Foxlover91 : Well, she's grew up in that family, it's pretty logical that she would fit in.
Nick was tempted to provoke them, he's still Nick, but he's also a ZPD officer, so he's gotta act responsibly, which he does. Mostly.

Guest : I don't know if it would be 'awesome' for Hollie to bring up Finnick's past. The guy did a lot of more than shady stuff, of which he's not proud of. I doubt using it to retort to his scolding would have a positive outcome.


Chapter 7 : Training Session

September 2037

"Atten-hut !" Came Blackfur's loud voice.

The chief of police appeared and gave an appreciative glance to the officer presents. She approached the rostrum, putting part of her weight on the cane she was using to walk, expertly hiding her slight limping.

"At ease officers. We have several items to go over today. First I'd like to congratulate Higgins who's now officially a grandfather."

"Congrats old fart !" Came Fangmeyer's voice.

"Shut it pussycat !"

There was a bit of a tussle but at the bunny's scoff, the room quickly calmed down.

"Second, I should introduce our new recruits, but I won't. Because I don't care." She stated, imitating the ex-chief, pulling a few giggles from the senior officers and surprised expression from the aforementioned recruits.

"Kidding. Please welcome officer Whiskberg, Sharpfang, Springstein and Digger."

There was a round of applause and shoulder taps rained on the tiger, puma, hare and wombat.

"Now you will all come to take your week assignment. Wolford, Blackfur, Fangmeyer, Delgato, there's a new group of dealer on Chase Avenue. I want you in civilian clothes getting names, intel and if possible, arresting perps. Higgins, Pennington, you're back on patrol. Whiskberg, Sharpfang, Springstein, Digger, parking duty."
She had distributed the files and the officers had all left, some of them grumbling about how they hadn't enrolled to get parking duty. She squinted her eyes at the hare, he seemed to be the one that was the least happy and the most loud about his discontent.

"Hello chief." Saluted the red fox that had appeared in the doorframe.

"At ease, Captain." Smiled the bunny.

"How's the first month going so far ?"

"I'm adjusting." She got down from the small stage. "Walk with me ?"

"Sure." The limping had accentuated itself those last ten years, and though she was technically still fit enough for active duty, she had decided to cast that part of her job aside. Mainly because she had been named the new chief after Bogo's retirement. "You broke the news to him yet ?"

The bunny had a sigh. "It's on my mind."

"You need a second in command, hon. I know you don't want to replace MacHorn that soon, but it's not about preserving anyone's feelings."

"Yeah." The bunny sighed again. "You sure you don't want the job ?" It was a half-joke, she knew it was a bad idea to be married to her second in command.

"First : no. Seconds : he's more qualified than I am." Smiled the fox.

"Okay, let's go to my office." They made their way in the precinct hallways. "How's the job going ?"

"Pretty fine actually. Giving speeches about mammal psychology and crisis negotiation is less boring than it sounds. There also the formations I give for the ZIA agents about ethics and law… Didn't think I'd go back to work with them again."

"I'm glad you finally found a job you really like."

"It will never beat being your partner."

Silence fell between the two mammals for a bit. They both missed working together.

"... Anyway, when I really need action, there is still the CQC training. I've put your name on the consultant trainer list, if you ever want to blow some steam." It's not something he needed to do, since she didn't need an authorization for that, but it was still nice of him for having thought about it.

"You're the best, honey.". They entered the bunny's office. She had kept the buffalo's desk, but it meant she had to use a ladder to get to the seat. Technically. She always got up to it with one hop. And a slight wince because of her bad leg.

"You'll never stop, won't you ?"

"Not until my leg falls of." She took the phone on her desk. "Clawhauser, could you come in my office, please ?"

"Right away chief."

A few seconds later, the bubbling officer knocked and entered the office. His fur had now a silvery tone, and the gut was slightly less prominent. "What do you need chief Hopps ?"

"I'm promoting you. You're now assistant chief."

The cheetah's mouth fell agape.

"Don't worry, you'll keep your front desk job, but I'm taking away the call and dispatch tasks. You'll have more of the administrative workload than MacHorn had instead."

