Author's Note:

Honey's a fun character to write, but has she taken on more than she can handle? It's gonna be an eventful few days for her, at least! No matter, she's got good company to spend it with!

Also, as a side note... a few folks have questions they have tried to direct at me, but their account is not set up in such a way that I can reply directly to them. If you have a question and want me to reply, I can be found on Telegram or on FA, and can be emailed at sarsis . I can also be found on Discord. Email me if you need my information to contact me, I don't mind chatting at all.

If you are just joining Guardian Blue for the first time you will want to check out Season 1 first, and I would highly recommend Thanks for the Fox before that as well so everything makes sense. ^^

I am so glad Disney did this. I don't know all the specifics involved, but as you read this now, part is because me, part is Disney. I don't own the characters or Zootopia… but gosh do I love it.

Also! A HUGE shout-out to J. N. Squire for assisting with editing for Season 2! He encourages me to put more banter and funny stuff in the story. If you laugh today, you probably want to blame him

Guardian Blue: Season Two

Episode 20: Living

Judy dabbed the corners of her eyes with her embarrassingly lime-green shirt. Having Motti's family in a safe and controlled environment really let them cut loose, and they reminded the bunny of her own family with how they poked fun at one another and laughed together. Even Cassie was shocked at the level of sass from Motti's mother, particularly in regard to Kijvu's not-so-successful attempts at romance. He took it all in stride, however. Everyone was happy at the second chance at life that being there at the bed and breakfast had afforded them. It might not be home, but it wasn't the mine.

Originally, Judy had intended to just bring them their food, but Charisse invited her to play a paw or two of poker with them. She might have said no to Cassie, but the somewhat rude lioness' sister was a lot more genuine. The bunny didn't care to offend or insult her. Unfortunately, a couple of sets of cards brought them ultimately to midnight. The doe, still laughing, finally separated herself from the party upstairs. It was winding down anyway.

It was actually kind of surprising to Judy that Nick had not come upstairs to check on her. She'd been gone well over two hours. As she hopped down the stairs to the dining room, she expected that maybe he was assisting the ZBI with security stuff or maybe spinning up the honey badger about sheep. It was quiet as she got to the bottom.

There was no one in the dining room. Judy went into the next room, the living room, which was pretty dark. She moved over to it, pondering if Nick had just gone outside. She halted mid-step as she saw the scene in the living room. Honey was sitting on the couch quietly with Nick slumped over her lap, pinning the larger badger a bit against the arm of the couch nearest to Judy. Nick's eyes were closed. Honey was stroking his ears. A rush of anger prickled through the bunny, but she stamped it down.

She knew what happened.

"What happened here?" Judy asked sweetly. Honey visibly flinched at that, startled.

"He fell over," she said in a rather uncomfortable tone. "I was just… I mean, his ears are… I was…" She looked back fearfully at Judy. "Don't tell him." she whispered, stowing her paws down by her hips and shrinking a little under his partner's gaze. Judy sat down on the other side of Nick, knowing that he probably never meant to flop over on the badger. She had no doubt about why, however.

"He's not really slept much in about three days, really," Judy explained. She wondered how long it took Nick to fall over like that. Did Honey actually pull him over to hold him? She was a fan of both the bunny and the fox. Was she not able to ignore the temptation to be that close? It was kind of cute, if just a little creepy.

"He was… He was tellin' me. About th' things you two have done," Honey said in a meek whisper. Her intense and fanatic enthusiasm from before had passed. Her tone was a lot less overwhelming. It might have been because the fox was sleeping. She respected Nick and didn't want to wake him. Judy watched her slumbering partner's slow, rhythmic breathing. Seeing him asleep has the usual effect. It made her feel sleepy and safe again. She could probably reach over and pull him over onto her instead. However, she worried that she might hurt herself if the doe pulled wrong, so she left him where he was. Honey continued explaining. "He told me about th' thing with Darmaw. I… I really had no idea it was like that. I'm sorry if I seemed careless about what you both have gone through. I… I guess it's easy to forget that you aren't really… that different from me." She stroked Nick's ears again. It was pretty hard to resist that, the bunny knew.

