3 Aftermath
~0~
After roughly an hour in the emergency ER's waiting room waiting for news on Nick's surgery, a lynx nurse tells Judy that the hospital will call Nick's commanding officer when Nick is rolled out of surgery and into recovery, since there is no official documentation of her being Nick's fiancé and therefore she is not privy to Nick's personal information or present condition.
"Hey Hopps," comes a familiar voice, slightly startling the young doe. "You're still here?"
"Hey Goldie. Yeah, a nurse just now let me know that I really needed to leave since there's no official record of me being with Nick. Could – you give me a ride to Senior's office since I have absolutely no idea where it might be … please…?"
"Sure, no problem, c'mon …"
During the short ride from the hospital to Senior's office, Judy asks her benefactor a question … something that the doe has been mulling over since her rescue and the chopper ride to the base.
"Goldie … Sarah …" she begins "can … can I ask you something?"
"Sure, go ahead." answers the canid.
"Do you believe in love at first sight? I mean … I don't know what it is about Nick but …" begins the doe hesitantly.
"But you're attracted to him in a way that's slightly sexual, yet not quite? Like there's more to it that a simple roll in the hay?"
"Yeah, but I can't quite put my finger on it."
"Well, aside from a possible attachment disorder due to your rescue … in which you could have bonded with any of us, truth be told … it is odd that you bonded with Nick of all mammals. With him being your natural enemy in ages past, the bond is unusual at best. On the upside, I've known Nick for a while now, and I can honestly say that I've never seen him open up with anyone like he did with you in the chopper. And no, I don't believe it was the morphine that got him to talk, that's NOT one of the normal side effects of the drug. That said, the blood loss coupled with the morphine might have coupled together to get him to talk honestly and admit that he really does like you."
"So … you really think he actually likes me then?"
Offering a soft smile, Sarah admits "Without a doubt. To be honest, at one point Nick would chase anything with a heartbeat, but I think it's different with you. His interest in you seems to be honest. If it wasn't, I don't think he'd 've accepted your sudden and offbeat marriage proposal. Does that make sense?"
"Yeah, I guess…?"
Stopping in front of the building that houses all of the west-coast Teams headquarters, Sarah offers one last bit of advice "Don't overthink it Judy, you like Nick and Nick seems to like you. Unless you really think that this will end badly, at least give it a shot. Nick's gonna need a lot of emotional support in the future, especially if he loses his leg. If you don't think you'll be up to the task, you'll need to be up front with him about it. It'll suck big time, but it's an unfortunate reality that comes with the job."
"Thanks Sarah … for everything." Says Judy as she exits the vehicle and heads to what she knows will be a perfect disaster, which is her facing her ultra-conservative parents.
…
As Judy enters Senior's (Bogo's) office, she's greeted first by Senior, then her overanxious parents:
"Good to see you Miss. Hopps. The duty nurse at the hospital called and informed me of the situation concerning Wilde. I'll let you know if anything pops up."
"Thank you Senior" comments Judy "but if you don't mind, I'd like to have some time alone with my parents. I'll check up on Nick when I'm finished."
"As you wish Miss Hopps. I'll have the corpsmammal notify you through me if or when Wilde's condition changes." answers the massive buffalo as he side-eyes the two elder rabbits when he exits the office to give the doe and her parents some privacy.
"Thank the Gods that you're home safe Judith" begins her much relieved father as he rushes forward and gathers his daughter up into a typical Hopps hug "Now we can get your marriage annulled and you can take your rightful place as the head of Hopps Family Farms. And why did that buffalo refer to you as Miss Hopps instead of Mrs. Savage."
"First of all, NO!" insists Judy firmly when she can finally get a word in edgewise.
"Wh-what did you say?" asks her mother incredulously.
"I said no. What part of no did you NOT understand MOTHER? The N or the O?" Judy asks, sarcasm in full view.
"But-" begins Stu.
"I'm sorry FATHER," begins Judy with as much sarcasm and venom in her voice s she can muster, switching her attention to her father "but that's NOT gonna happen."
"I don't understand…"
Pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration, Judy decides that the easiest way out of this is to apply some tough love … a LOT of tough love actually.
