Back by the mailboxes down the road from the ancient old oak tree, the sound of soft-furred paws could be heard hitting the hard packed dirt. Having climbed out of the jeep to do an impromptu photo shoot for Jarod's pictures, Shaylee and Marty decided they didn't want to wait in the jeep anymore and were having a huge hopscotch tournament. Melanie decided to join them (being bunnies they all had a lot of energy to burn off) so after finding a stick, they scratched a huge hopscotch board into the dirt that circled the jeep and then the mailboxes. Picking up several rocks each, they took turns skipping around the board. To make their game worthwhile, they were timing each other and the fastest one around the board won.
Marty had won the first two rounds, but it looked like Melanie might beat him this time around. Their game ended early, though, when they heard the sound of an ATV starting up. Looking down the road, the three bunnies saw Nick and Judy heading their way. Melanie still wasn't sure how to take the revelation that Nick had already taken Judy as his mate. Although rabbits tended to take things fast, when it came to finding a mate, this was too fast, wasn't it? Even for Judy who frequently acted before she thought, this was way too fast. What had Nick done to her that she would agree to mate with him on their first meeting?
As Judy and Nick drew nearer, Marty stood grinning like a fool, while Shaylee was smiling with a contemplative look on her face. She was really curious to see how the lovebirds fared after their unexpected joining.
Seeing her sisters and cousin waiting at the jeep for them, Judy felt her ears burning. Although she didn't regret taking Nick as her mate, facing her family right afterwards was a bit daunting. They hadn't even dated before Nick claimed her! If she had known that scent marking led to mating among foxes, she probably would have waited. Her more rational side was mentally reprimanding her for once again leaping before making sure she knew where her feet would land. She saw something she desperately wanted and so she reached out and grabbed it without thought for the consequences or the timing involved.
Her more daring side (impatient and overzealous side) pointed out that since Nick was offering why shouldn't she accept? Why wait when it was something they both wanted? Her needy bunny instincts, on the other paw, which Judy had been ignoring for over ten years, were leaping around for joy as this was what they had been waiting a lifetime for. Finding and being with Nick is what they had always been waiting for. And they couldn't be happier or more excited about finally finding a male worthy of her and who could actually satisfy her, not just physically but emotionally and intellectually, as well.
At any rate, scent marking meant a whole lot more to a fox than it did to a rabbit and Judy knew she would need to look up information on fox culture if they were going to avoid any more cultural misunderstandings. She probably needed to find a bunny culture book for Nick, too. Or a good site on the internet which explained rabbit culture.
Seeing Marty's excited and goofy grin as she drove up to the jeep, along with Shaylee's curious gaze and Melanie's worried look, Judy knew there was no hiding from these three what she and Nick had been up to. Taking a deep breath while trying to calm the burning in her ears, Judy was grateful that Nick insisted they spend some time apart before she showed up at the burrow. If she was feeling this self-conscious in front of these three, how bad would it be if she was meeting her parents!? At least these three supported her relationship with Nick. That helped calm some of her nerves.
As Judy pulled up next to the jeep, Nick sat up straighter, but didn't release his hold around her waist. He was savoring these last few moments with his blushing bride before he had to let her go. Burying his nose in the fur between her ears, he took several deep breaths of her mouth-watering scent while wondering what she would look like dressed in white. Although they didn't have time right now to discuss an actual marriage ceremony, he would definitely bring it up to her later tonight, when it was just the two of them.
Shaylee had told him that Bonnie was so overzealous about getting Judy married off because Judy had never shown any interest in getting married or having kits, that Judy had always been against both. But seeing how excited she was to be his wife, Nick knew her avoidance of marriage must have been because she never met anyone worth marrying. Nick still wasn't a hundred percent sure why she chose him, but he would be eternally grateful that she did.
Judy flicked her ears back at Nick's needy attention and then laughed. "Nick, we're here so you can let go of me now."
Nick shook his head, his nose brushing through her fur. "Uh-uh, I have to savor these last few moments with you."
Judy laughed again, even as she felt Nick take another deep lungful of her scent. Like him, she wasn't quite ready to part ways, no matter how short a time it was.