"I... Uh."

"And I'm putting you on a regular schedule. So you'll be able to spend more time with your husband and kid."

"Isn't it some kind of power abuse ?" Smirked the fox, leaning against the desk.

"Shut it, Captain Wilde. Just because you're off duty and only a half-time member of my precinct, doesn't mean I'm not your superior. And it's not power abuse if it isn't detrimental to the citizens." She smiled.

"But I- I..."

"Am going to get a raise ?" Proposed the bunny.

"I-"

"Am grateful for this new career opportunity?"

"I-"

"Will keep gaping for the next five minutes ?" Grinned the fox.

"I'm not qualified !"

"You are completely qualified. Rhinowitz kind of was, but he's… A stick in the mud and younger than you. And Higgins is getting too old for this. I want someone experienced that I'll get to keep for a long time." Spoke the bunny. "You'll learn on the go, I have faith in you."

The cheetah seemed he had trouble coming to term with his new position. "You know I can't lead mammals. I don't have what it takes."

"Officer Clawhauser, being my assistant isn't something that will need a lot of leading skills. You're best at the paperwork stuff and organisation, and that's mainly why I want you for. And if I'm to be the stern chief this precinct needs, I'll need someone to balance that." She smiled. "Chief Bogo had his way to sail this ship, I'll have my own. Are you in ?"

"Yes chief." He saluted.

"Outstanding officer. Dismissed." And the cheetah left

She took the pile of files on her left and put it in front of her. "You're still here ?" She asked the fox.

"You didn't dismiss me."

"You're off duty. You can go."

"But I didn't get my kiss."

"I'm on duty."

"You can sign off for five seconds."

The bunny gave him a scowl she had clearly borrowed from the previous chief. "Officer, are you suggesting for me to neglect my work ?"

"Pretty much."

The bunny lightened the scowl and raised a brow.

The fox smiled and raised his paw in apology "Oookay, no kiss, got it. Have a nice day."

He made couple of steps toward the door before hearing the couple of light thump he expected and having a cane handle grab the back of his collar and pull him back.

"Gark."

Next thing he knew, a grip was holding his tie and lips were pressed against his. "Did you really think I'd let you leave without a kiss ?"

"Not for a second."

He bended down and put an arm around her hips, kissing her more passionately. It left her wanting for more. She pulled his tie again, trying to get another kiss.

"Weren't you on duty, Chief Carrots ?"

"I…"

He nibbled one of her ears before straightening her up.

"Off you go. Back to your boring chief job."

That kind of interaction was usually the other way around, but once in a while, the table turned. She took a couple of steps toward her desk while giving him a side glance, and purposely wagged her little puffball of a tail.

"That's low Carrots."

"I could sign off for more than five seconds." She smiled. She used a joking tone, but they both knew what would happened if the fox took her up on that offer.

"That's tempting, but I have work to do too." He went toward the door and passed it before turning and blowing a kiss toward her. "I'm free tonight though."

Judy sat back at her desk and stared at the her computer screen for a few seconds. An e-mail notification appeared and she clicked on it. It contained a picture of Nick taking a selfie while only wearing an apron with a print of the body of a fox only wearing a thong. 'I received that yesterday while you were at work. I may or may not wait for you home only wearing that. I think sharing this picture with you is as good a time as any.'

That's it, I'm not getting any work done today.


October 2037

"Oh, for goodness sake ! These aren't martial art, it's close combat. What's that weakass attack about Sharpfang ? No mammal attacks with a knife that way !"

"It's what we learned at the academy !" Protested the Puma.

The fox had a snort. "You didn't really pay attention to what old Friedkin was saying then..."

"That hag..." Came an under-breathed comment. Nick didn't have to turn his head to see where it came from. Springstein was more mean spirited than he seemed. There was something in his attitude, something vaguely condescending he didn't like. But the hare wasn't his subordinate, and as long as he didn't impede in the training session, he didn't see the point of putting his snout in the mud. Yet.

