Lugging what seemed to be the four hundredth box up to their new flat, Judy kicked the door open and dropped the box on the floor, shaking her aching paws. Do it themselves she said, it would be fun she said. Judy wished she could go back in time and give herself a huge smack herself in the face. Remembering back, moving to Zootopia had been a breeze. She'd only needed one bag with all the essentials. Hell, even their last move was a cake walk compared to this.

It was just over a year ago when Nick and Judy made the momentous decision to live together. It was mid-May when it all started, during a gloriously sunny day when Zootopia was completely abuzz with activity. On the grassy centre, an impromptu game of football was happening, shirts vs furs, as young zebra skilling all those around his and swiftly hammering the ball between the legs of the elephant goalie. The shops and restaurants were fit to burst, with mammals grabbing anything and everything while the shop assistants and waiters frantically tried to deal with the hordes of customers. Some hippos were hanging around by the water fountain, each awaiting the next jet of soothing water to rain down upon their thick skin with a fervour one gets at an evangelical baptism, washing away the sinful heat. It was a glorious day out, a day that many would reminisce about for months to come. Except for Nick.

With the entire population of Zootopia seeming infected by the airborne disease of pure elation through the air, Judy was standing next to the only mammal vaccinated against it, Nick Wilde. Nick's eyes were half-focused, looking into the blurry middle distance, his legs moving as if trudging through heavy snow rather than the sun kissed ground that was bringing a spring in the step of others, as if charging up their joy. He'd been like that all day, barely said a word, and had only made one feeble attempt at a joke at word. Not even Clawhauser laughed and he was the go to guy for any sort of humour, no matter how lame.

Leaving the square and heading up towards Judy's flat, Nick rubbed his paws against his temple and turned to Judy. "New record" Judy thought, with Nick having gone a whole ten hours without telling Judy what was the matter.

"Judy" Nick began, face still looking about as sunk as the Titanic, "I need your help."

"What with?" Judy asked, looking up at her companion. He eyes gave away his hesitancy to ask, but she knew that since he made the first move that whatever pride he had would be swallowed down any minute to get her help.

"I've been given my two months' notice."

"Again?" Judy asked, slightly dispirited tone. "What happened? I thought this place was okay."

"Yeah, it was but then there was an… incident."

"Oh." Judy responded "I see." This wasn't anything new for Judy, she had heard it all before. After a few stern discussions about the fact a police officer couldn't expect to live under a bridge for the rest of his life, Judy finally convinced Nick to get a flat. Four months later Nick was already moving out.

She remembered how he turned up to work one day, joking about the place and saying his new place would be better and the place was a dump anyway, but she knew that wasn't it. She'd been there a few times and it was nice. It was an open plan with a small kitchen, large living room and a small bedroom with en-suite bathroom. For a single fox it was perfect, everything that Nick could have wanted. But the real reason for his sudden departure was always the same, he was a fox. His first flat was in a prey-majority building and it seemed some mammals had taken a dislike to him for no other reason than him being a fox and pressured the landlord to give him his notice which he was a bit too willing to give.

"Don't worry Carrots." Nick commented, a few months after the fact. "The place wasn't that great anyway. I've moving into a new place now and there are few more preds there so it'll be nice there. The landlord seems nice too. It'll be fine, trust me."

He was kicked out three months later. Zootopia was clearly still coming to terms with its inherent bias towards certain mammals and, even though Nick was the ZPD's first fox cop, that didn't prevent other mammals treating him like the stereotypical fox. No matter where Nick moved to eventually someone found a reason for hand him his notice or just turf him out apropos of nothing. Whether it be complaints of hustling, damages to the property, vague decriptions of 'unsavoury characters' seen going into his flat, accusations of selling drugs, an unpaid rent bill that only he seemed to be getting, there was always a reason. Judy had wondered why he never brought the ZPD in to help him but he knew that it wouldn't help anything. Judy had tried to help him on his third flat but it just made life worse for Nick. Abusive letters, rubbish piled outside his door, and the break-in where he flat was vandalised which had Nick leaving of his own accord, the only time he actually did so.

"Well, what was the reason this time?" Judy asked tentatively.

Nick paused for a second then, after letting out a long sigh, replied "I just wanted to make sure everything was alright."

It had been Nick's first day off in a couple of weeks and Nick was planning to do one thing and one thing only: absolutely nothing. It had been a while coming but Nick had freed up his calendar so that nothing could spoil his day, he was just going to veg out on the sofa, watch whatever was on the FilmFur network and just shove an obscene amount of snacks into his mouth while doing so. Bliss, Nick thought as he opened his fridge, a thought which was quickly replaced by the word bugger as he realised his fridge was completely barren.

"Damn it Nick!" he cried, slamming the fridge door in frustration. He thought he would had been alright until next week before going for another big shop. Nick begrudgingly grabbed his wallet and keys and left, leaving his fridge it's malevolent hum, cooling its hollow interior.

Locking the door behind himself, Nick turns down the corridor and begins to head down the seemingly endless flight of stairs to the ground floor only to be brought to a grinding halt by the obese frame of Ms Javahorn, the elderly rhino on the tenth floor whose progress was so mind numbingly slow that even sloths would be crying out for her to speed up. Eventually, Ms Javahorn got close to the fifth floor which would allow Nick to dart past and get down with a few moments of daylight left.

