"Different Tails, huh?" Nick remarked dryly as he entered the nightclub with Judy. "Let me guess, it's a..." Nick blinked and looked around. Many mammals were dancing and having a good time together, drinking drinks and chatting. The only thing they had in common was that neither pairing consisted of two of the same animals.
"Inter-species bar, yup," Judy grew a wry smile.
"And why did we come here, again?" Nick gave a gentle chuckle.
"Give you one guess," Judy shot a tired smile to Nick.
"Ah, Clawhauser's recommendation, of course," Nick laughed.
"Bingo," Judy pointed at him. "One of these days he's going to figure out we're actually together, and then he's going to freak out even more than usual."
"I rue that day," Nick said, heading towards the bar.
"Oh, be right there! Get me something sweet!" Judy said, something catching her eye. She headed deeper into the club, near the dance floor. Nick took a seat at the bar and was soon greeted by an exuberant looking margay.
"Hey! A new face! We like those!" The margay gestured with her hands out and then clapped. "What can I get ya?"
"A rum and cola and a-" Nick looked incredulous at the specials, "are you really calling it a margay-rita?"
The margay laughed loudly. "The first person you have to laugh at is yourself! Comin' up, anyway." She started to make the drinks. "So! Have a significant other? A significant otter, perhaps?"
"Heh," Nick smirked. "But, yes. Oh, and here she is now." Judy leaped up onto the stool next to him.
"Heya, handsome," Judy smiled brightly, and a margay-rita was set down in front of her. "Ooh, nice."
"We put sugar and salt on that one," the bartender shook her finger once at the drink. "See how you like it!" The two sipped their drinks and nodded. "Great! So, a fox and a bunny, huh? That's a fun combination. Some of that classic pred-prey..." She flashed her teeth in a guilty way as she saw Nick staring at her with a baffled expression. "Sorry! Shutting up now."
"That's all right," Nick shook his head. "Just... not quite used to this sort of reaction to our relationship."
"Oh, that's what's great about Different Tails, there's no judging!" The margay smiled. "I'm Donna, by the way. Hope to see you two back here sometime! Oh, and your first drinks on me since it's your first time here, okay?" She saw another animal raising their paw. "Oop, gotta go!" Nick stood up and peeked over the bar, seeing the small shelf the margay was standing on. "I thought she looked a little short."
"Nick..." Judy laughed. She peered around at some of the various pairings in the club. Horse and sheep. Rhino and hippo. Wolf and cougar. "Some of these combinations, though... I kind of wonder how it happens?" Judy tried to subtly nod over to a pairing of a male mouse and a female lion. "I mean... how exactly does that... work?"
"Hey, you heard that cat. No judging, bunny," Nick smiled softly, looking at the two. "Love is, well, it's complicated. And doesn't necessarily always have to be expressed physically. Although..." Nick tilted his head and narrowed his eyes in curiosity.
"Maybe we shouldn't let our minds go there," Judy giggled nervously, sipping more of her drink. "So, you feel like dancing with me tonight?"
"Guess that depends on if the DJ puts on any songs I like," Nick said flippantly. Judy tilted her head down a few degrees but met his gaze with her eyes rolled way up.
"Got a little gray bunny that put in a request!" The boyish, almost raspy voice of the disc jockey sounded out, as if on cue. "Alright, this is a popular one, but I'm gonna put it on anyway. You all know her, so get out and dance!"
"Uh oh," Nick said flatly. Judy had a wide smile, showing all of her teeth.
"Oh, oh, oh, oh oh..."
"Guess I'm not dancing, then," Nick sighed in mock disappointment, shaking his head.
"Says you!" Judy grabbed his wrist and dragged him out onto the dance floor.
The two began to dance together, though it was still more that they were dancing next to each other, rather than with each other. There was still a small space between them that could be closed. But they gazed at each other in happiness anyway as they danced.
"You're getting more into it!" Judy observed Nick's less reserved dance moves, though they were still hardly graceful.
