Misfortune is the test of true friendship. —Aesop

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Judy came back from the shower wearing not only one of the white robes with the hotel logo but also a towel around her ears. So she couldn't hear what Nick, wearing the other robe, said when he greeted her, but it did not seem to be playfully affectionate, as she would've expected. She unwrapped her ears. "What did you say?"

"I said I know what's in Chapter Thirteen."

"Huh?"

"Remember? Your friend the sheep writer?"

"Oh, Sharla, yeah." She hadn't thought about the book in weeks. She had other things on her mind.

"Well, listen to this." He turned up the volume on the TV.

"...a very controversial book," said a llama who was hosting what seemed to be some sort of round-table discussion.

"Yes," said a hyena, "but that is only one chapter in an otherwise somewhat dry and academic study."

"It's clear that the publisher, Saiga, is capitalizing on the controversy," insisted a mouse. "That's the chapter that they quote on the back of the dust-jacket."

"Well," said a bat, "it's not like mixed couples are anything new. I mean, that is the point of the book, that they've been around for centuries, in reality and in the stories we enjoy."

"I think," said the llama, "it's that it's on the one hand familiar to us and on the other hand still somewhat taboo."

"I disagree," said the hyena. "Sixty years ago was a very conservative time in some ways. But look at what the most popular television show was, I Love Moosey, about a reindeer bandleader married to a wacky red elk."

The bat said, "I think sometimes how accepting the culture is of couples of different species is how similar they are. Moosey and Rudy both had antlers."

"Then how do you explain last night's vicious attack?" demanded the mouse.

The screen cut to a kudu who looked like he'd been badly beaten, being loaded into an ambulance.

"Judy, isn't that—?"

"Oh, Nick!" She put her paws to her face. It really did look like her neighbor Bucky.

Then Pronk appeared on the screen, snarling at the camera, "Bug off, you vultures!"

"No!" she gasped.

Nick put his arm around her shoulders. "Maybe it's not as bad as it looks."

The hyena said, "It may be unrelated."

"I think it's a hate crime and that book is stirring people up," said the mouse.

"You may be right," said the llama. "Rumors are that the author herself, Ms. Merino, is receiving threatening anonymous emails and comments on her website."

"No, Nick, no!" Judy sobbed.

"Fluff, don't cry!"

She couldn't help it. She hadn't seen anything this ugly in Zootopia since after she said that the predators had gone savage because of their DNA. "We need to help them!"

"Judy, what can we do?"

"I don't know. Something!"

Someone knocked.

"That's probably room service. Why don't you go splash some water on your face? We'll eat and then talk this over."

"I'm not hungry anymore."

"Carrots, you gotta eat."

He was right. She needed her strength. "OK." She went back in the bathroom and looked in the mirror. She could hear Nick talking to the room service guy, thanking him, tipping him. She wondered what the bellhop would think if he knew that Nick was there with a rabbit. Well, maybe all the hotel staff knew. She and Nick were hard to miss, even when they were just friends. Probably no one at the hotel cared, as long as Nick's money was good. She hated that she cared what other animals thought, but how could she not, especially after what had happened? Poor Bucky! And poor Pronk, too.

She sighed and turned on the faucet. Her face was still wet from the shower but she splashed it. She felt a little better.

She went back out to Nick, who had put the trays on the bed.

"Hey, Fluff, do you want to watch any more or should I change the channel?"

"Change it please." She wanted to know more about the situation but she also wanted to wait till she was calmer. She slid into bed next to him and he handed her a tray with all her breakfast favorites, from carrot juice to granola. He knew her so well, even though they'd met only a few months before. She wondered how long Bucky and Pronk had been together. She'd never thought to ask.

Nick channel-surfed until he came across a studio audience laughing at black & white shenanigans.

"Moooosey!"

"Waaa, Rudy!"

She and Nick looked at each other and smiled a little.

They didn't talk much while they ate. They just tried to enjoy the antique antics of the Rudolfos and the Wartzes.

"This is my grandfather's favorite show," she remarked at the end of the episode, as she pushed her tray aside, half eaten.

"You have a grandfather?"

"I used to have two of them."

"Ha. I mean living."

"Well, yes."

"So why didn't I get to meet him?"

"Well, um, he lives in a home. And, um."

"Yes?"

"He thinks foxes are red because the devil made them."

"Great. But red elk married to reindeer are OK?"

"No one's ever called him on that, but he'd probably just say he likes the show because it's funny and because he watched it when he was younger."

"Yeah. I guess when it's for humor, people don't mind mixed couples as much."

"I don't know. Maybe."

"I checked on Mastodon. The book is still sold out. We need to get our paws on a copy, find out we think."

"I guess. I'm more concerned with how it's making animals react. It's just a book. Why is it making them so angry, so violent?"

"The media is powerful, Fluff. Are powerful?"

"Yeah."

"I mean, you must've watched cop shows when you were a kid, right?"

"Well, yes, but when I was a teenager I also watched rom-coms about couples who'd bicker until they realized they were in love."

He smiled. "They don't show that the bickering continues as part of the relationship."

"Right. Well, I think we have constructive disagreements."

"Nice."

"Thank you."

They kissed and then he moved his tray out of the way and she snuggled up against him. She thought about how much Bucky and Pronk seemed to thrive on bickering. She realized she would miss it herself if they stopped.

"So, Carrots, what's the plan?"

"I want to find out from Bogo, or maybe Clawhauser, if charges have been pressed against Bucky's attacker, or attackers. And I want to find out if there have been similar attacks. And then, I don't know."

"You want to take on the case," Nick said. It wasn't a question.

"Well, yes, if the Chief will let us."

"He might not. Considering who and what we are."

"Yes, but I want to at least try for it. I want to serve and protect, especially couples like us."

"And your friend the sheep."

"Yes. I wonder if she's in an interspecies relationship herself."

"Could be. She must have some interest in it. Unless it was just another chapter to her and didn't mean anything special."

"I need to call her. But first I want to go visit Bucky in the hospital, if they're allowing visitors. If not, we can at least talk to Pronk, see how he's doing."

"What if he tells you to bug off?"

She couldn't laugh. "I can still try."

"OK. Let's get dressed, pack up, and check out."

"I'm sorry about our weekend."

He shook his head. "I love you, Fluff. And part of why I love you is because you want to save the world, even though you're just a delicate, fragile, adorable little bunny."

"Nick, not now."

He kissed her forehead. "OK."

"I love you, Nick. And thank you for supporting me."

"Of course."