Chapter Six
If the Shoe Fits
A soft moan brought Judy to the edge of her sleep. It was deeper than hers, not frightening but satisfied. When she opened her eyes a faint glow lit up the unfamiliar dark room. The light source came from a doorway to her left. It startled her that she couldn't remember what happened the night before. Her hand found an arm draped across her belly. Slowly she traced her fingers along the familiar fur, it brought a moan from the darkened mound laying next to her. Even though it was silhouetted she could see who it was perfectly.
"Nick."
Her throat was too dry for her voice to be anything above a whisper. It puzzled her how she'd got to bed last night. Thankfully she was still dressed in the same clothes she fell asleep in. Nick, however was now half-naked on the bed next to her. Judy wished she could remember what happened the night before. She considered waking Nick up and asking him, but only for a moment. He looked too peaceful to disturb.
Judy gently rolled over on the bed, underneath his arm, shifting close enough to give him a soft peck on his lips. He stretched and groaned giving her time to slip out of the bed. When he settled back, his arm searched for her sleeping body. It was too adorable to keep from smiling. Finally the fox drifted back to sleep.
Judy went into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She turned the faucet on the shower on. The pipes moaned in protest but eventually started spurting out water. Judy watched in horror at the brown water filling the bottom of the tub, luckily the water started to run clear after a few minutes. Judy wrinkled her nose up at the thought of showering in the rusty water. 'Old pipes', she mused to herself.
Judy couldn't believe that Nick lived in such a run down place. Last thing she'd known about his financial situation was he was a millionaire. Where did that money go exactly? She stewed on the question, slipping out of her clothes. When she got down to her underwear she checked the lock on the door. Not surprised in the least, it was broken. She would simply have to trust Nick better judgment to not barge in. Even if he did, she would be concealed behind a curtain. She gathered up her courage and slipped the last two remaining bits of clothing off, putting them on the back of the toilet with the rest.
Quickly she sat on the toilet and did her business. Being a very private bunny, she didn't make a habit of peeing in others' homes. It was unavoidable since she always had to pee when she woke up in the morning. Much to her dismay though, sound carried a little too well for her comfort. When she was finished she did a quick run through with Nick's toothbrush freshened her breath. Then she was ready for that shower. She stepped into the lukewarm water and frowned. After a moment of adjusting the dials she managed a little more heat, but not much.
"Oh Nick, this is terrible." It was sad, but at least she could look forward to smelling his lime scented soap.
When she was done in the shower, she wrapped herself in what she hoped was a clean towel. From the other room she could hear Nick talking. Something about the smooth voice vibrating through the walls, made her smile. Quietly she opened the door just a crack, cocking her ear towards the voice. There was only one, so she assumed he was on the phone.
"That's right Benny, gotta very very big lead."
"Yep."
"Well, I really need you to be here asap. Could you bring some costumes and make up. I dunno, maybe some other showbiz stuff."
"Of course we're going undercover. I'm not putting on a version of Guys and Dolls."
"Do I want an orphan Annie wig...no...no I don't."
"Yeah, my address is on file. Oh buddy, you're killing me. I know it's a bad neighborhood."
"Dress down, don't come as a cop."
"Alright babe, you're a life saver. See you in a couple of hours, woof down a doughnut for me. Love you."
Judy stepped into the room wearing nothing but a towel. When Nick noticed her he sucked in a breath of air and laughed it out. Judy felt flushed as she watched him stare at her. When he'd taken in as much as he thought she would let him, he turned around so his back was too her, giving her some privacy.
"Who was that?"
"Clawhauser. He's going to meet us here in a few hours."
"Oh good, should we call-"
"Bogo? Already took care of it. Right now we're on leave from the police station so it appears that we have no connection with them. If anyone looks us up in the database, it says we've been canned."
"Wow, I didn't know they could do that."
"I didn't either, but Bogo thought it was a smashing idea." Nick put on a fake English accent.
Judy quickly dried off the important areas, before slipping her bra and panties back on. "You can turn around now, I'm covered."
"Wow...nice uniform. I don't think that's standard issue though."
"I could say the same to you. I didn't know you wore pjs, I thought you were a 'in the buff' type of male."
"Well, I didn't want you to think I made a move on you last night."
"Why, what did happen last night?"
"Nothing, like I told you. I slept on top of the covers, don't you trus-"
Judy cocked her head, feeling a guilty for the insinuation. "I wasn't asking because of what you might have done, I was asking because I wanted to make sure I didn't cop a feel or something."
