sleep and is using his tail as a pillow. "Nice to know that thing can serve some kind of purpose..." he continued "...Blown up, chased, torn up, shot at, nearly bitten.... heh, can't believe that plan worked so well..."he trailed off.

                Just as the sun was about to come up, Nick makes a left turn after passing through town, and is greeted with a sign for Hopps Family Farm. He continues to follow the signs until he spots a dirt driveway leading up to the old ranch house. Stu is just making his way out the front door when he sees the truck coming up the drive.

"Hey Bon, Jude's got the truck back" he calls inside.

"Oh good, you can go get that part for the tractor then..." Bonnie replies. Stu starts making his way toward the truck which has come to a stop.

Nick puts a hand on Judy's shoulder and begins gently shaking her.

"Wake up Carrots, your home, and your family might have some questions for you..." he says calmly, trying to hide his tension. Judy doesn't move. "C'mon Carrots...." he says, shaking a bit more briskly. Still no response. He puts his hand on the side of her face to roll it over. His hand gets soaked from cold sweat lining her face, his eyes widen. He puts his hand on her forehead, "Judy your burning up!" he cries, wrestling his tail free and flinging the drivers door open.
Stu stops, only feet from the truck, to be greeted with a fox leaping from the open door.

"Who...!? Wheres Judy!?" he shouts. Nick carefully pulls Judy from the seat into his arms.

"I'm her friend, Nick... love to get better acquainted but she needs help, NOW!" Stu sees the panic in Nicks eyes, and glances at Judy, spotting the red cloth on her leg.

"Inside, C'mon!" Stu calls as he motions Nick to follow him and they both start sprinting toward the house. "BON, BON! Run water and grab some bandages!" Stu continues to shout along the way. Bonnie pokes her head outside to see whats happening, seeing Nick charging toward the door with Judy in hand "OH!" she blurts, and another "OOH!" after noticing the makeshift bandage on her leg. She rushes to the sink and starts water running and Nick makes it to the door.

"Put her on the couch!" Bonnie says, pointing over the half-wall dividing the living room and kitchen. Nick kneels, gently placing Judy on the couch, propping her leg on 2 pillows and her head on another. Nick stands up, breathing heavy, his ears start to ring.(1) The ringing in Nicks ears gets worst with every breath until Stu bumps his arm while pulling a stool over by the couch. Bonnie leave the bowl and towels on the end table and rushes out to the hallway.

"Well now, what happened here?" Stu asked as he unbinds the handkerchief.

"She cut it on something in the Museum" Nick says with some relief as he leans against the half-wall.

"Any idea what that something was?" Stu prys further while soaking a towel to begin cleaning the wound.

"We were being chased, I didnt get a good look at it, I bound it as best I could with what i had" Nick says, watching Judy wince once the cloth touches her skin.

"Where'd you get this thing? What do you usually use it for?" Stu asks.

"I always carry it, last thing I used it for was to tie up some blueberries" Nick says looking at the old red rag.

Stu sighs, "Well that would do it..." he mutters... "She's got a... minor allergy to blueberries, usually her fur is enough to protect her, but an open gash like this..." He wets another towel, and hands it to Nick. Nick drapes it across her forehead and top edge of her eyes. Nick slumps against the wall again looking sullen.

"Relax kid..." Stu assures him, "She'll be fine, just a couple days rest and she'll be up and about, but why didn't she go to the hospital?"

"She refused to let me take her until we got the truck back to you" Nick said.

"Stubborn as always!" Bonnie says walking into the room with a mitt full of gauze, "I can handle it from here, you two go get some air".

"I'm behind on the day already" Stu says as he makes for the door. Nick begins to pull away from the wall when Judy's hand reaches out and grabs his wrist.

"Stay... Nick..." she weakly spouts. Nick, surprised, turns around to see her eyes, barely open, face still covered in sweat. Before he can say anything her grip loosens and her eyes close again. He carefully draped her arm across her chest and headed outside.

                "This time of day, cut through Savanna Central" Nick says. Judy glances over to him momentarily uncertain if he's talking to her or still telling the story.

"You sure?" she asks.

"I'm sure Carrots, trust me" he replies.

"Did you really have to say 'trust me'?" Judy asks, mildly annoyed.

"Huh?" Nick said confused, glancing over to her.

"I call out and reached for you in the middle of a fever dream... safe to say I trust you Nick" she teased and chuckled.

Nick smiled in return."Hey now, you weren't the one that had to walk out to the porch and meet your partners dad, fluff..."

"He didn't say anything... rude... did he?" Judy inquired.

"I don't think so, I was just as exhausted as you by that point, I sat on that rickety bench you have out there and fell asleep." Nick continued, "Next thing I knew i was being woken up..."
    
                Bonnie shook Nicks arm rough. "Huh, wha...?!" Nick called as he sprung up.

"Sorry to wake you Nick I'm sure your tired too, and it's only been a couple hours, but could you help me move Judy into her own room?" Bonnie asked

"Her room? ('Oh I gotta see this! I thought', 'NICK!'), no problem." he said as they headed back into the house.

Nick gently lifted her up and started to follow Bonnie into the hallway, but moving Judy had caused her to start snoring quite loudly.

"Didn't think a bunny could make that much noise" he said trying not to laugh. Bonnie tried to hide her smile as she showed him down the corridor and into a bedroom, she motioned him toward a bed covered in stuffed bunnies. She cleared the bed off to make room before heading back out to the kitchen.
Nick lowered Judy down gently and propped her head and leg again, but as he stood up he was stopped. He thought his tie was trapped under her, so he slowly tugged at it before looking down to see she had a firm grip of it.

"Hey fluff, feeling better?" Nick stammered

"Nick...." she smiled, "...you stayed."

"Well after what you pulled off yesterday, I figured you earned a favor" Nick teased trying to calm himself down more than anything.

"Dumb fox..." she weakly said as she mustered an even weaker laugh, trying hard to smile with her eyes open slightly more than before. She glanced around for moment, "My room... Nick... the box... by the window.... I hope you haven't changed your mind..." she muttered as her grip on his tie loosened. Before Nick could say anything she was out cold again. Nick stood up with a sigh, looking at Judy, and blaming himself for her condition, 'How was I suppose to know' he thought. He looked around the room, and walked toward the window, to a box on the dresser, with only a few items in it; notepad, pens, pencil, clock, lamp, her meter maid vest and hat... As nick moved the hat, a crumpled piece of paper lay at the bottom of the box. He unfurled it and looked it over, it was his ZPD application...

"I did change my mind Carrots, but you made me change it again... I promise. I AM gonna learn how you keep doing that to me someday you know..." he said as he turned it over to check the back. It looked like she had started writing notes to herself on it, but kept crossing things out, except the last 3 words, "Sorry isn't enough"... He looked over at her still sound asleep.

"If you still feel that way, let's just call it even now, ok rabbit?" he pleaded with a sullen smile. A moment later he heard a tapping on the window. He turned to look, seeing Stu standing outside, with a smile, motioning him to the porch. Nick turned to leave, stopping at the foot of the bed.

"You get your rest Officer, I've got a lot of work ahead of me." He said before turning to leave, with a look of determined resolve about him. Heading out to the porch Stu motions him over to him. Nick walks over slowly, still worn out from the previous days gauntlet.

"Wasn't, uh... expecting so much, excitement, first thing this morning" Stu stammers extending out an open hand, "Stu Hopps, good to meechya!" he continues, smiling.

"Nick Wylde" he says, returning the handshake. "Neither was I..." he adds, thinking back to the morning, "...thought I'd be dropping her and the truck off and heading back home in no time."

"I know your not leaving me out of this Stu..." Bonnie says exiting the kitchen.

"Oh, of course not dear, just didn't know you were there" Stu says, smiling wider.

"Bonnie Hopps, thank you for the help Nicholas" she says putting a hand on his shoulder. Nick smiles at them both,

"Just trying to help a friend... by the way, you grow some amazing blueberries..." Nick says before another shock of guilt passes through him, "I'm sorry, she didn't tell me".

"Oh that girl's as stubborn as the day is long, but she'll be fine" Bonnie assures him, bringing a little light back into his eyes, "I always told her that would get her into hot water from time to time".

"Well, it certainly got hot water ON her this time" Stu says. Bonnie rolls her eyes and smiles before heading back into the house.

"Well I've got some kids to rustle up, it was nice meeting you Nicholas" she says before disappearing into the doorway.

"So your heading back to the City? Got a wife, or girlfriend to hurry back to?" Stu prys, bobbing his head around, pretending not to care.

"Nothing like that, just have a promise to keep, and the sooner I get back..." Nick starts but is interrupted...

"Gonna be a hot one today, bit to far to walk, c'mon, I'll give you a ride" Stu says as he heads toward the truck. Nick smiles and follows.

                  "And that's pretty much it, he dropped me off at the rail station, I hopped on, and went straight to the ZPD." Nick said as they finished their lunches.

"I know its a short ride to the station, but you two just sat there in silence?" Judy asked.

"Well..." Nick started, "...there was a story about a certain rabbit starting a small kitchen fire when she was little..." Judy's face flashed with shock and embarrassment, before turning to frustration.

"He didn't..." she growled through her teeth.

Nick started laughing "No Carrots he DIDN'T... but you just did" he said through the laughter.

Judy sighed, "Dumb fox... oh well... I got what I wanted anyway" she said cockily.

Nick paused, confused, "Huh?" he asked.

"Such a better story when you tell it than when dad told me when I woke up the next day..." she said with a smug smile.

"Did you just...." Nick started.

"Husssssstlllllllllled" Judy said as she tried not to chuckle, moving her head back and forth.

Nick smiled wide, "Heh, clever bunny" he said as Judy let out a full laugh.

 'You got me there Carrots' he thought, 'but you played your hand too early... not that it matters, you'll never get me to say what happened on that ride'

                  The truck backed out of the drive and started toward town.

"So your joining the force too huh?" Stu asked

"It would seem so" Nick said as he smiled, looking out the window aimlessly.

"That's uh, a lot of work y'know, Jude worked her whole life to get there" Stu added, nervous tension mounting in his voice.

"I know, and she proved to me she deserves to be there, and for some reason, she thinks I should be too" Nick says, slightly confused and sullen.

"It's not just a job you know" Stu says, pulling into the rail station.

"I've guessed at least that much" Nick smiled. Stu slammed on the brakes, startling Nick.

"I certainly hope your gonna be doing more than guessing out there! If your gonna be her partner you have to put in even more than she does, cuz' it wont just be her counting on you, we all will be, and..." Stu trails off, as Nick sits back waiting for the finale. Stu gasps... "Sorry Nick.... us bunnies are... a little high strung by nature, and, it been a tense week. Seeing her come home like that..." he says.

"Blueberry allergy, duly noted, not happening again on my watch" Nick replied.

Stu pauses, confused... "No... not today... the day she resigned... it's been her dream her whole life, and she had to walk away from it... all because of one mistake she made..."Stu said.

"I know... I overreacted at the press conference... I knew she didn't mean what she said, it was more..." Nick trailed off.

"Not that... well... sorta that.... you ever achieve one of your dreams?" Stu asked.

Nick thought for a moment before saying "No I haven't, never saw much point... dreams are greedy, once you make one happen, a new one will come around the corner... a never ending cycle of vague discontent...."

Stu smiled halfheartedly "And that's just what she got, a new dream. She didn't have to strive toward becoming a cop anymore, she just had to do it, while working toward the new one. A new dream, of having someone by her side, someone to trust, someone that trusts her... and she made that dream happen too, and then she made a mistake, an honest mistake..." Stu trailed off again. Nick sat completely still, growing more and more aware of what had transpired the last few days.

"When she got off that train, she was composed, and as strong as ever, but quiet. Once we got home, she went right to her room and stayed there for two days.What little she did tell us, we gathered that the case was a big part of it, but there was something bigger she wasn't telling us... every time I saw her, she was clutching that bit of paper you got there..." Stu continued, pointing at the application Nick was holding. "She fell asleep on the couch one night and dropped it. I couldn't help but look it over when I picked it up to put it back in her hand..." Stu finished as Nick sat there, speechless.

"Do you trust her?" Stu asked calmly, but stern. Nick still couldn't find the words to respond.

"Maybe you should rethink what your about to get into kid" Stu said, defensively.

Nick slowly reached for the handle and opened the door,  put one foot on the ground, he felt a slight tug at his tie, which made his mind race over everything that had happened since he met a harmless grey bunny in a bright orange vest. He paused. Then spun around to face Stu.

"I've never met anyone more trustworthy in my life, but the thing about trust... is you can always rely on it to be dashed from time to time, the only thing that really matters... is the degree it's stretched to" Nick said calmly, mind still racing, not even perfectly certain whats come over him, but he knew the words were his own.
They looked at each other with a long pause. Until Stu smiled from ear to ear.

"Well then... sounds like we don't have anything to worry about. Good luck out there Nick." Stu shouts over the approaching train.

Nick smiled back, turned around and walked onto the platform, wondering what tomorrow would bring.

Chapter Text

Nick stands over a cutting board in the ZPD break room, cutting up a hot pepper into slices, and putting the slices into a small mason jar. Finishing his task he lids the jar and pockets it. 'Ohhh sorry Carrots, noone ever said being partners didn't come with its share of fees' he thinks,with a smile, as he leaves the ZPD for the night.       

                                  (2 days earlier)   

"The menu here is a little odd isn't it?" Nick asked, as a waiter put a salad down in front of Judy.

"What do you mean?" Judy asked, grabbing her fork and looking over her leafy platter.

"Look at the side they bring you with a salad, A SALAD!" Nick says sarcastically pointing at the small dish with a dollop of wasabi on it.

"The salad is great! Just because it comes with something i don't like..." she explains, digging into her meal. Nick rests his head on his hand and smiles.

'Don't like the hot stuff eh Fluff?' Nick thinks to himself, 'It's about time then...'

                                        (Day 1)

                    The next morning he hits the coffee shop to get his usual order and walks over to the ZPD, stopping shortly to empty the contents of a small baggy into the cup marked Decaf.

'One hot pepper decaf to spice up your day Carrots' he thinks as he begins walking again with a little pep in his step. Rounding the corner he bursts open the main door to the ZPD and makes his way toward his desk upstairs.

"OOOOO NIck! Just in time" an excited little bunny says as she bounds toward him.

"You only drink decaf fluff, you can't possibly need the 'boost' it DOESN'T give you" he scoffs, lowering her cup down to her.

"I can still like it you know, besides it also means your here and we can get to work" she snidely remarks. "...so lets go" she adds, swinging an arm over her head. As she turns to walk away she takes a sip of her morning routine, and instantly pauses mid-step, her ears go straight back, almost pointing directly at Nick. Nick does his best to contain a laugh. She puts her raised foot down and slowly spins around.

"Everything ok Fluff?" he asks. As she finishes her spin he sees the look on her face, her eyes are wide and radiant, with a grin to match.

"Are you sure this is decaf?" she asks.

Nick is nearly speechless, "...uhh, yeah, it is, why?" he stammered.

"Did you get it from the same place you usually go?" she asked.

"Yeah..." Nick replied.

"It's really good today, but I can place why its any different, it still tastes the same, but it has more of a bite..."

"Is that so? Well tomorrow I'll tell them to make it double whatever they did to it today" he said.

"OOOO good good good, anyway, c'mon, lets get the day rolling" she bubbled. Nick had no idea what to do, dumbfounded, he conceded defeat, for today.

                                           (Day 2)
Nick argues with himself in the squadcar. "Four slices, and it still isnt working, maybe I need a hotter pepper" he thinks as Judy pulls the car in front of his place.

"See you tomorrow Nick" she calls, " Oh and here, catch" she continues, tossing him two new thermoses. Nick catches them, and looks them over, one green and one purple.

"Hey, these are nice Carrots" he says sincerely.

"I know, but they'll be a lot better when mine's full of that awesome coffee!" she excitedly spouts.

"Heh, see ya tomorrow Carrots" he says, devilish grin returning to his face.

                                           (Day 3)

'The coffee they make at that shop isn't great anyway, it's easier to make my own right here....' he thinks as he plugs his new coffee maker in '...and I can make sure this prank goes right this time!' After going through multiple cups of coffee and just as many different peppers, his mouth was on fire and he was getting very twitchy, it wasn't long after he realized it was nearly time to head to work, after being up all night, working to perfect his prank.

'Today is gonna be a rough one, but this HAS work this time, this is the hottest pepper i could find, and man does it hurt! Almost gonna feel bad for doing this' he finished with a wide smile. He fills Judy's purple thermos with decaf and adds the entire ghost pepper, sliced to burn... 'Awww, no smoke?' he thinks, disappointed, and proceeds to cap it and head to work.

Upon reaching the top of the stairs by Bogo's office, he looks around for Judy, but doesn't see her anywhere.

"HEY JUDY!" Delgato's voice booms from his desk, "ROUND 3?"

"You're never gonna beat me Delgato" she responds, as she hops over the top of the divider to his desk. Nick walks over to see whats going on, he looks up to see Delgato timidly putting a small pepper in his mouth and nearly choking on it after the first bite. Reality starts to dawn on Nick, removing his blinders as he recalls everything he put himself through for the sake of his prank.

"GAAAAAHHHHHH!" Delgato shrieked "Dra....dra....dragon peppers this time..." he wheezes out, gasping for air while biting into a piece of bread.

"Mhhmm" Judy smugly sounds, unimpressed, "You realize I grew up on a farm right?" she adds as she picks up one of the peppers, almost twice the size of her mouth, and takes as big of a bite as she can.

"CARROTS!? What are you doing!?" Nick shouts, as the final of evidence falls into place.

Judy pauses mid chew, her eyebrows go up before settling into confusion, she looks around, as if it was a trick question.

"Eeding a peppwher?", she says timidly, mouth still filled with pepper, holding a hand underneath her mouth in case any tries to escape.

"I shink my moush is beeding" Delgato says breaking the short silence. Nick pinches the bridge of his nose, smiles and chuckles, before walking around the corner to his own desk. Judy finishes her pepper quickly, and motions to Delgato to hand over her winnings, he wraps up 4 of the peppers and hands her the bag, which she slings over her shoulder like a small backpack, and hops back over the divider to bring them to her desk. Nick just covers his face in embarrassment.

"Ok slick, what was that all about?" she interrogates, arms folded across her chest.

"Oh nothing, just a dumb fox finally realizing he's been caught with his pants down" Nick says. The look of confusion he sees on Judy's face is priceless. "There..." he says with a wide smile, as he points at her face "...it wasn't my goal, but I'll take it... it's more satisfying anyway." Judy hangs her head before climbing onto his desk and up onto his shoulders.

Confused himself now, Nick asks "Hmmmm, ok, what are you doing?"

"Nothing..." she starts, "... just waiting here until to spill the beans, or the peppers maybe? That seemed to trigger something huh? And if you don't start talking, I've still got pepper breath, I can singe EVERY hair you've GOT in that red snout of yours." Nicks eye's widen out of sarcastic fear, knowing the pepper pain he's already put himself through, getting dragged through a little more mud would be meaningless at this point, but he plays along. Nick sighs in utter defeat.

"I've been trying to prank you for a few days now, ever since you said you didn't like wasabi at the cafe the other day..." he starts, and feeling no need to make good on her threat she climbs down, hearing the embarrassed tone in his voice, "...I assumed from that, that you didn't like spicy food, so I've been spiking your morning coffee with sliced peppers... it actually sounds like a pretty dumb prank, now that I say it out loud" he says and chuckles slightly, and looks away.
She looks away and smiles.

"So what's the problem your having with that plan?" she says playfully in a low voice, baiting him. Nicks face washes with confusion again.

"Ummm, my prank failed because I assumed essential details? I've burned out my taste buds, and wont be able to taste ANYTHING for a few days, trying to make it as hot as possible, and I AM SOOOOO WIRED RIGHT NOW I WANT TO SCREAM FOR NO REASON!" he shouts. Judy continues to look away but can't stop the laughter building inside her, eventually its too much and she lets it out, laughing until she falls off the desk, Nick's coffee binge has his reflexes in top game, and he catches her before she hits the ground, but its not until that moment that her laughter begins to halt.

"Nick, I don't even want to know what made you think to try to prank me in the first place, and even though it really backfired on you, I'm glad you tried." she said through fading laughter, wiping tears from her eyes.

"Why Carrots? Because now you've got a new reason to call me childish?" Nick teases, as he places her back on the desk.

"No, Fox..." she said, her tone increasingly aloof, "...because now I know exactly why I loved my coffee so much" she looked up at him and smiled. Nick reached to the side of his monitor and pulled out her thermos, placing it o the desk next to her, with a half hearted smile on his face.

"OOOOOO, YES!" she said, jumping excitedly, before looking back at him sternly, "You know what the punishment for trying to prank your partner is right?"

"Let me guess Fluff, more hot pepper decaf?" he sarcastically teased.

"Bingo!" she said as she tapped her finger on his snout. She then picked up her thermos and took a big swig, ending with a refreshing "Ahhh!"
As she went to hop down off the desk, Nick piped up.

"Hold on Carrots..." he called, she paused, and turned to look at him, "...why don''t you like wasabi?"

"Ugggghh, 'cause its pasty, it always gets stuck on the backside of my front teeth, drives me crazy until its gone..." as she carries on with various reasons why she hates wasabi, Nick just smiles, places his head in his hands, and wonders how long before all this caffeine wears off.

Chapter Text

                    A siren blares through Tundra Town, cutting through the torrent of snow, as a dark green car is being chased by a ZPD squadcar. Making corner after corner of the empty streets.

"Think we need to tell him again?" Judy asked bobbing her head to see through the snow, refusing to lose sight of the car.

"I can try, but I don't think words are going to do anything, we've been chasing him from Sahara Square..." Nick said, reaching for the mic. "PULL OVER MORRIS!" his voice bellows out of the megaphone. The car shifts left and right slightly, the lights dodging back and forth as a head would shake. "Well theres your answer Carrots" Nick jokes snidely.

"Worth a shot" Judy replies, tightening her grip on the wheel, "If we keep this up it's not going to end well, the roads getting slick and I can already barely see..." she adds as the chase starts them up the hills toward Helpers Pass. "... And that would be the worst place it could go, he's determined to lose us..."

"Well..." Nick starts, "Why don't we let him? We have his registration, we can just bust him at home later...", waving the registration paper about.

"It's not about the traffic stop now Nick, he's endangering himself and every other mammal that could be out here, not to mention us!" Judy's voice grows agitated, as she follows the road up to a tight turn.

"There's no one else out here Fluff, and he's only driving like this because we're chasing..." Nick says as they hear a loud bang behind them.

"OOOOHHHHH" Judy exclaims as the squadcar pulls violently to the right.

"Caaaarrrrots!" Nick blurts, grabbing the door as the vehicle spins on the icy roadway. they both brace themselves.

                       The squadcar spins most of the way around, the front passenger side smashing into the tall, craggy rock formation on the curve, and pushes away toward the cliff edge, slowing itself in the process. The lights inside and out dim and flicker out. The rim of the blown rear tire on Nick's side makes a grinding noise as it gets dragged sideways along the pavement, breaking up the slush and ice as it cuts a path through. The front end comes to rest against the side of the rock wall as a large clump of thick snow falls from the mountain, burying the car with a loud thump.

"Ok..." Judy says, taking a few deep breathes, "Maybe we should have let him go..." as she looks over to Nick, holding his elbow. His eyes open wider and he starts to say something. "Don't you dare say it fox!" She barks with a half smile, shaking a pointed finger at him. They feel the back end of the car slowly move.

"Whoa!" Nick says, freezing in place, feeling the gentle shift, "Ok, this is bad". Judy turns slowly, looking out of her window to see no bottom to the valley they are dangerously perched inches away from. The sound of creeking metal starts again as the car starts to move.

"Carrots... don't... move..." Nick warns, remaining still. The rim can still be heard, slowly grinding against the ground, before settling again.

Judy looks around the car slowly. "No lights... no power..." she says, looking down to the dashboard, "...no radio." she finishes, dismayed.

"No bars..." Nick adds, holding up his phone, "... the snow must be breaking up the signal." More snow can be heard piling on top of the car in large clumps.

"Can you get your door open?" Judy asks, hoping for some good fortune. Nick gently pulls the handle and softly pushes on the door.

"It's a no-go," he says, shaking his head, "too much snow pinning it shut, and I won't dare to try forcing it..."

"We could make the car shift more..." Judy sighs, "can't dig our way out since the windows up... juuust perfect...", as she hangs her head.

"Guess we just have to wait until Clawhauser notices we haven't checked in, they'll be looking for us." Nick says, trying to cut the tension.

"We'll be out of here in no time." Judy spouts, "Lets just hope 'out of here' isn't that way" she adds, pointing to the valley. The car shifts again toward the edge.

"Carrots, quit moving!" Nick quietly scolds as Judy squeezes her eyes closed and grits her teeth at her mistake, before peaking toward the window again. "We're stuck, just have to wait... we could use some time off anyway" he snarkily adds. Judy smiles.

"I'd prefer someplace warmer for a vacation" she says.

"Me too Fluff..." he replies. "...we might be here a while, maybe we should..." he trails off.

"Already on it" Judy says, pulling out her phone. After a few button presses, music starts to play loudly. The car creeks.

"I uh.... I don''t think it likes that song..." Nick says, startled but laughing lightly. Judy lowers the volume, listening for the car to settle.  

                        After a few hours of sitting motionless in their seats, Nick thinks about how long they might be waiting for help, and reality sets in a bit deeper. He extends an arm toward Judy.

"Nick?" she asks, confused.

"The ice under the car should have frozen enough to let us move a little, and the more weight we have on this side, the better." he explains, motioning for her to take his hand.

"I don't really weigh much..." she responds, taking his offer.

"Every little bit helps" he says with a smile, "but just how much do..." he trails off after seeing the look of response in her eyes, making him smile wider. They carefully adjust to get her over to the passengers side. Once shes settled in she notices Nick slowly slide off the seat to stand on the floor.

"Nick..." she gasps, "what are you...?" she trails off.

"Grab the bars behind you" he starts, "I need to get into the compartment under the seat, just pull yourself off the seat slowly...". He gently lifts the bench seat, and finds the road flares, medical kit, and a blanket. grabbing the blanket, he lowers the seat back down.

"I thought the blankets were in the trunk?" she asked, lowering herself back to the seat, as Nick climbs back up.

"They are, this ones mine... just in case of a highly unlikely situation..." he says as he unfolds the blanket and drapes it over them. Nick nestles into the corner of the seat and door, and starts staring out the drivers side window, watching the snow fall.

"Thanks..." Judy says quietly, rubbing her chin, before looking up at him. Nick smiles. "You've been quiet today Nick..." she says sullenly.

"I have? You sure your remembering today right rabbit?" he says looking about.

"Well... you've had things to say... but..." she starts, "You just don't seem like... you.. today."

"Sorry, guess I've got a lot on my mind today" he says.

"I find that hard to imagine" she mutters jokingly. Nick drops his head.

"Cheap shot Carrots, your better than that..."  he sighs as the smile fades from her face. he resumes his watch at the window. "We should try to get some sleep, the less we think about it, the faster help might show up." She nods in agreement, but can't shake the feeling that he's trying to avoid her. They both settle in on the bench seat.

                    Nick wakes up in the moonlit car to a chattering sound. He turns his head about thinking someone is digging out the car, until he looks down and sees Judy, shivering from the cold. He grits his teeth and reaches for her.

"Gah Carrots... come here." he grunts, grabbing her wrists.

"N-N-N-Nick-k-k-k?" she calls, opening her eyes slightly.

"Your coat isn't as thick as mine Carrots, your gonna freeze if we don't huddle." he says, pulling her up to his chest. "Either that, or your gonna vibrate this car right over the cliff with all that chattering." She chuckles through the shivers, and wraps her arms around his neck, burying her nose in his fur. He grabs the blanket and bundles them up tight, only her eyes and his face remain uncovered. She stops shaking after a few minutes, but can't fall back to sleep.

"Nick... why won't you talk to me?" she asks sadly. "Everything out of you today has been strictly business... the last couple days you've been even quieter."

"Just thinking a lot..." he starts with a sigh, "...and then this happened... and there was nothing I could do about it..." he pauses.

"Scared?" she asks him, her eyes wandering up the side of his head.

"... a little... and I didn't want it to affect you if you saw it..." he continues.

"Then why put me through the same thing?" she asks, her voice crackling.

"What do you mean Carrots?" he asked, confusion rounding out his words.

"You think I'm afraid of this situation? Smashing the car into the mountain? Afraid of the car going over the cliff?" she pipes, frustration growing in her tone, "Because I'm not." Nick sits in silence. "This comes with the job...but when you won't talk to me, with that smart mouth of yours..." she pauses, "...that scares me...." she says, her tone going back to sullen. Nick waits, thinking she's not done, but nothing more comes.

"Sorry..." he says, returning her sullen tone. "I... I didn't know you wanted me to pick on you so much"

"That's being a bit black and white about it but you've got the gist of it" she says, as a smile returns to her face.

"Close enough then" Nick starts, smiling as Judy starts to laugh, "I promise to pick on you twice as much as usual, for at least three days Fluff".

"Dumb fox" she mutters as she buries her smile further into his fur.

"Emotionally deranged bunny..." he says, looking back out the window. "Now get back to sleep, I'm gonna need the energy tomorrow, picking on you is a lot more tiring than it looks." She huffs through her smile, letting out a faint hum, before they both nod off.

