**A/N** So this is my first time doing any type of writing, I do film work but not the writing. I just really enjoyed the movie and reading other FanFictions I decided to give it a try so ANY and ALL feedback both positive and negative is very welcome. Also I am in need of an editor so if someone would like to help give me a hand in that I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you and I hope you enjoy the story.
A/N 2 So I finally got around to re-editing this chapter to make its formatting mach the rest of the other chapters. I did change any of the content besides after splitting the conversations adding little bits for who was talking. I hope the changes make it a bit easier to read and flow better.
*DING* "Argh, nope not going to get up." *ding, ding* "Why is she so persistent, just because I don't answer in 10 seconds doesn't mean I'm not going to answer." Nick opened his eyes and looked over at the nightstand grabbing his phone, unlocking it he was greeted by three messages from Judy.
Good morning, are you up yet, you better be dressed I'll be there in 10 minutes to pick you up.
"Really carrots?" looking over at the clock, 7:20, "great, looks like I skip the shower this morning." Stretching as he got out of bed popping could be heard coming from several places in his body, he scratched his head and looked at the bed. "I really need to get a new mattress soon this one is killing me."
He put on his uniform and walked to the kitchen to get some breakfast, sitting down he looked around and still couldn't believe this is where he was. One year ago he was living under a bridge hustling everyone making a lot of money, then a rabbit falls into his life and turns everything upside down. After helping, actually getting dragged along, to solve the biggest case Zootopia has ever seen and making it through the academy as valedictorian he decided to make right with his back taxes. With some help from Judy and Chief Bogo, he was spared jail time and paid some hefty fines but still managed to afford a decent condo in savanna square along the walking path Judy took from the tram to headquarters.
*BZZZ, BZZZ* the buzzing on the table brought him back to the present, looking down seeing the picture Judy took of them at the Gazelle concert. A smile crept across his face and he picked up the phone
"You didn't go back to sleep did you?" Judy asked on the other end of the line.
"Of course not, I'm heading down right now," Nick hung up and headed downstairs to walk with his partner to headquarters. Going through the door he snapped his aviators onto his face and got an even bigger grin at the sight in front of him. Judy had her arms across her chest, a pouty but upset look on her face, ears straight up trying to make herself taller, and her foot tapping what probably could've been considered morse code.
"Why do you always make us late?" Judy asked impatiently.
"Why do you insist on getting to work an hour earlier then we need to be for the morning meeting?" Nick said rubbing Judy's head as he walked passed her. She quickly patted the fur back down on her head and her ears started to turn red, she hated when he did that so why did it feel good and send a pleasant jolt through her?
Jabbing him in the side as she caught up to him, "I insist on getting there early because you usually don't set an alarm."
"Easy carrots! Do that again and I'll have to report police brutality," jokingly rubbing his side where Judy had hit him. They walked and talked the ten minutes to headquarters, even though they are partners Judy really enjoyed their short walk to and from Nicks place. It was much more enjoyable than the tram ride from her place, though seeing the families talking and laughing with little ones playing on their parent's lap did bring some happiness to the ride.
Walking through the door Judy headed to Clawhauser to get the day's gossip while Nick headed to get them both some coffee for the morning meeting. "Morning Clawhauser, what's new this morning." Judy hopped up to sit on his desk but he just stared at his phone lips slowly moving. He was concentrating so hard Judy though someone had to have died. "CLAWHAUSER!"
He Jumped at his named being yelled, "O M Goodness! Judy did you hear!? Gazelle is married…. and pregnant!"
"I didn't even know she was dating someone" Judy was shocked.
"Yeah, apparently she has been dating her manager, a jaguar, for the past year and got married in secret last month."
Married to a jaguar, if Gazelle could maybe she could even…
"Earth to Judy!" Nick's yelling from the upper balcony brought Judy back, "Are you going to be coming to the meeting today or should I tell Bogo you're having a "moment."
Judy jumped down and raced upstairs and climbed into the seat she always shared with Nick. "This is good, what did you put in it" Judy could taste something different in her coffee, was she tasting carrots?
"I found a carrot flavored creamer, taste good doesn't it" Nick had his signature smirk on his face.
"Yes, I thought you didn't like carrots though?" Judy looked up at Nick.
"Figured I would try something new, you eat them all the time and enjoy them I wanted to see what it was all about… but start slow instead of going raw right away." Nick took another sip from his coffee.
"Well if you really want to try carrots why don't you come.." Judy began to speak.
