Tacky Christmas
It was finally quiet inside the halls of the ZPD.
Many mammals lay safe at home, waiting for Santa to visit their tree.
Yet, despite this peaceful, blissful mistletoe time-
"You just HAD to go and commit crime!"
The grey bunny yelled, flippantly waving around the new case file she created at the mammal across the table. The grumpy pig runt defiantly crossed his arms and paid little heed to the rabbit currently grilling him.
Judy groaned. What should have been a complete breeze of a quiet day at work had turned hectic in the last few hours.
Being her second Christmas since she joined the ZPD, it seemed promising in the beginning. The morning was fine as she was just supposed to file a few cases, do some research, and answer calls. Yet... that night couldn't have been any more complicated due to the nature of the holiday.
The calls were pouring in, the paperwork had piled up, and the poor rabbit was just as stressed as her co-workers.
Here it was at the end of the last hour of an eight-hour shift on Christmas Day, and she was stuck booking a perp. Not that she minded, overtime was nice and she loved her job, but being there on the skeleton crew was a bit tedious.
She didn't have the time to call her family since she started her shift, and when she tried to contact them the day before, they said that they were in a rush to get things together and they had a special surprise sent to her before they abruptly hung up. It was a bit strange, but she resolved to call after work.
Her shoulder still throbbing from the recent pursuit she ended, but she was glad it was all coming to an end. And while she couldn't complain about that as she had a free pass from work on her first Christmas there, compliments of the Chief, this year, she understood why Wolford was so happy to have been off duty.
Nick, just like her the year prior, had been given the eve and the day off to be with friends and family. He had, however, protested against it, but due to them being slightly overstaffed and Bogo catching wind of a blizzard that would be passing through, dismissed his argument. The chief had expressly told him to stay home as he was one of the few members of Precinct one that didn't live anywhere near the station: the Rainforest District was the fox's residence.
And, of course, when Bogo's back was turned and Nick proceeded to enter the ZPD to sneakily help Judy. Also, of course, the buffalo had enlisted the other officers - Wolford and Fangmeyer specifically - to hunt down the fox when he had a feeling that he was still around; odd that it happened when Snarlov called in from security about a moving box that somehow tossed out pastries and magazines whenever someone got too close. When he was found, he was promptly escorted outside.
Later, when the dust settled, the chief got yet another call that was even stranger than the last. Apparently, a snow mammal - fox-shaped and very slow moving - had made its residence in the building, unaware. It had trudged its way past a baffled Clawhauser before it really gathered attention. Upon being surrounded and raising its snow-covered arms, it let loose a fit of sneezing; Bogo didn't care.
After that, Nick was essentially banned from the office until he was officially cleared for duty. He did promise to see Judy when he was feeling better, though. And due to him being banished, he missed out on the gift exchange and his own personal gift from her, and all she wanted to do was spend the day with him.
So here Judy was, rubbing her sore arm and feeling her phone ring with another text from the fox. Having gotten back in from the bitter cold after responding to a break in a few blocks over, Judy was starting to feel more agitated than normal.
She attempted - and failed miserably - to calm herself while in the process of processing this 'good pig gone bad'. She didn't know why he had decided to do so on Christmas Day, but she scowled and continued. "Did you really think you could just smash the door and topple the slushy machine at Seven Pawleven and not be arrested?"
Laying the case out before him, she raised a brow at his sneer. The boar's demeanor didn't change, he looked about as angry as Finnick. "Tch! It's not my fault that they were closed," he answered, rattling his cuffs and tilting his head in the direction of the gas station store. "Besides, they ran out of green flavour earlier. What did they expect to go with the red?"
Out of green?! Her jaw nearly dropped. Did... did he really just say that they were out of-
Her paw finally made it to her bleary eyes, forcing her to wince at the jut of pain that still lingered. She recalled arriving at the scene in the snow with Fangmeyer and Wolford as backup, not believing what she saw.