Nick's eyes went wide, his back straightening up as if the drill sergeant wasn't happy with something he did. "Darn! If I would have know that. I would have slept in the buff."
"Oh my goodness, you're terrible."
Judy walked back into the bathroom, her laughter echoing throughout the entire room. "Did I say or do anything weird last night, Nick, seriously?"
"Nope, you were a perfect bunny."
Judy came back out to find Nick pulling on a fresh pair of boxers, it happened so fast she didn't even have a second to cover her eyes. Nick looked back over at her starting to sing in a hushed tone. 'Bad Moon Rising'. It was enough to draw another giggle out of her.
"Oh there was one thing, Fluff."
Judy stopped in mid motion of putting her shirt back on. "What?"
"You mentioned a 'carrot trick' that all the boys are crazy about. I don't know what it is, but I would remiss if I wasn't the least bit curious about it."
Judy rolled her eyes, a smirk coming to her face. The blush in her ears deepened, any further and the red flesh in her ears would be noticeable. Nick smiled back, pulling on a pair of jeans. They didn't look particularly clean, but nothing in the apartment actually did.
"Truthfully though, you cuddled with me last night."
The sound of Nick's voice was oddly serious, it gave her pause at the last button of her shirt, her belly still visible. "Did I?"
"Yeah, it was really nice."
Judy looked at Nick in the warm light coming from the bathroom. He hadn't stopped looking at her since she came into the room. Soaking up everything he could about her, from the way her wet fur grabbed the fabric, to the way her ears always fell perfectly right. These were the things she could see reflected in those green eyes.
"Well as I tried to warn you, I'm a cuddler."
"I could really get use to it." Nick cleared his throat, his own words setting him a drift.
"What's the plan?"
Judy's jumped in. She could see by the look on his face that the words he'd said were meant as an inside thought. That was when Nick looked away, picking up the shirt she'd slept it. It was wrinkly and with the exception of the one grease spot, was relatively clean. Nick smelled the shirt, holding it to his nose. There was a relaxed look on his face, one that made her smile. He was smelling her among his own body scent. It was a sweet notion. He slipped the shirt on, buttoning it up the front, his eyes finding her again. Those lidded eyes and easy smile.
"I thought we could go to breakfast first. That joint we were at last night makes a mean Eggs Benedict."
"Do they substitute?"
"I'm sure they'd make an exception, Officer Veggie Burger."
"Hey now, I don't call you Officer Bug Muncher."
"You should, because that would be hilarious."
"I think I will from now on."
Nick pulled something out of the top drawer of his dresser quickly stuffing it into his pocket. He'd been so sly with it that Judy almost missed it. Judy didn't want to be rude an pry into his business. If it was something he wanted to share with her, he would. It didn't stop her from making a mental note about it, however.
"I'm ready to go whenever you are."
"I'll be ready soon and then we can bounce." Judy picked up her jeans, stepping into them.
"Maybe we can hop out of here instead."
"Ugh, shut up, Nick."
"For you, anything."
Clawhauser leaned back against the counter his hands on his hips. After getting an eye full he walked around the pair that stood before him. His eyes hitting on each of the details, a scrutinizing look here, a passing glance there, he was doing a good job keeping Nick and Judy in suspense. Finally he lifted his hands up making a box from his index fingers and thumbs as if he were going to capture the pair in an immortal picture.
"Well, I'm not a miracle worker but you guys look faboo."
"Ugh, I feel like a Newsie."
Judy took a step back giving Nick a once over. White button up shirt with sleeves rolled up to his elbows. A black pair of trousers held up by suspender, and a black baker boy cap tucked between his large ears. Nick was right, he did look like a Newsie, but there was a certain bad boy charm to it that made Judy blush. His ensemble was completed by a pair of brown contact lenses, hiding his beautiful green eyes.
Judy stepped in front of the floor length mirror on the wall. A tight gray body suit covered over by a trimmed pair of black military fatigue pants. A tatter blue jean jacket with the sleeves cut off. Her ears were pulled back into a ponytail to keep them from popping up. An old beat up army hat on her head. Her once purple eyes were turned blue by contact lenses. To complete the tough persona, a pair of fingerless gloves. It wasn't a great costume, but Clawhauser used what he had available. One of the negatives to being the first rabbit cop, everyone knows your face.
"Easy there, GI Jane, there hasn't been a war for years."