"Look" begins the frustrated doe "I know that both of you are dead set on me returning to the Burrows and taking over the family business, but have you EVER stopped for one - single - minute to consider that it might not be what I want?"
"But-" as Stu again tries to get a word in edgewise, to no avail.
"But nothing dad … listen … to begin with, there's no need to have the marriage annulled because Jack is dead. I know that for a fact because I killed him! With that said, I'm reclaiming my maiden name of Hopps. That's why Senior referred to me as miss Hopps."
"WHAT?" comes from both of her equally shocked parents.
"I know, it's a shocker ain't it?" smirks the young doe.
"Judith" begins a totally disbelieving Bonnie "How on earth could you-"
"Do such a thing?" Judy interrupts, shrugging her shoulders. "Simple, I picked up Jack's gun after Midnight disarmed him and shot him with it … several times. Emptied the – the clip? Magazine? Whatever, into him as a matter of fact." she finished coldly.
"That's NOT what your mother meant Judith!" interrupts her father sternly, waging a finger at his daughter.
"I know what she meant dad, I'm not stupid!" counters Judy angrily, pushing the offending finger aside "If Jack had succeeded in killing Nick, he was going to keep me to be used as breeding stock, plain and simple. He never intended on allowing me to return to the states."
"But he seemed like such a nice young buck!" exclaims Bonnie.
"Would you like to know what a deviant asshole Jack was mother?"
"…"
"Let me tell you what a total shit he was." begins Judy angrily. "There was a set of stocks in the middle of the courtyard, you know, like they used in the old days to punish and humiliate offenders … head and both paws held to embarrass mammals. But in this case, they were only set about waist high. The reason was simple … does that were the least bit disobedient were placed in the stocks naked, bent over at the waist and exposing them to anything any male wanted to do to them, and that's what I was forced to watch. Sometimes a buck would take the poor doe from behind, sometime from the front. One poor doe was forced to endure both at the same time.
"And once when a buck refused to partake, Jack forced him to kneel in the center of the courtyard and shot him in the head. Then his body was drug from the site and thrown off a cliff just south of the village."
"But why do all of that if all he wanted was the money-" asks Stu.
"Jack didn't really give a damn about the money … well, I guess he kinda did as a secondary thing, but the entire mess, the kitnapping and all of the rest of it was simply a ruse to lure Nick to Vietnam and kill him."
"But, why did he want to kill that – that FOX, and why did he need to kitnap you to do it?" asks Stu.
"To begin with dad, he's not 'that fox', (using finger quotes) his name is Nick. Chief Petty Officer Nicholas P. Wilde to be precise. Evidentially Jack was carrying some sort of a grudge against Nick's father, who died several years ago, poisoned by Agent Orange. It was a slow and particularly gruesome death to hear Nick tell of it. Jack needed me to get you to use your political influence to get the military to send Nick after me."
"You mention this … Nick … as if you actually care for him!" Bonnie accuses her daughter.
"Maybe it's because I actually do." answers Judy flatly.
"But he's a fox!" says Stu.
"I already know that dad! But so what?" she asks with plenty of emotion.
"It-it's simply not done … you … with a predator … and a fox of all mammals. I forbid it … I won't allow it!" replies Stu firmly, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"I'm twenty-five years old dad" replies Judy just as firmly, with her paws balled up into fists that rest on her hips while leaning close enough to her father to almost touch noses with him. "I don't want or need your permission for anything, especially who I want to be with. I'm 25 years old, and for your information I can and will do as I damned well please!"
"But Judy" interrupts the elder doe in an attempt to talk some sense into her headstrong daughter "It's simply not done, think of the scandal-"
"Fuck the scandal mother!" yells a now thoroughly pissed Judy who steps nose to nose with her mother. "Do you really think I give a damn about what the public thinks? Hell no I don't! I'm officially through with the family business and I'm through with the both of you!"
"But – but you're our first born and – and heir to-" stutters Stu.
Turning her attention to her father, Judy's patience is finally gone. Pinching the bridge of her nose, Judy goes off on her father again "I just told you I don't care about the damned business. When are you finally gonna listen to me? I've never wanted to take over the farm, I've never wanted all of the attention that you've smothered me with almost all of my life, all the while ignoring the rest of your over 200 kits. If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times, I've never wanted anything to do with the damned farm!