The runt boar had trashed the store, shouting obscenities and desperately shoving the slushie machine to, as he put it, 'uproot the injustice that he was served'. The falling machine had narrowly missed Judy, shattering to bits as it fell to the floor and flooded the floor with its delicious red and blue contents.
Caught by Fangmeyer's claws, he ditched his coat. And when she caught him by the hem of his pants, he kicked out of them, hitting her in the jaw in the process. Dropping to the floor, he kicked a rather surprised Wolford, sending him into a fit of falsetto howling. Two officers out of the way, the boar made his escape. He would have gotten a little further had he not slipped on the slushy mess and collided with the bunny leaping towards him. When all was said and done, he had three very angry officers hauling him back, in the buff, through nearly two feet of snow.
Even being booked and given his charges of assaulting an officer, destruction of property, breaking and entering, he didn't seem to really care. Though Judy tagged on 'Public Indecency' for good measure; she did not need to see frozen ham on her way back.
"They were out of green flavour," Judy repeated, narrowing her eyes.
The pig nodded. "It's not Christmas without red and green. And I want to file a lawsuit for them not having a wet floor sign!"
Silent NIGHT, this guy can't be serious. Gathering up her papers, she hopped out of the chair and made her way to the door. Her paw on the handle, she looked back at the swine currently wrapped in a blanket. "I hope you're happy, Mr. Swinerd," she spoke gruffly. "Because the only red and green you'll be seeing is from the prison cafeteria."
Before he could protest, she slipped out the door and into the hallway. Shaking her head and sighing, she padded her way past the security station and waved a curt hello to Snarlov. He looked as tired as she did, but with him being a polar bear, he was leaning more towards the constant baggy-eyed visage of Kozlov whenever he was wide awake.
She had once even jokingly called him that, and he gave her the guiltiest expression she had ever seen a bear have. After that, she had a lot of questions but didn't dare ask them in public.
A sudden jarring rumble snapped her away from the thought and she pulled out her phone. Again, Nick had texted her something cryptic. The last few messages read 'I go2 get this coacoa reciP', 'Nvr gona guess my outfit', and her favourite 'Lol Fin's mad'.
He had told her that he'd stay home and Fin would be there to keep him company in the bad weather. When the weathermammal said that it would be 'a degree' - even going so far as to say that the temperature graduated - with snow piling high and only main roads clear, he'd be going nowhere soon.
Her eyes skimming over this one she smiled a little unlike she had in the last few hours. She could clearly see this one and he asked her 'Getting Cmas tree. Want it hung up?'.
In her haste, Judy hadn't been able to decorate her apartment the way she wanted to and was missing the centerpiece: a Christmas Tree. Even a small one would do, but she hadn't found any that would fit in her shoebox space. In her holiday traditions, it just never felt like home without one, and she immediately responded with a definitive yes. Though she wondered, What is he up to? He knows that I can't just go over to his place and pick it up, right? And did he say 'hang up' a Christmas tree?
Humming, she pocketed her phone and made her way to the office cubicles. She passed by a mostly empty ZPD lobby, a new night shift dispatch officer now taking his place there as the cheetah had gone for the day. Gazing past the receptionist desk, Judy admired the sole spire of a green and blue Christmas tree that took center spotlight. Her heart warmed a little as she had helped decorate it with some of the other officers. And even above that, her heart soared with the little strings of blue lights adorning the ceiling. Each one, she recalled was a replica police badge that had been hung up.
When she reached the end of the hall leading to the office space, she waved at the other two officers making their way out. "Hey Wolford, Fangmeyer," she called. "Thanks for the help with the arrest."
The wolf gave her a little nod, but said nothing. He continued to amble down the hall, a slight stutter to his gait. Fangmeyer, on the other paw, scratched at her chin. "No problem, Hopps. And don't worry about Wolfie, he'll walk it off."
Judy sighed in relief. She had hoped things went a bit better, but at least the call wasn't about an armed suspect. All withstanding, it wasn't too bad.
"So, you up for the party later?"
The rabbit's ears flickered and her nose twitched. "Party?"
