CHAPTER 14: THE BAND'S BAD BUN

"Clawhauser! How much longer!"

"Just a few more minutes, Chief!"

The plump cheetah was sitting in the driver's seat of the SWAT van, clad in the only gear that 'fit' him. They had busted through the mayor's office and arrested Mayoress Bellwether, but Doug had already received his orders by the time they got there. Now, they were racing to Zootopia Central Park, hoping that they would get there before Doug.

Judy, Nick, I hope you guys are okay!

In the time that it took for Nick to hit the pavement he was just standing on a moment ago, his mind processed three things.

One: Someone pulled a gun on him.

Two: He heard a gunshot.

And three: …he wasn't dead?

He placed his arms behind him to push his back off the ground. When he did, He saw a sheep standing there, dumbfounded, then he saw in the sheep's hand what looked like a gun pointed at the spot where he was just standing, and then he saw something that terrified him.

"JUDY!" He scrambled to the spot where Judy lay. He searched for the spot where she was shot but instead found a small patch of blue which immediately dissolved into her temple. What? He felt her stir underneath and look at him. Her pupils covered most of her iris, only a small ring of amethyst still visible. Oh, no.

"The toxic flowers…" He went to pick her up, but she frantically pushed away. He heard an uncharacteristic growl emanate from the bunny. "Carrots I need you to fight it!" He moved closer to her again, but she held out a shaking paw.

"Don't!" He watched her push herself up, then paw at the spot the serum entered. He saw a flash of horror in her eyes, then she looked at him.

"I'm sorry, Nick." Nick saw the last of the amethyst in her eyes disappear, then she was gone. He heard the growl again, then he saw a flash of gray lunge at him.

With unanticipated strength, Judy kicked his midsection, sending him falling backward. It wasn't long before the gray bunny jumped atop of him, violently raking her blunt claws through his skin, leaving long bruises underneath his fur. She used her teeth and bit down on his arms, which he used to try and shove her off of him.

People began revolting. Some panicked, some began yelling, and others moved to restrain Doug. Nick managed to shove Judy off of him, and she growled at him. Nick got on all fours and snarled back, bearing his sharp teeth. Upon view of his teeth, Judy retreated, running further into the park. Nick picked himself up, yelping at the pain in his leg. He looked down to see blood trickling from his calf, and he chuckled to himself bitterly. So much for being prey, huh? He shook himself from his thoughts as the police arrived. Ben and Bogo stepped into the park and approached Nick.

"Nick, are you alright?"

"Not really, but I'm not worried about that." Nick glanced toward the direction where Judy had run off. She had run in the direction of the park bench where she had talked with Katie and Nathan. Could it be a coincidence? Or was it a conscious decision?

"I need to find Judy." He said without turning around. "She was hit by the serum." He heard Clawhauser gasp and Bogo groan in frustration.

"Alright, squads! We are going to comb the area. Be on the lookout for an infected gray bunny! Do not shoot to kill! Tranqs only! Understood!?"

"Yessir!" He heard the officers reply in unison.

"Nick, did you see which Judy ran?"

"Actually, I think I might know where she is."

Where am I? Judy felt cold. She felt something like electricity course from the tips of her ears down to the digits of her feet. She also felt something else: Not quite lust, nor anger, nor exhilaration.

Something Carnal.

She tried to move her arms to her head, only to realize that she had little to no control of her body. It was as if she were catching a ride in someone else's body, only allowed to make small actions. She managed to turn her head left and right, and in that time, she managed to get her bearings.

I'm at that park bench… in the picnic grounds.

She heard rustling and she felt her all the muscles in her body tense up. She jerked around and saw Nick make his way through a patch of bushes.

"Hey there, Carrots." His voice, which normally was smooth as silk, sounded harsh and shrill coming through her ears. Her mouth growled uncontrollably, and Judy tried her best to resist.

Stop it! Nick is your friend!

Her pleas amounted to nothing and she felt her body tense up, preparing to lunge at Nick.

NO!

She felt her legs spring forward and her blunt claws reached for Nick's neck, but then she felt a swift movement followed by the feeling of cool pawpads wrap around her arms. Nick grasped her and slammed her up against a nearby tree, and she lost her breath from the contact. He locked her in place and wrapped his legs around hers, using his knees to pin her against the tree. He was a breath away from her and he growled at her, to which she growled back.

"Carrots." She growled again, and she felt Nick's grip tighten. Then, she saw Nick's features soften.

"… Judy." Her consciousness, which had been continuing to try to resist her primal behaviors finally gained a bit of control and she stopped growling. "I know you're in there. I know it's hard, but I need you to fight it. You can do it."

Judy's struggling lessen bit by bit as more of Judy's consciousness continued to gain control.