"You don't have to apologize. We don't talk to just anyone about that. It sucked." Judy leaned up a bit, getting in on the fox-petting. She hadn't held and touched him enough since they left. She needed this. She didn't care if Honey was there. Even if the badger tried to spread it around, the fact that she was the one saying it would actually likely do more to dispel the rumor than enhance it.

"It's fine I mean. I just… I was a little over th' top, I know. I get like that. Around most new folks, not just... you know.. celebrities," she explained.

"Where are Bay and Rosette?" asked Judy suddenly, wanting to push Honey away from sorry-ville.

"Rosette's on the porch with her laptop. Bay's upstairs in the camera room," Honey stated.

"You have a camera room?" Judy asked.

"Yep. I've got sixteen cameras around the property," the badger said proudly. "Bay was super stoked." Judy grinned, actually not surprised the paranoid badger had something like that. Honey was probably right about the wolf being stoked. The ZBI agent would have found that to be a blessing.

"Well, that could not have gone better if he planned it," the bunny chuckled. She looked back down at slumbering Nick, playing with his twitchy ear casually for a moment.

"He told me how you brought his mom back…" Honey whispered, breaking the silence. Judy glanced up at Honey, a bit dumbfounded. Why had he shared all that stuff with her? Was he really just that exhausted? The bunny suddenly felt a little guilty. She should have just put him to bed like Jack and Skye had done. Judy got to rest and recover during the night when she was in the hospital. Nick probably hadn't slept a wink other than the short nap when he did. And he'd only slept for an hour or so the night before.

"Did he tell you where I found her?" Judy asked. Did Honey know about that?

"No," she whispered. Just that you showed up a few days after he told you about it with his mom makin' a home cooked meal… his favorite. Told me that he cried." Honey said the last part in a barely audible tone. Honey's sudden quiet attitude made more sense. That would have most certainly made the badger see Nick as less a adventure-story figure and more of a mammal with vulnerabilities like anyone else.

"I found her here in New Reynard," Judy said. "I didn't expect to find her." Honey looked surprised at that. She then leaned back, as if thinking. Judy was smiling at that. It was a happy story, after all. The badger thought for a while, and Judy quickly recalled that she was a conspiracy theorist. She liked putting puzzles together.

"The Musk Street Diner," Honey said, catching on quick. "That's where you guys got the food. Then his mom is… She's the red fox there? V?" The fact that the badger only knew her by what Annie called her made it apparent that Honey did not know Vivienne very well. She would probably get to know her better after this, the bunny suspected.

"That's her." Judy said.

"Nick Wilde's mom… has lived here the whole time… and I never knew." That fanatic tone had crept back in. However, as Honey stroked down over Nick's neck a little, she wilted a little. "Oh no… Oh that poor vixen though." Judy widened her eyes. Poor vixen? Was there something Judy didn't know? Was something wrong with Viv?

"Why do you say that?" the bunny asked, barely masking the fear in her voice.

"To have lost her mate when her son was so young… That had to be absolutely brutal to both of 'em," she said in a very soft voice.

"There's just no way Nick would have said that to you." Judy stated flatly, actually having to moderate how loud she said it. That was ridiculous. Even sleepy, her fox would not have been that open to the badger they'd just met.

"He didn't say anything. He didn't have to. John Wilde's his dad, right?" she asked.

"Yes? How did you know?" Judy asked, sitting up a little more.

"A guess." Honey answered in a whisper. "I've seen his grave in the cemetery. Nick didn't say it was here in New Reynard, but he did tell me that you thought she was dead and you went to find her grave, but found her instead. Well, there's a grave there. It's a double plot. But the fox there died back when Nick was really little. So… yeah… Poor vixen. I know that stuff's hard on the kits too. Their moms can get super obsessed and cuddly after… something like that happens. They mark their kits like… all the time. Come to think of it, I think you got yourself marked, too," she laughed, obviously trying to lighten the mood.