                       The sun burns through the only window the car has to offer. They awake to loud creaking coming from the car, followed by thumping. They feel the car begin to slide again.

"Carrots...?" Nick blurts, half awake. She sits up, pulling herself out of the cozy nest she made in his neck fur. She looks out the window with him.

"The sun must be melting the ice..." she says nervously, looking back at him, as the car slides more, the grinding of the rim becomes ear splitting. "This could be it Nick..." she adds looking him in the eyes, her ears draped at her back. They both look a each other with despair as the car quickly loses its footing with one wheel, thumping down hard onto its frame, nearly bouncing Judy out of Nicks arms.
"I gotcha!" Nick exclaims, scrabbling to secure her, pulling her close against his chest, he scrambles for the seat belt and pulls it over both of them. She clutches his shirt and braces for whatever could come next. The car finishes its slide as it loses another wheel of footing, the grinding can no longer be heard as the car tips slightly and plunges off the edge.

"NICK...!" Judy shouts. Nick stares blankly out of terror, tightening his grip on her, as all the snow the car was buried in falls away, and he can see the deep void in front of him.

"WHOOAAA" They exclaim together as the car begins swinging back and forth. after a few swings it settles and they look out the window as the car appears to be climbing backward up the mountain wall.

                          Chief Bogo stands with Wolford and Grizzoli behind the heavyweight tow truck as the cables pull the car back onto solid ground. A look of relief sweeps over his face.

"I told ya Chief, nothin' to worry about." the tow operator says, manipulating the controls.

"At least the second cable should have kept the upholstery clean..." he grunts as he slowly walks over to look at the damages. Once the car is in a stable position the tow operator slacks the cables and begins to unhook them from the frame. Bogo arrives at the passenger side window to see Nick and Judy, stuck to each other, still bracing for an impact that wouldn't come.

"Hate to interrupt this tender moment, but I'll need to see your license and registration please..." he teases, rolling his eyes. Nick starts laughing as Judy reaches for the belt release. As they step out of the car, Judy runs to the front end to see the damage herself.

"Sorry Chief, I did..." she says looking up at Bogo.

"The best you could..." Bogo interrupts, "I know Hopps... that's obvious...flat tire during a pursuit, you lost control, but still managed to stop it from going over a cliff... well done Hopps" he says sincerely, as he motions to the surrounding road, rebuilding the events. A medical team begins to walk over to the car but Bogo motions for them to stay back, Nick walks to the ambulance holding his arm again. "But next time keep in mind, " Bogo starts, stopping Judy in her tracks, "if you want time off, there's easier ways to get it" Bogo jokes waving his phone. Judy smiles and walks to join Nick at the ambulance.

Chapter Text

The squadcar rounds a familiar bend on Helpers Pass in the Tundra Town mountains.

"At least its not snowing this time" Judy says remembering the car chase that went wrong here the previous year. Nick continues to stare out the window vacantly, 'Why here, why today' he thinks to himself.

"Nick?" she calmly asks, "You ok over there?"

"I'm fine Carrots, it's nothing" he replies with a sigh. The squadcar was never the same after the incident, and it acted almost as if it remembered this road as well. The engine began to quietly sputter. Judy is too distracted by Nicks words to notice.

"Your not thinking about the crash are you? Since we're here?" she asks trying to get Nick to talk.

"No...it's..." he says with less agitation, Judy glances over to him "...how long have we been at this?" Nick continues.

"A little over 3 years, why?" she responds, continuing up the winding pass.

"Feels longer than that to me" Nick said, folding his arms.

"Well, time flies when your having fun... so... does that mean you haven't been having any?" she asks, as the engine begins to sputter more. "Oh no, not today..." she adds.The engine sputters loudly for a moment but then corrects itself.

"No, it's great fun, I get to tease you every day don't I?" Nick says, forcing a smile.

"There you go clunker, almost to the top" she says to the engine. "Well then, what is it? You've been so quiet the last few days, seems like you've had SOMETHING on your mind, you should already know not to be that way around me..." she finishes turning her attention back to Nick. The squadcar sputters loudly again, all the lights inside dim, and the engine stops abruptly.

"Gahhhh" Judy exclaims as she puts it in park, "Not again, it's been months since its done this, I thought they had it fixed!"

"It's probably the battery wire, pop the hood, I'll check it" Nick says with a sigh of relief. He opens the door as the dented hood pops open. He begins looking around inside.

"Yep, battery nut was loose" he says.

"Can we tighten it down?" Judy calls from inside.

"We can, if we can find it... it's gone. Must have fallen off down the mountain somewhere, so I guess we're walking." Nick says without changing his demeanor.

                         They both start slowly walking back down the mountain, sweeping the ground with their eyes looking for the missing component. After twenty minutes, Judy can't take the silence any more.

"Nick, stop." she barks, irritated.

"Yes Carrots?" he spouts, stopping in his tracks, still not turning around to look at her.

"..." Judy takes a moment, before she realizes his back is still turned. "You never answered me... and now you won't even look at me?" she pauses, "Nick..."

Nick sighs, "Judy I... I just can't right now..."he says with a sullen tone.

"You can't? Since when are you not analyzing me constantly, waiting for my guard to be down, to get the worst jokes in at just the right time? And since WHEN do you call me by my name when 'nothing' is wrong?" she says, getting less irritated, and more worried. Her ears drop, and her tone changes to match, "You know it scares me when your quiet, because quiet isn't you." She steps closer to him, "Please Nick, tell me whats wrong...".

"Nothing is wrong Carrots... or maybe nothing is right... I can''t tell right now, I haven't been  thinking straight lately, and you can't help" Nick replies, still motionless.

"I can try..." she pleads as she come to a stop just behind him. "...but your right... I can't help unless I know what I'm helping." she finishes, as she slowly reach out to put a hand on his arm.

"I can't say... least of all to you..." Nick says softly, she stops reaching and pulls her arm back.

"If I did something Nick, I w... " she pleads more desperately.

"No... you didn't do anything Carrots, it's not your fault..." Nick says, conflicted, gritting his teeth .

"Nick, I don't know what it is, but if it's hurting you, I want you to tell me, or at least look at me... please" she says as she wraps her arms around him. Nick shudders, gasps,  and steps away before she clasps her hands.

"Nick..." she mutters, before a scowl appears across her brow, her temper mounting, "NICK!" she shouts.

Nick turns to face her. "You want to know?! FINE!" he shouts, before retracting his tone," I'm in love with you Judy..."

Judy stares back at him "Nick, you know I..." she pauses, realizing his emphasis is different than usual, " you.... love me?" she continues as she feels her heart drop, shock sweeping across her face, her breath growing heavy, " you... you can't..." she says, trying not to  choke. she turns away from him.

"Well I do," Nick begins, his resolve broken, "I've been keeping it down for a long time... but I can't fight it any more, not when we're together almost every waking minute. On duty, off duty, your always there, stopping me from going too far, laughing when I do anyway...."

"It doesn't work this way Nick... we aren't even the same..." she trails off.

"I can't possibly be the first..." he accuses.

"Well if it does happen, have you ever seen it? I haven't! Where are they all? Locking themselves away out of fear, or shame?" she shouts in response, her chest begins to tighten,she curls her hand into a fist as the wind picks up in the valley beside them.

"I don't know... and I don't care... about any of what others might do or think... just you... it can't work?... because of accidents of genetics?..." Nick says with a righteous tone, "...I've always known life wasn't fair... but that's just cruel..."

"Your making a fool of yourself Nick..." she counters, gritting her teeth, as she turns to him, fighting herself more than anything.

"Well, it's my moment I suppose" Nick says, trying to speak over the wind, "I'll make as big a fool of myself as I want, because I can't hide this any more Judy... I love you, and if it can't work, then I hope it's one sided, to spare you this torment". Judy steps toward him, grabbing his tie and pulling him down to her level. Nick's eyes still hold a stern, determined look. As his eyes meet hers, he sees tears streaming down her face. He pauses as his eyes widen slightly, guilt sinking in.

"By tomorrow morning I might hate you" she says, voice choking on tears, "but I have to know right now!"

With that, she presses her lips to his, and within seconds, a puff and moan echo through her throat, she chokes and begins to tremble before she pulls away from him. Nick stands completely still, speechless and dumbfounded.

                               Judy still choking back tears, looks into Nicks eyes, "I love you too Nick" she starts, " I've been fighting it just the same as you, for too long now".

"Judy... I...." Nick mutters as his eyes well with tears. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her muzzle in the side of his face.

"It's hurt so much, bottling it up..." she says as Nick stands up, wrapping her in his arms. "...I can take all the pain the job can throw at me...." she gasps, "...everything else my life has put me through...." she moves a hand to the other side of Nicks face to press it into hers, "but this... holding on to this for so long..." she tries to calm down.

"If I had known Judy, I wouldn't have made you suffer like that..." he said, regret rampant in his voice.

"I hoped this would never happen" she replied, "because now it's worse, knowing you feel this way too, I could have kept it in, but this..." Nick thinks back to a few moments ago, his expression became vacant. "Do you really think we could be the only ones?" he asked.

"I don't know Nick, and I'm afraid to find out... you...you've always been the only thing that can scare me... and I hate you for that" she exclaimed.

"No you don't rabbit... you already said otherwise..." Nick said with a smile, his own tears finally dry.

"Stop it Nick..." she laughed, "I'm serious, this is terrifying... knowing we both feel this way and now... it still doesn't change anything... this moment is the only thing we can ever have" desperation in her voice, her grip tightening around his neck.

"So, should I put you down then?" he asked.

"NO!" she cried, "I filled this bottle, but since you had to force it open like this, at least let me drink it, I want to stay here as long as I can" her eyes begin watering again, her hand clutching the fur on the back of his head.

Nick takes a few steps "If you think this is too much to bear in this world, and you want to stay here as long as you can..." he pauses... "...is forever too long for you?"

Judy wipes the last tears from her eyes and leans away from Nick, a gust of wind blows up from the canyon beside them. They both look down.

"This is a lot to think about, should we take more time? It's a long way down..." Nick asked sullenly.

Judy pulls out her phone, taps a few keys, a song begins to play.

"I've thought about it too long already" she said, looking him in the eyes. "One more time..."

Nick presses his lips against hers as they tip effortlessly over the edge. As they fall the sound of the wind is drown out by the song, and all they can see is each other.

"Does this scare you?" he asks calmly as they fall.

"Not any more" she replies, pressing her cheek to his.

.........................Take..............................

..........................................These broken wings...................

........................................................................And learn to fly again and learn to live so free..............

Chapter Text

.....Learn to live so free......................

............And when we hear.......................

.......................The voices sing...........................

                   "Of all the songs the alarm would pick...." Judy mutters at her phone with eyes barely open, pawing at the snooze button. She sees the clock on the screen. "Four-thirty already...? ...couldn't have slept more than an hour" she says to herself. She puts a hand on the side of her head and squeezes her eyes closed as the memories of the previous night assail her....

                     "By tomorrow morning I might hate you" she says, voice choking on tears, "but I have to know right now!"

                     With that, she presses her lips to his, and within seconds, a puff and moan echo through her throat, she chokes as she begins to tremble. She pulls away from him. Nick stands completely still, speechless and dumbfounded.

                     Her eyes widen, her breathing turns to panting as she looks at him, seeing his reactions to her, she snaps her head part way around without breaking eye contact, a look of desperate conflict washes over her face. She clutches her chest, quickly turns around, and begins walking back to the squadcar, before she realizes whats happening she finds herself running at full speed, gasping for air, fighting back her tears. Nick stands in silence, his eyes screaming with regret.

"Nick..." she sobs.... "...why did you have to complicate everything?"

                      When she awoke the day before, life was simple, her apartment was simple, her family was simple, even her job was comparatively simple... today, her mind was a whirlwind of chaos. She couldn't make sense of anything, but one thing was crystal clear, her heart ached. Both for what she felt she had to say, and for all of the emotions she had bottled up for so long. After a few minutes her phone buzzed, but she didn't want to look at it, fearing it would be him. She wasn't ready for that yet, but she had to.

"Bogo..." she said, opening the messege box, and checking her previous texts;

Had the squadcar towed to the shop, still needs more work-- Hopps

                                            9:40pm

            Need to take a couple personal days Chief-- Hopps

                                            9:44pm

Bogo -- Got your message, don't need to look, I know you've got the time saved up. Everything ok?

                                            4:58am

She didn't like leaving it at that, but she didn't have an answer for him. "Ok....?" she thought, "...everything would have been fine if he could have just....."

                      Before she could finish the thought, the alarm on the desk went on with the radio. "n get higher, loosen your lips..." the radio squawked. As she hears the song, her eyes widen and her chest swells, images of Nick swirl violently in her mind, "... pull me down hard, drown me in..."

"GRRRRRRRRRR!" she growled ripping the clock out of the wall and throwing it to the ground. She grabbed her head with both hands, squeezed her eyes tight, ears draped over her shoulders, and slumped down on the bed, pouting. "Why Nick..... Why do those words from you... have to cause so much.... pain...."

                      He stares into his mirror, the reflection he sees is grizzled, and broken. He barely recognizes it, and likes it even less. He looks at the few photos lining the edges of it, seeing each one makes the reflection take on phantom pains. At the bottom left of it he sees a tattered but folded piece of paper. He reaches for it slowly but is interrupted by his phone ringing.

"...Hello...?" he answers with gruff aloofness.

"Wilde!" Chief Bogo's voice booms into his ear, "Where are you!? You missed Roll Call!"

"...Sorry... must have... overslept...." Nick replies, still distant and uncaring. Bogo is silent for a moment.

"Sigh... Don't have anything special for you today anyway, just get to your desk ASAP, Hopps didn't file a repair order for the car and...." Bogo pauses, "Did anything.... happen.... on Patrol last night... aside from the squaddie breaking down that is?" Bogo asked tentatively. Nick looks into the mirror again. The figure in the glass is one he hasn't seen in almost ten years. Frustration and despair mount on his mind.

"I'll be there in a few minutes..." he says before abruptly hanging up. "And YOU!" he barks, pointing at the mirror, "NONE of this concerns YOU!". "Left you behind for a reason..." he mutters as he puts on his uniform and see's the grease stains from looking under the hood of the squaddie, as memories surface.

                      "Those eyes..." he thought, before she started walking away, "I tried to keep it in Judy...and now look what I've done..." as his gaze follows her all the way back to the car. Her walk quickly changes to a sprint, as guilt slams against him. Once she slams the door to the squadcar, he turns and begins walking back down the pass, aimlessly, replaying the last few moments over and over again in his mind.

                       "Why did you have to push me..." he thought slowing rubbing the side of his face, as his eyes move back to the pictures around the mirror, "I wasn't strong enough yesterday." he thought before pushing himself forward. "I can fix this!" he said, determined, "Can't I...?" he thought as he headed out the door.

                       As the day goes by, Judy spends most of it collecting herself and trying to think of a way to make the previous day disappear from history. Eventually she finds herself searching the internet for inter-species relationships, which only shows her links for mental health clinics, and PSA warnings about heat cycle maladies. "Are we really just sick?" she thinks, but as that thought goes through her mind, anger swells in it's wake. She thinks of him for a moment, the look on his face before she walked away. She closes her eyes as a claustrophobic feeling sets in. "I can't avoid this, we have to figure this out" she mutters, refusing to break down again. As night falls, she gets up, putting on her pink shirt and leaves her apartment to head to his.

                        Judy walks down the hall, and stops in front of a door, only a few doors away from the staircase. She timidly holds up a hand, ready to knock, but she stops before putting knuckle to wood. "Did I come all this way for nothing?" she wonders, "I still don't know what to say, or... NO! I might not have a plan, but something has to happen..." she thinks as the lump in her throat begins to resurface, "This is torture." She knocks, and waits. There is no answer. "Nick?" she calls through the door, but her call goes unheeded. Pressing her hand against the door as she looks to the floor, she thinks about all that's happened. She walks away toward the stairs, stepping down one, she steps down to the second one, but is stopped. Not expecting resistance she loses balance and falls backward, landing, sitting, on the top step. She sighs as she hangs her head. "And now I can't even leave... ". She raises her hand up to the the collar of her shirt and starts to fiddle with it, running her fingers over the three small holes. After a few moments her ears perk up, hearing footsteps in the hall behind her, she panics as the the world around her seems more real in that moment. "I can't do this now..." she thinks, as she starts to slink down the stairs again.

                       Nick meanders down the hall, as he reaches his door he pauses, sniffing slightly he notices her scent. "Carrots?" he calls out. She pauses at the bottom of the stairs and grits her teeth hearing his voice, her ears drop again. He stands in front of the door and slowly looks around, "Your going crazy fox..." he says to himself after only seeing an empty hall on both sides, as he puts the key in the lock and turns it. She gets to the tops of the stairs before he opens the door, and slumps against the wall.

"Nick..." she sighs quietly as all the emotions she spent the day fighting against come rushing back as she sees him. His ears flick as he turns to see her, seeing the pained expression on her face, he grits his teeth, angry with himself for what he's putting her through.

"Judy... what are you doing here?" he asked trying to look away from her.

"You know why I'm here... crazy fox..." she teases as she slowly walks forward, "I... WE, need to talk about this... because..." her voice cracks, "because this..." she trails off. He pauses for a moment, fighting back the urge to comfort her after hearing the tension in her voice.

"You...uh... want to come in?" he says, swallowing hard, immediately regretting the words.

Chapter Text

    The door clicks as it closes behind them. Nick steps forward, toward the low sitting couch that doubles as a bed, Judy following closely behind him. He stops abruptly before quickly turning around and putting his hands on her shoulders. Her sullen expression quickly turns to surprise, as her ears shoot up and her lips purse. Nick hung his head with a sigh.

"I'm sorry..." he starts, slowly raising his head to meet her startled gaze, "...for the mess I must have made for you with all this... yesterday...I...", Judy's eyes lose their shock as her ears start pulling behind her. She raises her arms to break his hold as frustration overtakes her. She forcefully shoves Nick, he staggers trying to hold his balance, but ultimately loses the struggle and falls onto the couch. His shock and surprise are met with Judy's stern gaze, as she quickly followed his path across the floor to confront him.  

"You..." she accuses, frustration in her voice turning sullen once again, "...you don't get to apologize Nick... at first I blamed you but... " she continues, as her breathe draws heavy, "...this is my fault, I did this...I shouldn't have pushed you..."

"Just now, or yesterday?" Nick interrupts with a sarcastic smile, trying to lighten the mood. Judy pauses for a moment before returning a weak smile.

"Yesterday...and now" she replies through a sad laugh, "...and maybe I shouldn't have kissed you but..." she trails off.

"I didn't expect that you know" he said, watching her as she sat down next to him.

"I didn't either," she muttered, "but then, I didn't expect you were holding back the same thing I was, and I needed to know if what I felt for you was real..."she continued, looking to the floor, as Nick looked down at her.

"Based on your reaction I assume... it WAS then?" he asked, rethinking what her eyes were telling him the previous night. Judy looked at him, her eyes answering his question. 

"I thought it was just tension from working together, but then..." she sighed, "...it wasn't just work... I realized I was making excuses to be around you outside of work as much as possible too... even when I was mad at you, I still wanted you around..." she paused, leaned to the side, resting her cheek against his arm. "How did this happen...?" she sighed again, exasperated.

"Well, I... can't place when it started..." he said, thinking back, "but I know when I couldn't ignore what it was anymore..." she put more weight on his arm, before looking up at him, curious, "The accident..." he trailed off, as his eyes became sullen,"the only thing I could think about was keeping you safe." he said, Judy wrapping her arms around his.  

"I don't need you to protect me Nick..." she muttered.

"Maybe not Carrots,but..." he replied, his low tone speaking volumes to her, "if not for you, then for my own peace of mind, if anything happened to you, and I didn't..." he trailed off as Judy squeezed harder before leaning back to look at his face, his eyes looking distant.

"Then stop this!" she barked, her scowl returning slowly, "If you want to protect me, then protect me from YOU," she continued her voice cracking slightly, Nick clenched his jaw, "hearing you talk like that hurts Nick, because I know it means you're in pain..." she trailed as she watched his eyes, her own eyes turning back into the same sad look that he hated in the hall. Nick sighed, and looked back at her.

"Sorry again," he said with a laugh, trying to make her expression change, "looks like I broke my own rule..." he paused reflectively, a confused look washing over her.

"What rule?" she inquired.

"I let you get to me" he said with a smile, forcing her to smile as well.

"Dumb fox..." she teased, grabbing his hand and returning her eyes to meet his, "...who I was a dumb enough bunny... to fall in love with..." Nick sighed through his smile, pausing for a moment to recount the event of the last two days.

"How do we fix this Judy?" he asked, rubbing the side of his head, "There's no fighting it down, now that it's out..."

"I think it will be manageable like this though... isn't restraint easier than inner turmoil? she suggested, gripping his hand tighter.

"I had that thought, but wasn't sure if you would too... "he replied, as she reached her free hand up, placing a finger over his mouth briefly.

"I want this Nick.... but...." she said after a deep breath, letting go of his hand and slowly looking away.

"But your afraid, of what people might think..." Nick interrupted as he tried to smile. Judy stared silently as she slowly looked up to him. She stood up on the couch, and wrapped her arms around him. Confusion began to set in as Nick looked down.

"No Nick," she said, "I'm afraid to lose YOU, as my friend, and my partner, to some stupid couples quarrel... or some other nonsense, to me, " squeezing him tighter.

"What  about...." he tried to argue before she interrupted, knowing what he was going to  say.

"I was a mess, what you said... couldn't have been further from what I was expecting...  I don't even know half of what I said, making excuses, fighting myself... I... I didn't want to find out if it was real..." she paused before her tone shifted to sorrow, stepping back from him, "I thought it might lead to losing you either way..." she trailed off as her eyes drifted away from him. Nick grit his teeth before letting out a frustrated sigh.

"Carrots..." he started as she looked back to him, "...you really are a dumb bunny sometimes..." she started to laugh as she loosened her grip, leaning away. "You won't lose me that easily, you'd have to want to." He laughed through his sarcastic smile as Judy's ears perking straight up. She lunged to wrap her arms around his neck, choking him slightly as she squeezed tightly for a moment. "But if your THAT afraid of taking the chance, we dont have to change anything" he finished as she slowly let herself down. He could see she was forcing herself to smile at his words, fighting the pained expression he saw in the hallway.

"Thanks," she said, looking away again, "but this isn't what I want, you know... it's just... what I need... for now..." she finished uncertainly.

"I get it Judy, I don't want to lose you either" he responded, putting his arm around her, "but now that this is all out in the open, can you please stop giving me that look?" as she turned back to him.

"This look?" she asked, her smile fading.

"Yes THAT look, ANY other look but THAT one..." he playfully exclaimed, pointing a her. Judy started to laugh.

"I don't know if I can do that" she started through her fading laughter, "After all YOU just put me through, a favor like that is gonna cost you" as she leaned back into the couch.

"ME?! You said yourself it was YOUR fault rabbit." he playfully argued. Before he finished his sentence they both laughed. Nick sighed, "Still though, as long as I never see those sad eyes again..." he pauses, eyes growing wide, Judy's expression becoming puzzled, "since I have tomorrow off, why don't I take you to lunch?"

"How is that a fair trade? We always go to lunch Fox..."  she said before Nick interrupted.

"At Petals?" He replied with a grin. Judy covered her mouth to silence a gasp as she jumped up.

"You must really hate that look...." she paused to think, "Ok... but it's NOT a date" she finished, pointing at him with a playful scowl.

"Yes it is" he sarcastically teased

"Nick...    !" she blurted, "What did we just..." she dropped her arm, exasperated.

"Two friends having lunch IS still a date Fluff..." he instigated further, trying to hold down a laugh, "...will it make you feel better if I promise it won't be romantic? I'll make sure it'll be the most UN-romantic experience I can possibly provide!"

"You better..." she sighed, putting her hand on her forehead, "I just want to move on from all this Nick... don't make jokes about it... please?" she pleads while he gets off the couch. "or it might bring THAT look back..." Nicks jaw clenches again.

"Ok" he starts, wrapping his arms around her, "I'll put those jokes on my blacklist" they smiled as their eyes met. "So, we're gonna be back to normal now right?" he asked.

"I hope so," she said, returning his hug, "I'm just glad we got it all out there" she sighed with relief. Nick felt tension mounting up his back.

"It's settled then, meet me here at eleven" he stammered as they let go and headed toward the door.

"Are you sure this... arrangement... doesn't bother you? You sound nervous..." she noted stopping just in front of the door to look back at him, concerned. He smiled at her before yawning.

"I'm fine with it Carrots," he assured her, "just exhausted, and thinking about how much tomorrow is gonna cost me." His smile returned as he reached for the doorknob.

"Wait Nick..." she said, grabbing his forearm, "I don't know how long this might last, or what might change along the way..." she stared into his eyes, "...and just in case this whole thing becomes the biggest mistake of my life..." she grabs his shirt and gently pulls, Nick kneeled to spare his uniform, placing a hand on her shoulder, "...one more before life goes back to normal?" Judy leans into him, as they kissed, Nicks grip tightens on her shoulder as she puts her free around his neck. She opens her eyes as she pulls away to see him smiling back at her. "Hmmh" she let out as she smiled, "I really hope that wasn't a mistake." He shook his head softly, before reaching for the door again.

    The door opened slowly. As the hallway light started to fill the room, Judy had forgotten how real the hall had felt to her only a little while earlier. "Goodnight Carrots, I'll see you tomorrow." Nick said as Judy lost her grip on his arm, her smile and gaze continued as she walked, until she turned toward the stairs. Nick closed his door just as slowly as it opened. He sat back down on the couch and looked into the mirror, just as he did that morning, disliking the terrified image that met his gaze.

"I hope it WAS," he thought, "but now its my turn to hate me in the morning Fluff... that rabbit couldn't have asked for this at a worse time..." He reached for the note by the mirror. "Why can't I just TELL HER!"

    The next morning, Judy strolled down the hall as Nick's neighbor across the hall was heading up the stairs. They smiled at each other as Judy stopped in front of Nick's door and prepared to knock.

"If your looking for the fox, he's not in there" the neighbor said gruffly. Judy turned to face them, perplexed.

"Wh... Do you know where he went?" she asked, her confused tone turning to concern.

"Nope, just know he was making a lot of noise this morning, moving all his stuff out, maybe he didn't pay his rent." they remarked, as the door closed behind them.
Judy turned back to Nick's door, still confused. She knocked, regardless of the neighbors comments. When there was no response she hung her head. "Was it too much to ask?" she thought. As her eyes drifted along the floor, she spotted a piece of paper sticking through the bottom of the door with a carrot sticker on it. She recognized it as she unfolded and began to read the short message.

She put a hand over her mouth, as tears start to form. "Lying fox..." she muttered.

    Sorry isn't enough -  I resigned, and I hope this will be the last thing I do that hurts you

Chapter Text

    A figure sat alone in the dark room, a few lines of light cast through the blinds across their face, calm, red ringed eyes, staring intently at the alleyway, on the other side of the canal below. "Thought something would have happened by now... You won't just let this happen..." the relaxed masculine voice muttered, glancing down at the phone on his lap, expecting it to ring.

    Looking back to the alley with a sigh, he was greeted with what he had waited for, as the slamming of a door against a wall, came from the building across the canal. He stood up and went to the window to see better, phone in hand.  Looking down, two figures spilled into the alley, a small grey rabbit, and a taller figure, clad in trenchcoat and hat, clutching a small silver case. The rabbit pushed into the prodigious form as soon as they emerged from the doorway,  slamming them both into the corner edge of the neighboring building, as they fought over the case. The taller figure broke away and started to head toward the canal before the rabbit leaped toward them, managing to grab an ankle, tripping the coated animal. The case crashed against the ground, and skidded toward the edge to the walkway, stopping inches short of dropping into the water.

    A third animal emerged from the building, another rabbit, black as night, ears drooped behind her,  stopping at the corner of the building, and raising a tranquilizer gun toward the struggling duo.

"Heh," he laughed, "nice touch..."

    The more imposing of the two got to their feet and made a break for the case before stopping at the sound of the black bunny yelling. Slowly, the figure raised their arms halfheartedly. They all paused briefly before the coated figure made another sudden dash toward the case, then staggering slightly as if they were struck from behind. They attempted a few more steps toward the case, staggering more with each one, eventually losing all balance upon reaching it, and falling into the canal. The grey rabbit gave slight chase and reached out to them, much too far away to be of any help.

    The red eyed figure watched as the silver rabbit grabbed the case, and turned back to the other, the black stripes along their ears and face shining in the light, as he walked back to her. They spoke quickly and frantically before he pointed to the other end of the alley. With that, the black rabbit started running. The other made their way back into the building, clutching the case tightly.  

    Raising the phone he waited for a response. "Yeah Vic?" a gruff female voice barked from the other end.

"My side." he said calmly.

"And...?" she responded, her annoyed tone growing.

"Donny has it." he replied.

"What about the reason I'm standing around here?" she asked again.

"Heading toward Randall, get over there and I'll meet you in the pit." he said.

"You have the chip?" she asked, growing impatient.

"It'd be pointless if I didn't right?" he responded with a sarcastic smile.

"Uch... shut up Vic! It's cold and damp here... I'm sick of it!" she growled.

"Then get moving... I'll be there soon" he said, ending the call as he made for the door. Before leaving he looked back to the window. "Soon... still too late..."

**The previous day...**

    "Hopps?" Bogo called as he walked around the corner to her desk, only to be answered by her empty chair. His brow turned sympathetic for a moment before he turned toward the line of cubicles beside the balcony. "Has anyone seen Hopps?"

