Cracks in the walls are tearing apart,
Crumbling, tumbling, breaking my heart.
I thought I could live inside these four walls,
And, from this black prison... I bear all these scars...
Cracks In These Walls - A Pale Horse Named Death
Bonnie and Stewart Hopps sat that the head of the main dining table as they shared in each other's company and ate while watching their family share in the festivities. The couple had not spoken many words since Stu returned: due to the hustle of final dinner preparations. The buck began to chuckle as he noticed the solid gaze that his wife had on Nick and Judy's end of the table, though periodically she was look around to not seem so obvious about it. Marcy was sitting on the table, fussing that the todd would not allow her on the top of his head while he ate his supper. A lone digit of distraction was barely keeping the little one at bay. Nick's gentleness with Bonnie's granddaughter made her smile.
"The Militia should be on the lookout for two birds-of-prey in the Burrows." Stu finally admitted.
Had the matriarch been closer to her husband, she would have thumped him in the arm rather harshly. Stu was absolutely right, but Bonnie was extremely concerned with the threat that the hawk presented to her family. It would have been funny had that threat not been so immediate. Bonnie also noticed that Stu had listened seriously to all the stories of Nicholas Wilde when the glare that she shot him bounced right off. It did not even diminish the grin on his muzzle. It did eventually fall away, seriousness taking over under the guise of a kind smile on the face. Bonnie could only tell by the tone of his voice. Not harsh or hostile, but firm.
"What is your opinion of him, my love?" Stu asked quietly, extremely concerned with her verdict of the fox.
"He is sweet and gentle with the little ones. I saw that this afternoon. And, there is nobody here who is more afraid of harm coming to our family than he is." Bonnie explained evenly, looking around the room with a slow scan.
"How bad is it?" The buck inquired, speaking of the nightmares.
"I don't believe even fifteen-minutes had passed after he fell asleep. Nick might be a stony shore, but the sea is wearing him thin, Stewart." Bonnie admitted sadly. "He's scared to death of harming one of the kits. I've seen that in his eyes."
"Serendipity demands honesty from him." Stu responded simply.
That brought a gentle smile to Bonnie's lips. "And Karma, if you ask him personally." She confirmed.
"Forgive me, love. My question still hasn't been answered." Stu acknowledged, looking over at his beautiful wife.
"He is kind and gentle. He tempers a humble nature with his sly past, which makes his honesty funny. I think that Nick is a mammal to be thought highly of." Bonnie explained. "And, he's a mammal to be trusted."
Stu nodded subtly but made no verbal reply. Bonnie knew that he was weighing the words in his mind while taking a drink of wine. Joyful voices rang through the dining hall despite their thoughts and they continued to watch over all that resided in the warren. For several minutes, the silence was held between the two.
"And, your opinion, Stu?" Bonnie asked quietly.
Stu chuckled behind a raised cup. "I'm pretty sure that todd is in love with your daughter, sweetheart." He murmured, turning to consider his wife's reaction. "He looks at her just as I looked at you."
Bonnie smiled in reminiscence, turning to him. "I'm entirely sure that our daughter is in love with that todd. Do we have an issue with that?" She asked in turn.
"Do we?" Stu countered.
The matriarch scoffed. "Judy's always been different. She'll be surprised to not be the first Hopps who was 'intrigued' with a predator, though. My issue is that Nick hasn't taken the hint yet." Bonnie spoke with an amused dryness.
Stu pushed his chair back and stood up with an even more amused smile on his muzzle. The buck approached and held out his paw.
"If that's the only problem you have, then it's an equation for them to work out." Stu chuckled. "Unlike bucks, a todd isn't allowed to be so forward right off the get-go."
The matriarch took her husband's paw with a conspiratorial giggle, standing as subtly as she could before following him out of the dining area. Not all that far away, Nick and Robby noticed the Hopps' seniority taking flight for the evening. The two males grinned knowingly. Judy was too busy entertaining a fluffle of kits who were piled up on her lap.
"Yo, Fluff…" Nick whispered urgently.
"Yeah, Slick?" Judy asked, looking over at the todd.
