Time for Chapter 4. I hope you guys are liking the story so far. For this chapter, Nick and Judy walk around the farm and try to get to know each other better. I like the fact that in the movie, Nick and Judy don't really have anything in common, yet they work well together. That's basically what this chapter is all about. I feel like this is gonna be a really cute chapter filled with fluff. Let's get this started right now.
After being reunited, Nick and Judy decided to spend some time together looking around the Hopps family farm. The two were currently walking side by side near the carrots field. Judy was skipping more than walking.
"So Judy, your family runs a carrot farm?" Nick asked.
"Yep. We're a family full of carrot farmers." Judy stated. "But just not carrots. Radishes, beets, lettuce, squash, and a bunch of others things. We grow it all."
"Huh. That's pretty cool." Nick said.
"Yeah. But it's not really an exciting job. But we do have plenty of food. So we never have to worry about starving." Judy said.
"That's a good thing." Nick said. As fun as knowing about the farm was, Nick really wanted to know more about Judy herself. "So Judy, the last time we met we didn't really talk about each other much." Nick stated. "So how about we start now?"
"Okay. What should we talk about first?" Judy asked.
"Ummm... How about our full names first?" Nick said. "I like to be called Nick, but my full name is Nicholas Piberius Wilde. What about you, Judy?"
"It's Judith Laverne Hopps." Judy said.
Nick started to snicker a bit.
"Laverne. That's a funny middle name." Nick said still snickering.
"You're one to talk, Piberius." Judy said giving Nick a sly look.
"Hey! I was named after one of my great uncles." Nick said in a bit of a fret.
"And I was named of one of my aunts." Judy said. "One of my many... many aunts." Judy mumbled. Judy then decided to ask Nick about his family. "So Nick, what do your parents do?"
"Pop runs a suit and tailoring shop and my mom helps him. The shop's name is "Wilde and Son". Guess who the son is?" Nick said pointing at himself. "It's a small shop, but we still do okay, I guess. My dad hopes that one day, mammals all over the city of Zootopia would come to his shop for his suits."
"Wow. Seems like your dad has a big dream." Judy stated.
"Yeah. But it's still pretty small now." Nick said. "Pa tried to get a loan for a bigger store, but his idea got rejected by almost every loan company he went to. I'm pretty sure it was because he was a fox."
Judy's ears drooped when she hears that.
"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that." Judy said looking sad.
"It's fine. Don't worry about." Nick said to Judy. "Let's talk about something else. Those others kids you were with were they all your brothers and sisters?"
"SOME of my brothers and sisters, but not all my brothers and sisters." Judy said with her ears back up.
"Some? How many brothers and sisters do you have?" Nick asked.
"275." Judy said.
"275?!" Nick shouted out as he jumped back. "THAT MANY?!"
"Well... more soon. Mom's pregnant... again." Judy said not too happy.
"Wow. Umm... you don't sound too excited about it." Nick said noticing Judy's tone.
"It's just that... there are so many of us already." Judy stated. "It's like I have a brother or sister for every day of the week."
"I see. Must be hard to have so many brothers and sisters." Nick said. "In Zootopia, I think most bunny families have as high as 30 kids. Some families even only have 1 kid."
"The lucky ones." Judy said.
"Well, I guess it would be hard to raise such a huge family in a city like Zootopia." Nick stated. "I mean, do you know how much rent would be for the number of family members you have to live in a tiny apartment? Pretty high. Guess living out in the country makes it easy for a family as big as yours."
"Yeah. You're right about that." Judy said. "What about you, Nick? Do you have any brothers or sisters?"
"I'm... an only child." Nick said looking a little sad.
"Oh." Judy said as her ears drooped.
"Yeah. I get lonely sometimes, but at least I don't have to share my things." Nick said.
"Nick. Please tell me. On a scale of 1 to 10, how good is it to be a only child?" Judy asked looking a bit serious.
"What?" Nick said looking surprised.
"Please? I need to know." Judy said.
"Uhhh... 6 or 7... I guess." Nick said shrugging. "I don't know how I should answer you."
"Do YOU have to wait in a long line just to use the bathroom?" Judy asked with a straight face.
"No." Nick answered.
"Do YOU have to run to the dining hall for EVERY meal just so you don't eat last?" Judy asked.
"No." Nick answered.
"Do you have to wear your older siblings hand-me-downs, as well as share them with your other siblings?"