"I did, yes." Judy said with a smile. She wasn't thinking much about the implication there, of course, she was more surprised by this badger's observational abilities and retention of information. It should have been expected though. Putting patterns together definitely appeared to be honey's thing.

The badger spoke in a lighter, less serious tone, "I know a bunch about foxes, obviously, since I've lived here all my life. My dad's the sheriff in New Reynard," she explained. "It's why I'm a little soft on them," she chuckled, still slowly stroking Nick's fur. Judy looked up, eyes widening a bit. The badger was being more affectionate with her touch. Nope. She needed to put stop that ship before it left port.

"This one's mine," she stated bluntly. Judy inwardly cringed at how possessive that sounded. There were definitely better ways to say something like that.

"What?" asked the badger, leaning back and taking both paws off the sleeping vulpine as if she'd been caught groping, not petting.

"I uh…" Judy looked down, thinking of how to soften her tone, "I mean… Of course I love him. I know… what it's like to be kind of soft on foxes," she chuckled, wanting to make it clear by her manner that she was not mad that another mammal petted her fox.

"Why are you letting him just lay here on me then? You could have told me," Honey chuckled nervously in a mock-scolding tone. The badger carefully reached down and shifted Nick slowly onto Judy's lap. The bunny felt a surge of happiness, feeling his weight there. Poor tired fox. He was really just a sack of potatoes right now. He curled his tail around himself a little. Judy petted it lovingly, savoring the silky softness. She bet the strong badger lady could carry him up to bed if Judy asked. The bunny pulled a throw pillow under Nick's head. He could lay there a bit with her. That would be fine. Honey elaborated, "He didn't mean t' fall asleep on me, he just dozed off like… mid-sentence." Judy glanced up at the badger. She was defending Nick's honor in how Judy found him.

The bunny chuckled. "Oh, I'm not worried," she shook her head. "I have his promise. That's good enough for me." She'd never suspect Nick of breaking that. It was too important to him. She believed that.

"Wait, like… like the promise?" the badger asked. Judy snapped her eyes wide open. Oh. Honey knew about that. She really had been around foxes her whole life.

"Yes," Judy said frankly. She wasn't going to hide it while they were practically on vacation in this place. She was going to hold Nick and do everything she could to comfort him after the rough week he'd had. She owed that to him. This time, he was the one who likely saved her life.

"Nothing against bunnies, but geeze… That's as serious as it gets. I can't think of anything he'd have been through more profound than vowing himself to a bunny." The shock was very real in her voice. Judy looked down at her partner, and then reached into her collar and pulled out the memorial plate she still wore, letting it dangle in front of the badger so she could read it.

"Oh. Oh my God. Oh holy crap," she said, leaning way back as if the thing had some kind of evil power of death by just existing. "Okay, yeah. So that's serious. I… I didn't mean to suggest he shouldn't… I mean, I think it's g-great." She seemed a little breathless. Judy put the memento back, feeling a little guilty for shaking up the badger like that, but it got the point across.

"Don't share that fact, if you don't mind. It's not really the rest of the world's business," Judy explained.

"Oh, hey, it's like… the only rumor I was actually skeptical about..." Honey said in a near whisper, grinning at the ridiculousness of that. She was so surprised, however, that she said it a little too loudly.

Nick shifted a bit, rolling over and ending up with his head on Judy's lap instead of the pillow. Honey got up to let him put his feet out. She moved over to the other room, opposite of the dining room and came back with a somewhat heavy-looking quilt. She spread that over Nick. The fox opened his eyes and looked up at Judy.

"I dozed off." He informed. He tried to get up. Judy mashed him back down.

