Nick heaved a deep rumble of a sigh low down in his chest and Judy huffed a reply. He was curled up around his bunny, ear pressed to her chest and covering it almost completely as they lounged on the couch. Her heart thundered rapidly in her chest, but that was common for a rabbit. The sound was honestly soothing because being in the precinct most days meant he was used to being surrounded by a certain volume of clamor and his apartment had begun to seem unsettlingly quiet even with Judy having moved in. Having her heart pounding directly under his ear was like having a white noise machine humming in the background as he dozed. The ironic part was that they had agreed to cohabitate in his apartment to finally escape her noisy neighbors.

They had gotten up early like they had planned and dressed like they had planned and then instead of getting an early start on their other plans had merely drifted together softly and landed on the couch. They'd talked a bit about this and that and work and family and what time they hoped to be home, but mostly they just enjoyed each other's company. They had both called out for the day and it was a rare treat indeed to get to sit in comfort without worrying one or both of them would get called down to the station at any moment. They didn't even need to worry about their parents calling to disrupt the calm because everyone was clued in to The Plan.

Now it was just a matter of time passing.

It was hot. It was always hot; they lived in Sahara Square. Getting officer Judy Hopps to move to the sweltering desert district rather than stay nestled in the heart of her beloved City Center close to work had not been easy. But ultimately the noisy neighbors and the threat that work could literally follow them home gave her the nudge she needed. They were safe here away from prying eyes and with walls so thick even Judy's sensitive ears couldn't hear what the neighbors were up to. It was perfect for them and they had gotten used to the heat. It just meant they wore less layers inside.

At that moment Judy was clad in a thin cotton dress that had once been a much more blushing shade of pink, but had faded into pastel territory after being passed down from sister to sister to sister. No waste to be found in a bunny burrow and Judy really was fond of the sundress which was why she had chosen to wear it that day. A little piece of all the siblings that wouldn't be joining them because they had lives of their own in places even beyond Zootopia and couldn't make it on such short notice. She told herself and Nick that it would be fine, that the farm would be crowded enough already. He'd just snorted, focus laying with the tie he had been trying to knot unsuccessfully for fifteen minutes by the time Judy had made her comment about the other bunnies.

He'd eventually abandoned the tie, bemoaning the fact that an accessory he'd worn for years would choose today of all days to be so aloof, and so snuggled against Judy in just a dress shirt, the top button undone. His slacks were from work and were comfortable and versatile which was really the only requirement out of the dress code they had set for themselves. They wanted to look nice, sure, but comfort took precedence over appearance. They would be in these clothes for hours yet.

"We should buy a house."

Judy's statement, given with absolutely no preamble, merely made Nick flick up the ear that wasn't listening in on her heart. He hummed noncommittally in the back of his throat and kept his eyes peacefully closed.

"You think so?"

"Yeah," she mused, paw lifting to run across her partner's ear. He shivered under her attentions and turned his head so that his chin rested on her chest rather than his ear, muzzle pushed up under her throat. When he opened his eyes, half lidded and drowsy with her scent, she wasn't looking at him but gazing around the apartment.

It was a huge improvement from her former boarding arrangements, but still a pretty modest set up. The living room area sat nearly on top of the kitchen and doubled as the dining room area. There was only one bedroom which opened up to the one bathroom and it was lucky they were not animals of excessive fashion demands because the one closet was miniscule at best. It was honestly a shock that the couch was currently free for use since usually one or both of their duffle bags from work was thrown upon it, spilling sweats and under armour. Their dress blues hung in the closet with Nick's shirts.

Still, they made it work; eating takeout hunched over either the coffee table or the sink and sharing spaces like the bed and the shower for convenience just as much as pleasure. Neither of them had ever complained, just happy to be together, but as the bunny's purple eyes flitted over their faded walls and rusty sink and the fox thought ahead to their plans for the day he understood that it was time they began thinking of more. You couldn't play house without a house after all.

"Alright," he conceded, closing his eyes again and nipping lightly at her neck. Wonderful things happened to her scent when he did that. "Where should we buy?"