"No." Nick answered once again.
"Somehow, I already want your life." Judy said.
"Hahahaha!" Nick laughed. He couldn't believe someone wishes to have "his" life. "I don't think you really want my life, Judy. Besides, having so many brothers and sister can't be that bad. I wish I had some."
"You can have some of mine." Judy said joking a bit.
"Hahahaha! You can't be serious." Nick said laughing again.
"What? I have plenty. I don't mind." Judy said joking some more.
"I don't think your mom and dad would be happy about that." Nick stated.
"Yeah. Guess your right about that." Judy said. "How about YOUR parents just adopt me?"
Nick then started to burst into laughter even more than before. Could you blame him? A rabbit wanting to be adopted into a family of foxes.
"Hahaha... sorry. Heehee... it's just... too... haha... funny." Nick said still laughing.
"Hey. I can be a fox." Judy said firmly.
"Nooooot really." Nick said finally calming down. "You're missing a few things."
"Like what?" Judy asked.
"Do you have a long bushy tail?" Nick asked.
"No." Judy answered.
"Pointed ears?" Nick asked as he twitches his ears a bit.
"No." Judy answered.
"Long bushy fur?" Nick asked.
"No." Judy answered again.
"Pawpads?" Nick said holding his paw up.
"No." Judy answered once again.
"See, you kinda need all of those to be a fox." Nick said with a smirk. "Not to mention, a nice pair of chompers like these." Nick then grinned at Judy with his sharp teeth showing. Seeing this, Judy stepped back a bit.
"Woah!" Judy said little a bit scared. Nick noticed.
"Oh! Wait! I'm sorry." Nick said. "I wasn't trying to scare you or anything."
"No. It's okay." Judy said not looking scared anymore. "It's just that I'm not used to hanging out with mammals who have very... sharp teeth."
"Most of them are still my baby teeth." Nick stated. "When I become an adult, my adult teeth are gonna be even sharper."
"Oh, my." Judy said looking surprised.
"But... it's not like foxes have the SHARPEST set of teeth on a mammal." Nick said while scratching the back of his head. "So you don't have to worry too much. Now back to the subject at paw." Nick decided they should go back to talking about Judy's siblings. "You should be happy to have so many siblings. It means you're never really alone."
"Yeah. Even if it can be a pain to live with all of them sometimes, I do love all my siblings." Judy said with a smile.
"You're a lucky bunny, Judy." Nick said.
"Thanks." Judy said. "We've been walking near the carrot crops for a while. How about I show you where we grow our other crops?"
"Sure. Lead the way, Carrots." Nick said.
When Nick called Judy, Carrots, it made her a bit curious to be called that.
"Carrots?" Judy said tilting her head.
"My nickname for you." Nick said. "What? You don't like it? If you don't, then I can just stick with..."
"Actually... I kinda like it. Okay. You can call me Carrots if you want." Judy said with a smile. "Just as long as I can have a nickname for you."
"Depends. What do you have in mind?" Nick asked.
"How abooooout..." Judy tried to think of a good nickname for Nick. Then one came to mind. "Slick? As in Slick Nick."
"Hahaha! Pop always calls me that." Nick said. "So I can't see why you shouldn't."
"Great! Alright, let's go... Slick." Judy said with a smile.
"Right behind you... Carrots." Nick said smiling as well.
Now with the nicknames, they dubbed to each other, Nick and Judy, or in this case, Slick and Carrots, decided to see more of the fields and crops around the farm. While doing that, the two of them talked more about things. While near the patches of lettuce, Judy told Nick about a few of her brothers and sisters and that she was from the fourth litter. Nick did his best to try to remember every brother or sister Judy mentioned. Judy told Nick that he didn't have to. But Nick wanted to. Nick told Judy on how when he's older, he wants to know everyone in the city of Zootopia. With a population that was at least 8 times higher than the population of Bunnyburrow, Judy believed that it was an impossible task, but Nick was determined to try. He told Judy on how he already knows all his dad's regular customers, half the mammals at his school, and a few people at the stores he goes to. So he knew quite a lot of people. Judy was quite impressed.
While crossing the cornfields, Nick decided to talk to Judy about the food that she like.
"What's your favorite food, Judy?" Nick asked. "No, wait? Let me guess. Carrots."