Don't hurt him.

"N-N-Nick." She felt more of her body loosen up, then she saw Clawhauser approach them.

"Be-Benji?"

"I'm here, Jude. We're gonna take care of you."

Nick's grip tightened a little more, and Judy looked at him, her pupils still covering her iris. "Nick?"

"They're gonna have to tranq you, Carrots."

For a second, she felt the carnal behavior take over again, but she continued to struggle and push it down. It was a hard battle and she found herself losing control again. She strained to nod.

"Do it."

She felt a quick prick in her upper arm, then everything began to fade to black. The last thing she saw before she slipped away was Nick's eyes, but for the first time since she had been back,

They were soft.

Judy drifted into sleep, and Nick picked her up into his arms. Clawhauser approached them and gently pulled the tranquilizer dart out of her arm. They carried her back to the park center and loaded her into an ambulance, which sped off in the direction of the ZGH.

Nick turned back and saw Doug, who was standing between two officers, his hooves cuffed together. He saw him sport a smug grin, one that Nick used often when he felt as though he got what he wanted. The already boiling anger inside of him made its extravagant debut when he rushed the sheep, wrapping a paw around his neck and forcing him to the ground. He placed a knee on Doug's chest and began pounding his face with his other free paw.

"SHE WAS INNOCENT!" He yelled as he continued beating him. His pupils were reduced to a small dot in the middle of a ghostly emerald and his teeth were bared.

"HEARTLESS!" Another blow.

"DISGUSTING!" He could hear the guys as well as officers begging for him to stop.

"MONSTER!"

"NICK! THAT'S ENOUGH!" He heard Finnick plea, then he felt a paw grab his fist which was reeled to deliver another blow. He jerked his head around, preparing to direct the blow at the mammal who stopped him, but he stopped when he saw that it was Skye.

"You're going to kill him if you don't stop." Her voice was soft and he could hear the worry in his voice. He turned back to Doug. The smug grin was gone, and instead, a terrified expression donned his battered, bloody face. He released his throat and the Doug began gasping for breath as well as coughing up blood.

"He's not worth it." She continued, and Nick loosened up. "That bunny needs you right now. Don't waste your time on him when you could be there for her."

Nick closed his eyes, took a deep sigh, then looked to Bogo.

"I need a ride." Bogo nodded.

"We'll get you there."

Zootopia General Hospital

Nick and the guys made it to the hospital and practically tore it apart in search for Judy, however, when a doctor saw Nick's injuries, she forced him into a room for treatment, so now, he was sitting in a room with white gauze covers wrapped around his leg and adhesive bandages left and right. He wasn't allowed to walk on the leg until the doctor came back, which would have been fine since Judy's kick left him with a couple of bruised ribs. The problem was that he was alone in the quiet, so he was confined to his thoughts.

He tried his best to push them down, but there were no distractions left.

I have these thoughts, so often I ought
To replace that slot with what I once bought
'Cause somebody stole my car radio
And now I just sit in silence

Those words rang in his head and he tried to shake them off. He had finished the song 2 days ago, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to ever sing that song in public.

There were several songs that he had written that he never considered letting people hear. Among those were Car Radio and Trade Mistakes, his most recent song and his most recent.

Trade Mistakes was simply too hard for him to sing. He did it once to himself, but never again. It was too painful for him to think about his time with Aurora.

Car Radio was written as a confession to himself. He never liked being left alone with his thoughts, because that meant addressing his problems and his questions.

But the problem remained that he was alone, only his thoughts and inner-arguments to keep him company. The guys had gone back to the peace rally to clean up and Judy was a floor above him.

Then there was a knock at the door.

"Mr. Wilde?"

"Yes?"

In came a golden Irish Setter whom Nick identified as his doctor, Sasha Baker.

"Hi, Mr. Wilde. How're you feeling?"

"Much better, thanks." He smiled genuinely. "And you can just call me Nick. Mr. Wilde feels a little awkward."

"Alright then, Nick. You should be good to walk around for a while."

"Does that mean I can visit someone?"

"Well, that depends on who you are visiting."

"Her name is Judy Hopps. She was just admi-"

"Admitted to the psych ward a floor above us. I know. My husband is treating her." She shrugged apologetically. "Sadly, I can't legally let you up there."

"Please." Nick's eyes were just as begging as his voice was. "She's up there because of me. I just wanna help."

He saw Sasha think it over, then shook her head. "I'm sorry, Nick, but I can't legally let you up there." Nick tilted his head in confusion. "But, if you were to, say, sneak up there, then there's nothing I could do, now, is there?" He smiled brightly and slipped off of the bed. Ignoring the slight stinging pain in his leg, he made his way to the door, only to hear Sasha clear her throat.