"I see that." Judy chuckled. She leaned down, scooping his head upward a bit and kissed his muzzle sweetly. The bunny ran her fingers over his chest, pressing quite close him. The position was not comfortable with the stitches, but she held it anyway. "We can rest, Nick, don't get up.… we can take advantage of some time to just… get better, okay?" The bunny was genuine in her offer. They could rest. They could stop for a bit. His mother would be there to help too.

"What? You mean the bunny who never stops would be willing to take…" he gasped, "… a day off?"

"This isn't like… part of your cover or something?" Honey inquired, still struggling with new information.

"Would you let me?" Judy whispered, not responding to the confused badger.

"No. I'd tickle you," he grinned.

"That's a terrible idea." Judy smirked. She'd pop all her stitches.

"Then I guess I have to find other ways to keep bunnies distracted from working." Nick practically crooned. Judy tensed and melted a bit against him as she felt his hot mouth cup the side of her neck. She tilted her head to give it to him willingly, eyes closed as she felt his teeth tenderly grasp, touch, and tease. She splayed her little fingers through his soft fur along his neck and cheek as he held her. His own claws ran down both of ears. His fingertips glided back up to perhaps appreciate the heat in them.

Honey murmured a little uncomfortably, "What a night. Guess I'll just, uh…" She paused a bit, obviously uncertain what to even say, but unable to stop watching the display. "You know… Yeah. So, not uh… Not just a cover…" She walked over to the middle of the living room, suddenly grinning a bit excessively. "Heh… so freaking awesome. Goodnight, sheep." Judy and Nick both jumped a bit as Honey punched the hell out of the punching bag one good time. She hit it so hard that grit fell down from the ceiling onto them. With fox and bunny staring at her, the smiling badger looked at the covered, cuddling pair and said jovially, "Glad t' have you here. I'll make sure you have a happy time. You earned your rest." She then turned and headed through the dining room to go upstairs, laughing heartily. The fox and bunny watched their rather eccentric hostess a moment longer, then back to the swaying bag. Yeah, she was strong enough to carry Nick up the stairs if she had to, Judy considered.

"Don't lie… you want to hit it too," the fox said with a grin.

Judy pointed at the still slowly swinging sheep effigy. "That is not healthy."

"I won't tell anyone." Nick laughed.

"I feel weird just cuddling you in front of it," Judy said, suddenly hyper-aware of those thick-framed glasses.

"The first time you felt my teeth was in front of Bellwether, it should feel nostalgic." Nick teased. Oh yeah, that was exactly what she should have expected him to say.

"I'm not making out in front of the sheep." Judy insisted.

"A good thing, honestly. Because if we don't get up now, Fluff, we're gonna be sleeping in front of it. Seriously. I'm barely functioning right now." Judy smiled at her fox and moved back a bit to let him get up. Nick helped Judy stand fully. Agent Rosette came in from outside on the porch.

"It's getting late, you two should be resting," she said in a genuinely kind tone. She was relaxing a little too, perhaps.

"We're headed there now." Judy said. "Thanks for watching over us. It's been a rough week." She took her partner's paw in hers. They kept the nice quilt with them. Leaving it seemed unappreciative of the gesture.

"I know. Let us know if you need anything," the snow leopard stated, walking into the living room. "We have two agents coming in the morning to help out. I will be here tonight, and be back tomorrow evenings. We're doing shifts." Judy nodded at that. It was sensible.

"See you tomorrow night then, if I miss you in the morning." The bunny said softly, leading her fox along. They then headed upstairs. As Judy ascended the stairs, she heard dull thumping of someone beating on a bunching bag. It was so, so wrong. She led Nick into their chosen room, beside the one where Skye and Jack were staying. They could finally get some safe, heavy sleep. Well… after a bit of uninterrupted cuddling, at least.

Nick dropped into a deep slumber with his bunny in his safe and securing arms, tail wrapped over her thoroughly. This was what Judy needed. The bed was soft. It was quiet. It was dark. It was completely peaceful, finally.

