So here's chapter 2.

Disclaimer: Don't own. Still.

-Chapter 2-

The next day Judy and Nick had a day off, so they had promised to meet each other at twelve o'clock in the park, and when she walked there she saw that Nick was already waiting for her while playing on his phone. She took a deep breath and then hopped closer.

"Nick!" she yelled and waved, and the fox looked up from his phone and smiled.

"Heeey, partner", Judy said and playfully hit his arm.

"Hey", Nick said. "Well, let's not waste time. Do you want ice cream?"

"Yeah, ice cream sounds nice", Judy said and they started walking.

After they had only gone a few meters, Judy swallowed and said:

"Hey, Nick... Your father..."

"Hm? What about him?"

"His name... It's Piberius Wilde, isn't it?"

Nick's smile vanished and he froze.

"How do you know that?"

"Well, I am a cop and I can access some information. By the way, the last time you went to dentist was twelve years ago. You should really go check your teeth more often. Anyway", she told him and then took a small binder from her purse. It was decorated with glittery carrots, and Nick couldn't help but chuckle, even though he felt a bit annoyed. "I checked his records. There was no crime register or anything, so he never committed crimes..."

"Are you saying he should commit crimes because he's a fox?" Nick harshly asked.

"What? No! I just thought... Kinda weird a normal father disappeared just like that, without a trace."

"Okay... Carrots, I already told you, it's n-"

"Wait! There was a police investigation on him, but it ended abruptly in September the sixth, about four months after the disappearance."

"Yeah, I remember that. Our house was full of cops and my mother tried to look as representative as possible, so that they wouldn't call child custody."

The sentence shocked Judy.

"C-Child custody? Why?"

"I mean, she was a good mother and all, but, uh, the situation was what it was. We were poor, the apartment was moldy and there was also a bad roach infestation", Nick told her. "But then she died and I had to move out, so the problem was solved, I guess."

"So, as I was saying, the investigation. Why do you think they'd just end it, without any warning?"

"Because there wasn't any reason to find him?"

"Don't say that. There was no talk of a body, so they didn't find him dead, that's for sure."

"Carrots, you're looking too deep in this. Just give up already, you can't find him. Let just go eat that ice cream", Nick almost begged.

"Okay, fine", Judy said and put the binder back in her purse.

"And let's never talk about this again. I didn't see him after that day, and neither did anybody else. He's gone, alright", Nick said as they arrived the ice cream bar.

"How can you be so sure?" Judy wanted ask but kept her mouth shut.

They sat in silence and ate ice cream (Nick had blueberry ice cream and Judy had banana-chocolate ice cream with sprinklers), but she could not get her mind off of Piberius Wilde. She didn't know why it bothered her so much, and why she felt this way but she was almost certain the man was still alive and somewhere out there. Why would a man who had a family and a loving wife vanish just like that, leave his young son without a father figure? Judy knew that they had been very poor, but that is not a very good motive. Could it have been possible that Mr. Wilde had then been a victim of some crime? Perhaps he had lost his memory and now lived as Igor in the Tundra District, selling icicles for a living.

"So..." Nick cleared his throat. "I heard there was another incident last night."

"Huh?" Judy asked as she had not paid attention.

"Another overdose. The victim was found in the park and just like the others, he too had foam around his muzzle. This one was the youngest, by the way. Only fifteen", Nick told her.

"Oh, that drug case", Judy remembered. A new drug had begun to be distributed around Zootopia, but the ZPD had no idea who was making it and how. Anyway, it was very dangerous and there had been at least seven incidents who had overdosed the drug.

"It's quite sad, really. Young people wasting away their lives just like that", Judy remarked. Nick said nothing.

After they had finished their ice creams, they started walking around aimlessly, not really knowing how to spend the rest of their day off. They quickly checked if there were any movies, but none of them really interested both of them.

In the end they just returned back to the park and sat on the bench.

"Er... Judy", Nick started, making the bunny tense as he never used her first name. "I actually... Uh, well... I lied. A bit."

"Huh?" the bunny was perplexed.

"About my father. I actually saw him once after he had disappeared."