"Looks like you'll have some more brothers and sisters here soon enough." The todd said, trying to restrain his grin to the level of amused.
"Here's to the kits of Spring." Robby agreed, raising a toast which the todd responded to immediately. Their grins split wide.
"There is not a soul in the Warren that would bat an eye at the subtle disappearance of two bodies, let alone one." Judy growled at them, embarrassed by the fact that they had notice her parent's happy exit.
"Oh, I don't know. They might not notice the gray one missing…" Nick said, turning to Marcy as he adopted a voice of babying. The small doe giggled and squealed as the todd tickled her stomach with a digit. "But, this little lady would certainly notice the missing red. Wouldn't you, my little darling? Yes, you would!"
Nick leaned in to let Marcy finally grab on to his nose for as big a hug as the small kit could muster. Judy could not stop from snorting in annoyed amusement while watching the kit hurriedly begin to climb up Nick's face to sit atop of his head. The todd was too far food-comatose to bother trying to dissuade the kit from doing so and made sure that she was carefully perched so that she would not fall off.
"Robby," Nick said, looking over. "I heard some of your siblings mention that you were heading for Zootopia soon?"
"Yes, I am." The buck admitted with a wide grin. "I start a new job out there in a couple of weeks."
"If you don't already have living accommodations, I know of a nice place down the street from us where I lived. It's an apartment complex, but it's in a safer part of town." The todd explained. "I'm not sure about the logistics to your work location, but public transit is plentiful."
"That would be awesome!" Robby said excitedly.
Nick pulled out his phone while listening to the content coos of Marcy on next to his ear. The little doe was finally curled up and happy enough to sleep where she was finally allowed. Flicking through his contacts, Nick provided both his personal cell number as well as Tracy Hudson's work number. Robby seemed like he could use some help in the city and Nick was happy enough to see a debt repaid to the squirrel in the process.
Awhile later, and after much discussion of the city with Robby, Vera approached Nick so that she could bring Marcy to bed. The todd had to pin his ears back and lower his head so that the mother could collect her kit. Marcy was so deeply asleep that she did not even notice being moved around, and Vera thanked him for being so kind in watching her kit for the afternoon. After they were gone, Nick rolled his head around to pop his aching neck. Dinner was over and the designated clean-up teams were already at work. It was not exactly late in the evening, but many of the Hopps' family were heading off for bed due to the extent of their day.
"I think it's time to get cleaned up and hit the sack." Nick admitted, pushing his seat out before standing up. He took one last drink of water before setting the glass down again.
"Thanks for helping out this afternoon, partner. Get some rest tonight." Robby said, raising his glass in gratitude.
"No problem." Nick replied, ruffling Judy's ears before heading off to the stairs. "Night, Carrots."
Judy took the time to ball up a napkin and toss it after the todd for messing up her fur. It landed short and he never even noticed. The doe turned back to finish some of the casserole on her plate while noticing that Robby was grinning at her.
"He's bad enough… Of course, you'd be taking cues from him." Judy admonished her brother.
Robby chuckled a little, picking at his own plate. "Are you ever going to tell him?" He asked.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Judy deflected.
"Oh, come on. I was raised on stories of you. The indomitable Judy Hopps. You never shied away from your pursuits to be a police officer for the ZPD. Why are you getting hung up about telling him how you feel?" Robby said in deadpan, not impressed by her attempts.
Judy's ears fell back as her anger rose for a moment, though flowing back on itself in the remembrance that she was with someone who she could trust. Her brother was not there to belittle her. At least, not this particular brother.
"I've been asking around for information. Studying, if you will. I don't want to make a mistake. This isn't like the ZPD." Judy said with a firm, hushed tone.
Despite the fact that he was younger than Judy, there was a distinct difference between Robby and his sister. The buck had been in love before and he had never heard of his older sister being that deeply intimate with any other mammal before. Most would brush his experience away dismissively because of his younger age or because they were his age and had fewer clues than Judy. Robby would not be abrasive with or belittle his sister; unlike his friends who needed a joyful kick in the ass on occasion.