After fiddling on his phone for a while, Nick looked up to see the floor below had come into view over Ms Javahorn's wrinkled head. The floor was like all the others: dilapidated. Nothing seemed to have been clean, with dust accumulating everywhere and various splotches and stains marking the walls and floors. Nick had initially thought they were not blood, he had enough to deal with that in work. It didn't help that the corridor was lit solely by fluorescent lights, lending a dull and dreary atmosphere to the place, like some soulless office space. It couldn't be helped through; the buildings were so tightly packed together that natural light had no chance of finding a way in.

While pondering this scene below, a buck and a doe appeared into view, coming from the stairs below. He recognised the doe, she was fairly new to the building but he passed her on the stairs a couple of times. She had her ears pierced and had her head fur grown out and dyed deep purple, a Beatniks top on, slightly revealing one shoulder, and skin tight jeans. At a glance you'd dismiss her as some punk chick, but from the books on nursing that Nick saw her carry, he knew there was brains within the judged exterior.

The buck he'd never seen before, though he was clearly an athlete, the vibe could almost hit you square in the face. Varsity blazer, plains white tee, and slightly torn jeans, he looked the epitome of the stereotypical jock, with the muscles to boot and all. But to look at the, he seemed to be the one under her spell, his eyes practically eating her up as she drew him in for a kiss.

Nick blushed a little at their candour. Public Displays of Affection always made Nick a touch shy and having to look away, a fact that Judy found endlessly funny. It wasn't as if Nick was opposed to giving affection. Hand holding? Fine. Hugs? Great! Kissing? A little shiver coursed through his spine. They'd been together nearly three years yet kissing remained a private activity, away from judging eyes and the hurtful comments. "Perhaps one day" Nick thought, with a smirk "we can do that to…"

Just then Nick quickly snapped back to reality and saw his obstacle had finally touched down in the fifth floor. Not wanting to be trapped behind her again, Nick quickly dashed round her and bolted down the stairs straight to the convenience store, leaving the lovers to their business.

After an obscenely long queue wait and an unwanted amount of money spent, Nick returned up the stairs, laden with shopping while his pads screaming in agony as the plastic bags attempted to cut off all circulation. This shop was a bit bigger than usual, being weighed down with more snack materials for his day off. He never got tired of the cashier's odd look at his, the koala looking at him wide eyed as she put through his entirely vegetarian shopping through the till. He'd been shopping there for a while, but he always got odd looks for it. He'd been asked several times if he didn't want any insects or if he wanted to go to Bug Burga but he always just said "No, this is what I like".

Other cashiers would have given him some dirty look or whispered some passive aggressive comment just loud enough for him to hear, but ever since a few months back Nick always seemed to get this koala. She just always seemed amazed she was still shopping there and still getting the veggie options but never said anything and smiled at him. It was part of his job, but the normality of the forced sincerity of a customer service worker on minimum wage somehow pleased him.

He'd been coming to terms with his near vegetarianism as, while Nick still needed a bit of protein now and again, it was becoming less and less frequent. While Judy had proved a catalyst for his near herbivore diet, the reality was that Nick knew deep down bugs weren't his bag and had been moving away from them for quite some time. Even back when he had met up with Finnick all those years ago Nick was going out and getting salad boxes with the occasional side of blueberries if Nick was lucky sneak some away as a reward himself for a good day's work.

God, how Finnick used to look at him! Nick remembered looking over, munching away on lettuce leaves and carrot sticks as Finnick gawped at him in complete disbelief as this young fox happily inhaled his leafy lunch. He remembered the lectures Finnick gave, that eating nothing but veg was no way for a fox to live, that he was embarrassing him, that he should have some pride and eat what all other predators should. Nick acquiesced and started easting the bugs that Finnick happily gorged on, but still managed to get a few salad boxes or two while Finnick wasn't looking. Nick hadn't really noticed until now, but it seemed that no matter what, he was destined for an out of the ordinary predator life, something his pads were regretting as he made his way to the fifth floor.

Nick dumped the bags on the floor, not even caring about the contents anymore, as he quickly clenched and relaxed his paw pads in a bid to coax the blood back.

"Goddamn bags" Nick quietly growled, looking vehemently over at the synthetic scourge as if they were snickering at their effectiveness. It had been a while since he'd done a shop this big without calling for Zasda to so a delivery, but at least he now felt a bit of sympathy to the mammal who brought his shopping every other week, having to use the stairs since the lift got busted two months back.

Stooping back down to get the bags, Nick was stopped by a large thump emanating from down the hall. Nick looked down the empty hall, scanning the drab interior unable to locate the source of the noise. Probably nothing Nick thought, it was an old building, there were always weird noises going on in that old building, some of which he didn't want to think too deeply on. Picking the bags up, Nick headed towards the stairs again, his pads already regretting the decision.

"Ahh!"

Nick froze. Standing stock still, Nick just waited and listened. Something was up, something was definitely up. That noise sounded pained but he had to be sure, he couldn't just do something on a hunch. You never know, it might still be nothing and he could barge in on some unwitting mammal going about their day. He had to be sure. His ears twitched as he listened intently for anything. Nick became incredibly sensitive to his surroundings, the musty smell of the old building, his own shallow breathing, the weight of his shopping within his clenched paws. He stood and waited for that tell-tale sound that he hoped would never come, that would allow him to move away and get on with his day, allow him to brush off his instilled paranoia of odd noises and just to walk on without a care like anyone else would. He wanted that so much, just to walk on. To leave it behind him.

"Please!"

