A Frightful Savage Howloween
AN: This is simply a one shot with no canonical connection to any of my other stories. It will also be the spookiest, and scariest, story I've ever written; with lots of frights and scary moments included that will shock and frightened any WildeHopps shipper. So beware of this...FRIGHTFUL SAVAGE HOWLOWEEN! *cackles as lightning arcs across the sky behind him*
AAN: Also, I will reference several stories from friends here, so, see if you can find them all. :)
Nick Wilde may have been a hustler no longer, but at the moment, he was hoping to run the greatest hustle of his life. It was that time of year again, when the leaves start falling, mammals start wearing sweaters, lovers sipping cocoa or pumpkin spiced drinks together...
...fox mating season just around the corner.
For the last two years of his partnership with Judy Hopps on the force, the winter had been the worst time he could have possibly been around her. Their first winter together as partners had him nervous and irritated for a reason he couldn't judge. He'd become moody when they were apart, and equally protective of her when together. It wasn't until he had taken he had taken down a hyena for scratching Judy, tightening the cuffs a bit past the point of comfortability and Judy calling him on it, did he realize what was happening to him.
He was in love, and up until that point, his body had known it, but his mind had not.
It had been a miserable two months until the end of his season before things returned slightly to normal. Two months of walking in front of her so he wouldn't be mesmerized by that fluffy tail of her. Two, agonizing long months of sitting far too close in their patrol car together, her scent overwhelming his nose as his claws dug into the upholstery to keep him from tearing his seatbelt off and jumping atop the bunny next to him and kissing both their minds away.
Getting stuck in that overhead vent while undercover hadn't helped either. Her lithe form pushed up against his own for nearly two hours. She'd asked why his heart was beating so hard and fast, or why he was shaking so badly. Somehow, barely, he had managed to lie and say it was his claustrophobia kicking in.
It was the worst lie every, as it turned out. Judy being Judy and wanting to help him feel better, had turned around...facing him...hugging him...overwhelming her with her delicious scent and telling him it would be okay, to just breathe with her and they could get through it together.
Oh how he wanted them to be together, which was why he was standing outside the door to her apartment complex on Howloween. She'd gone back to BunnyBurrow for the past three months after an accident at work. It was embarrassing to say the least, Francine's trunk knocking over her mammoth cup of boiling hot coffee and dousing the poor doe in a scalding, mocha blend of pain and burns, followed by running blindly into a nearby desk from the pain and concussing herself. Medical leave had her gone for that long, and going nuts in her apartment and feeling lonely with Nick at work all day, she'd gone home to recover the rest of the way. It was torture for Nick to have seen it all and not been able to do anything except hold her whimpering form until the paramedics had to force her away from his trembling arms.
And today was her first day back.
Nick had called her every day, texted every night. Got her to laugh when she was distraught about how she might not get back on the force soon enough, or whether she could even work like she had before, or if her concussion would affect her in some way. He'd calmed all her fears, but at the same time, his own were growing.
Judy had become somewhat distant one month into her leave. For the past two months she'd been more reserved, less liable to laugh at his jokes...less...
...Judy.
It pained the tod to hear her quiet voice over the line and unable to do anything about it. A month ago, she'd stopped taking video calls and for several weeks only replied in texts, saying she didn't want him to see the condition she was in.
It frightened Nick beyond all comprehension of what that meant. So here he was, after she'd ignored his request to pick her up at the train station, at her door with a single red rose and a box of her favorite carrot and pumpkin spice coffee wrapped up in an all-too expensive, Howloween themed box, hoping she'd be home.
With a trepidacious paw, he rang her doorbell and waited.
Hurried footsteps sounded beyond the wooden divider and a brief click of a lock sounded from within.
Two amethyst eyes stared up at Nick.
"Judy...I"
"Quiet Nick, you'll wake the kits!"
Nick's heart dropped as his brain failed to produce words.
...kits?
Taking his silence as acceptance, Judy waved him into the apartment. It was larger than her first, actually having multiple rooms instead of one closet disguised as an apartment. "Kits?" he mumbled, barely comprehending what he himself said.
Judy nodded, walking ahead of him. His gaze took in her form, her fur all grown back and no scars to see. Her black witches dress swished around her legs and at any other moment would have entranced him as her tail bounced with each step. But his main view was that of the crib ahead of him, striped blue and pink. Standing next to the crib, he gazed in and looked upon the two small, swaddled forms sleeping within.
An adorable, grey baby girl, cooing softly in her sleep and the boy, white furred with black stripes across his cheeks.
Nick felt his heart shatter to pieces as Judy gently rubbed their foreheads.
"They're beautiful, aren't they?" she said, looking up at Nick with a warm gaze, one with which he had hoped and yearned for, for so, so long.
He nodded lightly, his mind a whirl of activity.
Okay...Judy's...had...kits. But when? Was it why she didn't want to video call? Who is the father? Is she married? Did I lose my chance?
The gifts in his paws dropped to the floor along with his heart at the last thought crossing his mind, destroying all rational thought as well as a torch to dry paper. It sucked the life from his breath and halted his entire being.