"While you two were busy dotting on me, you were ignoring the rest of your kits who were begging for attention, who actually needed and still do need the attention!"
Turning to her mother again, Judy's rant continues "And you – you're so damned caught up in the bullshit myth about needing to 'propagate the species'[again using finger quotes] that you never once considered the fact that all you ever were, and still are, is nothing but a damned breeding machine, pumping out kits to work for next to nothing to keep the farm running as cheaply as possible."
"And you dad" she continues, again addressing her father "the only reason that so many of the kits and their families stay and help on the farm is because it's literally almost the only job within a hundred miles in any direction. You pay them shit wages to make sure that they have no choice but to keep working on the farm. You've turned your own offspring into what basically amounts to slave labor.
"And just so you know," says Judy as she finally begins to wind down "I never actually cared any more for Jack than he evidently did for me, it was simply a way out, a way for me to get the hell away from the farm, that's all."
"But what about this … this … fox?" asks Stu "What does he have to offer you? Money? Kits?"
"Love … maybe … hopefully" quietly says a slightly optimistic Judy, again shrugging her shoulders "Nick and I are at least attracted to each other, we like each other … maybe it'll become love at some point, I don't know for sure, but at least for now it's enough. I feel like he actually cares about what I might want for a change, which is something that I never got from you two.
"As far as money goes, Nick will probably be let go by the military because of the nature and severity of his injuries, injuries that he got while rescuing and protecting me … but we'll have his disability payments and retirement and we'll have what little I'd managed to save and put away in a hidden account before I got married to that damned asshat Savage or whatever the fuck his real name is, to live on while at least I'm able to look for a job. It probably won't be much, but should be enough to at least get us by if we try.
"As far as kits … I have no idea if we can have kits naturally on our own. I really don't know for sure how things would work physically between us given our size and species differences to even be able to have kits naturally, but adoption is always an option. There are a lot of orphans out there in need of parents who'll actually have the time and inclination to love and care for them, kits of any species." Judy comments as another partial dig at her mother.
"Judith," begins an exasperated Bonnie, trying for one last time to get her daughter to see to reason "just so you know, if you go this route, you'll never be welcomed back in the warren again, whether this thing with the fox works out or not."
With slumped shoulders and her ears drooped against her back, a sad faced Judy first looks at each of her parents, then at the floor, and slowly back to her parents again.
"If that's what it takes, then so be it. You can see your own sorry-assed selves out and back home to Bunnyburrow because I'm officially through with the both of you … I'm leaving … I'm going back to the hospital to check up on Nick."
Turning and giving her parents one last look as she stops at the door, she tells them "Don't expect me to call, write or stop by … ever…" as the now totally emotionally spent doe turns and leaves the elder rabbits to their own thoughts and devices.
…
As the now downtrodden doe exits the unit headquarters, she sees that Senior Petty Officer Bogo is half sitting in one of the unit's HUMVEE's.
"That bad Hopps?" asks the buffalo, already knowing the answer by the way she's carrying herself.
"Worse … and better, if that's possible." comes the honest answer.
"Sounds about right, more or less par for the course around here." grunts Bogo. "C'mon, climb in. I'll give you a lift to the infirmary. I just got a call … Nick's out of surgery and on his way to recovery."
"Thanks Senior…"
As the unlikely pair travel towards the base infirmary, Judy feels like she has to ask "Senior …"
"If you're gonna ask what I think you should do, I don't know Hopps." interrupts the buffalo as if reading her mind "But if I was a bettin' mammal, I'd have to guess that Wilde's days in the teams are numbered. He could probably get by on a waver and sit behind a desk pushing papers and filling out forms, but knowing that hard headed fox it'd only last a day or two at best before he'd do something totally off the wall and get booted out anyways.
"You're good for him Hopps, I believe you're the female that Nick's been looking for all these years. You're a good mammal with a strong constitution that won't put up with his bullshit, yet still be there with a gentle paw when it's needed … an anchor so to speak. Trust your instincts. If your heart tells you to stick with Wilde, then do it. If not, then there's no sense in both of you being miserable"
"Thanks Senior, I-I think that that's exactly what I needed to hear after dealing with my folks." admits Judy somewhat sadly.
