Hey Everyone!
I just wanna say one small thing real quick, just to avoid any minor confusion: This chapter starts where Nick was left off in the last chapter. Later on in this chapter, the setting catches up to where we left off Judy in the last chapter, though. Good on that! Also, I'd like to thank you. Thank you all so very much.
Why?
Because 'When Instinct Falls' has just reached 300,000 views! That is completely outstanding!
Never did I imagine that this little story of mine would ever become so popular, and grow to be so adored by so many people. I would like to thank each and every one of you, especially the one's that have stuck with me the whole way through... You all are highly appreciated, and I am incredibly grateful. Thank you.
Regardless, I'm sure you all will enjoy what this new chapter has to offer... I certainly hope you do, at least. Be sure to tell me whatcha think! :D
Anyhow, jumping right into the action, I give you chapter 30 of 'When Instinct Falls'... 300,000 views edition!
Peace!
"A hundred thousand welcomes! I could weep, and I could laugh, I am light and heavy! Welcome." - William Shakespeare
First, he was a petty con-artist...
Then, he was a police officer...
And now, he wa an office coordinator.
Never imagined I'd ever get this high up in the food-chain... He thought to himself as he eyed the small army of bunnies running around filing paperwork.
For the longest time, Nick had never imagined ever scraping any higher than the bottom of the barrel when it came to job occupations. His work as a con-artist was crude and shoddy, not to mention the fact that it was highly looked down upon and incredibly unfulfilling. Then his life took a turn for the better, and he became a police officer: something he'd always thought as nigh unreachable due to his criminal-background, and of course, the fact that he was a fox.
So now he was here...
Legs kicked up on top of his desk, paws placed comfortably behind his head as he watched over the dozens of bunnies running the various cubicles in the office. Nick kept watch as they went about their work, which ranged from organizing papers, to typing away at computers, to filing documents and other crafts.
Though they all appeared to be rather busy, Nick would occasionally see one or two of them glance over in his direction; though, he was unsure whether it was out of consideration for the fact that he was in charge, or fear for the fact that he was a predator.
In fact, he was the only predator in the entirety of the sector.
The fox was surrounded by prey on all sides, mostly consisting of rabbits, but there were a few other small-prey mammals doing business, including the likes of several nutria, muskrats, and even a sheep.
Nick still couldn't believe that he had near complete authority over all these other employees: Deep down, he hoped that they would consider him with respect for his position, and not out of fear for his race.
Tired of sitting down and doing nothing, he placed his phone on the table and decided to stand up and simply pace around the perimeters of the cubicles, sometimes stepping in momentarily to see what the employees were working on. Nearly every time he peeked his head in, the bunnies inside the cubicle would jump in their seats, expressions of fear briefly frozen upon their faces until they realized that Nick had no intention of administering harm.
The fox still found it difficult to believe that even after all the work that he and Judy had done to portray predators in a positive light, that the fear was still there. Even in the slightest of amounts, Nick could tell that many of the rabbits in this sector didn't like him, and were uncomfortable with his mere presence in their work-space.
He tried walking up to some of them and speaking with them, but the results were quite disappointing: They either jumped in alarm at his sudden intrusion, or had a momentary expression akin to the likes of fear. Even the seemingly more laid-back rabbits showed signs of trepidation.
Nick didn't exactly blame them: They'd probably never worked directly under a predator before, especially their species' natural predator.
The fox continued his repetitive activity of checking in on bunnies, only to be met with faces of apprehension and nervousness. Eventually he had made his way to the far side of the sector, on the complete opposite end of where his office was located. In the farthest corner of the opposing wall, Nick spotted out a small cubicle; tucked away and slightly hidden from the rest. It was smaller than most of the others, and as the fox poked his head inside and looked around, his eyes were met with the sight of one small desk, piled high with paperwork and other office junk. A tiny computer perched in the farthest right corner of the desk, and typing at it's keyboard was another rabbit.
Curious to get the bunny's attention and to see what he was up to (It was his job, after all), Nick took his paw and knocked on the nearest cubicle wall. The bunny's ears shot up a bit higher in detection and twitched at the sound of the noise. Turning around in his office-chair, the rabbit faced Nick and looked him in the eye.
No fear, no anxiety, and no sense of insecurity.
That was what Nick noticed in this bunny's eyes: He was the first one that he'd talked to today that hadn't flinched or jumped when he got their attention.
That realization made the fox smile.
The bunny that he was facing smiled back; his lips pulling apart in a slight but nevertheless delightful grin, showing off rows of angled and slightly-pointy teeth.