"What? Because I'm a rabbit, my favorite food has to be carrots?" Judy said in a fret that Nick was going with the regular rabbit stereotype.
"Well is it?" Nick asked.
"... Yes." Judy said admitting it.
"Ha! Knew it." Nick said smirking.
"Well, what about you?" Judy asked. "Assuming it's not rabbits."
"Har har." Nick said sarcastically.
"Now that I mention it, what do you foxes eat exactly?" Judy asked looking curious. "I don't really know. Neither does anyone in my family.
"Well, we do eat some vegetables. But there is a lot that I don't like." Nick said. "One vegetable is broccoli. I HATE broccoli."
"What's wrong with broccoli?" Judy asked. "I like it."
"You would because you're a bunny. But we foxes have different tastes." Nick said. "Mom would always force me to eat my broccoli by not giving me dessert until I do."
"Poor you." Judy said teasing Nick a bit. "Well, what do you actually like?"
"Protein-wise, I do like some types of beans." Nick said. "My pop makes this bean and veggie chili that is... pretty fantastic. He even adds corn chips on top of it to give it a good crunch. You might like it."
"It does sound pretty good." Judy admitted. "Okay, hear's my next question. Do... do you actually EAT any meat?" Judy said looking curious.
"Only fish sometimes. Salmon. Yellowtail. Tuna. You know, those kinds of fish. But never had anything else." Nick said. "But out of everything, there is one thing that I REALLY adore."
"What would that be?" Judy asked.
"Blueberries." Nick said with a smile.
"Blueberries?" Judy said.
"Yes. Blueberries." Nick said. "Whether they are baked into a pie or plain, I just love blueberries. I could eat them all day, every day."
"Haha! Sounds you like REALLY love blueberries." Judy said.
"I do." Nick said. Then at that moment, his stomach grumbled a bit. Turns out, Nick was hungry. "Ah geez! I just remember. The reason why we went to your family's stand was to get some blueberries. We never actually GOT any." Nick's stomach growled some more. "I could really go for some right now."
"Well, you're in luck, Nick." Judy said with a smirk. "We just happen to be near our blueberry bushes. Follow me, if you would."
Nick nodded and follow Judy. A few minutes later, Judy leads Nick to her family farm's blueberry patch. It was pretty huge. Bushes from all over had fresh blueberries to take for the picking. Nick was in total awe.
"WOOOOOAAAHHHHH!" Nick said surprised.
"This is our family's blueberry patch. " Judy said proudly. "We grow plenty of blueberries and pick the fresh ones every day." Judy looked at Nick and notice that he started to salivate a bit. "Do you want to try a few?"
"So badly." Nick answered.
"Well, help yourself to a few." Judy said to Nick.
Nick, being very excited, walked to the bush and was about to pick a few blueberries for himself. But he stopped and paused for a few moments.
"What's wrong?" Judy asked, noticing he hasn't tried any of the berries yet.
"It's just that... well... I'm a fox and these were grown by bunnies... so it feels like... I'm stealing." Nick said looking worried.
"It's fine. I said you could have some." Judy said.
"Sorry. But I still feel weird about it.." Nick said.
Since it seems like Nick was too afraid to pick out the berries himself, Judy picked about four blueberries and offer them to Nick.
"Here you go." Judy said.
"Huh?" Nick said looking surprised.
"This way you are not taking them. I'm giving them to you." Judy said. "You don't have to worry. I get these all the time." Judy then gave the blueberries to Nick. "Go on. Try one."
Since it seems okay with Judy, Nick nodded and then ate the blueberries. As expected, he loved them.
"Mmmmmm... so good." Nick said very happily. "These are like the best blueberries I've ever had. Even Zootopia doesn't have blueberries this good."
"Glad you like them." Judy said with a smile.
"Can I have some more?" Nick asked smiling.
"Sure." Judy said happily.
Judy picked three more blueberries to give to Nick.
"Wanna see a trick?" Nick asked.
"What kind of trick?" Judy asked.
"Place the blueberries on top of my nose." Nick said leaning down a bit.
"Okay." Judy said.
Judy placed the three blueberries on Nick's nose, like he said.
"Now... watch this." Nick said while keeping the blueberries on his nose.
Nick then lifted his head up, throwing the blueberries up in the air. Nick catches all three of the blueberries in his mouth as they fall down. This little trick impressed Judy quite a bit and she started clapping.
"Wow! That was really cool." Judy said impressed.