"Alright quite down and take your seats" Chief Bogo burst into the room stopping Judy before she could finish. Wait was I about to ask Nick over to my place, well it was just to show him different carrot meals. Not like it would have been a date or anything, would it?
"HOPPS!" Bogo's voice snapped Judy back, "You can daydream on your own time but when I'm giving you your assignment you had better listen."
"Yes sir," she took a sip of her coffee and look over at Nick who was chuckling.
"You and Wilde will be taking another missing mammal case this time though, its a kit." Judy's ears perked up as Bogo slid the case file in front of them. Judy took it as they went to their office to go over the file.
Nick slid into his chair and started browsing furbook while Judy started pouring over the files. 10 years old, female, cougar, golden brown fur with blue eyes missing for two weeks. 10 years old, I was barely able to go into the fields by myself at that age. Judy was thinking back to her days on the farm and when she had gotten lost in the fields and how scared she was, but to be lost in a city as big as Zootopia she could only image the terror the kit had. But had she run away, simply gotten lost, or been kitnapped.
"I think we should interview the parents" Judy spun around to face Nick.
"they were already talked to when their daughter ran away two weeks ago." Nick didn't look up from his phone.
"you didn't read the file how do you know when she disappeared and how do you know she ran away" Judy looked at him with a scowl creeping across her face.
"Wolford and Mchorn first got the case and I overheard them talking, and listening to them call it a hunch but she ran." Nick was still looking at furbook when he heard Judy get and grab the cruiser keys.
"I'll be waiting in the car, the house is 2 hours away, don't make me wait long." Judy left the office. Nick looked up from his phone in time to see her fuzzy tail leave.
Judy put the cruiser into park as they pulled into the driveway of the house stealing a moment to look around. All upscale homes, minimal two stories, large well-manicured lawns, new construction with more homes being built just down the road, and a gate with a security guard to even enter the community. A very expensive neighborhood that he could only ever dream of living in.
"So what are the parents names," Nick still hadn't looked at the file.
"Stan and Kathy Mitchell and their daughter's name is Lisa." Walking up to the house Judy was in awe, "Only three mammals live here!?"
"Didn't you grow up in a town where the labor and delivery was bigger than the entire Hospital, you should be used to large homes." Nick was giving Judy a devilish grin as he said that.
"Yes I am but growing up with 275 brothers and sisters you need the space but this place is bigger than the burrow and for only three." Judy rang the doorbell as a ding from nicks phone grabbed his attention. He was typing away as the door cracked open.
"What do you want, wait the police!" The door flew open as the female cougar filled it, her blood red eyes and stained fur showed she had been crying for a while. "Have you found my daughter, why isn't she with you?"
A second face appeared in the doorway as Judy began to explain, "I'm sorry we don't have any new information and we just took over the case today and wondered if you could answer a few questions we have."
The female cougar just broke down crying as her husband cradled her he started screaming "Two weeks ago we endured hours of interrogation like we had something to do with the disappearance. Now you come back with no scrap of news want to question us more, talk to our lawyer! We haven't slept in days and hardly eaten. I've lost several business deals since I haven't gone to work because I've been out looking for her myself since apparently, the ZPD is incapable of finding her. So if you want to torture us more call our lawyer because we are not talking anymore!" With the last word he slammed the door in the officers face, the female cougars cries coming through just as loud even with the door closed.
"Well you were no help there," Judy was extremely agitated with Nick as they climbed back into the cruiser, "messing on your phone when you should have been ready and just standing there not saying a word as he slammed the door in our face!"
*DING* Nick pulls the phone from his pocket ignoring the comments from Judy.
"Again with the phone, I swear if you don't answer me Nick I'm going to make you eat that phone!" Judy gripped the steering wheel so tight her grey paws were turning white.
"I tried to tell you it would be a waste of time coming here and now all you accomplished was to agitate an already distraught couple." Nick looked over at Judy and could see the fury building in her eyes like she was about to hit him, "besides I wasn't messing around I was doing some research and asking for a favor to help us out."
"Oh really, and what kind of favor could that be," it was taking all of Judy's will power to truly not make Nick eat his phone with that sly grin he was giving her.
"Well Finnick looks like a kid right, he fooled you, so I asked him to go see where the hangouts are for runaways. He owes me for all the jobs we pulled and I know we'll need help on this case so I called in the favor from him. He said he'll get back to me by tonight with an update."
Judy just stared at Nick, she started to speak but then just slumped into the driver's seat and started the cruiser, "Sly fox, I thought you didn't care about the case."