"Heya!" The bunny greeted aloud. "Somethin' I can help ya with, boss?"
Nick had been referred to as 'boss' by some of the other bunnies, but coming from this one, it actually felt like the title had a position of authority and respect, not one of fear and hostility.
"Oh, just checkin' in on stuff around here... Making sure all you cuties are workin' hard, ya know?" The fox replied easily.
It was only after the bunny that he was speaking to donned a look of embarrassment did Nick realize that he had dropped the 'C-word' on accident.
Nick rubbed the back of his neck anxiously.
"Uh, sorry about that... Kinda slipped out. My bad."
The bunny just nodded his head understandably and stood from his chair, smile still plastered on his muzzle.
"Don't worry 'bout that, boss. I don't find it very demeaning... Just watch it around these parts, ya hear? Might get yourself a few dirty looks!" He acknowledged.
The fox stifled a laugh and straightened himself out before responding.
"Yeah, I know, I know... I've met other bunnies before, but it sometimes just slips out. As for the dirty looks part..."
He glanced over his shoulder and eyed all the other bunny's in the room, many of them dutifully trying not to look at least a little bit nervous.
"I already got that one covered." He muttered disappointingly.
The bunny took a step closer and spoke his mind.
"The other's givin' you a hard time? Eh, I ain't surprised... I doubt any of 'em have ever worked under a predator before, especially one like yourself."
"No kidding." Nick grumbled.
He was starting to like this bunny though: He was friendly, but he also seemed to actually respect Nick for who he truly was, instead of just stereotyping him and whatnot.
"What's your name, huh?" He found himself asking.
"Dyvim, sir... Dyvim Whitetail. Pleasure to meet ya!"
"I go by Mr. Leyfur, by the way, but you can just call me Felix." The fox told the bunny.
The two of them shook paws, both grinning and gripping the other's paw with a firm reassurance of trust.
Soon enough, a conversation started brewing. It wasn't exactly anything that Nick would consider as very interesting, but Dyvim made it so: The bunny had a certain way of speaking that made him likable. And aside from that, after being either ignored or looked upon with fear by nearly every other mammal in the sector, it was nice having someone to talk with that wasn't unsettled by his appearance or species, even.
Dyvim seemed to be a pretty good multi-tasker, as he both spoke with Nick and typed away at his computer during their conversation. The bunny explained to the fox about what he was working on, which happened to be a documentation on the status of Jack's various banks throughout the city.
Upon the notion of Jack, Nick suddenly remembered the reason he was even here in the first place: He had to search for information on the guy...
Clearing his throat, he spoke out to the bunny;
"So... What do you think of Mr. Savage, huh?" He asked. "Seems like an, uh... Interesting fellow, to me."
Simple enough of a question, as it was.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Nick noticed Dyvim stop typing at his keyboard altogether. He turned around in his chair and stared the fox in the eye.
"Well... I-I think he's a great businessmen and a good CEO... But he's got his problems, I guess." Dyvim muttered.
"Problems? Like what?" Nick asked, taking his weight off of the wall that he was leaning against.
"For as good of an executive as he is to us prey, I've noticed that he doesn't seem to show the predator employees the same amount of respect."
Figures... That creep wasn't very cheery to me, when I first met him, either... Nick thought to himself.
"Anything else?" The fox inquired.
"Enough as it is... I also think he spends too much time in his office, at least whenever he's even here in the first place. Mr. Savage also puts a lot of emphasis on profits... a lot more than most other banks, and even other businesses do. I ain't too sure why, as he's already pretty stinkin' rich."
It wasn't much, but Nick took that information for what it was worth: While Judy got to know Jack better personally, Nick would get to learn how his employees thought of him, which was just as important to the Intel-gathering process of the undercover case.
The fox continued his conversation with Dyvim for some time before politely excusing himself from the bunny's cubicle. Checking the time, it became apparent that he'd been chatting with Dyvim for nearly two hour. As a matter of fact, his shift was almost over: Just about thirty minutes left until he could go home.
As he took his first few steps out of the cubicle, he heard Dyvim's voice call out from behind him.
"Uh, Felix, sir! I just wanna tell you one last thing, if you don't mind..."
Shrugging, Nick trudged back into the tiny office and realigned his gaze with Dyvim, who was still sitting in his office-chair.
"I just wanna say, sir..." He began. "That even though the others might be uncomfortable around you... That I'm not."
The bunny twirled his thumbs in his paws as he spoke aloud to Nick;
"I think that you're a real good mammal, sir, and I think you'll do us well here at Sector-A. It was nice talkin' with you, Felix... It really was."