Pulling up to the entrance of the base infirmary, Bogo gives Judy a bit of advice. "Wilde 'll probably be moved stateside after the medics get him stabilized, so if you're so inclined, you might want to stop by my office and sign those marriage papers sometime later today when you get the chance. I'm sure it'll be a while before Nick's lucid enough to sign his set, but between myself and the rest of the Team members, I think that we've got enough influence with the base commander to allow you to travel with him on the next military hop to the states, at least as his fiancé. If given enough time, maybe the chaplain can give you two a quick ceremony before you leave out – just to make it one hundred percent legal."
Looking directly at the small doe, Bogo asks a huge favor: "You need to try to get Wilde to retire Hopps. If all of the after-action-reports and the footage from the body cams are true and you're actually the one who killed Savage, Nick needs to get out. He hesitated because of his orders, and hesitation will get you dead real quick in this business. The fact that he's got more than enough time and points for a decent retirement package as well as his probable disability claim is another plus."
Tearing up, the tiny doe places an equally tiny paw on the buffalo's arm "You have no idea how much that all means to me Senior."
After the doe exits the vehicle, Bogo keeps an eye on her until she's out of sight entering the main lobby of the building.
"Good luck Hopps!" thinks the buffalo as he pulls off "You're gonna need it with that hard headed todd."
…
Carrying herself to the fifth floor where Judy knows her fox will be sent for recovery after his surgery, Judy steels herself for the worst, while hoping for the best.
Passing the nurse's station, Judy asks the on-duty desk nurse if Nick has been moved to recovery yet.
"And you are?" asks the young alpaca, who's nameplate reads 'M. Wools'.
"Hopps, Judith Hopps. I'm Mister Wilde's fiancé."
Looking down her long snout, the Camelidae gives the doe a look that's both disbelieving and disgusted at the same time.
"Firstly, I find it very difficult to believe that a rabbit doe would be engaged to a fox todd. And even if you are, it's totally disgusting, so you can take your inter self and-"
"Is there a problem here?" suddenly asks the golden retriever called Goldie that Judy knew from her recent liberation and interactions.
"This … thing" says Wools, indicating Judy "was trying to convince me that she's actually Wilde's fiancé."
"And she would be right!" responds Sarah icily. "You'd do well to keep your speciest attitude and mouth to yourself so I don't have to report you to the base commander again Myra. You're already on thin ice after your dust-up with the Team Five mammal that came through here last month."
Giving both females a 'go to hell' look but keeping her attitude and tone more or less civil, the Camelidae gives a short, terse answer: "Mister Wilde was moved to recovery in room 503 about twenty minutes ago, but no visitors are allowed until he's fully awake and can be moved to his room."
"Which is … where?" asks Judy, barely able to keep her temper in check.
Checking her computer, Wools tells Judy "Mister Wilde is scheduled to be in room 534. Down to the end of the hall, turn right and it's the second door on the left. You can wait for him there if you'd like."
"After I get Ms. Hopps settled in Wilde's room, you and I are going to have a little talk." Lee warns Wools over her shoulder as she escorts Judy to Nick's room.
After entering the room and pulling a step stool and padded chair over next to the bed that Nick will shortly occupy, Sarah leaves Judy alone to have a few very choice words with the very speciest desk nurse.
Left alone with her thoughts and not much else, Judy can only ponder the future. Now, Nick is the only mammal in the world that the doe can take comfort in knowing that honestly cares for her, even a little bit. Now faced with no other family and no real home, she can only hope beyond hope that things work out between her and the badly injured vulpine.
When the door finally opens, two white tailed buck deer attendants roll Nick's gurney into the room and transfer him to the medium sized mammal bed. Without a second glance, the attendants leave, leaving a somewhat loopy and semi-coherent Nick alone with the young rabbit doe.
As Judy climbs gingerly onto the bed and takes Nick's free paw in both of her own, the fox looks directly into the doe's amethyst eyes while wearing the dumbest grin that Judy has ever seen.
"Well," begins the fox "hello there again Mrs. Savage!"
With a bit of fire in her eyes, Judy chastises the todd: "Damn it Nick, I told you to call me either Judy or Hopps! Jack's gone for good and good riddance. If I never hear that name again it'll be too soon. If you weren't just back from surgery, I'd smack the hell out of you!"