As Nick sat with his nose buried between Judy's ears while she laughed at his antics, Marty whipped out his phone and took a candid picture of them. He figured the two would want a memento of their first time together. It would also be good to show Jarod if he asked more about his cousin and her foxy new hubby.
Nick squeezed Judy's side and lightly scratched her through her shirt as his fingers curled in. Judy hummed in appreciation, even as her tail started vibrating with her happiness. With a groan, Nick felt his member starting to stir as Judy's quivering tail woke him up. Pulling his paw around, he grabbed her tail, even as he growled, "Carrots, you're playing with fire."
Judy 'eeped' and sat up straighter as Nick caught her tail, but she didn't pull away from him. Feeling her tail in his paw was something she found highly enjoyable, especially when he ran his criminal claws through her fur—which he just started doing. As a shiver of happiness traveled through her, Judy glanced over her shoulder and said, "It's your fault it's quivering, so deal with it."
"My fault!?" Nick questioned. "How is it my fault? It's your tail."
"Yes, but it's twitching because I'm happy and you're the cause of my happiness." With a blinding, buck-toothed grin, she repeated, "So deal with it."
A silent growl vibrated in Nick's chest which Judy felt loud and clear, even as her scent started to turn sweeter and thicker. Moving his muzzle next to her ear, he growled out softly, "Wait till I get you alone tonight and I'll show you how I deal with it."
Judy's ears perked forward and her heart rate sped up as she imagined how Nick would 'deal' with it tonight. Licking her lips, she was electrically aware of Nick's light touch on her body. Both from his muzzle and hot breath below her ear, to her back pressed up against his chest, and his criminal paws on her tail and around her middle.
Throughout her whole teenage and adult life, no male had ever gotten her heart rate up or her skin hot and tingly, but just a few light touches from Nick coupled with his seductive promises and her whole body felt like a livewire. Judy just wanted to disappear with him and explore these 'promises' of his while exploring a few of her own. Having never had to deal with these urges before, Judy was struggling to hold onto a coherent thought.
Nick wasn't faring much better. Between Judy's quivering tail and her heady, intoxicating scent he could feel his rational mind wanting to check out so his instincts could take over again.
A cough from their right saved them both. Glancing over they saw Shaylee, Marty, and Melanie standing there watching them. Shaylee and Marty were both grinning like idiots while Melanie had her paws over mouth and her eyes wide with astonishment.
Although Marty had told her they were now mates, seeing their close interactions were shocking to say the least. Nick's teeth were right next to Judy's sensitive ears and his claws were gripping her waist and tail. Although she liked Nick as a friend and wouldn't mind him as a brother, she certainly didn't want his natural weapons anywhere near her soft fur and delicate skin. Judy, on the other paw, was glued to Nick and didn't seem to have any inclination to remove herself from the danger his teeth and claws represented.
Seeing Marty and her sisters, Judy's nose and ears turned candy-apple red. Nick was right, they definitely needed a break from each other. And the sooner the better.
Nick met Shaylee's and Marty's grins with a smug grin of his own. Without removing his paws from Judy, he said proudly, "We made it back."
Marty laughed while Shaylee said, "So I see." Glancing between the two, she asked a little hesitantly, "So…it's official, then?"
Judy blinked, then glanced to the side in embarrassment while remembering how Nick claimed her. "Yeah, it's official," she said softly, but her smile couldn't get any bigger.
Releasing Judy's tail, Nick slipped his arm back around Judy's waist and pulled her tight against his chest. "I already told you it was official. Judy is mine and I am Judy's."
With a hoot and a holler Marty leaped in the air, then hopped over to them. Slugging Nick in the arm, he declared, "Congratulations! I always wanted a fox for a brother, but I guess a cousin is just as good."
Nick reached over and wrapped his arm around Marty's neck, pulling him close. Rubbing the top of the buck's head with his knuckles, he said, "Brother or cousin, call me whichever you want." Releasing him, Nick and Marty stared at each other and started laughing.
As Marty stepped back from the ATV, Nick climbed off the machine and turned to meet Judy's amethyst gaze. Reaching forward, he caressed her cheek, saying, "Don't dawdle at Bobby's, 'kay? I'll be waiting." Judy nodded and Nick leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.