No such luck. Nick turned round and gently put the bags down, avoiding making too much noise. He gently padded down the corridor, listening against each door to pinpoint the source of the sound of distress. Leaning against each door, Nick listened intently for a few seconds before ruling it out and moving to the next one. Nick briefly considered how suspicious he would look if seen. A fox pressing his head against several doors listening for people within. If that didn't look like probable cause he didn't know what did.

Moving off from the third door, he leaned against room 504, with its number four hanging at a crooked angle. He pressed up against the door, his ear keenly seeking out any noises. He stayed against the door listening but only found waves of nothingness crashing against him. He pushed himself away and started towards the next door.

"Hnh"

Nick halted and backed up pretty quickly. Pressing his head against 504's door, Nick listened to be absolutely sure.

"Shurrup!"

Confirmation, damn it Nick thought as he pulled out his phone. He quickly scrolled through his phone and hovered over Judy's name. Judy would want to know he thought, but she was probably on shift now, and he didn't want to distract her, she might be in the middle of busting some perps right now. He scrolled back up and pressed down on Clawhauser, knowing this is probably what Judy would have told him to do anyway.

The phone rang a few times before Clawhauser picked up and, from the greeting he gave, he must have had a donut lodged somewhere in his gullet.

"Hey Mick, whar ya doin'?"

Nick sighed "Clawhauser, finish your donut before you speak. You're a receptionist for God's sake, act a little bit professional now and again."

He heard Clawhauser choke a little at the immediate scolding but still came back as bright as ever, this time donut-less.

"Sorry about that Nick. Fangmeyer just brought me a box of them and they're chocolate covered with sprinkles. He really gets the good stuff from that baker, but I'm betting it's because Lillian has a sweet spot for him. Anyway, isn't it your day off?"

"Yes it is" Nick returned in a hushed voice "but I've just heard some weird noises from a flat in my building and I think I need someone over here now."

"Oh right!" Clawhauser squeaked "Er, I'll send a car over now. Where are you by the way? You still at the Meadow Rise Building?"

"Yeah, it's on the fifth floor, room 504. Just get so-"

"Stop it please! Ahh!"

Nick swivelled round looking directly at the door.

"What was that?" Clawhauser asked, his voice quavering a bit.

"Not good, whatever it was. Screw it this can't wait I'm going in. You'd better me some back up."

"Hang on, I'm sending back up now. Don't do anything hasty Nick."

"I'm just gonna check if everything's alright. Just send the backup."

"Ni-".

Nick cut him off before he could say anything else, already moving towards the door. He really wished he had some of his gear with him instead of having it holed up at the station. Hell even some pepper spray would be nice about now. But Nick wasn't averse to hand-to-hand combat as, while he intensely avoided it in his conning days, his time at the academy proved his actually had a knack for it and had come in handy in his new profession once or twice. Nick slowly tested the door to see if it was unlocked, slowly moving the handle down and gently pushing. Not locked, well at least he didn't have to kick anything down.

If the weird noises hadn't already given the impression something was amiss, the room before him certainly did. It was a wreck. A vase was smashed on the floor, shards strewn across the floor; curtains torn and half hanging off the rail, and a series of scratch marks across the wooden floor, leading to a door at the back of the room.

Picking his way through the wreckage, Nick made his way to the door. The sounds of a struggle became disgustingly clearer every inch he approached.

"Please… please stop it." A young female voice cried out, her voice hoarse from tears and pain.

"Shut it bitch!" A male voice calmly but forcefully replied, before another pained cry from the female emanated from the back room.

Nick didn't need to hear anymore. He was going in. He reached for the handle and threw it open with his whole weight, the door slamming against a bookshelf and brining everything before him as still as a picture.

Frozen in tableau, the actors of this scene had their gazes fixed upon him, with uncertainty and confusion swirling together in their eyes, as if Nick had wandered onto set before his cue and thrown the players on stage into a state of bewilderment. The only characters in this production were the young couple from before, the buck and the doe and, unfortunately, they were not acting out some lovers play.

The doe was crumpled on the ground as if thrown there, as if she were some wretched item that no longer served any purpose to its former owner. Her face did not hold that sleek beauty a mere hour before, being matted in crimson and dabbed in deep blue. The shin tight jeans she wore before was shredded, her top having been ripped off and scraps of it were scattered around her autumn leaves.

The buck stood over her defenceless form, his hooves raised and bloodied. He recovered from the confusion first, maintaining his stance while still looking over his shoulder at the new arrival as if he were a speck of dust that could easily been blown away.

"I suggest you leave little fox" the buck suggested calmly, as if offering advice to a friend. "Just go now and you won't have to see any unpleasantness."

Nick remained where he was, still processing the scene, still looking down at the doe who was now avoiding his stare, covering herself, ashamed at being seen like this. Nick looked back up to the buck who hadn't moved an inch, his hoof still raised as if it were all on pause and Nick leaving and the door clicking shut would be akin to hitting the play button.

"I suggest you come quietly sir" Nick replied, keeping his voice from betraying his shock and horror.

The buck retained his stillness for a moment, before letting out a brief laugh, lowered his arm, and facing the newcomer.

"I won't ask you nicely again pred. Turn around and close the door."

Nick raised his arms into a protective stance. "I'm sorry, I'm not gonna do that. Now you're gonna be really nice and get down on the ground with your hooves behind your back."

"Oh am I?" The buck answered, forcefully stepping forward to unsettle Nick. "Suppose I don't want to?"

"Well in that case I guess I'm gonna have to put you down there for you aren't I?"

