-Central Mezzo Park-
"That's one medium blueberry, one medium orange, and a small grape," Vivian Reddish said in declaration. The vixen arranged the frozen drinks on the counter in front of her.
Judy Wilde-Hopps energetically bounced up and slammed a bill down on the counter. "And keep the change!" The blue-eyed vixen chuckled and took the money from her.
"What, no protest that we're paying this time?" Nick chuckled, picking up the blueberry and grape drinks, the latter of which was for his son, Larry.
"Isn't that joke wearing a little thin?" Vivian smirked, putting her arm on the counter. "If you two are thirsty and don't have the strength to reach into your wallets, you know I'd give you a drink for free. But money is nice, too." Vivian chuckled.
"Now that's more like a fox," Nick smirked.
"Nick, come on," Judy shook her head in disappointment, and started to head away with Nick. They both sipped their respective drinks as they headed towards the edge of the park to go home to their apartment. It was quite a warm day in early spring, and Nick and Judy's pace was unhurried as they enjoyed the scenery.
"Maybe we should pick up the pace before Larry's drink melts?" Nick chuckled as they approached the subway.
"If he didn't want it to melt, he could have come with us instead of staying at home," Judy shot back with a suck of her teeth.
"I'm pretty sure he was wrapped up in texting, ah, how do they say it these days? The 'bae'," Nick wiggled his eyebrows. Judy made a disgusted face.
"Oh Nick, please don't," Judy whined. "You can only push 'cool dad' so far before it loops back around into 'lamest dad possible'."
"I'll keep that in mind," Nick laughed as they entered the train bound to their station. "Hey, uh, you ever wonder about Vivian?"
"What, specifically?" Judy tilted her head, sipping from her drink.
"Well, she's an attractive vixen who comes from an old, successful line of farming foxes," Nick started to count on his fingers. "She loves mammal-watching in the park, and she's super friendly."
"Uh huh," Judy nodded, "and...?"
"Don't you think it's weird that in the decade-plus that we've known her that she... you know, hasn't had a significant other she's told us about?" Nick shrugged.
"I'm surprised to hear this from you!" Judy laughed. "You're the one that's always on my tail about asking Karen about her relationship with Crystal. Even though you do it as well."
"That's a little bit different, Judy," Nick said. "Karen needs a bit of the 'kit gloves'. Vivian is gregarious. It's... well, it's just kind of odd to me that she doesn't have someone she brags about."
"Not everyone has to be in a relationship to be happy, Nick," Judy shrugged. "Though I'll admit I can't imagine I could have lasted this long without you, you big red fluff-face." Some mammals turned their head to look at Judy at this obviously affectionate statement. Judy gave an embarrassed grin, then straightened up and flashed her badge with her free hand. "As you were!" The mammals turned their head to leave her alone and she grinned enormously. "I love doing that."
"Mm, abusing your power," Nick chuckled, shaking his head as the train screeched to a halt and the two started to disembark. "I never told you how I love it that my sweet little bunny is so corrupt, to her naughty little core." Nick held his drink against Judy's neck and she let out a shrill yelp.
"H-hey!" Judy laughed, starting forward and scrunching her shoulders to protect her neck. "You'd have bought me another drink if I'd dropped it! I suppose you're right though, there are deep dark things about me that only a fox with his secret-prying night vision can peel off of me." Judy tried to put a seductive edge into her words, wiggling her hips.
"Wow, did you really just try to sensualize my night-vision?" Nick shook his head. "Tsk, tsk, tsk."
"Hey, come on," Judy laughed with a bounce in her step. "You know awkward flirting is your favorite. It's harder to come up with new quips in my old age."
"Oh, don't even," Nick sneered at her playfully. "I'll be a skeleton before your back even gives out."
Judy slowed, blinking. "Well, that's a buzz-kill."
"Just teasing," Nick shrugged.
"Let's cross off skeletons and night-vision from the things we can flirt with each other about," Judy said, swiping her index finger in midair.
"Now you know, I actually did like that little bunny quip," Nick chuckled.
"Well, make up your mind!" Judy kicked Nick softly in the ankle as they approached their apartment building. "You foxes are so hard to read!"
"Yeah, we can be," Nick nodded. "That just makes me wonder more about Vivian. Think she has any dark secrets in her fruit-filled fridge?"
"Nice alliteration, bozo," Judy grinned, rummaging through her pocket for her keys. "If we knew them, they wouldn't be secrets, now would they?"
"So you do think she has some," Nick smirked.
"Nick, get in the dang apartment and give Larry his drink," Judy snapped her fingers, pointing inside after she opened the door.
"Larry! Got you your favorite from Vivian's!" Nick called out. "You're not wistfully staring at pictures of that ferret again, are you?"
"Uh, nope!" Larry's voice came from inside his room.
"Lying to your father again, shame," Nick sighed in mock disappointment, "oh well, your drink's about half-melted, so I guess that's punishment enough." Larry came out with a small smirk on and accepted the drink. "And Kara better be fully clothed in all of those pictures."
Larry blinked in surprise. "Oh, she is, of course!" The gray squirrel sipped his drink.
Nick narrowed his eyes, grinning. "Hm, can't read him. That's worrying."
"Only took you ten years to be able to hide something from your father," Judy gave a small smirk. "Maybe we should just give his phone a once-over just to be safe."
"Mom, I'm seventeen, c'mon," Larry shook his head, then sighed as he began to feel a small twinge of guilt. "Okay, do you consider 'swimsuit' fully clothed?"
"Hmm... I think we can let that slide," Judy giggled.
"Squirrel's gonna squirrel," Nick shrugged. Larry rolled his eyes and headed back to his room with a few chattering sounds. Nick saluted. "And a squeak squeaker squeaken to you too!"
"Careful, Nick, you know what I just said about the 'cool dad' meter," Judy waggled her straw at him.
"Hey, champ, how cool am I?" Nick cheerfully called through Larry's door.
"Super cool!" Larry shot back in an ambiguous voice.