As Nick pulled away from her, Judy wanted more for a goodbye kiss, but wasn't sure she should, seeing as her sisters were watching (Marty would enjoy watching them kiss). She didn't think Shaylee would have much of a problem, but Melanie hadn't said a thing since she and Nick had arrived. She was also looking a bit dazed. Chewing on her lip, Judy glanced at Marty and saw him give her a blinding smile and a big thumbs up.
Rolling her eyes at her cousin, Judy then focused back on Nick who was making his way towards the jeep. "Nick, wait."
Nick turned around. Seeing her hungry, yet bashful gaze, he grinned smugly and sauntered back to her side. "Yes, my beautiful angel?"
Judy blushed harder at his compliment. Even though she had never really felt beautiful before, she could see it in his eyes that Nick meant it. To him, she was beautiful. Besides getting used to his touch and kisses, she was going to have to get used to his compliments, as well. With a blinding, buck-toothed smile, she knew it wasn't going to be hard getting used to Nick.
Running her paws down Nick's front, Judy smoothed his shirt out, then frowned when she reached his stomach and felt the gauze underneath (it had flattened his fur down, so that part of his belly felt a bit stiff, not fluffy and soft). "Shaylee, can you do something for me when you guys get to the burrow?"
Shaylee wasn't expecting a question, so it took her a moment to answer. "Uh, yeah, sure. What do you need?"
Still rubbing the bandage and wishing like crazy she could check on Nick's injury right here and now, Judy answered, "Take Nick down to the infirmary and check out his back."
The three bunnies standing behind Nick gave a start in surprise. "Nick is injured?" Marty exclaimed. This idea had them stumped as he'd never mentioned being hurt before.
Judy nodded. Reaching around Nick's back, she felt the gauze pad and said, "Right here. Nick was knifed in the back 3 weeks ago and it was never properly taken care of." With a worried sigh, she added, "It reopened today when he was setting up the bleachers."
With their ears drooping, Shaylee and Marty both exclaimed, "You were hurt!?"
Melanie gasped at the news, then whispered, "Nick, why didn't you say anything?"
Glancing over his shoulder, Nick answered, "It wasn't that bad. It just started spotting." With a flick of his ear, he added, "The hot shower made it ooze, but I got it to stop before I got dressed." With a shrug, he assured them, "If it was gushing, I would have said something, I promise."
Judy reached up and pulled Nick's muzzle back towards her own so she could see his eyes. "Nick," she whispered, her voice full of concern. Biting her lip briefly, she murmured, "And our activities just now?"
Caressing her cheek, Nick shrugged. "I'm sure they didn't help any."
"Nick! Then why did—" Judy started, but was cut off by Nick.
Placing his thumb over her mouth, Nick said, "There's no way I was going to give up the most glorious hour of my life for a simple injury." Judy's brows furrowed, and Nick hastily added, "Come on, I was doped up on your scent and my hormones—I promise, I didn't feel a thing."
Studying his face and not seeing any sign of pain or discomfort, Judy sighed. As she nodded, Nick moved his thumb over to caress her cheek. With a flick of his ear, he stated, "I thought you were the one who wanted to take care of my back."
Judy's brows furrowed again. "I do, but you need this looked at and it shouldn't wait another hour or more for me to get there. You've waited long enough to get patched up properly."
Nick met her steady gaze for a moment, then nodded, even as her unselfish love and concern for him made his heart beat faster. Leaning down, he once more pressed his lips to hers, but Judy wasn't having it. Pulling on his bolo tie while wrapping her other paw around his neck, she tilted her head and opened her mouth to lick Nick's lips. As they parted to allow her entrance, Judy shoved her tongue in his mouth and ran them along his sharp teeth before tangling with his own, much larger tongue.
Nick growled at Judy's demanding kiss. Supporting himself with one paw on the seat behind her and the other holding the back of her head, Nick pushed his own tongue into her small mouth and tasted her deeply. Hearing her moan and feeling her fingers in his fur while her taste exploded across his tongue, had his tail curling up to almost touch his back.