"Makin' a pit stop Chief." Delgato replied, pointing behind his shoulder with his thumb.

"Perfect" he grumbled as he turned to see another officer coming up the stairs.

    Judy stared blankly into the mirror, growing ever more annoyed by the image she saw. "I thought time was suppose to heal... not hurt more..." she thought.

"I resigned" Nick's voice floated through her head.

"Because of me..." her own thoughts echoed.

"You'd have to want to..." his words rang softly.

"I didn't want to" she thought in response, "but it happened anyway, just like I was afraid of! Liar..." The image staring back at her slowly soured more and more. She closed her eyes to shut the image away, but quickly snapped out of it as the bathroom door flung open.

"Judy, Chief is looking for you" the elephant officer said. Judy looked up at her, forcing a smile.

"On my way, thanks Francine." Judy replied, before turning back to the sink to quickly wash her face. Francine walked to the next sink to wash her hands, as she looked down at her.

"It's been two weeks Judy..." Francine started, "... and it's not like you to let things get to you, especially not for this long."

"Well I don't usually let myself down either... or my partner..." Judy's tone sinking, her smile fading quickly "... and definitely not to the point where he's felt a need to completely fall off the face of the earth..."

"You two were close." Francine sympathized, "I'm sure this is tough, but how can you blame yourself so much?" she paused, thinking back to the last time she had seen Nick, "Maybe because you didn't see the shouting match Nick and Bogo got into that day..." she finished softly. Judy grabbed a towel to dry her face as she started walking away. Francine watched silently as Judy walked out the door.

"Dumb bunny..." Judy thought to herself.

    As the door closed behind Judy, Bogo stood in front of her, arms folded, his face torn with conflict. "You needed me Chief?" she asked, fighting to regain her bubbly attitude. Bogo's expression softened slightly as he looked at her.

"Yes, it would seem I have an assignment... only you can do" he said with a harbored regret.

"Another coffee run?" she piped, her excited tone as transparent as glass. Bogo grimaced at her response.

"Drop the act Hopps... and no." he muttered with a sigh, "Office, please." as he pointed to his door, as his voice regained its usual sternness. Judy's ears dropped as she started walking toward the office, Bogo followed behind her.

    He closed the door and motioned toward the seat, as he began walking around the desk to his own chair. "Before this..." Bogo started, "... I just want you to know, I don't like anything about this, but my hands are tied." Bogo said, rubbing his brow as he sat. Judy broke her demeanor slightly as confusion and curiosity grasped her lightly. Bogo paused before letting out a sigh as his phone beeped. "Yes?" he asked, pressing the button.

"He's here sir," Clawhauser said through the speaker. Judy's ears and nose twitched slightly as she glanced at the phone, "errr, uh, well he was..."

"Thank you Clawhauser." Bogo replied, frustrated. Judy returned her attention to him, she could almost see stress coming off him in waves. He sat back deeper in his chair as he looked back to her.

"Chief?" she asked, her curiosity slightly outweighing her foul mood.

"The mayor received word, that the ZPD would be made instrumental in an ongoing, classified investigation..." Bogo said, pausing nervously to lean onto the desk, the sight of which made Judy apprehensive, "as such, we have to give the investigative liaison our FULL cooperation..." he grumbled as the office door quickly opened and closed.

    A small, silver furred, black striped rabbit in a suit, slowly walked to the desk. After throwing his briefcase up onto it, he climbed to the top using the drawer handles as a ladder. He stood proudly, looking over Judy with a dower gaze. Judy slowly leaned back from the edge of the desk.  Bogo presented the rabbit with an open hand, and a furled lip. "So, for the time being, this will be your new partner... Agen..." Bogo tried to say, before the rabbit stopped him with a hand gesture. The rabbits stiff expression changed to a smug smile, as he offered a slight bow to his new partner.

"Agent Jack Savage" Jack said, introducing himself. Judy scowled at the rabbit, seeing him made the fur on the back of her neck stand on end, and her paws tighten. Her already foul mood, taking a deeper turn.

Chapter Text

    Jack walked slowly across the desk, to Bogo's left side, where his case landed, and began pulling dossiers from it, as Judy and Bogo talked.
"I already have a partner!" Judy said, her tone growing hostile. Bogo leaned back in surprise of her reaction.

"Not... any... more..." Bogo replied, annoyed. Jack raised an eyebrow at him before turning his curiosity back to Judy. She glared down at the desk, gritting her teeth, before her eyes widened, not believing what she had just said.  "And if you.." Bogo started, but Jack stopped him with another hand gesture. Bogo let out a deep but quiet growl at Jack's signal. After a deep breath, Judy's expression lightened before she looked back up at Bogo.

"Yeah..." she muttered, "Sorry Chief." Jack cracked a smile at Bogo and nodded his approval, but Bogo didn't respond in kind. Bogo replied with a sneer and a huff, which made Jack's smile grow wider.

"Hmph, she'll do fine" Jack laughed smugly, as he turned his attention back to her. Holding three separate dossiers, he slowly walked over to Judy. She looked up and him, the closer he got to her the tighter she gripped the edge of the desk.

"So what do you need me for?" she asked, her voice irritable and unbending, making Jack's fading smile return, as he threw the folders in front of her.

"A very sensitive undercover assignment" Jack said, clasping his hands behind his back as he slowly paced around the desk. "I'll need you to look over those files and memorize them to a fine degree, if you don't it could ruin the entire mission." Jack stopped pacing to look at Bogo reassuringly. Bogo crossed his arms and looked away.

"If anything happens to any of MY officers..." Bogo threatened, as he looked back to Jack.

"Calm down Chief, I only need this one" Jack said as he turned back to Judy, whose ear perked up at his words. A mild scowl washed over his face. "Don't do THAT again!" he barked. Judy froze, almost dropping the first file she had just opened. "It's imperative that you don't make any mistakes portraying your alias. Her ears don't move without help..." Bogo tapped a finger on his arm, offended. Judy dropped her ear again as she opened the file. "According to the information we've collected, you, are generally bubbly, positive, and pleasant... the polar opposite of her..." Jack added.

"Catalina Salti..." Judy muttered to herself as she perused the pages, pausing when she turned to her picture. Solid black fur, save a white spot on her stomach, ears draped behind her, blue eyes, and a bitter scowl that made her think even the picture was trying to stare a hole through anyone foolish enough to look at it. "The pink crop top I can handle, but... a denim sheath calf-length skirt? I'm not really a skirt bunny... how does she walk in something like that?" she asked, apprehension building in her voice.

"She's from the Outback Islands, off the southern coast of Sahara Square" Jack answered, "The air is a lot dryer there, so there's less friction, aaaaand it's not as tight as it looks. But don't worry about that anyway, the meeting was set up for a hotel restaurant in the Canal District, she wouldn't wear her normal attire to a place like that."

"At Petals?" Nick's voice lashed through Judy again, she closed her eyes briefly to clear her mind.

"So... Dropbear Security Products?" Judy inquired further as she poured through more of the folder.

"They specialize in tranquilizers. Formulas and delivery methods." Jack replied.

"They're also who supply our SWAT armory..." Bogo added, with a sneer.

"You may want to draft a contract with another company, Dropbear is a front..." Jack replied, souring Bogo's expression further. Judy cleared her throat to get Jack's attention again.

"Meeting?" Judy asked, as she continued through the dossier.

"We've had an agent posing in her organization for a few months now, working their way up, gaining her trust, recently taking position as her right hand man, who set up this meeting to discuss the sale of a certain piece of merchandise, that a group here in Zootopia stumbled onto accidentally" Jack paused for a moment before continuing, "we need to talk price and a drop location, but they know Catalina's reputation, and refused to meet without her being there. She however, is indisposed."

"Do I need to ask who the agent is?" Judy asked, opening the second file. Jack opened his hands and pointed them back at himself with a grimace.

"So this is your alias I have to study? And your the one who has to be around her all the time?" she asked further, motioning for him to walk over to her. Jack nodded as he approached her, bending down to pick up the first folder. Judy swung her arm out, the back of her hand cracking the side of his head. Jack stumbled back, using his free hand covering his pain, as he looked back to her, his face awash with surprise. "Is that the kind of 'bossy and violent' her file means? I could get used to that" she said, as she started thumbing through the next file. Jack paused before his smug smile returned.

"Yes... and all without losing the pursed frown..." he said, glancing back to Bogo before quickly returning to Judy, "...good... job?"

    Bogo stared down at Judy, his concern growing every moment she wore that scowl, worried about his officer. "Hopps!" he said, getting her attention, "Let me see YOU for a moment..." Jack glared at Bogo, his own concerns being jeopardized. Judy's scowl faded as she forced her usual smile back at him. Bogo smiled back slightly, with a sigh, while Judy went back to the papers, her scowl returning. "Don't get lost in this, Hopps... when this is over, I'll need my officer back..."

"I'll be fine Chief, I'm just a quick study, and with all that's happened recently, this could help me get some stress out of my system." Judy proclaimed, ready to move on to the last file. Looking back to Jack she asked, "I'm guessing this one is more about the assignment details? So what is this merchandise? And can you say it quickly? Your voice is wearing on me... Donovan..."

    Jack was silent for a moment, as he looked timidly back to Bogo, intimidated by her speedy adaptation of the assignment. "Well..." he started, glancing back to her, "For you, it might be a bad trip down memory lane... but on the bright side, it was the first thing that put you on the Agency's radar, sort of..." Jack said, a sneer forming on Judy's lip.

"I said spit it out!" she barked as her eyes slowly moved down from Jack onto the file.

"It's a notebook" Jack quickly responded. As she opened the file, she was greeted with a picture, of a burned out train car. "It contains Doug Ramses enhanced Night Howler formula..."

Chapter Text

    "It's been years, why would something like that surface now?" Judy asked, staring a hole through Jack. Bogo watched both of them, grinding his teeth.

"We aren't sure, our best guess was that..." Jack started before Judy barked at him.

"Guess? Your best GUESS!?" she shouted before Bogo added his concerns. "An Intelligence Agency, putting MY department at risk, and your best information is based on assumptions?!" Bogo belted, leaning toward Jack imposingly. Jack sighed, slowly pulling his ears behind him.

"Night Howlers were NOT on our radar back then, we didn't have immediate access to the scene, and from the ZPD's reports, it was nearly six hours before the wreck was taped off and guarded." Jack accused, his ears perking once again. "That would have been plenty of time for a sly scavenger, or even one of Bellwether's subordinates, to have snuck in and retrieved anything important. Our GUESS, however, which we have since followed up on to CONFIRM, is about the reason for such a delay in action.  A third party had gotten hold of it, and had no idea what they had. If it had been Bellwether's group, this would have happened much sooner."

    Judy finished with the last file, pushing them across the desk to Jack. He scooped them up, to bring them back to his briefcase. "So is that everything, Donovan?" she snarkily asked as he clicked the case closed.

"Of course not, I haven't even told you the bad news..." Jack muttered, standing back up. Judy growled at him through an impatient sneer."In the end, I have to make sure Catalina actually gets the case." Jack stated, unflinching. Judy's head bounced between Jack and Bogo.

"We can't let something that dangerous get out, at least replace it with a fake!" Bogo shouted, slamming the desk.

"I don't know how much time, if any, I'll have with the case, so I have to make it fast, enough time to slip a tracking transponder on it, or IN it, preferably. We also don't know how much Catalina knows about the book, aside from the fact that she doesn't need it herself. You don't want to know what her role is..." Jack argued, never losing his calm tone. "She's not the head of the organization, and the main priority here, is following the formula as far as it will go." Judy sighed, looking away in disapproval, Bogo mirrored her sentiment. "If you have any more questions, please make them quick, I have other preparations to attend to." Jack finished as he made his way to the corner edge of the desk.

"Catalina has black fur," Judy piped, the irritation in her voice doing nothing to hide her nervous tension, "mine's grey, what's your plan for that?"

"We have an simple solution for that..." Jack started, slightly overcome with a giddiness, which took Judy by surprise, "You're just going to DYE hare..." Jack turned to her with a smile. Judy stared coldly back at him.

"Please don't tell me you think that's funny?" she questioned, hostility mounting in her. Jack's smile faded, as one corner of his mouth tightened in disappointment.

"Uh... a little..." he mumbled, wincing slightly.

"And I thought Nick's jokes were bad sometimes..." she replied, rolling her eyes, settling them on Bogo.

"Is... that you, or Catalina?" Jack asked, with mild tension in his voice.

"Both." Bogo said, stifling a light laugh. Jack looked back at him before hopping down from the desk, and headed toward the door, pausing before it.

"I'll have someone here to help you get ready soon." Jack said, his voice returning to normal, "Until this assignment is over, I suggest you stay in character, the more practice you have, the lower our chances of being found out.... And get some sleep, looks like you haven't had any in days." With that he jumped to pull the door handle and stepped outside, closing it behind him.

    Judy and Bogo exchanged glances after watching him leave. Bogo examined her, her cold scowl, just as unbefitting to her now, as it was before. His expression sank further. "What?" Judy asked.

"I told you I didn't like this," he began, closing his eyes and dropping his head, "and now I like it even less. I don't like twiddling my thumbs, while someone else takes control of my station..." he paused, looking back to Judy, "Are you sure you're up to this? You haven't been yourself since..." he tried to add, but she interrupted.

"I can do it Chief!" she barked, her stare burning intensely as he looked back to her. Bogo sighed again. The office was growing dim from the setting sun outside.

"The end result shouldn't be this mystery group getting what they want, especially if it's the Howler formula..." Bogo muttered. Judy nodded gently.

"There's obviously more to this..." Judy added, "Why wouldn't he give us full disclosure though..." Bogo tightened his lip, concerned about everything that might go wrong.

"It's probably 'classified'" Bogo joked snidely. "Well then... at least you can put that cross look to good use..." he added as she started turning toward the door, "Hopps..." he called to her, she paused after getting it open, "I'm serious Hopps, once this is over, I need everything back to normal, the whole station does..." Judy looked back at him, her lip twitched before turning back to the station and walking out.

"Then I need my partner back..." she thought as the door clicked behind her.

    Hours later, Judy walked to her locker from the ZPD shower stall, wrapped in a towel, pausing as she passed the mirror. "It won't be so bad" said the short badger, the agency stylist Jack sent, following behind her. "It washes out in about a week, or a few days if you use saltwater. Be glad it's a darker color than your fur, otherwise we would have had to bleach you first." Judy looked at herself in the mirror, the color of her fur might have been different, but she still saw someone she was angry with. The badger pointed to a small bag left by a locker. "Jack had me bring that as well, clothes for tomorrow, assignment specific of course."

"What about the white patch on her belly?" Judy asked, remembering the picture.

"Shouldn't be problem, your assignment outfit isn't revealing." the stylist replied. "That die can rub off on things for a little while too, so you might want to cover your bed."

"Thanks" Judy said, peeling herself away from the image in the mirror so she could investigate the contents of the bag.

"Good luck out there" the badger added, as she packed up her kit and proceeded to the door.

    Judy opened the bag, seeing a case containing colored contact lenses, a hotel room key card, and three separate pouches, two were crudely labeled. A loose black hoodie and sweatpants in one, noted "Tonight". Another had a white sheet with no label. Judy grimaced in disgust, thinking about the dye staining her things. She pulled the last pouch out and read the label, "Meeting". Her grip slowly tightened on the pouch, as she stared at the black and red pattern inside. She pulled it out to get a better look at it.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?" her shout echoed through the empty locker room. Even though it looked expensive, the dress was hardly wider than the sleeve of her uniform. She tugged at it to see that it would stretch, but that didn't quash her irritation. "I would have preferred the denim skirt...can I even breathe in this ridiculous piece of cloth..." she said, throwing it back into the bag, so she could put on the sweats and go home, hoping to get some long overdue sleep.

    Making it home without incident, she trudged through the door exhausted, barely managing to spread the white sheet over her bed to protect it from the coloring, before gracelessly flopping on top of it. Turning onto one side, she moved one arm along the sheet to rest her head on her wrist. She looked at the dark streak left behind on the sheet. "Ugh... this stuff stinks..." she muttered, sniffing her hand as it passed. As she quickly drifted off, she hoped the next day would come and go quickly.
 

   She soon found herself staring at a younger image of herself. Looking around, there was nothing else around her but darkness, as far as she could see.

"Ready to make the world a better place?" the young Judy asked excitedly. A red furred fox appeared next to her, arms folded.

"Nick!" Judy called, but the fox didn't seem to hear her. She shook her head, "...just a dream..." she rationalized. She could only watch the two of them.

"Isn't that CUTE, you really think you can do that?" the fox said to the tiny rabbit, bending down to her.

"Mhmm! I can do ANYTHING!" the young rabbit replied, a few lines of fur falling away from her face, revealing a scar. The small rabbit stood there smiling, unfazed by the change.

"You can try kid, but every time you fail, it will leave more of those..." the fox said.

"That didn't leave a scar..." Judy said, putting a hand on her cheek, as she watched the two forms in front of her, who quickly vanished, leaving her alone again. Another image of Nick appeared in front of her, looking directly at her.

"And even sometimes when you win, you still walk away with a scar." he said.

"I didn't win... I lost... and I don't think I can get back now, that's why I buried it..." she replied, looking desperately at him.

"Did you make the world a better place?" he asked.

"I thought I did" she said uncertainly, "at least a little... for someone...", Nick smiled at her.

"You did" he said.

"Then why did you disappear?" she asked sternly. The image quickly faded.

"What are you talking about Fluff? I'm right here..." he replied jokingly, as she turned to the sound of his voice, another image of him standing beside her.

"Ugh, even in my dreams you get on my nerves fox..." she said with a smile.

"Phew" he said as he picked her up, "that smell is really strong, the new color is nice, but I prefer your 'Bunny of Steel' color, what are you trying to prove?"

"It's for an undercover assignment, the stench is probably why this dream is weirder than usual, and why I'm so lucid in it..." she replied, wrapping one arm around his neck as he started walking. Memories began playing out around them, others rising from the ground like pillars.

"I'm sure you'll get the job done..." he started as an image of Jack appeared in one of the memories, "with...him?" he asked before laughing as the memory ran of Judy backhanding him. Judy smiled at Nick's reaction.

"I wish it was with you but... your gone, and it's my fault you left." she accused. Nick stopped walking and put her down.

"Again Fluff, I'm right here" he said pointing to himself the same way Jack did. "And even if I wasn't do you really think I'd be mad at you?"

"But yooooou..." she said with a snarky smile, leaning in to grab his tie, "aren't Nick."

"No, I'm not, but I am..." he challenged, his smug smile getting under her skin,"I might not be guided by his thoughts, but I AM guided by YOUR thoughts of him, and you know me pretty well rabbit... and I'M not holding anything against you... so why blame yourself like this?"

"Because I need to KNOW, not to THINK. I need to find you... I've been looking since the day you left..." she said, letting go of his tie, and hanging her head.

"Hey... Carrots," he pleaded, his tone matching her mood, bending down to her, and lifted her chin with a curled knuckle, to see her face, "I use the word love casually a lot, but do you think I would have said it to you the way I did if I didn't mean it?" The walls of memories quickly started to fall away, Nick stepped away from her as the ground beneath her started shaking, and a low, loud rumbling came from all around her.

"No, but WHY then?!" she shouted over the sound, "Why couldn't you..."

"Hey, would I lie to you?" Nick said, arms outstretched, as his image faded into the murky void.

    The sound got louder as the pitch black landscape around her cracked open, revealing a jagged red break in the sky. Judy looked up to it confused, down on all fours to keep from falling. After a moment she jumped, as a pair of eyes, shrouded with a black scowl, appeared to fill the crack... deep blue... Catalina's.

    "HUNH!?" she blurted, startled awake. She took a moment to glance around her room, making sure she wasn't still dreaming, the mid afternoon sun beating through the window. Looking down she purveyed the sheet protecting her bed, smeared top to bottom with dye. Repulsed at the sight of the mess, she rolled to her back, staring at the ceiling, thinking about as much of the dream as she could remember, hearing Nick's words echo again in her mind. "Of course you would..." she said with dismay, before her tone lightened, "if... you had reason to...?"

Chapter Text

    Rolling out of bed, Judy reached for the sweatpants and hoodie she had worn home, putting them on quickly. After pulling the drawstring of the hood, she sniffed about, noticing the foul stench of the dye was gone, sneering at the stained sheet that was still protecting her bed. Shaking her head, she grabbed a small backpack, containing the dress, as she made for the door.

    She took the subway as far as it would go into the Canal District, grabbed a local sights map before leaving the station, and proceeded to walk the bridges and streets to get to her goal, Ciao, on the innermost of three large quarter-ring islands, surrounding a small lake with a smaller island in the center. "Definitely the expensive part of town, too bad the squadcar can't swim, we could patrol here from time to time" she thought with a pause, before hanging her head slightly, "Could have... Ugh, I don't have time to beat myself up over you right now Nick..."

    As she reached the front of the restaurant, she looked up, seeing just how tall the building was, and how old it looked. Most of the buildings in the district were old, and maintained or restored, but this one hadn't aged well, the newer look of the upper hotel floors clashed painfully with the old design of the restaurant. "Probably why they chose this one, some two-bit crooks wouldn't draw as much attention here" she thought, turning around to see the building on the small island amid the lake. An enormous tree protruding from the center of it, with a restaurant built to wrap around it, blossoms from the tree falling into the lake. The scowl she would need to keep wearing took hold as she read the nearby sign, directing toward a gondola station a few blocks away. Petals.

"I'll make sure it'll be the most UN-romantic experience I can possibly provide!" she heard Nick's voice echo as she turned to enter the hotel stairwell.

"Well you certainly kept THAT promise fox!" she thought, her anger swelling, aimed more at herself, than at him. "Everywhere I turn, there you are! With your foot out, just waiting for me to trip over it... just stop... for a few hours... please..." she pleaded with herself, as she found herself in front of the room that matched her key. She swiped the card and opened the door, seeing two beds, separated by a small desk between them, with a small sign on the desk that read "STAY QUIET". She glared at the other bed, seeing Jack's suit coat draped across it.

    Closing the door behind her she heard the neighboring door creak open. "Would have thought the walls would have been more soundproof than my old apartment, but he did arrange for us to be in the next room for a reason I'm sure..." she thought, pressing her ear to the wall beside the empty bed, trying to listen in. She could barely make out the words she heard.

"...gone for..." one voice said.

"..his reputation... expect...so twitchy?" another asked.

"This is worth too much to lose!... needed a runner... ... incase."  a third voice barked with a snort.

    She listened for a while before she peeled herself from the wall shaking her head, when the door opened. Jack walked in without saying a word, in his alias's cloths, a copper shirt, and dark brown slacks. After the door closed he walked to his bed, sitting down to look at her.

"If you have to say something, keep it down, any higher than a whisper, and they might hear." he said, reaching for the sign he made. She nodded back sarcastically, uninterested in any small talk he might have.

"You only need me here as a show piece, I don't know what you'd expect me to talk about." she whispered, staring at the ceiling.

"Well, we do have a little time to whittle away before we should head to the restaurant, I could at least listen to you complain about the dress..." Jack said sympathetically, leaning back on the bed. "You grew up on a farm, I know your not the 'fancy formal wear' type, but IT IS for the sake of the job." Judy shook her head.

"I know..." she replied, annoyed by his assumption of her priorities. Jack took note of her apprehension.

"If... your worried about being rough as Catalina..." Jack started, "don't be. In my time within her ranks, I've had worst than you can..."

"Shut it Donny." Judy whispered, turning her attention back to the wall, still irritated, but slightly relieved.

"So are you just deep into your alias, or is there something else?" Jack asked.

"There's suppose to be three of them..." Judy replied.

"There are, yes." he whispered in response.

"There's three of them in there now, but a fourth just left... a runner? That wasn't in your briefing" she argued.

"He's not part of their group, so he wasn't included, they must have felt like putting extra security in place, so they hired a freelancer. If anything seems off to the runner..." Jack prattled on.

"I've done stakeouts before Donovan," she whispered, irritated, "I know what a runner does, you just didn't tell me there was going to be one..."

"Good, so let's make sure we don't spook them into doing their job.We don't know where their safe-house might be" Jack said as he sat up, leaning to his briefcase on the desk. Judy turned her head to keep an eye on him, as he clicked the case open and pulled out a small silver dart gun.

"What are you doing?!" she nervously whispered louder than she intended.

"If something does happen to spook them, I'll need to be ready, the case can't get too far." he said, popping the dual chamber open and loading a dart into the right chamber. "You have any weapons training?"

"I'm a little small for SWAT assignments, but yeah, some, why? Do I need one too?" she asked.

"No, I've only got the only one." he replied with a smug smile. Judy's expression didn't flinch, forcing his smile to fade as he replaced the air canister. "You really don't like my jokes do you?" he asked. Judy sighed as she sat up and leaned over to him.

"That one wasn't bad, but it reminded me a little of Nick..." she said, her hushed tone trailing off as she looked away.

"Your partner? I heard what happened..." he said, looking away from her. Judy snapped her head to attention, glaring at him.

"What did you hear?" she asked, anger in her voice.

"He had a rough week, came in late, Bogo pushed the wrong buttons, and they kind of... exploded on each other in front of the whole precinct, he was inches away from being cuffed..." Jack said slowly and sympathetically. Judy hung her head as Jack spoke, before she took a deep breathe, and clenched her teeth.

"I hadn't heard about cuffs... but... that's not the whole story, it was my fault he got to that point..." she admitted with a sigh, "I pushed him into something, and left him to suffer while I... I ran away..." she trailed off. Jack put the weapon back in the case, and glanced at the time on his phone.

"Sorry... not that it means much coming from me..." he said, "and I hate to stop you short, but it's time we get down there, you might want to get dressed." Judy looked up slowly with a nod, and glanced about for her bag at the end of the bed, pulling it closer to get the dress out of it. She looked at Jack who hadn't moved.

"You gonna...?" she said, bobbing her head toward the door as she stood up.

"Can't take the risk of them seeing me waiting in the hall, I promise I won't peak." he said closing his eyes and laying back down. Judy's scowl grew, burning intensity in her eyes. "Don't forget the contacts..." he said pointing vaguely at the mirror on the back of the door.

    The old building was deceiving from the outside, looking in shambles, even the rooms were not much to look at, but the restaurant on the ground floor was huge, and well decorated, gold and red everywhere, gaudy, but worked well with the dim lighting. Judy and Jack sat at their table in the rear corner.

"At least we got down here early enough to eat first." Jack piped.

"I just want this night over with!" she said, still scowling at him for earlier, pausing before she changed the subject, "How can she stand to eat fish?"

"A taste she acquired somewhere, but it's not that uncommon, even I can stomach sushi from time to time" he replied with a smile.

"Well she's getting a salad tonight!" she quietly blurted back. Jack's smile grew as he lightly nodded.

"I know they've done their homework on her, but I doubt they looked into her diet. Just don't talk to the waiter, if they are already watching it could cause a problem, she rarely speaks to animals that she feels are... beneath her" Jack said as the waiter approached. Judy sneered at the thought of being so self important.

    The waiter set the table quickly, and offered the menus, but Jack turned them away, ready to order. Judy glanced at the waiter before glaring back at Jack. "Time for the show I suppose..." she thought.

"Vegetable Ravioli" he said, placing a paw on his own chest, before looking to Judy inquisitively, making her eyes burn at him. She reached across the table, decisively cracking the side of his face, the sound carrying a distance through the quiet but crowded dining room. She refused to look at the waiter, who stood surprised, glancing away awkwardly, before returning his attention to Jack.

"Eh, heh..." Jack said, before cowering slightly, "Sorry, sorry, uh, Giardiniera..." he uttered, "Hot!" The waiter nodded and quickly shuffled away.

"I don't know what you ordered Donovan, but it better be good!" she barked, folding her arms, and turning away from him, taking the opportunity to scan the room, looking for at least one of the three they were here for.

"I'm sure you'll like it," he started, tapping his hands together nervously, before changing to a whisper, "but pleeease don't show it..."

"Got one, he's been sitting there for a while, glanced over a few times" she whispered, turning back to him, as she reached for her glass of water.

"Toby?" Jack asked quietly. Judy shook her head. "Martin?"

"Mhmm" she replied into the glass.

"Wouldn't expect the bear to be the scout, the other two should be along soon then." he replied.

"Not likely" Judy whispered, rousing a confused look from Jack, "Toby doesn't usually get involved himself... so don't expect to see all three of them..." Jack gnashed his teeth together nervously. Judy turned her head back to the room, surveying it casually.

"They're being careful, but if they've been at this for a while, how has this ragtag group not been busted yet?" She put the glass down hard enough to splash the tablecloth and cast a foot out under the table to kick Jacks knee, making him jump slightly.

"I'm NOT getting into that now Donny!" she belted, slightly louder than before, a few of the other patrons turned to look at them before returning to their plates.

"I would really like to tell you to not make a scene, but Catalina lives for that kind of attention..." Jack whispered nervously, Judy fighting her urge to smile,  "You're better at this than I thought you'd be..."

"Hmph" Judy grunted with pride.

    The waiter returned shortly after with two plates, Judy could smell hot peppers as her plate landed in front of her. She looked up at Jack who lightly smiled back at her with a shrug, her expression unchanging. "He's obviously done his homework... but peppers wouldn't have been in my personnel file... Just how much does he know about me?" she thought, her cross look becoming more honest and less of an act.