"Ouch, maybe you're right, Judy," Nick tapped his own straw on his muzzle in mock concern. Judy brought a paw to her mouth and giggled.
-Savanna Central Streets, Outside of Aardvark Rise-
About twenty days later, both Judy and Nick decided that neither of them felt like preparing dinner, so Nick was sent out in search of some fast food. As he headed down the street's sidewalk, the corner of his eye caught some red fur headed down the opposite side of the street. Nick's attention was diverted, and he saw that it was most likely Vivian. She appeared to be heading into a thinly-populated cafe. Curious, Nick considered his actions as he went to the corner to wait for the crosswalk. He decided to put on his sunglasses, even though the sun was beginning to set, and untie his tie, carefully loop it, and put it in his pocket.
With all of his instantly recognizable features gone, Nick tucked his shirt in as a final step and headed into the cafe. He looked around the cafe as the red panda seater tried to make eye contact with him.
"Ah, table for...?" Her voice sounded apologetic as she couldn't meet the shifty fox's gaze.
"Oh, just looking for a friend," Nick said in a slightly deeper voice than usual, checking out the tables from the entrance. With the attendance low, it was easy to see Vivian. Nick kept his face reactionless as she embraced a gray fox female who was somewhere between Nick and Judy's height. Nick turned his muzzle away and pretended to be looking at the menu, and out of the side of his glance he caught the two giving each other a kiss and a small nuzzle before sitting down and enthusiastically talking with each other.
"Are they here, or will you be waiting?" The red panda tilted her head curiously.
"Actually, I think I might have the wrong place, my apologies," Nick said in his masked voice, giving a small wave.
"No trouble," the red panda narrowed her eyes in slight bafflement as Nick left.
Nick resumed his trek towards "Cheesy and Nuts", the Wilde-Hopps' favorite fast food joint, pondering what he just saw. Vivian was being quite friendly with that gray fox, but Nick had never seen her before in his life. He internally wondered just how good of friends Vivian considered him and his wife. She was invited to their wedding, which she gladly accepted; she even helped with the drinks at the reception.
Maybe she was just that friendly with everyone, Nick pondered. Nick clutched at his neck. It felt strange and bare, so he began to re-tie his tie and remove his sunglasses. He wondered about Vivian, and why he cared so much about her level of friendship with them. He'd never considered himself a nosy mammal before, not like Judy could be.
Nick didn't get that good of an angle to see the gray fox, but it definitely was a female, he thought. Surely, Vivian didn't think that he or Judy was so intolerant that they'd be dismissive or hostile to a relationship between two vixens, did she?
"What heavy thoughts to be having right outside a nut-burger joint," Nick chastised himself aloud, shoving his hands in his pockets and heading into the establishment. He decided to ignore what he saw.
-Central Mezzo Park-
"No one was hurt, were they?" Judy wondered as she looked over a medium-sized, scorched patch of grass with Nick. Both of them were on the job and in uniform. Jenny Hopps, one of Judy's sisters, stood next to them in her Zootopia Fire Department uniform, folding her arms.
"No, thankfully," the light-gray furred bunny said, "the victims of the attack just had slight fur singeing. They were sent to Mercy General just in case they inhaled smoke."
"Hey, how cool is it that we're actually working on a case together, Jenny?" Judy said with a small smile.
"Well, there's nothing 'cool' about arson," Jenny said seriously, but then cracked a smile, "in more ways than one. Hey!" She pointed at Nick and Judy. "Sorry, that was a bit tasteless."
"You're definitely Judy's sister," Nick chuckled. "So, what caused this fire?"
"I'm thinking this," Jenny said, heading over and crouching near a broken bottle with a scorched rag in it.
"Molotov cocktail, huh?" Nick looked at it. "Someone threw this at the victims?"
"Yeesh, and what were the victims again?" Judy got a thick glove on so she could inspect the bottle. "Medium-size bottle..."
"A cougar and a white-tailed deer, both male," Jenny recalled.
"Were they doing anything unusual?" Judy took some pictures of the bottle. "The victims?"
"Uh," Jenny shrugged. "I didn't think to ask. They just said they were holding hands, walking in the park?"
"Hm, that might be unusual enough for a hate crime," Nick's mouth twisted into a frown. "Did they see their attacker?"
"Neither got a good description, but they were sure it was a fox," Jenny nodded.
"Really," Nick's teeth barely showed. "Great. Someone's making a good name for us. What kind? Red?"
"Uh-huh," Jenny nodded. Nick looked out to Vivian's stand. She was closing up for the day.
"Looks like we won't be getting any refreshment after we're done here," Nick smirked. "Did you already ask Vivian about this, Judy? She's just a stone's throw away."
"Yeah, but her cart faces south, and we're northeast of her cart," Judy pointed out, "she said she heard a glass breaking sound and craned her head to look, but only saw the victims backing up from the initial blaze."
"Hm," Nick pondered, his gaze fixed on Vivian.
Judy gave him an annoyed look. "Nick, are you seriously getting suspicious of Vivian? About a probable hate crime? You know Vivian is super open-minded. She was thrilled when you and I got together. There ARE other red foxes in this whole city, you know. And it looks like at least one of them is a huge jerk."
"And possibly a pyro," Jenny nodded, "who in their right mind carries around Molotov cocktails, really?" Jenny adjusted her fire-fighter's hat.
"You're going to hate me for this," Nick started, grinning, "but that uniform looks amazing on you."
"Yeah, it's even worse than Judy's," Jenny chuckled. "I look like a kit playing pretend, don't I?"
"No, and no," Judy said firmly, and glared at Nick.
"What, she doesn't look amazing?" Nick shot back.
"I meant no to both of the things Jenny said, not you too," Judy sighed. Jenny laughed. Nick's eyes caught Vivian leaving her stand to the south. Nick narrowed his eyes slightly, as this wasn't the direction she usually left, but he was going to dismiss it until he caught Vivian giving a small glance over her shoulder, and picking her pace up. Suspicion bubbled up into Nick's chest.