"I can't quote her exactly." Continued the fox "But as I remember it, it was pretty much 'only a sixth of what you learn here is applicable, but you'll have to learn it anyway. Even if it's shit.' I personally can't believe the combat training has been updated during all these years, but it is what it is. So, I'm going to show you what a knife attack looks like." He took the fake knife from Whiskberg's paw and approached Sharpfang. "You can disable me in any way you like. But only as soon as I try to attack you for the first time. Either take me out or take my knife. I stab you four times, you've lost. Got it ?"

"Alright." The feline assumed a fighting stance.

Nick approached in a casual pace and as soon as he was at an attack distance, he pulled out the knife.

"One, two." He didn't even try to evade the punch the feline threw. He vaguely cushioned it with his shoulder and stabbed the arm. "Three, four." He was then launched across the ring and rolled a few times before getting back up, scratching his head to shake off the grogginess. "You've lost." He announced

"Yeah, but I pushed you away."

"And you've been stabbed four times in the process. And it's really not like I wasn't in a fighting shape anymore. You see the problem here ? A knife attack comes as a surprise, and no one will ever try and stab you only one time in a row. It's always multiple attacks." He threw the knife to the puma. "Your turn. Stab me four times, and you've won."

As soon as the puma launched his first attack, the fox leaped away. The puma tried again, expecting the fox to try and control his arm. Instead, he pushed it away by punching it, using his knuckles and sending a spike of pain in the feline's nerves. The surprise made the puma let go of the weapon. The fox lept, rolled and snatched the knife before the puma could take it. "See what I did there ?"

The feline rubbed his hurting forearm. "You disarmed me."

Nick smirked. "Incidentally. I pushed away your attacking arm, and you happened to let go of the knife. I didn't pinch a nerve, I didn't push a shakra point or any of this bullshit. You felt a pain you didn't expect and you let go of your weapon. Simple as that. Alright, we're taking it from the top." He went around the recruits. "Nope, Whiskberg with Digger, and Sharpfang with Springstein. You won't always be confronted by mammals your size."

...

"What do you think of them ?" Asked the bunny while taking a handful of chips from the bag she was holding.

The fox stole a chip. "Well, they're salty, wasabi flavoured, so they're nice."

"I'm talking about the recruits, dumb fox."

"Pretty salty too, at least some of them." He smirked. "You won't give up on the parking duty tradition, I suppose."

"Nope. They need to get a bit humbled before I clear them to really work with civilians."

"The one I'm the most worried about is Springstein. He's good, but I think he's... I don't know, mean, a bully... Something like that."

The bunny frowned. "Yeah, I got the same gut-feeling. I actually asked Clawhauser to keep his ears open about the new recruits' behaviour."

"Ooooh, a spy among the other officers. You sly bunny."

"I'm just trying to have them all doing a good job. I'm not going to be behind their back berating them or correcting their every move, but if one of them makes work difficult for the others, I need to know about it."


November 2037

"And what are you going to do ? Report on me to the chief ?" The hare's ear were laying back behind his head and he was scowling at his partner.

"No, but we're here to protect the citizens, not acting all condescending and mighty toward them. You failed to give way, he honked, that's a pretty normal reaction."

"Well, his technical inspection was three months overdue, that's not my fault."

The female wombat pinched the bridge of her nose. "I can't believe that you fail to see the problem with your attitude. It's not about law, it's about communication."

"Who gives a shit about communication. I was valedictorian at the academy, I know how to do my job, I don't have to play nice with those who don't respect the rules."

There was a sudden knock on their office door. "Hey guys." Came a voice belonging to a red fox. "Adjusting well ?"

The two partners fell mute and quickly saluted the fox.

"At ease. Don't go all protocol on me. I'm not in it for the authority. Besides, I wasn't under the impression you were really about respecting all the rules." He gave and emphasized gaze to the hare while sipping on his coffee.

"You were listening ?"

"More like hearing. The walls aren't exactly thick. Just so you know, I agree with Digger. As a rule of thumb you should always be as lenient with yourself as you are with the civilian." He took another sip. "Then again, I'm not your commanding officer, you can do whatever you want."

He waved leaving the office, but not without noticing the scowl the hare gave him.