Chapter Text

    Judy had avoided looking at Jack through the entire meal, growing more impatient and nervous as the night progressed, waiting for the meeting to take place. "Why would Martin want to have anything to do with this? What predator would?" she whispered to Jack.

"He probably hasn't been told what's in the case..." Jack replied, scanning the room, as the last few animals got ready to leave.

"It's getting late, and this is getting on my nerves!" she spat, finally looking up from the table to him. He looked back at her, playing into the act.

"I'm sure they'll be here, just be patient Cata..." he started, before she interrupted him

"DON'T GIVE ME THAT! I came all this way for something you could have handled yourself!" she shouted, pulling her hand back, but before she could swing, a boar approached their table, with Martin in tow.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting," the boar apologized, looking back and forth between them, "An opportunity like this doesn't come along often, and we can't let ourselves be taken advantage of by a possible conman" he finished, looking at Jack.

"Is that why you demanded I be here?" Judy growled as she slowly sat back down, glaring at the two of them.

"Yes, again my apologies, but before we get to far along, let me introduce myself, I'm..." the boar started.

"You've wasted enough of my time, I know who you are and I still don't care! Just cut to the chase, I have places to be!" Judy continued, her stare burning into them. The boar's eyes widened with fear. Jack leaned back in his seat slowly, nervous at Judy's portrayal, before looking to thier merchant, mirroring his expression.

"Uh... of course... I uh..." the boar stammered, trying to collect himself. "Well we... just need to settle on a price... and a location for the exchange..." he finished, becoming jittery.

"I'll have someone meet you by the docks in Sahara Square tomorrow, with whatever I feel like paying you..." she belted, gripping the tablecloth.

"I'm afraid... I need a real figure..." the boar replied, tension in his voice. Judy sighed wih frustration.

"A thousand, I suggest you take it." her tone reaching a level that Jack didn't expect to be disturbed by. He glanced back to her quickly, then back to the merchant, who had regained a bit of composure after hearing the figure.

"Sorry, but that won't do, you remember what we have here, yes?" he instigated without thought. Judy reached her arm out toward Jack, opening her hand without looking away from the boar.

"Ear..." she growled. Jack glanced to her again, seeing her hand out, swallowing hard and wincing as he slowly lowered an ear toward it, which she quickly reached further to grab, then pulled, to rest her elbow on the table, slowly squeezing it tighter as she spoke. "I know full well what you have..." her threatening tone cutting through the two of them. The boar grew more nervous as he watched, his face contorting with discomfort, as he watched Jack's expression, and voice, became more tortured with each passing moment. "I'm going to get that book in the end regardless of the circumstances, and the only thing stopping me from beating down your door to get it right now, is my good mood... so you should just be thankful I'm paying you at all!" Martin, who was already shaken from the start, tapped the boars back a couple times. Judy stared at them furiously, her pursed lips becoming more aggressive as her lip slowly raised, eyes still burning.

"Okay, okay, a grand" the boar responded raising his hands defensively. "Where, exactly... by the docks?" he added, hurriedly trying to leave. Judy gave the ear one last squeeze before pushing it away roughly.

"Work that out with Donny later!" she barked, pointing to Jack, her voice still low, "Now get LOST!" With that the duo turned toward the exit, their pace slowly increasing as they go closer to it. Judy never took her stare away from them as they left. Jack stared back at her in disbelief, his jaw nearly hanging open.

"Well, that didn't go quite how I expected," he said quietly, pulling his ear down to rub it, "that really hurt you know..."

"Ever accidentally slammed them in a car door?" she asked, returning her attention to him. He shook his head gently. "You'll be fine" she blurted, still annoyed, pausing to breathe for a moment. "So was that it? Are we done now?" Jack nodded, still reeling at what had just happened. Judy stood up, ready to leave.

"Don't go back up just yet though, let me make sure the hall is clear first." Jack said, standing to follow her.

"I can peek around a corner myself..." she said impatiently, "but do whatever you want." she paused again before walking away, turning to him. "By the way, the reason we've never bothered busting them before, is because they aren't good at what they do, and no-one ever gets hurt. Kinda hard to get a worthwhile conviction based on 'existing in public', but now we can add conspiracy to their list, so we'll see."

"Not until after the drop, the tracker has to..." Jack started.

"I know, now are you coming or not?!" Judy snapped, as she started heading toward the stairwell. Jack followed, his expression filling with regret.

    Judy walked into the room and laid down on the bed, putting her hand on her face, frustrated. Jack closed the door behind them, and sat down on his own bed.

"That was quite a show, I'm impressed." he whispered, still making sure they couldn't be heard through the wall. Judy turned her head to look at him.

"You thought I might not be able to do it?" she asked, her scowl slowly fading.

"I had expected to do most of the talking." he said with a smile, before it fell away, "But... maybe I..." he added, before Judy interrupted.

"At least you got to do some of the suffering" she responded, almost returning a smile. Jack sighed, leaning forward to rest his arms on his legs.

"I'm sorry for all of this, "he started, clasping his hands, his guilty expression taking hold, "if I thought I had another option..." before Judy interrupted again.

"We got it done, even if this WAS a bad plan... but you better make sure something comes of it, and that the formula doesn't get used for anything but kindling by the end!" she barked in a hushed tone. Jack's lip tightened as he nodded. Judy looked at her arm in the dim light, the dye starting to itch, "I can't wait to wash this stuff out," she said, relieved that she didn't need it any more, "and this has got to go!" looking down at the dress.

"It might be better to wait until morning to leave, they could still see you." Jack said, pleading slightly, standing up to pop open his case and recheck the contents. Judy's lip twitched as she thought about the dinner.

"So? They just saw me, more than they wanted to." she said jokingly.

"From the front, if they see you from behind it could be an issue." Jack started, "Are you forgetting your ears are rounded? Catalina's are pointed." he finished, looking to her.

"That wasn't in the file...how should I have known?" she asked, imagining how things could have gone wrong over that small detail.

"It was suppose to be..." Jack replied, mildly surprised.

"Are you making excuses to keep me here?" she thought to herself.

"Anyway..." he added, trying to change the subject as he turned and stepped toward her bed, "I can't thank you, or apologize enough," he confessed, putting his fists gently down on her bed next to her. Judy turned her attention to his hands, discomfort sweeping over her, anger quickly boiling, "for dragging you thro-"

"Get OUT of my BED JACK!" she yelled, before putting a hand over her mouth. Jack reared back slightly at the sound. His eared perked up and his eyes danced slightly, hearing loud shuffling from the other side of the wall.

"The case! Stay here..." he said, ignoring Judy, as he turned to grab his gun and the tracker from his case, hastily stuffing them into his pocket as he rushed to leave, hearing the neighboring rooms door slam closed. Judy fought against the dress to get back out of bed to follow.

"I'm not just gonna sit here!" she argued, but Jack was already running down the hall. She shifted enough to get to her feet and darted behind him, stopping just outside in the hall, seeing Jack as he disappeared around the far corner. She noticing the large room service cart against the wall between their rooms, handcuffs around the handle, and the doorknob. "That'll buy you some time" she thought, seeing the occupants struggle at the door, before looking the cart over. She quickly grabbed a utensil from the cart and cut the dress from the knee, down. "That's better..." she mumbled, throwing the cutlery back onto the cart before resuming her chase.

    She continued down the hall to the stairs, once at the bottom she turned the corner into the empty restaurant and looked around, closed for the night. A loud crash and banging of pots and pans came from the hall beside the staircase, leading to the kitchen, she hurried toward the sound. Pushing the door open, she heard another door slam ahead of her. Jack dove toward the runner, case in hand, slamming them both against the building across the alleyway. Jack lost his grip as they hit the wall. Judy skirted around the mess in the kitchen as the two struggled, before they disappeared to the left. Upon reaching the door, she looked down to see Jack's weapon on the ground, she exited the building to grab it.

    Jack tried tackling the coated figure, but only managed to get a slight hold of their ankle, tripping them up enough to make them drop the case, which skidded across the ground, nearly falling over the edge, a five foot plunge into the canal. They both scrambled to get to their feet, as Jack reached into his pocket.

"DON'T MOVE!" Judy shouted, raising the dart gun, pointing it at the tall figures back. Jack stopped in his tracks, only dawning on him now, that he dropped his weapon. The other, slowly raised their arms, two large, paw silhouettes appeared out of the sleeves in the shadow stricken alley, before the figure quickly made a mad dash toward the case. Without hesitation, Judy pulled the trigger her finger was resting on.

        The dart punched through the left shoulder of the coat, the figure twitched at the sensation, missing a step, and staggering a few feet as the tranquilizer quickly took hold of them. Determined, they pressed on toward the case, only to finally lose to the injection, staggering off the edge. A splash reverberated up the wall and into the alley. Judy took a few deep breathes as she took it all in.

    Jack made it to the edge a moment to late to grab them, but peered down for a moment, before grabbing the case and slowly walking back to Judy. He held out his hand, for Judy to return his gun, which she did with less time wasted than it took her to fire. Jack quickly opened the chamber, swallowing hard after seeing the contents. She stared at the edge, before looking back to Jack, her eyes finally losing their scowl as they widened.

"He landed in a gondola, out cold..." Jack said, trying to lower her tension. Judy let out a sigh of relief, but her expression didn't lose any of its tension. "I'll send someone to get him into custody."

"Okay, so you've got the case, do what you have to do! They probably got the door opened by now!" she barked quietly, flailing her arms.

 "I'm gonna need something to pry it..." he muttered, glancing into the kitchen, before looking back at her. "But you need to go, NOW! Before they see you! " he added pointing to the other end of the alley. "I'll bring your things to the ZPD once I'm finished here." Judy nodded and quickly ran down the length of the building, ready to retrace her path to the rail station, as Jack walked back inside.


    It was late, ensuring the subway would be nearly empty. She was embarrassed of being seen in Catalina's dress, doubly so after cutting it. When the car arrived at her stop, she was about to step off when she thought of her keys, still in the hotel room with her disguise. "Darn it... It's a bummer..." Nick's voice prodded in her mind. Judy laughed to herself before sitting back down.

"I can still get out of this dress, fox!" she thought in response, "My uniform is in my locker at the ZPD." After a couple more stops, she left the train, making her way up the stairs and walked to the police station. Walking in the front door, she started toward the stairs.

"Oh, Miss, can I help you?" Clawhauser called from behind the desk.

"Sweet cheeses... not now Ben" she answered with a huff. continuing on her way.

"Hopps?! Wh.. uhhh, what happened to you?" he asked, watching her walk away.

"Assignment, it's over, going to wash up," she paused as she passed his desk, "are there any oranges in the break room?"

"I... think so?" he replied, confused. Judy hurried on her way.

Chapter Text

    Judy looked into the locker room mirror, wrapped in a towel, that was slowly taking on a darker color as it dried her. The grim face staring back at her, still accusing, her thoughts stuck in a loop, replaying her actions, only a couple hours before. Witnessing the form fall over the edge, the sound of the splash became louder with each replay, until she looked away to rip one of the oranges open. "Enough... it's in Jack's hands now" she thought, trying to wipe her mind clean. She mashed the orange into pulp, mixing it in a bowl with sand she took from one of the potted plants in the station. Once she had the concoction as pulpy as she could make it by hand, she began scouring her face and ears with it, moving back into a shower stall to finish scrubbing the rest of her fur.

"Salt..." she thought, rolling her eyes, "I know how to get stains out of my fur...", unhappy with the prospect of how itchy the sand would make her. She laid on the bench beside her locker to let the orange set in, closing her eyes as she remember the last time she had to do this.

"Nick!" her voice echoed.

"Hunh?" his voice followed, she remembered his face popping up from the next row of bushes, ears perked after being caught.

"We're suppose to be picking them, not eating them..." she said, chuckling after seeing the blackberry stains on his face.

"I AM picking them Carrots." he replied, with a smile.

"Out of your teeth maybe..." she smiled, going back to picking.

"Pure slander..." he said smugly, "I haven't gotten one stuck yet" he beamed.

"If you keep it up, you'll be too full for the blueberry pie Mom's making you for helping..." she threatened jokingly. Nick froze for a moment, before dramatically clutching his chest.

"Oh! Don't make me choose..." he shouted, Judy's laugh was joined by that of her siblings.

    She started to crack a smile as two other officers entered the room snapping her back to reality. Not expecting anyone else to have come in, she clutched her wrapping.

"I've had to shoo away vagrants sleeping on the park benches a few times," one of them said, chuckling, "but I didn't expect to find one inside the station."

"Let alone in the LOCKER ROOM!" Francine added, laughing along. Judy weakly smiled as they passed, still enthralled by her memory of Nick, as she sat up.

"Haven't seen her do that since..." the other started before Francine tapped her arm, shaking her head. Judy's smile quickly faded, finishing the sentence herself. "Sorry..." they added as the two of them continued on. Judy silently stared at the floor. Unable to escape her own thoughts, she let out a heavy sigh.

"I can't get away... I can't fix it... I can't apologize..." she thought, thinking about what happened in his apartment. "I'm sorry I asked you to wait Nick... I can't even remember why I wanted to..." her thoughts trailed off as she got into the shower. After scrubbing for what seemed like forever, she stepped out, drying off, and wrapping a fresher towel around herself, before heading to her locker to put her uniform on.

    She adjusted the belt as she walked to the mirror. "At least I recognize THAT dumb bunny..." she thought, seeing her face mostly back to it's normal color, slightly darker, better matching her cold expression. she stepped away to head out to her desk to wait for Jack to return.

    Bogo passed by her desk as he came in to start another day, pausing briefly as he noticed her, sitting patiently. "Your back... are YOU back?" he questioned. Judy forced a smile at him as she had done before, nodding lightly. Bogo bent down over her desk. "I know this has been tough Hopps... I told you I didn't like it... but trust me, it'll get better soon." Judy continued to nod as she hung her head to stare at the desk. Bogo watched for a moment, standing slowly, before pressing on to his office.

    Moments later, a silver rabbit blazed up the stairs, holding a backpack and a breifcase. Jack darted to Judy's desk, tossing her bag on top. Judy looked up to the sound and looked down to see Jack, his eyes wide, panting heavily, face twisted with grief. Judy paused, trying to process the difference from when she left him. "What happened?" she asked.

"I'm sorry!" he blurted, "Sorry I lied about the gondola... it was suppose to... it was gone..." he frantically tried to speak, glancing around, seeing Bogo's door open,"He... I couldn't...." he struggled, before raising a finger for her to wait, as he turned to run to the office, closing the door behind him. Judy climbed down from her chair as the image returned, the body falling. She walked to the office, and took seat on the file box just outside, trying to hear through the thick door. Jack's voice was too frantic to be heard well, even Bogo's shouts were murky.

"... suppose to..." Jack said.

"...OFFICER, SAVAGE!?" Bogo shouted, followed by an abrupt slam on the desk.

"...looking...if...tranquilized..." is all she could make out from Jack's reply.

"IT WAS A BLANK!" Bogo shouted again, guilt sinking in on Judy, as her breathes grew heavy.

"I didn't...shot..." Jack said. Judy remembered the pop as she had pulled the trigger.

"...OUT SAVAGE! ...COME BACK... WITHOUT WILDE!" Bogo's voice boomed threateningly.

    Hearing Nick name, she spun away from the door, her back to the wall, as it sent her mind spinning. She gasped as her heart thumped heavily before sinking, the image of the coated suspect, replaced with Nick's, hearing the splash, imagining him sinking in the water, unable to move. Her stomach turned, as her eyes welled with tears, she began breathing heavily. She looked at her hands, still slightly stained. Every conversation they had ever had came back to her all at once, from every side, too much to process. Her hands began to shake as the door beside her exploded open.

     Bogo scowled at Jack as he shamefully walked out of the office, before they saw Judy on the box, shaking as she slowly brought her hands to her face, oblivious to them. Bogo started to bend down to her, when Jack stopped him. "This was my operation... my fault..." Jack said in a low, regrettable tone. Bogo grunted at him, turned, and stepped back into his office, closing the door again.

     As he stepped toward Judy, she didn't make a sound other than an occasional gasp for air. Jack gently pulled her hands from her face, holding them as he explained. "Nick was the runner..." Jack started apologetically, Judy clenched her teeth to keep them from chattering. Her eyes slowly opened, but she only saw a grey blur. Her thoughts matched her vision, too erratic to think clearly, with the exception of Nick falling over the edge, the sound of the splash became deafening, her stomach twisted tighter. "The gondola and the blank round were his way out...I..." he paused, seeing the lost expression on her face, "He wasn't at the rendezvous, but we are still looking... I promise, I'll find him..." he finished, gently shaking her hands, Judy remained motionless, detached from the world around her, as she stared through him.

    A few quick thumps of footsteps came from her right side, followed by a loud growl. Judy's ears shot up, her eye still lacking focus, to see the blur of Jack's face, quickly replaced with a balled, red fist. She turned too watch Jack as he staggered sideways a few feet before he collapsed to a motionless heap on the other side of Bogo's door. Turning back to the fist, she followed the paw up it's coated arm to see Nick's face slowly come into focus, his jaw clenched, teeth shining through his sneering lip, glaring at Jack. "Those tranqs pack a punch you know!" Nick threatened.

"Nick?" Judy timidly asked, bewildered.

Chapter Text

    The needle tip pushed through his overcoat, Nick looked to the case, staggering slightly as the contents of the dart quickly, and unexpectedly, assaulted his senses, blurring his vision, and overtaking him with a numbness. "It...wasn't suppose to be..." he thought, his mind becoming hazy, as his eyes opened wide in surprise. Already mid stride, his knees buckled slightly, losing his balance, and falling over the edge.

    As he fell, he looked around quickly, catching a slight glimpse of his shooter, before she was quickly obscured by the pier. Dizzy and light headed from the tranquilizer, Nick took as deep a breathe as he could before he hit the water, feeling the heavy slap of the water on his face as he smashed through the surface, losing his hat, that had been keeping his identity concealed, to the force of the impact. Struggling to stay conscious, refusing to let his eyes close, he kept his sights on the moonlight, shining on the waters surface, kicking his legs as hard he could, as the current quickly swept him away. Slowly sinking as he flailed, the world around him blackening intermittently. His chest started to burn, screaming for him to take a breath. "Judy..." he thought as panic started to set in on him.

    His head gently brushed against a wall, which he quickly grabbed, using it to guide himself to the top, being kept awake by adrenaline alone. As he broke through the surface he gasped, clawing at the smooth surface, desperate to stay above the water. The wall ended coming to an adjoining waterway, he spun his head as his grip was rejected, spotting a water level platform on the next section and guided himself to it.

    Climbing up on top of it as he felt himself losing to the tranquilizers intensity, he rolled to his back, struggling to breathe, his surroundings continued to fade. He heard a distorted whistle come from the alleyway, up the stairs beside him, barely distinguishable from the overpowering sound of his own heavy panting. His vision going black, a silhouette hung over him.

"Awww poor little fox..." the voice grumbled before letting out another whistle, Nick could barely make out the form. As he lost his battle against the tranquilizer he realized, it was a rabbit.

"Carrots..." he thought to himself, the last thing that went through his mind, as the world faded away.

    Nick found himself standing in the subway, train car at his back, as a form in front of him regained its color. A small grey rabbit, sitting on the floor, ears draped to their back, legs crossed, facing the wall, scratching at it.

"Carrots!" Nick called out, the rabbits ear twitched slightly. She turned her head slightly, revealing the corner of a scowling eye, before going back to what she was doing. He walked over to her, confused by the reaction. A few feet away, the image of another grey rabbit appeared between them, Jack, staring Nick down with his hands up, urging Nick to stay away.

"Don't" Jack said.

"Get out of my way Stripes!" Nick threatened as he moved toward the rabbit.

"I need her more than she needs you right now." Jack replied, a smug tone in his voice. Nick growl at him.

"No! You got what you wanted, and now it's done!" Nick shouted, Jacks image disappeared, revealing Judy's image behind him, hands grasping the sides of her head. Nick looked down at her sorrowfully. "Carrots... I..." he started, before a sound emanated from her.

"Don't do this Nick... you can't just tell me you love me... and then run away..." her voice crackled, as her disguise color washed over her like a liquid, leaving her fur black. She turned and stood in front of him. He stared back at her, words of response, nowhere that he could find, as her scowl cut through him. "You..." she growled, pointing at him before she vanished.

"NICK!" Judy's panic stricken voice bellowed from behind him. He turned to see her standing a distance away, where he expected to see the other side of the train platform, but instead saw a crumbling ledge of stone. She slowly backed away from the edge as pieces of it fell into a chasm between them, backing her against a wall.

"Judy!" he called back, rushing to the edge on his side, knowing he couldn't make the jump. She looked at him, eyes wide as she panted. Nick knelt down at the edge, reaching his hand to her. "Come on!" he barked, motioning for her to jump. She nodded to him, determination taking hold of her expression.

    Jumping straight up, she planted her feet against the wall to push off again, holding out her arm, trying to reach his. Nick watched as her form came flying toward him, he stretched further, nearly falling himself, but it was clear to him, she wasn't going to get close enough. As she missed his hand, she stopped in midair, Nick could see the look on her face, never changing, but speaking volumes to him, the fear in her eyes, the accusation, the disappointment.

"No..." he muttered, stretching toward the image frozen in time. He reached out too far, losing his perch. As Nick started to fall, he managed to reach her hand, but as he touched it, she disappeared into smoke. He stared vacantly at the cloud, falling into the vacant space briefly, before being stopped by a tug at collar of his coat. Looking back to the ledge, he saw her again, leaning over the lip, pulling at his coat to bring him back up. He clawed at the floor once he could reach it, causing them both to tumble away from the pit.

"How...?" Nick asked himself, as he caught his breathe. As he glanced around it became more clear, that none of it was real. "Heh, tranquilizer, plus near death experience... equals weird dreams... noted..." he joked as he saw Judy sitting next to him, resting her arms on her knees, smiling at him. "Okay, so dream or not, how.. why did you do that Fluff? You could have fallen..."

"Well I couldn't just let you fall, dumb fox... who would make my coffee?" she teased, laughing at him. Nick smiled at her as he sat up.

"Thought I was your partner, not your barista..." he responded.

"WAS, would be the important word there, liar... you still are." she said, getting back too her feet.

"I know that... but you don't." he replied, his voice losing its whimsical spirit.

"And that's bothering you? Since when don't you like pushing things just a Liiiiittle to far?" she continued teasing, stepping closer to him, extending a hand to help him up. Nick raised an eyebrow at her hand.

"You see why that's not working right?" he asked with a sarcastic smile, "Even sitting down, I'm still a Liiiiiittle taller than you Carrots." he added getting to his feet on his own. Judy withdrew her paw.

"Fine then, guess you don't need me after all..." she said with a huff, folding her arms, pretending to be mad, but unable to contain a smile for very long. Nick looked across the chasm, thinking about her question.

"I wouldn't be having a dream like this if it WASN'T bothering me... and for the record Fluff, I like taking the occasional JOKE too far... this mess of Jack's isn't a joke" his tone growing serious for a moment, "Stripes needed you in a bad mood, worried you were too peppy to be Catalina... and his solution was for me to leave you that note, doing... who knows what to your state of mind... making you probably think I..." he paused with a sigh, "I just hope your dreams haven't been like this." he stopped to think again, before Judy pressed against his side.

"So you meant it right?" she asked, her voice lower than before.

"Meant what?" he inquired in response.

"When you said you loved me..." she pushed against him more as she asked. Nick twitched, as if being struck by the question. He put his arm around her as a tapping sound echoed quietly from the chasm behind her.

"Nah, I always lie about personal stuff like that by shouting it over a windy valley, Fluff." he teased before being delivered a swift punch to his arm. Judy spun from his side to wrap herself around him from the front. They both smiled at each other but Judy's smile faded quickly as she looked him in the eyes. "Of course I meant it Carrots... you shouldn't even have to ask... I shouldn't..." he paused, thinking of what he was saying, "... why am I having this conversation with myself?" to which Judy let out a light giggle.

"Just make sure you tell ME that when you come back." she reminded, her smile beaming back at him. Nick placed a hand on her head, lightly kneading her ears and forehead. "Mmmmm" she muttered with a relaxed sigh.

"Don't get too comfortable Carrots, if I'm this aware, I must be waking up... not that I want to right now" he warned. Judy smiled back at him with a slight nod.

"Well don't keep me waiting fox..." she said through her smile. Nick's smile faded slowly as he felt his surroundings melt away, slowly being replaced the cold unknown of the real world around him.

Chapter Text

    He woke, sitting upright, groggy from the tranquilizer, a ring of light surrounding him. He tried reaching for his head, hoping to soothe it's pounding, but his paws were bound behind him, and to the chair he was sitting on. Beyond the light he could hear the tapping sound again.

"I hope this is another dream..." he muttered. The tapping sound stopped, being replaced with a irritable sigh.

"Couldn't have just stayed asleep..." the feminine voice growled. Nick moved his head about trying to see into the darkness.

"I can't see with this light over me..." he thought, frustration building, "It's nice to know I didn't tie myself up..." he announced sarcastically, "but who..."

"Shut it fox!" she barked back, "Just wait." She finished as she went back to tapping. Nick slowly fiddled with his bindings to pass the few silent minutes that went by, before a door creaked open in the darkness in front of him. "Its about TIME!" she piped again.

"Well I'd apologize Catalina, but... you don't care..." a mature, male voice said snidely, trailing off. Nick's ears flicked at the name.

"Catalina!?" Nick thought, his eyes widening, the fuzzy memory or the rabbit shaped shadow hovering over him returning. He forced himself to stay calm, hoping not to give her, or her partner any hint of his apprehension.

"He's up, so he better not struggle..." she replied after an annoyed sigh.

"So, tranq him?" the voice asked.

"I only have one dart, we need that to move him..." her irritation growing.

"Hey..." the male voice started, getting Nick's attention, "don't struggle." the smile on his face could be heard in his words. Nick's upper lip twitched nervously.

"Why not? Don't think I have anything else to do right now.' Nick teased the shadowed duo.

"I could have been done already if they had just sent it to me! Why would they even trust YOU with it?!" Catalina barked at the other form.

"You don't want to give her a hard time," the male voice warned, "she's not known for being gentle."

"So... no cuddles then?" Nick joked with a disappointed tone, shrugging his shoulders, goading them on. The masculine voice chuckled as Catalina stepped into the light quickly, and started walking around behind Nick. He could see she was holding something, but couldn't make out what it was.

"Let's just get this over with Victor, I'm sick of being here!" she belted.

"The less I have to deal with you rabbit, the better." Victor replied from the dark. "But I'm sure our guest has questions, so let's not be too rude," Victor paused, "well, just try your best with that part." Catalina growled at him, as she grabbed a pawful of fur from the back of Nick's neck. As she fastened it out of her way, the clip pinched a few hairs out.

"Ow, hey!" Nick piped, turning his head slightly. Twice, Catalina's small fist struck the side of his face as she warned him.

"HOLD, STILL!" she barked again, her aggressive nature on display. Nick paused for a moment, contemplating the severity of his situation.

"Carry on then..." Nick said sarcastically, attempting to hide his nervousness. Trying not to imagine what Catalina might be doing, he turned his attention back to the unseen form in the darkness ahead of him. "So, Victor was it? Let's get to those questions huh? You know, the whole: who are you... why am I here... what's your pet rabbit doing back there?" Nick prattled on, his smile matching his tone. Catalina delivered another punch, this time to the back of his head. Nick was silent for a moment, stunned at just how hard she could hit.

"Are you sure your not part donkey?" Nick asked smugly. Catalina growled, gritting her teeth and sent another fist in response. Nick's eyes opened wide, as his nerves got to him.

"Last warning fox..." Catalina spat as she continued toiling behind him.

"I tried to warn you she wasn't pleasant." Victor said with a laugh, "As for your first question, you answered that yourself. The second, because I need you to do something for me. And the last, she's... installing..." Victor finished, as his last words came his voice became unsettled.

"How about an answer that actually tells me something? What do you need me to do, that I probably won't?" Nick responded, feeling another pinch at his neck, as something small and cold was being pushed against his skin. Outnumbered, bound, and still slightly woozy. He wanted to fight, but knowing he didn't have any options, he resisted the urge.

"Oh you will. We aren't really giving you a choice. I need you to retrieve something from the ZPD evidence lock up." Victor admitted, before his tone grew smug, "Is that a better answer?"

"What, and why?" Nick said as his tension grew.

"You might want to brace... the needle is... a bit big." Victor added.

"Needle?" Nick thought, his nerves nearly to a breaking point, before feeling a much more intense pinch in his neck, followed by the painful swelling of an injection, He yipped at the sensation.

"There." Catalina grumbled impatiently, as she she slipped the needle back out. "Holding tight." she added. Nick could feel her tugging at something, it wasn't a patch of skin or fur, but whatever it was, it made his skin crawl. Victor let out a sigh in the darkness. She walked back around and out of the light.

"Good, go wait in the car, we'll be done soon." Victor said.

"Ugch, watch your tone Vic." she muttered angrily, "Tranq is on the table, just hurry up!" as she closed the door.

"Does she have medical training?" Nick asked quickly, shaking off the sensation. Victor laughed at the question.

"I doubt it..." Victor replied.

    The room was silent for a moment, as Nick sat, staring into the dark, still wondering what Catalina had done. "Well, now that she's gone, can I get some answers?" Nick said, finally breaking the silence, doing his best to not think about what just happened.