"Thanks! My dad taught me that trick. I think he loves blueberries just as much as I do." Nick said.
"I want to try that." Judy said looking eager.
"I don't think you have the nose for that." Nick stated.
"Won't stop me from trying." Judy said.
Judy then grabbed some blueberries and tried doing Nick's blueberry trick. She had many failed attempts. As Nick watched Judy still fail at catching blueberries, he looked near the far bushes behind Judy. He notices 3 sets of ears hiding from behind a few of the bushes.
"Umm... Judy, who are those big kids from behind those bushes?" Nick asked her.
"Huh?" Judy said as she looked back. Behind her was 3 rabbits. All males and looked at the ages of 14 or 15. They were still trying to not be seen by them. Judy knew who they were. "Ugh! Those are my big brothers."
"They have been following us for a while. I just didn't want to say anything." Nick said.
"Dad must have told them to keep an eye on me." Judy said.
"Wonder why that is?" Nick said sarcastically while crossing his arms.
"I'm sorry. My family has... issues with foxes." Judy said.
"It's not like my family isn't already used to it." Nick said.
Judy had a wide, yet slightly sly smile on her face. It seems that she had a plan.
"Hey, Nick? Do you like pulling pranks?" Judy asked.
"Doesn't everybody?" Nick answered.
"How would you like to pull a little prank on my brothers?" Judy asked Nick while smirking.
"I'm listening." Nick said with a sly smile.
Judy then asks Nick to lean down a bit as she whispered something in his ear. Meanwhile, still trying to hide were three of Judy's older brother. A dark brown bunny wearing a green checkered shirt and jeans, named Herman; a white bunny wearing a dark blue shirt and green jeans, named Eugene; and a light brown bunny wearing a green shirt and a blue overalls, named Gerald. They were all slightly taller than Nick. The three of them still watched over Judy and Nick.
"Ugghhh! This is stupid." Eugene said. "We don't need to keep an eye on them."
"We have to. Dad told us to. Also, the kid's a fox. You remember what dad told us about foxes." Gerald said.
"I know that. But the kid hasn't done anything wrong. That and Judy seems comfortable around him." Eugene said.
"I agree with Eugene." Herman said. "If he wanted to do something bad, he would have done it by now."
Then they heard these two loud screams.
"RAAAAAAAHHHHH!"
"EEEEEEEKKKKKKKK!"
"That was Judy's scream." Herman said.
"I knew that fox couldn't be trusted." Gerald said.
The three of them dashed to where Nick and Judy were.
"JUDY!" Eugene, Gerald, and Herman shouted.
When they saw Judy, she was down on the ground. But they knew she was fine when she did this.
"BLOOD! BLOOODDD! BLOOOOOODDDD!" Judy shouted in a similar fashion to her acting in the play but without the ribbons and ketchup. "And... death." Judy then laid down on the ground, pretending that she was dead. Nick just smiled slyly.
"You know you are still milking it." Nick said smirking.
"Uhhhhh..." Eugene, Gerald, and Herman said looking confused.
Judy then got up to her feet and was about to scorn her older brothers.
"We got you three. You were watching us the whole time, were you?" Judy asked them looking mad.
"Look, we're sorry. But dad told us to." Eugene said.
"Is that so? Any reason WHY?" Judy asked them.
"Look. It's because... e thay oy bay is a ox fay. (the boy is a fox.)" Gerald said switching to pig latin.
"Is thay ox fay an cay eak spay ig pay atin lay oo tay, ou yay ig bay erk jay. (This fox can speak pig latin too, you big jerk.)" Nick said also speaking pig latin, which threw Gerald off.
"Oh... uhh..." Gerald didn't know what to say next.
"I get it. I'm a fox and she's your sister. But I don't want to do anything to her." Nick said as he crossed his heart. "You have my word."
"That's right. Nick's a fox, but he's also my friend." Judy said while holding on to Nick's arm. "He's a good fox, so you don't have to worry about us together."
"Guess the little guy is harmless." Herman said.
"Fine. We're leaving you guys now." Eugene said.
"Hang on. I want to say one more thing to this fox's here." Gerald said. He then walked to Nick and looked down at him. "Listen, squirt. You better not do anything to hurt our little sister, or else you WILL regret it. Got it?"
You think that Nick would feel scared by Gerald's word. But he wasn't. He just had a straight look on his face.