Marty didn't pass up this chance to snap a few more candid pictures of the two. He couldn't believe how cute, adorable, and hot Nick and Judy were being. He knew they were already mates, but seeing them together like this warmed his heart and made him realize what a dum-dum he'd been for thinking he couldn't date Elliana simply because she was a mink. He really hoped she would agree to go to the rodeo with him.
As Nick and Judy finally parted, both were breathing heavily. Closing his eyes, Nick sucked in another deep draught of Judy's mouth-watering scent. Meeting her gaze again, he said, "Come on, Fluff, we need to go. And as much as it pains me to say it, I need to stop at the convenience store and buy a can of musk mask, otherwise I'll empty your whole burrow the minute I walk inside."
Judy frowned at his comment, but then Shaylee laughed behind Nick. "Yeah, Nick," she said, "your foxy scent is pretty potent now. I can smell it from way over here."
Nick flicked his long bushy tail but didn't break eye contact with Judy. After releasing his bolo tie, she smoothed out his shirt again, then murmured, "I miss you already."
"Ditto," Nick murmured before kissing her between the ears. Stepping back, he slid his clawed fingers across her cheek, then spun around and walked to the jeep.
Shaylee and Marty waved to Judy, then climbed in, while Melanie stood staring at her sister a moment longer while trying to get her head wrapped around that fierce kiss Judy and Nick had just shared. It was obvious Marty had been right—Judy had enjoyed being with Nick immensely.
As Marty got comfortable in the seat, he suddenly stuck his head out the open jeep window and asked, "Hey, Judy, who's Daisy?"
"Ryan told you about Daisy?" Judy questioned. This surprised her, especially as he apparently didn't give them any more details than her name.
Nick stood up in the door of the jeep and looked over the bar that supported the roof as he answered Judy's question. "Travis saw Ryan showing you a ring at lunch today, so we asked him about it when he stopped by to see me."
Judy's ears drooped. "You didn't think he was proposing to me, did you?" When using Ryan as a scapegoat, she never expected Nick to hear about it.
Nick laughed. Waving at the bunnies in the jeep, he answered, "These yokels did, but I never doubted you for a moment."
Judy's tail started vibrating happily again, and then she said, "Daisy is a skunk who Ryan has been in love with for over two years, but she had him all confused about how she felt about him. She thought Ryan would find dating a skunk repulsive, so she was acting hot with him one moment and cold the next. Luckily, I asked Bobby about it since they work together and he told me what Daisy's problem was." With a bright smile, she added, "I'm happy to say Ryan is finally taking her out tonight for their first date."
"You mean Daisy from the hardware store?" Marty questioned. At Judy's nod, he tilted his head. "Well, I guess I can see why he likes her. For a skunk she's pretty hot."'
"Yeah, she's really pretty," Judy agreed, but then added, "but I don't think many other mammals think so. From the way she acted when Ryan called her beautiful, I don't think she realizes how pretty she is."
Shaylee nodded from the driver's seat. "Being a skunk, she probably gets almost as many put-downs as foxes do."
Nick agreed from where he still stood in the jeep's door, then asked, "Will I see her tonight?"
Judy grinned. "Yes, she's coming on the trip."
"Good," Nick said with a wag of his tail. "It'll be nice to have another pred-prey couple to hang out with."
With a huge grin, Marty spoke up, "Well, you'll soon be joined by another pred-prey couple." At Judy and Nick's questioning look, he jabbed his thumb towards Shaylee and said, "Shaylee's meeting my friend Jarod tomorrow morning. He's a corsac fox who thinks rabbit does are the cutest—" at his cousins' dark looks, he added—"and no he's not talking about cute like a stuffed toy. Jarod thinks rabbit does are cute and sexy."
This surprised the girls but gave them a better view of Jarod. "Anyways," Marty continued, "Nick got Shaylee thinking of getting her own foxy boyfriend so I recommended Jarod." With a happy, buck-toothed grin, he said confidently, "I know they'll get along great."
Nick and Judy looked at Shaylee, whose nose and ears were turning a darker shade of pink, even as her nose started twitching. "What?" Shaylee finally asked. "Nick's fun to be with so I figured I'd have even more fun if I got my own foxy boyfriend." With a knowing grin, she pointed back and forth between Nick and Judy, saying, "Besides, it looks like you too are enjoying yourselves immensely so why not jump on the bandwagon? The more the merrier, right?"