Judy noticed the dropped gifts as they clattered to the ground, her ears perking in quiet amazement. "Oh Nick, are those for-"
"Judy?"
Amazingly, Nick managed to turn at the sound of the voice behind him. A male rabbit, looking roughly his own age walked into the room, wearing an expensive looking vampire costume. His pale white fur, crossed with the same black lines as the babe in the crib, sank Nick's hopes further.
"Oh, Jack!" Judy smiled and walked up to the buck, hugging him tightly. "Meet my dearest friend, Nick Wilde."
The buck smiled, straightening his cufflinks as he went to shake paws. "Charmed to meet you, Mr Wilde."
"...likewise..."
Jack took in the room, his gaze going straight to the crib in the corner, before settling upon the red rose dropped to the floor.
His eyes narrowed.
"Did you bring that?"
Nick nodded.
Jack pushed up his cufflinks before cracking his knuckles. "Are you trying to woo my Judy?"
"Jack..." Judy said in a warning voice. "You don't-"
"Oh, but I do," he replied swiftly. "You are my Judy, and I'm not going to allow this fox to try and steal you away from-"
"Jack!"
The buck calmed down at Judy's hissed words as the doe pointed to the crib. He calmed immediately, though his eyes still contained the warning to the tod from before.
Nick, at this point, felt thoroughly and emotional crushed, wanting to find the nearest rock to crawl under and forever hide from the facts before him.
No wonder why she hadn't wanted to talk to him...
Now he understood why Judy didn't want to video call him.
The mood swings...the sorrow, the quietness all before she'd gone silent...
The final nail in the coffin of his shattered hopes and dreams came in the form of the gleaming ring upon Jack's finger.
Judy had married.
Nick took a cautious step back. "I...just remembered, I have a...a meeting. With Bogo."
Judy's ears rose, as she moved towards him, her voice pleading. "Nick? Why are you leaving?"
Another step back as he forced a smile. "Oh, you know...can't make Chief wait." He looked at his watchless wrist. "Oh, and I'm already late. I best be off. Have a great night you two..."
He was barely holding back the tears and lump in his throat as he rushed the door, frantically pawing at the knob to deliver himself away from the pain in this tiny, confining home...
...a home he'd never now share with his love.
A grey paw slammed the nearly opened door shut, nearly upon Nick's muzzle. The fox yelped, staggering backwards, bumping back into Jack who roughly pushed the unsteady fox to the floor on his face. He quickly righted himself, chest heaving as he stared up at Jack, the rabbit leering down at him, and Judy marching towards him.
"Nicholas Piberious Wilde..." Her voice was threatening, issuing no-nonsense as she stomped towards him, her words a quiet hiss. He crawled backwards until his back hit the wall. Frantically looking this way and that to escape, he looked back to her only to see a grey paw grabbing at his tie and yanking him forward and...
...a set of soft, mesmerizingly soft lips crashing into his own.
Error...501-WildeFox not working- Brain shutdown
Who knew how long it was before their lips parted, the dizzying feelings of love and euphoria mixing with the heavy woes of regret and pain. The two conflicting emotions warred within his mind, leaving him speechless. The witch's spell wasn't broken until a slow clap echoed through the room.
"Way to go, Sis."
Brain rebooting...WildeFox systems returned to normal
Nick blinked, staring at the smiling, yet blushing and bashful Judy Hopps sitting on his lap. "Sis?"
She nodded. "Yep," she nodded towards the smirking male who was leaning over the couch. "Jack here is my brother."
Nick was flummoxed, blinking rapidly as his gaze traveled from Judy, to Jack, to the crib, back to Judy...
"Judy...I...those aren't your kits?"
Jack's raucous laughter shook the room as Judy's blush heated to coat her entire face, her ears falling to cover her face. "Sweet cheese and crackers, Nick! No they aren't mine! Jack's came with me to Zootopia with his wife and kits to get them checked out at the hospital here. The BunnyBurrow hospital's maternity ward is being renovated and enlarged."
"So..." Nick began, a flicker of hope bursting within him. "You two aren't married."
"Oh Judy, your fox is too precious." Jack was crying, pounding the couch with one paw as tears streaked his cheeks. His blue eyes opened, a smile sent Nick's way. "No, Mr Wilde, these are not Judy's kits. If they were, I'd still be hunting down the rabbit who forced himself on her while her true love was waiting here in Zootopia. I'd burn down an entire city for her if it meant catching whoever would dare-"
"JACK!" Judy hissed, her eyes widening to frightful proportions as her ears shot straight up.
"Wait...true love?"
Judy turned slowly back to Nick, who seemed to have recovered somewhat from his stupor, a stupid smile across his muzzle. "Who is the illustrious Judy Hopps' true love? Do I know him?"
Judy groaned, flopping her head against Nick's chest. "It's...you." she murmured quietly, thumping her head against his chest. She felt a soft pressure beneath her chin, lifting her up until she stared into the emerald tinted gaze of the one she had fallen for.
