CHAPTER 10

Cat Out Of The Bag

They were headed into uncharted territory now. The initial reconnaissance was a success. Now all they needed was visual confirmation that the drug was stashed there, and everything would be set up for a raid by the following night. The tricky part wasn't so much convincing the dealers to reveal their stash. It was the exit that would require their very best performance.

As Victoria walked into the booth, she gave his paw a subtle squeeze, and together entered the lioness's den, the door closing behind them with an audible slam.

Once his eyes had adjusted to the new light, he froze mid step when he saw the booth was completely empty save for a small aluminum desk and a couple of chairs. The lioness stood before them, her smile completely predatory as she looked down at them, her eyes glinting dangerously. Before he could react, he heard the sound of a gun cocking, and felt the cool touch of metal against the back of his skull.

"I'll admit, you almost had me there, Officer Wilde." The lioness said, marching up to him slowly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Victoria frozen in place, the other wolf holding her in an identical position. "If I hadn't had you tagged the moment you entered this place, you might have actually fooled me."

"Can't blame a mammal for trying, right?" He said, knowing full well his cover was blown. Their only chance would be diplomacy, seeing as how a bullet to the back of the skull tended to end most fights before they began. "I suppose you're one of Whitfur's lackeys?"

"Lieutenant, actually." The lioness said with no small sense of pride in her tone. Nick smirked.

"Ooh, careful, your ego is showing."

Though he'd managed to wipe the smile from the lioness's face, his brain quickly realized it might have been a dumb move when she started to move towards him, a scowl etched on her face. Her paw flew to his muzzle and her claws dug into his skin, making him whine in pain.

"That tongue of yours will bring you nothing but trouble, Officer. I'd keep it locked up if I were you." She tossed his head to the side with ease, betraying the strength in her gloved paws.

For once, Nick acquiesced, his mind racing to come up with a solution as the lioness patted him down. With a brute yank, she pulled the gun from within his jacket, twisting it in her paws as she inspected the weapon.

"Pretty heavy for a fox your size, Slick."

"Well, you know what they say… Speak softly and all that…" Nick muttered, this time avoiding the lioness's wrath as she strapped the gun behind her waist.

A few tense minutes of silence passed as the lioness stood before them, appraising her prey with hungry eyes as she no doubt contemplated what to do next. At that point, Nick knew he had to wait until she made her move before it was his turn. The last thing he needed was to aggravate the situation, especially with Vicky held at gunpoint and Judy still hiding in the car.

"I was expecting you to bring that rabbit with you. What was her name, Julie? Jessie…?"

"She was busy."

"Oh?"

"She's at yoga. You should try it, might make you less cranky." Before he could even think of smirking at the lioness, the wolf pistol-whipped him. Spots appeared in his field of vision and he staggered to one knee, the wolf quickly pulling him up by the scruff of his neck. As his eyes attempted to focus, the lioness once more approached him, leaning her muzzle closer to his own as she taunted him with her fanged smile.

"I suggest you start taking this more seriously, Officer Wilde. Ms. Whitfur is not a very patient mammal, and she'll be very disappointed if I fail to deliver you… intact."

As much as he would have loved to retort, his brain was much too busy bouncing around inside of his skull. And at that precise moment, their party was interrupted by two more guests, both equally unwelcome. Nick only heard the door open, and over the thrumming in his ears managed to make out the gruff voice of the bison that had stopped them at the entrance to the garage and a pained grunt he knew all too well.

"Found her hiding in the car, boss. Should I off her?"

Fear gripped his heart, and it must have been evident on his muzzle based on the lioness's self-satisfied expression.

"No, not yet. I have a phone call to make. After that, we'll see what to do with these three." She said, her eyes never leaving Nick's. "Keep an eye on them, especially this one. If he starts talking, rip his tongue out. Just make sure to stop the bleeding."

Nick did his best to convey his absolute hatred for the feline through a steady glare, but she easily shrugged it off and walked away, her paws procuring a cell phone from within the folds of her jumpsuit. The gun behind his head prevented Nick from turning his head, and he could only guess that the lioness had left once the door creaked open and slammed shut once again.

