Judy looked around with blurry vision, trying to keep her eyes open as something shook her. With a massive yawn, she bat at the thing that had woken her and put her head back down, trying to go back to sleep. A familiar chuckle reached her ears and she lifted one up, hearing Nick quietly say "Time to wake up, Carrots."
The bunny cracked an eye open and looked up at the fox. He smiled down at her, and she gave a tiny smirk as she shook her head slightly and buried her face into his side, which she had apparently been using as a pillow. "Five more minutes," she mumbled.
Her head vibrated a bit as Nick gave a soft chuckle. "Are you sure you want your family to see you like this?" he asked. "It might give them the wrong impression."
"Knowing my family, they'll get the wrong impression anyways," Judy sighed, sitting up. She let out a massive yawn as she stretched her arms up and over her head, shaking her head to wake better. "But that's what they do. With so many family members, it's to be expected."
"Right," Nick muttered. "How many siblings did you say you had, again?"
"At least two-hundred and seventy-five." Judy bounced up and out of her seat, now wide awake, turning to look at Nick. She smiled at him and his skeptical expression. "And that's only my immediate family. Counting nieces and nephews, it's probably closer to five-hundred."
And, when Nick looked even more skeptical, Judy just rolled her eyes, glancing to the doors as the train began to slow down. "Alright, Slick, grab your bags." She walked over to Nick and reached under their seats, opening a small compartment and taking out her suitcase. It was incredibly light as, even after so long in the city, she had very little she called her own. Nick drew out a duffel bag from his compartment, a worn black one that had been fading due to age. He slung it over his back and tightened it like a backpack, before swiping Judy's suitcase from her. She snapped her head up at him and wordlessly tried to reach around him for it. Nick swapped it to his other paw and held it away from her. "Nick! I can carry my own bag!"
"I know," Nick said calmly, smirking down at Judy.
"So give it back!" She hissed, trying to reach around him.
"But Carrots, what kind of gentlemammal would I be if I let you carry your own bag?" Nick asked, adding a false hurt to his voice. Judy sighed and took a step back, sighing as Nick gave a triumphant smile. "Besides, I'm sure you'll need both arms for hugs when we get off the train."
"Alright, you win this one, Nick." Judy shook her head with a smile, moving to the stand by the doors. Since it was the middle of the week and only mid-afternoon, there were few other mammals on the train with them. Only a few families could be seen on the platform outside, but Judy grinned when she saw one of her brothers standing on the platform outside. The moment the doors opened, Judy raced out of the train towards him, the other bunny opening his arms and meeting her halfway to give her a tight hug.
"Marcus! I haven't seen you since I left for Zootopia, where were you when I visited last?" Judy spoke after they broke the hug, each rabbit taking a step back. Her brother was taller than she was by a few inches, his gray fur and white muzzle being very similar to hers, though his eyes were a pale blue, and he was wearing a plain brown t-shirt and jeans.
"I was at school," he chuckled. "But I'm home now to help with the harvest. The crops weren't ready until later this year. So, hey, you get to help too!"
"I was told to relax, not to work in the fields," Judy laughed. "But I'll be more than happy to help, and I'm sure Nick would be, too." Judy turned to see Nick walking over to them, her suitcase in his off-paw. He held his usual lazy-eyed smirk as he stepped up beside her. He and Marcus stared at one another for a few short seconds, each one examining the other, before the rabbit put out his paw.
"So you must be Nick," he said, adding a smile as Nick reached out and shook his paw. "I'm Marcus, one of Judy's brothers."
"Nick Wilde," the fox confirmed with a nod. "I haven't learned the names of all her siblings yet, but I think I've heard of you before."
"Hey, if you manage to learn even half of our names, that's an achievement," the rabbit chuckled. "I assume you two are pretty tired from your train ride, so let's get you to the farm. Dad let me take the truck out here to pick you guys up." Marcus made a 'follow me' gesture as he turned and started walking towards the end of the platform, towards the parking lot.
"That reminds me," Judy started, following after him with Nick at her side. "Where is everyone else?"
"They're... At home. Harvesting." Marcus replied slowly, glancing back. Judy saw a smile that said he was lying, but she didn't pry further. While they walked, Marcus began to fill Judy in on what had been going on at home – several siblings had had their first litters, and a good portion of her brothers and sister her age had moved out, giving them slightly more space. Some were back and visiting from college or their jobs, partly to see family and partly to help with the harvest. Their parents were looking into expanding their business within the city, as was Gideon Grey. Her oldest siblings had all been married now, making her the oldest single rabbit in the family.
Judy and Nick listened and gave responses when it was appropriate, waiting until they were piled up in a familiar old blue truck before they asked their own questions. Nick as mostly curious about Judy's family in general, though he did ask Marcus questions about himself (What he was going to college for, how long he'd been in college, if he'd been to the city). After a while, about midway through the drive, they all grew quiet, having run out of basic topics to go through. Marcus didn't seem the most interested in the details of what she and Nick had worked on, so that cut out a good portion of Judy's conversation points.
Just when the silence was becoming awkward, Marcus spoke again. "You know, Mom and Dad are really excited to see you again. And they're happy that they'll finally get to meet your partner."
Judy gave a slightly nervous laugh. "They are? I mean, I figured they'd be excited to see us, but... I may have accidentally left out an important detail..."
Marcus slowed the truck down, turning to look at Judy with wide eyes. "Jude, did you not tell them Nick was a fox?"
"I never felt comfortable telling them over the phone, and when I was going to finally tell them they had to go!" Judy said. "They won't be upset when they find out, right?"
"Jude, you know how they are," Marcus warned. "They might be partners with Gideon, but it hasn't extended beyond that. He's been over for dinner only a few times, and those were brief and tense."
Judy felt a flicker of dread within her. She had thought and hoped that her family would be well beyond such distant acceptance of foxes, and predators in general. But if they weren't as far along as she had expected, maybe this trip wouldn't go as well as she wanted...
Judy leaned back to hit her head against the headrest of the seat with a groan. Nick poked his head up from the back seat, and Judy nearly bumped into his muzzle when she turned to look at him. "What was that about relaxing, Carrots?" he asked, the hints of a smirk evident on his face.
All Judy could do was let out a heavy sigh.