Judy and Nick stared at Shaylee a moment longer, then glanced at each other. With a laugh, they returned their gazes to the gray doe sitting in the driver's seat. "Yeah, Shaylee," Judy said, "It'll be a whole lot merrier if you and Jarod jumped on our bandwagon." Smiling brightly, she added, "We would have a lot of fun doing double and triple dates."
Shaylee grinned while thinking of dates they could do together while Marty almost opened his mouth to tell them about Elliana. In the end, he kept his mouth shut. Since he didn't have a clue about whether Elliana would agree or not, he figured it would be better to wait and see.
Turning the engine on, Shaylee looked at the clock. With a groan, she said, "Come on, we really need to go. I'm surprised Mom and Dad haven't called already."
Nick nodded and started to sit down, but then popped his head over the rollbar again. "This pains me in the worst way, but you should probably ask Bobby about some musk mask for yourself. As bad as it'll be for me walking into the burrow smelling so foxy, it'll be a hundred times worse if you do." He pointed his black claw at her and Judy turned bright red again. (She was so cute when she was blushing!).
With her ears flat against her back, Judy nodded. "Um, yeah, that would be bad." With a sigh, she added, "I'll ask him."
Grinning at her, Nick blew her a kiss, then climbed in and got buckled into his seat. Shaylee, Melanie, and Marty waved to Judy as they said goodbye, then Shaylee drove past the mailboxes and flipped around.
Judy watched them go, then drove down the road in the opposite direction. Although she was grateful for a chance to get her thoughts in order, she was already missing Nick terribly. They had just reconnected and had so much to talk about, so having to part so soon after meeting was killing her. Would she even be able to focus on dinner tonight when her head was filled with thoughts and images of Nick? Hopefully, Bobby and his family will forgive her if she's a bit absentminded while she was visiting them.
While Judy was driving towards Bobby's house, Shaylee glanced over at Nick as they drove down the road. As soon as they had started driving, Nick had done nothing more than stare out the window with his muzzle in his paw. His happy chatter and smiling face were replaced with a brooding silence. Biting her lip, she wondered what was going on inside his head. He had just reconnected with her sister and spent a glorious hour with her, and it was obvious while he and Judy were parting that he wasn't ready to say goodbye—so why the silence now?
Nick sat staring out the jeep's open window with the wind blowing through his fur. He was going back over the last glorious hour he'd spent with Judy and trying to figure out how they went from him stealing that first kiss to them being knotted together. It all seemed surreal to him and he was questioning his sanity on whether it actually happened or not.
There were three main points he could think of that had led to their impromptu mating. One, Judy was just way too reactive and demanding of his touch. He knew this wasn't Judy's normal way of acting around males or Bonnie wouldn't be such a meddlesome tyrant about getting Judy married off. But seeing that Judy was so responsive to his touch, how was he supposed to keep a rational thought in his head when everything about her—her touch, her voice, her taste, her scent—demanded more from him? It almost felt like he had put her under some sort of spell.
Second, there were his loud, insistent instincts. It was obvious to him now that he had started imprinting on Judy four months ago and he could only imagine the havoc their long separation had on his instincts as the bonding process had been so violently disrupted. The loss of her scent and presence had tied his instincts in knots and probably did more damage than the anger and pain of her supposed betrayal.
Then, suddenly seeing her again and especially smelling her sweet scent and then tasting her mouth-watering flavor! It had felt like he'd been lost in the desert and had suddenly fallen headfirst into an oasis. Even after drinking deeply of her scent and taste, he just couldn't get enough. The fact she couldn't get enough of him either drove his instincts even crazier.
Thirdly, there was the scent marking she'd given him. By how shocked his angel was when he first called her his wife, Nick guessed that scent marking meant something completely different to a rabbit. He knew Judy was proving her commitment to him when she marked him, otherwise she wouldn't have bothered right after he declared himself to her. But if she wasn't asking to be his wife, what was she saying?
Rubbing his fingers across his cheek where she had scent marked him, Nick brought his fingers to his nose and breathed in her heady scent. Good lord, did she smell good! Closing his eyes, he breathed more deeply of her scent. The effect was mind-numbing and exhilarating at the same time which was a bit disorienting.