Nick wasn't too sure on what to say. Aside from Judy and the majority of her family, Dyvim was really the only bunny that he'd met who openly accepted him for who he was. Judy's family didn't exactly count in the fox's mind, though, as they were sort of a 'package-deal', as some might say.
The fox grinned. "Hey, thanks... That's nice of you Dyvim." He said.
The two then nodded and bid each-other farewell one last time before Nick turned around and head back towards his office, a smile on his face every step of the way.
The door roughly slid shut against the carpet floor, an unpleasant scraping sound following the action.
Judy had just gotten back to her and Nick's assigned hotel room, her fur slightly wetted from the light drizzle of rain that accompanied her half-mile stroll back to the hotel. She wasn't a complainer, and didn't mind the trip, but even she wished that Nick had been there alongside her as she walked back.
Now, she was back at their hotel room, which itself wasn't very big: It only consisted of a bedroom and a bathroom.
The ZPD's undercover-regiment had assigned them this hotel due to it's close proximity to Jack's building, and because it was cheap... Mostly because it was cheap, probably.
Even though it definitely wasn't the fanciest hotel out there, it wasn't bad or anything short of the word. The bed was comfy, the bathroom was clean, and the atmosphere was peaceful: That was all that Judy could ever ask for out of any hotel, honestly.
She glanced over at the digital alarm-clock in the corner of the room, which stood atop a small nightstand near their bed.
9:04
It wasn't that late, yet she couldn't help but wonder where Nick was at the time: He should have gotten out of work as early as she had. His absence confused her, but didn't lead to any worry or anxiety: She knew that Nick could take care of himself when he wanted to, even if he was rather lazy sometimes.
Soon after closing the door, she felt a rumbling sensation within her stomach. Clutching her paws against the surface of her abdomen, she took the time to consider her options involving food: They didn't exactly have any in their new apartment, and Judy didn't particularly feel like going out to eat at the time. Stealing a glance at her mobile phone, which was resting on the surface of the mattress to her right, she considered the idea of take-out, or perhaps even room service of some sort.
Her stomach growled again, and the bunny felt the vibrations on her paws as she clutched them against the walls of her stomach.
Not wishing to wait any longer, she quickly decided to just order some sort of take-out, eventually settling on the choice of pizza. Judy wasn't someone who ate stuff like that very often, but because it was cheap, convenient, and tasty, she gave in to her hunger and placed an order for one small pizza, half cricket and half vegetable.
Being a healthy eater for the most part, she would have much preferred a salad, but figured that eating a few slices wouldn't kill her.
She planned on changing out of her purple dress, but chose to attempt contact with Nick first. After the order for dinner was made, she went to Nick's number in her contact list and promptly called him.
After a few short buzzes, the fox managed to pick up. His voice on the other side of the line spoke out.
"Yellow! You've got orange here... Or, gray, this time around!"
Her husband's peculiar greeting caused Judy to giggle sweetly. Unbeknownst to the bunny, her laughter brought a smile to the fox's face.
"So what's up, Alaina?" He asked teasingly. "Mr. Savage not give you that promotion you wanted?
"Oh, stop it Nick! You don't have to call me that and you know it. I just wanted to make sure that you were alright, because it's almost ten and you're still not back yet."
"Look out the peep-hole." Nick requested.
"What?" Judy asked.
"Just do it, dumb bunny!"
"Fine, fine... I'm going over to the door as we speak."
Judy reached the door to their hotel room, and stood on the tips of her toes so as to gaze out the tiny peep-hole embedded in the door-frame. Standing out in the hallway was none other than Nick himself. In his right paw, he held his phone up to the right side of his head, the call still ensuing. In the other paw, he gripped a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of dark-red wine.
Oh, you dumb fox...
Nick's voice spoke out both from the other side of the door, and the other side of the line.
"Care to let me in, whiskers? I forgot my key-card."
Rolling her eyes, she quickly dug around her purse and pulled out the key-card that the hotel receptionist had given her earlier on in the day, before they had even met Jack. She slipped the plastic sliver into the lock, and with a small clicking noise, the door unlocked, swinging open to reveal Nick as he stood in the hallway.
Upon closer inspection, it appeared that the bundle of flowers he clutched in his left paw were roses, with the stems shaven clean of their nasty spikes; their red petals glistening with drops of water from the previous rainfall, light as it was. The wine was a bottle of Merlot, which happened to be Judy's favorite. The bunny wasn't the biggest of fan of certain alcohols, like the Whiskey that Jack had edged her to try, but wine was something she made rare exceptions for. Nick smiled warmly before exiting out of the call and slipping his phone back into one of his pockets.