He risked a glance at Judy, and the weight in his chest lifted when he saw that she seemed to be unharmed, if a bit shaken as she shot up from off the ground where the bison had tossed her. A smile tugged at his lips, knowing full well that what probably bothered her the most was having been caught, not the fact that they were facing potential execution at the hands of a murderous crime boss.

"So nice of you to join the party, Carrots. Did you bring any snacks?" He asked, waiting for the inevitable blow. Judy only managed to utter a syllable of protest as the wolf once more bashed the back of his head with his gun.

Despite the throbbing pain building up in the back of his skull, Nick smiled. The wolf hadn't hit him half as hard as he had when the lioness was around. He'd been showing off for his boss, but his heart wasn't in it. Luck seemed to be on his side. A thug without a pathological taste for violence was easier to corrupt.

"Nick…" Judy started, a quick shove from the bison silencing her.

"Shut it, you two. One more word and we'll start breaking bones." The threat was not an empty one, of that, Nick was certain. Still, as soon as the phone call was done, they were as good as dead anyways. The clock was ticking, and what were a couple of broken bones compared to a permanent dirt nap? In for a penny...

"There's really no need for that, is there?" Nick said softly, using his voice to try and control the situation.

"You heard Sizani, fox. Keep talking and I'll have the boys here pull your tongue out."

Reacting to the bison's words, the wolf behind him snarled, pushing the barrel of his gun against the bruise already forming on the back of his head.

"I heard her, alright. Did you, though?" He asked, lifting his eyes to stare at the bison with an unsettling gaze. Despite the bison's size, he wasn't as solid as his skull. He simply snorted, looking at Nick out of the corner of his eyes as he held Judy at gunpoint.

Judy was trying to catch his eye in a none-too-subtle fashion, but he wasn't about to waste the momentum he was getting out of the conversation. As long as he was talking, there was hope to somehow get out of this. Judy's concerns would have to wait until later. Nick smacked his lips and continued in a dispassionate fashion.

"She's the lieutenant ," Nick said, mimicking the lioness's manner and eliciting a snort from one of the wolves. "Who do you think is getting all the credit for this in the end?"

Though he sensed some doubt from the wolf holding Victoria as he shuffled his paws, the bison seemed unphased.

"Who cares? So long as I get paid at the end of the day, the cat can keep the praise."

The idea burst into his mind like a flood. As risky as it seemed, he knew it was probably their best, and only, hope of leaving the place alive. Fiddling with the briefcase handle in his paws, he adopted his silkiest voice, reminiscent of his hustling days.

"What makes you so sure that you'll be getting paid at all?"

The bison paused, and Nick knew he'd planted the seed of doubt. Not waiting for common sense to win over, he continued his smooth pitch.

"I mean, you're smart mammals, you know how this works. Has she even paid you anything yet, or is it just the promise of money to come?" He asked, noticing that the wolf behind him seemed to be easing the pressure of his gun against him.

"What are you talkin' about, fox?" The other wolf snapped, his tail twitching erratically behind him. "'Course we're getting paid."

"Maybe," Nick said, testing his freedom by pivoting on his paws and facing the other wolf. So far, so good. "But if it were me, and no offense to any of you, I'd consider you disposable. It'd be more profitable to string you along for a few months and then off you when you start asking questions about the money. A bullet's cheap, especially when it comes from behind your back."

"So what?" The bison asked, trying to appear confident, yet Nick saw his countenance cracking. "You want us to quit, change our ways and find a nine to five job in a cubicle somewhere?"

"Well, as much as I'd certainly commend you if you did... no. Mammals like us aren't exactly suited for the eight hour shift." Nick said, noticing the doubts and fears playing behind the wolf's eyes. He could only hope that the one behind him had a similar visage. "I do, however, have an alternative solution."

"What's that?" The wolf behind him asked, poking him in the back with a claw. At least it wasn't a gun this time. Nick smiled and tapped the briefcase still pawcuffed to his wrist, holding it up for the other mammals to see.