"You can't treat your desires like a police academy exam." Robby explained gently, wringing his paws a little as he looked at them. "Love is supposed to be spontaneous. And, that means you will make mistakes. That is not supposed to be circumvented and ignored. You won't always resolve things perfectly, but the problems that are resolved end up making things so much sweeter. You can do you research, but you're ignoring your best source."
Judy was still staring at the entryway corner where she had seen Nick's tail disappear through. The doe knew that her brother was right and knew that he had more experience with matters of the heart. Comparatively, nearly every other of-age Hopps had more experience than her in that regard. She had been with a couple of bucks before. They were an end to a means, though. They did not have a desire to see her succeed her in dream while fulfilling the goal of marrying her and she did not love them. She had needed to stay the rising tide of stresses due to the home-life or the studying and once that was taken care of, there was nothing else. The love of her job had been the only thing that kept the stresses at bay for nearly four-years since her last partner.
"So, what do you suggest I do? Hm?" Judy asked evenly, feeling her blood pressure rising.
"Tell him your love him and jump his bones." Robby drawled, grinning past his drink.
"Cheese and crackers, Robby!" Judy lurched out of her chair, hissing angrily. "Nick's not a buck!"
Robby remained calm in his seat, trying to come up with a new plan. It was so obvious how deeply Judy cared for Nick, but he had miscalculated how deeply she was in love with the todd. After a moment, Robby stood up from his seat and gathered his older sister into a hug. He felt the doe slump against him in resignation.
"No. He's not a buck. And, I understand that there are prerequisites that have to be met for foxes." Robby explained. "But, you need to go get him in your own way. Blaze your own trail as you have always done…"
"And, you better hurry up before one of your other adventurous sisters takes a swing." Robby finally chuckled, rubbing Judy's back playfully.
"Are you cabbage-plucking serious?" Judy asked in exasperation.
That brought a laugh to Robby's lips as he released the doe so that he could take a look at her.
"Afraid so. Heard that some does visiting J-Hall's shower hall got an eyeful of his fluffy tail this morning and they were not displeased." Robby explained, smiling. "And a lot more have questions when you have the time."
"I bet they do." Judy voiced dryly. "It'll have to wait until tomorrow. Or, preferably, never."
"I'll see if Rachel and Sophia can get Amber to help with running interference. Other than that, I wish you luck. Anyway, I'm going to get back to checking my work correspondence. Good night, Judes." Robby said, patting her on the shoulder before stepping away.
"Night!"
...
Thanksgiving night was not as kind to Nick as he had hoped it would be. A pawful of hours of sleep after taking to the sheets, he ended up waking up just after midnight. The subterranean nature of the warren precluded the ability to check his phone for messages and he had not inquired about the Wi-Fi password so that he could surf the internet. The todd was illuminated by the lamplight as he surfed through a saved playlist of songs that he heard in various places around Zootopia. He would tune in to a nearby radio when one was in range and listen to see if anything interesting piqued his interest. A song at the café or coffee shop here, one tune from the radio in the precinct breakroom there. The music was played through his Bluetooth earbuds while he was hunched over the acoustic guitar, flipping through the different playlists for different music genres and emotional states. He could sleep and Stu had mentioned at the room was soundproofed. Nick was going to take advantage of that for music, if at all possibly.
The problem was that nothing was catching his attention. Not anything new and nothing that he usually played at the stillhouse would make his paws move.
Knowing that it was not his night, Nick laid the guitar aside and shut off the electronics. He laid back amidst the large pile of plushies, which still brought a smile to his muzzle every time he looked at or thought of them and began thinking about the holiday season. Namely, Nick was considering what he could get Judy for Christmas. He knew a decent amount of fox culture gift-giving and had done all the research that he could on bunnies. Jewelry was out of the question unless they became a couple according to the vulpine way. Judy had been planted nearby for every stillhouse practice and household boredom run of songs, so a special CD of songs seemed rather weak by comparison. Clothing was rather intimate, but he was erring towards that idea because of an innate curiosity to see her in a beautiful dress. That meant a lot of legwork would have to be done. All of his father's sources were long out of business, if not also passed on. And, she already had a fishing pole from the Riverfoots.