...

"So big Ben, what do you think about him ?" Said the fox, pointing at Sharpfang.

The cheetah observed the new recruit distractingly while chewing on his donut. "Nice fur, but a bit lean. Something to play with for a night, but the toy would break too quickly."

The fox snickered. "You're a bad kitty, Ben."

"And what do you think of her ?" Asked the cheetah, pointing at Digger.

"She's nice, but not my speed."

"I'd thought she'd be the right format."

"I'm not into short ears. No grip." Winked the fox.

The cheetah almost choked on the piece of donut he was swallowing.

"And him, there ?" He said pointing at Whiskberg.

"Now we're talking. In my opinion he should just work more on the legs, but that part where they join his back... Rawr."

Though he hadn't heard what they were talking about, the lion caught them staring. He lifted a brow and the cheetah answered with a friendly wave.

"So hunks. Only hunks. Guess there isn't anyone that can compare to Bogo."

"Nope."

"Didn't he lose a bit since he retired ?"

"Nah, he's keeping himself in shape. He still consults for the academy, and I don't think he'd like losing all those fine and perfect muscles." He stated with dreamy eyes.

"And him ?" Asked the fox, pointing at Springstein.

The cheetah snorted. "I thought all rabbits were nice, but this one is a stuck-up asshat."

"Such strong words in your mouth Ben... I almost can't believe my ears. But what makes you say that ?"

"Botched reports, aggressive attitude, and total control freak. Judy's had him in her scope for two months now."

The fox took a few seconds to reflect on it. "As far as I know, he was valedictorian too. Explains how he got here."

"And he likes to remind it when other question him."

"His crappy attitude was in his file ?"

"Nick, I don't have access to those. Only the chief does." Smiled the cheetah.

"Yeah, sure. So ?"

"They might as well have written 'opportunistic prick' all over his. Thing is, there was a bit of a paperwork mixup when Judy was named chief, and Bogo was the one that went to review the exams. And he accepted him."

"Knowing the ex chief, he probably knew what he was doing. That or he overlooked it."

"Adrian doesn't 'overlook' things." Stated the cheetah.

"Yeah. And what is chief Hopps going to do about the guy ?"

"I don't know, but I really hope it's going to be caught on camera."

...

"Alright guys, I want you on your best behavior. The chief is going to participate in this training session."

There was a bit of chatter as the female bunny entered the precinct's gym. Her limp seemed slightly worse than usual, but it was probably because she wasn't using her cane. She was wearing her usual sport clothes, completed with a leg brace.

The whole room calmed down and saluted her.

"At ease, officers. I take it you've all finished warming up ?"

There was a bit of chatter as an answer.

"I asked you a question officers !"

"Chief, no chief !"

"Then finish it up. You too officer Wilde. Lieutenant Buster, come here please." She had started bouncing in place, air jabbing a couple of time.

"Yes chief Hopps ?"

"Help me bandage my paws please."

"Sure chief."

As he was closer she leaned toward him. "How's Springstein doing. Any amelioration in his attitude ?"

"Nope, it's actually getting worse."

"Not for much longer." She smiled. The first adjective that came to the rat's mind was 'predatory'.

She tested her wrist flexibility and quickly warmed up.

"Okay, I want to see you two by two, exchanging blows. Cavid, you're with me. Buster, you're with Wilde. The others, with your usual sparring partner."

She exchanged a couple of punches with the larger rodent. He had gained swiftness and seemed more sure of himself. And he didn't seem to hesitate anymore.

"You've really caught the hang of it, Cavid."

"Thank you chief." He tried to catch her arm after a punch, but she backstepped quickly. "And thanks for having me transferred here also."

"It's was on Bogo's advice." She smiled. "But you deserved it." She tried a high kick with her bad leg, but he countered it and grabbed it, trying to punch her in the inner thigh. She twisted and caught his paw between her leg and brought him in an armlock.

"That was sly, officer Cavid."

"You'll have to blame officer Wilde, chief. He taught me a few of your moves" He smiled with a groan, tapping on her leg to surrender. She gave him a paw to help him stand back up.