"Well, two hundred grand makes a nice early retirement fund. And I'm guessing its plenty more than what Whitfur promised you." Nick's smile grew as the idea finally seemed to solidify within the bison's head, his eyes suddenly lighting up with greed. The wolves, however, still had their doubts.

"Yeah, right. You're a cop, where are you gonna get that sort of cash?" One of them said.

"And even if it's real, it's probably bugged or wired or somethin'."

Thinking fast, Nick spun towards the bison, pulling out his trump card.

"Well, the big fella over there checked it as we were coming in. He saw it, it's as real as the nose on my muzzle." He said, banking on the bison's uncertainty. "More real than any promises of future payment, at least."

A few seconds of silence followed, Nick focusing his gaze on the bison and ignoring the worried glances coming from the two females in the room. Finally, with a slow nod, the bison agreed.

"Yeah, looked real enough. No wires or any funny business." He said, holstering his gun and stepping towards Nick. Retreating by instinct, Nick bumped into the wolf who apparently remembered at that moment he was supposed to keep his gun trained on his back.

"Whoa, hold on there, Buffalo Bill," Nick said, clutching the briefcase to his chest. "If you want the money, you'll need the key. It's in the car."

"Or I can just cut that paw off." The bison said, a steely glint in his eyes that made Nick shiver. It was no idle threat.

"Tempting." Nick said, keeping his cool. "But you'll still have to deal with the briefcase." He said, lifting it up and showing the buffalo the small keyhole under the handle. "It's a bulletproof briefcase, a knife isn't going to get it open."

"Fine. I'll walk you to the car and once we get the money, we'll let you go."

There was no question, it was a direct order. The only trouble was that Nick knew how these things worked. More than likely, they'd still end up being delivered to Whitfur, only by a bison instead of a lion. Fortunately, Nick had one more card up his sleeve, as risky as it was.

He shrugged. "Fair enough, I trust you. I mean, you're willing to share the money with your partners here. If that's not trust, I don't know what is. Personally, I'd much rather keep the money for myself."

A heavy silence descended on the room, the breathing of the different mammals and the beating of his own heart the only sounds reaching his ears. Each mammal looked at the other with fear in their eyes, each waiting for the other to make their move. The tense stand-off seemed to last forever. Nick looked at Judy and his heart plummeted, the look of disbelief on her face filling him with guilt. He knew it wasn't right, but when it came to survival, there was nothing Nick wasn't willing to do. Especially when it wasn't only his life on the line.

Time had slowed down, and when the action started, it didn't speed back up. Nick saw everything at once, every mammals' fluid motions as though he were looking at a film in slow motion. His first reaction was to duck, looking at Judy and hoping she followed his lead as the bison's hoof flew to his waist. He was too slow, however, and the wolves reacted almost in concert, firing shot after shot at the bison. The shots rang out time and time again, and Nick lost count, focusing only on Judy's prostrate figure, making sure none of the bullets were destined for her. She had expertly rolled beneath the solitary desk, out of the crossfire.

After what felt like ages, the noise suddenly stopped. Nick watched as the bison's eyes dulled over and he fell to his knees, the front of his green sweater practically ripped to shreds and soaked in blood. He fell slowly, causing a slight tremor as his massive body hit the floor with a sickening thud. The tangy, metallic smell of blood assaulted his nose and Nick did his best to ignore his gag reflex. There would be plenty of time to empty his stomach once they'd gotten out of this alive.

After a few minutes of silence, the wolf guarding Victoria stashed his gun and turned his gaze down towards Nick with a bloodthirsty smirk.

"Alright, fox. Let's go get that key." The wolf's words were muffled by the ringing in Nick's ears, and he shook his head to try and clear the noise. He was almost certain that ringing wouldn't go away for quite some time.

His companion grabbed Nick's arm and promptly dragged him up to his feet again. Nick shrugged him off and rushed towards Judy, ignoring the wolf's snickering. By the time he reached her she was already on her paws, grasping at her hip and taking in the scene with the practiced motions of a cop. Identify threat, get to cover, protect victims. Nick gently placed his paw on her shoulder, looking into her dilated pupils and urging her to calm down. There was no use for a hyped-up bunny in a gunfight.