Half of those options were only considered because of interest that Judy showed in something that he did. On the other paw, Judy really only ever focused on work and she loved the pop-singer Gazelle. But, she needed another piece of Gazelle memorabilia like Clawhauser needed another donut. And, the doe certainly wasn't without plushies. Nick could have gotten her a plush red fox in his visage, but that was just as out-of-bounds as jewelry. In fact, it would likely show his paw on the emotions that he held for her.
She's not a vixen, though. Maybe you could approach her, Hope reminded him.
"Shut up." He muttered, trying not to be distracted. I'm busy right now. If I wanted an opinion, I'd take a number.
There was nothing else Nick could do. Hopping out of the bed, he removed his sleeping shirt and hit the floor to hammer out a few sets of push-ups. The physical exertion would shut the thoughts up for a bit. Of course, what he really wanted to do was take a late-night jaunt out to the baths. He had seen how nice they were during his post-dinner shower.
Deciding that he needed to stretch his legs, Nick found the key to the room and quietly locked up before sneaking out into the hallway. He kept his mind focused so that he did not get lost again on the way to the kitchen. Upon stepping into the dimly lit room, he immediately noticed that there was a gentle snow falling through the windows and that Stu was sitting at the table near the window with Robby. The younger of the two bucks had a laptop and several articles of paper spread out in front of him. The two seemed to be sharing conversation over drinks when they noticed him.
"It's just one of those nights, huh?" Robby asked with a grin.
"Nick! Grab a drink and pull up a seat!" Stu requested.
The todd grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and went over to sit down; noticing that the two bucks had Mason glasses of liquor at paw.
"No rest for the wicked." The todd admitted, taking a long drink to calm the post-workout heat in his chest. "What's got you guys up so late for?"
"Bonnie's recipes always strike like a Peterbilt initially," Stu admitted, leaning back in his chair. "But, once they turn into fuel. Phew… Good luck holding onto sleep. It's both a blessing and a curse that this meal comes after the harvest."
Nick tilted his head curiously. "Why's that?"
"Dad's fueled up, but there's no work for him to do," Robby chuckled. "Unlike me, he only has the arithmetic to burn that feeling off."
Nick watched as Robby and Stu began laughing, despite the glare that the father shot his son, and could not hold down a grin.
"You know, your mother never did whip you enough as a kit." Stu shot back with another chuckle.
"That's because I was one of the good ones!" Robby retorted.
"Mhmm…" Stu hummed dryly. "What's got you up so late, Nick?"
Nick's ears raised high at the prompting. He had just been taking in the familial nature of the activities and conversations over the day. It was certainly pleasant, and it reminded him of the days before his father passed.
"I got TKO'd early on. I've been thinking about those baths and being outside, to be honest." The todd explained.
"You haven't hit the baths yet?" Stu asked curiously.
"Let's just say that I attract a lot of attention around the warren." Nick said, chuckling in embarrassment.
"Nobody's bothering you, right?" The patriarch inquired seriously.
"No, no! Your family has been exceedingly kind and I thank you all for that." Nick explained urgently.
Robby coughed into his paw to gather their attention, allowing his voice to become gravelly from the amusement before speaking. "Some of the does have just been staring at his ass."
Both Nick and Stu ended up turning to stare at the buck; the todd had an air of odd amusement around him and the older buck was looking stern.
"Y'know… I think Stu's right. Bonnie didn't whoop-up on you enough when you were younger." Nick said firmly.
"Oh, come on now! I'm openly allied with you. Don't take their side!" Robby bemoaned.
"Anyway…" Stu said, offering the todd an out. "We'll have to give you a proper tour in the morning. You've only seen the Main Hill portion of the warren, Nick?"
"I have and I was curious about the other two hills." The todd explained.
Stu clapped and rubbed his paws. "Well, let me show you a bit of background." He said, standing up and taking off for the corner of the kitchen.
The patriarch took a few minutes before returning with a large rolled up piece of paper. It looked like another building schematic and far older, as well. The outside of the roll was yellowed with age. Robby made an effort to clear out some of his stuff onto another seat while his father unrolled the document, setting the Mason glasses down on the corners. The blueprint outlined the three main hills of the warren and Stu proudly pointed a finger at several sections.
