Hello! Sorry for the delay: life and laziness kept me from writing this as soon as I probably should have. But better late than never!

This chapter has a bunch of references to Nick's past which I wrote about in my previous story. If you like/need a little clarification, feel free to check it out!

Again reviews, favourites, follows, criticisms are all very welcome!

Enjoy!

Chapter 2

Nick gaped in awe as he took in the scene before him. An ocean of green stretched as far as the eye could see: huge rolling fields with reeds and stalks waving softly in the chill breeze. Ancient knotted oak trees dotted the landscape, stripped bare of their leaves, and a cluster of hills loomed imposingly in the distance. He turned a worried eye behind him: and could just make out the outskirts of Zootopia: glass shining in the light of the setting sun. He watched their taxi weave its way down the single stretch of tarmac back to the city and resisted the sudden powerful urge to call it back. It all seemed so desolate, bare and lonely...

He snapped out of his reverie when the bunny standing beside him gave a great sigh of contentment. She was clad in a set of dark blue waterproofs, marked only with the ZPD insignia on the back. She breathed in the fresh aromatic air and a smile spread across her face as she realised she was finally free of the stench of petrol fumes and rot which pervaded the city. Shouldering her green camping bag, she marched off the road and onto the earth: leaving a trail of trampled grass behind her.

"Phew, it's so good to get away from it all! I'm so excited to be doing this!" She gave a little wiggle of joy. "No more pollution, no more crowds, no more deadlines! Just you an-". She turned to face Nick and realised he wasn't with her. She saw him still several metres behind her: his bottom paws still firmly fixed on the tarmac and terror in his eyes. He stood stiff and tense: as if he were about to break into a sprint. His bag still lay on the ground and his eyes were fixed on the expanse before him.

Nick gave a start when he felt something brush against his paw. Attention darting down, he found himself gazing deep into Judy's violet eyes: wide with sympathy. She slowly ran her paw over his again and waited: giving him as much time as he needed. All that could be heard was the rustling of windswept grass and foliage and the snapping of twigs. The sun sank further and the world seemed to hold its breath. Gathering his courage, Nick finally gave a little nod and stepped off the road, giving Judy's paw a little squeeze of thanks and letting her lead him onwards.

...

"Is that a blueberry bush?"

"Nope"

"How bout that?"

"Still no"

"This?"

"Sweet Cheese and Crackers Nick, no!"

"Are you sure? I mean: did they even cover blueberries in farmer school?"

Judy gave a frustrated growl and the fox trudging beside her laughed. Nick had decided to mask and fight his nervousness by doing what he always did in times of trouble: make jokes and needle his best friend. Initially Judy was happy to see her friend perk up. But after a few miles...

Catching her expression, Nick decided to give up his questioning for the moment. He was still filled with gratitude towards Judy for insisting on staying close and holding his hand for the first part of the journey: even as he protested and claimed that he was fine. He straightened his shoulders, giving a slight huff as he lifted the weight of his backpack, and cast his gaze over their surroundings: now more bored than scared.

They had reached the hills and were now trekking beside a bubbling stream which snaked through the middle of a valley. There was little daylight left and the sun barely peeked above the crest of a nearby hill. Clouds had gathered ominously above their heads. Nick pretended not to notice and reminded himself that Judy said they were nearly there. Then again, she had said that around an hour ago.

"Hey Carrots, how many times have you done this before?" Nick asked curiously, again forcing his mind away from uncomfortable thoughts

Judy hummed: grateful to have something to distract her from her various aches and pains. "I dunno. Couple dozen?" She gave a smile at Nick's shock and nostalgia filled her voice as she carefully stepped over a thick bushel and continued walking. "Every couple of weeks, Mom and Dad would take us for a little break into the fields and hills around Bunnyburrow. I remember it'd always be like a little village: sixty or seventy tents dotted everywhere, smoke rising from little clusters of bonfires, shouting and laughing. Piles of marsh-mellows, bunnies running all over the place." She gave a self-deprecating smile. "I would always help Mom and Dad: picking up litter, making sure at least some of the kids went to bed on time"

"Why am I not surprised?" Nick grinned. However his heart ached : he could hardly imagine having so much company, let alone having to give it all up to move somewhere new. How difficult that must be: to know these old family traditions and holidays kept going without you. He asked softly "Do you miss it?"

"Sometimes. It was nice being in such a big crowd where everyone knew and liked you" Judy answered thoughtfully. "But it could be annoying too: often having to be the bad guy and ruin peoples fun. Telling people that they can't eat candy for dinner, that sort of thing. Plus..." she paused uncertainly, unused to talking about personal affairs.

"Seriously Judy?!" A voice in her head chastised her. "After the way you got Nick to open up?"

Judy nodded to herself resignedly and continued. "Plus it could get a little... lonely. Being the family deputy meant I wasn't as super close to everyone as I could have been. Mom and Dad are so busy looking after two hundred bunnies that they obviously can't spend too much time on any one. I didn't need it but..." Judy let the silence fill in the blanks. "And everyone's friends with one another, which is great, but it never feels like you have anyone to yourself, y'know? Its so loud and busy that you can never have any personal quiet time with someone..."

She trailed off, slightly embarrassed. She normally prided herself on her optimism and cheerfulness, and she felt like she had revealed something she wasn't supposed to.

"I'm sorry Judy." Nick's voice was sincere.

Judy blushed first with flattery and affection, then with sudden shame. "I don't deserve "sorry" Nick. Look at me, complaining about my childhood, while you... barely had a childhood". She avoided his gaze when she thought about what he must have gone through in comparison. She reprimanded herself harshly for her lack of tact: how could she be so stupid as to complain about her family in front of him?