Judy Hopps hummed thoughtfully, lips pursed for show even though her partner had his eyes closed. She stroked the scruff at the back of his neck as she considered their options. Even if she were really attached to Sahara Square the district was not built with catering to homeowners in mind. It was a resort district so everything was piled in close and high to match the feel of the casinos and the Palm Hotel. Even the Canyonlands didn't have quite the spread she was thinking of.

Tundratown was out of the question as well. Neither she nor Nick were built to live in such weather conditions and it was really more a large mammal's district anyway. She quickly dismissed the Marshlands and Outback Island for similar reasons and contemplated life in a tree for only a few minutes before deciding the Rainforest district was not for them. She supposed they could always return downtown and live in Savanna Central, but that seemed to be asking for trouble. She sighed, not unhappily, hugging her partner's head and rubbing her chin over his brow.

"I don't know," she mumbled, releasing him as he moved to sit up. They had to get ready to head out. "Maybe not a house, but definitely a bigger apartment."

"No, no," Nick waved her off, helping her up from the couch and smoothing her dress down over her thighs for her, "You want a house, you'll get a house. Even if I have to build it myself."

Judy smirked at her dumb fox but nodded her assent as she reached up to smooth his shirt collar down. She could feel heat flood her ears at how handsome he looked and knew he could tell she was affected by the way he smiled over his sharp teeth. She aimed a soft smack to his muzzle, stepping back so he could assess her.

"Don't get any ideas, Slick," she warned, turning slowly so that he could catch every angle of her outfit. When he had confirmed she was perfect she grabbed both their badges, wallets, and his keys, and shoved them into her small purse that had been slumping on the coffee table waiting all morning to be used. "We've got to meet your mom at the train station, we can't be late."

"Yes, ma'am."

They shared a few more tender moments before they left the apartment. A few kisses, but mostly thoughtless touches as they navigated within the comfort of privacy. Nick's paw on her lower back as Judy insisted they didn't need to bring an overnight bag. Judy grasping his shoulder so he would bend and allow her to talk directly into his ear and remind him to close the bedroom window. Small, familiar touches that made their arrangement as clear as the noses on their faces. Intimate interactions that were strictly prohibited outside their four walls and so were treasured even if they didn't linger.

Once they were in the hall, one lamp left on inside so they wouldn't bump into things at their late return, and Nick had locked the door behind them it was business as usual. Work Nick and Judy emerged with a space wide enough between them to let propriety snuggle in. They talked briskly back and forth about work related things, letting animals skitter passed between them when they made it out onto the street. Out here Nick kept his paws buried deep within his pockets and Judy spoke louder so her voice could reach him up high. They didn't touch out here.

The walk to the station was a daily exercise in control for both of them and they had actually gotten quite good at pretending to be just work colleagues when they were out and about. Anyone on the street could easily mistake them for strangers just so happening upon the same path. Judy considered it a terrible shame.

When they reached the station and met up with Mrs. Wilde some of the pretense was able to be dropped. It wasn't unusual for a bunny to snuggle up under the arm of a fox if that fox was a kind, motherly type. Mothers didn't have a species; they coddled everyone. Mrs. Wilde was very fond of Judith and showed it through her enthusiastic greeting of the young hare, pulling her into a fierce hug, her narrow snout nestled between the female's tall ears. The two exchanged pleasantries and Nick joined the huddle to give his mother a quick hug as well. They spoke in only the most hushed whispers about The Plan for the day and when the train arrived boarded in one of the rear cars.

Mrs. Wilde sat between them, a believable barrier, and chatted politely with Judy about things old friends might chat about if they ran into each other by surprise while traveling. Her parents were fine, her siblings were many, work was rewarding, and so on and so on. Judy remembered to thank her again for the tin of cookies she had sent at Christmas time, teasingly asked if there were any handsome foxes in her life, and so on and so on. It was all very benign.

"It'll be nice to see your mother again," the older vixen enthused, tail curled politely around her legs so that no one tripped on it. Judy nodded her agreement, throwing in a playful roll of the eyes.

"Cheese and crackers, she hasn't stopped asking about you," the bunny laughed sincerely, "She was so excited to meet someone who can relate to having their child become a cop."

"It's very stressful!" Mrs. Wilde defended, emerald eyes flicking to her son for a moment as if he would have gotten up and gone on a case while she wasn't looking. Judy laughed again and conceded that, yes, it must be and so on and so on.