"So, we're here in the Main Hill. To explain it comparatively, this hill has the 'front door' to the residence like a standard above-ground house would have. Behind that, you have the West and East Hills. We just refer to the West as the Entertainment Hill. Within that main hall are rooms for the theater, library, the family archives, and we even put an observatory in the top of the dome so that everyone could look at the stars. Underneath, we have three levels of storage for maintenance and upgrade supplies under the West Hill." Stewart explained joyfully before taking another drink. "Now, the East Hill? That's the nursery. Anything and everything related to kit-rearing goes on in that hill and the three levels below it. There's post-hospital or 'Extended-NICU', emergency birthing rooms, and a whole lot more aside from just the nursery. I'll see if Bonnie can give you a tour of the East Hill after I take you through the West Hill."
Nick considered the map with great scrutiny. It was amazing how all of the infrastructures were planned and built by the family exclusively. He would not have been surprised if Stu had told him that the manufacturing of the primary supplies for the warren were handled by the family, as well. That would have meant that the logistics for the Hopps family were entirely in order after the purchase of raw materials. And, the todd already knew that things were different beyond the Zootopia City Limits. For instance, building permits in the BCL Tri-County Zones were not required. Errors made in den or warren excavations were suffered by the family exclusively. As time wore on, Nick imagined that would change because the local governments would want their tax money through code regulations and inspections. But, that was still a long way off – if it was ever even voted in approval within the areas.
"And, then, we'll get you outside for a bit." Stu said finally. "But, first, you should hit the bathes if you want to have one with the least number of prying eyes. Everyone will be up in a couple of hours. That should be an adequate amount of time. And, you should get some sleep, Robby."
The younger buck nodded and piled up his paperwork on his closed laptop while his father re-rolled the schematic that had been brought out.
"Yeah. I'll go with Nick and make sure he doesn't get ambushed." Robby chuckled, elbowing Nick as he passed by. "Night, dad."
"Good night, Stu." Nick said quickly.
"Don't let him get tied to the antennae or anything." Stu called out.
The todd hustled up and followed Robby out, who was thoroughly amused by the idea of his friend being tied up by some of his sisters. They quickly reached J-Hall's bathhouses before hitting up their respective lockers. It did not seem as if Robby used the J-Hall baths with any regularity due to his residence in R-Hall. After taking a quick shower to wash off, Nick found one of the baths in the back near the wall and slipped in. A couple of minutes later, Robby hopped in with an echoing sigh.
"You've got that right." Nick commented, leaned back against the rim with his arms out along the edge.
There were several others in the various pools around the room, mostly bucks, and they all kept to themselves for the most part. A glance here and there was not unusual, but they seemed to be in the baths for the same reason. Peace and quiet.
"What's the city like, Nick?" Robby finally asked.
A chuckle escaped the todd's maw as he rolled his head back into an upright position, ears upright while giving off a shrug.
"Which perspective of the city are you asking for, though. The lifetime resident? The pre-NHC grifter days? Or, the post-NHC slash Academy version?" Nick laid out the options for the buck.
"You used to con mammals?" Robby asked, sidetracked by the idea.
"I'll preface by saying that not all foxes con and swindle. I just happened to be a complete shitheel in my earlier life." Nick explained calmly.
"Before Judy came along." The buck offered.
"Yes. Before Judy Hopps came along." Nick smiled softly, looking up at the ornate ceiling above the baths.
"Alright. So, what's it like now?"
There was no denying that it still was not specific enough of a request for information. There were too many angles. The off-time when he was allowed to err more on the civilian-side of living. The work-side… Which was a more generalized version of a LEO's day-to-day. Then, there was the crime side of things. That perspective was a broader version of Nick's whole life, though. He had violated the law, been witness to crime, been a victim himself, and he had ended up seeing the post-crime timelines – across-the-board – after graduating from the Academy. The fact that Robby was staring at the todd expectantly had him groaning a bit: trying to relax his back at the same time.