"Of course, why would I want to keep her waiting? You see how she is," Victor replied with a laugh, "But maybe it's worse because it's me... she doesn't like taking orders, least of all, from a predator. Noone in the group would like that, but somehow... here I am..." he said with a sigh. Nick picked apart everything he said, trying to get as much information as he could.

"What group? What are you after?" Nick asked.

"I barely have time to answer your other questions, and you want to add more?" Victor said, slowly stepping toward the ring of light.

"At least give me a real answer about something. A good reason for stealing evidence would be a start..." Nick said, his nerves finally overtaking his voice. Two red furred feet pushed through the edge of the light. "A fox?" Nick thought. A buzzing came from Victors pocket. Pulling out the phone and holding it in the light,Victor fiddled with it.

"Well... it's ready" he said to Nick, pointing the edge of the phone toward him, "just set the password... should we test it out?"

"Wh... test?" Nick asked, his jaw tightening.

"You wanted a reason to do what we need right? One of your questions...?" Victor said, "Just so you know, I don't want to be doing this." he finished, pressing a button on the phone. Nick's eyes opened wide, howling in pain, his muscles convulsed as a blast of electricity shot up his neck. Once it stopped he panted heavily. Victor's arm swung back into the shadows, putting the phone in his pocket. "I really don't like seeing that, especially on you."

"What WAS that!?" Nick shouted, slowly catching his breathe, no longer hiding his fear of what he'd found himself in.

"That was your incentive kid, a shock, about the equivalent of rubbing your fur on a carpet, then touching something metal, really not a whole lot of juice behind it..." Victor explained, "But thanks to the new design, a little goes a long way, not to mention it's position, goes RIGHT to the brain..." He paused for a moment for Nick to calm down. "I don't want to do that again, or even the first time for that matter... Catalina probably would've though"

"Ok, you got my attention," Nick replied, confused by everything that's happened, "but I still need answers."

"Then why don't I start by elaborating a little on your first question." Victor said, stepping forward slightly, bending to Nick's level, Nick watched the shadow took clearer form and color. Black slacks, leading up to a matching black three button shirt with a thin red stripe on each side, running up to the shoulder . A red tie swung as the face pierced the light. Nick stared at the pair of red, familiar eyes. Nick's lips peeled apart slowly as his jaw opened as his ears slowly pulled back. His eyes tightened curiously, disbelieving the image in front of him, his brow raised with confusion as his thoughts swirled uncontrollably. Victor's grin took on an ominous meaning, the look in his eyes, cocky, but haunted with sympathy.

"..."


"... Dad?"

Chapter Text

    Nick sat, dumbfounded, as one of the pictures that hung on the edge of him mirror, stood in flesh and fur before him. But the grin was different, the warm, caring smile from the picture, didn't match the ominous one he saw now.

"You...wh..." Nick stammered.

    "The coat looks good on you," Victor started, ignoring Nick. "is it my old one, or did you buy it yourself?" Nick stared at him, speechless. "I should get to the point here, we wouldn't want to make her wait, she already unbearable."

"Why... the new name?" Nick muttered, still reeling. Victor paused.

"Because I needed to disappear." Victor responded, "John had a family to protect, so I went with the name I used as a smuggler... Redd."

"Mom told me you were... dead..." Nick stated, reminding himself, more than Victor.

"Yeah, I'm sure your mother did what I asked... don't blame her, son." Victor trailed off, fiddling with something under his tie. "But I really don't have time for this now Nick, let me get to the task at hand, if all goes well, we'll have plenty of time for this later."

"O... kay..." Nick stammered with a sigh, looking up at the light, having given up trying to figure it all out himself.

"I need you to get Bellwether's weapon case, and deliver it to me, at Dropbear's old storage facility."

 "Easy enough, I guess..." Nick sighed again, "why?"

"No time for whys kiddo. Let me move this along, you don't want to find out what this feels like at a higher setting..." Victor replied. Nick's gaze turned to a glare as the words floated through the air. "Be glad they listened to me when I suggested a redesign, it used to be this... big..." Victor motioned with his hands, bobbing them around his neck, "...ugly, collar... thing." Nick sat, silently listening. "They tried getting it to respond to changes in brainwaves, aggressive behavior would result in an attitude adjustment, but that caused... problems. Did you know you can have the same changes in emotion while your dreaming? Most of the original test subjects didn't get much sleep... some went off the deep end." Victor paced about slowly in the light. "I convinced them to scrap that idea until it was more... ethical?" he continued, reaching into his pocket, "So they made these new prototypes, to be triggered manually... for now..." he said, holding up his phone "there really IS an app for everything these days!"

"Pretty sure there's still nothing ETHICAL about this... your talking about..." Nick tried to interrupt, but Victor silenced him with a gesture.

"I never said it was..." Victor said, "just that it used to be worse."

"So how did Bellwether fit into it?" Nick inquired, trying to fish out as much as he could. Victor shook his head with a smile.

"Bellwether, and her group, were only pawns, seeding the distrust, and fear of predators, starting chaos that noone could find an answer for. Once it was bad enough, the city would need a control solution... that ninety percent of the population would gladly pay for." Victor explained.

"But we did find an answer, we did stop her... so what's the point of all this now?" Nick asked, his tone growing heated. Victor smiled back, silent for a moment, before responding.

"This is already taking too much time, I'm on a tight schedule." Victor said, his tone lowering. Nick hung his head, unsatisfied with the answer.

"What is this all for?" Nick asked, demanding an answer as his ears twitched.

"I told you, control. For most of them anyway, like Catalina. And for others... what else? Money. Simple right?" Victor answered.

"We're predators too! Why would you want any part of something like that? You'd sell out every other predator, just to make a buck?" Nick shouted, his ears shooting back, still not believing what he was hearing, or who he was hearing it from. Victor smiled.

"They know what their doing, it was only a matter of time before this would happen anyway, just be thankful I've been in the mix, doing what I can to keep some dignity in it for us..." Victor said his tone gaining a smugness that didn't sit right with Nick. Nick glared at him, thinking back to the picture of his parents, remembering the few stories his mother told him about his father.

"You're not the tod Mom used to tell me about! He'd never get involved in something this..." Nick accused before being interrupted, as Victor walked out of the light for momentarily.

"We don't always get to choose the path we have to walk Nick, and sometimes..." Victor paused, stepping back into the circle, "we have to choose the lesser of two evils."

"So which of the two are you?" Nick asked, his anger swelling. Victor's expression washed with regret as he raised a small tranquilizer gun at him.

"You've met Catalina, take a guess." Victor paused, "Strange 'like father, like son' situation huh? We both got stuck working with rabbits... " Victor said, pulling the trigger. Nick grunted as the dart pierced his shoulder.

"Heh, yeah..." Nick chuckled, knowing the dart would bring an end to this situation quickly, "...but at least mine's cute." Victor smiled, raising an eyebrow.

"You know rabbits hate that word right?" Victor teased. Nick smiled back, testing Victor's patience.

"Sure didn't... you weren't around to teach me that one..." Nick accused, his hostile tone cutting at Victor. Victor lowered his head slightly, gritting his teeth, playing with whatever was under his tie again.

    Nick's head started to droop as the tranquilizer took hold, Victor stepped closer to him, whispering his words. "Don't try to take it off, if it loses contact from the coated magnets holding it in place, it'll arc out it's full battery, and well... the first test subject tried that, a bear, it stopped his heart, and the whole facility smelled like burnt fur for two days..." Victor paused to let his warning sink in. Nick's eyes opened wide at the thought, Judy's face flashing in his mind. The image blurred as it faded, the tranquilizer hitting him with its full force.

"When it's done..." Nick started, barely any fight left in him, trying to cast his gaze on his father, "this comes off..." he ordered. Victor nodded.

"Of course, I need it back... and keep it between us. You don't need help to do this." Victor said, his hushed tone growing quieter, "Get back to the station, get the case, get it to me. Do I need to tell you to come alone? I'll send you instructions when you reach Lion's Gate. We'll be watching. I need you, to do this Nick..." Victor's words echoed in Nick's head as he drifted off.

    As the tranquilizer wore off, Nick found himself on a park bench, near a subway entrance, he glanced around to get his bearings, rubbing his eyes. "Savannah Central...?" he said, slowly standing, nearly falling back down as his knees were still numb. He tapped his pockets, and pulled his phone from the left one to check the time.

"Get back to the station, get the case..." Victor's voice instructed. Nick grit his teeth, thinking about the task he had been given, and the chip, that was seated uncomfortably on the back of his neck.

"You better keep your word..." he paused, thinking about the phone in his hand, "...I always put my phone in my right pocket... it was off, and in a bag... you bugged my phone didn't you?" he said. A slight zap came from the chip on the back of his neck, not as intense as before, a warning. "I'll take that as a yes..." he thought, "When I was at the academy, I knew my life would eventually revolve around cases, but this is getting WAY to literal..."

Chapter Text

    As he started to walk toward the subway, he thought about the new turn of events. "They bugged my phone... and probably have someone following me too, making sure I'm not passing notes... how do I tell Bogo what's going on?" he thought. Boarding the train, memories of the last few weeks started replaying in his mind.

"If I did something Nick, I want you to tell me..." Judy's voice echoed.

"No... you didn't do anything Carrots, it's not your fault..." his own voice followed.

    Every new bump in the tracks brought more memories to the surface.

"Wilde!" Bogo's voice boomed, "Where are you!? You missed Role Call!"

"I'll be there in a few minutes..." Nick's voice echoed again. He started to remember the rest of that day, two weeks before.

    Nick hurried through the door of the ZPD, trying to get to his desk without being noticed, but Clawhauser spotted him, waving his arm about, trying to flag Nick down. Nick stopped at the desk.

"Nick... Chief has been looking for you..." Clawhauser said, concerned.

"And he's not happy..." Nick responded with a grumble.

"And he'll probably be even less happy to see you, looking like that." Clawhauser stated, pointing out the stain on Nick's uniform. Nick shrugged it off and walked toward the stairs.

    As he passed Bogo's office, he glanced in, seeing Bogo's grimace, he thought it would be better not to add any extra fuel to the fire. He took a few steps past the office toward the locker room, before shrugging and turning back around. "What's the point..." he growled, ready to face whatever Bogo had to say about it. He stepped back into the doorway and knocked even though the door was open. Bogo looked down at him through the opening, his grim, cross look slowly changing as his eyes opened slightly wider in surprise. He motioned for Nick to come in.

"And close it behind you.'' Bogo piped. The latch clicked as Nick walked to the chair and climbed up, looking at Bogo as he sat. Still tormented by what he had done the night before, the image of Judy's reaction, fresh in his mind.

    "Your late." Bogo muttered. Nick nodded, his eyes widening slightly. "Your partner called off." Bogo added. Nick pulled his head back slightly, imagining how Judy must be cursing him. "And your a complete mess!" Nick sat silently, too distracted by his own thoughts, blaming himself for all of it. Bogo stared at him for a moment before speaking again. "What happened?"

"Nothing" Nick stammered, his lip twitching in shame.

"You... don't honestly think I believe that... do you?" Bogo asked, "I know SOMETHING happened between the two of you, and YOU, are going to tell ME, what it was..." his tone became stern. "Hopps never calls in, and you..." Bogo looked Nick up and down, "...look at you! Did you even get any sleep?"

"No, I didn't, I couldn't... I..." Nick paused anxiously, "I made a mistake..." Bogo raised an eyebrow.

"What did you do? Use the 'C' word too many times?" Bogo asked jokingly.

"No..." Nick said, wincing as he tried finding an excuse.

"Spilled her coffee? Insulted her family?" Bogo inquired further, making each question a bigger joke, "Insisted that YOU drive?" Bogo started to laugh, "Ask her to marry you?" Bogo said through his laugh, but his smile slowly faded as he watched Nick's eyes pop wide open before slowly closing again.

"Not... exactly..." Nick slowly hung his head in shame. Bogo leaned back in his chair, his eyes growing wide with understanding and dismay, before he started to rub stress from his brow.

"Hooohhh Wilde... you really know how to make a mess don't you..." Bogo grumbled, before moving his hand to his mouth to think. "I take it she turned you down then?" he teased.

"It was... I..." Nick continued to stammer through his own thoughts, "I don't know..." Bogo sighed, leaning on his arms.

"Alright then, out with it... all of it... it will affect two of my officers, and possibly the whole station to some degree, so if you want to still have a job at the end of the day, you'll tell me, everything..." Bogo threatened, his voice losing its patience. Nick paused for a moment before slowly recanting the events of the previous day, regretting every word. Bogo sighed by the end.

"I'm the Chief of police, not a counselor..." Bogo said, shaking his head. Nick leaned against the desk, relaxing slightly after telling the story, and seeing Bogo's reaction, far different from what he expected.

"That might work..." a voice came from behind Bogo. Nick's ears flicked as he looked up to see where the voice had come from. Bogo's expression washed with impatience.

"That, is NOT something that should be exploited...it could..." Bogo started as a silver rabbit with black stripes jumped to the desk from the table behind Bogo. His suit put foreboding thoughts in Nick's head.

"I know..." Jack interrupted, "but there can't be any mistakes here... and something like that, might put her in the perfect frame of mind." Nick looked at the rabbit, raising an eyebrow, before looking back at Bogo.

"Your taste in desk ornaments is getting strange..." Nick said, his snarky tone returning for a moment. Bogo chuckled as he looked back to Nick.


 

    "So, Nick Wilde..." Jack stated, opening his case and digging around, his smug smile quickly getting under Nick's skin. Bogo nodded, as his laughter faded. Jack looked Nick up and down. "This old picture I have really doesn't capture you at all." Jack added, waving a dossier.

"Old picture? Who are you and what do you want?" Nick's irritated tone surfacing as he stared Jack down.

"Sorry Wilde, I lied to you this morning. I MAY have an assignment for you today, but this one seems to like his secrets..."Bogo started, his hand presenting Jack.

"This is Agent Jack Savage, from..." Bogo tried to continue, but Jack interrupted.

"The 'from' isn't important Bogo, even YOU shouldn't know where 'from' is..." Jack argued, making Nick even more distrustful. "What's important, is that I need the meeting to go without incident, well, without one until Officer Wilde here, makes one." Nick looked between the two of them, confused.

"Am I suppose to crash a party? That I can do..." Nick asked.

"This isn't a holiday party Wilde! Just shut it, and listen" Bogo barked at him, his face already twisted, disapproving of the plan Jack was proposing. Jack cleared his throat before opening the dossier and handing it to Nick.

"We need you, to don an old hat...Redd" Jack said as Nick turned the page to see a grainy photo from an old security camera, depicting a long coated figure making thier way down a familiar tunnel.

"Where did you get this?!" Nick barked, slamming the folder down and ripping the photo out. Jack smiled as Nick crumpled the page and threw it at him.

"A very old camera, in the Six-B tunnel." Jack answered, his smile growing. Nick looked at Bogo with a mild panic. "It used to be a popular smugglers route." Jack added, Bogo twitched in mild surprise.

"Smuggling?" Bogo asked, slowly leaning toward Nick, his tone growled. Nick's squeezed his eyes, and tightened his jaw. "What, exactly?" Bogo added. Nick took a deep breathe.

"Only a couple packages... some antibiotics for a retired vet... and another package...." Nick said, regret in his tone, and worry in his eyes.

"Another package, of what?" Bogo asked, unfolding the crumpled page, waving it about after looking it over. Nick paused again.

"... Catnip..." Nick finally answered with a sigh. Bogo pursed his lips as he glared at Nick. Nick hung his head. "Never thought that would catch up to me... I didn't know what it was until I made the delivery, and it was the last time..." Nick explained, but was cut short by the loud sound made by Bogo's paper shredder.

"Well this picture is over a decade old, and I can't make out much of it." Bogo said, a slight smile returning to his face as the machine finished chewing the page, "Its a good thing I could only see a trench coat and a hat in it," his tone started to growl again, "and NOT one of my officers..." Bogo continued to stare at Nick. Nick looked back, his eyes open as wide as they could. Bogo raised his brow questioningly, to which Nick relaxed slightly, nodding his understanding back. Nick took a few deep breathes before looking back to Jack, smiling back at Nick. "Be glad the laws on catnip have changed lately..." Bogo added.

"I'm already not liking you..." Nick said with a sigh, getting Bogo to chuckle. Jack held his gaze on Nick, his cocky smile unbending.

"Don't worry Wilde, neither do I" Bogo added, turning his attention to Jack as well.

"I'm not here to make friends, the stakes are too high..." Jack said, his smile disappearing quickly. "Just read your assignment, and ask me anything you need" he added, pacing around the desk. Nick thumbed through the pages in the folder, seeing a picture of Catalina, as Jack explained his plan for Judy. Eventually flipping to a picture of Toby's gang. Nick laughed.

"Would it help if I told you, you're over thinking things for these guys?" Nick asked after reading about the sale. "They try to be crooks, but they always fail, we usually squeeze them for information, that's the only thing they're any good at."

"Which is why I need Hopps to portray Catalina as convincingly as possible. But, they aren't the only concern, more of Catalina's group will likely be watching, they don't exactly trust me yet..." Jack said.

"Her subordinates don't trust you, but she does?" Bogo asked, Jack nodded in response. "Why?"

"Catalina and I have... history..." Jack stammered in response. Bogo and Nick both looked at him with distrust. "It's not what you think... but I did use it to get my foot in the door, it's how I... I don't have time for this now, save it for the debriefing." Bogo pursed his lips in disapproval, while Nick slowly went back to the papers in front of him.

"Won't they find it odd watching you with Judy, as Catalina?" Nick asked.

"No, they'll know Catalina is busy, and that I, my alias that is, needs a stand in, they just don't know the stand in will be a cop." Jack paused, "Look, I have to play a lot of this situation by ear," Nick looked at Bogo and started to laugh lightly, Jack sighed, dropping his head and shaking it, "wrong choice of words..." Jack interjected, "but when there IS something I can control, I need to make sure it can be done right, and with these new developments, I'm sure Hopps will play her part well. Can you do yours?" Nick thumbed further through the dossier, seeing a summary of the Night Howler case, and pictures of Bellwether and Doug. His lip twitched at the sight.

"What do you mean, Advanced Formula?" Nick asked, finishing the collection of files. Jack paused, his brow rising. "Does that mean there's an Old Formula?" Jack nodded.

"Doug managed to improve on the original..." Jack started, trying to tie his explanation up quickly, "His was the one you saw first hand..." Nick relived the moments of Manchas chasing them through the Canopy. "It acts fast, the original takes a few minutes to take effect..." Jack finished, looking to the ceiling impatiently.

"Is that the only difference?" Nick asked. Jack responded with a sigh.

"We don't know, without seeing the formula itself..." Jack trailed off, shaking his head, "Can we move this along, I still have a lot to do." Nick took a deep breath, thinking about ways this plan might go wrong.

"I'm going to need some cash, I don't have that coat any more, and my old contact... I owe some money to." Nick said.

"I've already got some supplies, even a new tie for you..." as Jack spoke, Nick clutched his tie, "just tell me how much you need in the morning. We'll move your stuff to a safe-house so you can vanish until the mission is over." Bogo cleared his throat, tapping his finger loudly on the desk. Jack mirrored his impatience.

"Allison... shes Redd's informant... and you'll need to make sure she hears about this, and through the right circles, or Redd won't be able to... take the job." Nick added, still playing with his tie, "It's been so long... I hope she doesn't figure it out after all this time." Jack looked back to Nick curiously. "I wasn't the original Redd... I just happened to be in the right place at the right time and got mistaken for him..."

"We already know," Jack said, "the real Redd disappeared, long before my time with the agency, even we don't know where he went, or who he was. But it doesn't matter, even if it wasn't you, you still fit the general description, even though noone ever saw his or your face, we know he was a fox." Jack finished, watching Nick squeeze his tie again. "What's with the tie, by the way?" Nick paused, not expecting the question, he grabbed the end of the tie.

"It... was one of my Dad's... I always wear one" Nick answered, looking back to Jack. "'The tie can make or break the deal'... Mom always told me that he put a lot of faith in his ties..." Jack smiled at Nick.

"Well, the new one will hopefully do the same, just try not to get it wet... it'll wrinkle." Jack paused to get back on topic, "At any rate, once you take the job, get the case and play the part, I'll be in the next room at the hotel where the meeting is being held. I'll signal you when it's a good time on my end for you to break away, and we'll plant the tracker in the case, my team will follow the signal as far as it goes up the chain. If we can, make the escape to the back of the restaurant, and we'll put on a show in case the gang follows you, or we're being watched still." Jack reached into his case again.

"Why don't I just plant the tracker myself?" Nick asked.

"I'm sure Toby will have the sense to search a freelancer they just hired." Jack replied. "It'll be safer with me, not that I doubt your abilities, but... I can't stress enough how much this has to go right..."

"Are you two about done?" Bogo interjected, getting annoyed. Jack smiled at him.

"Just about, just have to make sure your officer is comfortable with being shot." Jack said, pulling his gun out of his suitcase. Nick stared at it, before turning to the end of the folder."This is your way out of the gangs employ, and the end of your assignment." Jack continued, showing Nick his weapon. Two tranquilizer chambers, a separate trigger for each, and a collapsible grip.

"Its... nice?" Nick stammered. Jack pulled an empty tranquilizer round out of his case, loading it into the left chamber.

"This will be yours, it's a blank," Jack explained, showing Nick as much as he could, "just pretend to stagger, and try to land in the gondola I'll have waiting in the water, untie it and float away, if we end up behind the building. If we end up out front... well, lets try not to end up out front, there's no real escape route for a fake tranquilized mammal, except on the water. After your away, I'll plant the tracker and expose your cover to the gang, keeping their trust." Nick leaned back, trying to digest everything, sighing after a moment.

"Even if you don't hate me right now, you might after this..." Nick thought, images of Judy flashing in his mind, "What do I do here Carrots?" he muttered to himself,  Jack looked back after putting his gun away, raising an eyebrow curiously. Bogo looked down at Jack.

"Hopps" Bogo explained.

"Ahh, Carrots, bunny... clever." Jack said, rolling his eyes and pursing his lips. Nick looked over to him, knitting his brow slightly.

"Don't like nicknames?" Nick asked as Jack stared at him, "Stripes?" Jack lip pulled to a sneer.

"I'll fix everything," Jack said after explaining his plan to Nick, "even what happened yesterday, when this is over." Nick stared back at him, not trusting a word he said.

"How can you say something like that?" Nick asked, insulted by Jack's resolve. "This isn't a leaky pipe, she... she even called in to work, just to avoid me, and after THIS ridiculous plan of yours, even if you could fix it, she'd probably never trust me again!" Jack listen to his words, and cast them aside without hesitation.

"See these ears?" Jack said, pointing to his ears, standing at attention. "I think I know how a bunny's mind works better than you. She's an adult, she'll be fine once it's all over..." Jack said, frustration heard through his smug expression. "Just do your part, I'll worry about her. I told you, I'm not here to make friends, you can both direct your ire at me afterwards. Worst case, when I debrief her, I can tell her we had this meeting yesterday, and even THAT was part of my plan. Will that put you at ease?" Nick pursed his lips, thinking of what Judy might be telling him to do.

"Fine. But the only reason I'm agreeing to this, is because she would want me to do my duty, more than anything else I could do" Nick barked defensively, "So after this is all over, you had better make sure to do... whatever it is you do, and stop this from happening again!"

"Again? The howler incident is only a small part of it, what's really going on is much bigger. But I can't get into that now, save it for the debriefing." Jack said as Nick looked back to Bogo.

"You accepted it, I didn't order you, so don't look at me Wilde..." Bogo said, leaning back in his seat, unhappy with the situation. Nick started to climb down from the chair.

"Oh Wilde, a couple more things." Jack said stopping Nick in his tracks. "First of all, to help convince her that you're gone, we need everyone to think you resigned, and I'll have a team come to your place to move your stuff out bright and early, so start packing when you get home."

"Ok, can I at least make a scene?" Nick tried to joke, still unhappy with the plan, but his question was only met with Jack's rolling eyes.

"Secondly," Jack started again, "if she calls you, don't answer. If she comes to your place, pretend your not home. If you run into her, don't let it end well..." Nick looked back to Jack with a glare.

"I doubt any of that will happen..." Nick responded, annoyed as he climbed down from the chair. Jack nodded with a smile.

"Keep it in mind, just in case... I need her angry..." Jack finished, walking to the edge of the desk as Nick started heading toward the door. "By the way, Wilde," Jack added, his smug tone returning, getting under Nick skin again, "I think, what you want for the two of you, is disgusting..." Jack said. Nick grit his teeth, and turned to Jack, his fists clenched.

"WHAT WOULD YOU KNOW ABOUT IT STRIPES! WE DON'T GET TO CHOOSE THESE THINGS! IT JUST HAPPENS! I COULDN'T CARE LESS WHAT YOU THINK OF IT!" Nick shouted at him.

    Bogo stood up quickly as Nick began shouting at Jack, doing his best to get between them. Jack stood on the edge of the desk, his smug smile aimed directly at Nick. Bogo ushered Nick toward the door, opening it quickly and shoving Nick out, as he finished yelling.

     As the door closed, Nick waited a moment, before smashing his fist against the wood, and hanging his head in frustration. After taking a breath, he looked up, glancing at all the heads popping out of their cubicles, to see the commotion. Nick stared back at them, the look of curious surprise plastered across their faces. He growled one last sentiment to answer them all at once, before heading down the stairs and out of the station.

"I quit!"

Chapter Text

    Another light zap to his neck snapped him back to reality, as Nick found himself staring at his reflection in the glass of a shop window, only a few blocks from the ZPD.

"I'm going already! Just give me a minute..." Nick said, hoping the phone in his pocket could hear him.

    He still stared for a minute longer, his tie drawing his attention. Remembering Victor's grin, clashing in the reflected light, against all the memories of his mother's stories about his father. He tightened his jaw, grabbed the tie and tugged at it, trying to loosen it. After he struggled with it for a moment, he feverishly ripped it away from around his neck, holding it up, glaring at it, and the new meaning it had for him. He squeezed it, angry with the lie he had hung around his neck every day, ready to throw it away, before before thinking of all the times his mother had helped him adjust them when he was younger, and how Judy picks on him, and playfully uses it to get his attention. Shaking his head, he stuffed it in his pocket and continued walking toward the station.

"There you go Nicky" his mothers voice echoed, "Not too tight, you don't want to choke yourself..."

"Red?" Judy's voice followed, teasing him, "I think there's enough red on you, what about pink?"

"Hah, sure thing Carrots," his own voice echoed with a laugh, "I'll get a pink tie, when you wear a dress."

"Sounds like a good deal to me," Judy's voice responded, "now I've got more reasons to never wear one."

"Oooohhhh, no... now I need a pink one..." Nick thought, remembering his brief glimpse of Judy before falling to the water. He fiddled with the tie in his pocket as he walked, before his claw tore part of it. Feeling the claw getting stuck on something, he pulled it back out to look at it.  A red wire, attached to a chain of small watch batteries, coated in plastic, tucked away inside the tie. "A wire?" he thought as he looked it over, he slowly put it back in his pocket, and picked up his pace. "STRIPES! YOU KNEW! You knew something was going to happen, didn't you!?" he thought, rage building up.

    He burst through the front door of the station, Clawhauser looked up at the sound.

"Nick?" Clawhauser muttered as Nick sped past him, "I thought you quit?"

"Assignment, it's over..." Nick responded quietly, "and somebody owes me a new hat." Nick picked up his pace more and more the closer he got to the stairs. He sprinted his way up them.

    At the top he looked toward Bogo's office, seeing the file box next to the door, Judy perched on top of it. He paused to take a good look. Her eyes were wide, her expression vacant and horrified, shaking slightly. Jack stood in front of her, holding her hands. Nick's thoughts overloaded his senses, swirling, overlapping, coming from all sides.

"It doesn't work this way Nick... we aren't even the same..." --- "I think, what you want for the two of you, is disgusting..."--- "...even when I was mad at you, I still wanted you around..."---" Hey..."--- "that's just cruel..."--- "Your making a fool of yourself Nick..." --- "Probably best, if you don't have a predator, as a partner..."--- "Nick... you stayed..."--- "I can fix this!" --- "We did this together..."--- "STRIPES! YOU KNEW!" --- "don't struggle."--- "Get OUT of my BED JACK!" --- "what you want for the two of you, is disgusting..."

    Nick grit his teeth as he darted toward the pair, his feet pounding the floor beneath him, his paw balled to a fist, growling as he pulled his arm back and swung, his knuckles cracking as they bashed the side of Jack's face, sending his comparatively small rabbit form hurtling a few feet away, landing in a heap, on the other side of Bogo's door. Nick took a few deep breaths as he glared at Jack, unmoving on the floor. "Those tranqs pack a punch you know!" Nick threatened.

"Nick?" Judy's voice weakly asked, "NICK!" she further exclaimed, her ears perking tightly. Nick turned his attention away from Jack, smiling with relief as he could finally see Judy's face after two long weeks, and still worried about her reaction to everything.

Her ears quickly pulled straight behind her as she raised a hand up, quickly slapping him across the face. As her paw struck his muzzle, his head turned from the force, but he remained mostly unphased, after Catalina's rough treatment.

"Missed you TOO, Fluff..." he said sarcastically, turning his head back to her with a smile.

"Dumb fox! I thought I killed you!" she shouted, glaring desperately, still trying to shake off her unsettled feeling.

"You didn't..." he replied with the same snarky tone, shaking his head lightly. His eyes grew sympathetic.

"Do you have any idea what I just put myself through!?" her shouts grew more intense. "FOR TWO WEEKS!?" He twitched slightly.