Nick kept one ear turned to them, but spent the first half of the ride simply gazing out the window as city life started to disappear behind them. The 211 mile journey to Bunnyburrow always went painfully slow for him because it was usually 211 miles where he had to act as if he barely knew Judy. After the first few stops in the voyage it was safer to keep up the facade than to relax and throw an arm around her petite shoulders and let his head lean down onto hers as he grew bored with the quiet.

Three hours felt like three years.

When they reached their destination Judy's parents were waiting and greeted her and the foxes with all the polite pretense of folks that had just happened across you in a train station while grabbing their daughter and wouldn't you love to drop by for a bite? Out here, in the country, Nicholas Piberius Wilde didn't even look at Judith Laverne Hopps. They were two reluctant passengers on the ride of their parents' niceties and they didn't speak or share glances or touch or even really acknowledge each other. Dragging along behind the older members of their group, Nick and Judy were less than strangers.

The cab of Stu's truck offered no relief from this charade, half made of glass as it was. Their odd ensemble piled into it and the radio was on to a level that nixed the option for conversation before they even pulled out of the station parking lot. Onto the road they went, loudly yet silently, three bunnies and two foxes on a mission. It was 20 minutes to Judy's childhood home and each passenger of the beat up old truck spent it in quiet contemplation of what was to come. When the scenery outside started to show nothing but groves and fields as far as the eye could see, Judy risked reaching her paw out for Nick's in the backseat and they watched the miles drive by together.

At the burrow everything was a flurry of movement as soon as they arrived. A team of Judy's brothers carted Nick away while his mother remained anchored to Bonnie who orchestrated all goings ons with the air of a hare who'd seen it all before. Stu mumbled and bumbled his way to the kitchen area stating he needed a stiff drink before he could squeeze his way into his tux and Judy allowed him that reprieve. Her sisters were with her then, admiring the dress as if they hadn't all seen and wore it before and adorning her with far too many things old and borrowed because new and blue just really wasn't their family's style.

The few non-family members that had been invited hovered on the edge of oblivion, Gideon Grey himself aiming a shy wave at Judith when she passed.

It wasn't too long before the time had come and suddenly all movement was swept away in a wave of forced calm. Judy had had a bushel of flowers shoved into her hands at some point to match the ones that had been woven between her ears and as she gazed down at them she could see the way her short breaths made the petals ebb and flow. She and her sisters were in the entrance hall; music had started to play. The plan was well underway.

Maybe her older sisters talked to her then. Maybe they just let her be. She wouldn't remember. All she would remember was her father taking her arm, now dressed to the nines in his old tux, when her brother, Jason, finally pulled their front door open before her revealing a site that had not been there what felt like only moments ago.

Their humble driveway had been cleared and chairs brought in to seat the abundance of bunnies, and a few other mammals, that had attended. Stu's truck was off in the distance, headlights on and aimed at the walkway Bonnie had created of chairs and flower petals leading up and up to Nick at the end. Nick in his dress shirt and work pants who had his paws folded before him and his eyes aimed somewhere towards the top of the house, not yet daring to look at his bride who was following behind a processions of some of her favorite older sisters and their husbands as she made her way too them.

Stu was already crying like a pup and Judy felt her own eyes starting to sting queerly as she was delivered into Nick's waiting paw. The fox only looked at her once he'd taken her hand and when their eyes met for the first time in hours suddenly hers were perfectly dry, her brain not allowing her to create tears at this; the happiest moment of her life. Judy stepped away from her weeping father, leaving him and everything else in the past as she took her place at Nick's side.

It had taken some doing, finding an animal discrete and forward thinking enough to marry a fox and bunny, but they had done it, and as the stone faced badger began their ceremony, both police officers took an inner moment to themselves to really realize what this all meant.

They were getting married.

In secret.

Without telling their precinct.

Outside their city.

To avoid legal ramifications.

They were breaking Zootopia law.

It was a risk they had discussed at lengths for what felt likes ages before they simple could not take it anymore. They wanted to be married and they were not going to let outdated, oppressive laws stop them. They both agreed living in secret was better than not living at all and as Nick slipped a ring onto Judy's finger that she'd never be able to wear in public after today, they tied themselves to that decision legally and spiritually.

They were married.

For better or worse.