Blinking rapidly several times, Nick tries to focus his still somewhat drug addled mind on the doe.
"Hopps? … where are we and how did we get here?"
"We're at Ramstein air force base in Germany, and you just got out of surgery about an hour ago."
"That explains why I feel so doped up, and the where, but why are you still here? I figured you'd be long gone back to the states to run that company that your family owns."
"Mom and dad were waiting for me in Senior's office when I got there. I told them that I killed Jack, and that we, that you and I, were engaged and they could take the farm and stuff it!"
Looking at the doe in wonder, Nick's drug hazed mind cleared up rapidly at the statement as he remembers their conversation in the helicopter.
Taking a long breath and releasing it slowly, Nick tells the doe "Yeeeaaah … about that…"
"Nick? I … umm … we-" questions Judy as she feels her heart drop to the pit of her stomach.
"Hopps … Judy … firstly, don't be gettin' all bent outta shape just yet." says the todd quickly trying to quiet the young does fears and gently squeezing her paw "I need ta 'splain a few things, just in case you don't wanna be saddled with me for the rest of your life. When I'm done if you still wanna marry me, then we can go ahead with the wedding, okay?"
"Okay, fine … go ahead…" answers the doe drawing a shaky breath, at least temporarily a bit more at ease.
Looking uncomfortable for the first time since they've met, Nick begins:
"I know that time was tight when we were over there, and I never got to tell you much about myself so … where to start … okay … Ummm, I already told you how mom told me that dad died from exposure to Agent Orange from when he was in 'Nam when I was around six or seven. Anyways, I started out as a city fox, born and raised in Zootopia, with no siblings. At age nine I was beat up and muzzled by a bunch of prey kits when I tried to join the local Junior Ranger Scouts pack. After my mom went to the scout master to complain, things just got worse. The other kits simply lied and told the scout master that I had attacked them. Word spread and pretty soon mom was let go from the diner she was working at. By the time I was twelve, mom had worked herself almost to death with the numerous part time jobs she was working at just to make ends meet. One night she was on her way home from cleaning a house when she was raped and beaten to death. The cops didn't even investigate her death, just another worthless fox dead, who cares?"
"Nick…" begins the doe, beginning to tear up as she again reaches for his free arm, with his opposite arm containing an IV line.
"Let me finish Judy, please." interrupts the todd gently.
Seeing the doe nod her head, Nick continues: "Another todd I was acquainted with, a much older fennec fox called Fennick – I never knew his real name – took me in and taught me how to live off the street. By the time I was seventeen, things were okay … kinda … until I saw Finn killed in front of me on a hustle gone bad. With no other options, I lied about my age and joined the military. Free clothes, free food and a roof over my head sounded pretty damned good to a teenager who had no other options at the time.
"To say that basic training was a surprise is a huge understatement. The physical part wasn't too tough after spending around five years on the streets, it was the mental aspect that got to me. While living on the streets in the city was dangerous, it was nothing compared to what I went through during boot camp.
"When I finished my basic and advanced training, I had such outstanding scores in a few areas that I was recruited to go into the Teams. The Teams are much more dangerous so the training was stepped up to about ten times more intense than boot camp ever thought of being. I excelled at tracking being a canine because of my sensitive nose and excellent night vision. I also excelled at sniping, and because I was a stereotypically sly fox, I was far above everyone else around when thinking on my feet so I advanced to a leadership position in a hurry.
"Once I proved my worth after my first actual live mission, I was placed as second in command in the team that came to your rescue. After about a dozen or so successful (short laugh) missions, I was promoted to team leader. I literally have dozens of scars as a product of the various missions that I've been on, none of which I can ever talk to anyone about, even you. I guess long story short, all that I truly am is a trained killer. That's what I do, that's all I know.