"Hey, you got things here for now, bunnies?" Nick asked. "I think I should go find a restroom."
"Sure!" Jenny said perkily.
"Hurry back, we're almost done marking everything here," Judy said.
Nick carefully tailed Vivian, who was still heading south. She gave occasional glances to her sides, but failed to notice Nick. He felt a little bad that he still was so easily able to keep a low profile, even in uniform. He felt like he stood out as if he was wearing a neon sign, but keeping to the shadows of trees, walking casually, and only moving when he was about to lose her kept him out of sight.
Eventually, Vivian stopped moving near the largest body of water in Mezzo park. It was a great location for picnics, and a superb spot to watch sunsets. Nick noticed an unusual sight, a dark gray-furred fox with a black muzzle, ears, limbs, and tail, with a white tip at the end of his tail. This fox appeared to be setting up an artist's easel, but he paused when he noticed Vivian coming. He gave a shy smile and the two exchanged some words, though Nick couldn't quite make them out, as he was just barely able to see them.
Nick drew in a bit of a sharp breath, however, as he saw Vivian embrace the dark-furred fox, affectionately play with his muzzle, and give him a tender kiss. The two looked warmly at each other for awhile before Nick felt he had seen enough and turned away. He began walking briskly back to the bunnies.
"So that's it," Nick muttered to himself, "that's why she's never told us about her relationships. Because she's trying to balance more than one. Hmph." Nick felt disquieted. Vivian seemed so nice to him, but it appeared that she did have some secrets in her 'fridge' after all. He wondered what the best course of action to take next would be.
Probably to focus on this arson case, Nick grumbled to himself.
"I'm done, thanks for all the help," Judy teased sarcastically. "Wait, what's wrong?"
"Huh?" Nick shrugged. "Oh, nothing."
"Not 'nothing'," Judy shook her head. "Your ears are laying flat. What, you think I'm not going to notice something like that?"
"Ah, uh, I just saw something rather unpleasant at the bathroom," Nick fibbed.
"Ugh, say no more," Judy held up a paw. "Let's get this stuff to the lab, foxy-boy, and see if we can find out what other bad foxy needs to be punished."
"Let's get together for dinner soon," Jenny waved.
"For sure!" Judy waved back as they departed.
-Central Mezzo Park-
The weekend began the very next day, and Nick felt like purging the emotional burden he was beginning to accumulate. Judy saw an advertisement for some squirrel-sized clothes and she dragged Larry out of the apartment to go look at them with her. Nick was easily able to avoid being roped in, and instead he left the apartment by himself, in his casual clothes, and moved off to the park. Nick made his way swiftly over to Vivian, who smiled when she saw him. Nick wore an even expression.
"Hey, Nick!" Vivian grinned. "Do you want a blueberry slush today, or would you prefer to branch out?"
"Not thirsty," Nick said plainly.
"Oh, uh," Vivian looked confused, and looked over his regular clothes. "Are you on the job? I told Judy everything I knew about the arson."
"I'm not here about the arson, Vivian, I'm here about your relationships," Nick kept his voice even, but Vivian's eyes widened. All the warmth drained out of her face, and Nick actually looked taken aback. Vivian's face nearly matched Nick's. Both of their eyelids fell a bit and they stared at each other. Nick didn't know if he'd ever seen Vivian look like this before.
"All right," Vivian said slowly. "What about them?"
"Vivian!" Nick's voice raised. "In the past couple of months I've seen you with a gray fox female and a... an unusually colored male fox! So who is it? Which one is your mate and which one is the one you're cheating on them with!?" Vivian bared her teeth in an angry expression, and Nick's eyes widened farther. He had definitely never seen her angry before.
"So, I've had a police officer stalking me, lovely," Vivian said with quiet malice.
"I don't know where you think you get off being angry," Nick's brow furrowed and he slammed one of his index fingers into the palm of the other hand. "I feel for those poor foxes you're leading on! The ones you're splitting your devotion between!"
"Is that how you think it is?" Vivian barked at him. "Typical! You're just a typical fox, after all this!"
"What?" Nick gestured at his chest with two paws. "Oh, sure! I'm typical. Besides for the fact that my mate is a bunny. So, yeah, except for the one thing that makes me completely different from any fox I've known, I'm just your average joe sly fox." He made a mocking walking in place gesture.
"Rgh, that's not what I mean!" Vivian ran her hands through her forehead in aggravation. "I don't want to talk to you about this. You don't understand! You can't understand!"
"What is there to get, Vivian!?" Nick growled, then shut his eyes and calmed himself. "Listen. I didn't take any pictures; I don't have any evidence. I'm not trying to ruin your life or anything."
"Could have fooled me!" Vivian thrust her head forward. Her eyes seemed a bit glassy, but she wasn't crying.
Nick sighed. "Look, I just think they deserve to know, you know?"
"Okay, sure!" Vivian gave a clearly angry smile. She pulled out her phone. "Which would you like to talk to first? Catherine, or Avery? Who do you want to call? Tell them 'excuse me, I'm a police officer, and the vixen you think you love is a dirty unfaithful CHEAT'!"
"Vivian, I'm not going to do that!" Nick put his hand to his forehead. "I shouldn't be the one to tell them! I don't know where you're getting off being so angry, anyway!"
"Because they don't need to hear it from me!" Vivian shouted even louder at him, enunciating each word. Her lips were trembling.
"You wanna keep it going, huh?" Nick said, his voice lowering. "You don't want to come clean. You want to keep-"
"FINE!" Vivian squeezed her eyes shut and stamped a foot. "Just... fine! You want me to come clean!? FINE." Vivian started messing with her phone, her muzzle scrunched in a snarl.
"Vivian..." Nick started, catching Vivian's furious glare a few times as she worked with her phone. Nick flinched as Vivian thrust her phone at him.
"There!" Vivian barked. "Are you happy now!?"