"What?"

"It was probably three years after he left. He came to our apartment, mom was already at work so I was alone. We talked and then he left and I never saw him again", Nick told. He felt his heart pounding in his chest; why did he feel so nervous?

"What did you talk about?"

"Nothing, really. I tried to inquire the reason why he left, but he kept avoiding the damn question. He gave me his address in case I wanted to visit... But when I did, after mom died, I found out the place had been empty for years. He did not come to mom's funeral", Nick said.

Judy was shocked. She was not sure what to say and the patted his back carefully.

"That sounds... Awful. But why didn't you tell me..?"

Nick sighed and got up.

"Anyway, I want you to stop trying to find him. Even if you did, what would it matter anymore?"

"Nick..."

"I'm serious."

He left without saying goodbye. Judy sighed and thought about what to do. Perhaps Nick had said all that because he just didn't want to be disappointed? Surely he'd like to see his father... To show what he had become. And of course, to ask why he had left. Judy's parents had always been there for her, despite all her other siblings, so she couldn't even imagine what it would have felt to become an orphan as young as Nick had. The fox didn't talk that much about his past, but Judy knew it wasn't very sweet.

Suddenly she got an idea. She glanced at the clock tower and saw that she still had a lot of time before dark, so she started heading towards the city center, where she knew a certain fennec fox lived in his red van.

Judy had not talked to Finnick a lot, but she knew he and Nick were still friends and contacted each other frequently. Judy wondered if it was hard for Finnick to be still friends with a cop, but apparently the two of them managed to pull it off.

The fennec was in his van, watching TV as he was interrupted by a knock on the door. He grabbed his bat and carefully opened the door, and lowered the bat as he saw it was Judy.

"Oh. The hare", he mumbled. "What do you want?"

"I need information. Now", she said.

"Are you going to arrest me?"

"No, I didn't come here as a cop... But as a civilian... Friend."

Finnick rolled his eyes.

"Well, come in then", he said and let Judy come through. The van was small, but actually quite nice and looked like a real home. Judy was surprised she didn't see lines of cocaine on the table, dirty underwear scattered around or bottles. The place was very tidy, and he even had flower patterned curtains.

"So, what do you want?" Finnick asked.

"You've known Nick since elementary school, right?"

"Well... Yes. Why do you ask?"

"Did you ever meet his father?"

"His father? No, never", Finnick replied.

"I see, but did Nick ever talk about his father?"

"No."

"Never?"

"Never."

"I see", Judy said and her ears drooped a bit. "But... Did he ever mention an address?"

"Address? What do you want to do with this information?"

"Just answer me."

"No, not that I know of."

Judy cussed under her breath. She was certain Nick would have told to his best friend, but apparently he hadn't.

"Only... No, that couldn't be..." Finnick murmured to himself.

"What?" Judy inquired.

"Well, before Mrs. Wilde's funeral, he asked me to come to some house in the outskirts of the town. I did, but it was all for nothing anyway."

Judy's ears shot up and her eyes widened.

"The address! Do you remember the address?!" she cried and shook Finnick by his shoulders violently.

"No, of course I don't! That was ages ago!"

"Damn..." Judy said and bit her nails. She had gotten so close.

"But it was near the western docks. Yellow brick apartment, if I remember correctly. There was a cleaner's place near but it was run out of business", Finnick said.

Judy quickly took a pen and a small notebook from her bag and wrote the information down. She praised Finnick's great memory inside her head, but of course she wasn't going to say anything.

"Okay, got it. Thank you, Finnick", she then said.

"So does Nick know about this?" he asked.

"K-Know about what?"

"That you're snooping around."

"Please do not tell him!" Judy begged. "I'm doing this for him. You understand, don't you?"

"What exactly are you trying to achieve, if I may ask?"

"I'm going to reunite a family. Nothing else."

She got up to leave.

"Well, thank you, Finnick. Again."

"Whatever", Finnick muttered. As Judy left, he took his cell phone from his pocket and thought for a long time. "Nah, why bother?" he then muttered and tossed the phone on his sofa and poured himself a bowl of kids' cereal.