"You're threatening a 9-year-old. Do you feel proud of yourself?" Nick said to Gerald.
Gerald eyes then widen. He was threatening a 9-year-old. Even if he was a fox, there was NO way he could feel proud about that.
"Let's just go, guys. No need to stay here." Gerald calling his brothers. As the three started to walk away from Nick and Judy, Gerald whispers something to Herman and Eugene. "Am I a bad rabbit for threatening a 9-year-old fox?"
"You don't want us to answer that." Herman and Eugene said.
Just like that, Judy's brothers left the blueberry patch. Leaving Nick and Judy to alone. Judy then notice that Nick had a wide smirk on his face.
"What with that look, Slick?" Judy said.
"He called me squirt. But in a few years, I'll be taller than everyone in your whole family." Nick said with a sly smile.
"Oh har har." Judy said fake laughter.
Nick would be right. He was already taller than Judy. Judy only reaches up to Nick's shoulders. Not even all the way. When Nick grows up, he would be a solid 4 feet, while most rabbits are only as tall as 3 feet.
"Anyway, I'm sorry about that." Judy said. "My parents tend to be worrywarts around foxes or any other scary mammals."
"If that's the case, I wonder how they are doing with my folks?" Nick asked scratching his chin a bit.
"I'm sure they're fine." Judy said.
Meanwhile, at the Hopps' house, John and Francine Wilde and Stu and Bonnie Hopps were all sitting in chairs having some tea on a table. John and Francine seemed fine, but Stu and Bonnie just smiled awkwardly. The two were still scared to be in the same room with foxes. As Francine sipped the tea from her cup, she began to speak.
"We know what you guys are thinking. You're afraid of us, are you?" Francine asked.
"Wha... whaaat?" Stu said trying not to sound scared. But failing.
"No. We're aren't... afraid of you." Bonnie said also trying not to sound scared. "It's just... that... the two of us..."
"Let me stop you two right there." Francine said. "It's fine."
"You really think you're the only ones to act this way around us?" John said. "We get it. You're rabbits and we're foxes."
"We don't know what you heard about our kind, but you can put your fears aside. None of it is true." Francine said.
"We're not gonna do anything bad or 'eat you' if that's what you are afraid of." John said. "Our kind hasn't eaten rabbits in centuries. So we don't plan to start now."
"The least we can all do is get along. For our children." Francine stated.
After hearing John and Francine words and looking at each other, both Stu and Bonnie agreed that these two meant no harm. So they set their fears aside and believe them.
"I suppose you're right." Stu said starting to feel more comfortable. "We're sorry about that. It's just growing up... us rabbits... heard some things about foxes."
"Let me guess. That we are all 'sneaky and untrustworthy'?" John asked. "While I can't say the same for all foxes, this family of foxes IS trustworthy. So you don't have to worry."
"Your son does seem like a good boy." Bonnie said.
"He is. Nick's our little blueberry." Francine said smiling. "He's very friendly and gets good grades in school."
"So is our little Jude the Dude." Stu said with a smile. "She always does good and wanting to make the world a better place."
"See? She must see the good in Nick." John said. "He did protect her from a bully before. My boy didn't even have to actually fight him, which is a good thing. I rather not have him involved in any fighting."
"The same goes for us with any of our children." Bonnie said.
"It's must be hard to look out for... so many little ones." Francine said noticing how many little bunnies were running around the house.
"You would actually be surprised at how easy it is. Us bunnies are naturals." Bonnie stated.
"Raising them or making them?" John whispered at Francine trying to make a joke.
"Johnny!" Francine said while bumping John with her elbow and trying not to laugh.
John looked at Stu's overalls and notices that there was a bit of a rip on them. Being a tailor, this REALLY bugged John.
"Stu. Your overalls. It seems that you have a tear." John started looking a bit serious.
"Oh. Yeah. Happened when I was doing some farm work." Stu said.
"Tch. Tch. This won't do at all." John said. "Frankie, do you have it?"
"Right in my purse." Francine said.
Francine then went into her red purse for something. This started to worry Stu a bit.
"What's she getting from that purse?" Stu said looking concern.
Francine took out a little white box and gave it to John. John opens the box and it was filled with different types of small thread, some sewing needles, and mini scissors. The box was a mini sewing kit.
"Johnny is a tailor. So if he sees a rip or tears on anything, he just HAS to fix it." Francine said.