Judy looked at her phone, setting an alarm for herself, and quickly sending two text messages. The first was to her mom to let her know she was safe, and was gonna get some sleep, and the next was to Nick's mother with a quick request. The bunny set the alarm to vibrate, and pushed it in her pocket. Quickly, sleep claimed her.

The soft buzzing in her pocket startled Judy a little, as it was meant to do. She carefully pulled her phone out, trying very hard not to move much. Turning off her alarm, she looked at the six messages she'd received in the night. The first four were from her mother.

Where are you?

Oh, you went to sleep. We're going to have a talk about communication, young lady.

Your dad thinks your boss is keeping you from us. Message him and tell him that's false.

Everyone wants to see you again. Please visit soon. We miss you.

The doe sighed and replied to them in order. She was still outside the city. Yes she went to sleep, and sometimes she could not talk much about things going on. Her parents already knew that. She sent a message to her dad stating that her workload was keeping her from them, not Bogo specifically. She replied to her mom that she was going to try to get out there for the holidays, and looked forward to it. The bunny then regarded the two other messages. They were both from Vivienne.

I got your message. I 'm glad I went to bed at a reasonable hour. I can come out there. Is everything okay?

That message was sent at about six in the morning. The next was sent about an hour later, about the time Judy had awakened.

Heading out there now. I'll meet you where you said.

The bunny sighed achingly. She didn't want to get up and leave her fox, but she'd arranged this herself. Her midsection hurt a bit. It was tight. She carefully moved herself out from under Nick's heavy, tenderly embracing arm. She regretted having to move at all, but this was important. The bunny got up and headed to the restroom, then went back downstairs. Bay was there in the living room. He was sitting in front of Honey, who was standing in front of him with a very large sword in each strong, thick paw.

Bay spoke cautiously. "I can't just take one of those, Honey. We aren't allowed to accept gifts."

"It's not a gift, just take it. We can spar in the front yard." The badger requested.

Bay recoiled a bit. "Oh that's definitely not going to happen. I promise you, that is not allowed. Where did you even get those?" he asked.

"I collect medieval weapons. I have a whole room full of them!" she chimed. "You're a wolf, so stop being a sheep. Take a sword. These are dull for practicing."

"Sorry, it has nothing to do with my species. I can't do that while I'm on duty. I need to focus on my work. You are so odd. What makes you think I've even used a sword in my life, anyway?" he asked.

"The way you walk around with your index claw relaxed." The badger pointed at it.

"Huh? Oh. Maybe. I did that stuff when I was younger, but I still can't do it right now, while I'm working. Ask the bunny." Bay betrayed Judy by pointing to her. Judy gritted her teeth, both at being used as a badger-diversion, and at how observant Honey actually was. Putting together the facts about Nick's dad was sharp. Was she always looking for stuff like that?

"Officer Hopps! You're awake!" she chimed gladly. "Oh, but she's hurt, Wolfy," she said, turning to face him with her swords again.

"Please don't call me Wolfy." Bay asked.

"You are such a cub," Honey teased.

Judy intervened in that conversation. "Is it alright if I sit over by the lake? Nick's mom's gonna come by in a bit and I wanna say hi to her before she goes to work." Bay nodded at that.

"I only ask that you don't leave the property," he said. "Until Bogo says otherwise, you are all to be escorted in town."

"Well that's not at all conspicuous," Honey said, taking the words out of Judy's little mouth.

"It's alright, I just wanna sit by the lake. It's pretty out here. I want to relax and enjoy it." She smiled brightly. That was the truth. Nick's teasing last night was deserved. She was bad about relaxing when she had a chance to.

The badger nodded at that. "There's a swing out there. It's like the one on the porch. Overlooks the water. Enjoy that. I'm gonna get breakfast started. You can have some when you come back in." Judy nodded at that. Apparently she'd changed her mind about having everyone just make their own food. She wondered how late the others would even sleep. Jack and Skye might already be awake, but they were still in their room. They were probably cuddling. The thought made the doe really happy.