On the one paw, her scent relaxed him knowing she was close. Smelling her sweet scent, he felt like everything was finally right in his world. But on the other paw, her scent intoxicated and excited him. He wanted nothing more than to smother her in his kisses as he drowned in everything that was Judy. Feeling these conflicting emotions from her scent made him wonder if maybe she hadn't put him under a spell.
With a flick of his tongue, Nick licked her taste off his fingers. Oh, lordy, she tasted even better than she smelled! And that was saying a lot. Getting drunk off her kisses was a very real possibility.
Dropping his head back against the headrest, Nick sighed heavily, then pinched the bridge of his nose. Never in his life had he ever found a rabbit attractive. They were cute like a stuffed toy, but never hot and sexy. And their scent had never drawn any kind of reaction from him. In his opinion, rabbits didn't smell bad but neither did they smell particularly good. They had a 'blah' scent that most small prey mammals had.
If he focused, he could get more from a scent, but having lived in a huge, crowded city his whole life, he had trained his brain to subconsciously filter out the different smells that filled the air (otherwise the vast number of smells would have driven him insane long ago). There were important smells (mammals he knew, money bags who would make a good mark, or species he needed to look out for—like polar bears), and then there were unimportant smells—like rabbits. He took notice of them long enough to see if they posed any threat (being falsely accused of something wasn't unheard of), but otherwise he ignored them.
And if he had smelled one rabbit, he had smelled them all. Or so he thought. Having spent all afternoon with Shaylee, Melanie, and Marty, along with Brandi, Ben, and Aaron, he could now pick their scents out of the mass of other bunnies and recognize each one for who they were. But that was still a far cry from how he could now pick up Judy's scent.
The tiniest hint of her scent would have his full attention. There was no filtering out her scent and ignoring it. Judy's scent was now the most important one in his world and he would follow it anywhere, track it through anything. If it led him to the highest, brightest heavens or through the deepest, darkest hell, it didn't matter—if Judy was there, he would follow and he would find her.
This left him with just one question: What did Judy's scent mark mean? What was she asking or promising him? Turning to the bunny beside him, Nick asked, "What does scent marking mean to a rabbit?"
Shaylee was surprised by Nick's sudden question, but it did give her an idea of what he was brooding over. "Most rabbits don't bother scent marking anymore, but those who do scent mark their mates do it to show their love and devotion to each other."
Nick's ears flicked in shock. "Why don't rabbits scent mark their mates anymore?" Being a fox, scent marking was instinctive. It wasn't something they even thought about—it's just something they did and not doing it would leave them feeling lost.
Leaning towards the front seat, Marty answered Nick's question. Tapping his small nose, he explained, "Our sense of smell isn't as strong as it was several centuries ago. We pretty much have to be close enough to hug in order to smell a scent mark on someone, and even then, you have to be really familiar with the bunny to recognize the scent." With a shrug, he added, "Most rabbits no longer see the point."
"Mothers will still scent mark their kits, though," Melanie spoke up from where she sat behind Nick. "Infants seem to recognize their mother's scent and it soothes them, especially when they're being fussy and are struggling to fall asleep."
Nick turned around and gave Melanie a thoughtful look, then he turned back to look out the front windshield. Touching his chin in thought, he then turned back to look at Shaylee and Marty. "But some rabbits will still scent mark their mates to show their full commitment to each other, right?"
Shaylee nodded. "Yes, so if Judy scent marked you it was to show you how much she loves you and is committed to you."
Nick nodded in thought again, but after a moment he asked, "When do rabbits typically scent mark each other?"
"Most rabbits will scent mark each other when they get engaged," Marty answered.
Sitting beside him, Melanie added, "A few will wait and scent mark each other at the end of their wedding ceremony, just before they share their first kiss as husband and wife, but most will typically scent mark each other after the buck proposes to his doe."
Nick's jaw dropped. "You mean scent marking for rabbits is just another way of saying 'I love you' and 'I'll stay by your side'? There's nothing more to it?"
Shaylee glanced at Melanie through the rearview mirror, even as Melanie asked, "What more is there?"
Slapping a paw over his face, Nick muttered, "Oh, bloody hell."