Judy closed the door after Nick had stepped in, wiping his feet on the carpet floor as he paced over to the small two-chaired table in the corner of the room, where he placed the wine and set aside the flowers.
"I suppose that's what took you so long?" The bunny asked, pointing to the bottle of wine and roses.
"Yep." The fox confirmed. "I decided to pay a quick visit to the Otterton's floristry... They give me those for free! Isn't that great?"
"Sure is, slick. Though I must ask: What's the occasion?"
Nick raised an eyebrow.
"You're joking, right?"
The bunny shook her head. "Nope. No jokes here." She said.
Two seconds of silence ensued where neither mammal spoke. Then suddenly, Nick broke down in a hysteric fit of laughter, placing his paws on his knees and bending his back over in lenience. His wheezy chuckles confused Judy, who had no idea what was so funny.
"What? What's so funny?" She inquired of Nick, who was now nearly leaning on the table and trying to catch his breath.
After a few more seconds of choking chortles, Nick looked over at Judy and spoke aloud;
"Oh, oh you really are adumb bunny!"
He then followed it up with more rambunctious laughter, which was starting to annoy Judy. Pursing her lips, she strutted over to the fox and gave him a knock on the head with her knuckles.
"Earth to stupid, anybody home?" She asked jokingly.
Nick took a moment to breath in deeply, and it was obvious that he was trying pretty hard not to crack. hauling himself to his feet, he smirked and crossed his arms.
"Carrots," He began. "Did you forget? It's your birthday, dumb bunny!"
Judy's eyes widened in sudden realization.
She had completely forgotten that it was her birthday today: Her 28th, to be precise.
"Sweet cheese-and-crackers it is my birthday!" She cried out as she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the fox's torso. "Wow Nick... You remembered!"
She loosened her hug on Nick and leaned back so as to look him in the eye, her paws still clutching his shirt.
"Even when I didn't..." She murmured, staring into his eyes.
Nick gazed back longingly: He lost himself within her mesmerizing purple eyes no matter how many times he stares into them. He was glad that Judy didn't have to wear contacts for the mission, as he loved her violet ones so much. They reflected off of the clean-white fur that encompassed her body, and just matched perfectly with that lovely dress of hers.
Meanwhile, Judy took note of just how different Nick looked: His fur was now gray, but the bunny considered the fact that his eyes were now brown to be the biggest difference. She thought they were pretty as they were, but personally preferred them to be green... It was a color she associated with him dearly.
The fox was just about to lean in for a kiss, when there was a sudden and reverberating knock at the door, startling both mammals within the apartment. Smiling, Nick gave the bunny a sly wink before he paced over to the door and looked outside. He then turned back around and faced Judy before asking;
"You order pizza, whiskers?" He questioned, to which Judy nodded in confirmation.
He then opened the door and dealt with the delivery, soon reentering their hotel room holding a small pizza box. He went over to the same table where he placed the wine bottle, and set down the pizza box.
Nick turned around to beckon Judy forward, but as his head swiveled towards where she was last standing, a white blur flashed across his line of sight and disappeared behind him. When he had turned back around, he saw Judy, pizza slice in hand, sitting in the chair nearest to him. He blinked a single time before settling himself down in the chair beside her and reaching into the box, pulling himself out a large slice of cricket-topped pizza.
For a short while, they just sat their as they ate their food, silently enjoying each-other's company. Nick found it kind of ironic and strange that he and Judy were eating pizza and drinking wine while they were still in their business clothes. Eventually, the fox decided to inquire Judy of her experience with Jack Savage that day.
"So," He muttered aloud through a mouthful of pizza. "How was your day with Jack, huh?"
Judy swallowed another bite of her pizza before responding.
"Pretty good, actually. I figured some stuff out... Stuff that might be just what the doctor ordered."
Nick gave her a puzzled and questioning look, with raised eyebrows and pursued lips.
"Stuff? What sort of stuff, exactly?" He asked.
The bunny took a quick swig from her wine-glass before setting it down on the table, the glass making a clink sort of sound as it came into contact with the smooth wooden surface of the table. She then raised her paws and felt around the area of her dress that encompassed her torso, sliding her paws down the folds of her dress. Nick wasn't too sure of what she was doing, but continued to watch Judy as she took her left paw and slipped it into the dress's chest cavity, soon retracting her paw and pulling out an orange object.
"You should hear it for yourself!" She said, twirling the carrot-pen around her fingers.
Nick himself seized the chance to make a snide remark.
"Ooo! Got anything else in there, fluff?"