The buck lunged forward, arm outstretched ready to grasp Nick's neck. Nick deftly swept aside, leaving the buck to careen past him, fall through the door and land on his face in the living room. Nick knew that he couldn't take the buck down one on one, he his size and muscular bulk would make it nigh impossible for him to do it without his police equipment and if he got a good swing on him then he knew he wouldn't be getting up any time soon.

The buck jumped back up, enraged and snorting as if he were an angered bull. He grunted and charged at Nick again. Moving swiftly, Nick threw himself on the ground and rolled between the oncoming bucks legs, leaving him safe in the living room while the buck slammed into the bed. Nick grinned to himself. It was always the big lugs who thought they could smash him into a pulp that ended up on their backs, lungs desperately clawing for oxygen while Nick scuffed the, unscathed and barely out of breath. He may not be the strongest mammal out there, but so long as he didn't get caught, the fight's pretty much over before it began.

The buck, clearly irritated at being outmanoeuvred twice in quick succession, whirled round and glared into the fox's calm and taunting jade eyes. The doe pressed herself against the wall, as if by sheer force of will she would be able to phase through the wall and end up in the next flat.

"You're pretty quick aren't you?" the buck said, moving forward slowly this time.

"You learn a few things in my line of work." Nick coyly replied, making sure to step back in time with the buck, putting some furniture between them.

The buck wasn't charging around anymore, taking measured thought out steps towards him, looking for an opening to get his hooves on him. Nick kept his cool expression, but internally was frantically looking for a way to get this buck down. Backup shouldn't be too far away but given how he had seen what this guy was capable of he wasn't going to take his chances at playing fox hunt.

"Oh, what line of work is that?" the buck enquired, moving himself towards the table. "Dealer? Con man? Pimp? I bet that's why you're here for his fuckin' skank" gesturing to the door being him with his head. "She'd be a good fuck; I can see why you're interested. Lotta prey would prey to have her. Hell, a lot of preds wouldn't mind a go either."

Nick kept calm. This was good. Keep your distance and keep him talking, didn't matter what about just keep him talking. The longer he's talking, the more chance the ZPD are gonna bust in here and arrest this arrogant prick.

"Unfortunately not, just heard the noise. Made quite a mess of her haven't you? What was it, did she make you feel a bit stupid with words like no?"

For a moment Nick thought he'd pushed it too far, the buck's face contorting with rage. "That bitch fucking led me on! Kissing me, dragging me in her apartment and for what? 'Oh, I'm not ready yet. She wanted it to be special.' Spouting all kinds of crap. Not ready yet? Like fuck she wasn't ready. She was practically wet for me, tongue down my throat, and she doesn't want to put out?! Fucking bitch. I'm not waiting. She's mine."

All through this misogynistic preaching, Nick looked around for a way to incapacitate the buck. If he could get him down and cuff him somehow, he'd feel a lot better about this situation. His eyes frantically searched the room for something, anything to bring down the menacing buck before him. Remote control? No. Book? No? Gaffa tape? No. Stuffed Toys? No. Fa-, wait a minute. Nick's eyes glanced back across to a small table near the door, with a roll of gaffa tape just sitting there.

Nick's mind kicked into overdrive, running through the plan in his head, looking for possible ways his plan could go awry and seeking to iron them out. Soon he had his plan. It wasn't pretty but it was all he had.

All the while the buck continued his sermon on backward thinking. "I saw her at college. Her sleek form, luscious fur, bewitching eyes. I knew I was going to have her, to make her mine. I don't care if she doesn't want me, she is mine and once I'm done with her, no-one else will touch her. I'll go to clubs and bars and point her out to friends, strangers, anyone and say: that doe there, she's mine and you can't have her."

Mentally keying himself to make his move, Nick re-joined the one-sided conversation.

"Sorry to burst your bubble there champ but she's not yours. She's a mammal, not some rare item to show off."

"Ha, is that what you think?" The buck's anger returning to the fox before him. "It's the natural order of things. I fight off the competition, establish myself as the dominant male, and then I take what's mine. But she just wouldn't have it the natural way, the right way, so I had to just, remind her."

Nick clenched his paws, still trying to stay cool as the doe wept in the next room.

"So if we go by your natural ways then I'd have all the rights in the world to pick my teeth with your pretty antlers after I'd had my fill of you." Nick jabbed.

"You? Against me? Please, you wouldn't stand a chance. You're quick I'll admit, but you can't go on like that forever. I could do this for days." He bragged, rotating his shoulders as if preparing to strike as he circled Nick round the table.

Going against the buck's motions, Nick was getting close to the prime position. Well, now or never Nick thought, gearing himself up for what could probably be quite a few bruises.

"Sorry friend, but that doesn't fly here. You can be an asshole all you like but as soon as you laid a hoof on her you became my problem. Being savage in the past might have gotten you somewhere, but here, in the modern world, all you are is some spoilt little prick you who doesn't like not getting his own way. You're like a child, a stupid, spoilt, pathetic child."

"You mother-". The buck jumped up and immediately Nick sprang into action, kicking the table with all his might. The table slammed into the buck's legs, throwing off his assault and sending him plummeting through the table blow him in an almighty crash. Nick dashed over to cabinet, grabbed the gaffa tap and hopped onto the buck, still woozy from being floored so forcefully. Nick crabbed his arms, crossing them behind his back and, while keeping them in place with his knees, quickly began to tie them up in tape. After nearly using half the roll, Nick bit off the tape and began to repeat the process with his legs.