"I imagined the worst..." he said, his tone matching his expression.

"I thought I lost you! In every way I was afraid of... and more..." her harsh tone accused further, slowly losing it's intensity as she spoke.

"Did you want to?" he asked, his voice gaining a somber tone. Judy's eyes widened as she looked into his, her ears slowly lowering to her back, as she thought back to the last time they spoke.

        "You'd have to want to" his voice echoed.

"I..." she tried to speak, struggling to find any words, she let out a few heavy breathes. Remembering his words that night, and seeing his face now, was enough for her. She didn't have a reason to be angry with herself anymore, overcome with relief at having him back.

"I wouldn't have lied to y..." he started, but she wrapped a paw around his mouth to stop him from talking. He noticed the look in her eye had changed, the frightened glare she had been casting, melted to a passionate sympathy. He relaxed as he felt the warmth of her paw, trying not to get lost in her stare. She pulled on his snout, bringing him closer to kiss him, but before their lips could meet, they were interrupted by another voice.

"I deserved that..." Jack muttered to himself, rubbing the side of his face while he got to his feet again. Nick sighed in disappointment, removed Judy's hand, and turn to Jack, shushing him with a gesture, and tapping his own ear. Nick quickly pulled the tie from his pocket and threw it at Jack, whose eyes opened wide as he looked at it. He nodded quickly before disappearing into Bogo's office.

    Judy watched Jack dart into the office, before turning back to Nick, her brow raised questioningly. He looked back to her with a smile that slowly disappeared, as he put a finger over his mouth. "Sorry Carrots... about that lunch..." he said, regret in his tone. Judy smiled.

"I'm just glad your back Nick..." she replied with a smile. She tugged his coat to pull him in, wrapping her arms around him. Nick looked down at her, his smile returning.

"Yeah well... I still need to apologize, " he said, his jaw tightened as another light zap came from his neck, "but I've got something to take care of first." Judy pulled back to look at him, feeling him twitch.

"Anything I can help with?" she asked. Nick gently pushed her away and started walking.

"Nope, just need to change out of this coat." he said as he made his way down the row of cubicles. Judy smiled, watching him walk away. She started to hear light chatter coming from behind the office door beside her.

    She cracked it open slightly to see the tie on the floor, ripped to shreds, as Jack sat in front of a laptop, listening to something. Bogo looked at her with a grimace, a finger on his lip, urging her silence, but motioned her inside. Jack held his phone to his ear, hunching over the desk, his laptop opened between himself and Bogo.

"Sorry..." Jack said meekly, "I fell asleep and missed the train..." He looked at the ceiling impatiently, clearly being scolded by whoever he was talking to. "I will... I won't miss the next one..." He paused again, pulling up files on the computer. "Sorry Catalina... I... I'll be there soon." he finished, pulling his ears behind him, wincing as she shouted before hanging up. Judy looked up at him.

"Your... good at switching who you are..." Judy said. Jack shook his head lightly as he continued toiling at the computer.

"Not who I am... who I need to be" he added with a sigh, "Ever tried living a lie for more than a day?" Jack asked, not expecting an answer. Judy stood there, her expression drooping, turning her gaze back to the door.

"A day?" she thought, "Try years..." Her lip creased, revealing a private smile.

"Give me something to work with..." Jack muttered to himself, opening a sound file. 

"Ho... ...he?" Nick's voice came from the computer, broken by indiscernible electrical noise.

"I knew it wasn't perfectly water proof..." Jack complained, listening to the noise. "Hopefully enough of the recording survived..."

"Recording?" Judy asked, walking toward the desk. Jack continued to fiddle with the computer.

"Someone's listening... or following him..." Jack said, panic slowly creeping into his voice. "I'm hoping this wire I gave him will tell me who... or why. I thought we might get some extra details out of Toby's group with it, maybe ... but now..." he trailed off, scanning through the audio file. "... the vending room..." he scanned further, talking to himself, "...this would be... during the meeting...". Eventually he found a large, long sound spike in the file. It was choppy at best, but they suffered through the noise.

"...n't tie myself up..." Nick's voice rang out through the noise.

"HOLD, STILL!" Catalina's voice eventually followed after more electrical popping. Jack's ears stood straight up, startled by the sound of her voice.

"What is she...?!" Jack blurted. Judy and Bogo slowly looked to him.
 
    After a long stint of garbled sound, Nick's voice came through without words, just a painful sounding shout, followed by more noise. They all grew concerned at the sound. Judy's eye opened wide in shock, glancing back to the closed door, before turning back, staring at the screen. Jack began rubbing his forehead, as Bogo sat back in his chair, folding his arms as he took in all the new information.

"That was your...centive kid, a shock..., about the ...velant of..." an older, unknown voice said. Judy's ears perked as she listened. Jack tilted his head as the voice struck his ear.

"Who is... that?" Jack muttered to himself.

"...got my attention..." Nick's voice responded. After another break of garbled noise there was a long silence.

"A chip?... What could be so important that you'd...?" he mumbled.

"A what?" Bogo asked, his tension mounting. Jack looked back at him, shaking his head as he skimmed through more of the recording.

"...I'm sure your m..."  the faceless voice crackled away again. Judy stepped closer to the desk.

"...get Bellwether's ...pon... ...Dropbea... ...cility." the strange voice went on.

"Bellwether?" Bogo piped, startled slightly by the name. Judy jumped up onto the desk, looking at Jack, who stared blankly at the screen, a look of horror on his face. After hearing the name, Judy thought about their encounter, Dawn's confession, and the weapon sitting in the evidence room. Jack looked back to Bogo, pausing the recording.

"A Taze Chip, something they designed for..." Jack trailed off trying to regain his composure, "Never mind, I'll explain later...." he said, before muttering more to himself, "I never expected them to risk using one this way... their exposed... they must be desperate..." Jack trailed off again.

"What do we do?!" Bogo barked. Judy looked back to the door, her sad expression growing as she thought about Nick. Shame washing over her as she thought about the slap she had just given him.

"If we take it off..." Jack continued before quickly shaking his head, "We can't, we have to get it deactivated first... Catalina knows how, she probably set the password... unless..." Jack trailed off, thinking about the mysterious voice in the recording.

"I'm sure SHE'LL be more than willing to help..." Bogo added sarcastically. Judy looked back to the computer, listening to the noisy recording.

 "...t least mine's cute..." Nick's voice came through the noise again, Jack and Judy twitched at the sound.

"You kno... abbits hate... word right?" the unnamed voice responded. The corner of Judy's lip stretched to a slight smile, partnered with a sigh. Jack glanced at her, seeing her reaction, before quickly returning to the screen. The pop of a tranquilizer gun could be heard. The voice crackled through again, "...get the case, get it to me..." Judy started looking about the desk, putting the information together quickly. She spotted Jack's briefcase and quickly grabbed it, dumping it's contents across the desk, and making for the door.

"Hopps?!" Bogo barked curiously.

"Hey!" Jack shouted, reaching for his gun as it slid across the desk.

"I'll be right back!" Judy responded, darting out of door.

    She dashed down the row of walled off desks toward the locker rooms, stopping for a moment to grab a pen and paper from the nearest desk. She scribble a note and hastily taped it to the case. She left the briefcase by the entrance of the locker room and quickly made her way back to the office.

"You broke my only blank dart..." Jack started, pulling the cracked case out of the chamber, throwing it into the trashcan, "What was so..." before Judy cut him off.

"Bellwether's case is in the lock up, safe to assume they know what it looks like. He can..." Judy started through her heavy panting, before Jack finished her sentence.

"He can use my case to swap for it..." Jack nodded lightly, pausing to think, "We should still try to stall him for a bit, not too long, but enough to buy us some time."

"I could have just sent him with a release form..." Bogo piped. "But I might be able stall him..." he added picking up the phone.

"We wouldn't want them to think he got it too easily. If someone IS watching him, they'll see him with a case and think he's at least trying to keep us in the dark..." Jack replied. "The less they think we know the better..."

"So what did I miss?" Judy asked, finally catching her breath.

"Only that he's heading to Lion's Gate" Bogo added. Jack looked back to Bogo sternly.

"I'll try to clean the file up and listen to it again on the way, I've got to get back before he gets there." Jack said, transferring the file to his phone.

"I'll buy you some time!" Judy belted as she turned and ran back out the door.

"Hopps wait!" Bogo called, but she never turned back.

"NOT TOO MUCH!" Jack shouted to her trail.

Chapter Text

    Nick put his coat in his locker, leaving the door open to put his clothes in after changing into the fresh uniform that was draped over the bench behind him. He shouted as the chip blasted a stronger zap at him. "Lucky the place is empty this early... at least for a few more minutes" he said as his phone rang. He looked at the screen, which simply read 'Unknown', not that he didn't know exactly who it was.

"Yeah?" Nick said answering the call.

"Sorry about that... but I told you not to dawdle" Victor's voice came through.

"I've been in the same clothes for days, at least give me a minute to change." Nick replied. Victor was silent, wind could be heard behind him.

"Just make sure your straighten your tie better than before..." Victor teased after a pause, as Nick finished throwing his uniform on.

"Is this making up for lost time now?" Nick responded in kind. Victor sighed.

"My window of patience is closing, get moving..." Victor growled in a hushed tone.

"Hey, quick question... can we chalk this up as credit toward missed Father's Day gifts?" Nick said, his snarky tone grating on Victor. "Just thinking ahead..." Nick added after the silence. Victor laughed lightly before ending the call. Nick could hear the smile on his face. He put his street clothes in the locker, slammed the door, and started walking out.

    He came to a stop just outside the locker room, seeing the small briefcase against the wall, with a note on it. 'Nick, I heard - swap it and go - we'll think of something.' Nick ripped the note off the case and threw it in the first trash can he passed. "This could be seriously dangerous Judy, please don't follow me..." he thought as he headed past Bogo's office and down the stairs. He made his way through the main lobby, further heading to the basement stairs to get to the evidence lock up, quickly finding himself opening the caged door, and seeing who was on duty.

"McHorn! How ya been buddy?!" Nick said excitedly.

"Wilde? What are you doing here?" he replied, confused to see Nick in uniform.

"Let's cut to the chase, I didn't quit, it was part of an assignment." Nick quickly explained, McHorn nodded.

"Good enough for me... how'd it go?" he asked with a shrug.

"Eh, you know how it is. Bad, okay, then bad again..." Nick joked.

"So are you here as my shift relief? I've been waiting for someone to cover for my break..." Mchorn asked further.  

"Sorry bud... I actually needed to check some evidence, and I'm in a bit of a hurry..." Nick answered with a mild panic.

"I can cover for you." Judy's voice came from behind Nick, as she darted down the hall. Nick's ears perked in surprise.

"Whew, thanks Hopps" McHorn said as he opened the other caged door and handed her the comparably oversized keys as he passed. She struggled with the keys as she stared at Nick, looking down at the briefcase before rolling her eyes. She bobbed her head, motion for Nick to do what he needed to do.

"Don't forget to sign the tracker sheet." she said with a smug smile. Nick smiled back nervously.

"I've never forgotten to sign it." Nick said as he walked into the lockup, looking through bins to find the case. Judy came in behind him and jumped up to the computer.

"Of course not, you usually make me do it... what are you looking for?" she asked, putting on a show.

"Uh, it's from the old Night Howler case, Doug's gun..." he replied, playing along.

"I'm surprised we still have it, after what happened on Halloween, it probably should have been destroyed after that." Judy replied. A light zap struck Nick again, forcing him to grit his teeth. Judy watched as he tensed up suddenly, banging his head on the rack above it. Her eyes opened wider as she pursed her lips, guilt washing over her. "You... okay?" she asked timidly.

"Uhh, yeah... heh, leg cramp..." he replied shaking off the shock, and the scrape on his head, quickly getting back to the matter at hand. "You know where it is?"

"It's in... Oh, top shelf...rack eighteen!" she said,

    Nick moved the rack ladder over and climbed to the top, finding the box. He opened it, seeing the case, and swapping it with Jack's, before climbing back down.

"You know after what happened, that lunch you owe me..." she said, teasing him.

"Yeah?" Nick replied, relieved at the change of subject.

"It's gonna be dinner now." she added, her snarky tone being met with a pleasant smile.

"Sounds good Carrots" he said as he walked back out of the cage, stopping quickly at the evidence sheet. He turned to walk out.

"Wait Nick!" she called. He turned back flustered.

"What is it Fluff?! I'm in a hurry, Bogo asked for this evidence ASAP" Nick said, hoping his lie was convincing enough to hold back any more reprisals from Victor.

"Next time your planning to rearrange your apartment, I can help you know..." Judy nervously tried dragging out the conversation, buying time for Jack to get a head start.

"I'll keep it in mind" Nick said with a huff before he walked to the outer cage, opening the door. "Now I gotta go, I'll see you tomorrow." he added, calm returning to his voice, as he walked away. Judy desperately watch him disappear behind the wall at the edge of the cage. She glance to the evidence sheet to see Nick's signature, but where it should have been, he wrote something else. 'Don't follow me rabbit!' Judy scowled at the note before rolling her eyes.

"You know that's not going to stop me fox..." Judy muttered.

"Was that long enough?" McHorn asked, walking back around the corner.

"I hope so..." Judy replied, before quickly opening the cage, "but I've got to head out." she added, as McHorn reclaimed his post.

"Good luck Hopps" McHorn added as she darted back to the stairs.

    Judy raced back to her desk, grabbing her backpack off of it, and continued her frantic dash through the office area. She opened the zipper as she weaved through the few other officers getting ready to start their shifts, before disappearing into the locker room.
 

    Nick made his way out of the station incident free, but when he arrived at the subway, the train was just leaving, forcing him to wait for the next one. He clutched the case handle nervously as he waited for another zap. "This chip really paints a grim future..." he thought, as the old picture of his parents on his mirror floated through his mind. "Of all the animals that could be involved... why you?" his thoughts continued. After what felt like an eternity, another train finally pulled into the station. Nick boarded and sat, staring blankly out of the upper window across from him.

    After fifteen minutes the train reached another station. Nick transferred to the other train, boarding the Animalia Line, a much more crowded traincar, but he still managed to find an open seat. Animals shuffled around the car as Nick sat, staring at the ceiling, wondering how it would all pan out in the end. "Dad... why now... why this...just... WHY?!" he thought. He looked down at the case as the car approached the Lion's Gate stop.

    As the train stopped and cleared out, he waited, motionless, until it was nearly empty. Before standing, he looked up to the seat accross from him, seeing a small figure, cloaked in a black hoodie, leaning forward slightly, paws clutching at the seat, and a stern look plastered across the small, grey, bunny face poking through the hood. Nick's eyes grew with concern and fear, "No Judy..." he thought shaking his head lightly. Judy's stern gaze quickly turned bored at his reaction, before she raised an eyebrow, and nodded slightly in response. Nick tried to return a stern expression, but after seeing her lips moving slowly, he could only show dismay at what she silently said. "Stop, protecting, me." she lipped, punctuating her sentiment with a sympathetic smile. Nick looked away, tightening his lip, worried about what might happen to her, before turning back, returning his own forced smile, and nodding lightly.

    After a moment, Nick finally stood and exited the train. Judy followed shortly after, leaving enough distance between them so as to not look conspicuous to whoever else might have been following Nick. She stopped at the brochure holder by the stairs, watching Nick on the edge of her vision, as she mindlessly thumbed through a couple. He pulled his phone out, quickly glanced it over and put it away, looking around before walking to the left of the rail access. Judy waited, shaking a pamphlet lightly, before following.

    The sun beat down harshly outside, sand blew as the wind picked up at times. "Of course this outfit would be black... How can she stand this heat?" Judy thought, as an image of  Catalina floated through her mind. A small blast of sand sprinkled her face. She tightened her lip with a sneer, "No wonder she doesn't know how to smile...". She glanced ahead of her, determined to not lose sight of Nick, as he trudged down the sand blasted sidewalk.

     She did her best to stay far enough behind him to not attract unwanted attention. As she passed a mini-mart, she noticed another animal keeping an odd pace with Nick, on the opposite sidewalk, a deer, with an obvious cut in their ear, and two missing lines of fur on the back of their neck. "Is that whose been following him?" she wondered as she glanced back to Nick, pausing to look at his phone again. She ducked into an alley, just beyond a small produce stand. "If I knew more about where this place was..." she thought, letting out a gasp as a small paw reached around her to cover her mouth and pull her backward into the alley.

Chapter Text

    Jack led Judy down the crudely dug tunnel, dirt walls and floor lit only by the cheap strings of lights that stretched down the various corridors. Every light they passed, a bubble of light reflected onto thee opposite wall off of the handcuff around her wrist, behind her back.

"These things must go on for miles..." she thought, glancing around. "Hidden accesses all over this part of the island too..." Stripped of her disguise, she marched on, occasionally spotting a camera along the wires. When they came near one, Jack gave her a slight shove, showing off for whoever might be watching.  "Hey!" Judy finally blurted, almost tripping to his push. Jack didn't stop moving them both forward.

"Just... keep moving..." he replied, the voice of his alias was timid as usual, but was growing distinctly more nervous as they came closer to the end of the path. He opened the steel door and grabbed the back of her vest, leading her roughly up half a flight of stairs, to another door. Seeing the few dark and dirty windows on it, Judy knew what would come next.

    Jack knocked, to be quickly greeted with the angry face of Catalina in the window. She disappeared before the door buzzed. Jack pulled the handle and shoved Judy through. Judy hit the floor as the door closed.

"It's about time you got back!" Catalina barked.

"If it makes you feel better, I brought you a present... I caught her sneaking around, " Jack said, walking over to her. Catalina looked down at Judy, turned to her side, staring at the floor. Catalina looked back to Jack, raising her arm to crack him in the head.

"IDIOT!" She shouted, Jack cowered, holding the side of his face, "So WHAT if she was snooping around?!" Catalina continued. "Pick her up!" Jack walked over to Judy, pulling her from the floor and holding her by the back of her vest. Catalina walked over, staring her down threateningly, before looking back to Jack. "So everything is set for the formula?"

     As they talked, Judy surveyed the room. Mostly vacant, aside from the desk, only lit by the security monitors mounted above it, with a small speaker beneath them, a wire ran down from the jack on it to a broken pair of headphones. She could see a small switchboard sticking out into the light. "Door buzzers, camera switches..." she thought, as her eyes scanned further. The only other sight in the room was the windowless door on the other wall.

"Yeah..." Jack said nervously, "They'll bring it to pier five, tomorrow night."

"Good, at least you got something right." Catalina continued, her tone lowering, "I'll let him know when he calls..." she added.

"You not going yourself?" Jack asked.

"Why would I?" she barked at him, turning her attention back to Judy. "But now you've brought me a problem." Jack swallowed hard, Judy could feel his paw twitching nervously against her back. "This was suppose to be simple, and she would have wandered in circles out there, but you thought it would be a better idea to capture her..." Catalina sighed.

"I thought she could be... extra leverage?" Jack muttered, tightening his grip on the vest. Catalina pursed her lips.

"So why ARE you here?" Catalina growled, glaring at Judy. Judy raised her head, her annoyed expression further irritating Catalina.

"My partner was acting strange, so I was following him..." Judy answered, her hostile tone seemed to intensify Catalina's glare, as she aimed it back at Jack.

"She's fiery..." Catalina started,  raising her arm slowly, and putting a curled finger under Judy's chin. She resisted before Catalina forced her to raise her head. Judy groaned as she was forced to look Catalina in the eye, the dim lighting from the security monitors wasn't dim enough for her taste. "I suppose I'd rather deal with a savage bunny, than a savage fox, if your partner tries anything STUPID..." Judy's upper lip curled. "Should we test if that fire in you will still be then when your NOT... you?" Catalina

"S...savage?" Jack mumbled.

"Randall actually made it back ON TIME," Catalina accused, her gaze moving to Jack, "he's upstairs, waiting for something to go wrong out there..." she finished, looking back to Judy, pushing her head up slightly more.   

"You don't need to test it, I can tell you what will happen..." Judy said, quickly pulling her head back, dislodging Catalina's finger from her chin, which Judy quickly bit down on the curled knuckle.

"Ah! You little...!" Catalina squawked, pulling her hand back. After looking it over, she glared back at Judy.  A deep growl bellowed from her as she pulled her arm back, unleashing a heavy swing, landing a forceful punch to Judy's stomach, knocking the wind out of her. Jack winced as he held her vest. Judy hung her head, gasping for air as Catalina shook her hand off, trying to dissipate the pain of the bite.

"I said to hold her BACK Donny!" Catalina barked.

"No, you..." Jack paused as Catalina's eyes burned at him, "I... I am..." Jack added weakly as he tightened his grip on Judy's vest.

"There's more... of that," Judy threatened weakly, huffing hard to catch her breathe, "Just ask my partner... he reminds me of... that Halloween party... constantly..." she added. Catalina balled her fists together, raising them up, before bringing them crashing down to the side of Judy's face. Judy tightened up, hearing the loud thump echo through her skull.  Her vision scattered, compounding the dizziness the strike left her with. Her left eye started to feel warm, as it started to swell closed.

"What do you... mean, little...? Judy teased, raising her head, "I'm taller... than you..." Jack hid a smile from Catalina behind Judy's head.

"Stop talking...!" Catalina barked again. Judy looked around with her one good eye, her sight falling on the monitors, a shadow dancing on the ground on one of them, growing until Nick appeared in it's place, looking around in front of him before looking up into the camera and waving jovially.

"Even in a situation like this, he has to be a scorch..." Judy thought, trying not to snicker. Catalina looked over to see the same. She walked over to the row of controls, holding a headphone to her ear, and pressing a button.

"You have the case? It better be in one piece!" she asked, a moment of silence passed as Judy watched the fox's response on the monitor, holding up the case and shaking it as he spoke. Catalina sighed and pressed the button again. "Just get it to Vic!" she barked, pressing another button. She picked up her phone and dialed.

"He's coming in, and I have an uninvited guest here." There was another pause. "Fine, I'll be waiting." Hanging up the phone she pinned one of the buttons down, and pulled the headphones out of the jack. The sound of the wind blowing outside screeched through a small speaker below the monitors.

"I know what he stole from the evidence lock up..."Judy muttered weakly, her eye throbbing,  Catalina turned back to her, interrupted by her phone ringing. She turned away to answer it, telling whoever it was about the formula trade. She pulled the phone away from her ear quickly, the abrupt click could be heard by everyone. She turned back to Judy even more annoyed than before.

"What could you possibly want that evidence so badly for..." Judy asked, having gotten no information from the overheard call.

"This is how we get Bellwether back," Catalina started, her tone growing cocky, "and apparently the boss thinks that's important enough for me to have to deal with this pred!" she pointed at one of the monitors, the camera aimed at the spot Victor was standing. Another shadow slowly appeared on the screen. Jack squeezed Judy's vest a little tighter. "I might have to go out there Donovan, and I don't want to deal with a struggle. Are those cuffs tight?."

"Uh, yeah..." Jack answered with a twitchy nod.

"Good" Catalina replied, grabbing a tranquilizer gun from the desktop under the monitors. She aimed it at Judy's leg, pulling the trigger without hesitating.

"Gehrrrr!" Judy grunted, gritting her teeth as the dart sank into her thigh. "Ha, sure, why not..." she muttered after a pause. "...less I have to listen to you." she added, glaring at Catalina who simply stared back at her.

"Even you should know when your beaten." Catalina spat.

"No," Judy said smugly, looking back to the two distant foxes on the monitor, the tranquilizer taking hold, she could feel herself getting heavy, "it's not over... until I get that dinner...". Catalina pulled her head back, and looked at Jack confused. Jack shrugged as a whistle came through the speaker over the breeze. Catalina pushed Jack out of the way, grabbing Judy's vest from behind, at the top and bottom, keeping her held up as she pushed her toward the side door.

"Let's go! DON'T give me any trouble!" Catalina growled. "Keep an eye on things!" she said to Jack as he walked to the monitors and pressed a button. Catalina leaned toward Judy, "And your barely taller... ears don't count!" muttering into her ear, her threatening tone cutting through her tightly knit teeth, punctuating herself with a shove. A buzz came from the door lock, and Catalina kicked it open, pushing Judy ahead of her, back into the heat.

Chapter Text

    Nick walked to the door in the chain link fence. Green fibers strips woven throughout it, preventing prying eyes from seeing inside. Pulling on the handle only made the chain links rattle, the latch not giving way . Looking around for a button, he glance overhead to see a camera and a speaker. Smiling sarcastically at it, he waved as if acknowledging an old friend. The speaker crackled before an unpleasant voice, that he was all to familiar with, funneled through it.

"You have the case? It better be in one piece!" Catalina barked, prompting Nick to hold the case up and shake it.

"Ive got it, it's fine... we're fine... everything fine here..."he replied with a smug tone, " How are you?"

"Just get it to Vic!" She belted in response, as the door buzzed. Nick pulled at the handle again.

"Boring conversation anyway..." he grumbled as he stepped inside.

    The sun beat down, punishing the exposed dirt and sand inside, as well as the brick of the old, two story guard tower beside him, the only thing along the fence line. The main building stood a distance away, it's white walls making the single silver door on it stand out as the only entrance or exit on it that he could see. A lone, figure stood between him and the building, his back turned to Nick, putting his phone into his pocket. Nick started making his way toward him. As he approached, Victor turned to him, eyeing him up and down.

"Uniform looks good," Victor started, nodding his approval, "I still prefer the overcoat though..." he added, with a smile. Nick's face lost it's sense of humor.

"Ok, I'm here... with your evidence...  are you gonna keep up your end, and shut this thing off?" Nick asked, a scowl slowly forming. Victor's smile faded quickly.

"Of course," Victor started, "Why would I want to make my own son suffer... but not until we're finished." Nick clutched the case tighter, his lip twitched with distrust.

"First, you tell me why you want it in the first place..." Nick asked, raising an eyebrow. Victor sighed.

"Just like before Nick... I really don't have the time for this now, my window is very limited" Victor replied, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his phone.

"Especially since it took you so long to get here." he added presenting the tazechip's control screen to Nick. "So can we do this quickly and peacefully... or do I need to...?" Victor paused, hovering his thumb over the button. Nick didn't flinch, seeing a twinge of tension in Victor's eyes.

"Thought you didn't want me to have to suffer?" Nick replied, coaxing a sneer onto Victor's face.

"I could turn up the dial you know..." Victor threatened before lowering the phone slowly. Nick's ears pulled back slightly as his gaze fell to the ground in disappointment.

"No time... no time..." Nick muttered, shaking his head. Victor raised a curious eyebrow. "I've heard that too much lately." He looked back to Victor, "How long do a few simple words take?" Victor sighed, glancing at the time on his phone.

"It's not just a matter of time, I can't let you get in my way is all..." Victor stammered in response. Nick pulled back, tipping his head, uncertain of what to make of what he just heard. "But I'm sure you've had enough of this, so let's cut to the chase." Victor added, his tone returning to normal, and punctuating his statement with a loud whistle. Nick looked back to the guard tower as the door slammed open, seeing Judy get pushed out, being held firmly at the end of Catalina's reach, who followed her out.

"Carrots!" Nick barked sympathetically, as he watched them make thier way over. Judy's head was drooping, and she seemed to be missing her step at times. Arms between her and Catalina, and a dart in her leg, Nick's expression shifted from surprise to concern.

"Are you really THAT surprised?" Victor shrugged in response. Nick glanced to Victor quickly. "You had to know she was following you..." Nick looked back to the pair of rabbits as they came to a stop a few feet from Victor's right side. He looked at Judy, seeming barely conscious, anger shooting through him as he noticed her swollen eye. He growled at Catalina, bearing his fangs. Victor twitched his head backward at Nick's reaction, turning to look at the pair himself, seeing what Nick saw, scowling at Catalina himself. "Was that really necessary?" Victor asked. Catalina turned to look at him, her own threatening expression unchanging.

"She BIT me!" Catalina barked. Judy struggled to raise her head.

"Hah... hngaa ha...." Judy cockily tried to laugh, pushing through the tranquilizer, opening her eyes enough to see Nick. Nick took a deep breathe to calm down, smiling lightly back to her, shaking his head softly, as she dropped her head heavily. Victor turned back to Nick, pointing at Judy over his shoulder.

"Tough bunny." Victor said with a chuckle. Nick smiled proudly, trying hard to hide his worry, even knowing how tough she was. "And just so you don't try anything else, there's a Howler rifle aimed at you too." Victor warned, making Nick's ears twitch as he looked around quickly.

"...up... Nick..." Judy mumbled, driving Nick's attention to the guard house. Turning back, he could see Catalina glaring at him, as she held his partner at arms length. He pursed his lips as he finished turning back to Victor, whose smile was getting under his skin.

"So now that you can see your in a no win situation, can we finish this?" Victor gloated. Nick clutched the case tighter, slowly holding it up. Victor stretched his free hand out, waiting for Nick to bring the case closer.

"Hurry it up!" Catalina barked, "She's getting heav-" her words Interrupted by a pop, that echoed through the empty yard. Victor twisted, looking to the guard tower.

    "Ahhhh!" Catalina screamed, staggering backward before falling, landing seated on the ground, dropping Judy in the process, landing on her side.

"Judy!" Nick turned and shouted as Judy slumped to the ground, motionless.
Catalina's eyes widened, staring blankly ahead as she put her hand to the stinging sensation on her forehead. As the pain subsided she pulled her hand away looking at it, seeing the blue ooze on her fur. A look of dread sweeping across her as she turned to Victor, who was already looking back to her. "Vic...?" she pleaded. Victor looked back to Nick, his surprise fading.