"On an even more personal note, I've been married and divorced twice and had a ton of girlfriends if you wanna call 'em that … drunken one night stands mostly. Yes, I know that todd's, especially reds like me, are supposed to be in monogamous relationships. While that's technically true however, the one single thing that actually binds a todd to his life mate, even more so than scent marking and even knotting is the claiming, and I never claimed any of my previous wives. With all of that said, I need to tell you that … with my past history concerning females … I - I really do like you. I like you like I've never liked another female before. I'm not sure exactly what your feelings are, but if I had to guess that there are some actual feelings behind that beautiful face, and not some infatuation because I saved your fluffy butt from a life of popping out kits every so often. The fact tha you proposed on the chopper was kind of another clue…"
With that information, Judy's head was reeling slightly
"First of all, yes, I have actual feelings for you, and not some schoolgirl's crush. But just … wait a second!" interrupts Judy. "Knotting… claiming? You're going to have to explain those to me. If scent marking is similar to chinning, at least that I kind of understand.
"You really haven't been out much have you?" asks Nick in a curious sort of way, missing his usual snark.
"No, not really," the doe admits sadly "I've been groomed to take over the family business since I was little, being the oldest and all, so no, practically no dating of any kind. The few dates that I actually had were never serious, with little more going on than paw holding and maybe a good-night kiss, so this is all very new to me." she reveals, blushing furiously.
Just then, the pair is interrupted by a gentle tapping at the door.
…
"I hope I'm not disturbing anything private, but I really do need to see my patient." comes a small voice that doesn't seem to fit the massive black bear that is standing in the doorway.
As both Nick and Judy stare in confusion, the voice seems to be coming from slightly to one side of the bear.
"Up – over here!" directs their gaze to one of the bear's shoulders.
Quickly spying the church mouse, both mammals let out a short sigh of relief.
"Sorry doctor…" begins a squinting Judy, since the mouse's nametag was much too small to read…
"Smoll, Jeremy Smoll, spelled S-M-O-L-L at your service." supplies the small rodent "And I believe I've probably heard all of the small jokes, so if we could just dispense with those for the time being it would be much appreciated."
"Fine" admits Nick, who just can't seem to resist a small poke anyway "So, what's up doc?"
Rolling his eyes, the mouse admits "I guess I walked into that one. Anyway, I think I have some rather good news for you Mister Wilde."
"Let's hear it then, I think that the two of us could really use some good news right about now." admits the todd, glancing briefly at the doe sitting next to him on the bed while lightly squeezing her paw.
Taking notice of the rabbit in the room, Smoll turns his attention to Judy. "I'm sorry ma'am, and you are?"
"Judy, Judy Hopps, Mister Wilde's fiancée."
Taking in the sight, Smoll simply shrugs. "I've seen odder couples. I hope that this one lasts longer that the first two Wilde.
"Well anyway, after a very successful surgery, and thanks to the quick reaction of your Team medic to get you stabilized and evaced and brought here, we were able to save your right leg. While there was a sizeable chunk of tissue gone due to the nature of the wound, at least the bone was simply nicked and broken and not destroyed. We managed to set the bone and close the wound completely, so after rehab you should gain at least ninety percent of the use of that leg albeit with a probable slight limp. The three bullet wounds to your torso missed all vital organs and bones, and the flesh wound to your left arm were not a big problem, while the cut on your right ear should heal with a minimal amount of scaring."
"Yeah, well it ain't like I don't have enough scars as it is…" snarks the todd.
"Yes, well, other than what I've mentioned you seem to be in good shape Nicholas, I'll be back in the morning. If things go well, you should be out of here and on crutches and possibly a leg brace in about a week. Since you'll be stable by then, I'll also release you for transport back to the world (civilization – Animalia)."
Again turning his attention to the doe "I'll be going now, I have a lot more patients to see yet today. You two can go back to whatever you were or weren't doing…"
And with that, the doctor and his bodyguard (?) left the room, closing the door behind them.
Shortly after the doctor leaves, a capybara nurse enters.
"I'm sorry Mrs. Wilde" she begins "but I need to change your husband's dressings and give him his meds. It'll be several minutes until you can come back in. By then the meds will probably have kicked in and will knock him out for some time, so if you have something to do for the next few hours you might want to take care of that."
When neither Nick nor Judy bothers to correct the nurse at the use of 'Mrs.', both mammals give each other a slight smile.
"Actually" admits Judy "I do need to see Senior to sign some very important papers and to do some research on the internet. I'll be back this evening to see you, Nick."