Jumping off the buck, Nick looked at the dazed buck tied up like an ancient hunting party's kill. He must have hit the table and floor harder than he thought since he was still gurgling in half-consciousness. Nick felt a bit smug with himself, it's not every day you go in unarmed against a buck in his prime and come away unharmed. He bet Carrots would be proud of him when she heard. He could see her face now, almost blinding with the amount of delight in her eyes, her face radiating practically red with, red with…. Nick instantly turned away from his self-congratulatory thoughts and turned toward the bedroom door.

Still cowering in the corner, her arms hugging her long legs against her exposed chest, shivering in the corner. Nick slowly approached, reaching out his paw to close the distance between them.

"Hey ma'am, you okay?" Nick asked, keeping his tone soft and approachable.

The doe remained silent, still looking blankly over her arms into the void, perhaps not even noticing Nick's presence. Nick moved closer, crouching down in front of her directly in her eye line.

"Ma'am" Nick repeated, putting his paw against her arm "you okay?"

The doe remained staring into the void for a few a little while then before her whole being juddered back into life and finally noticed the fox in front of her. Staring at the fox, she tried to push herself away but, knowing what she was thinking, let go and put his paws up.

"Her ma'am it's okay, I'm not here to hurt you. Are you okay?"

The doe still looked like she was in a state of shock, shivering and glancing around nervously.

"Is… is he gone?"

"No, but he will be soon. I tied him up. He's not going anywhere."

The doe, although a bit reassured still looked confused and was still shivering in shock.

"Ma'am, can you tell me your name? You remember your name?"

The doe looked at Nick, taking a moment to process the question before finally responding.

"Joan… my name's Joan."

"Okay Joan, that's brilliant. My name's Nick, I'm a Police Officer with the ZPD. I'm here to help you."

Joan smiled a little at the news, but it didn't last long before tears began welling up in her eyes.

"I don't know what I did wrong." She cried, gasping for air to refuel the tears. "Maybe I should have, maybe it's my fault. I just wasn't ready yet but he was. I was being so selfish."

Nick held her hooves in his paws.

"You did nothing wrong. You weren't ready and that's the end of the matter. No-one should ever, ever react like this. He is just some small minded asshole who doesn't like not getting what he wants and if he doesn't understand a word little cubs can understand that's his problem, not yours."

Joan looked up at Nick, tears still flowing. "I… I feel a bit dizzy."

"I'm not surprised. You just get comfy but don't fall asleep. I've got some backup coming. They'll take care of you okay?"

Joan nodded, widening her eyes a bit to show Nick she wasn't about to drop off.

"I'm just going to check on Mr Fabulous in there. I won't be a minute, okay?"

Joan looked a bit apprehensive, but then nodded slowly. Getting up, Nick knew he had to call Clawhauser to see where anybody was, Joan needed to see a doctor. Nick was about to go for his phone when what sounded like a gargantuan fish flopping around emanated from the next room. Nick glanced over to the Joan, who was staring at the door as if waiting for the hurricane to crash through it and travel directly through her.

"Don't worry, I'll sort it out" Nick reassured, edging out of the room to make sure the binds weren't failing him.

Still struggling on the floor, the buck fruitlessly attempted to free himself from his restraint but the gaffa tape resiliently clung against his fur. I should probably mention gaffa tape as alternate handcuff Nick mentally noted before standing before the buck's head.

"Having a little trouble there, champ?" Nick asked smugly.

If the word anger could have been created in corporeal form, it was this buck in front of him. His glare was so intense that Nick swore he could be trying to get him to spontaneously combust.

"You fucking asshole!"

"Hey, there are kids on this floor" Nick sarcastically chided. "We don't want them to learn bad words from a bad man now do we?"

The buck struggled at the tape again, desperately trying to break his chains and possibly use them to strangle Nick, pull out the guts from his limp corpse, and wear him like a high end scarf.

"Don't bother slugger, that gaffa tape will hold you there until the ZPD turn up and it'll hurt something terrible when it comes off. I wonder how cold the cuffs will feel on exposed skin? Guess I'll find out soon."

Suddenly the buck stopped wriggling and looked up as far as he could, scanning the fox from head to toe.

"Oh you're that fox. I must admit I didn't recognise you out of your uniform. Seen you on all the billboards and shit. ZPD's first fox cop right?"

"And we have a winner!" Nick said in a faux gameshow host voice, pretending to hold a microphone in one paw while signalling to the buck with open paw. "Honestly thought I'd be a bit more well known by now, I did help solve the Night Howler case."

"Oh right, you were with that bunny. Now it makes sense."

Nick froze. "What do you mean by that?" Nick probed, already dreading was what to come.

The buck grinned. "You know; I should have gotten it was you. I saw you with that bunny cop but you were in street clothes so it somehow didn't quite click. No wonder you helped that bitch in there, you a bit of a preyo or something?"

Angered, Nick went to shut him up but, as soon as the words were formed in his mouth, his lips refused to release them. They faltered and turned to ash and fell down his throat with a bitter taste.

"HA! I thought so! Maybe not for that bint in there but definitely for that rabbit. Wow! You must be grasping for some pretty low hanging fruit if you're having to sow your oats outside your own species! Fucking hell, you are a pathetic bastard! They can dress you as fine as they like and pin as many meddles as they want on you, but you're no predator, you're nothing. At least I've got some dignity in staying in my own kind but you, holy fuck you've not even got that!"