"Okay, Stu. Now just hold still." John said walking to Stu with a needle and blue thread at paw.
"Uhhh... no thanks. It's fine really." Stu said frantically. He was still scared of a fox going near him.
"No. No. It will just take a second." John said insisting on fixing the tear.
"I said it's fine." Stu said still looking even more scared.
"Come on. I promise... you can trust me." John said sincerely.
Stu still didn't like a fox being so close to him just to fix a tear. Even if John was a nice enough fox. But John said he could trust him, so he decided to. Stu then closed his eyes expected that he would be wrong and was thinking "Just... make it quick, okay?" After a few seconds...
"Done." John said.
Stu opened his eyes and looked at his overalls and notice that the tear on his overalls was fixed. Once more, it was barely noticeable.
"The tear... it's fixed." Stu said surprised. "I can barely tell it was ripped."
"That's John's handiwork for ya." Francine said.
"I'm good at my job." John said putting the needle and threads back in his box. "See? I told you that you can trust me."
Stu and Bonnie were a little dumbfounded. Turns out, John and Francine were really two good and honest foxes. Two things that they didn't expect from foxes. Now, let's get back to Nick and Judy. Judy decided to take Nick to a place outside of the farm. They were currently walking around a green plain.
"So Carrots, where are you heading to again?" Nick asked.
"Just a nice little lake around town that I like to go to." Judy said.
"Huh. I don't think I've been near a real lake before." Nick said.
"They don't have lakes in Zootopia?" Judy asked.
"Oh, they do. It just that most of them are mammal-made." Nick stated. "So this will be the first time I go to a real authentic lake. Will there be stones that we can skip at the water?"
"Yeah, they will." Judy said.
"Great. Can't wait." Nick said excitedly. Nick felt very comfortable being with Judy. "You know Judy, it's actually kinda funny."
"What is?" Judy asked.
"The two of us." Nick said. "I mean... you're a rabbit and I'm a fox. Your prey and I'm a predator. To top it off, the two of us don't really have anything in common."
"You're right. We are both very different mammals." Judy said. "Yet..."
"For some reason, I feel that we can be really good friends." Nick said finishing Judy's sentence.
"Me too." Judy said smiling.
"Do you... want to be best friends?" Nick asked looking nervous. "Sorry if I am putting you on the spot. I never really... I never really had a real friend before."
Hearing Nick admits that, surprised Judy a bit. Admitting that you don't have friends is a hard thing to say. Judy had her siblings and some of her friends from school. But Nick, even as nice as he is, didn't really had anyone. But Judy wanted to change that.
"Sure Nick." Judy said happily. "I already see you as a friend. So why shouldn't we be best friends?"
"Gr... Great! So now we are best friends." Nick said excitedly. "I'm... best friend's with a bunny."
"And I'm... best friend's with a fox." Judy stated.
Nick and Judy then laughed about it bit. Think about it. A fox and a rabbit as best friends? Centuries ago, foxes and rabbit were natural enemies. Yet things seem to work for Nick and Judy. Not only because they are kids, but the fact they seem to understand each other pretty well. As they continue to walk, Nick wanted to talk to Judy about something else.
"Say, Judy, can I say something to you?" Nick said to Judy.
"What is it?" Judy said.
"It's about your play." Nick said. "Now I did like it and all. But there was one 'small' part that I didn't like so much."
"Let me guess. It was the 'blood' part, was it?" Judy asked with a straight face.
"Not that part. I actually found it to be really funny." Nick said chuckling a bit. "But that part I'm talking about is when you say we were divided into two groups. You called predators 'vicious' and prey 'meek'."
"Well yeah. That's how things were in the past." Judy said.
"Uhhh... Judy, don't be offended by what I'm about to say." Nick said. " Now I don't mean to sound blunt, but I feel that you thinking that is sort inaccurate and very close-minded."
"Close-minded?" Judy said looking a bit angry as she stopped walking.
"Now. Now." Nick said in an attempt to calm down Judy as he stops in front of her. "Before you get your ears in a knot, hear me out if you would?"
"*sigh* Fine." Judy said crossing her arms.
"Okay." Nick said as he bends down a bit. "First off, what's the main difference between you prey and us predators?"
"Our teeth. Prey have flat teeth, while predators have sharp teeth." Judy answered.