"Well that's one thorn out of my paw" Victor said. Catalina huffed in fear as she quickly got to her feet, intent to run to the main building, but fell instantly back to the ground when her leg gave way, her ankle refusing to follow suit, weighed down by something she was too terrified to process.

"NO... nononono...." Catalina muttered as she tried scrambling away nervously, staring at the compound entrance, her limited mobility adding to her terror.

"You might want to give them some target practice..." Nick's sarcasm was enough to end Victor's patience, pressing the button on his phone. Nick tensed, hunching over, gritting his teeth to bear the pain as the chip send a powerful zap into him.

"I don't have TIME for this nonsense!" Victor shouted, charging at Nick, grabbing the case handle. Nick raised a shaky arm to stop him, growling as the chip continued it's attempt to shock him into submission. As they struggled, Nick knocked Victor's phone from his hand, but in doing so, freed up another hand for Victor to use to pry the case away with. "Finally..." he said with a sigh, before pushing Nick to the ground. "Sorry Nick, playtime's over." He turned and started heading for the warehouse. Nick took a moment to shake off his muscle spasms to give chase.

    A second pair of cuffs tightened, binding Catalina's ankles together. Clumsily getting to her knees, Judy sluggishly removed the cuff from her wrist that was tying Catalina's leg to herself, and fastened it around one of her wrists. "Ahgh" Catalina squealed as Judy put a foot on her back. Still fighting the tranquilizer, she managed to cuff Catalina in her frantic state, and stand over her, taking short heavy breathes to keep her adrenaline flowing.

"With that attitude... I expected you... to hit harder..." she muttered before collapsing again, pinning Catalina under her.

    Nick managed to catch up to Victor, even though his legs were still shaking with spasms, tackling him. Victor tossed the case a few feet ahead of them, twisting himself onto his back, as Nick tried too keep him pinned down. "You're pretty spry for an old fox!" Nick commented through his teeth. Victor got his paws on Nick's shoulders to stop his from reaching his cuffs.

"Old doesn't mean weak, kid" Victor replied, wrestling his legs free from under Nick, and getting a foot on Nick's chest. "I have a treadmill y'know..." he added as he launched Nick off of him. Quickly getting to his feet again he scooped up the case and continued toward the building.

    Slinking off of Catalina, Judy crawled a few feet, reaching out, grasping at Victors phone. Once in hand, she heaved a few times to line herself up with Catalina's face, shoving her shoulder to turn her face out of the dirt. Her vision blurry, she took a moment to let the screen come into focus, she could see the screen, a list of seven profiles. "Which one..." she weakly growled, turning the screen to Catalina. Catalina stared at her, her eyes burning with anger and betrayal, her lip curled, sneering at the half asleep, grey rabbit in front of her.

"Profile seven..." she sighed, staring into the distance, watching the two foxes struggle. Judy tapped the screen, and looked for a deactivation button. Upon finding, and pressing it, a password prompt appeared.

"And the password?" Judy barked impatiently, hoping it was Catalina who set it. Catalina's thick black fur shined in the sunlight as she turned her head slightly, not losing sight of the two.

"A-Y-1-E-1-P-3" Catalina begrudgingly droned, as Victor got up and grabbed the case. Judy entered the password. Once she hit the confirmation button, the screen turned red with a warning.

"-!Invalid, Deterrent Active!-" Catalina started to laugh when a painful sounding shout came from behind Judy. Her eyes opened wide with sympathy.

"Nick!" she thought, before her sympathetic expression was replaced with a scowl more intense than anything she had worn to portray her dark furred alias.

    Nick slowed his pursuit as Victor dropped to his knees, reaching for his neck as he shouted, never letting go of the case. Nick stopped a few feet behind Victor, surprised by what he was seeing, and taking the opportunity to catch his breath. As the shock subsided, Victor turned back, glaring at Nick with a growl.

"You...?" Nick started to ask, but Victor got to his feet again, rushing toward the door. "Wait!" Nick shouted as he continued the chase.

"Leave me behind...?" Catalina huffed as her laughter faded, "Never trust a predator..." she spat. Judy's glare magnified as she looked at Catalina. "What?" she barked.

"What's the real profile and password for Nick?!" Judy demanded, contending a surge of dizziness.

"Why should I tell you?" Catalina argued. Judy slowly reached to her belt.

"Because..." Judy said, still breathing quickly, "of this..." Judy held a small vial of clear liquid where Catalina could see it. "This is... an... antidote... and if you want it..." Catalina drew a few heavy breaths before responding.

"Fine... Profile One" she said, "P-O-E-L-O-N-S..." Judy quickly typed in the code, squeezing the phone tensely as she pressed the confirmation button. Overcome with relief when the screen turned green and backed to the profile screen, one of them displayed in grey, noted as being deactivated. She sighed as she slowly lowered the vial back to the holster on her belt.

"Hey!" Catalina shouted, her eyes widening as she lifted her head off the ground. Judy laughed lightly, as she slowly tried getting to her feet, but the tranquilizer pulled her back to the ground.

"It was just a blueberry... dumb bunny" she teased. Catalina dropped her head again, finally giving up. Judy bagged the phone before flipping herself over, pushing herself to her feet, and trying to head in Nick's direction, stumbling a bit at first. "Heh hngh... they dooooo... pack a punch..." she dizzyingly stammered, her vision blurred, and the sun blinding, she continued to follow the sound of Nick's voice.

    As Victor made it to the building, he reached for the door handle, but Nick slammed into his back, pinning him against the wall. He kept his hands and the case in front of him, as he tried shifting out of Nick's grip.

"Let GO Nick!" Victor tried to plead.

"Sorry Dad... it's kinda my job to stop you..." Nick said as he gripped the collar of Victor shirt. Victor stopped struggling when Nick tugged at the collar. "What's this all about? What happened back there?!" Nick asked, trying to shake answers out of him.

"It's all about a lie..." Victor replied, "And back there... that was a shock kid..."

"Why do you have a chip too? Aren't you working with them?" Nick inquired further, his thoughts housing nothing but frustration and confusion.

"I told you... I can't let you get in my WAY!" Victor barked, slamming the back of his head into Nick's snout. Nick felt a small snap against his finger, losing his grip on Victor's shirt as he staggered backward from the blow. Victor didn't waste any time reaching for the door, disappearing inside. Nick closed the gap between himself and the door, pulling frantically at the handle, but the door wouldn't budge. Nick pounded the door with his fist.

"Nick..." Judy called from behind him, trudging her way to his side, "it's off..." she finished, collapsing as her turned to her. He started to reach down to help her up but she raised her hand quickly, almost hitting his face.

"Fluff?" he said, trying to get her attention. Seeing a glint of light on the sand blasted walkway, she reached out to grab it.

"I'm fine..." she blurted, "Jusss' a lil' dizzy..." as he grabbed her hand, pulling her up. She clung to his side, stabilizing herself as she looked up at him, smiling briefly, before turning stern. "Get.. it.. off." she ordered.

Chapter Text

    Nick reached to his neck, pinching the chip between his claws, pausing nervously before pulling it off. As he pulled, the magnetic force holding it in place did it's job. His stomach turned at the discomforting sensation of the skin around his throat tightening, nearly to a point of choking him, before it finally let go. Judy grimaced as she watched the sickened look on his face. He brought it around to look at it, the small black rectangle, with a metal plate on one side. "This little thing...?" he started, interrupted by a loud clank coming from the door. Their ears flicked as the metal slat slid open. Victor peered out from it, eyes starring at Nick, overflowing with sympathy.

"I'll take that back..." Victor said, a harsh worry in his voice. Nick glared back at him, but couldn't keep his focus as Judy lost her grip on his shirt, slowly sliding down his side. He grabbed her again, putting the chip in his pocket, and picked her up, cradling her in both arms. Victor turned his attention to her, before looking back to Nick. "She... really is tough..." he complimented with a sigh.

"We know..." Nick replied, looking down to her with a smile, jostling her lightly. Her ears draped over his arm, finally able to stop fighting the tranquilizer, as she gently nodded off. Nick looked back to Victor, his expression turning to a glare. "Don't you have an escape, to be in the middle of?"

"I uh... I'm sorry... about all this Nick..." Victor said. Nick paused, unsure what to say. "I've tried before, for years... this is kind of a... last ditch effort" Victor stammered.

"Tried what? Can I finally get some answers out of you?" Nick argued.

"How about another trade?" Victor asked, testing Nick's patience. "One answer, for one thing I still need... but make the questions quick, deal?"

"What could you possibly still need from me?" Nick said, as he clutched Judy tighter, leaning in toward the door.

"The phone, and the chip..." Victor tried to say before Nick interrupted.

"Why?" Nick blurted.

"If I don't bring them back, he'll get suspicious... and it took years to get one of them to trust me" Victor replied. Nick pulled back confused, thinking about the deal, before finally nodding.

"Fine, but I need real answers this time!" he belted, balancing Judy with the crook of his elbow to retrieve the chip from his pocket. He held it up for Victor to see.

"What's this all for? The lie you mentioned?"

"That's two questions... but it's all the same anyway," Victor said.

"Answer it then!" Nick barked, his patience long abandoned. Victor sighed.

"I convinced them, that if we could get this weapon out of police custody, Bellwether could be re-tried, and since the ZPD wouldn't be able to produce the evidence, the entire case could be thrown out, due in part to police negligence, not to mention an argument could be made over the competency of the officers involved in the case and the arrest." Victor explained, "Therefore, she would walk on the charges, getting her back into their fold." Nick's expression slowly sank as he listened, thinking of everything he could remember from the old case. "Sounds convincing enough right?" Victor added. Nick shook his head.

"That... wouldn't actually work..." he replied unconfidently. "...would it?" looking down to the sleeping rabbit in his arms.

"You... don't know?" Victor asked sarcastically. "Are you a cop or not?"

"Yeah, I'm a cop Dad, not a lawyer." Nick added with a smug smile.

"Of course it wouldn't work! At least I'd hope not... That case is over three years old..." Victor replied, holding up the case, "this evidence should have probably been destroyed by now anyway..." he paused, taking a breath, "But lucky for me, it hasn't... it was a gamble just assuming it was still around." Nick stared, confused, needing more.

"Then why do you need it, if it's not going to work?" Nick asked, begging for more answers. Victor motioned for the chip. Nick held it as high as he could without disturbing or dropping Judy, leaning closer to the door. Victor quickly reached out and snatched it from him.

"Now the phone..." Victor added. Nick glanced around, turning back to see Catalina laying in the hot sun.

"..all! Donny! Get out here and do something you cowar..." Catalina shouted in the distance.

"Might take me a minute" Nick replied, before Judy pawed his chest. She squirmed, pulling the bagged phone from her belt. Nick smiled at her, her eyes barely open, as she smiled back. "I thought you were asleep Fluff?"

"In and... out..." she replied, even her voice was loopy. Victor cleared his throat abruptly. Nick looked back to him, taking the evidence bag from her, and holding it up.

"Fast minute... Now, why do you need the weapon?" Nick asked sternly.

"Not interested to know where I've been all these years anymore?" Victor joked. Nick tilted his head, wondering where Victor was going with his question. "I WAS just hiding out for a bit, ticked off the wrong animals after a bad deal... didn't want them to find out I had a family. That why I've gone as Victor for so long now..." Victor paused, with another sigh. "After... just a few weeks, someone snuck up behind me... I thought it was one of them..."

"Someone... from Dropbear?" Nick asked.

"Hard to say... Dropbear was a legitimate company back then... technically it still is... they just have a dark side. Dropbear... Soothing the Savage Beast...." Victor sarcastically repeated an old slogan, "They don't do this alone... they make tranquilizers and tranq' guns... not electronics." he continued, holding up the chip. "I woke up in a cell, tranq'ed or blindfolded, and moved from place to place over the years... they found someone who didn't exist in the system... Victor Redd is just a name, they could make me disappear easily. Used me to pull test data for those collars... years of redesigns... even got that Night Howler serum tested on me a couple times. How do you think they found a treatment so quickly when it all came to light? They developed it years ago, from US!" Victor grit his teeth, his anger showing itself before he stopped to breathe, letting everything sink in, as Nick's perplexed look turned to concern. "Eight of us... well, down to six now..."

"This... isn't answering my question..." Nick stammered, shaking his head lightly.

"THIS...!" Victor interjected, holding up the case again, "...is the last chance I might have to get OUT! THAT'S what I need it for!" Nick stepped back, not expecting the outburst.

"You haven't been able to get out until now, what makes you think that empty rifle will help now?" he argued.

"Whether it works or not I have to try, it's the best I can do." Victor responded.

"And if it doesn't work? Your already out now, just come with me, we can find a way to get that chip off." Nick said.

"And get zapped every time you get the password wrong?! If we even made it that far, if I don't make it to the pickup arrangement soon, he'll just turn the dial all the way up and..." Victor paused, trying to avoid thinking about the consequences, reaching for his chest.

"Dad... I..." Nick stammered, shaking his head, trying to find any excuse he could to keep Victor talking. Victor's brow knitted together, scowling as he reflected.

"It's been DECADES! They took me! Locked me away! Used me as a test subject!" Victor paused, his tone shifting somberly, as his scowl turned back to sympathy, looking back to Nick. "They kept me from my son... my wife..." Victor said, reaching for his tie. He patted lightly at his chest, his expression faded to fear before looking down. "Wh...?" he added nervously, looking about, patting himself down.

    Judy extended an arm out, wrapped around her fingers was a thin, broken chain of a necklace, snapped at the hasp, running through a ring, set with a green stone. Nick looked at it, remembering the snap he felt as Victor knocked him away. Nick didn't have any words, dumbfounded at everything he had just heard. He leaned toward the door again, holding the phone up. Victor reach out slowly to grab it, leaving the necklace where it was.

"Aren't you gonna take it?" Nick asked, sympathy rampant in his voice after hearing everything.

"Needs a fair trade..." Victor said through a smile, relieved just to see it.

"Uh... okay..." Nick stammered, unsure what to ask.

"Who... else is in the... group? What's their... name?" Judy weakly piped, barely able to see Victor through the haze in her vision. Victor smiled, shaking his head.

"That was enough tranq' to bring a hippo to their knees... and she's still fighting" he laughed lightly, trying to take the edge off. Nick nodded with a smile.

"Sleep it off Carrots... I can't carry two rabbits at once." Nick said glancing back to Catalina before turning back to Victor.

"I've never heard them refer to themselves by any name... so I can't answer that. Knowing what they do, I figured Bellwether out myself, other than her... they're tight lipped about their own names, not that I hear much of anything from my room... Even being face to face with them I couldn't tell you what any of them look like..." Victor said, "But I have heard one name, a couple years back... Hayfield... maybe that will help?"

"Anything will help at this point." Nick said, thinking about how little Jack had been able to offer.

"I'm sure you won't find public records for any of us, either Bellwether would have destroyed them or, maybe there's a cop in the group... but, try finding Norman Fisher" Victor added, disparaged, Nick still wore his confusion, "I mentioned him before... the bear? He... found his own way out..." Nick closed his eyes, as Victor sighed, "And that all I've got." he finished with a shrug, fiddling with the phone after getting it out of the evidence bag. "I disconnected the phone bug, its just an app on your side, delete it when you can..." Nick leaned in for Victor to take the ring. Victor paused, staring at it, before shaking his head.

"You made the trade fair." Nick reminded.

"Keep it... for now. I'll be around to get it soon." Victor said through a smile. "And uh... don't tell your mother you saw me... or about any of this, she'll worry." Nick twitched, the only words of response that came to him burned in his mind.

"Dad..." Nick paused, having to force himself to finish, "... Mom..." Victor waved his paw, silencing him.

"Even if she's moved on... found someone else, I wouldn't blame her for that. But she deserves an explanation at least, and an apology." Victor said, holding his ground. "I owe her at least that much..." Nick stared speechless into Victors eyes through the slat. "With a little more luck... I'll see you soon son. You can arrest me then if you want." Victor smiled, as Nick continued to stare, trying to process everything, but before he could find something to say, Victor slid the cover over the opening, and latched it down, leaving Nick standing in the heat, holding his barely conscious partner.

    Judy tugged gently at his tie, rested slightly from her dart nap, prompting him to look down at her. She unburied her face from his side, jerking it around to see him. "Let's go Nick... we can't do anything about him..." she said, reaching up to put the necklace in his shirt pocket. Nick looked back to the door.

"Sounds like he's got a plan..." Nick said. "All we can do is cross our fingers. But if he's lying about it..." Nick paused, anger swelling in his eyes.

"I didn't hear everything, but I don't think he's in a position to lie..." she replied, calming him down, "Besides... this is Jack's case... not ours..." she reminded, bringing his attention back to her.

"It's still our problem, the entire city could be in danger..." Nick reminded. Judy shook her head lightly.

"They haven't done anything since we caught Bellwether, and until we have something solid to go on..." she replied, her voice still unsteady, Nick pursed his lips, surprised by her willingness to let Jack handle it, he assumed the tranquilizer was coloring her decision. "We should call this in... he wants to try maintaining his cover, and we should have two to arrest...  if you can't carry two bunnies, where are you gonna put a deer on top of that? Besides..." she nestled herself into a comfortable spot against him, a yawn interrupting her smile as her eyes started to close again "I'm not... sharing." Nick chuckled lightly, hearing distant sirens getting closer.

Chapter Text

"Well... sounds like Jack already called it in." he said, putting a drowsy grin on her face.  "I'm a little disappointed..."

"Because of Victor?" Judy asked as her head started spinning again.

"No, I just expected the Outback precinct's sirens to sound like a didgeridoo..." he joked.

"Don't be a jerk, Nick." she said with a laugh, nudging her forehead into his rib. "It might be Bogo, they could have taken the bridge you know..." As Nick looked down at her, his smile slowly faded, seeing her swollen eye.

"Why didn't you listen Fluff?" he asked, worry rampant in his voice. She twisted slightly in his arms to see him more clearly.

"Huh?" she tightened her brow confused, being numb and half asleep from the tranquilizer, she had forgotten.

"Your eye, among other things..." he reminded. Even with her eyes barely open, he could see them rolling.

"That's what your worried about?" she muttered, "Not, your Dad being an illegal detainee, who you haven't seen since...? I heard decades in there somewhere..."

"I'll worry about that later... he's been gone so long. I thought he was dead, it's... taking it's time to sink in. Can't do anything about it anyway..." he trailed off, shaking his head, " So yes, YOU are who I'm more worried about..." Judy's smile widened, as she tightened her grip on his tie. "This could have been a lot more trouble than what it was..." he scolded.

"So?" she challenged, her voice crackling with exhaustion, "Everything I've ever wanted has been an uphill battle, and it sorta comes with the job... maybe I like trouble?" she watched his frustrated smirk stretch to a snarky smile.

"Well then you asked for the perfect partner," he said, turning away from the door and looking along the fence for the entrance, spotting Catalina, who hadn't moved an inch, "trouble seems to follow me around. Or is it just me?"

"Don't make me repeat myself..." she said through a dizzy giggle. "But you can't ask me for things like that." she said after letting out a sigh. Nick looked at her with a silent confusion. "You can't tell me to wait around the station... when I know your heading into something dangerous." she argued "I told you, I don't need you to protect me..."   

"It's part of my job isn't it?" he said sarcastically.

"That sounds..." she yawned again, "like an excuse." Nick laughed lightly as he started walking them toward the fence gate.

"I didn't know any other way to keep you safe..." he said, adjusting her in his arms, his own words giving him pause to think. "But maybe I HAVE been getting a little OVERprotective lately..." she smiled, giving a sarcastic nod, as he started to walk again, feeling her tail trying to twitch against his arm.

"Maybe a little." she said, "But your doing fine right now..." she wrapped an arm around him, tucking it under his, watching the dimming silhouette of his face block and reveal the mid morning sun with each step. The gentle bobbing of each stride beckoning her to sleep, nestling her face against him again. Knowing the hard part was over, she relaxed, finally giving up her internal war with the tranquilizer. He looked down to see her eyes close, bringing a smile back to his face. "Don't think... I'm done talking... to you..." she muttered as she drifted off.

"Been a rough day Carrots, get some rest, you can scold me all you want later..." he added, adjusting his grip on her again, plodding on, halfway to the fence door, yards from Catalina, who cautiously glared at them as they passed.

    The gate burst open, as officers made a line outside the door, quickly filing in to assess the situation. Nick made his way past them to one of the squadcars waiting outside, Bogo stood by the hood, watching them approach.

"Is she ok?" Bogo asked, concerned, but not surprised.

"Just a little tranq'd, and a black eye." Nick replied.

"She should go in the ambulance anyway." Bogo said. Nick pursed his lips at the statement.

"We both know her better than that Chief." Nick added with a snarky tone. Bogo laughed.

"Suppose your right... I'll save the shouting for the office though." Bogo joked, pulling a light laugh from Nick as he gently laid Judy on the front seat of the car, her ears draped down the side of it. "So what happened in there? Savage only gave me a quick rundown..."

"Save the shouting for the office right?" Nick responded. Bogo grunted a laugh as an Outback precinct squadcar pulled onto the scene. An officer stepped out, looking around, a smug smile forming on their face as they spotted Bogo.

"Bogo!" she called, getting his attention. "Mind telling me why your in my jurisdiction?" Bogo returned her grin as he started to walk toward her.

"And why would I do that Mirri?" Bogo joked, his voice fading into the wind the further he went.

"Don't forget about Randall, he's upstairs in the guardhouse." Jack's voice came from the front side of the car, keeping out of sight as Wolford led Catalina out of the gate, and closed her into the rear most car. Nick walked around to see him, quickly looking away.

"Where... are your pants?" Nick said, trying not to laugh.

"I needed something to weigh down the door release button to get to Randall..." Jack replied, shaking his head. "You mind grabbing them for me?"

"Maybe I do? Cost of answering the boxers or briefs question. I can't unsee that y'know..." Nick teased. "But I'm not going too far from her right now..." he added, passing by the car door. He popped the trunk release, grabbed a blanket from it, and an ice pack from the medical kit. Walking back, he cracked the ice pack to make it cold, wrapped it in his handkerchief, and rested it on Judy's eye, turning to toss the blanket at Jack over the open door, "Here, you can get them yourself." he said, holding the pack in place.

"Thanks." Jack said, covering himself, "So, Victor got away?" Nick nodded his dismay, pointing over his shoulder to Bogo, standing by the fence entrance, still chatting with Captain Mirri. Jack nodded back, "Save the shouting for the office...."   

Chapter Text

                Judy clutched at the quickly defrosting ice pack she held against her eye, staring at the desk blankly. Nick stood on the chair beside her, leaning on his elbows, the three of them waiting impatiently for Jack to rejoin them. Bogo tapped a finger on his arm, eventually turning his attention to Judy, watching beads of water drip from the cold pack.

"You're getting that looked at" Bogo said, her ears twitched at the break in silence. She mustered a sarcastic grin as she pulled the pack away from her face.

"I'm fine, the swellings almost gone already," she argued. "It's not life threatening." Nick turned away slightly, not wanting to imagine what took place.

"I could have Wilde drag you to the hospital..." Bogo added, his tone lightening. Nick’s ears perked, concern washing over him.

"That... COULD be life threatening." he joked. Judy laughed as she put the pack against her face again, switched hands, and shaking water off the old one.

"You've already disobeyed an ORDER once, and let's not forget your little outburst at ME!" Bogo snapped. Nick shot her a surprised look, to which she regretfully smiled in response.

"It won't... happen again Chief..." Judy said, lowering her head, trying to hide behind the ice pack.

               The door opened and closed quickly, Jack making his way through it. Changed back into his suit, he headed toward the desk, climbing it as he had before. Bogo glared at him the entire time, frustrated by everything that had transpired eager for the end of his collaboration.

"Anything?" Judy asked, knowing Jack had come from the interrogation room. Jack shook his head in disappointment.

"She hasn't said a word." he said with a huff, "Exposing my cover might get her saying something, but I doubt it would be anything helpful."

"So what now?" Bogo piped.

"I've got Miranda on the way to pick up Randall, we'll handle him. As for Catalina," Jack paused, "Miranda’s bound to get something out of her." Nick looked away from the desk, disliking the tension in Jack's voice.

"Some time behind bars will shake them up." Judy said, squeezing the ice pack. Jack turned away from her, bowing his head, closing his eyes slowly.  As she watches his expression change, she looked to Nick as he inferred from Jack's sullen change, pursing his lips as he watched it unfold.

"I don't think that's the plan, Carrots." Nick said, glaring at Jack. Bogo raised his brow curiously, while Judy shot a glare back to Jack. After a moment Jack let out a sigh.

"Randall will go free. We need to see where he runs." Jack said, pausing timidly.

"And Catalina?" Bogo asked, his tone turning grim.

"If we charge her with everything, it will go into public record." Jack explained, "We can't classify public records, and if their group knows we're on to them, they might do something brazen..." Nick's ears twitched.

"Abducting an officer?" Nick started, scratching at the back of his neck, "Making me steal evidence?" Judy leaned toward him slightly, pressing her elbow against his arm, "Assaulting my partner?" he added, gritting his teeth, "Isn't that brazen enough? They can't think we don't know about them anymore after that..."

"I'm sure they don't. But their priority is the same as ours... proof." Jack replied, as Nick turned, showing the small magnet that held place over his injection site.

"This isn't enough?!" Nick belted. Judy put a paw on his arm trying to keep him calm.

"Nick..." she added. Jack shook his head lightly, as Nick turned back.

"Without the chip itself, to prove the use of those magnets... it’s too circumstantial..." Jack reasoned, "Just... don't think too much about those things, I'll fill out some forms, and have my agency take care of it..." Nick sighed, folding his arms and looking away.

"They could do a lot worse, I'm sure..." Judy added, still trying to calm Nick down when she saw Jack wasn't going to give a better response, turning instead to respond to Bogo.

"She'll be charged for assault..." Jack said, turning to Judy.

"That's IT?!" Bogo barked. Jack winced at the sound, but ultimately ignored him. Bogo grumbled, leaning back in his seat.

"I'll have a statement prepared for you Hopps." Jack continued, "Can we count on you to go along with it?" Judy looked up at Nick, seeing his frustration before turning back to Jack, with a forced nod. "Thank you... I know this doesn't seem like justice to you but, a case this complicated and dangerous, has to be handled discreetly... that's why it falls on my agency, not the ZPD." As Jack trailed off, Nick looked back to him, analyzing the pained expression on his face, finally seeing a glimpse of the pressure Jack seemed to be under.

                Jack paced about the desk as they all swapped better detailed information over everything that had happened, getting each other on the same page. Judy's ice pack continued to drip, making a small puddle on the desk. Eventually, they made it to the events at the facility, hours before.

"Victor gave Wilde the slip while I was calling you" Jack said, turning to Bogo. "I wa-"

"That's not his name...." Nick paused, putting no effort at hiding his apprehension, slowly pulling his ears behind him. Jack twitched, turning to Nick, curious at the outburst, "Its John... Wilde..." Jack hung his head.

"So, I have a Wilde Card in the deck now?" Jack joked, scratching at the back of his head. Nick looked up at him, an unimpressed sneer tightening the corner of his mouth. Judy shot a mild scowl at Jack for making light of the situation. Jack held a shrug, turning his palms up, "I thought you liked nicknames?" Nick let out a sigh, casting his gaze across the ceiling.

"Now's not the time..." Judy piped, changing hands on the ice pack again, shaking water off her paw.

"No, he earned that one." Nick said, looking back to Jack with an irritated grin. “I hit him pretty hard…”  

"Sorry Wilde." Jack said, shaking his head, and pinching his brow.

                 Nick went on to explain everything he could remember about what Victor had told him. Judy leaned against him, holding him up this time, as he relived those moments over again. When Nick finished, Jack nodded, "I'll keep my eyes open. If his plan manages to work, I can put him in protective custody."  Nick stared at Jack. "It's the least I can do... not to mention any new information I can get from him about the group" Bogo sighed, his patience waning.

"Do they have a name or are they officially known as The Group...?" Bogo asked, his annoyed tone forcing Jack's lip to tighten, before a sigh escaped him.

"We used to think it was just Dropbear... but then we found out about the collars..." Jack started before Nick interrupted.

"And the chips?" Nick said.

"And the chips..." Jack nodded, "And now the vaccine, if Victor wasn't lying" Jack paused, "Sorry, John." Nick shook his head.

"Until they're shut down, it's probably better to keep calling him Victor..." Nick added. Jack nodded apologetically. "He used a fake name for a reason."

"I shouldn't be getting into this..." Jack said his tone dropping, "...but you’re in deep enough I suppose. Dropbear... an unknown electronics firm... possibly a medical lab..." Jack paused, thinking of how much the conspiracy had expanded since he started on the case, "all in an effort to turn predators... into financial prey." Judy glanced to Nick, before looking back to Jack. "Preydator... is the codename we gave them..."

"As long as I don't have to hear, The Group, again." Bogo said sarcastically. Jack turned to see Judy's face, knowing her determination, already watching the gears turning in her mind. Jack's ears pulled behind him slowly.

"Do NOT pursue this." Jack insisted, before sharing his glance with Nick. "If you try, you might pull the wrong thread and unravel everything, not to mention getting hurt, or worse."

"Don't have to tell me twice. Especially after this plan of yours..." Nick said, shaking his head. Judy tightened her lip.