The tiger hummed and pointed towards the exit. "Yeah, Wilde's throwing one. He said you may be joining."
For the second time since her shift, she had to raise a brow at the fox's antics; the messages now making a little more sense. Earlier, when she tried to get coffee to help her stay awake, she remembered that he had somehow managed to break the old thing and sent her a message, pleading for her to find a replacement; not even Bogo was that rough with it. Then again, it wasn't fox-sized, so there was that. But now he was throwing a party at his basement home in the Rainforest District?
That was unbelievable.
Well... was it?
Public transportation was still running and the GZTS did try to accommodate for all manner of weather. So in truth, it wasn't that farfetched to get anyone there. That, coupled with Nick being... well, Nick, the possibilities were fairly high. He had often told her how he used to 'import varying goods across the city, rain or shine'.
She chuckled. Leave it to Nick to try. But that left the question: why wasn't she told about this party? Was he trying to keep it a secret for some reason?
Forcing the idea that he had forgotten to tell her out of her head, she smiled. "Yeah, I can make it," she replied, bouncing her way to the office with renewed vigor. "I'll be there after I finish this paperwork!"
Bidding the tigress a farewell, she hoped to work. It should only take an hour or so, she figured.
Two and a half hours later, Judy was done.
Standing outside of Nick's apartment, fully clad in her warmest snow gear - the one with insulated ear warmers - she was finally done.
She was done with work, done with papers, done with non-working printers and technical problems, spilling water on her laptop and having to borrow another one from tech to re-do a booking form from scratch.
Then, after that, she was done with rude passengers, cramped buses, freezing temperatures, scammers calling and hiding their phone numbers to match close enough to those that she was used to. She. Was. DONE!
And also a bit blind from the way the wind whipped against her face and how tightly she wrapped her scarf around her head.
On the way she had called her family to wish them a Merry Christmas, but it went straight to voicemail. She figured that it was because it was already ten-thirty at night, but that didn't stop her from trying. But upon the tenth time, she had to stop due to a dying battery. Only three percent left, she had to make this last call count, she could recharge her phone with Nick's spare charger.
Now on the steep of Nick's home and pulling out the spare key that he had given her, she tried to call the fox and hopefully crash the party. When he finally picked up, she smiled and spoke first.
"Officer Wilde. Why didn't you inform me that there was a party going on?" Believing that she'd catch him off guard, she let him try to explain himself; him gifting her a tree was an added bonus.
"Carrots! *cough* w-who told you about the party?" There was a distinct sound of muffled moving and the bubbly voice of a cheerful cheetah and chants of 'Chug! Chug! Chug!'. She could only assume that there was already eggnog; spiked, of course. "Was it Wolfie? He's getting coal, you know."
She laughed. "No, it was Fangmeyer." Beyond the faux gasp, and the sound of him sneezing, all she could hear were softly playing Christmas songs and a voice whispering her name.
"Ugh, I told her that it was three stripes and she was out. Do you think I should use orange paint?" Sneakily, she made her way into the building and headed down to his hall.
"Nick, I think you'll be needing a hospital visit instead of a brushing if she gives you your 'licks' for that one." she singsonged with a giddy cheer as she finally descended to his door. She did find it odd, however, that there was no sound coming from beyond the door, and that there was no sign of any party. Did he throw this at a neighbors apartment, maybe?
And with her paw twisting the door open, he answered. "Well, Carrots. I hate to disappoint you, but you weren't supposed to find out that there was a party-"
The slow creak of his door was a bit louder with her phone dying. But either way, the basement apartment was all that she saw. No friends, no co-workers, no tree. Nothing.
Not only that, but with what Nick just said? That she wasn't supposed to find out that there was a party? After all the work she did on Christmas Day? No family to call her back? No tree?
She let her phone slip out of her paw.
She. Was. DONE!