Nick stood motionless, compartmentalising everything he was saying and keeping it all for the lengthy report he would regale whoever showed up. He was used to this, being judged, he could handle this. All he had to do was just soak it up like a sponge and forget all about it in the morning.

"But then again, that bunny must be a fucking embarrassment as well to go with the likes of you."

Nick's paw clenched. The buck smirked.

"I bet her parents are so proud, going off her natural enemy. Their child betrays their way of life to become a cop. That's fine though, she's a success. Famous even. That'll quell their fears. But a fox for a mate! I bet they won't even look her in the eye again.

But hey, it must be good for you! Luring a sweet, innocent bunny into your lair. I bet you've wondered it. How she tastes, how those little bones you crack in your jaw. I bet you dream it so vividly. Each and every bite."

Nick paused It was the first time he'd stopped, as if he needed a moment to get the taste of bile of out his mouth. They'd walked all the way straight through the centre; down the bustling streets; past the throngs of people cueing to for ice creams, corn on the cob, bug burga's, and carrot sticks; turning down short cuts; climbing steps, until they eventually right outside Judy's front door. Judy was so engrossed in it all that she hadn't even noticed and took a couple of moments before she clicked where she was.

"So what happened then?" Judy remarked, fumbling for her keys as she did so.

Nick had kept so calm throughout his telling of the story. His face and voice without emotion, as if had been happening to someone else, not himself. She guessed it was a coping mechanism of some sort, that 'don't let them see they go to you' mentality he had developed over the years.

"Nothing much. Delgato and Grizzoli turned up and managed to stop me doing anything serious. Said they heard me from two floors down I was blowing my top so much. By the time they'd got to the floor it appears I'd drawn quite a crowd."

Judy grasped her keys and opened the door, ushering Nick inside as he continued.

"They tried dissuading me but apparently I was too angry to listen to reason. Grizzoli pulled me away while Delgato saw to that prick. Throughout it all I didn't really make sense of anything. It was like I was blind with fury. I didn't register anything except my hatred of the things he'd said, the things he'd said about you, about what I'd do to you.

It was only when I felt everyone's eyes on me that snapped me out of it. It was if the entire building came out to see me. All those eyes looking at me, a predator going berserk. I could see it in their eyes. They all feared me. I saw a raccoon hold her cub that little bit tighter as Grizzoli dragged me away. I'd failed. I'd saved her but I'd failed."

Nick sat on the bed, looking down at his paws as if he had committed some heinous crime.

"It was quite for a few days. He got arrested and the Joan got taken to hospital. I gave a statement and a few days extra leave to 'compose myself' as Bogo said."

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" Judy asked, unable to keep it in anymore. "Did Bogo tell you to keep quiet? I swear next time I see him."

"Hey don't go blaming buffalo butt" Nick interjected, his wit returning a little. "I kept this quiet. I thought I'd tell you after a few days when I came back and it all cooled off so I could laugh about it. But then the letters came."

From his pocket Nick pulled out a crumpled, but folded piece of paper and held it lightly in his paws.

"I got a ton of these." Nick began. "It was only a few to start with but then they just kept coming. I could hardly open my door sometimes. Some were quite eloquently written, others not such a high standard, but they all gave the same message. I think this one sums it up best."

Nick proffered the note to Judy. Hesitant, Judy took it from his paw and, turning the room's solitary wooden chair to face him, sat down before unfolding it. Judy recoiled in disgust. The note simply read, in all capitals, 'LEAVE SAVAGE'. Judy looked up at Nick. Why would he keep this? Why didn't he tell me? How many of these did he get?

"All the others had their own stings, their disgusting ways of telling me how wrong I was, how I shouldn't be anywhere near prey, how foxes are all the same, but that one floored me. I thought I could somehow ride it all out until I got that one."

Puzzled, Judy looked back down at the note again. It was so simple; why would it be so traumatic? That's when she realised. It was done in red crayon. She looked at Nick, nearly in tears.

"Hey it's okay, I cried a little too. That night the landlord, Ms Gnawton, came up to see me. She's really nice, she's one of those older beavers that does all that Beaver Lodge stuff, you know, tee chewing circles and everything. But she was nice though. She didn't give a damn about my species, just thought I was a 'nice young fox'. I wouldn't cross her though. I remember one time seeing her in the street full on yelling at some bear cub for littering. I've never seen a bear regret so much saying the phrase 'old-timer' before in my life.

Anyway she comes up and says she's tried to keep everyone calm but it's become impossible. After the little 'incident' it seems most the building was threatening to leave if something wasn't done about me. She didn't believe it until she saw the petition pushed through her door, full with names, addresses of where they were going to go, and a draft to the Prey Post getting them to smear her and her 'dangerous predator building'. So I had to go."

Nick relaxed, pushing himself further onto the bed, his back resting against the paper thin wall. The silence set in, Judy unable to immediately say anything, the only sound being the soft beginnings of rain tapping against the window. The room's usually stale air, a feature of Judy's room that she had become accustomed to, had somehow become oppressive and uncomfortable. Judy wondered how long Nick had felt walking around with this feeling. He had been mistrusted as a predator all his life, a fact that Judy was uncomfortably aware of, but to be treated so after trying to do good, to help improve himself and help the world, only to be rejected due to a single outburst.

If I had done that, I'd be forgiven, Judy thought, hell, I'd be met by a standing ovation for standing up for against a dangerous and bigoted mammal that towers over me. But for Nick? Judy looked at him, his eyes half closed, arms hanging limp from his sides, it was as if getting that out of him had drained all his energy.