"I never said I didn't care, I just said we would be wasting our time going to the parents. She ran away and asking parents wouldn't help at all, though coming here did give me a small hint of why." Nick had a far away look in his eyes, watching the buildings pass the cruiser.
"Again with the runaway," Judy couldn't help but get agitated again as she drove out of the community, "why are you so fixated on the runaway angle."
"Because I know a thing or two about runaways." Judy looked over at Nick as the pulled to a red light, he was staring out the window deep in thought.
"How do you know.."
"Because I was one, several times." Nick didn't look at Judy just kept staring out down the street.
"Why would you run away?" Nick opened his mouth to speak but slowly closed it, Judy was going to pry some more when I honk from behind brought her attention back to the road. The light was green and another honk got Judy moving the cruiser again. The rest of the trip was mostly in silence, the odd horn going off and call on the radio being the only things breaking the silence. Several times Nick tried to start talking but really didn't know how to start, does she really need to know about my past anyway, the broken home, the running away, my father.
"Are you hungry, because I could really use some food," Nick was so deep in thought he jumped a bit when Judy spoke.
"Ahh sure, I am fairly hungry myself." Nick tried to compose himself.
"Great I heard of this new smoothy place near the precinct we could try out once we get back." Judy pulled the cruiser into the precinct parking lot and found their spot. "Let's get changed and go eat, I'm starving." Judy was already moving to the doors by the time Nick got out.
"Always in a rush," Nick chuckled as he closed the door and walked to the precinct locker room to shower and change.
Thirty minutes later they were walking to the restaurant, Nick with his slow always watching walk and Judy's bounce step they looked like the odd pair even if they weren't rabbit and fox. "Why is it you are always bouncing around, take it easy and walk, enjoy the sights of the city."
"I can't help it there's always so much going, it's intoxicating. Besides I'm so excited for the restaurant, it opened a few weeks ago but I've been waiting for a good chance for us to go." Judy was walking like a little kit who was seeing everything for the first time.
"Oh so your only going because I'm with you, did you just hustle me into a date." Judy's ears shot straight up and she stopped.
"No! Nothing like that, I just... thought you would enjoy it as well." Judy was starting to feel the heat build up in her face and ears.
Nick looked back and saw how flustered Judy was and let out a laugh. "You know your kind of cute when you are flustered." This made Judy turn beat red, she was about to make a comment about not calling her cute but the smile and look Nick was giving her left her confused. This wasn't his normal sly smile he gave her when he was messing with her this was something different, a look she's never seen before from Nick but seen it from other bunnies. Was Nick checking me out? No that's crazy, and yet I've only ever seen that look from bunnies hitting on me. Besides, Nick's a fox no way he would think about me that way... Would he?
"So we going to eat or are you going to just keep staring at me like a deer in headlights." Judy snapped back and shook her head of the thoughts. "You ok carrots, you've been doing that a lot lately."
"Yes, I just didn't sleep well last night." Judy hoped the lie would be convincing enough, the look Nick have her said it wasn't but he also didn't push it. "The restaurant is right around the corner, come on slow poke." Judy skipped past Nick her usual bounce back in her step.
"The Green Bean, interesting name. How many questioning looks do you think I'm going to get walking in." Nick said looking through the large glass window and could already see one of the staff giving him a strange look.
"Who cares, besides you said you want to try more carrot type foods and I hear they have a really good carrot, banana, and pineapple smoothly." Judy looked back at Nic and saw a bit of a sparkle in his eyes.
Nicks' ears perked up,"pineapple, I haven't had them in ages. Let's give it a try." He held the door open as Judy stepped inside, the Caribbean music and the low hum of blenders swirling was very relaxing.
"Just take a seat anywhere I'll be right with you," a server said passing by the two.
They walked over to a booth by the window at Nicks suggestion, "I told you that you need to take in the city and just observe more, this will be a perfect seat to do that." They slid into the booth and looked over the menu, Nick spied the smoothly Judy had talked about as Judy debated on the same one or a simple strawberry and banana one.
"So what can I get you two today," the waitress asked giving Nick a sideways glance, he didn't see it with his muzzle buried in e menu but Judy caught it.
"I'll take a Cesar salad with the carrot, banana, and pineapple smoothy," Nick said placing the menu back into its holder.
"And I'll have the house salad with extra carrots and a strawberry banana smoothy."
"Excellent choices I'll have them out shortly," the waitress walked off and Nick and Judy could hear the order call out in the small diner.