"I'm an undercover specialist, not a tactician, or a mission planner. And with as thin spread as we are right now, I'm the only FIELD agent on this case..." Jack admitted with a sigh, bringing surprise to all of their faces, before turning his attention to Nick and Judy again. . "I know I put a lot on the two of you..." he said, shifting glances between them, "but for what it's worth, you performed better than I expected..." he paused, noticing Judy attention wavering.

"You're alone... Preydator's a HUGE threat to the entire city... " she started, Nick glanced down to her, having expected her to want to be involved, "What if we-" she added, staring down at the desk.

"If you come across anything you think might be related..." Jack said, pulling out his phone. "Contact me." Judy's phone buzzed, followed shortly by Nick's. As Judy pulled her phone out, more water dripped off of her ice pack. "But it's MY case. You have your own cases to worry about. I'm sure Bogo would agree."

"I do... but are you finished yet?" Bogo asked, his patience dissipating. Judy looked up at him, seeing the stern expression he was sending back to her. She let out a sigh, agreeing not to interfere with a gentle nod.

"I think that's everything, yeah." Jack replied, his tone relaxing, as his ears took on their usual upright stance.

"Good." Bogo said, turning his attention to his officers, "I'm giving you two the next couple days off... for a tough assignment well done" he added with a nod, "I suggest you use them to sort yourselves out." Judy looked up to Nick, pulling the defrosted ice pack away from her eye. "Hopps, go get a fresh pack." Bogo ordered. Judy looked at him, before seeing the small pool on the desk.

"Uh, yeah... sorry Chief." she said, ready to jump to the floor. Nick moved, ready to follow her.

"Where do you think you’re going Wilde? You're not dismissed!" Bogo called, freezing Nick in place. His ears pulled behind him, nervous for what might come next. Judy looked at him curiously, before he motioned for her to go without him. He watched her walk away silently, glancing back as she closed the door behind her.

"Don't make me regret this..." Bogo muttered with a sigh, rubbing his face.

"Sir?" Nick asked.  

"I... don't have an issue... with this." Bogo said, motioning his hand between Nick and where Judy just stood in the door. "As long as it doesn't interfere with your jobs...  so keep it out of my station. What you do on your own time, is your business." Jack turned toward the wall, folding his arms, tucking away a smile.

"You don't have to worry about it Chief" Nick said, his head drooping, "I know how she feels..."

"Don't get too discouraged Wilde" Jack said, stepping to the corner of the desk, not far from Nick. Nick turned toward him slightly. “Or did you forget about this morning?”

"She was just relieved I wasn’t…" Nick trailed off. Jack turned to look at him, perplexed.

"Maybe…" Jack said, his tone matching his expression, "but… on the wire recording... you called her... cute." Nick picked his head up.

"I know..." Nick started, nodding gently, "rabbits ha-"

"She smiled." Jack interrupted, his gaze growing stern. Nick twitched, not expecting to hear it. "For another animal to say that, it's usually... kinda creepy. Especially to someone like her. But she seemed, flattered..." Jack trailed off, taking a seat on the desk corner, staring down at the floor.

"So? Why are YOU telling me?" Nick asked, his annoyed tone turning sarcastic, "It's disgusting... right?"

"Never." Jack replied, dismay in his voice, as he turned away from Nick, ashamed at the words he had thrown at him. Nick stared him down, confused by the response. Jack took a deep breath, before turning back to him. "I said... what I said because... if you're serious... about her..." Jack paused, making sure he had Nick's attention, "comments like that, are something you might have to deal with... and for your sake, I hope you handle it better next time. If you don't want it to affect your jobs, don't make an enemy of the general public." Nick grew more sympathetic as Jack spoke, thinking about his own reaction to the comment weeks before. "Besides that..." Jack's face took on a friendly smile, speaking with a shrug, "you said you wanted to make a scene."

"And you certainly did." Bogo said to Nick through a laugh, turning to look at Jack, "I thought I'd be peeling you off the wall, Savage." Nick sighed, a light chuckle escaping him as he though more about it.

"Your long term planning needs work." Nick accused, "but in the moment..."

"Comes with the job." Jack added, ready to slide off the desk, "Bunnies are... paranoid... and high strung..." Jack said, "With the way she pushes herself, it was bound to come out somewhere..." stopping himself as Nick piped up again.

"Why concern yourself with us like this?" Nick inquired. Jack paused, a vague smile twisting on his lip.

"My parents are a... mixed couple." he replied, looking to Nick again, who pulled his head back in surprise. "Not as extreme as predator and prey, but... still incompatible enough to need to adopt." he paused, shaking his head, "I've got new leads to follow... can we just say it's classified?" he finished with a laugh.

"Sure." Nick said through a smile. "We don't get to choose these things anyway, right?" Jack hopped down from the desk, adjusting his suit after landing on the floor.

"Choose to fight against the path you’re on, or accept it..." Jack trailed off.

"It doesn't change the path." Nick said, finishing the thought, both of them nodding at the sentiment. Nick stared down at Jack, not expecting to have found common ground between them. Bogo began tapping is fingers again, growing impatient.

"Good luck Wilde." Jack said, as he started toward the door. "And thank you again for your help Chief."

"Does that mean I can have my station back now?" Bogo blurted, watching Jack intently. Jack paused in front of the door.

"It's all yours Maurice." he instigated, opening the door, leaving them both behind. Nick fought back a nasally laugh, as Bogo grumbled at the door, now closed in Jack's wake.

"I hate that rabbit." Bogo mumbled, turning to Nick. "That doesn't leave this room." Nick smiled, still fighting a laugh as he motioned himself toward the edge of the chair. "You're still not dismissed." Nick paused again, as Bogo took another deep breath, "Look, if there's something between the two of you, I'd rather not stand in the way... BUT, If things go sour, and I might lose one of my star officers..." Bogo paused, pointing at he door, as Nick's eyes widened, hanging on every word, "I'll have you working meters with Gretta until you retire! Is.That. Clear?" Nick nodded nervously.

"Perfectly, but if that DID happen, I'd resign myself... for real this time." Nick replied, swallowing hard. "This job was her dream, not mine... I'm not going to let her give it up, especially not for me." Bogo sat back as Nick finished.

"Then make sure you’re doing the job properly, protecting the public is your FIRST priority." Bogo added, "She knows that, don't lose sight of it." Nick paused, before nodding again.

"I won't" Nick said.

"Good." Bogo said, finally revealing a grin. "Dismissed! And as much as I don't like agreeing with Savage... good luck..." Nick smiled, climbing down and heading for the door, stopped by another call from Bogo before reaching for the handle. "And Wilde?" Nick turned back to see Bogo's hands pressed together, shaking them loosely in front of him, "Pleeease don't let Clawhauser find out..." Nick laughed, opening the door.

"I'll try my best." he said, turning to step out, but was blocked by Jack, standing in his way.

"SAVAGE! What are you still doing in my station?!" Bogo said, rising from his seat, and slamming the desk. Jack put his thumb over his shoulder, awkwardly balancing his laptop, stacked with folders, a pathetic look in his eyes, a single cheek puffed in embarrassment.

"I, uh... need my briefcase back..."

Chapter Text

                Judy sat on the wooden bench at the top of the stairs, leaning against the back of it, finally having a moment to decompress, her fingers running over the small holes in the collar of her pink shirt. The past two weeks had given her too much of what she didn't want, and the last two days of it had been even worse. "At least it's over now..." she thought, heaving a sigh. The cool air around the lake was soothing, but not as much as watching the pink petals fall from the giant tree at its center. “You didn’t have to take me to dinner, Nick” she thought with a laugh, “I was just stalling you, but at least I can finally have some time with you again.” Her smile widened at the thought.

                Nick stepped down the small staircase to the pier, making his way across to the signal lamp for the restaurant gondola. He flipped the switch, turning back to see Judy sitting on the bench, enthralled by the falling petals. He paused to glance around, grateful to have left the city’s perils in Jack’s hands, as h looked out over the darkened water. His eyes ran down the bank, seeing the various shrubs, trying to remember where he had seen them before. Shaking his head with a smile, he turned back to his partner, not noticing the occasional glances from her, watching her ears gently twitch as the breeze picked up. He made his way back, taking a seat next to her.

“How’s your eye?” Nick asked, noticing the swelling was gone.

“Its fine,” she said, slightly irritated, not wanting to think about it, “just a little tender.” She paused, trying to change the subject, “We didn’t have to come here y’know...” she said, turning to him with a smile.

“Of course we did, I made a promise.” he said, his tone dropping, “And after the last two weeks...”

“Ugh, don’t make me think about it...” she replied, refusing to let her good mood slip away, “It’s done, and it’s not our case.” He turned to her, slightly surprised.

“You’re actually going to stay out of it?” he asked.

“Bogo’s orders...” she said with a nod. He reached over, gently squeezing one of her ears.

“Well... you don’t have a fever...” he teased, prompting her to laugh.

“Stop it.” she said, nudging him as her laughter faded. “What about... your-“ Nick interrupted with a sigh.

“He’s alive...” he said, “That’s more than he was two days ago...” his smile going nowhere, “and now, he’s gone again...I’m not gonna start chasing ghosts.” Judy looked at him, seeing the resolve in his eyes, she nodded with a smile, silently agreeing not push him this time.

                They stared out over the water, patiently waiting, as Judy watched the petals break up the moonlight reflecting off the surface. After just a few moments of silence, Judy was pensive, already having spent two weeks without hearing from him.

"So..." Judy started, looking up at him.

"Hmm?" Nick turned to her.

"I told you, I wasn't finished talking to you..." she reminded.

"I don't remember you saying anything." he said with a chuckle. She folded her arms, shooting him a glare that lacked any level of sincerity. Nick sighed, never losing his smile. "Okay, you can finish scolding me now, if you REALLY want to."

"Is that what I was going to do...?" she said playfully, smiling at him.

“What else is there?” he teased. Judy thought back to that morning, shame washing over her.

“Maybe... I was going to apologize?” she started, Nick turned to her, a curiosity in his eyes. “I’m sorry I slapped you...this morning.” The corner of his lip twitched as his smile widened.

“Your paws are too soft to call THAT a slap.” he taunted, trying to rid her of the regret she seemed to be plastered with. She slowly turned to him, a mild scowl exposed on her. Nick’s eyes widened, thinking he went too far.

“Soft huh?” she said, her voice giving away the playful nature of her cross look. Nick laughed, as she tried harder to be taken seriously, before a smile broke through, shattering her concentration. “Why can’t I convince you I’m mad, when I’m not...” she said, fighting a giggle.

"Well... you ARE easy to read... Officer Rabbit." Nick teased.

"That's Lieutenant Rabbit... Officer FOX!" she said with a laugh.

"Oh?!" Nick said sarcastically, "Pulling RANK on me now Fluff?!" Judy slowly stood on the bench, riled from their exchange, happy to have him trying to get under her skin again.

"That’s not all I'll pull!" she replied, yanking on his tie, pulling him closer. Nick's wide-eyed, surprised expression was met with hers. Eyes half closed, her cheeks puffed slightly, ears perked, and a strange smile he had never seen on her before. Her aggressive tone suddenly softened, "So if I'm such an easy read, what am I thinking right now?"

"Well... you’re not... ALWAYS an easy r--" he nervously stammered, his tone honestly confused, but still toying with her. She released his tie, before her paw wrapped around his snout.

"Maybe... that I want to finish what I started this morning?" she said, gently pulling on him, to which he offered no resistance.

                 Closing their eyes as their lips met, holding their embrace briefly before pulling away. Nick took a moment before opening his eyes, waiting for the dizzying rush that sent his thoughts spinning, to come to an end. He didn’t want to lose a second of it, not knowing if it could be another two weeks before it happened again, or if it might never.

                 Judy slowly slid her paw off of him. He could hear her breath stutter, prompting him to open his eyes finally. Once his vision focused, all he could see was her, wearing a sad expression that scraped at his chest. Her ears had fallen, her eyes opened wide, their violet rings sparkling, making the tears welling around them unmistakable, and almost as unbearable to him as hearing her voice crack as she continued, "Maybe... starting... what I finished two weeks ago...?" she muttered with a sniffle.

"Carrots..." Nick trailed off, finding it difficult to speak without giving himself away, the cracking tone in her voice forming a hand, strong enough to wrap his throat, trying to choke him, spurred on by the thought of what she was implying. His heart beat faster, excited, and terrified for what she might say next, having to hear more of her heartbroken tone.

"Two weeks Nick..." she started again, still choking on her thoughts, "It was ONLY two weeks... I wanted to SEE you... I wanted to HEAR you..." she paused to take a breath, "I thought I chased you away from the job... from me.” her sniffling worsened as tears seemed to stream endlessly from her, “I wanted to take back everything I said..." His brow knitted together slowly as he listened, his ears pulled back at the sound of the tight crackles and squeaks in her voice, clawing at his heart with every beat. "I couldn't... and it was driving me crazy..." she took another breath, trying in vain to keep herself collected. Her paws trembled as she fought herself, tightening them together nervously, "It was too long..." she accused, shaking her head defiantly at the notion, the trembling slowly moving from her paws, up her arms to her throat, "I love you Nick, and…” she stammered, her eyelids twisting, trying to clear her eyes to better see his, “...I don’t need to wait anymore..." she added, trying to see past the forming tears that blocked her vision. "…but I will... if you thi-hhhhmhhh-!" Nick pressed his lips against hers, hard enough to knock her backward, ending her thought, and muffling her gasp. Unwittingly matching his own, her heart beat out of her chest as she lost her balance.

                 She quickly grabbed the front of his coat, pulling herself in, refusing to let go of it, him, or this moment, unable to escape it even if she wanted to as his paw braced her shoulders from behind. Her breath stammered as he gently let her go, giving her time to reclaim her balance as he pulled away. Her smile couldn't have gotten any wider, although it did nothing to stop the tears from streaming down her face. He wrapped his arms around her, letting her unleash everything as she buried her face in his neck. He stared silently, overwhelmed by a giddy nervousness, concentrating on the excited flitting of her tail as she pouted, fighting to keep himself together, against the wrenching sound of her joyful sobs and gentle embarrassed laughter.

“I love you too Judy…” he said, squeezing her tighter, along with his eyes, breathing deeply, contending against the phantom grip at his throat, relieved to be able to say it without fear of anything, but more of her anguished tone. After a few heavy breaths, she pulled back, sliding her head against his chin, giving him opportunity to plant a gentle kiss on top of her head, between her ears. She choked out a light laugh as she finished leaning back, looking up at him, getting lost in each other’s eyes. Nick marveled at the glistening purple eyes before him, hypnotized by their luster. Judy refused to lose sight of his green rings as she continued wiping tears from her eyes.

"I'm sorry... I... was..." Judy stammered, drying the last few tears, but Nick refused her apology, shaking his head gently as he smiled at her.

"You thought you needed time..." he argued sympathetically, "I was fine with that Fluff..." he paused to take a breath, "I'm better with this though." he added, his tone regaining some of its sarcasm, pulling a lightly choked laugh from her.

"I want as little time like THAT as possible..." she replied as Nick stood up, overwhelmed by the unexpected turn of events, the smell of her fur clouding his mind, taking a few more deep breaths of fresh air to clear it, now more than ever, wanting to get to the restaurant, to put his plan into motion that would melt her heart. She was grateful for the distance herself, only now feeling the amount of heat coursing through her ears after her emotional unload.

"With our line of work, I can't promise anything..." he joked as her ears slowly perked again, airing themselves out."Besides, I thought you liked an uphill battle?" to which she smiled, shaking her head lightly. Nick took a few steps, scanning the darkened water for the gondola, spotting it nearing the pier.

"Speaking of promises..." she started, as he started making his way down the stairs. Judy jumped down from the bench to bridge the gap between them. "Is this still going to be... the most UN-romantic...” she giggled curiously, tipping her head.

"Do I look like the kind of fox that would KEEP a promise?" he said through a snarky smile, turning to her with a shrug. Judy smiled down at him as he turned to watch the boat line up with the dock, starting down the stairs. She lingered behind for a moment, looking up at the restaurant, spiraling around the tree, her heart still more excited than usual, wondering what he had planned. Nick turned back, to see what was keeping her, seeing the blissful smile on her face before she slowly started down the stairs.

The gondola thumped gently against the dock as it parked, awaiting its fare. Nick turned his attention to the gondolier, a small cougar, in formal attire, who smiled back at him.

"Reservation, for Wilde?" Nick asked, returning the smile. As the cougar thumbed through the reservation list on his phone, Judy took a step closer to be at Nick's side, wrapping her arm around his, smiling up at him, exited.

"You're a little early," the attendant said, still looking at the list, "but I'm sure we can..." he paused as he looked up, seeing Judy squeezing Nick's arm. His jovial expression quickly faded, his tone changing to match. "Sorry..." he paused again, eyeing the two of them up and down, his ears lowering aggressively, "I’m afraid you might upset the... dress code." Nick pulled his head back, glancing down at their clothes. Judy's eyes opened slightly wider, looking up at Nick again.

"What's wrong with our...?" Nick trailed off, confused and frustrated.

"Sir..." the cougar grumbled rudely, raising an eyebrow at him. He reached out of the boat to flip the switch on the signal light, turning it off.

"These are things you might have to deal with..." Jack's voice echoed through Nick’s thoughts.

“Five minutes...” Nick thought, “Couldn’t we have had just five minutes before she regretted this...” He closed his eyes, trying to put her disappointed expression out of his mind, before opening them again, and turning to her, surprised when he was met with her shining smile, and content stare.

“I… have a green thermos that’s been bone dry…” she bubbled up at him, her grip on his arm tightening. Nick returned her glowing expression, before slowly looking back up to the cougar, who refused to make eye contact with them. Nick could see a disgusted sneer on his lip. Nick's ears started to pull back.

"...and I hope next time, you handle it better."

                Nick’s ears snapped back, perking happily as he sent an unbending smile back at the gondolier. "Coffee sounds better than an overpriced salad." Nick replied, both of them turning away from the cougar, Judy giggled slightly.

"I thought so" Judy replied, nudging him as they started to walk back to the stairs. She let go of his arm as they approached the first step, bounding ahead of him. Nick watched her take the first couple steps, before quickly spinning to be face to face with him. She put a paw on each side of his face, pulling it closer to her, kissing him again.

"Ugh" the cougar muttered from the boat, shoving off of the dock, heading back to the island. They could each feel the others lips stretch, as the sound coaxed their smiles to widen.

"Didn't know you'd enjoy making other animals uncomfortable with... all this." He added, as he started up the stairs, Judy turned to stay at his side as he reached her step.

"I didn't." Judy said, still smiling and she grabbed his arm again.

"Could have fooled me... smile any wider, and your ears will be your dinner." he joked, getting a light laugh from her in response.

"I'm smiling because..." Judy started, pausing to think her words through, "that was one of the things that worried me... before." Nick nudged her lightly as they reached the top of the stairs.

"And now?" he asked, his expression sinking slightly, thinking about her list of worries, weeks before.

“Didn’t bother me at all... but, what about you?” she asked.

“Nah” Nick said, laughing it off, “I was just coming up with a new plan...”

“I guess the romantic experience will have to wait?” Judy said, her smile turning smug, and her tone sarcastic. Nick’s eyes tightened, accepting her challenge.  Judy's brow rose curiously at his change in expression as she looked up.  

“I don't need some fancy dinner to sweep you off your feet." he spouted proudly. Judy looked at him, tension still lingering on her face, as he took a few steps backward, toward the stairs. "For starters..." Nick added, his smile growing cocky, plucking a pair of small rocks from the edge of the stairs, and tossing them into the bushes along the banks, on each side of the dock.

                Judy's nose twitched curiously as she watched him, her ears lowering slightly, wearing a confused smile. She shook her head as she stared at him, standing motionless, watching the blank stare she was giving him. Suddenly, her ears perked once again, eyes peeling as wide as they could, as a cloud of lightning bugs exploded from the bushes, creating a fog of flickering lights behind him, backed by the tree, the falling petals, and the moonlit water, racing her thoughts back to the farm, splitting her between the two places at once. He smiled at her, holding his arms out with a shrug.

                He could see the twinkling bug lights reflecting in her eyes, before they slowly returned to him, closing halfway to focus on him. His heart thrummed nervously, unable to determine what she meant with her stare, but still enjoying the sight of her gawking.

"For starters?" Judy said, still staring at him. "You’re off to a good start" she added coyly, her smile returning, beaming at him. He stepped closer to her, holding out his arm again for her to take it. She grabbed hold once again as they started to walk away. She smiled, playfully nudging him, arm in arm, becoming more oblivious to the world, the city, and the judgments of its inhabitants, with each passing step, both of them determined to make the most of their blissfully growing ignorance, as they walked down the same old path they had been on since the day they met, resigning themselves to it, having found a steadier rhythm for their strides.

Chapter Text

                Nick laid on his couch, staring intently at the ceiling with Judy, her head across his stomach, her feet wedged between him and the back of the couch, his left arm wrapped partly around her, paw resting in the middle of her back, his claw getting caught on a thread of her loose overnight shirt. One of her ears draped lifelessly down the back of her neck, the other stretched up over his left shoulder, one arm tucked under her, the other dangled over his side, her head pointed toward the rolling credits of the movie they had been watching on the propped up tablet on Nick's makeshift coffee table. Nick glance down at her, lightly smiling, content. He tipped his head slightly, looking at the unmoving silver bunny.

"You still awake Fluff?" he whispered. She responded with utter silence, broken a moment later by quiet snores. Nick's smile grew wider, "Guess not... just don't drool on me" he added, with a single puff of a laugh. He turned his attention upward again, the shadow of the slowly spinning ceiling fan in his tiny, windowless apartment, the only thing he could see, as he began losing himself in thought.

"I was almost ashamed to show you my place for the first time...." he thought to himself.

                Nick opened the door slowly, the two of them walked in from the hallway. Judy walked ahead of him slightly, sniffing about the air in the room.

"It smells like FOX in here" she joked, her back still turned to him as she scanned the tiny room. The old green couch along the back wall, the small vanity dresser facing it on the left, the end table next to it doubling as a short coffee table, a narrow shelf along the right wall that held a microwave and coffee pot, the mostly empty closet next to the door, and the ceiling fan. Nick stepped closer to her.

"Sorry, I don't know how they keep getting in," he started, pointing at a poster behind the couch, depicting a window, with a sunny hilltop on the other side of it, "I always keep the window locked." Judy laughed as she turned back to him, her smile beaming.

"I don't mind it, the squadcar smells like you too" she replied, setting down the bag she was carrying. "Where did you even find a poster like that?" she asked, giggling slightly.

"Internet, thought it was just what this room needed." he responded with a smile.

"Calling this minimal would be an understatement." she added.

"Eh, I don't need much..." he shrugged, "...was your first apartment this lavish?" he sarcastically teased. Judy paused briefly.

"Well at least I had a window!" she joked, her smile solidifying as she walked to the couch and took a seat. "So... it was your turn to pick the movie...?"

"I don't even remember what that movie was..." he thought, shaking his head lightly. He could feel Judy moving slightly in her sleep, etching his face with a smile at the sensation, thinking of how cozy she seemed. "I was just happy to have you around... even if it wasn't this close back then."

"Mmmm, Nick..” Judy thought gently sniffing the air, ”this smell always did something to me," her eyes cracking open slightly, seeing the tablet screen paused at the end of the credits. “makes me relax, knowing you’re somewhere nearby..." her thought continued, interrupted briefly as whispers came from Nick. She listened for a moment, thinking he was just sleeping, but the words got louder at times. She held back a giggle as he whispered his thoughts aloud.

"What did I do to deserve having you in my life...? Change my life...?" Nick unwittingly muttered. Judy could make out everything he said, even over the sound of his heartbeat echoing through her mind.

“Ohh, so deep…” she thought, the laugh stirring in her becoming harder to ignore, “Dumb fox… if I said something right now, would you keep talking?” curious of what he might say, being lulled back to sleep by his voice, droning through his chest, a light smile etching across her face.

 "Even when you force things out of me..." Nick paused, "I didn't want to talk about what happened to Mom... didn't want to drag you through that mess" Judy thought back to that day, chasing Nick through the city, following him home. Her smile faded as her eyes started to well, thinking about his reaction to the letter she found.

"You couldn't hold onto something like that... I was only trying to help..." she thought, feeling a tear cross the bridge of her nose. “Not again…” she thought, frustrated by sensation. “How many times have you made this happen lately…  And why am I so emotional around you? I swear you’ve made me cry more in three years, than I have my whole life…”

"I can't tell you how much that meant, for you to stay with me, I fought you every step of the way... but you weren't going to let me suffer with it..." Nick continued muttering under his breath, "and afterwards... I felt better than I ever expected...." Judy smiled slightly, feeling him let out a heavy sigh.

"You’re not the only one..." Judy thought, "After the Halloween party... when I stepped on the Night Howler shot in the evidence room... I woke up in the hospital, terrified, no clue how I got there, or what happened. Then you sat up from the floor when I gasped, " her smile grew wider, "You were probably just as scared as I was, but you didn't show it... you just smiled at me, and ran out to get me coffee. Even with fingers on each paw in bandages from bites, you still reached into the jar of peppers...dumb fox" her eyes filled more when she thought of the gesture.

"And since that whole mess that Jack made for you...for us both..." Nick lowered his arm down again, clenching his paw into a fist.

“It was fine Nick… you put the safety of the city before yourself… before me. You knew that’s what I would have wanted, even if you didn’t like it.” she thought. “It’s a tough part of the job, but it was the right call.”  

"I told you not to follow me... I didn't want to see you get hurt... and then seeing your eye swollen up, out of your head with tranquilizer, I almost threw that case.” Nick paused, sighing lightly, “But then, you laughed... gloating at the whole situation... refusing to break..."

"I thought… I killed you… and after you came back…I wasn't going to lose you again!" she thought, tears flowing faster, reliving the moment she found out who it was that she had tranquilized. “But I wasn’t gloating… I laughed when I thought of what you might say, knowing I bit someone other than you... and because I almost dropped the unfastened half of the handcuff…”

"And of course... the accident," Nick thought, still unaware of his mutterings, "You said 'This could be it'..." when Judy heard those words, she jostled slightly, moving her ear off of his chest. Nick paused momentarily until she was still.

"I was more afraid than I showed..." Judy thought, resisting the urge to grasp at him, wishing he would stop, but still intrigued at what he’d say next, "You were right, we should have just stopped..."

"I realized, you might never know how I felt..." Nick continued. Judy listened intently, a sad hopefulness enveloping her, visiting that memory again. "I couldn't say anything though...What if the worst HAD happened? And I had told you right then and there that I loved you... that wouldn't have been fair..." Nick paused as Judy's ear twitched. Confusion added itself to her concerns.

"Fair?" she thought, holding her breath tightly, curious for what he meant.

"If I told you, and you didn't feel the same way, your last thought would have been awkward and uncomfortable... or lying to spare me," Nick muttered further, "and if you had felt the same, it only would have given you seconds to embrace it… before..." he paused again, letting out another sigh. Judy's tears began to overflow, running down her face, forming a small pool in Nick's fur.

"I did Nick... I wouldn't have been lying... I was fighting it too... I didn’t want to admit what it was…" Judy's thought trailed off as Nick continued his breathy ramblings.

"When the car fell, you started drifting away from me, it was like it was happening in slow motion, I couldn't stand it, I thought... that if I could just hold onto you tight enough, maybe, by some miracle, you'd survive." Nick brought his free hand up to his face to rub his jaw. "Maybe that was a ridiculous hope..."

"..." Judy's mind offered her nothing but silence, stuck in that moment in time, seeing Nick reaching out to her, the look on his face in that moment, his eyes, holding new meaning to her now.

                Judy fidgeted more, revealing the sensation of a warm, wet patch in his fur. "Augh, Fluff, I asked you NOT to drool on me..." he jokingly whispered with a mild chuckle, trying not to disturb her as he started to look down at her, but as his gaze drifted to her, he didn't expect what he saw.

                Her head turned to him, chin on his chest, the opened half of her eyes filled with tears as she looked up at him. A wave of embarrassment swept over him, as he looked at the sad expression on her face. "I..." he paused, still trying to figure out what had happened, before it dawned on him, "... I was thinking out loud wasn't I?". Judy gently lifted her brow, a pained smile growing on her face as she lightly nodded. "Judy I..." he tried to diffuse what he had said, but she reached a hand up to is muzzle, and clasped his mouth closed, as her eyes welled further. Nick raised his own brow, before Judy lightly pulled at him, raising her head, and gently pressing her lips to his.

                As they closed their eyes, Judy let out a choked and desperate moan, just as she did the first time they kissed, but now, without a shred of fear or regret. She let go of him, slowly running her hand up his face, letting it come to rest on his cheek, while Nick's paw, still on her back, slowly moved to the back of her head.

                She pulled away slightly after a moment, their eyes opening to look at one another, tears still streaming down Judy's face. She climbed up, resting her face just below his ear, her arm wrapping around the other side of his head, squeezing it tighter against her, as she sniffled slightly, letting out a few heavy breathes to calm herself. "I love you Nick," she said, burying her face in a patch of his fur, “but stop making me cry so much…” she teased through her tears. As the words hit his ear, she could feel the heavy thump from his chest shudder through her own, prompting her grip on him to tighten even more. He smiled as a lump started to form in his throat, wrapping her up in his arms.

"I'm not very fond of you either Fluff." Nick said sarcastically, squeezing her tight. Judy laughed lightly through her joyful sobs, pulling away from him again, both of them wanting nothing more than to remain in that moment, for as long as it would last.