Nick reassured her quickly "C'mon Carrots, just because I didn't have a great time myself doesn't mean all your problems are suddenly nothing." He looked somewhat forlorn as he tried to piece his thoughts together. "I wish you could have had a little more to yourself: instead of having to share everything and be so responsible all the time."

Judy felt a sudden warmth fill her body. She was so used to being a sympathetic ear for others that it felt strange knowing someone else was thinking about her.

"Thanks Nick" she spoke voice brimming with care and eyes shining. A touch of shyness crept into her voice and she fiddled with her paws. "That's why I really wanted to take a break with you. I spent so much time sharing and looking after other people. So now I like having you all to myself, not having to share you anyone else".

Nick was touched and he took a step closer to Judy to lay a paw on her shoulder.

"No worries Carrots. I dont think anyone else could put up with my... quirks, anyway."

Judy laughed and reaching her arm around his back, she gave him a affectionate squeeze. "I guess not"

...

Nick snarled as the metal rod slipped from his fingers once again and sunk into the mud and filth below. Cursing, he wiped rainwater from his eyes before reaching into the dirt to pick up the tent pole. He grumbled to himself

"Go camping she said. Get away from the nasty city she said. Dumb bunny"

On the other side of the mass of nylon, Judy shivered as she methodically screwed a set of metal rods together and inserted them into the tent. Her paws had gone numb and rainwater kept pouring down the length of her ears which hung close to the mud. They had set camp on a small patch of grass in between river and ridge.

A deluge continued to batter the two animals as they feebly struggled with their equipment. The winds had picked up, howling through the valley and hurling whirlpools of rain hither and thither. The grass had turned to mud which had then turned into a soggy slippy sludge and the sky was a dark mass of clouds which occasionally rumbled ominously. Whenever the winds died down, the rushing of the nearby river could be heard: swollen with rainwater. Nick and Judy's two small headtorches shone weakly and vainly against the dense darkness.

Feeding the last rod through the tent and pushing the frame up, Nick gave a exhausted cry of relief and dove into the tent with his bag in toe, a soaking Judy leaping in behind him. She quickly zipped up the tent door behind her and collapsed beside a panting Nick: panting and shivering as she felt the freezing water seep through her fur. The winds continued to roar and the deluge drummed on the thin walls of the tent.

"Sorry Nick": she mumbled into the tent floor.

"What for, Carrots?". Nick spoke innocently as he reached up and rummaged in his bag for towels. As if on cue, there was a crack of thunder, followed by a flash which illuminated the tent. It was a sorry sight: it was cramped, cold and the walls seemed to press upon them.

"The weather was always good when I went camping before in Bunnyburrow. Or at least I think it was" Judy spoke guiltily. Nick shrugged a shoulder as he reached over and gently wrapped a dark green towel over the prostrate shivering bunny before grabbing another blanket for himself. The two were pressed up against one another, patches of grey and red fur, green and violet eyes flashing from the headtorches which were now strewn on the tent floor. An idea came to the fox and he grinned

"If anyone at the ZPD asks, our tent was literally flooded and struck by lightening at the same time. Okay?"

Judy smiled and nodded as she ran the towel over herself, feeling the sensation return to her limbs and paws. Together the two hauled their sleeping bags out and laid them across the tent side by side. They lay in silence for a moment, as a particularly fierce gust of wind caused the tent walls to flap.

"Uh Nick?"

"Yes sweetheart?"

"Technically we're supposed to start a fire, get some water from the river, make dinner..." She tailed off.

Nick chuckled. "Good luck with that Judes. I got everything I need right... here"

Judy felt Nick shuffle beside her, as he took out a small brown box from his pocket and held it reverently over her nose.

"Play your cards right Carrots, and I might even let you in on this goldmine"

Judy gave a mock groan of disgust and pushed the blueberries away, even as her stomach growled. For her the pain of guilt was much worse than the pain of hunger. "You dumb bunny! You convinced him to leave the city for this?!"

"I'm really really sorry Nick" she spoke in a muted quiet voice. A small angry part of her felt like she deserved to be yelled that, like she had let him down, like it was her fault they were cold and hungry and damp.

Nick swallowed the blueberry he was chewing as he turned on his side to face his partner, who was tucked into her own sleeping bag beside him. Judy couldn't make out his expression in the dark. He spoke frankly, without a trace of bitterness or anger.

"I've been through worse than this Judy. I musta slept through rain, snow, and hail hundreds of times. Sometimes under shelter, sometimes not."

Judy whimpered. Nick went on: hardening his heart. He hated to make Judy upset but he needed to let her know what she had done for him. He knew Judy would beat herself up every time she felt she let him down.

"Then you came along. Judy Hopps" he savoured the name, even as he spoke it it evoked feelings of friendship and care. "You let me into your life and you let me be your friend. You gave me a place to stay and someone to care about. It'll take a lot more than some bad weather to make me do anything but adore you. Now are you sure you don't want some blueberries?"

Judy gave no response. Instead she wriggled out of her sleeping bag and climbed into Nick's. The surprised fox watched and made no comment as she climbed over him: instead letting her weight sink into him with a sigh, giving a tender smile as she wrapped her arms around him and let her head rest upon his chest. He pushed his sleeping bag down slightly, so the top reached Judy's neck, instead of covering her completely.

Nick closed his eyes and tried to fix the moment in his memory. Judy wondered how she deserved to be so lucky. The noise and turmoil outside now only emphasised the peaceful scene between the two, as Judy listened to Nick's heartbeat and Nick gently ran his paw over Judy's back: trying to dry a wet spot. They hoped morning would never come.

Nick's sly voice broke through the tranquillity

"Camping still sucks though"

"Dumb fox" Judy grumbled, still smiling into his fur.