Nick blinked. It was a picture of Vivian, the gray fox, and the dark-furred fox. Both of them were kissing Vivian on the cheeks, and all three looked quite happy. Vivian had a cute expression on, winking one eye and her tongue barely out.
"Uh... okay," Nick nodded slowly. He looked slightly confused, but he didn't want to admit that.
"I'm polyamorous," Vivian gave a heavy sigh. "Look, I can see the bafflement on your muzzle. You see why I didn't want to tell you? Or anyone?"
"I... I guess?" Nick shrugged. Vivian took her phone away from him. "I... I guess I don't understand how you can... love two mammals equally?"
"You don't understand!" Vivian gave a smirk. "Because you're a typical fox. And Judy is a typical bunny."
"Again, not seeing that," Nick folded his arms.
"Letting alone the whole inter-species thing, you're actually perfect for each other," Vivian managed a weak huff of amusement. "The inter-species bit just adds a bit of excitement to both of you. You know that both foxes and bunnies have had stigma surrounding them in generations past about being unfaithful, right?"
"Yeah," Nick nodded. "A 'vixen' was an unfaithful female mammal, though the usage is falling off. And small, promiscuous escorts usually got called 'bunnies' regardless of species."
"Why were those perpetuated, do you think?" Vivian folded her arms.
"Well, for bunnies, I'm guessing their ability to explosively procreate," Nick mused, tapping his chin. "But for foxes? You know, I don't know. Maybe it's because we're all so darn good-looking."
"And another reason is that they were both bold-faced lies," Vivian chuckled wryly. "Ninety-nine point nine percent of all foxes and bunnies are monogamous. Mate for life with one partner. So in that respect, yeah, you and Judy are totally typical. And you make an adorable couple."
"Well, thanks, I think," Nick scratched his head. "So you don't have a problem with monogamous relationships or anything?"
"No," Vivian shook her head, "I just prefer something a bit more. But do you think I want to be the one to try to hurt the image of foxes at large? Do you think any of the three of us do? We foxes all already have enough problems hanging around us without 'vixen' coming back as a popular epithet."
"So you uh..." Nick mumbled. "You know, I'm really trying to ask a question that doesn't sound offensive, but it's kind of hard."
"It's hard for you to even envision, isn't it?" Vivian smirked. "You wouldn't dream of having a vixen on the side, even with Judy's knowledge."
"I guess I'm glad we never got together, then," Nick sighed. "If I wouldn't have been 'enough' for you."
"See, that type of thinking is so ingrained into you," Vivian rolled her eyes. "It would take forever to explain how we feel about each other. It's more about sharing each other than about 'owning' each other." Nick stared at her quietly for a long time.
"I'd... hm," Nick pondered something, "I'd like to meet your other mates, one-on-one."
Vivian looked defensive. "Should I ask why?"
"Because up until this point there are two people you've been hiding from me that I could call friends," Nick explained. "I think that's the true damage of not letting ANYONE, even your closest platonic friends, in on this stuff."
"I guess you're right," Vivian shook her head. "Well, first, you'll have to meet Catherine. She'll be livid if I let you meet Avery first."
"Why...?"
"It's complicated," Vivian grinned. "Hope you like stories."
"Love 'em," Nick smiled slightly. "Sorry for blowing up at you."
"Me too, but it's just because I knew how you'd react," Vivian looked away pensively.
"I should have cut you more slack since we've known each other so long," Nick gave an apologetic sigh.
"So, has all this yelling made you thirsty yet?" Vivian perked back up. "Would you like your usual?"
"No, surprise me," Nick flashed a toothy grin.
"You mean, again?" Vivian giggled, heading to her drink-mixing machine.
-Outside the Grand Zootopia Library-
Offering to do some grocery shopping after their shift a few days later, Nick first stopped by the Grand Zootopia Library, an impressively tall building near the heart of the whole city. He checked his phone to be sure of the time, and looked at the massive doors. Soon enough, one of the door's smaller segments opened and a gray fox stepped out and started walking down the steps. Just like "red fox", "gray fox" was a bit underselling the description of such a fox.
Her face and primary color were mostly of a handsome, grizzled gray, with white masking below her eyes and going down to her neck. Small bits of reddish-orange fur colored bits of her ears, and her arms and legs. Her tail seemed to have a mixture of all the fur colors on her body, but had a distinctive black stripe on its backside. Her warm brown eyes stood out in contrast to the rest of her earthy colors. She was slightly shorter than Nick, but a bit taller than Nick knew Judy was. Nick gave her a wave.
"A moment of your time, miss?" Nick cheerfully called out. He was wearing his usual casual clothes, a loud shirt, subdued pants and tie.
"I'm not buying anything," the gray fox said snippily, "and if you're going to try to give me a pamphlet on the Vulpine Scriptures, it's going straight in the trash."
"Oh no, nothing like that," Nick chuckled. "I'm Nick Wilde-Hopps. Uh, Vivian may have mentioned me?"
"Ah great, even better," she said, searching the sky with her eyes and shaking her head in disapproval, "I'm Catherine Katarina Marengo and if you make ANY jokes about my name I will be going to jail for assaulting a police officer. You especially may not call me Cat, or Cat-Kat. Your name being Nick does not entitle you the free use of nicknames."
Nick shook his head. "Wow, I really should be keeping track of how many times I've had that quip thrown at me." He chuckled. "Can we walk and talk?"
"If you're capable of that," Catherine snipped, not slowing down. "Unfortunately for me, the subway is a few blocks from here, and these lights are notoriously long for pedestrians. Great for people who want to get to the library, isn't it?"
"I can definitely see what Vivian sees in you," Nick said jovially.
"Yes, well, when you have tastes as eclectic as ours, I suppose beggars can't be choosers," Catherine quipped at him, but then her eyes turned away from him. "Of course, I'm a lot nicer to people I actually like."
"A fair point," Nick nodded. "I'm curious as to how you two met?"
"Like all great love stories, ours began on the internet," Catherine sighed. Nick tried not to chuckle. "What? Like I said, strange tastes. Foxes are almost notorious for being monogamous. Where else am I going to meet someone like that? I'm not a clubbing sort of girl."
