AN: Well, here it is. I had this story in my head for some time and decided, to completely disregard my sleep and start writing at 2am. All I can say is that this is my first fan fiction I have ever written, and want to apologize for future mistakes and errors. I'm German and my English might not be the best, so please understand. Also, chapter's will get longer! Without further ado, let's get started!
PS.: Zootopia and its characters belong to Disney.
A swift hand move and the door was locked, securing all of his tailored suits and expensive fabric. Taking a few steps down onto the street, he looked back up at his precious little store.
"Wilde & Sons" was put in a relatively big banner above the glass doors on the corner of Downtown Zootopia. The worn down wood and the stained glass gave the store a rough yet charming look. Dark red bricks and smoky oak wood being tarnished by graffiti and other obscenities, the sidewalks pestered by weeds and dirt, and the air filled with scents from the nearby dumpsters and smoking neighbors above the store.
Admittedly, it wasn't the best part of Downtown, but you wouldn't see Nick complaining.
He loved his store, his work, heck, he even loved this part of town.
While it remained crime-ridden and a rough place to live, like his store it possessed a rough-ish charm. No one could deny the hospitality of the mammals living here towards one another. If you treated someone with respect and love, you can expect the same. Eye for an eye and so on. That is why Nick is so content with his place living on the outskirts of Downtown. He grew up in this place and so did his parents, who left him this very same store, among other things, after their deaths. It wasn't by any standards much, but it was all the same enough.
He didn't really know his parents, he had lost them quite early and from the age of twelve he was pretty much on his own. Handling the business, attending school, and making ends meet. It wasn't an easy life for a child, but what choice did he have.
But content or not, Nick couldn't leave his beloved store unattended, so after spending a day working, he locked his store up and proceeded to go home and get his well earned rest.
It felt good to make his own money, he thought while strolling through the neighborhood. His apartment wasn't too far away, just a couple blocks. But it gave him time to think and stretch his legs after sitting all day sewing clothes. Sure, Nick could have made way more money by turning to the shadier parts of the town, dealing with knick-knacks, some more or less legal, and he could have had way more action than to just sit all day and cutting around fabric, but he very much liked his freedom. Police activity was all over the place, making it especially in this part of town very difficult to execute any illegal dealings, not that he would try it. His business was going pretty well, he had his frequent customers and had a steady income, and he wouldn't have it any other way. He wasn't rich by any standards, but he survived and that was enough.
While his legs took him home by autopilot, Nick didn't pay attention to where he was walking, and neither did his counterpart, who was walking in the opposite direction, bumping into his shoulder and stopping him dead in his tracks.
"What the.." Nick was prepared to tell that jerk off to watch where he was going, until he looked into vivid sapphire eyes. After regaining his composure, he relaxed at the familiar sight and greeted the arctic vixen.
"Skye, what are you doing here?"
"Oh Nick! I'm so sorry, I was walking home from the soup kitchen and didn't see you there. I was thinking, y'know, and.. you know me, my head is always all over the place and.." she started rambling and stuttering, apologizing profusely. Her blue eyes were slightly widened and her ears flat on her head, tail bristled and hands placating in front of her.
Nick could only smirk. He has known Skye for quite a while now, befriending her in high school, and knew how easily startled she was. While having a pure heart, she had nerves of threads.
As fellow foxes, they got along fairly quickly. Both of them had to come very early to realize that their species wasn't seen as the most prestigious in Zootopia. Through bullying and fights, they learned quickly, that as foxes, you had two choices. Give into society's expectations and become brute criminals or conniving scoundrels, or set your own expectations and defy stereotypes. Both of them chose the latter.
While Nick opened his own business, Skye owned a diner and volunteered all over the city to help where her help was accepted, may it be soup kitchens or baby sitting. It seemed like both of them were alone against the world, and so they quickly grew fond of each other. Nick appreciated Skye's friendship very much, and would go as far as to say, that she was his sister, while Nick's support and encouragement were invaluable for Skye's development, and it turned her into the beautiful and kind vixen she was today.
Skye had always been a kind soul, defying all the evil that has been thrown in her way and emitting a bright era about her, that just brought her friends to smile, just like Nick now did.
"Don't lose your head, Skye. It's alright." He places a paw on the shoulder to calm her nerves. She quickly relaxed on his contact and smiles thankfully.
