"Here you go Officer Wilde! One package for Judith Laverne Wilde.", said the customs cashier.
So much paperwork just to get Judy's flower seeds: she had to get something more challenging to grow in our garden, but the genius here had to suggest lotus. It was the most uncommon flower I could think of, but Carrots wouldn't settle for the common white lotus you could find in some exotic flower shop in the Rain Forest District, no, black lotus it was.
"Thanks kiddo, have a nice day!", waved off Nick.
"Oh, Officer! Could you do us a favor?", asked the cashier, a bit uncomfortably.
"If I can, yeah. What do you need?"
"We've got a bag of marulas that someone tried to skip through the airport customs and hadn't the right paperwork to import it. We would have to wait 'till friday when an Officer from ZPD took it for proper destruction, but the smell is already attracting bees and other insects. Could you please take it to the landfill? We got all the papers ready, already." She put a brown satchel in the table with some forms by its side on the counter.
The sweet scent hit him like a brick: sweet as caramel, but with such an alcoholic presence that it could be easily confused with liquor. That's marulas for you.
"Oh, ok. Just drop it there with these forms?", asked Nick, puzzled.
"Pretty much.", confirmed the cashier.
He got the bag and hopped into his car and the delicious scent filled the car immediately. His stomach growled, he could use a meal. As he drove, he passed by a fruit vendor and saw "Hey, blueberries!". He stopped the car and got off, bought a dozen and hopped back in. He thought "Those are big ones, could pass for a big grape or bigger! How those compare to marulas?". He grabbed the satchel and opened it, the smell hit him even harder and there they were: green, not that much bigger than his favorite.
He smiled and got his phone.
"Hey Finn! Want to do something really dumb?"
"Hey Nick, long time.", answered Finnick over the many voices in his ice cream shop, "I still haven't closed shop. What's up?"
"A bag of marulas."
"What?"
"Yup. Got a bag of marulas right here with me. Wanna get hammered?", said Nick as he flipped his phone to show the insides of the small bag.
"You serious? God damnit, you are… Gi'me 10 and I'll close sooner."
"Ok, got my accomplice. Now Carrots.", thought Nick.
"Hello Chief Carrots."
"Hey Nick, got my seeds?"
"Sure thing honey. Right here with me. Say, hon', I'll do some catching up with Finnick and will arrive a bit late today, ok?"
"No problem, want me to drop the keys by the ZPD's reception?", asked Judy, distractedly
"Is DUI still a crime?"
"Sergeant Nicholas Piberius Wilde", now fully attentive to the playful smile her husband had, "aren't you a little old to go drinking mid week?"
"I'll take a cab and wont overdo it. I'll be by your bedside before you wake up and by the precinct in the morning, Chief."
"Ok, have fun and don't do anything stupid.", she knew that was a lost battle trying to convince him otherwise.
"Ok, now the old switcheroo.", proceed Nick in his line of thought. He grabbed a few napkins from the glove compartment and put it in the berries bag, then exchanged then: marulas in the paper bag, blue berries in the satchel. "You sacrifice will not be in vain, dear berries".
He got to the landfill and after some asking and found where he should go.
"Good afternoon! I'm here to drop a parcel for incineration.", said Nick
"You're a bit early in the week Officer… Wilde.", said the clerk, a bit surprised.
"Yeah, but those are already going bad. Here are the papers.", anxiously said Nick, as he left the bag and the parcel over the counter.
Nick signed what he needed and off he went. Dropped the car at ZPD, got a cab to Finnick's ice cream shop. When he arrived, Finnick was turning out the lights of the shop. Nick opened the cab's door to let his friend in.
"How the hell do you got these?", asked the little fennec.
"Later my dear friend, some things are better left in private.", said Nick, cutting him off.
The fruity caramel smell filled the cab as they fared around Sahara Square. They dropped at the city's pier and walked to the end of it, sitting down at it's edge.
"I love to see the sunset over here", said Nick as he placed the small paper bag between the two.
He got a good look at his friend: the golden of his fur was giving place to a pale corn's hair yellow, his eyes were still inquisitive, energetic, but the angriness was gone.
"Yeah." - Finnick grabbed a fruit, piled off its skin and started to chew on its meat - "Doesn't feel that strong, are they really good?"
"I believe so, the scent is quite peculiar. Is your nose getting bad with the years?", playfully asked Nick.
"No. I can smell the alcohol but not taste it."
Nick grabbed one and started to chew on it, the sweet caramel taste filled his mouth. He didn't remember the last time he could have one of those.
"So… how did you get those? I don't imagine they sell them in paper bags in the street.", asked Finnick.
"Oh… I incinerated them.", answered Nick as he took the nut out of his mouth and placed it by his side.
"Them what?"
"The berries that I switched those with."
"And where did those come from?"
"Zootopia's Customs Office."
"You stole them? Does Judy know of this?"
"Not quite, they were going to be destroyed and no. And she won't.". Nick looked at Finnick, a bit more serious now.
"Word.", answered Finnick, understanding that look.
They saw a small sail boat pass by in the horizon, the pier was very silent this time of the day. Finnick tossed his peel in the water and they saw fishes start to eat it in the surface.
"That's littering.", said Nick as he opened a wide grin.
"Sod off.", rebutted Finnick.
"Just don't spit the nut in the water. Invasive species and all."
"Aren't we all?", said Finnick, as he put the nut back on the sack.