"Carrots, you okay?" He asked, softly shaking her, trying to snap her out of her adrenaline rush before her instincts got the better of her. Blinking a few times, her eyes finally focused on him.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Did they… are you…?" She asked between panting breaths, her eyes going over him, searching for injuries.

"I'm fine. Can't say the same for the bison over there." Looking at the fresh corpse laying next to them, she reached out for him, and Nick was all too happy to offer reassurance. He needed it as well. As the wolves advanced towards them, Nick placed himself between the canines and Judy, looking back towards Victoria to make sure she was okay. She shot him a nervous smile. The vixen had fared as well as any of them in the shootout. The only thing shot were her nerves.

"Come on, we haven't got all day." The wolf that had been guarding him snarled. He turned towards the door and made ready to leave when a rapid movement off to the side caught Nick's attention. Before he could react, the other wolf had once again pulled his gun, and pulled the trigger. The door was painted red as the other wolf fell in a crumpled heap to the ground, a smoking hole in the back of his head. He felt Judy try to shove past him, a dark curse escaping her lips. He placed his paw in front of her, stopping her from whatever suicidal vigilante action was running through her mind. The wolf still had another clip left. Nick felt his heart race in his chest, and he found himself unable to hide the shock at the traitorous action. The wolf, however, simply looked at him and laughed.

"Like you said fox, why share when I can have all the money for myself?" Pointing his gun at Nick, he motioned towards the door with his head. Nick complied. As he walked towards the door, making sure Victoria was following behind Judy, he felt a small paw slip into his and looked down to find Judy looking up at him, deep concern in her eyes. Justice was no longer prevailing, and she didn't like that one bit.

He knew there was a chance of not getting through all of this alive. Their plan was shot to hell and back. Two dead mammals in the same room as them was about as wrong as it could have gone, short of their own untimely deaths. If anything, it was a gruesome reality check of just what they'd gotten themselves into. Even though they'd seen worse by now during their jobs, he knew it was very different to be the helpless victims in the scenario. He squeezed Judy's paw, finding no irony in the fact that a bunny was consoling a fox.

At the wolf's insistence, Nick kept walking, gingerly stepping over the body of the dead canine sprawled on the floor, doing his best to avoid stepping on the quickly spreading pool of blood. Not without a grimace, he pushed open the door, this time unable to avoid the crimson stains on the handle, and stepped outside into the eerily silent parking garage. Their car was the only thing in sight, staring straight at him, beckoning them to safety.

Nick walked slowly, knowing full well he had no hopes of running faster than a bullet, and waited for the other mammals to join him outside as they maneuvered the obstacle before the door.

As he turned around, he saw Victoria hopping over the body on the floor, joining Judy outside as the wolf followed slowly, his gun trained on him. Once outside, he motioned forwards. Just as Nick was about to oblige, he heard two words that quickly had him rooted to the spot.

"Don't. Move."

His natural night vision isolated the source of the voice, and he watched with hidden joy as the lioness stepped out from the shadows surrounding the guard booth, training a gun at the wolf's head. The canine froze, a grimace on his face and primal fear in his eyes. The lioness approached, and Nick chose to simply watch, inching forward slightly.

"You stupid bastard. What have you done?" She spat as she closed in on the group. At the same time, Nick began taking mental measurements. He was just a few steps away from the wolf, and Judy and Victoria had slowly eased away from him. Meanwhile, the lioness continued her tirade. "You've just signed your death warrant, you crazy mutt. Whitfur will have your pelt for this!"

With a deep breath, Nick dashed forward, hoping for everyone's sake that he had timed it right. By the time any mammal reacted to his movement, he'd swung his arm with all his strength in a wide arc, slamming the briefcase against the wolf's paws and sending his gun skittering across the pavement. As the wolf flinched, several things happened at once. Judy stormed forward, leaping at the wolf and kicking at his back with all her might, leaving him in a heap halfway across the parking lot. Victoria sprinted towards the car while the lioness pointed her gun at Nick and began to pull the trigger.