"No, you appear to be a librarian," Nick shoved his hands into his pockets, "not that that precludes you being a clubbing type, just..."
"If you make any sort of quips about the 'quiet ones' and their propensity for unusual tastes in bedroom activities..." Catherine narrowed her eyes as the light finally changed.
"I have to say though, I do like the fiestiness," Nick chuckled. "How is working at that lovely building?" Nick nodded his head towards the library.
"It's passable," Catherine rolled her eyes. "Libraries these days are basically glorified internet cafes anyway. Also, being a medium-small animal means I have to do a lot of climbing, compared to giraffes and other more traditional librarians. I just like the feel of books, you know? You can just... mmm... smell them. Or you know, smack someone with one." Catherine finally betrayed a smile.
"Well, you can smack someone with a pad device too, it just might cost you several hundred bucks," Nick shrugged his shoulders.
Catherine actually laughed. "Oh, I can see why Vivian likes you." Her hurried pace along the sidewalk slowed down dramatically, and Nick matched it. "So yeah, we met online. It was very undramatic. She's a total sweetheart, as you may know. Like a refreshing apple, crisp and sweet, but not overwhelming."
"Hm, rather fitting for Vivian to be related to a red fruit," chuckled Nick, "how about you, then?"
"Vivian says I'm more like a lemon," Catherine smirked. "Zesty, sometimes sour, sometimes sweet, zingy and a tasty blast."
"Heh, not bad," Nick said, stopping at another corner with her, waiting for the crosswalk. "And your third...?"
"Well he's more like a... wait, I guess I should tell you how we met him, that's a bit more of an interesting story," Catherine nodded. "We'd both agreed we'd like a third person in our relationship, and we thought for the most variety it might be best for it to be a male. We weren't really picky on the species."
"This is so odd to me," Nick shook his head.
"Odder still was the ad that Avery had placed," Catherine recalled. "He stated he was looking for a 'real' relationship between two females, preferably foxes, to 'observe'. He also stipulated that he did not want anyone to see him until he met with his prospective partners."
"That, no offense, sounds incredibly creepy," Nick narrowed one eye. "You two went for that?"
"No no, I agree! It did sound creepy," Catherine scrunched her knees and gestured forwards. "I thought it was some pervert who just wanted to see a couple of girls smooching for his own 'benefit'."
"Then what changed your mind?" Nick wondered.
"Vivian, who else?" Catherine smirked. "Her thinking was that he might be ugly, or in some way crippled and not able to perform in a regular relationship, and wanted to see a real one for himself for a sort of vicarious release. I thought she was crazy, but we decided to give him a try."
"So that was Avery?" Nick asked. "I caught a glimpse of him, and he didn't seem crippled or disabled in any way, to me."
"Not outwardly," Catherine sighed. "He's definitely got some issues, though. Maybe a whole subscription. Oh, and that's why you don't get to talk to him unless I say so. I don't want you doing any damage to that poor fox."
"I definitely respect that, but I don't know, I've had some troubles in my life too, maybe I could relate to him?" Nick shrugged.
"Oh, really?" Catherine put her hands on her hips and tilted her head. "Let's see, have you had a parent die to a gruesome tragedy?"
"Yup," Nick frowned.
"O-oh," Catherine's eyebrows betrayed sudden sadness. "How about emotional problems that stifled your ability to make friends in school?"
"Oh yeah," Nick nodded.
"H-huh," Catherine was getting desperate, "surely though you weren't a test-tube kit."
"What!?" Nick looked blindsided. "What does that even mean?"
"Ha, gotcha," Catherine grinned, "maybe I will let you ask him about it, if this light ever changes so we can GET ON WITH OUR LIVES!"
Nick laughed quite loudly. "We've actually been talking through two cycles of it."
"We have?" Catherine looked a bit embarrassed. "Oh, jeez. I guess I haven't really had a chance to talk to much of anyone about things like this, so I got wrapped up in it."
"Do you like it, though, talking about it?" Nick wondered. "Cause if not, I won't waste your time."
"No, it's good," Catherine shrugged her shoulders as they went through the crosswalk. "Nice to not get spat in your face over it, that's for sure."
"I know that feeling all too well," Nick nodded. "I'm married to a bunny."
"What? No way..." Catherine's mouth opened in amazement. "That's crazy! And here I took you for just some run of the mill snarky fox."
"That's only most of me," Nick admitted.
"Tell me how you met!" Catherine seemed to get a bounce in her step. "I can't even imagine how a fox and a bunny get together."
"It's a very long story, and we appear to be at the subway right now, so maybe I'll save that for a later date," Nick folded his arms.
"What? You tease," Catherine's smile vanished. "I guess that means I'll be having to see more of you, then. Your bunny, too?"
"I actually haven't told her about all this yet," Nick shrugged. "Don't know how she'll react."
"Story of my life," Catherine rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I'll tell Avery you might show up. I'll have Vivian text you where you can find him. And if you hurt his feelings, I'm going to be coming after you with the heaviest book I can lift."
"Aye-aye, ma'am," Nick saluted, and parted ways with her.
-The Wilde-Hopps' Aardvark Rise Apartment-
"I'm heading out," Nick said tersely, making his way for the front door.
"Where to?" Judy smiled, putting the last of the dishes away.
"The park," Nick replied. "Just figured I'd get some of that nice fresh evening air."
"Ooh, that sounds nice!" Judy said. "I'll come along as well!"
"And me!" Larry added. "The park's my favorite hangout."
"I think I'd like to be alone this evening," Nick groaned with a bit of guilt tugging at him. "Got a bit of a headache."
"Oh, okay," Judy's smile vanished. "I mean, I can be quiet, if that's what you need..."
Nick sighed softly. Judy's somewhat sad expression was causing him immense distress; it looked like Nick didn't want to hang out with them, which was far from the truth. He headed over and hugged Judy, which softened her face.