"Anything you say, Vinnie. Wanna sing me a song and sell me a paper?"
"Yeah, but not in front of the help."
Clawhauser giggled. "Well, if you two aren't just the cutest couple at the dance."
Nick shot Clawhauser a glance. "I tried, Benny, but she didn't want to dance with me."
"I didn't say that, I was just waiting for the right song."
"So what's the plan?" Clawhauser asked, pulling a doughnut from his breast pocket.
Nick watched in wonder, the cheetah was like a living food dispenser. "We'll leave here in a bit to meet with our contact. We have to make sure we're fully ready for anything. Is there a safe house in the area?"
"I was thinking about that. What if we just use this place? It doesn't seem like many people know you're here."
"That's true, I'd kinda like to keep it that way too."
"Are you planning on inviting Baron Bouncer for a spot of tea." Judy faulted her European accent, it sounded more like a Southern drawl.
"First of all, wow, you're bad at voices. Second of all...you have a good point. This would be a good safe house. I was hoping for an opportunity to make another snarky remark, but you're one clever bunny."
"Thanks, Nick."
Clawhauser sat down in a chair and sprang back up as if he remembered something. He fished something out of his back pocket. It looked like a thin can of spray paint. He mumbled something around the doughnut stuffed in his mouth.
"This is stuff I was looking for, Judy take your hat off."
"Why?" Judy did as she was told.
"I bought this over because I was worried your drab gray fur would be a dead give away that you were the real Judy Hopps."
Judy looked deflated as she hunched her shoulder. "Drab gray fur? Why are you guys so mean."
"I for one love your fur." Nick chuckled, petting her arms up to her shoulders against the flow of her fur.
Judy giggled and playfully slapped back at him. Nick caught her hand, holding it for a moment before quickly letting go. Judy leaned against him, tucking his hands in her pocket. She looked at Clawhauser, who took the cap off the spray and shook it. He was blushing with excitement, for whatever reason.
"You guys need to stop, you're killing me."
"It's-"
Judy tried to say something, but Clawhauser covered her eyes with one hand. The hissing sound of the spray can caused her to jolt. A cold mist settled on top of her head and flowed all the way down each of her ears. A few more short spray and Clawhauser stepped away admiring his handy work. Judy caught a glimpse of her reflection and was amazed at the amber tinted fur that went in a V shape from the top of her head back to disappear under the neck of her vest. The backs of her ears were painted to match her head fur color. It looked incredible, she bobbed her head around, swinging her ears so she could watch the coloring in motion.
"Like a shining star, am I right? This is a new product."
Clawhauser handed her the can to look at. A picture of pop sensation Gazelle on the front. It was a temporary fur coloring spray and an ingenious invention for mammal who didn't want to make the commitment to dying their fur.
"Pretty smart thinking, Benny."
"Oh, you know, I have a million of them. Just let me know when you start to run out because I have to order this through the internet and it'll take me some time to get it."
"Thanks for the warning. Why don't you go ahead and order another can." Judy fished a metal case out of her purse, she pulled a twenty out and handed it to Clawhauser.
"Yeah, try forty more. This isn't some over-the-counter jazz, Bunny-Be-Good."
"Whoa, Sixty bucks?" Nick gasped.
"It's either that, or fumbling the case which results in being fired, or death."
"He's gotta point, fox." Judy smirked.
"I'll give you another twenty, Benny. But you gotta pay the rest. I'm sure we're not going to use an entire can on just one mission, so you'll get to keep the rest."
"Oh alright. You're luck I love you both."
"Thanks, Benny, love you, babe."
"Alright, I think we're ready." Judy put her cap back on now that she was sure the paint was dried.
"Just remember to stay in character, I mean it. I'm gonna bounce, you love birds, toodles, have fun."
Nick and Judy watched as the chubby cheetah wedged himself out the door. He'd been kind enough to leave behind the rest of the costumes and supplies, so they didn't have to wear the same outfit everyday. Judy glanced at Nick, finding him just staring at her as if he were admiring a painting or some other piece of art.
"What?"
"I just have to say. Carrots, you look really cute as a red head."
"You think, I thought it made me look kinda naughty."
"Potato, Potato." Nick smirked at her, he reached to take her hand again.
Judy giggled, playfully swatting at him. "Down boy."
"I'll try, missus." He struck up a city accent, playing up the tough guy voice.
Judy shook her head, shooing him away with a wave of her hand. But she didn't hesitate to watch him go, admiring the view.