As the shots rang out, he felt hope once more, watching the lioness's expression turn from bloodthirsty rage to sheer surprise. Adopting a casual stance, he smirked at her.

"Blanks." He said. Before she could react, Judy barreled feet-first into the lioness's stomach, knocking the wind out of her. Not one to take his luck for granted, he grabbed Judy's paw as soon as she'd scampered to her feet and turned towards the car, following Victoria's lead.

She had already made it to the car and was in the process of starting the engine when Nick heard a menacing roar from behind. Twisting his body as he ran, he saw the glint of the lioness's fangs as she chased after them, gaining fast. They had almost made it; they were mere seconds away from getting away with their lives. But seconds was much too long.

Judy was looking ahead towards the car, determination written all over her face, whereas Nick was focused on the mammal just a few feet behind them. He was runnings faster than he'd ever ran, practically matching Judy's impressive speed. But as he watched the lioness's legs tense, he knew that despite all his effort, he was slowing her down. As the big cat's claws extended from her paw and reached out towards them, there was absolutely no doubt in his mind. No fear, no regret, not the slightest hesitation.

Closing his eyes, he shoved Judy with all his strength, pushing her well clear of the incoming claws that would have undoubtedly slashed her to shreds. In the split second left, Nick ducked down and rolled just under the lioness's deadly lunge.

The momentum carried the larger predator forward and sent her sprawling on the concrete, giving Nick enough time to gather himself up and push Judy to her feet. Just as they made eye contact with the lioness, the screeching of tires filled the garage, and the feline jumped back as Victoria skidded to a halt between them, popping open the car doors.

"Get in!" Victoria yelled, and this time Judy was the one to shove Nick into the backseat of the car. Before they'd managed to close the door, Vicky was already speeding off, the sounds of gunshots audible over the roaring of the engine.

As he collapsed against the seat, he suddenly became aware of a burning sensation gnawing at his back. Twisting around to find the source of his discomfort, he heard Judy gasp with horror.

"Nick! You're bleeding!"

What? Reaching around behind his back, he felt a sting when his paw made contact with something sticky on his back. The liquid was warm and muddy-looking in the dim light, now caked on the fur of his paw.

"Oh. Well, that's a bummer…"

Judy jumped to the back seat while Victoria swerved up the ramp to the ground floor. Her field training quickly took over as she brusquely shoved Nick's face down against the seat examine the wound.

"Oh no. No, no. This isn't good." She whimpered, her paws flitting around his back without actually touching him.

"What? What happened?" Victoria shouted over the roar of the engine as she pulled out unto the street, speeding away under a hail of bullets

"Nick got clawed! His back, it's…" Judy stammered.

"Relax, it's probably nothing." Nick said, muffled by the seat. "I can barely feel it anyways. Probably just a scratch."

"That's the adrenaline, Nick. This isn't just a scratch. We've got to get you to a hospital!"

"No!" He snarled, trying to lift himself up. The movement contracted his back muscles, and the sting was amplified several degrees. He hissed in pain but quickly interrupted Judy's protestations. "If Whitfur's after us, a hospital will be the easiest place to find us. I'm not taking that chance."

"Well, where do I go then?" Vic asked, her voice tense. Nick answered instantly, no room for doubt in his mind.

"Home. Make sure nobody's tailing us, and then take us back to the apartment. Take the long way around Riverside just in case," he said. Twisting his snout to look at Judy's anguished face, he gave her a smile, hoping to calm her nerves. "You can patch me up back home. It'll be like sewing up one of your stuffed bunnies." He teased.

Judy didn't smile this time. Instead, she just stared at him. He might have commented on her behaviour, but he was starting to feel increasingly light-headed. The moment was over in a flash, and then she was putting pressure on his wound with what was left of his jacket.

The rest of the ride was a jumbled mess of passing street lights and tense waiting. Nick kept silent as he did his best to stay awake, barely making out some of the words passing between Victoria and Judy. Maybe Judy was right and his back was worse than he anticipated. Even so, at least the pain wasn't so bad yet. He could barely feel his back at all.

