Judy Hopps was many things. She was a bunny, a police officer, and the partner of one Nicholas Wilde. She had known from an early age that there was one thing she could never be. Judy Hopps was not a cook. She was more than a little surprised to find herself among the cookbooks at her local bookstore. She searched frantically for something she could use. She pulled out a copy of Dinner for Foxes. This looked good. Her eye caught the price tag on the bottom. She sighed and went to buy it anyway.
Judy marched back to her apartment with a lighter wallet and a mission: to make dinner for her first official date with Nick. When she arrived, she stormed into the kitchen with determination. She threw open the book and stared at the table of contents in disbelief. She couldn't make heads or tails of it. The sheer variety of bug and fish-based dishes alone was staggering. She waffled on whether to choose a more familiar vegetarian option instead, but she decided against it. What would it say about her if she couldn't accept Nick for the predator he was? She decided on the salmon roasted in maple syrup. There was one problem. She had none of the ingredients in her apartment. She took a quick glance at the clock. She had two hours. She ran out, determined to save time.
In the predator section of the supermarket, Judy was more confused than she was at the bookstore, if that was possible. She puzzled over all the options for salmon, eventually settling on the most expensive fillet that looked appropriate for Nick's size. She couldn't be cheap on their first date, could she? After picking up the rest of the ingredients, she went over to check out. She was self-conscious about buying meat, a fact the clerk seemed to pick up on.
"Cooking for a pred tonight?" Judy blushed under her fur.
"Yeah, a fox"
"Good luck. You know how hard it is for prey to figure out how to cook that stuff." As soon as she had paid, Judy scurried away.
She arrived at her apartment in a sweat. She wasn't just any ordinary prey; she was going to cook this fish and it was going to be just like the cookbook.
Nothing was like the cookbook. She had taken too long to make the glaze and was way behind schedule. The book said to cook it for forty-five minutes, and she only had thirty left. She cranked the oven up an extra forty degrees and threw it in, and then hastily got to work setting the table up.
As she finished putting out the centerpiece, her nose started twitching. Something was burning, and that something was dinner. She rushed over to the oven and yanked it open. A plume of smoke flowed out. As it cleared, the contents of the oven came into focus. The salmon was charred all over, and the glaze was burned into the pan. She resolved that she would make this work. It had to work. With effort, she pried the fillet off the pan, and cut off the charred pieces of the salmon. It was still overcooked, but presentable. She set it on Nick's plate and waited nervously for his arrival.
Her heart skipped a beat when the doorbell rang. He was here. She pulled the door open to an unfamiliar sight. Her fox was dressed up in a nice blazer and tasteful tie. He actually looked put-together. On his face was a beaming smile.
"Good evening, Carrots."
Judy stuttered, still on edge from moments earlier. Nick put a paw on her shoulder.
"Calm down Honey. I'm sure everything will be just fine." Judy collected herself and tried to cheer up the mood.
"I made dinner! Do you want to eat now or later?" Nick mulled it over for a moment.
"Now sounds wonderful." He sauntered over to the table, pulled out his chair, and stopped when he saw the dish.
"Hey Carrots, what did you make tonight?"
"I made salmon with a maple glaze. I know it's terrible. I…"
"Carrots…"
"…and then it burned…"
"Carrots…"
"…I'm so sorry, I ruined our first date…"
"Carrots!" She stopped and looked at him with shame. Nick sighed. He spoke as if handling fine china, trying to soothe the bunny.
"Judy, I'm a vegetarian." Her expression sunk.
"Oh."
As she looked at the floor, she thought on how poorly the day had gone. They had no dinner for date night, Nick was probably mad at her, and to top it off, she had essentially shown that she knew nothing about him. She felt like she might cry.
She was jolted from these thoughts by a warm feeling enveloping her. She looked up to see Nick wrapping her in a warm embrace and looking down at her with a gentle smile.
"Judy, you can't get all like this on date night. I know you care about me." Her expression softened ever so slightly. "Besides, what will I tell Mom if she asks how tonight went and all you did was sulk around?" She giggled slightly, the tension slowly leaving her. "I'll tell you what. I brought a fruit salad. Why don't we share that and watch a bad movie?" Judy replied with a relieved grin.
"I'd like that."
The night continued, filled with laughter, conversation, and fun. As to the food, Judy would only say it was the best fruit salad she ever had.