"I heard Springstein is being a bit of a pain."

"I wouldn't know chief." He said with the corner of a smirk. "I'm not his partner."

"Got it."

The bunny went to climb on the ring and looked at the mammals fighting. Springstein wasn't half bad. "Your attention please."

The officers stopped their training and turned toward their chief. "It has come to my attention that some of the new recruits." She stared directly at the hare. "Maybe causing some trouble for their colleagues and fellow citizens, and disagreeing with my way of leading this precinct." Her gaze switched to the wombat. "Digger, you're up."

Nick tapped the rodent's shoulder. "Don't worry, she'll go easy on you." He heard a snort from behind him. He backstepped to place himself at Springstein's side.

"Something funny, Springstein ?" He whispered.

"Go easy on her ? I know she had quite the reputation, but with her leg, she can't be much of a fighter anymore."

The fox gave him a smile full of teeth. "Wanna bet on it ? Twenty bucks Digger loses."

"You're on."

"By the way, what do you think it was about the chief's comment on officers 'disagreeing with her way of leading' ?"

"You're her husband, I'm sure she told you."

The fox scratched his ear. "Nope, there are some things she keeps to herself, and I don't like to pry." That was an complete lie.

The hare shrugged. "I think it has to do with me. If you want to know, and I really don't want to seem offensive, I think there is a lot of dead weight in the precinct, but she made friend with most of them, so... They're staying."

The fox kept looking at the fight. He really didn't like that hare.

"I mean, a female chief... I'm not saying she's unfit to lead because she's a female, but you know, bunnies and their emotions clouding their judgement... I would know what I'm talking about." He smirked. "I can't understand why chief Bogo would give his seat to her."

"I guess we'll have to wait and see." Answered the fox under his breath. Suddenly he saw the wombat flying over the second rope, Whiskberg sprung to catch her before she harmed herself.

"You owe me twenty buck, Earstein."

"Very funny."

"Are you okay Digger ?" Asked the Judy, leaping down from the ring.

"Yes chief." Came the short-breathed rodent. "That'll teach me keep my guard up."

"You did great. Springstein, you're up."

The hare lifted a brow. "You don't want to take a breather ?"

She gave him a cold glare.

"-Chief." He added quickly.

"Get your butt on the ring, bunny-boy." She scowled.

He gave a glance to the other officers and saw they were all wincing and giving him worried glances, except for Nick which was grinning from ear to ear. "Whatever you do kid, keep your guard up." He advised.

The hare leaped on the ring and jumped a few times on place to warm back up.

"Ready ?" Asked the female bunny."

"Yes chief."

"Attack then." She smiled.

He observed her for a few seconds. She had a pretty open stance, but he knew enough about fighting to know that any move would put him in danger.

Unsure about what to do, he tried a couple of jabs that she avoided by only moving her head. "I hear you've given a lot of tickets, corporal." She casually stated.

"I do my job." He tried a feint, false jab, followed by a knee attack. She simply changed posture to put herself out of range.

"I'm sure you do. Is bullying citizens part of the standard ZPD job description ?" The hare missed his punch which threw slightly off-balance. "Dashcam footage." She side-stepped and gave a had slap on his chest, making him fumble backward to regain his stability.

"Or not admitting your mistakes, not listening to your colleagues advice, botching your reports... I must have missed that course at the academy." She closed the distance and launched a wave of jabs he only barely avoided. "Then again, the academy was almost twenty years ago for me."

She could see the red on his cheeks under his fur, but he didn't retort anything. "I've seen your academy file, Springstein. You're a piece of work."

"Weren't you when you got out of the academy, chief ?" He backstepped and threw a kick toward her chest. She turned to avoid it and he turned the kick into a jump to use his other foot to attack in a spinning motion. She blocked the foot with her forearms and he rolled away from her, after having hit the ground.

"I was respectful of my colleagues and of the civilians. I didn't use them as steps for my personal advancement."

"I don't-"

"You will if you're left unchecked." Leaping forward, she feigned a punch, but used her whole body instead and shoved her shoulder in his chest. The hare took a tumbling, but stood back up only slightly short breathed. "But what I'd like to address, is the way you seem to doubt about my skill as a chief. I can't lead officers who don't trust me as their leader."