Judy headed out, pulling on a dark blue sweater three sizes too large for her. She would be glad when she got her own clothes back. The front yard was large, but the back yard was several acres. It reminded her of her own home, except that it was completely covered by forest. The yard was well-tended though. The leaves were neatly raked. Had the badger done this after realizing who her guests were? Judy felt bad about it if she did. She found the swinging bench easily enough. It was attached to the limb of a massive, ancient-looking tree which overlooked a small hill that lead down to the sandy shore of a pristine, clear, beautiful lake. Oh yes, Judy was definitely bringing Nick back here when they were both ready for a quiet break. She sat down in the swing.

She wasn't there long before she heard the soft, fairly rapid footfalls behind her. She turned a bit and was actually a little surprised to see Nick's mother approaching in a full jog. She wore a dark green semi-sleeveless hoodie and short green running shorts. Judy then considered that a moment. His mother seemed pretty healthy and energetic for her age. Of course she took care of herself. The vixen smiled as she approached and slowed her approach, walking out the rest of her trip as a cool-down.

"Hey, Mom." Judy said very intentionally. The bunny really enjoyed calling her that. She wasn't too shy about it anymore. Vivienne stopped in front of the bunny and pushed her muzzle to the side of Judy's neck. Judy remembered what the badger had said. Mothers who lost their mates hugged a little tighter and marked their kits a little more. Vivienne needed this. She embraced the vixen and leaned up, pushing her chin over the top of her head. Her fur was a little lighter in color than her son's, so in the morning light she looked almost gold in places. She really was a beautiful fox.

"You said you had something really important you wanted to talk to me about. Is Nick okay? Is it about work?" she asked, finally sitting down on the bench.

"No, everything's fine with work," Judy said. She remembered suddenly that Nick's mother had been unkind to Bogo the other day. Was she really worried that Nick got fired? What in the world had she said?

"Fine. Really?" she asked, seeming a bit flustered about that. Judy put her ears back. Being a mother to kits who led a dangerous life was probably not a lot of fun.

"Well, disasters aside, and I promise, as soon as we can, I will tell you everything… just… that's not what I care about right now."

"We care about the same thing, I think," Vivienne said with a smile. Judy nodded at that.

"Exactly. I… I got hurt and I know it bothered Nick. I know how important I am to him. So I am being careful, I promise. But it made me think more about us. Our happiness together. I want to do everything I can to make Nick the happiest he can possibly be. I can't do that alone. I need advice from another fox, and it needs to be someone who knows his heart even better than I do." Judy felt a little dramatic putting it like that, but it really was that important to her.

"Well, it certainly makes a mother's heart glad to hear you say that, little bunny," Vivienne said in a near whisper. "I think you are being a really good partner to him, though. You don't see how much he's changed for the better now that he's with you. I knew the old Nick. I knew the one I think you only knew for a little while. Nothing's ever going to make him happier than you just keeping him close to you, sweetie." Judy perked her ears again. This wasn't exactly the conversation she wanted to have, but she was still curious.

"I know he was unhappy before. Before I met him, I mean," she offered, wanting to know a little more if his mother was willing to share it. What would he have been if he didn't have her? Would he go back to that if he lost her? Certainly not.

Vivienne put her paws between her knees, having mostly caught her breath by then. She talked more softly. "Judy, I don't mean to alarm you, but I don't think you have the… the history… the experiences that you would need to understand… what Nick was actually going through. Judy, I wouldn't even want you to truly understand it."

Judy shook her head. Okay, so they didn't have to talk about something so dark. "Oh no, I know he wasn't happy. I mean, he's told me how he felt. About everything. Just being a fox was hard. It still is sometimes, but I know how unhappy he was. He's told me."

Viv lowered her head a bit, ears back. "Judy, he's told us more than he wanted, if you were listening. It was a lot worse than just his words suggest. You have to read between the lines. You think that he vowed himself to you just because of me, or because of being pulled out of Hell by you? Those were actually tiny gestures compared to what you really did for Nicholas."

