The office is messy, a place mired in the disorganization of a weary little gazelle haphazardly trying to get control of her life. It is midday, sun peering through the dust through the old blinds. But like the dust, the air here is thick. Because Nick didn't want to be here but is anyway, and Judy, honestly, didn't either, but she knows she has to be.
She looks at him, expecting the fox to grimace and scowl at the position he's in, threatening to get up and leave on body language alone, but he doesn't. He is somber and quiet, much like herself. There is a sense of dread hitched in the half-lidded glaze of his eyes as he grinds his teeth contemplatively, trying to bat away the thoughts he knows he has to share but dares not to.
Gizelle is trying her best to appear professional before them. Fixing up the desk she was sure looked cleaner before. She would have sprung for a café or something, somewhere else more comfy but this old room was a remnant of someone else's past, of a place that wasn't in this city, a place that felt unreal like a trek through the 80's. And that is why she chose it, to disconnect them, all of them, from the rest of the world to have this talk.
"Lieutenant Wilde? Lieutenant Hopps? We can begin any time." It was the first time they'd heard her speak so calmly, and they almost thought she was her cousin in that brief moment. But the look they gave her, that faint shock, was enough to send her cheeks flaring, slumping her shoulders as she tries to hide behind something in her seat.
But even as Nick sees her meek little display, briefly entertaining the thought of taking it easy on her despite himself, he thinks first of what needs to be said between them and remembers once more that he doesn't like being here. "I'd really rather not. This is making me uncomfortable."
Judy is displeased, fighting a groan that dares to pass her lips. "Nick, we've been through this." She tries to sound comforting but her own want to get this over and done with makes her impatient. She'd tap her foot if her feet were on the ground. Instead she impatiently sways her feet.
He doesn't explode. He knows why they're here and why he has to do it, and understands that it's making her uneasy. But damn it all, she's not the only one! They don't really have to do this, do they? Doesn't matter if they're already here. No one's gonna stop them if they just walked out. "Look, I don't like talking about it, you don't like talking about it; why are we even here, Judes?"
Her hand is on his, tightening as if pleading. Then she cups it with her other hand. She looks at Gizelle, the desperate look in her eyes, then back to Nick, who is just as desperate. "Cause they need to know what happened. How it happened... to us. It's important that they do."
He almost gives in right there and then but then he looks at the nervous look Gizelle is giving them, clearly hoping Judy gets through to him. And he pities her, knowing full well how hard he's making it for her but shakes his head, daring again to meet those memories but immediately fighting them away on instinct. "If you want the story, just go read the report. It's got all the emotional backstory you need."
"Please, Mr. Wilde. I've... I've read the report. Up and down, over and over again. There's more to this story than the ZPD lets on, I know it, and I can't leave anything to chance." Suddenly she is calm again, and Nick seems to respect the way she tries to carry herself. Finally, she finds purchase, softening her voice as she continues. "There's another side to it: yours. Both of yours. Now I won't tell you that people deserve to know the truth–" She clasps a hand over her mouth, hoping they didn't assume she thought they were lying in their report but Nick's neutral gaze and Judy's persisting melancholy said otherwise. She catches herself a moment later, managing to find her voice again. "B-but for their sakes, for those involved, for everyone in Bronc Town, they need to know what they went through, what you went through."
He shifts to Judy once more. He was about to give in. Gizelle was right and he knew it, but he wanted Judy to lie to him. Tell him that they didn't need to so they didn't have to think about it again. But her resolve is like steel, fighting what could have been active defiance with what was surely stronger over all, their reliance on each other. "Nick, honey, please. I can't do this alone and this needs to be done."
It only takes a moment for him to give in then. And with a soft kiss to her forehead, he sighs. "Alright, I'll do it. But I'll stop if it gets out of hand. We'll give you what we can but the details we're uncomfortable with won't be said if we don't have to."
"That's all I ask." Her smile is genuine and lost a moment later. She turns to her pen and paper, silently panicking as she thinks she's lost her notes then realizes that she hasn't made any yet. "So… shall we begin?"
He collects his thoughts, calming his nerves. The story starts with him, of course. It was his lead after all. But he was still tense. This was supposed to be the easy part but even then it was hard to say knowing where it would lead. "It started with a rumor-"