"Okay, let me confess," Nick said, trying to choose his words carefully. "I'm going to meet a fellow fox. And he's sort of skittish; I don't know how he would react to seeing my wife and son. I just want to talk to him for a few minutes, all right?" Nick mentally reviewed the words, and all of them were somewhat true, so he felt at least a little bit better.
"Oh, sure," Judy smiled gently. "Why didn't you say so in the first place?"
"Because saying 'hey beautiful wife and awesome son, I want to ditch you tonight for someone I barely know' doesn't roll off the tongue as well," Nick flashed a grin. Judy giggled and leaned her head up to kiss him. Larry gave a small grin at hearing and seeing this.
"Fair enough!" Judy said flippantly. "But if you come back after I'm asleep, good luck getting into the bed without waking me and getting me angry!"
"In that case I guess it would be the couch for me," Nick chuckled.
"Have fun, dad," Larry shrugged his shoulders, taking out his phone.
"Say hey to Kara for me," Nick clicked his teeth.
"Hey to Kara for me," Larry wryly shot back.
Nick gave a proud groan. "Ah, he'll make a fine father some day." Judy put a paw to her mouth with a large grin.
Larry froze and his ears warmed up. "Dad, please!"
-Southern Mezzo Park-
Nick felt as though he dodged a stun gun charge with how things went in his home. He was glad he only had to get through this night, and then the hard part would come.
"How do I break it to Judy about all this?" Nick wondered. He had no clue what she'd think of Vivian being polyamorous. The sun would be setting soon, and Nick again saw the dark gray fox setting up his artist's easel and chair near the water. Nick took in more of his features. Avery had primarily gray fur of a slightly darker color than Catherine's. His ears, arms, and legs were solid black, as well as the masking around his muzzle. His tail was black with a white tip. Avery's eyes were hazel, bordering on vivid yellow. Nick found him incredibly striking-looking and attractive, though he hadn't ever thought of himself as being attracted to males.
Remembering both Vivian and Catherine's warnings to him, Nick carefully approached him, making sure he was fully visible to him before he got closer.
"Hello there, I'm Nick," he greeted.
"Ah, hi, I'm Avery Pawsfeld," Nick was expecting a rather deep or strong voice to come out of such a striking looking mammal, but Avery's voice was quite soft and gentle. "The girls told me about you. You're a police officer?"
"That's right," Nick nodded. "But you're not in trouble; I'm not here to interrogate you. Just wanted to know a bit more about you."
Avery visibly swallowed. "All right. I guess we can start with a question. What kind of fox am I?" Nick looked him over once more, but shook his head.
"I have to admit I've never seen a fox that looked like you in my life," Nick said apologetically.
"I'm a vulpes vulpes," Avery said calmly.
"A red fox?" Nick blinked. "But you're..."
"Yup, don't have a spot of red on me," Avery nodded. "I'm a melanistic color morph. They call me a silver fox, though I don't really know how many more like me there are."
"Ah," Nick said carefully, "Catherine had said something about how you were born, and I'm not sure I understood."
"I was a designer kit," Avery had a small frown. "Genetics were manipulated to favor the morph, then I was placed back in my mother. Parent's were filthy rich and couldn't do with just having a 'regular' kit. They wanted something 'special'."
"You don't sound too happy about that," Nick noted.
"Well, what do you think about it?" Avery glared at him with his piercing yellowish eyes.
"To be honest, I didn't even know such things were done," Nick shrugged. "That sounds like science fiction to me."
"It might as well be," Avery said darkly. "Or else, it should be. On the surface, it's supposed to be about diversification of the gene pool, experimentation. Maybe we morphs will have some desirable traits to help medical science? But to me it's just a front to make designer kits. There's an even more expensive 'model' than me. Marble."
"Eh, Avery, I'm pretty sure I'm making you uncomfortable by talking about this," Nick said with his hands in his pockets. "I should go."
"No, don't," Avery held out a paw. "It's all right. I haven't got to talk about this for so long."
"Guessing it was hard growing up," Nick said gently. "Not only as a fox, but a different-looking fox."
"I'd always ask my parents why I looked different," Avery shook his head. "They just told me I was 'made that way'. Took me until I was a teenager to find out how true that was."
"That must have been difficult," Nick said. "Wow, what a cliche line! I'd probably suck as a therapist."
"Therapists didn't help me too much either," Avery sighed. "They couldn't answer any of my tough questions like, 'do I have a soul'? I had wondered if the unnatural alteration of me had damaged me in some way, on a metaphysical level. I went through a pretty angsty teenage period. Sometimes I wondered what waited for me in the beyond, and if I should just take a shortcut to get there." Nick fidgeted in discomfort. "Then, I had barely turned twenty, and the canine virus hit. It took my mother."
"Ugh, I'm so sorry..." Nick drew closer, but stopped short of touching his shoulder, not knowing how he'd react.
"At first I thought it was some sort of cruel irony," Avery said bitterly, "she had used genetics to get the son she wanted, and a genetically-enhanced virus had claimed her life. But then I realized how selfish and hateful I was being. I felt fear, and I knew I wanted to survive. Like some miracle, an inoculation against the virus was just starting to be distributed, and I rushed to get it. I wanted to live."
"I'm sorry I was too late for your mother," Nick said sadly, dropping to his haunches near Avery's seated form, then flinched when Avery gave him a terrified glance. "I mean, 'it' was too late for her."
"You were the fox that survived? You offered yourself to be experimented on to save all of the rest of us!?" Avery looked completely stunned.
"I'm not really a hero in that respect, Avery," Nick shook his head. "All I had to do was lay there and suffer for awhile. The doctors are the real heroes."
"I... don't know what to say to that," Avery admitted.
"Let's just continue with the story," Nick shook his head. "I don't want this to be about me."
"My father moved away, and left me," Avery said. "He felt ashamed. He too felt like the universe was punishing him for playing with his family as if he were a deity. He took his millions with him and I haven't heard from him since."
"How did you make ends meet before you met the girls?" Nick wondered.