The ride back to her apartment had been more tedious and lonely than it was getting from the ZPD to Nick's place. It was past midnight and the bus had broken down due to the temperature reaching the negatives; they had to get a new one. That didn't mean that all was well. With one of the major streets - namely her street - being unplowed, she decided to foot it most of the way, and now she was regretting it.
With no working phone - she couldn't find either the wall charger or spare portable one that Nick had to recharge hers - and her being incredibly tired, Judy trudged along. Her only solace was the pathway made by passing mammals. Though much larger than her, she could at least hop with what little strength she had left. Her anger was about the only thing that kept her warm, insulated ear warmers or not.
Under dimly lit lamp posts, every bounce, bound, and leap left her winded but she could see her home just ahead. Her un-padded feet were getting more and more frozen by the second, but she didn't dare stop.
Okay, just a block more and I'm home. she mused, encouraging herself to go on. And when I have my phone back on, I'm gonna e-mail Nick a kick!
With a leap to see how far away she was, the chilly wind and her freezing paws made her miscalculate her jump. She ended up muzzle first in a snowbank. Her muffled screaming was all that she could hear.
"Ugh! That dumb fox! When I get out of here I'll-"
Her shouting was halted immediately when she felt something, or rather, someone, grab her by the leg. Police instinct kicking in, she readied herself to spring into action. The world was turned upside down as she was pulled out of the snow, her free leg already aimed for the muzzle of the mammal she had caught a glimpse of.
When her foot connected and an audible bark was heard, Judy, again, fell face first into the same pile of snow. This time, however, she dug her way through and poked her head out to see who this mystery mammal was. And when she finally did see who she had kicked, she mentally kicked herself.
A grey wolf in a blue hoodie and sweatpants sat hunched over on the sidewalk, rubbing his sore muzzle. She had recognized him as one of the local homeless mammals whom she had often spoken to on her way to work.
Tunneling out hurriedly, she dashed towards him. "Oh my gosh! I am so sorry about thaaa-choo!." she apologized, sneezing into her frozen paws. Great now I'm coming down with a cold.
What she heard next was both a chuckle from him, and crunching snow behind her. It was at that moment that she had forgotten one crucial thing: this wolf had a brother.
Again, her world blurred in a flash as she was hoisted up. "Vincie! I found her!" shouted a jubilant voice as white, warm paws encompassed her.
Often times, when she would speak to the wolf that she had just downed, his younger brother was near and thought that she was some kind of stuffed bunny. And despite his carefree demeanor and unusual personality, he was always kind.
Dusting himself off, the grey wolf stood and gave her a smile. "Oh, it's alright, Judy. We were just heading back, he wanted to finish his igloo."
She was going to question what he meant, but upon sitting on the white wolf's shoulder and peering down the street, she could clearly see a large, albeit crudely constructed, snow house.
Nodding, she felt a little better. Nick was still going to get kicked, twice, but she'd do that whenever she saw him for not telling her about a party. As they made their way down the street, her ears perked up. "Hey, do you guys have a place to stay the night?"
Judy knew that the homeless shelters were far away, and the snow made things worse. She had hosted them before, hospitality was kind of her thing. And with Nick there, they watched nearly half of her movie collection.
"Oh, sure. All of us do." the elder brother replied. "Thank you, by the way."
Now at the stoop of her apartment, she was set down. She fished out her keys and sniffled. "Thanks for... what?"
When she pushed the door open, finally feeling a rush of warm, cinnamon-scented air, the commotion inside answered her question. Through twinkling, star stricken amethyst eyes, Judy watched as several mammals from the homeless wolf's group passed by her in the decorated lobby alongside some of her neighbours and a few members of the ZPD.
Bucky and Pronk carried blankets and cinnamon rolls to a possum and his niece. Clawhauser snored peacefully on a mat next to a heater while a squirrel and bearcub excitedly bounced on their new found, cheetah shaped, bed. Fangmeyer and Wolford chatted with a bear and mouse that tried to take an entire bowl of candy canes for themselves. And near the reception desk, a hare in a grey coat sipped from a steaming mug and conversed with... BOGO?!