"I mean… Zootopia is reflected by all of the mammals within it, right?" Nick began, grasping at the proper analogous explanation. "It's quite a beautiful place. There's hope and a desire to do better. To make it better than it has been in the past, though it doesn't always work… The sights, and food, and experiences are amazing. They'll take your breath away and make you ache for more. Of course, not all that is beautiful within Zootopia was shaped by the kind. Most of the mammals are passive and uncaring unless something happens to them. Then, there are a lot of mammals who are generally hostile."
Nick had to stop for a moment. The problem with a required sense of honesty was that it made things hard to describe if the goal was to be the sincerest: especially when it came to a simple opinion.
"I must apologize. It's something that's easier to understand from seeing it on your own. Comparatively, Judy would be a better mammal to ask about that. I've lived there all my life. I never had a 'wow' moment like she says she had when she first arrived. I would work better as a tour guide." The todd finished. "My advice would be to not set yourself up for it. Don't think about it. And, then, when you get there? You'll be blown away."
The buck was incredibly silent while he listened before taking his own turn to look up at the ceiling to contemplate the advice. Nick took the time to sink lower into the temperate pool of water while he waited for any particular response.
"Dude, you're too big for me to drag out of the bath. Don't overheat yourself." Robby ordered.
Nick chuckled loudly. "Tell that to my aching back. Just make sure I don't drown."
"I need to sleep soon, you waterlogged traffic cone. If you fall out in here, I'll have to stay up until I can hide you from the does!" Robby berated the todd.
Nick's brow shot up as he smiled disbelievingly.
"Or, maybe, I'll call Judy and she can deal with you while you're in the buff." The buck grinned widely.
"I will glue you to the lens of the telescope if it has enough surface area, carrot muncher." Nick retorted loudly.
The two males stared each other down until, finally, they burst out laughing at each other's mock hostilities.
"But, seriously. Don't stay in here too much longer." Robby said, collecting his towel before exiting. "Have a good rest of your night."
Nick threw a haphazard peace sign at the retreating buck, grinning as he shut his eyes to relax for a few more minutes. He still needed a bit of time. After all, there were still things for the todd to consider.
For a fox that talked such a big game, you sure are clueless about what to get Judy for Christmas, he thought to himself.
An uncontained sigh was released into the steam around Nick and he watched as the steam churned around the sudden gust before resettling beyond his snout. There was a bit of a discontent feeling that sat within the todd's chest.
You should buy her a dress, Hope muttered.
There wouldn't be a way to explain that, though…
She's not a vixen! The rules don't apply here! Hope growled, becoming impatient.
That was more than what Nick could stand listening to. He climbed out of the bath with all haste, wrapping himself in a towel before setting off for the fur-dryers. It was easier said than done, after all. How could any todd be expected to break a set of rather ancient rules when they were so ingrained to begin with. Just considering the idea was an effort in and of itself.
Nick resolutely ignored a group of does who had happened to filter into the bath area. It was still quite early, which made him a little suspicious of their motives, and caused him to leave his towel on as he dried his tail by itself. It was not an easy task considering his inner thoughts were making it thrash about in annoyance. After getting dressed, Nick took the hall as quietly as possible. All of the bunnies that he passed could tell that there was a heavy contemplation and chose to leave him to it aside from giving a quick wave of greeting.
Judy's room was pitch dark when he got back inside. He let his eyes adjust while closing and locking the door. Once his natural night-vision was honed, the todd regarded the sleep doe across the room. Judy was, again, adorably curled up amongst a pile of plushies. Small squeaks and chitters emanated from the doe. It made his claws ache with desire to crawl into the pile himself and curl up around her, and that made his natural hardwiring scream out against the desire. For foxes, an invasion of another's private space, in such a manner, was a grievous offense. In his previous life, Nick had heard of a fellow con-fox who had done just that. The particular vixen, who the todd had decided to lay with, showed her appreciation rather violently.
You're only proving my point… She's not a vixen. If a vixen, whom you had not been pursuing, had invaded your private room – like Judy did – you would have shredded her for all other vulps to see. Hope explained measuredly. Essentially, putting Nick on blast.