"Eh, I'm not proud of it," Avery looked off to the side. "I used my body."
"W-what?" Nick tried not to sound alarmed.
"Ah, as a model," Avery let loose a soft chuckle. "I have no pride in what I am, but of course the modelling industry is always looking for striking and unusual animals, and I'm one."
"So you didn't like doing it?" Nick wondered.
"Hated it," Avery chuckled again. "But, I did it because it was easy. It takes no talent or skill to stand there and look pouty with your hands in your pockets, to model jeans, for instance. It paid well. It didn't make me feel any better about myself, though."
"Not like painting," Nick noticed, looking over his art. "I notice you're giving the sunset sort of a... pearlescent look? Interesting stylistic choice."
"Yeah, painting is my true passion; I'm still feeling out my style," Avery shrugged. "I don't know what to do with my art. I think I'd like for it to be in a museum, if I get good enough. But I certainly don't want it to be hanging in the offices of millionares who buy such things in bulk just to fill empty space in their offices."
"I get you there," Nick said. "So just one more thing, I think. What was with the ad you placed for the girls?"
"Oh, uh," Avery had a sheepish smile. "I put that out when my self-esteem was still pretty low. I wanted to see how a relationship could work. I... well, it sounds kind of dramatic, but I felt kind of like a sub-mammal at times. I didn't think I deserved a relationship. I just wanted to see one, a real one."
"So, why two vixens, then?" Nick smirked, folding his arms.
"Well, you know," Avery started giggling nervously. "Vixens kissing looks kind of nice...?"
Nick stifled a laugh. "I'm guessing you didn't want anyone to see you before you got there because you're actually extremely handsome?"
"Yeah..." Avery admitted, then looked shocked when he realized how haughty that sounded. "Oh no! I mean... objectively, I do look a bit different and striking. I thought if they saw me I'd just get a bunch of girls who wanted to fawn over me and didn't really love each other."
"I bet the girls fawn over you anyway though, huh?" Nick grinned. "Vivian and Catherine, that is?"
"Oh, yeah," Avery smiled. "They're great. I love them, and I feel like they love me, too. I feel more complete because of them."
"Well, I think I've heard enough," Nick smiled, getting up. "I'm convinced you definitely have a soul, Avery." Avery blinked. "You love art, the expression of nature, and you love love itself. You have a lot more of a soul than some other mammals I've seen."
"Oh!" Avery looked a bit touched. "Well, uh, thanks?"
"Looks like the sunset's over," Nick had a tiny smile. "Sorry for taking up so much of your time."
"Eh, tomorrow is another day," Avery shrugged. "Good to meet you, Nick. We should hang out again sometime?" Avery started packing up his things and walking east.
"For sure! Goodbye, Avery," Nick waved, and headed north, looking at the sky beginning to darken. After Avery was out of sight, Nick saw an orange glow on the horizon. But that wasn't right, not at all. He was heading north. Nick's pace began to quicken.
The orange glow started getting brighter as he ran toward it. He was heading straight for Vivian's cart.
"Oh no," Nick breathed out in terror. "Oh God, NO!"
-Central Mezzo Park-
Just as Nick had feared, Vivian's cart was a small inferno, flames crackling about. A small semi-circle of firefighters was already at the scene, shooting water onto the blaze.
"Oh God, oh God..." Nick droned, trying to get closer. Jenny was there, and her ear twitched and she looked backwards.
"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to back up- Nick!?" Jenny looked surprised, though her arms held fast to her hose. "Nick, you can't be here!"
"Where's Vivian!?" Nick shouted, his voice hoarse with panic.
"Over way back there!" Jenny jerked her head south-east.
"Thanks!" Nick yelled out and headed toward the figure. Vivian was standing still, her fists balled tight, staring blankly at the fire. "Vivian! Vivian, are you okay?"
"I'm unharmed," Vivian said with an oddly calm voice. Nick doubled over, holding his hands over his face, giving anguished grunts of relief.
"The arsonist...?" Nick asked tersely.
"Yes," Vivian nodded. "I was closing up, and he said something hateful that I'd rather not repeat. Then he threw a bottle at me. I dodged it, but it landed in my cart and the whole thing started to go up."
"Thank God you weren't hurt... thank God..." Nick wailed. "This is all my fault..."
"Not entirely," Vivian said emptily. "But I'm not going to completely absolve you."
"Fair enough," Nick smiled weakly, getting out his phone. "Did you get a good look at the arsonist?"
"Looked a lot like me, bizarrely, if I was male," Vivian shrugged. "Little smaller, little younger. Missing his lower right incisor."
"Ooh, that's great!" Nick jotted this down on his phone. "Good stuff..."
"I kind of snapped after he missed the bottle," Vivian admitted. "Just waiting for the cops to get here."
"Uh, present?" Nick grinned sheepishly.
"I mean, someone with some evidence bags," Vivian had a tiny smile, and held up her fists. "I lunged at him and grabbed a few tufts of his fur, but he got away."
"Oh wow, Vivian," Nick shook his head, "you're something else."
"Well I do have a couple of cops for friends," Vivian said warmly. Nick flinched as his phone vibrated. Judy had texted him.
[What's going on!? There's a fire in central Mezzo Park!? It's all over the news! Are you still down there!?]
[I'm fine, Vivian's fine.] Nick texted back.
[I'll be right there!]
Judy and a few other on-duty ZPD officers showed up before long. Vivian made her statement and turned over her evidence, Nick shared the things he jotted down with his fellow officers Pennington and Wolford, and Nick and Judy observed the smouldering husk that used to be a popular frozen-drink stand.
"Sweet fancy ketchup," Judy shook her head. "What happened here? Why did the arsonist attack Vivian, of all people? ...And... who was the fox that you met? You didn't meet the arsonist, did you?"
"I did not," Nick shook his head. Vivian walked over. "As to why Vivian was attacked? That one IS my fault."
Judy's jaw dropped in confusion and she turned her head over to Vivian. "That's not true, is it?"