"I don't-"

She grabbed him by his chest fur and head butted him. "We're fighting here, Springstein. Get your head in the moment." The hare took a couple of steps back holding his snout in his paws, while the bunny gave him time to recover.

"Why is it you don't trust me officer ? Is it because I'm new at this job ? I've been trained by the best chief of police that ever worked in this city." She began walking sideways, and they started circling each other, the hare still holding his bleeding nose. "And I intend to outclass him." She shot forward with an easily predictable jumpkick. She expected the punch he used to send her away and grabbed it, using her weight to bring him to the floor. "Is it because I'm a female ? I know you don't really see eye to eye with the other female in this precinct." She tried to bring him in an armlock but he elbowed her side and she had to let go. "You think I'm emotional ? You think I can't judge who can and cannot work at this precinct ?"

He gave her a surprised glance.

"Bunny hearing." She smiled. "And I know everything that happens in my precinct." She was walking away from him taking back her breath, and he could see the limping had gone worse.

"Yeah, well, just because you know, doesn't mean you take the right decisions, chief." In his mouth, the honorific title sounded like an insult.

The female bunny dropped her guard and lifted her paw, waving him to come to the offense. Arms loose around her body, she merely avoided his attack by moving around him. "Listen here bunny-boy. I was a valedictorian, like you. I was a bunny fresh out of the countryside like you. But there is a major difference between us." He had put her in a habit of dodging and launched a sudden leg that broke the pattern and caught both of her legs. She fell flat on her back, rolled and in the quarter of a second, she was already back up with her guard up. But he had taken a step back, with a condescending smile, to let her get back up.

She assumed an attacking stance. "I know not to underestimate what I'm facing." He never saw the foot that caught his jaw. One moment she was in front of him and the world was horizontal, the moment later it was vertical, and then spinning with patches of darkness and circles of light.

"Huh ?" He asked, as Wolford was checking his eyes and face.

"Minor concussion." The Wolf announced.

"Good. I was worried I'd have to fill in paperwork." Dismissively stated the bunny. She leaned toward the hare. "You better learn humility bunny-boy. Otherwise, you'll become another precinct's problem."

Nick was kneeling near the groggy hare, which was slowly getting better. "At least I gave her a run for her money."

The fox snorted. "She toyed with you all along. She could have opened with that kick and the fight would have lasted less than a second. You want to see what a real fight looks like with her ?" He straightened up. "Chief, can I have a turn."

The bunny gave him a look that communicated her exhaustion.

"I'll go easy on you, promise." He smiled.

She scowled at him. "Do that, and I'll put you on parking duty for the next three months. Get up Wilde."

He could see the limp had worsened. According to the doctor, even if she was in pain, there was no major risk for her leg. Otherwise, the fox would have never provoked her.

Facing each other, they were waiting to have the hare's full attention. He was looking at the match with interest. Nick assumed an aggressive stance and immediately went to the offense. His fist only met air, and a leg swipe caught his front leg. He fumbled to stay up, but the bunny's strong legs immediately found themselves above his shoulder, locking his neck in a choke. She had used his fumbling and her momentum to place herself behind him. He didn't tap to give up right away and tried to find a way out, but there was none. It was a bit frustrating to be in charge of the CQC training of the precinct, but still be no match for her. Then again, he had never met someone that could go toe to toe with her.

"Enjoying the moment, Captain Wilde ?"

"Maybe." Came his strangled voice as he tapped several time on her leg to make her let go, and signal his defeat.

He was up first though, and helped her straightened up.

"That was her fighting all out kid." Said Wolford to the hare.

The bunny got down from the ring and approached him. "I'll give you one last tip kid, and if you've read anything about me you'll know I'm not kidding. I care as much for my officers than for the civilians. If you decide to keep being a threat to either of them..." She approached her face inches from his and gave him the most threatening smirk she had ever shown. Despite his effort, his face shot slightly back and he lost his composure. "...you'll get eaten alive."