With a quick peck on the todd's lips (which pleasantly surprises the todd to no end), a smiling Judy hops down off of the bed and heads towards the door. Looking back over her shoulder, Judy catches Nick admiring her small puff of a tail which she promptly flicks a few times.
"Serious this time Wilde?" asks the nurse with a brief smile playing across her muzzle.
"Yeah Betsy, I think it might just be." Nick admits quietly.
…
As Judy makes her way past the nurse's station, she notices that the alpaca is no longer at the desk.
"Mrs. Wilde?" asks the bobcat whose nameplate indicated that her name is 'T. Shorttail', stops the doe.
"Sarah Lee asked me to give these to you to read." pawing Judy a couple of small books. "She said you might be interested in them" continues the small feline with a slight smirk.
Judy's face and ears heat up noticeably as she looks at the titles of the two small books.
"Vulpine Anatomy 101 and Vulpine Courting Rituals?" asks a by now totally embarrassed doe.
Simply shrugging her shoulders, the desk nurse turns back to her duties.
…
Exiting the building and hailing a cab, Judy suddenly realizes that she has no money of any kind and no phone, having just returned from her ordeal. She also realizes that by now she's more than likely cut off from all funds that are linked to her family's accounts and no way to get any cash from her own private account. Looking up and in tears, she notices the German Shepard female taxi driver giving her the once over.
"You okay there little one?" she asks.
"I-I'm sorry," stammers Judy "I-I just got here, a-and I have n-no money, a-and I-"
With a thoughtful expression, the female suddenly realizes "You must be the rabbit doe that Goldie told us ta look out fer. Yer the one that Team Two rescued ain't ya?"
*SNIFF* "Yeah, I guess…"
Opening the door and offering a paw, the driver tells Judy "Hop in, the Team 'll pick up yer tab."
Taking the proffered paw, Judy gladly accepts the Team's charity.
"Thanks. I-I'm Judy … Judy Hopps."
"Umm" begins the slightly embarrassed canine "Sorry 'bout the 'hop in' remark?"
Giving a genuine pleasant smile Judy assures the canine "It's ok, I've heard worse … especially from my fiancé."
"Who would that be? Do I need ta have a talk with him?"
"No, it's okay, Nick and I actually use stuff like that as terms of endearment. I'll be fine, I promise."
Staring at the doe for a few moments, the proverbial light suddenly comes on! "Nick … Nick … PLEASE don' tell that yer fiancé is Nick Wilde!"
"As a matter of fact he is!" shoots back Judy, her brow furrowing and letting her emotions come to the surface yet again "Do you have a problem with that? I've had just about all of the crap I can handle today between my parents and that asshat duty nurse at the infirmary-"
"Sweetheart," interrupts the slightly put off canine "Nick Wilde is one fine hunk of a male, fox or not, and he's got females of just about every species chasing after his fine tail. Lemme ask ya, who proposed, you or him?" asks the canine.
Thinking for a second, Judy answers, briefly forgetting her short conversation with Goldie in the chopper "I-I guess I kinda did and he accepted. What difference does that make anyway?"
"You don't know a lot about foxes, do ya?"
"I grew up with one in Bunnyburrow, so what?"
"Wuz ya close frien's?"
"N-not exactly…" as Judy thinks back to her tiff with Gideon.
"Honey, in fox relationships, the vixen always, and I mean ALWAYS takes the lead in everything. Did Goldie git ya them there books ta read?"
"… Yes …?"
"They'll 'splain everythin' you'll need ta know then. Better ya get ahead of the game, unlike me an' Stacey."
"?"
"Did ya know that Nick's been married before?"
"Yes, he said he'd been married and divorced twice. And that he'd had lots of …umm-"
"One-night stands? At least he's honest 'bout that, that's somethin'. Well, just so ya know, I was Nick's second wife and Stacy was his first. Name's Justine … Justine Shepard." as the canine extends a paw.
"Judy Hopps, but you know that already, sorry." apologizes the doe.
"It's okay hun. Listen, just so ya know, there's no hard feelin's okay? Nick's a nice enough todd, but the job is kind of a relationship killer. The guys, and gals, gotta keep their feelin's ta themselves most of the time, and they can't tell ya where they're goin,' where they've been or what they've done. Add a healthy dose of paranoia inta the mix, along with lots of booze and ya've got a normal Team member, male or female. You've pro'ly got a leg up on the rest of us after bein' rescued an' all!"