"My cart was burned down because the arsonist must have overheard Nick and I getting into an argument about..." Vivian started pensively, "well, about the fact that I'm not in a 'standard' relationship."
"Oh," Judy looked with disapproval at Nick. "Being doing some digging, have you?"
"Do you know about it?" Nick wondered.
"No, but like I said, it's none of our-" Judy began, but Vivian held up her finger to cut her off.
"It's okay, Judy," Vivian said. "I'm polyamorous. I have a boyfriend and a girlfriend."
Judy's eyes widened. "Oh..." Nick and Vivian both watched to see how she'd react. Her eyes seemed to open even wider. "Oh!" Then, unexpectedly, she began to laugh. Nick and Vivian's eyes both widened at this. Judy's laughter grew louder. "Vivian!"
"Uh, didn't expect this reaction," Nick admitted. Vivian shrugged. "Honey bunny, have you lost your marbles?"
"Nick, right before we got together," Judy said haltingly as she tried to contain herself, wiping a tear from her eye, "Vivian actually gave me some advice that I never forgot."
"I did...?" Vivian didn't remember this.
"It was back when I was dating Jack Placid, that other rabbit," Judy grinned. "She said 'if you're in two relationships that aren't in conflict, what's the problem'?"
"I did...?" Vivian's eyes widened. "Jeez, that was careless of me; I almost gave it away right there."
"But," Judy giggled, "but I took it to mean that you were trying to not-so-subtly tell me that Nick and I were actually in a relationship when I myself didn't think we were."
"So, us even being together is somewhat Vivian's fault," Nick realized. "Well, now I feel super great about getting your place burnt down. Maybe we can scrounge up some of that money we've saved from getting free drinks to buy you a new one."
Vivian shook her head. "The stand was insured. This arson is basically only an inconvenience and an insult. The only thing I'm worried about is rebuilding. I can get a better stand, fix some mistakes from the old design... and I really do love it here in Mezzo Park. But..."
Judy put her hand on Vivian's shoulder. "We'll get the guy. If not Nick or I, it'll be Francine, or someone else. We'll get him."
"I know you two know what it's like to be hated just because of who you share a bed with," Vivian sighed. "It's why I don't advertise it."
"But Avery and Catherine are such interesting foxes," Nick chuckled. "We should have all been friends; we should have all gotten together and hung out. We've missed a decade of that."
"Avery and Catherine, huh...?" Judy looked curious. "Hey, you ready to go home? Let's walk you home, Vivian."
"All right," Vivian nodded. "We can walk. It's on Meadow Street, not too far from here." The three walked along, their conversation light until they got up to her doorstep. "Thank you two. I have a great couple of cop friends, and a great couple of mates."
"Of course, Vivian," Judy smiled.
"In fact, would you like to come in for a few minutes?" Vivian beckoned. Nick and Judy both looked at each other, then nodded. "Great." Vivian opened her door, and called inside. "Avery! Catherine! There's a bunny that's way past due to meet you two!"
-Meadow Street, Vivian's House-
"And so, Nick was actually able to convince everyone that Finnick was his son, to engender pity from his victims," Judy went on, gesturing emphatically. She was sharing a couch with Nick, who had his arm around her midsection, and opposite them, Vivian and Catherine surrounded Avery on another couch, with Vivian's arm around his shoulder and Catherine's around his midsection.
"What!? No!" Catherine lurched forward a bit, laughing, followed by smaller giggles from her mates. "Mammals are so stupid!"
"Well, um, I fell for it, to be honest," Judy meekly held up a finger, her eyes looking away.
"Hey, I'm not the type to back away from what I say," Catherine smirked. "You need a biology lesson if you think fennecs can come from red foxes."
"She's my dumb bunny," Nick confirmed, giving her a small jostle. There was more light laughter.
Avery's phone made a warning beep. "That's my news app..." Avery picked up his phone and Vivian flinched a bit, trying to take the phone away.
"Oh Avery, you don't have to read that now," she warned, but Avery kept it away from her.
"There was a fire in central Mezzo Park?" Avery's eyes widened. "No injuries, but a frozen fruit stand was burned down- Vivian!?"
"Vivian, what happened?" Catherine leaned over in concern.
"It was a hate crime, an arson," Vivian shook her head, "I'm fine, as you can see."
"You guys better catch that waste of fur," Catherine narrowed her eyes. "But how did the arsonist even know you were unusual? We're very good about hiding it."
"My fault," Nick admitted. "I got into an argument with her because I didn't understand the parameters of your relationship. I guess it was overheard."
"You...!?" Anger flashed over Catherine's face.
"Shh, calm down, Cat-Kat," Avery looked at her tenderly. "We have our Vivian, and everything's okay. She had it insured, right? Everything's okay." Catherine grumbled, but started to defuse. Vivian gave an approving smile at this.
"Do you ever go out as all three of you?" Judy wondered.
"Yup, and I get confused for their daughter all the time," Catherine smirked. "Dumb mammals. Obviously, a red fox plus a silver fox equals a gray fox, since I have colors from all three of them. I mean, it's just math, right!?"
"I guess mammals can be pretty stupid, although don't you think a kit from those two would look a bit like you?" Judy asked.
"No, that's not really how it works," Avery shook his head. "Just because I'm melanistic doesn't mean my kits would be. ...So hey, how did you two get together? There's got to be a story there."
"Oh is there ever a story..." Nick sucked his teeth, rolling his eyes.
"We'd be here all night!" Judy agreed.
"Oh, no you don't!" Catherine stood up on the couch, gesturing grandiosely. "You're not going to deprive me of this story a second time, fox. Catherine demands your TALE!"
"Sit down, silly," Vivian giggled.
"Well, I guess Larry is old enough to tuck himself in," Judy grinned, looking at Nick.
"Seventeen? I should hope so!" Nick jostled her again.
"Ooh, who's Larry?" Avery looked at Vivian.
"They'll get there," Vivian smirked.
Judy gave a heavy sigh. "Okay, here we go. When I was nine..."