"Oh no, he told me." Judy responded, chest tightening up some. "He said he gave me his life because I was the one who made it worth giving to me." As Judy said it, the weight of those words came back to her, and she felt a lump in her throat. His life was always worth something. She felt terrible that he ever thought otherwise.

Vivienne replied sweetly, "That is true. And he's told me the same, a bit before he told you."

"At the Diner, while I was getting run over by a bus, right?" Judy asked. He'd explained that part to her.

"Yes, literally minutes before." Viv said softly. "That still… doesn't leave you with an appreciation for how meaningless he thought his existence was before you got your little paws on him, Judy. You still don't understand how bad that damage was."

"He doesn't really talk that much about it," the bunny confessed. "He's happy now."

Vivienne looked at Judy sadly a moment, and a very long pause filled with thoughtful silence passed between them before the vixen spoke again slowly. "Judy, would you say Nicholas was a really clever fox, or a really dumb fox?"

"He's one of the smartest mammals I know." Judy chimed brightly. What doubt was there?

"Does he plan things well? Think things through meticulously?" she asked.

"You heard about our first date, didn't you?" asked the bunny with a smirk.

"I did, yes," Vivienne said kindly. "Such a sweet boy. But… Judy… Do you think Nicholas suspected what might happen to him if he insulted the most notorious crime boss in Tundra Town with a skunk-butt rug? Could he really have thought that violent and powerful mammal would think that skunk fur was wool?" Judy felt her paws go cold and clammy as her heart sank even remembering that had ever happened. Her partner had told his mother all about it when he was explaining how his life had changed. No. Nick would have known that wouldn't work. He could not possibly have thought that ridiculous substitution would have had any chance of accomplishing anything but filling Mr. Big's tiny little body with white-hot blood-lust at the clear insult. If he had to have known it would not work, why in the world would he have taken that kind of dumb chance? Judy immediately felt a wave of nausea. No.

"He didn't expect it to work," Judy croaked out bitterly. Her eyes immediately became wet. He couldn't have. No one should ever…

"Shhh, I didn't say this to upset you, Judy…" The bunny winced as she was pulled against the soft cotton hoody, Viv embracing her. Judy jerked softly, nose wiggling, stifling a cry. He shouldn't even have passed his initial psychological evaluation with something like that. Her fox-mom whispered softly, "It was a different time and a different fox! You have to understand that, Judy."

"He's still the same fox." Judy squeaked through soft fabric against the vixen's chest. "He was hurting so bad. I never knew," she whimpered. "Would he have really tried to make that end happen?" Judy asked with a crack in her voice.

"No, I don't think he really wanted that, Judy. I just think he stopped caring whether or not it did. Playing it safe… stopped mattering to him." she remarked. Judy felt a pang of guilt. Nick wanted her to slow down. Nick chastised her about the chances she took. He spoke from absolute experience.

"I can't… imagine that. You're right. I don't have the ability to know what that was like for him." she sniffled.

"Sweetie, he really doesn't think of himself as that fox anymore. Wording is important here, so listen." Judy looked up at the vixen, her eyes wet. "Nicholas said just coming into contact with you obliterated that sad creature… mercifully sent him to his next life. A life he gets to share with you. You're his heaven, Judy. I'm telling you this because I saw doubt in your eyes. You worry that you can't make him happy enough. Nothing can even make him happier than you do. Believe me when I say this, my little bunny kit… a mother fox is one of the hardest mammals to impress and gain the trust of and I could not wait to hear him speak his promise to you, Judy. He's happy with you. We both are. That is my promise to you." She smiled as tears rolled down the bunny's cheeks. This only hardened Judy's resolve in the moment.

She took a deep breath and spoke more clearly. "Then that brings us to why… to why I asked you to come," Judy sputtered a bit. Vivienne wiped her tears away with a sleeve.

"Oh?" asked Vivienne in such a sweet and motherly tone.

"I want you to tell me the words… Tell me how to vow myself back to my fox."