Once at the apartment, Judy wrapped her arm around him and helped him out of the car, quickly joined by Victoria. Together they were able to drag him to his apartment in one piece, mostly. Nick tried to walk on his own, but his legs had apparently turned to jelly, and every movement twisted his back and sent fresh waves of pain coursing through his body. The only sign of it was the stony grimace on his muzzle.

By the time they reached the apartment, Nick could no longer hold back the growl building up in his chest, praying to find sanctuary on a flat surface somewhere. He was bitterly disappointed when they swerved into the bathroom and placed him on a small stool in the middle of the shower.

"Skipping straight to the good part, huh? I can roll with that." He said through clenched teeth, earning twin glares from the females bustling around his medicine cabinet. Victoria gingerly pulled off his jacket and began to unbutton his shirt as Judy prepared several rolls of gauze and a topical antibiotic.

"Sweet heavens," Victoria mumbled from behind him as she pulled away his blood soaked shirt. "Oh, Nick…"

"Less pity, more helping." He grumbled, watching Judy out the corner of his eye. Her movements were mostly a blur, her paws moving quickly as she gathered everything from his tiny, outdated first aid kit. She was trembling. Nick hated putting her through this. Still, had the situation been reversed, he doubted he could have kept such a level head.

"Alright, I'm sorry Nick, but this is going to sting a bit." Victoria said from somewhere behind him. Before he could protest, a stream of cold water hit him at the base of his skull and trickled down his back, bringing a new dimension of pain along with it. He yelped but quickly bit his tongue, clenching his paws and fighting through the pain.

Victoria guided the water more directly towards his wounds, washing away dried blood and filth. It took all his willpower and Judy's paws on his shoulders to keep him from jumping out the window. He could definitely feel the damage now, four long gashes where the pain was highlighted along the general aching of his back.

It was over in two minutes, but for Nick, it might as well have been two hours. He almost congratulated himself for not passing out, but something told him he wasn't done quite just yet.

"It looks like you were right Nick. It's not too deep." Victoria said as she inspected his wounds more closely now that they were clean.

"Are you sure?" he asked through gritted teeth. "Feels like my liver's seeing the light of day."

"At least your wit is still intact." The vixen replied, but Nick could practically hear her smile. That was as good a sign as anything, even if the bunny standing next to him still looked shellshocked.

"I'm no good with first aid, you of all mammals should know that. I hope your bunny is up to the task." Vicky said, stepping out of the shower and into Nick's field of vision. Her clothes were now in disarray, soaked in water and droplets of what he assumed was his blood. Vicky simply shook it off. "If you'll excuse me, I have a car to introduce to a river. Then I'm going home. I've had enough excitement for one night. I'll call you tomorrow to see where we go from here."

With a smile, she leaned towards him and planted a kiss on the top of his snout, his nose twitching as their whiskers touched. With a wink, she was gone, leaving him alone in his apartment with Judy, who was having trouble looking anywhere in particular. They shared a few tense seconds of silence before Nick finally spoke up.

"Well, Carrots, what do you say? Feel like patching me up?" He asked, doing his best to offer a warm smile at Judy who simply nodded and fetched the necessary materials.

Nick dropped his head, watching pink droplets splatter against the white tile of his shower floor. It wasn't quite how he'd expected to end the night. But as his mind replayed the events that transpired in that forsaken little booth, he knew that they'd gotten extremely lucky. They had all been moments away from certain death.

But at what cost?

"I'll have to cut the fur around it." Judy whispered from the opposite side of the bathroom, her face hidden behind the first aid kit. He noticed she was once again acting like she'd been that morning. Case in point, it was just the two of them, and she still hadn't begun to fuss over him like she usually did. He decided he should probably test the waters.

"Is this revenge for that bald bunny joke?" Nick felt much more at ease once Judy scoffed and turned towards him, her eyes bright as she fought back a smile. That was at least a bit more like her.

He could feel the trepidation in her paws as she began to spread the fur on his back and clipped away with a pair of surgical scissors. In the silence, Nick focused on the sound of Judy's breath, the smell of her fur, the swirling pattern of the blood on his paws. Anything to ignore the growing pain in his back. After minutes of silence apart from their mutual breathing and the snip-snip of the scissors, Judy stepped back to admire her work.