"Slowly but surely," Nick nodded, feeling himself start to have fun.
The two were so consumed by the surroundings and the loose atmosphere of the club that they found themselves kissing a few times, and even getting together for a slow dance. Nick treasured how his hands could completely wrap around the bunny, and Judy delighted in their consuming warmth. They didn't once get a second look, and they felt their inhibitions slowly melt away. Hours passed like minutes, and soon it was time for the establishment to close.
"Whew, that was a blast, and the place is almost empty now," Judy giggled, smooching Nick on the nose. "You think we should come back?"
"It was kind of nice to let loose and not feel uptight about the whole being close with each other thing," Nick shrugged. "Yeah, I could see us coming back."
"Hey hey!" The DJ's voice called out to them. Nick blinked as he saw another lapine approach. She was an arctic hare with light blue eyes, but had several various-colored splotches, like paint blots, splattered on her white fur. "The newbies stayed the whole night, huh? Not bad, not bad. Guess you like it here?"
"Oh, it's the DJ!" Judy said. "Yeah, we had a great time! Thanks for playing 'Try Everything'!"
"Eh, sure!" The hare swiped her arm in Judy's general direction to show it was no big deal. "Gazelle's message is always appreciated here at Different Tails."
"So, what do they call you?" Nick wondered.
"The name's DJ Skips," she smiled proudly. "But, I'm off the clock, so you can call me Karen if you want." She chuckled.
"Do you like working here?" Judy inquired with a pleasant smile.
"It's great!" Karen nodded. "I'm the house DJ, so I'm here all the time. Got a great job, great family, great girlfriend. Life's almost perfect."
"That was a big 'almost'," Nick observed, chuckling.
"Well, I suppose in a perfect world there wouldn't be a need for a place like this at all," Karen shrugged, giving a half-smile. "My girlfriend's always so scared of us getting seen together in public since we're pred-prey and both female, so I don't really blame her. But here? It's all good."
"You don't have to come here to hide from your family or anything, do you?" Judy winced.
"No way! They're cool," Karen grinned proudly. "I was the oldest of a dozen bros and sises, so I was doted on the most anyway. They think I'm awesome, which is correct. I am awesome." She gave a low snickering giggle. Judy laughed with the confident bunny and Nick wore a smile.
"So um," Nick began, "I'm not trying to judge or anything, but what's with the, er... paint?"
"It's fur dye; part of the persona," Karen nodded. "I like having white fur; it's like a canvas you can paint on. But I settled on this 'style'. The different colored splotches represent all of us, this melting pot here. We're so different, but we all look good together in the end, yeah?"
"Yeah," Judy agreed, taking an instant liking to the arctic hare.
"Of course, some of the dye only the girlfriend gets to see," Karen winked. Nick rolled his eyes and Judy laughed again.
"Babe...?" A timid female voice come out.
"Speaking of!" Karen lit up. She beckoned. "Over here, Kaycee!" A shy-looking cheetah wandered over to the three. "Some new friends! Oh uh, I didn't get your names yet, haha!"
"Judy Hopps!" Judy put her arms on her hips and posed proudly.
"Nick Wilde," Nick nodded simply.
"This is Kaycee," Karen introduced. "She's a shy little thing, but lovable all the same."
Nick looked up at her green-eyed face and grinned. "Yeah, 'little'." Kaycee offered a small wave.
"C'mon, say hi! They don't bite," Karen encouraged.
"Oh, we do," Judy said, "but only each other." Karen and Judy started laughing again.
"Is yours like this a lot, too?" Nick asked in almost a whine.
"She is, but..." Kaycee smiled gently. "She's fun that way."
"Okay, 'Judo'," Karen crouched back, making some fighting poses. "You two better come back here or I'll find you and kick your tail!"
"Try it, punk," Judy grinned, mimicking her stance. "I'm a member of the ZPD! I'll lay you out on your tail!"
"Bunnies," Nick sighed.
"Aren't they great?" Kaycee closed her eyes and grinned.