He turned his head around and she pointed downward. He gazed down and realized that he was still wearing a hospital gown… with his entire backside completely visible. He laughed nervously and she gestured toward the side-desk of the bed.

There lied a pair of faded blue jeans, yellow boxers and a white t-shirt the guys left for him.

"I'll leave you to change into your clothes." She left through the door, but then poked her head back in and poked his head. "You will not speak a word of this to any of the other nurses, okay? As far as they're concerned, you've been cleared to leave and I sent you home."

Another nervous laugh emanated from the fox. She reminded him a bit of his mother. "Yes, ma'am." She began leaving and he poked his head out of the room. "And thank you."

She nodded and he went back into the room and began changing into his clothes.

Several grunts and yelps of pain later, he managed to get fully changed. Though he said he was feeling better (which he was telling the truth about), it wasn't by much.

That bunny would probably make even Joey nervous.

He smirked at the thought of Joey frantically running away from Judy during a sparring match.

After he grabbed his notebook, his phone, and his pick, he turned the room light off and left for the upper room.

Nick made it to the floor above his and stepped into the hallway. He was immediately taken back by the number of nurses and doctors rushing left and right, stacks of papers in their paws

Officer Fangmeyer, who was charged with booking Doug, had submitted the serum propeller into evidence, but not before finding a singular serum pellet still in the chamber. They sent it to the psych ward at the ZGM and they began working on a serum immediately.

He made his way down the hall, looking at the room numbers.

Which one was she in?

He remembered asking the front desk, and they said that she was admitted to room C…

"C-24" He read aloud. He quickly knocked on the door and entered the room.

He saw Judy lying unconscious on the bed, her fur ruffled and messy. He also saw a German Shepherd checking her vitals. The doctor turned to look at him and Nick read his nametag: Charlie Baker.

"Sorry, I know I'm not supposed to be here, but-"

"No, It's fine. I'm assuming you're the fox my wife told me about." He held out a paw which Nick shook. "It's a Pleasure, Mr. Wilde."

"Just Nick is fine." He looked over at Judy. "How is she?"

"As good as an infected bunny can be. She's not dying, but her hormonal balance is way out of proportion."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Sure, I can't be around at all times, so if you could keep an eye on her when I'm gone that'd be great." Charlie grabbed a panic button and placed it in Nicks paw. "If anything happens, push this button, and I'll be alerted."

"Alright."

"Other than that, she's been fighting a fever since she got here, so if she started groaning or tossing around, there's a towel and bucket in the cupboard. I'm assuming you know what to do?"

"Yeah, I've fought my fair share of Fevers."

"Alright, other than that, that should be about it." Then there was a voice over the intercom.

"Doctor Baker, you're presence is needed in room C-46."

Charlie clicked his tongue and pointed toward the door.

"That would be my cue. I'll be back."

"We'll be fine."

And with that, Charlie as was gone. Nick pulled up a chair next to Judy's bed and plopped into it, earning a yelp of pain from his ribs and the bruises on his back. He stared at the ruffled gray ball of fur laying on the bed and sighed.

Once again, Nick was sitting in silence and his mind began to wander again.

He began reflecting on his life since he met this bunny.

When they first met, she was this spite-fire, determined 'Don't tell me what to do' kinda girl, and it was slightly amusing (and slightly annoying). Then he began to open up to her a bit. For some reason, he decided to tell her about Aurora and the Scouts.

Then they became close. Closer than he normally liked. He began to trust her. She was still bubbly and excitable, but she also became kind and caring. He hadn't been able to open up to many people before, so it was a new and kinda pleasant feeling to him.

And then she screwed it all up.

Nick had never known he could process 3 different emotions at the same time before, but he did that night. He was furious with her, but also disappointed and devastated. The next month was simply a bad month for him. So much anger and sorrow built up in him and it was hard to live in the apartment without having some memory of that bunny they met only a couple of weeks ago.

Maybe that was why he moved out.

Then she came back and a part of him was happy and… hopeful? But of course, the hardened part of his soul didn't wanna let go of the fact that she hurt him. So he decided to avoid her altogether. But no, she had to go and be a hero. Now she was here, infected, restrained to a hospital bed… with a fever.

That idiot…

He pinched the bridge of his snout in frustration.

Why did she have to go do something like that!

Why don't you swallow for freakin' pride for once, huh?

The contradicting voice was so clear, he looked around the room to see if someone was there, then slapped his head when he realized it was his own thoughts. He began realizing that his argumentative thoughts resembled the personality of Finnick.

That's 'cause he's the only one who really doesn't put up with your wishy-washy crap.

You mean YOUR wishy-washy crap?