Making her way in and undoing her scarf, she heard the two wolf brothers behind her. The older brother yelling "Don't eat that!" to the younger who found their lobby's fake plants.
She neared the buffalo, and he seemed to be having a good time. Although his choice in apparel was... different. Red and black, mostly; a large bag resting at his hooves.
"Chief?" she addressed, standing just beside him. He gave her a smile and wave when he noticed her.
"So nice of you to stop by. I was beginning to think that you'd miss your own party and stayed at the office, Hopps. It'd be a shame with who showed up."
"Yeah, it's nice that- WHAAA-"
Wide-eyed and hoping that she misheard, Judy scratched her ears. They were still a bit frostbitten, so she tried again.
"You mean that this... is my party?"
Upon receiving a nod from the chief, Judy put two and two together. It wasn't that she wasn't invited to the party, but this was all supposed to be a surprise.
If that's the case, then where's Nick? And what did he mean who showed-
"Aunt Judy!"
She spun on her heels, all form of indignation and gone from her form. A little bunny had snuck up on her, embracing her ankle. And for the second time since she had gotten home, Judy was stunned. "Cotton?!"
The little bunny looked up and smiled. Her bright pink pajamas matched the overstuffed bunny doll she cradled with her. "Look what Santa got me!"
Looking and disbelieving, she parted her lips to ask how she got there when she looked up and nearly cried. Standing just a few feet away and with their arms wrapped around one another were a grey bunny doe and a brown bunny buck.
"Mom? Dad?"
They nodded, smiling and walking over to their daughter. Just as they embraced her in a hug that she returned as fervently as ever, she asked, "What are you guys doing here?"
Bonnie, letting go first, giggled at her question. "Well, your partner said that you'd be working on Christmas day without him, so he called us and asked if we'd be able to stay for the night to surprise you with a party for you and your co-workers. We got brought Cotton with us and made some stuff in the kitchen to pass the time and help."
The young doe took a glance around, recognizing some of her mothers cooking instantly. The smell of hot chocolate was too familiar with the cookies that they were served with.
Having finally let go, Stu continued where his mate left off. "We got here early today and then that storm hit. He and his friend have been back and forth getting things ready, but when he heard about what temperature it was gonna be, he asked around for blankets and stuff. We didn't know what he was trying to do until all these folks started showing up."
Her ears couldn't have heard that. "Wait... Nick did this?"
"You have a good friend, Ms. Hopps," Judy would have jumped out of her fur had her feet fully thawed. The landlady, Dharma, had a knack for showing up unannounced, and somehow behind Judy whenever the circumstance called for it.
The pangolin adjusted her glasses. "He asked me if I had space to house a few of the locals because of the blizzard. They can stay, for the night," she heeded, casting her glance up to Bogo. "Your partner assured me that he'd have the ZPD help with housing anyone that needed it, just until this storm passes over."
For a moment, her heart fluttered. Nick had, while sick, called her parents over to spend Christmas with her, thrown a surprise party that she nearly missed, and did his best to keep mammals from freezing on the street. She had no thought of giving him a kick for a present anymore, she had another gift in mind.
"Where is he?" she asked, covering her muzzle on the verge of another sneeze.
Bonnie and Stu passed glances at one another, the doe spoke first. "He heard that you were still working and he-"
A loud voice spoke over hers, gathering the attention of nearly every mammal there. "Alright! She hasn't called!" shouted the red fox, carrying a little green mammal under his arm. He stomped his way to the chief, pointing an accusatory paw. "You need to mobilize everyone and-"
"Nick?!"
He paused, turning to see the bunny with a worried look on his muzzle. When he did see her, he finally smiled and set down the fidgeting fennec fox in an elf costume. "Hey Carrots."
As she stared at her partner for the first time in two days, she felt her heart soar. Not only had Nick not excluded her from his life, but he included her in every aspect of it. She had a lot to say, but one thing stood out then and there.
"Nick, what are you wearing?"