That was entirely true. That particular response would have let every other red fox know that that particular vixen did not respect the natural progression of things for the species. What few skulks, that were left in the city, were usually approached by loners for information on prospective mates. If a todd or a vixen violated the rules for seeking a partner, the skulk would be the source for that information. No matter how old the offense was, it would be shared with the inquiring party by the skulk.
Nick turned to make his way to the next door, ignoring any further rebellious thoughts. With a deft paw, he unlocked the door and slipped inside. He needed to get some sleep. He would be doing a lot of walking in the morning. After setting an alarm, the todd laid down and closed his eyes.
...
The snow was cold under his hindpaws. Fortunately, his coat had already come in rather nicely and it was of no consequence. Nick had been immediately stuffed full of breakfast foods, by Bonnie, when he made it up to the dining area and now he was listening to Stu tell stories about the warren. The older buck stood with Nick in the middle of the main courtyard while a couple of his older sons milled around nearby with slung shotguns. Around the courtyard, there were several working parties adding onto a large pergola that was being built for the area. Trees were not an option because of the way the root systems would breach the domes' integrities over time. Stu had informed him that the decision was made to add shade to the area while also offering a defense against birds-of-prey that could show up in the counties. Several other members of the family were nearby, scanning the skies for any sign of the current BOP.
Nick listened intently while Stu slowly meandered along. The buck had shown him the West Hill already; running the todd through all of the offerings that it had. Nick was pleasantly surprised at how relaxing that part of the warren had been. Kits had been watching movies, reading books, and there had – surprisingly – been a music room where some teens were playing instruments. That had brought a smile to Nick's muzzle listening to them go through the motions of learning the various instruments that they were playing, and he very much wanted to get back there at some point. Stu had noticed this and made a couple lines of inquiry about his own background with music.
Eventually, they had hit the courtyard and now Nick was going to be handed off to Bonnie so that he could see the East Hill. The buck still had work to do, leading the construction of the pergola outside. Nick could not help but chuckle as Stu snapped his suspender straps dutifully before waltzing off.
"Don't tell me after all that walking that you're still half comatose, Nick." Bonnie said, walking them into the East Hill.
"I don't usually eat that much in one sitting," Nick admitted. "Especially not before my routine cardio."
Bonnie laughed out loud as they stepped into the nursery. It caught the attention of a pawful of does who were working within and they seemed surprised by his presence. There had to have been a shift-based work-style to the whole warren. The todd had only seen two of the five does around before. The other three looked extremely wary. It almost made him wary of himself.
"I'm not…" Nick started, trying to find the words. "Out-of-bounds by being here?"
"I run the warren, Nicholas. If you're here, it's because I approved of it." Bonnie responded simply.
With an uncertain nod, Nick gazed out at all of the round pediatric cribs that were in their neat little rows. Most of them were empty, to be used at a moment's notice, and the does were handling the few litters that were present.
"This is where all the newborns are brought once their mothers have settled and the hospital releases them to our care. Beyond that door, towards the back, is the where we take care of emergency labors. Only in the event where we know we couldn't make it to the hospital in Bunnyburrow. Right now, we have four litters that we're watching over." Bonnie made with the explanations.
"Yours?" Nick inquired with a polite smile.
"No, no. They are Betty, Clara, Erica, and Martha's litters. And, then we have Veronica helping out with them today. Like any other kits, we keep them warm, together with their littermates for the familiarity, and feed them here. The mothers' work schedules dictate whether they'll be breast or bottle fed while they're little."
Bonnie led Nick over to one of the cradles so that they could peer inside through the clear cover over top of them. The todd thought it was for keeping an excess of scents out that permeated the rest of the room. He could have been wrong, of course. Nick did not know much about kits or bunny litters, so the explanations were nice. This particular litter had kits that were slightly larger than his fingers and their little eyes were closed even though they were sniffing around. Of course, they were a squirming pile of happiness as they crawled all over each other.
"Well, you think they're absolutely adorable." Bonnie giggled, pointing at the todd's wagging tail.
Nick rolled his eyes with a grin. "Of course, I do." He agreed.
"Do you want to hold them?" The matriarch inquired.
"I don't think their kits smelling like a fox would be appreciated. We have scent glands in our paws, after all." Nick chuckled as he stood up fully. "Maybe once everyone knows me better. I would love to help out, though."