"This is a nice place Judy, I really like the music and atmosphere. I've always wanted to get further south to the warm beaches and just become a beach bum." Nick looked around imagining being on a warm white sand beach.
"Well, maybe when we retire from the force we can find a nice place near the beach," Judy said looking out the windows at the passing animals.
"WE? Making plans for us already," the sly grin from before spreading across Nick's face.
The realization of what Judy said hit her and her eats shot up and turned red, "well I ah... meant it as... retiring together, since we join close enough to the same time and ah... the beach sounds like a nice place to retire to and it would be good to have a friend close by." She stammered through trying to make it sound like she truly did mean it as just being friends but that felling she got when Nick ruffled her fur was back like she truly did mean us, and what was with the smile again.
Nick finally broke his smile and chuckled, "again you're cute when your flustered, I knew what you meant besides could you picture us a fox and rabbit together."
The look Judy gave him told Nick that she actually had been thinking of it, "Well I..."
"So the caesar salad with a carrot, banana, pineapple and a house salad extra carrots with a strawberry, banana smoothy. Anything else you need." The waitress came in setting the food in front of them breaking the look they were giving each other and causing me both to stare at the waitress.
"No, I think we're good," Nick finally said stopping the awkward silence the interruption had caused.
"Ok then, if you need anything just wave me down," the waitress started to walk away then gave a look to Nick again before continuing back to the kitchen.
"Well let's see if you were right carrots," Nick had fallen back into his usual self and started digging into his meal. Judy started eating as well but between bites would look up at Nick and couldn't help but smile but as soon as he would look up she would immediately go back to her plate and continue eating. Nick took a long draft from his smoothy and smacked smacking his lips is a satisfied fashion finally ending the silence between them, "you were right carrots, this smoothy is excellent. We absolutely must come here more often."
Judy gave him a warm smile as she finished off hers, "see I told you carrots are good, and there are so many different ways to make them up. I... can show you if you want." Judy got quiet and looked down at the table with the last statement.
Nick looked at her, she was normally so confident and sure of herself. But lately she had been acting strange and today was worse than ever, he looked at her and smiled, "I would enjoy that carrot's, how about this weekend. You can show me all the carrot delicacies you can come up with."
Judy looked up and returned the smile, "that sounds like a plan, though we'll have to do it at your place since I don't really have a place to decently cook."
The waitress came back with the check placing it down on the table, "I hope you enjoyed everything, and... come back soon." They both reached for the check and as their paws touched they both felt a jolt go through them. Judy pulled her paw back as her face and ears turned red again, Nick just grinned.
"I'll take care of it this time carrots since you'll take care of this weekend." Nick walked up to the register to pay as Judy stepped outside to enjoy to cool off from the meals events.
Judy was staring off enjoying the sunset as Nick came out of the restaurant, "Well shall we get going don't want you to miss the tram." They walked the few blocks to Nick's place just chatting about the meal, work, city life. They were so lost in conversation that they were at Nick's building before they knew it.
"Well I'll see you tomorrow partner, I really do need to get to the station or its another hour before the next tram," Judy continued walking as Nick walked up the steps to the main door, entered, and then pressed the elevator call button. Nick took his keys from his pocket and entered the condo, closing the door it seemed to echo in his ears. Looking around he started to wonder if something was missing, or maybe someone as his thoughts went to Judy.
"No were partners, good friends, but nothing more than that," He spoke out loud to the empty room, "Besides what would everyone else think, a fox and bunny together, couldn't happen. But there defiantly has been a change about her lately." Nick idly chatted to himself as he walked to his bedroom. He hung up his uniform and then hopping into the shower. Standing in the hot water Nick's mind began to drift back to Judy, what if she did have feelings for him? What about the things he had been starting to feel toward her? Could a relationship really work out? If any of his previous relationships were anything to go by then no it couldn't, but maybe they didn't work out because he was looking for something else. Maybe something small, gray, and cute.
The last though made Nick chuckle as he shut off the water and grabbed a towel, "Maybe someday the subject will come up and we'll see." Nick dried himself off and walked over to his bed. Laying down he heard the springs squeak and his head sink into the pillow, "Maybe after the meal carrot's is planning I can go get a new mattress, this one literally is killing me."
Nick yawned and rolled on his side going through the day's events again, before completely surrendering to sleep the last thing that went through his mind was Judy. He had taken one last look before entering his place and she was also stealing a look back at him, their eyes had met and gave each other a warm smile. "Maybe it could work," as Nick closed his eyes and went to sleep.