"Well… it could've been worse…" Judy said, walking away towards the sink to wash her paws. Nick remained hunched over to keep the skin on his back stretched out. "A few inches lower and you wouldn't have been able to sit for a month."

Nick let out a loud snort. He winced as the movement brought about a fresh bout of pain.

"Oh, don't make me laugh, Carrots. I'm in enough pain as it is." He said, smiling at the chuckling doe. The laughter quickly died away from her face and she turned away, watching the sink fill with crimson-tinged water as she rinsed her paw.

She once more fell into a silent trance, mechanically gathering the gauze and several rolls of tape and once more disappearing from his field of vision as she set to work on his back. Nick did his best not to flinch as she applied the antibiotic, though luckily it didn't sting for long. The gauze covered most of his back, and once Judy finished applying it, Nick began to feel a small degree of relief.

"Thanks. Feels much better now." He said, slowly standing from his cramped position on the small stool and testing his back. After the initial pain, he found it wasn't so bad as long as he kept mostly still. He turned just in time to see Judy quietly sneaking away.

"Hey, Fluff. What's wrong?" He asked, watching her carefully as she stopped in her tracks. Still unwilling to meet his eyes, she mumbled something incoherent, only speaking up after he repeated the question.

"I… I'm sorry." She said, her voice barely audible. "I'm sorry you got hurt."

Nick stepped towards her and extended his paw before she could escape, ignoring the pain the jerky movement caused him.

"Hey, it wasn't your fault, Carrots." He said, placing a paw on her shoulder. When she ignored him, he turned her so that she was facing him and leaned closer to her, making sure she made eye contact. "Judy. It wasn't your fault. If anything, it was my own lousy timing."

"If I had run faster…"

"You'd be winning gold in the Olympics, not working as a cop." Nick said, stopping her before she could guilt trip herself. The small smile on her face told him it was working. "Do I wish I had been faster and avoided the kitty's claws? Yes, I most definitely do. But there's not much I can do about that, now is there?"

"I know, but still…" Judy said, obviously still struggling. For Nick it had always been simple: do what you have to do, and deal with the consequences. He knew Judy had a different outlook on things, and had a pretty good idea of where her mind was taking her. Before things escalated into dangerous emotional territory, he pulled her into a hug which she simply leaned into.

"Oh, boy. Haven't we talked about this? You and your emotions?"

"Shut up." She mumbled through his fur, one of her ears smacking him playfully on the snout.

"You know, at least I get to keep the scars. I hear chicks dig scars."

With a shove, she pulled away from him with a smirk.

"It's true. Too bad no one will see those." She teased. Glad to have the old Judy Hopps back, Nick decided to show her who the king of teasing was.

"You saw them, what do you think?" Nick said, striking a majestic pose. Judy simply snorted, waving a paw at him.

"Meh. I've seen better."

Nick gasped, staggering back and placing his paw over his heart.

"You wound me!"

Despite the shabby pun, the tension eased away and Judy laughed heartily. Nick knew that after tense situations, emotions ran high. Better to blow off the steam by laughing than by sobbing in a dark corner somewhere. Turning off the bathroom light and ignoring the mess inside, Nick closed the door and guided Judy out into the living room.

"Well, I think that's enough action for one night. I'm going to sleep. Let me know if you need anything."

Before he could plop down on the couch, Judy grabbed at his paw, holding him back.

"Where do you think you're going?" She asked. Nick pointed over his shoulder towards the couch, but Judy clucked her tongue as she shook her head. "You've played martyr enough. You're taking the bed, I can crash on the couch tonight."

"But…"

"Nick, your couch is bigger than my bed . I'll be fine." She said with a smile that no sane mammal could say no to. "Now get some rest. You'll need it for tomorrow."

With a chuckle and one last tug at her ears, Nick stepped around her and staggered drowsily towards his bedroom, the thought of his soft bed like a siren's call in his mind. Not bothering to close the door behind him, he simply kept walking until he hit the bed, and allowed gravity to do the rest of the work. He was out before his head hit his pillow.