"Well, it seems you're also heading home. Had a good day?" she asked curiously, while clutching her purse close to her body. This neighborhood was prone to pick pocketing and she wasn't taking any chances, charm or not.
"I guess. You know how it is. I would go as far and say it was pretty.. suitable" he answered and put on his best smirk.
Skye just groaned exasperated from his terrible pun, but her smile showed that she enjoyed his humor nonetheless and appreciated how Nick tried to diffuse her nervousness with some levity.
"Anyways, how's Stripes? I haven't seen any of you guys for quite a while. Speaking of, you should come by some time, we could have dinner, catching up on news and stuff" Nick asked after a short while. It was true, he hadn't seen his friends for a couple weeks by now and was eager to know what they were up to.
"He's doing great, I guess being an accountant really suits him well. No pun intended" she added quickly after seeing Nick opening his mouth to retort with another pun.
"It would be nice to meet up some time, I'm sure Jack would love it."
"Great" he exclaimed and put his paws into his pocket. "I guess I'll see you guys then. Tomorrow around 7 sound good?"
"7 sounds awesome" she smiled back.
After giving a lazy mock salute, Nick sidestepped around Skye and continued his walk home, while Skye stayed behind and watched him go. She looked forward to a neat little dinner with his old friend, finding out about what he was up to. She knew how uptight Nick could be about his private life and how he avoided talking about it. With her and Jack though, he could let loose and truly be himself, which he really only did with them. With all of Nick's acquaintances he held a friendly, sometimes sarcastic and annoying, yet professional relationship, not wanting to intrude into their private lives and vice versa. But with Skye and Jack, Nick truly could be 'Nick', the sensitive and thoughtful fox he was.
While Skye was reminiscing about old times, she almost didn't hear the faint clutter of something inside the alley beside her. From where she stood, she couldn't see about a yard into the dark alley, merely illuminated by a flickering lantern on the brickwall. Squinting her eyes, she could barely make out the faint outlines of some dumpsters and random crates and boxes, but there was something else. Something black. And it was moving.
Suddenly the air became colder, the wind took up a pace and ran a shiver down her spine. She didn't notice it before, but it was eerily quiet. All sounds, from cars in the distance or the muffled banter of the neighbors from the open windows were gone. All she could hear, was the flickering light, and the soft grunting of whatever was behind that dumpster.
Maybe they are injured, she thought, and assumed it was a homeless mammal, sitting out in the cold behind a dirty dumpster, reeking of weeks old junk and food.
The samaritan inside of Skye eventually took over and she slowly stepped into the dark alley, determined to help the poor mammal.
"Hello?" she called out softly, not wanting to scare them away. "Are you alright? Do you need help?"
The grunting continued and the mammal behind the dumpster started to shift around, yet they didn't answer. From the flickering light and the dim moon she could make out the shape of a canine, maybe a wolf if the size was anything to go by. But what really made Skye stop dead in her tracks, was the lack of any features.
She didn't see any fur, or skin for that matter. All she saw was black. Despite the faint light, there was only black.
A small voice inside screamed at her to retreat and make a run for it, but the bigger part of her just couldn't leave a mammal in need behind, so she slowly shuffled further into the alley and around the dumpster.
The more she moved the more she could make out of the mystery mammal. The canine in front of her, now merely two feet away, had its back turned to her and was shifting around the dirty ground, apparently looking for something. She could make out the faint sounds of an animal sniffing, trying to find a scent. And apparently, it had found it.
With a speed she hadn't seen from another mammal before, the canine turned around and glowered at her, and her blood froze. Red, glowing orbs were glaring menacingly at her, the canine's body shifted into a lower position, ready to pounce on its prey.
Skye's heart was about to burst out of her chest and her hackles raised. Even though she had her fair share of bullies and violent jerks in her line of work, she never really feared them. But now, she could truly say; she was beyond terrified. Never was she ever afraid for her live, but the way this savage animal was striding towards her in such a fluid motion, as if it was floating, its teeth bared in a hungry snarl, ready to tear her limbs apart, she couldn't help it but to let out a whimper. A mistake, she realized.
Upon the sound of her, the canine made its move, and the last thing Skye saw on that evening, was the face of her husband, before all was black.
That's all for now! Please be so kind and leave a review and comment! I'll try to answer questions, if there are any without spoiling too much, but I appreciate critique just as much!