Judy pushed herself out her chair and gently placed herself against Nick's body, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her head against his chest.

"Nick, you are not the mammal they say you are. They were totally unjustified in what they did, forcing you out because of their prejudices and ignorance. You are one of the sweetest people that I have ever had the pleasure to know and if they refuse to see that then that is their problem."

Nick placed his arms around Judy's back, reciprocating the hug.

"Zootopia is still on a learning curve about its own inherent specism. I hoped we would have come a bit further along by now but there's always more to do isn't there?"

"That's an understatement" Nick chuckled.

"I know, but I know we can do it. We need to set the example. Things are changing though. Just think, four years ago Zootopia was about to tear itself apart because of what I said about predators and look at Zootopia now. It might not be perfect yet but it's getting a better little by little, we've just got to keep going."

"I wish it were as simple as that Carrots" Nick replied dryly "but this stuff has deep roots. I've been dealing with it most my life. Things are improving but I don't think this city will be truly come round to loving the idea of predators and prey co-existing until long after I'm gone."

"Hey, I love the idea." And with that Judy leaned up and softly kissed Nick. Nick seemed a little stunned at first but he soon began reciprocating, exploring Judy's mouth with the tip of his tongue to find his dancing partner.

It had taken a while for Nick to become comfortable kissing Judy as, for his bravado, Nick was quite nervous about being intimate with Judy. He was always asking was she okay or if she wanted to stop, which were the last things she wanted. After a while Judy asked point blank if Nick was sure about the relationship. The look of sheer horror told Judy that splitting up was definitely not on Nick's mind.

They had a sit down and Judy let Nick voice all his concerns, about his fears about cutting her tongue with his teeth while kissing, the possibility of hurting Judy during sex, the fear that if Judy disliked it would eventually ruin their relationship. Nick had even struggled to get the last one out. Judy just kissed him there and then and held him close. She reassured him and explained that she was a little scared too, about it all being new and how they weren't going to be sure what to do where their limits were, but it was something they were going to work through it together. Ever since that night they'd enjoyed quite a few occasions of working through it together.

Pulling out of the kiss, Judy looked into Nick's eyes, the warmth having returned.

"You know how to make things better don't you Carrots?"

"Hey, it's called a hustle sweetheart." Judy quipped.

Nick laughed which set off Judy's giggling, while the rain outside being dispelled by rays of sunshine.

"So how long have got left to look for a place then?" Judy enquired, coming back to the pressing matter at hand.

"I've still got time." Nick reassured her.

"How much?" Judy reiterated, more serious now.

"About nine days."

"Nine days?!" Judy replied, stunned. "How have you not gotten a place now!"

"It seems my reputation has preceded me and not many places are keen on having me stay."

Judy bounded over to the computer, instantly booting it up. "There's got to be somewhere you can go."

"Trust me I've looked" Nick replied with a slight hint of exasperation. "Unless I'm willing to fork out most my pay check and possibly a limb, there's nowhere that seems willing to take a fox."

"Have you not tried moving in with someone? What about Finnick? Clawhauser? Flash?"

"Finnick lives in a van so I don't think he has the floor space for me; I asked Clawhauser but he said the landlord wouldn't allow it, and Flash has moved in with Priscilla so I don't think I want to disturb that love nest, they've taken so long to get together in the first place. Trust me, there's nowhere."

"WHY DON'T YOU MOVE IN TOGETHER?"

Nick and Judy both spun round to the narrow partition where the familiar voice emanated from.

"BUCKY, STOP LISTENING IN THEIR PRIVATE CONVERSATION!"

"DON'T ACT LIKE YOU WEREN'T LISTENING TOO PRONK! WHY DON'T THEY MOVE IN TOGETHER? THEY'VE BEEN A COUPLE FOREVER!"

"I DON'T KNOW BUT IT'S THEIR BUSINESS SO SHUT UP!"

"NO YOU SHUT UP"!

"NO YOU SHUT UP"!

"NO YOU SHUT UP"!

"NO YOU SHUT UP"!

"NO YOU SHUT UP"!

At this point Nick and Judy silently left the room and walked away as Bucky and Pronk carried on their usual civilised conversation.

"So what do you think?" Nick and Judy had gone into a coffee shop that served a particular blueberry infused tea that Nick was especially fond of. Judy had just raised her own carrot juice to her mouth as Nick popped the question.

"Of what?" Judy said, carefully placing the juice back down on the table un-sipped.

"Moving in together. What do you think?"

"I don't know, my room's not exactly built for two."

"Your room's not even built for one." Nick interjected, smirking at his own joke. "Seriously, I've known you for what five years or so now and the only thing that's changed about that room is the picture of us on your desk."

Judy blushed a little but had to admit that her room was a little on the sparse side. She'd always intended to spruce it up a little or at least move out to somewhere a little bigger but just never got round to doing it, it was just convenient where it was and she didn't need anywhere bigger until now.

"Seriously Fluff, I'm not trying to put pressure on you but I really need somewhere to stay. Plus, if it doesn't work out, I can find somewhere else to stay without the impending doom of living under a bridge again hanging over me. Besides, it's not as if I haven't had a certain amount of sleepovers at your place."

Judy laughed and punched his arm, with Nick rubbing his arm in his half jest, half actual pain.

"Alright, valid point Nick and if Bucky and Pronk can make it work in that tiny room I don't see how we couldn't."

"Thank you Judy!" Nick exclaimed, lunging across the table and squishing Judy into his chest.