Nick was all warm smiles, a twinkle in his eyes. "When did this happen?"
She huffed. "At Jack's wedding...two months ago."
A soft crying sounded in the room. In a flash, Judy was up and running to the crib, speaking quietly to the kits and stroking their heads until the crying shushed. To Nick, it was the epitome of beauty as Judy softly sang a lullaby to the kits, her gaze warm and affectionate as she leaned down to kiss her niece and nephew. She may have been dressed as a witch, but to Nick, she looked the purest angel from heaven. Nick caught her gaze travelling back to him, the slight blush rising in her cheeks and the nervous wiggle of her toe against the carpet.
"You are so beautiful right now..."
"You didn't tell me he was this romantic and sappy, Judes."
"Jack?"
"Yes dearest sweet sister of mine?"
"Go to your room."
"Yes ma'am."
Jack gave a quick salute before leaving the living room, a soft shut of a door signaling his departure...
...leaving a very awkward silence in the now suddenly very small room.
"So..."
"So..."
"What happened at the wedding?"
Judy walked over to Nick, kneeling next to him against the wall while brushing out her dress across her knees. "We'd talked the night before...about our hopes and dreams, remember?" He nodded, so she continued. "At the wedding, I saw my brother up there with his wife and suddenly..." she chuckled softly, warmly, the Judy that Nick knew returning stronger and more vibrant with each word spoken as her eyes fell upon him. "All I could see up at the altar was you and me. You in the most splendid white tuxedo imagine, and I in a white dress I only hoped you'd adore. That or both of us in our dress blues...it didn't matter after a while...only that you and I were there, together."
Nick wrapped an arm around the bunny, pulling her against his side. "Would it help to know that I've been imagining that same vision happening someday as well?"
Judy nodded, again a blush of perfect proportions etching itself upon her beautiful face. Nick chuckled, bringing force a giggle from the doe as well. "I guess this means...?"
He left the question hanging, his hope for the future, as fate would put it, in the paws of Judy once more.
Curse vixens for taking the lead in these things...Nick thought as the seconds ticked by. He so wanted to ask her the one question that could ignite the passion within his heart and bring him so much joy, yet his mother had raised him as all vixen's had, and he could only wait for Judy's reply.
Judy pursed her lips, tapping her chin with a single finger. "Does this mean that I should ask you out on a date?" She left that question hanging a moment, thinking she could do so for longer yet the thrill of being so close to the one she'd loved, and being so far away from him for so long, destroying the thought of prolonging either of their heartache. "I think it means we can just skip that part if I can call you my foxy boyfriend?"
"Deal."
The words barely passed from his lips, reaching Judy's ears at the same time their lips met once more. All thoughts, worries, and fears evaporating like frost before a dawning sun. Again, the feelings of warmth spread through both, the passion growing as each lengthened the kiss, forcing their confined emotions forth with all the heart and love they could muster. Paws found themselves caressing their cheeks, then neck, then down...down...
"Waaaaaah! Waaaaaah!"
They awoke from the haze of love at the sound of crying, of rushing paws on carpet as Jack raced from his room. The buck rolling his eyes at his sister laying atop his probably next brother-in-law in quite a compromising position as the pair tried to straighten their clothes, the scene a picturesque image of the embarrassment of two lovers caught by their parents for the first time. "You two get out of here and find a party or something to go to. Preferably with some dark corner or maze you can get lost in for a while."
"Jack!" Judy covered her mouth as Jack waggled his eyebrows before going back to calming his kits. Judy felt two paws wrap themselves around her waist before the sweet feeling of Nick's breath tickled her ears.
"You are back just in time for the Halloween party at the ZPD tonight, Judy."
A shudder ran through her frame as the thought of returning to all her friends and co-workers, their scents combined and entangled as they were that even Bogo could probably smell them out...
"How about we celebrate at your place instead?"
Nick smiled. "Fine by me."
Judy rushed to get ready to leave, but not before accepting the gifts that Jack brought over to her after once more calming his kits. Judy profusely thanked Nick, giving him a peck on the cheek before placing the rose into a vase and racing to the door. Together, the two quickly, as if their roiling emotions could quicken time itself, towards Nick's apartment and what lay ahead for them. And under the full moon on Howloween, the two walked off into the night, surrounded by kits disguised as monstrous ghouls and bats laughing as they flew across the sky. They smiled at another fox and rabbit couple walking paw and paw and sneaking hugs, the tod dressed as a demon and the cream doe as a demon hunter, and laughed at the sight of other costumes yet the best memory of the night, for both of them, was yet to come.
AN: And why was this the scariest thing I've ever written? Because I had to try and write it like I was actually shipping SavageHopps! Do you know how frightening that thought is, let alone writing it? I feel like I need to write 12 pages of pure WildeHopps fluff to recover from the fright that writing this was. Now all you ghouls and ghosts, vampires and were-beasts go have a happy Halloween! And again, try to find all the shout outs to stories, friends, and other things hidden in this one shot! Have a great night!