Gripping the steering wheel a little tighter, Shaylee glanced at Nick worriedly. "What's wrong?"
Marty was pretty sure he knew what was troubling the todd but figured it would be better if Nick explained it for himself.
Rubbing his face, Nick muttered, "I'm a fox and to foxes there's a whole lot more to scent marking than just 'I love you' and 'I'm faithful to you'."
Shaylee glanced at Marty in the rearview mirror at the same time Melanie looked at him. Both were thinking of how their cousin had accurately deciphered Nick's text earlier.
Grinning, Marty said, "You're talking about the Claiming Ceremony, right?"
"Yes!" Nick exclaimed as he dropped his paw. Pointing to himself, Nick said, "You cannot scent mark a todd and not expect to be claimed and knotted by him." Pointing to Shaylee, he added, "Keep that in mind if you start dating Jarod."
Shaylee nodded, but then touched her tongue to her lip and asked, "Knotted?"
Nick raised a brow at her, then said with a smirk, "Crawl in bed with him, make love…get pinned to a tree by him—take your pick on the meaning." He said this last with a wave of his paw, even as his tail flicked beside him.
Shaylee immediately blushed and turned her attention back to the road. Marty wasn't about to let his cousin live it down, so he reached over and flicked her bright red ear, saying, "I told you that's what it meant when Nick texted earlier."
Moving her head away from her cousin's annoying fingers, Shaylee mumbled, "I know, but you didn't give a lot of detail. I'm still confused."
With a laugh, Marty said, "Well, I'm sure Jarod will love to tell you all about his knot when you get to that point."
Twisting her paws around the steering wheel, Shaylee groused, "Oh, shut up, Marty."
Laughing again, Marty glanced at Nick and his laughter died. With the todd's ears splayed to the side and a grim mask on his face, Nick wasn't looking very happy. Guessing on the cause, he asked, "Are you worried that you took advantage of Judy? That you gave her more than she bargained for?"
Nick was silent for several heartbeats, then growled out stiffly, "The thought is crossing my mind."
Sitting back, Marty folded his arms, saying, "I wouldn't worry about it. If Judy didn't want you, she would have said so."
Nick's ears righted themselves as he remembered how demanding Judy was. She had absolutely no problem with telling him what she wanted—or simply taking it. Remembering her attacks on his foxhood had it tightening slightly in anticipation. Sitting up straighter, Nick tried to get his mind off Judy's divine paws and mouth.
Looking over at Marty, he said, "You're right. Judy wasn't passive and she made it quite clear what she wanted from me."
Nodding, Marty added, "Going by the way Judy was hanging off you when you two were saying goodbye, it's obvious that even if she wasn't aware of what she was asking for, she certainly didn't mind receiving it."
Nick nodded happily, then turned back around to stare out the window again. After a moment, he said, "Still, Judy and I will need to sit down and discuss our cultural differences so we don't make another blunder." Glancing at Shaylee, he asked, "Do you guys have a book on bunny culture or anything? I need to do some reading."
Shaylee glanced over briefly, then returned to watching the road. "There are, but I'm not sure how helpful they'll be." At Nick's puzzled gaze, she explained, "Judy's not your typical rabbit and never has been, so most of what you would read about as part of rabbit dating rituals probably won't apply."
Nick's ears flicked back. "Well, then what should I know? You guys grew up with Judy so you should have some ideas."
"Flowers," Melanie said. As Nick turned around to look at her, she added, "But you can't get a bouquet just because it looks nice. In rabbit culture every flower has a meaning to it. You know, red roses are a sign of passion and love while yellow roses indicate friendship. If you're going to read, it should be a book about flowers and their meaning." With a wide grin at Nick's slack jaw, she added, "And yes, we have several books back at the burrow and you're welcome to borrow one."
Nick smiled in appreciation, then asked, "Anything else I should know? Anything I shouldn't do?"
"You need to know about bunny ears and tails," Marty spoke up. When Nick turned to meet his eyes, he explained, "Obviously Judy wants you to touch hers, but you'll probably want to hold back until you two are alone, otherwise it might cause some problems."
Nick's ears flicked back again. "What do you mean?"