"No problem Nick, now please let go, people are staring and I can't breathe!"

Nick instantly let go, apologising profusely as the onlookers gave wary glances over at the eccentric couple in the corner.

After that, everything seemed to go so quickly. Judy's landlady, Dharma Armadillo was quite good about it, having seen Nick and Judy together over the years and had no problem letting Nick move in. Nick then gathered his belongings, which only comprised of his normal clothes, uniform, as well as a few other bits and bobs he had picked up over the years.

After being a couple for so long Nick and Judy had an easier time than others moving in together, yet there were still the little things they hadn't anticipated. Firstly, whereas Nick would gladly lie in until the sun was beginning to descend in the east, Judy was up at the crack of dawn every day, alarm blaring right into Nick's ears. Eventually, after Nick threatened to smash the alarm clock underfoot, they compromised to have alarm-less days off.

Secondly, much to Judy's chagrin, it appeared that Nick was a bit of a snack stealer. After Nick had bought a tiny fridge, Judy finally had somewhere to put her carrot sticks, celery, and blueberry punnets. However, after a few snacks going missing, Judy eventually caught Nick red-handed, which was quite apt with the strawberries staining his fur.

But then there were the sweet things, like when Judy came home exhausted after pulling some overtime doing paperwork. Nick had managed to swindle someone into taking his shift and, inserting her keys into the lock, Judy fully expected to see an unconscious Nick sprawled on the bed, phone on his chest shining out like a beacon in the darkening room.

The reality however was somewhat different, with Nick somehow still awake at this late hour, sitting on a worn but comfortable looking sofa staring at a small TV placed on the other side of the room. Nick looked over at her, his tired eyes struggling to stay open. All the questions of how he managed to get the furniture up here, get it all wired up, got Ms Armadillo's permission and several others evaporated from her mind as the thought of Nick spending his day of making the place a bit homely.

"Welcome home Fluff, you wanna sit down?" Nick said, patting the space next to him.

"God yes" Judy replied before flopping down limply onto the sofa, before curling up next to Nick. Nick leaned over the arm of the chair and picked up a box, passing it to Judy.

"Hungry?"

The box smelled so delightful and Judy was so ravenous that she was hardly about to question what was in it. Inside was a vegetarian pizza, complete with broccoli, sweetcorn, mushrooms, peppers, and a vegetarian cheese that Judy adored. Taking a slice and eagerly devouring it while Nick looked on, smirking as he did so and wrapping his arm round her shoulder.

They collected so many things in that tiny room that by the time they were leaving they were simply stared in absolute amazement at the amount of stuff they had collected in the space of a single year. But they all had their joys, their sadness', their squabbles, their truce's, their dead days, their active nights. It was all there, to be put in boxes and moved somewhere where they could make more memories.

With the last box dumped in the room, Judy collapsed on the floor, the energy having been positively drained from her body. Getting back her breathe, Judy took in their new home. The flat was generously given by Fru-Fru as a wedding gift, having been appalled at the manner in which they were living and, despite their protests, insisted they needed something better. Fortunately, she heeded their advice on perhaps not going through Mr Big to get the flat as their connection to him was already a tentative issue at work and getting gifts of a new flat would probably take them over the edge of what Bogo was willing to permit.

The flat Fru-Fru managed to wrangle for them was a much needed upgrade for them. With multiple rooms, including their own bathroom and kitchen-diner, the flat was already immeasurably better than the Grand Pangolin Arms. Light flowed in from the immaculate glass doors that leg to a small balcony complete with tiny table and chairs for al fresco breakfasts on sunny mornings and relaxed coffees in glow of the setting sun.

Judy was brought out of this reverie as the sounds of laboured footsteps and pained grunts entered the room as Nick and Clawhauser slowly waddled into the room and dropped the sofa to the ground before collapsing on it themselves, both panting, tongue lolling out of their mouths.

"Remind me Nick" Clawhauser said between gasps for air "why did I help you again?"

"Because you love us?" Nick replied, voice dripping in faux schmaltz.

"True."

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll have an extra-large 'Thank You' box on your desk tomorrow, with extra sprinkles."

Clawhauser immediately perked up at the prospect of donuts, his most blatant among his many Achilles Heel's. After Clawhauser left, head filled with pastry delights, Nick and Judy became unpacking and making the flat their own. As Judy pulled out some of her rabbit plushies out of a box, a sliding sound suddenly caught her attention. Turning round, a small envelope was protruding from under the door. She grabbed it and turned it over, with it being simply addressed Nick Wilde.

"Nick?"

"Hmm?" Nick replied, busying himself with the TV.

"A letter's just come under the door to you."

"A what?"

"A letter, it's got your name on it"

"Thank weird" Nick got up and crossed over to Judy. "I've not even told my mum my address, let alone anyone else yet."

Nick tore it open and brought out the single sheet of folded paper. Flipping it open, Nick's eyes changed and he suddenly pushed past Judy and flung open the door. Judy went out to the motionless fox staring down the hallway. Judy followed his eyes down the empty corridor before looking back up to Nick.

"What's the letter say? From someone you know?"

Nick breathed out then smiled. Facing Judy, he handed the letter to her. Taking it in her paws she saw, written in a delicate hand, 'Thank you, Joan.' Judy smiled and took Nick's paw in hers, before silently returning to their flat, shutting the door softly behind them.

Apologies in the late post but I have been busy and I've wanted to get this right. I hope you enjoy the new chapter. As always, all Zootopia characters are owned by Disney and I don't own any of it.