With a chuckle, she looked at his outfit up and down. He was dressed in a traditional Santa hat with a red bag slung over his shoulder. His signature smirk was undermined by the vestments he wore. It was an amalgam mix of things that she couldn't quite figure out at first, but soon it hit her and she laughed.
"Saint Nick, I get it."
He shrugged. "And you're the first mammal to get that right. Chief Buffalo Butt tried, but only won some coal." He pointed at the hulking figure who narrowed his eyes at him.
Any other day, he would have had swift retribution for calling him by such a title, even off duty when Bogo was a little more relaxed. However, being Christmas, he got a lighter punishment: a twisted smirk.
"Oh, is that so?" hummed the bovine. "Have you figured out why I love coal so much, Wilde?"
Judy almost urged him not to go on, she knew where this was going.
But this was Nick. "Because you want your interrogees to feel fire and brimstone?"
What could only be described as a low, rumbling earthquake shook the few mammals near him. Bogo leaned closer, his eyes narrowed the red fox somehow turning white. "It's because it reminds me my favourite Christmas story, and the one role I starred in for our school's Christmas play: The Krampus."
Judy felt the room get a little colder, her paws instinctively moving towards her muzzle before both she and Nick sneezed in unison. The bunny and fox got sympathetic glances from onlookers; their chief sighed.
"Both of you. Don't come into the office until New Years Day." Bogo informed, taking a sip of hot cocoa. "We don't need you getting anyone else sick."
Judy wanted to protest and say that she was fine and could be back to work in the morning, but her mother's paw, already on her forehead to check for a fever, bode poorly for that plan.
"You okay, Bunbun?" Bonnie asked, concerned and looking back and forth between her and Nick. And as Judy sought to say something akin to 'I'm fine', her mother gave her the diagnosis she dreaded. "Yeah, you're coming down with something too."
She sighed. At least I'll spend Christmas with the family.
A gentle nudge at her side caused her to look up. Nick smirked and nodded towards the stairwell. "Cheer up, Carrots. I did get you a few Christmas presents."
"Oh?"
Through her sniffles, she followed him, taking off her coat as she was finally starting to warm up. "What's the one thing in the whole wide world you wanted?"
Honestly, she could say any number of things, but he had already gotten that for her this year. She could only hope that her gift was just as good. Still, she entertained him. "A-"
"Perfect!" he interrupted. "Because whatever that was, I got you this!"
He stepped over to the side, where a small machine sat near the stairs. Its red and green contents familiar to her, her eye twitching. Nick busied himself in grabbing one of the styrofoam cups and pouring in a mix of the two colours; Judy nearly fell over from what she knew it was.
"A slushie machine?"
"Temporary slushie machine." he corrected, passing her the Christmas colour filled cup. "I bought all the green flavoured one they had from the Seven Pawleven near the precinct earlier."
"You don't say." she replied, feeling her paw quiver as she connected the dots.
"Mhmm. And this is one of three gifts."
Fearing what gift two was, she braced herself as she was led by her paw to the lobby's bulletin board. She'd often go there whenever she was looking for an ad or something local. Dharma was good at keeping up with great deals throughout the city. But when she looked where the board was posted, instead there was a large, crude tree cutout that had replaced it.
"What is this?"
"It's your Christmas tree. I made it earlier," he explained.
Her slushie cup almost slipped out of her paws. Is this what he meant by 'hung up'?
She hadn't seen a worse off tree since that Charlie Brownbear Christmas special. And even that tree was real. This? This... thing, was literally a mismatch of paper, paperclips, and sticky notes all patched together and tacked to her wall. She almost croaked when she laid eyes on this... this... well, she didn't have words for whatever this thing may be.
Not even when she was a kit, did any so-called 'art project' look like this. It was like a cereal box had been trampled on, partially eaten, spat-up, and then recycled wrong with a jagged hazard taped at the top instead of a real star with glitter instead of real lights; though it looked like some off-brand cereal label. Wait, is that a cereal box label? Upon inspecting it, it certainly was. She could easily see the letters 'Luc' half painted over.