"When bunnies are little, we'll pull on each other's tails and ears, but once we become teens, ears are largely off limits. We might pull or flick someone's ear briefly to catch their attention or annoy them," Marty glanced at Shaylee's ears, "but caressing them is a definite no unless you're seriously dating. And the tail is the same way. Once we hit the teenage years, touching or pulling on someone's tail of the opposite gender could land you a sexual harassment charge if you're not dating, same with the ears if you keep touching them after being told to stop."
Nick's ears flattened against his head. "Okay, I'm glad you told me that." Taking a deep breath, he mumbled, "Keep my paws to myself in public to avoid someone accusing me of sexually harassing Judy." With a heavy sigh, he ran his claws down the back of his head.
"Exactly!" Marty exclaimed as he jabbed his dull clawed finger at his friend. "We have a lot of specist hotheads in this town and you don't want to give them any reason to target you."
"Okay," Nick said with a nod as he tapped his first finger, "Flowers are a definite 'do' and ears and tail are definite 'don't' unless we're alone." He tapped his second finger. "Got it."
Marty nodded, but then Melanie spoke up again. "This is something you'll have to pay strict attention to while at the burrow once Judy arrives. There are hundreds of eyes and ears in the burrow so don't assume you're alone unless you're behind locked doors."
Shaylee flicked her ear in agreement. "It'll be best if you maintain a friendly distance from Judy, otherwise the whole burrow will be speculating about your relationship by the time the sun comes up tomorrow." Nick sat in thoughtful silence for a moment, and then Shaylee pointed at a building they were coming up on. "There's the convenience store."
As she pulled into the parking lot, Shaylee spoke over her shoulder to Marty, saying, "You want to run in and get the musk mask? A cougar works the counter here and he'll smell Judy all over Nick."
"Oh, right," Marty agreed as he grabbed the door handle. Turning back towards Nick, he asked, "Anything in particular?"
"Just something extra strength. If they have a cinnamon scented one, I'll take it, otherwise just get a neutral one."
Giving Nick a thumbs up, Marty jumped out and darted into the store. Just as the door shut behind him, Shaylee's phone rang. Picking it up, she saw that it was her parents. With her ears drooping, she waved her paw to shush Nick and Melanie, then pasted on a smile and answered the call. It was her dad and for once, Shaylee was glad it wasn't her mom on the other end. Shaylee explained that Nick finally got Judy on the phone and the two got lost in conversation, but that they were headed to the burrow now. She then told her dad that Judy would join them once she finished dinner at Bobby's.
Stu was happy to hear Nick and Judy had finally reconnected and was looking forward to seeing how they interacted together.
After hanging up, Shaylee gave a sigh of relief. Turning to Nick, she said, "I hope that was alright, saying you guys were on the phone the whole time?"
"That's probably the best response you could give." With his tail flicking anxiously, Nick continued, "Judy did call, and we did talk for about an hour, so it's not technically a lie."
Shaylee nodded and then Marty was back, and yes, they had a can of extra strength musk mask with the scent of cinnamon, along with a floral scented one for Judy should she need it at some point. After Nick took the can, they decided to drive down the road a ways before Nick hopped out to spray his and Judy's scent off (they didn't want to give anyone at the store reason to question the scent a fox in a bunny's jeep would want to get rid of).
Nick sprayed himself liberally, going so far as to take his shirt off and spray his chest and back. He hated erasing Judy's scent while cutting back on his own, so when it came to his head, he only lightly sprayed himself. Shaylee agreed that she couldn't smell anything but cinnamon, so Nick was happy about that. Being a todd, it would have killed him to erase Judy's scent mark so soon after receiving it (he could still smell her scent mark under the cinnamon smell).
Once his shirt was back on (the bunnies couldn't miss the slightly bloody gauze on Nick's back), he hopped back in and they started down the road again, with Shaylee vowing to get Nick down to the burrow's clinic before sitting down to eat.
WingedKatt here. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Next time, Judy will have some time to reflect and learn more about fox culture while she spends time with Bobby's family. An interesting conversation will also come up at the dinner table, so stay tuned.
Ch. 32: New Perfume, will post in 2 weeks.
If you have any thoughts or questions, let me know. Have a great weekend and take care.