"I'll hold you to it, Nicholas. Every now and then, we need help feeding them." Bonnie smiled warmly.
"I imagine so." Nick nodded, taking another look around the room. "What's that room over there?"
The doe assisting at the nursery snuck over from his opposite side and laughed. The sound brought Nick's head around to assess her while he wanted for an answer.
"We call that the Room of Spontaneity." The black and white spotted doe named Veronica explained. "Sometimes couples come down to gain an understanding of what they'll be getting into with their first litter… Once thing tends to lead to another, so there are couple of rooms that there for usage."
Nick could not help the bushing of his tail while he chuckled in embarrassment. There was solid logic in having a room like that nearby. The heart wants what the heart wants, after all, and resulting desires were probably a powerful result. The visual brought on a chorus of giggles from several of the females in the room.
"Don't worry, Mister Wilde. I won't have a problem with you handling any kits that I have. You seem sweet enough." Veronica chortled, patting him on the shoulder.
"I do try." Nick admitted honestly.
A chime in the todd's pocket caught everyone's attention and he smiled apologetically. Pulling his phone out, Nick checked the screen to find that an unknown number had left him a voicemail.
"I apologize. Please, excuse me for a moment, ladies." He said, turning away so that he could listen to it.
Bonnie nodded at the todd's politeness and turned back to read over some of the information on the medical clipboard for the litter. The reports read well and seemed to indicate good health with all of the newborns. Not having finished with the reading, the matriarch did not notice a gentle paw on her shoulder.
"Mom." Veronica said softly.
"Hm?"
"Mom!" The younger doe hissed, squeezing her shoulder. "Something's wrong!"
The older doe's head snapped up to see that Veronica was pointing back down towards the hall. With a snap of her neck, Bonnie looked over to find Nick as he hit the floor on his knees. The todd's tail was tucked up underneath him, between his legs, while his phone had fallen to the wayside. Bonnie had only seen that a couple of times from Gideon Grey, but knew that it was a sign that the todd was in extreme distress, and it caused his ears to drop immediately. She almost dropped the clipboard passing it off to Veronica as she took of towards Nick. When she reached him, there was hesitation to touch his shoulder. Her hearing was torn between the sounds pouring from his phone and the urgent Vulpish that he was whispering, each of the harsh words were tinged with sorrow.
Bonnie caught some of the voicemail as it replayed. "—ilde, we regret to inform you that your mother, Vivian Wilde, passed away on the eve of—"
"Oh, no…" The doe whispered.
A gentle paw was laid on Nick's shoulder as she watched him pray. The todd's ears were pinned back so far that it would have been hard to tell that he had any any if one looked directly at him. His paws were clasped together. Bonnie looked back at the other does, Veronica looked pained as she also heard the words pouring from the phone. The matriarch jerked her head towards the door and her daughter understood immediately: find Judy and do it quickly. Veronica took off like a shot as Bonnie pulled Nick up in a hug. She could feel his body shaking while his eyes were squeezed tightly shut. Despite the fact that the todd was still wearing his cold-weather jacket, Bonnie felt the hackles steadily pushing his clothing away from his shoulders and neck.
Bonnie noticed that Betty quietly walked over, taking up Nick's phone in her paw and shutting off the repeating voicemail recording. The action did nothing to break Nick from his reverie. Not even the sound of the door slamming open did that. Bonnie looked up to find that Stu and Robby were standing there with concern written all over their muzzles; the sight of the todd before them only making their ears fall further. They had hoped what they heard was not the truth, but the nervousness and sadness that creased Stewart's daughters' faces told them the truth.
"Ole kiltti, Karma. Tarjoa turvallista kulkua äidilleni." They all heard Nick finally whisper.
After a moment, Nick's paws covered his eyes as his digits clamped down over his eyebrows. The todd's claws extended as he pushed his paws back over his head and past his ears, taking a deep breath before opening his bleary eyes.
"Missus Hopps…" Nick said, his voice wrought with pain. "I need a bottle of liquor and a couple of glasses, if it's not too much to ask."