Same Difference. Anyways, back on topic. Stop blaming Judy.

Why? She shouldn't have done that. She owes me nothing.

So what? She's your friend.

She's not my friend.

Quit being stupid. If she didn't matter to you, why'd you chase after her?

…

And why'd you beat that sheep to a pulp?

…

And why'd you tear the hospital apart, looking for her-

Alright, alright! I get it!

Fina-freakin'-ly!

Still, doesn't explain why she'd do something so stupid.

Wake up moron! You told her your story!

So?

She knows how much you've suffered. She knew you were about to be infected. You: a fox with sharp canines and claws. If you had been shot and torn someone up – which you would've – do you think you'd ever forgive yourself?

… No.

Eeeeexactly. She didn't want you to suffer any more than you already have. She put your well-being before her own, ya self-righteous jerk.

Nick's inner argument left him grief-stricken. Here was this bunny, who was moving Heaven and Earth to fix the mess she created, including her relationship with him, and he wouldn't even give her the time of day.

I've really made a mess of this, haven't I?

At that moment, Judy began to stir in her head. Her brow furrowed and she began groaning in pain. Nick went to the cabinet and grabbed the towel and bucket. He filled the bucket and dunked the towel in it. He walked back to Judy, wrung the towel a bit and lightly dabbed her forehead. The groaning stopped and he saw the bunny's muscles loosen.

She'd probably take my arm off if she were awake right now.

He smirked at the thought then faded into a warm smile.

I've got ya, Carrots. You're gonna be fine.

Judy couldn't quite describe how she felt when she woke up. The Burning-Freezing sensation was gone, so that was good. However, a splitting headache replaced it. She felt as though someone had taken a jackhammer to her temples. She opened her eyes only to shut them again. She let out a yelp of pain at the sting of pain that light brought.

"Oh, you're awake!"

Judy groaned in pain at the voice which thundered in her ears.

"Oops, sorry. I forgot." The voice was not as loud, but still fairly painful. "Your senses are going to be a bit over-reactive for a few seconds, but don't worry, they'll return to normal."

She dared open her eyes a second time. The light was still painful, but it was getting better. She looked around the room to see a German shepherd in a doctor's coat.

"Good morning, Ms. Hopps. I'm doctor Charlie Baker. Do you know where you are?"

"mmm…" was her response, it took her a second to finally regain the ability to form words. "… no."

"You're at the Zootopian General Hospital. Do you remember what happened?"

Judy began recalling all of the events. The call from Clawhauser, Doug, the serum.

"I was infected."

"Yes. You were infected and you were brought here."

"How long have I been out?"

"3 days now."

Judy's eyes went wide. 3 days had gone by? She felt as though it had been a couple of hours.

Nick must be worried sick…

Then the realization hit her.

Nick!

"There was a fox there. His name was-"

"Nick Wilde?"

"Y-yes." Her head tilted in confusion. Charlie chuckled softly and gestured to a spot on the bed. Judy turned her head to look at the spot and was surprised at what she saw.

Nick was sitting in a chair next to her. His arms were crossed and laying on the bed, his head resting on top of them. His fur was a bit ruffled, his eyes had dark rings under them and his arms and face were occupied by a few adhesive bandages

"He's been here taking care of you since you were admitted. You had a fever while you were under, and he's been at your side, caring for you. Any time I told him to get some rest, he refused, opting to stay awake to look after you." Her brow furrowed and she smiled empathetically. "He just finally closed his eyes. This must be the first time he's slept in the past 3 days."

Judy She reached out and pet his head gently and she saw him smiled a bit and shift.

Oh, Nick.

"You've got a good friend there."

She smiled and continued petting his head.

"Yeah, I do."

A/N:

Fluff: AH!

Flapjack: Perfect. Hey, guys, it's Flapjack and Fluff here, and today we bring yoU AN ALL NEW FREAKING CHAPTER! [Fireworks. Cheering. Confetti]

Fluff: Sorry it took us so long, but we were enjoying Thanksgiving with our families. So we hoped you enjoyed this all-new chapter we just posted. It's amazing to see how much our writing has improved since our first chapter.

Flapjack: Anyways, we've got some notes: Charlie Baker and Sasha La fluer Baker are characters from one of our favorite movies, All Dogs Go To Heaven 1 & 2.

Fluff: Trade Mistakes is by Panic! at the Disco, Car Radio is by Twenty One Pilots.

Flapjack: We're getting close to the end of this arc, so we wanna know, do you want us to go straight into the next arc, or do a couple short stories between?

Fluff: That's pretty much it. We'll try to get the next chapter out to you guys as soon as possible.

Flapjack: But until then, we'll leave you with a bit of a respite from the tension. See you guys next time.