Judy just rolled her eyes and smiled before tossing it to Nick, who fumbled trying to catch it, causing the bunny to laugh out loud. Furrowing his brow at his wife, who was still smirking at him, the fox then placed the recorder on the table and pressed the rewind button.
The husky and seemingly drunken voice of Jack Savage filled the room.
"I forget the bloke's name... Hard to pronounce, while drunk... Sazz... Shaz... Somethin' like that... Oh wait... He's... Shahazzzzzz..."
And with that, the recording sputtered to an end.
"Oh, that doesn't sound good... and Bogo's definitely not gonna like that..." Nick said grimly, looking up and eyeing his mate with respect. "Did you get him drunk?"
Judy smirked triumphantly. "Yes, yes I did."
The fox chuckled and shot Judy with a finger gun. "Sly bunny, as always!" He said, to which Judy nodded approvingly before saying;
"Now don't get your hopes up too high, fox... This isn't enough to turn Jack in to the ZPD just yet..." The bunny stated, pointing to the carrot pen-recorder.
The fox winced in apprehension.
"Hate to ask," He claimed. "But why not? We've literally got him admitting on record that he's been doing business deals with Shahaz the Stinger, of all mammals!"
"Believe me, but this isn't enough to report him for his accusations... It doesn't confirm him of taking money from his charities for his own personal gain, and we don't even know if this is the right Shahaz that he's talking about!"
Nick laughed dryly and shook his head.
"How many other Shahaz's are out there, hmm? Seems like a pretty unique name to me." He stated, taking a sip from his wine glass.
"I see what you're getting at, Nick, but it just isn't enough. Not yet, at least. It's only our first day on the job, so we've still got plenty of time to find out whether or not Jack and his company has been up to anything suspicious."
Judy took a deep breath in and placed her paws to her nape, where she rubbed her neck and shoulders tenderly. Nick took note of this action, and was about to ask her how she was feeling when she suddenly piped up with a question of her own.
"So what about you? What was it like in Sector-A, huh?" She asked as she leaned back in her chair, wine-glass in hand.
The fox blew as stream of air out through his nostrils.
"Smell anything... Dumb?" He asked tenaciously.
"Just one Nick Wilde."
"Oh ha ha, Hopps. In case you haven't noticed, I have that 'not Judy' bunny smell all over me... Sector-A was choked full of rabbits."
The fox let out a dry chuckle before continuing.
"At first, I thought that I'd dropped into hell-"
"Hey now!" Judy cried
"Just kidding, just kidding!" He claimed, paws raised up in defense. "So anyways, rabbits everywhere... None of them were very keen on a fox being their supervisor."
A thought passed over his mind; one that made him smile in acceptance and comfort.
"Except one, at least... Bunny that went by Dyvim Whitetail." He glanced at Judy. "Ring any bells?"
"I think he might be a cousin of mine." Judy pondered.
"Of course." Nick said before letting out another wheezing laugh. After breathing in for a few seconds, he continued his explanation.
"I didn't really find out anything that we didn't know already... But I did learn at least one important thing today."
"And what would that be?" Judy inquired.
"That you're the only bunny I'd ever want to smell like." He smirked. "I'm gonna go take a shower."
And with that, he rose from his chair and trudged over to the bathroom. Half-way there, he turned around and locked eyes with Judy.
"Ya know..." He sniffed the air lightly. "You're welcome to join me, birthday girl... you've got that Jack smell all over you... I'd much rather have my favorite dumb bunny smell like herself than anyone else."
He turned tail and continued walking, eventually vanishing behind the door-frame that led to their hotel bathroom.
Slightly blushing at the thought of taking a shower with her husband, she took the time to finish her wine glass before rising from her chair and walking over to the bathroom.
Hey Everyone!
Once again I'd just like to thank you all so much for everything we've accomplished together over all this time! I truly couldn't have done it without you! :D
Now of course, do feel free to drop a review telling me how I did: I'd love to know your thoughts on the banter between Nick/Judy, and of course, how you think I did on the sex-scene.
I'd also enjoy knowing what you lot think is coming for the future! Feel free to tell me your own ideas on how you think this arc is going to play out, and I'll compare them with the likes of what I have in mind.
I'll also have you know that there's some new fan-art on display on my tumblr account: It goes by upplet.
Chapter 31 is coming your way soon! 'Till next time...
Peace!
UPDATE: I've decided to answer this one question that some people have been asking me, if not to evade confusion.
The events of Nick and Judy getting themselves dyed and sent to Jack take place on the same day/night (period of 24 hours) as this chapter does. Alongside this, it has been roughly a week since they had been assigned their new mission involving Jack, which they were given the day after Vlad's mansion burned down.