A little groan escaped her, but Nick continued. "I remember when mom and I used to make these things when we didn't have a tree. We'd write our names on it and make little paper ornaments."
Sure enough, when she looked again, she could see the name of nearly every mammal that was present. And some of the ornaments were little ZPD badge stickers along with traditional styled ones that had been coloured with sharpies.
Taking everything into account, Judy reflected on this moment. It was the day after Christmas, but she had her friends, family, and loved ones all about her. Her work was done, and she had a warm - albeit a bit messy and loud - cinnamon smelling home to rest in instead of out in the bitter cold. And with all of that, she got her Christmas wish: spending her first Christmas away from home with Nick.
Just as her mind processed all of this, a simple thought hit her. "I need to go get you your gift!" she said hastily, already dashing off upstairs to leave the fox with his mouth still agape.
She returned a few minutes later with a blue and grey box in her paw. Judy was glad that the commotion of the party still going on as various mammals idled themselves. Stu and Bonnie were still up and taking care of some of the refreshments while varying members of the ZPD aided a few of the partygoers with mats and sleeping spaces.
Nick hadn't moved, though. He swished his tail, lightly clearing his throat and patiently waiting for Judy to pass him his gift. When she handed it over, and he began to unwrap it, she stopped him.
"Alright, dumb fox, you have to open this up a bit higher," she informed.
His brow raised, he rolled his eyes and lifted the box above his ears to open it. "Happy?" he asked, not fully knowing what it was until his paw grasped at tiny green leaves and a little red berry.
Shocked, he looked down. "Is this-"
"Viscum Cruciatum: Red Berry Mistletoe."
Jaw unhinged, Nick couldn't believe what this was; what it meant. He couldn't even ask as Judy had already hopped up and kissed him on the nose. Wide-eyed and staring in disbelief, Nick slowly got his bearings.
"Not fair, Carrots," he said, leaning down a little. "Mistletoe's not a one-way street, you know."
Judy giggled, standing on her tip-toes as she locked her lips with his. She didn't care who was watching, and her parents already knew that the two were great friends. In the embrace of their muzzles, there was nothing that would ruin the moment...
Until she had to back away and sneeze again.
"Ailing bunny," Nick coughed.
"Sick fox," Judy sniffled.
For a little while afterward, they sat on one of the benches, reminiscing of all that transpired. Their co-workers were around, Cotton had fallen asleep just as Bonnie and Stu took her upstairs. Bucky and Pronk were starting to fight over the slushie machine only to have Bogo stop them, and the younger wolf of the two brothers had gone back outside much to the dismay of the older. And Finnick was downing eggnog like the apocalypse was seconds away.
Feeling Nick hum a Christmas tune, Judy had to ask with a yawn. "And what was the last gift, Slick?"
He held her tighter and nuzzled the top of her head with his chin. "Well... one mammal will be showing up tomorrow sometime. She got tied up at a late shift, but I think you'll like her."
Her eyes lit up and she wrapped her arms around him when she realized what he meant. That pig was right. she thought. It just isn't Christmas without red and green.
[A/N]
I've had this idea in mind since Christmas of 2016, but didn't post it then due to having to write 'Missing You'. This idea also started as just a 'Nick does something to upset Judy, but comes in with the tacked up Christmas tree and makes it better' idea. So it worked out, kinda?
The wolf oc's are characters I made up way back in my Alpha and Omega writing days, and the possum characters are Salt and Cinnamon from "Zootopia Au: Predation". And no, I haven't forgotten about that story...
The story title is remnicent of this odd little light show we do every year in VA called the 'Tacky Light Tour'. It's since had the name changed to 'Lights of Love' but I'll always remember it as the former. Plus that one house... MY LORD that one house that goes all out. I swear you can see the place from Mars!
Also, Bogo Krampus! I would have put Friedkin in here, but she was busy.
Merry Christmas all! Even though it's not technically Christmas... but it is if you see December 25th on your calendar!
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