"Exactly. But a sharp pair of chompers isn't what makes a predator vicious." Nick said. "While I can't say that for all predators, such as lions, tigers, bears, wolves and even foxes. There are other plenty of predators that aren't considered savage in nature. Like dogs, cats, ferrets, stoats, and otters. (If you watch the movie, bad example.) Sure they may all have sharp teeth and have eaten prey in the past, but that doesn't mean they go ripping off another mammal's head. Now for prey. True, the smallest prey like mice, hamsters, shrews, lemmings, and of course bunnies..." Nick said as he petted Judy's head a bit. "... are considered meek. But there are DEFINITELY prey mammals that are far from meek. Rams are known to headbutt each other with enough force to knock a tiger senseless. Rhinos have horns that could go through anything... or anyone. Then there are elephants. They are so huge, that you always have to be careful not to be stepped on. Can you really say predators like otters and foxes are scarier than something as big as an elephant?"
Judy then started to factor everything Nick was saying and realized that he was right. Even if predators were dangerous in the past, that didn't mean that some prey weren't just as dangerous.
"You see what I mean?" Nick said while standing up straight again. "Not only that, like you said in you play, we evolved. So for all we know, prey might be just as dangerous as some predators now. But I guess it's just me saying that." Nick continues to talk more. "So anyway, bottom line is... some predators were vicious, but that doesn't mean that there weren't meek ones and some prey may be meek, but that doesn't mean that there weren't vicious ones."
Judy was silent for a moment. She had her head down and her ears drooped down as well.
"Your right." Judy said. "I... guess I never thought about it that way. I really have been close-minded."
"It's fine. I get it. Us predators ARE pretty scary at the time." Nick admitted. "Plus I know all about bunnies 'history' with foxes and other predators. But that's what it was. History. This is the present. The here and now. We have to see others for more than just what we are."
"Right again, Nick. Wow. You're really smart for someone the same age as me." Judy said.
"Thanks! Actually, I get most of this advice from my pop." Nick said while scratching the back of his head. "He's always telling me this stuff and that us foxes should be seen more than just 'shifty' and 'untrustworthy'."
"Don't worry, Nick. I don't think you're any of those things. I trust you." Judy said smiling.
"Funny. A bunny saying that she trusts a fox. You might be the first one." Nick said. "But I would understand why you wouldn't trust a fox at first. You know... after that fox from before. What was his name again? Gideon?"
"You guessed it. Gideon Grey." Judy said.
"Grrrrrr..." Nick growled. Nick seems to still have some angry feelings about Gideon. "I still can't get that guy's face out of my head. He was such a jerk to you."
"Gideon's a jerk to everybody." Judy stated. "That's always how he is in school."
"Grrr... and it doesn't help the fact that he's a fox." Nick said still looking mad. "I want to be fully mad at him... yet I can't."
"Why not?" Judy asked.
"Remember what I said about being open-minded. If he's like that, there must be a reason why." Nick stated. "I just don't really know that reason."
"Hmm... I wonder if you're right?" Judy asked.
"Anyway, we've talked enough. How about you head to that lake you were talking about?" Nick asked Judy.
"Right. Let's go." Judy said.
The two continued on their walk to the lake. After a few minutes, the lake was within eyeshot. The water in the lake was crystal clear. There were one or two trees around the lake, a big log to sit on, and a few stones pebbles to throw in the lake. It was a really nice, peaceful looking spot. Nick and Judy were still at a distance from there.
"Look. We're almost there." Judy said to Nick.
"Wow. Looks really nice." Nick said. Then Nick noticed something. Or in this case, someone. Nick sees someone sitting on the log near the lake. "Huh? Who's that?" Nick looked closer at the mammal and notice they were wearing blue overalls and a fox tail. Once Nick saw that he knew who it was. "Wait! That's...
"Nick, I think we should go." Judy said looking a little worried.
Leaving was out of the picture now. The fox had already turned around and saw Nick and Judy. It was now other than Gideon Grey. Out of all the mammals that had to be here, it had to be him.
"You!" Gideon said surprised. Then he switches to having a bit of a devious smirk on his face. "Well well. Look who the bunny drag in? It's the city boy."
"Gideon Grey." Nick said angrily.
Oh boy! Looks like there is about to be another fox showdown between Nick and Gideon. How are things gonna end for the two this time? You gonna have to wait to tell the next chapter. Hope you can handle cliffhangers.