"Even Goldie? She looked pretty well adjusted to me!"
"If mem'ry serves," comments Justine "this wuz her first live mission … with any luck she'll fig're out that the Team life ain't fer her and quit. Anyways, where to hun?"
"Well, I need to figure out a way to get some money, then maybe a bite to eat … except for a couple of energy bars several hours ago I haven't eaten in I don't know how long…"
"There's a commissary 'bout a mile up the road, you should be able to draw some funds there if ya can prove who ya are and know yer 'ccount number … what?"
"Just rescued, remember?" Judy sadly reminds the canine. "No ID, or any way to prove who I am…"
"Hold on a sec…" says Justine as she grabs her phone and punches in a number.
After a couple of rings a gruff voice comes over the speaker "Senior Master Chief Bogo. Speak, I ain't got all day…"
"Senior? Yeah, it's Justine Shepard … I've got Judy Hopps here and she needs ta be able to get some money and-"
"ID, credit cards, phone and the like?" comes Senior's slightly amused voice.
"Y-yeah. What the hell Senior, is you psychic or somethin'?" asks the canine.
"Not really. While Hopps clothes and other stuff were a complete no-go, S2 released her … what I guess you females call a clutch? Pocketbook? A small purse of some sort? Anyway, S2 released that to me to give to her. It has her ID, credit cards, some cash and her phone in it. She can come in and sign for it anytime. A back-up team had a few minutes to go through the hut she was rescued from after the Team got her out before the mop-up started." laughingly answers the huge bovine.
Looking at the doe and seeing a slightly pleading look, Justine answers "We're about fifteen minutes away, we'll see you in a short." and ends the call.
"Well, I guess that takes care of the ID and money bit…" she remarks to a vastly relieved Judy.
…
Roughly twenty minutes later, Judy enters Senior's office:
"Ahh, Hopps, there you are!" greets the buffalo as Judy enters his office "I was hoping you'd stop by, since I didn't really have any way to contact you other than leave a message at the nurse's station to have you come by."
"It's okay Senior" replies the bunny "I understand. I'm just thankful that you were able to retrieve what you did."
"S2 (military intelligence) said that there was lot of stuff to go through. Just be thankful that Lee managed to convince the mammals at S2 to be on the look-out for some of your things in particular. While you're here-"
"I'll be happy to sign the marriage papers" interrupts Judy. "Nick and I had a short conversation on the subject, and he told me that if I thought I could work through a few issues, like his ex-wives and numerous one-night-stands, as well as our physical differences, he was good with my being stuck with him."
"Did he-" begins Bogo.
"He mentioned knotting and claiming if that's what you were going to ask." interrupts the now furiously blushing doe as she signs various documents. "Goldie thoughtfully managed to leave a couple of very informative books at the duty nurse's station as well … I even managed to skip ahead to the relevant 'subjects'," indicates Judy using finger quotes "on the way here and I at least partially understand what I'm up against. Once I knew that I actually had some finances, I managed to form some sort of plan while Justine drove me here."
"Justine's a good mammal; it's just that she and Nick didn't exactly work out. Another of the dangers of being married to a service mammal let alone a Team member, and yet another reason to get him to retire." sighs Senior.
"I gathered that just from the short time I've known her." admits Judy. "In fact, I'm going to ask her to help me get set up here since she knows the base and she knows Nick."
"Good idea. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have things to do…"
"As do I. And Senior … it's been a pleasure and an honor to have met you." admits the bunny as she steps forward to shake his hoof.
"Likewise Mrs. Wilde, if I may call you that even though it's a bit premature." he responds, but manages to slip Judy a small card during the shake. "This is Father John Mulcahy's number, give him a call when you get ready to get hitched. I've included most of the Team's personal phone numbers, including Nick's, on the back as well, just in case you feel the need to contact any of them, you know, as witnesses for a wedding or something…"
"I'll do that, and … thanks again Senior…" says the doe as she exits the buffalo's office, with more than a few tears forming.
…
"You okay?" asks Justine as Judy enters the taxi.
"Yeah, I-I'll be fine, I promise."
"So … what next?"
"I-I'm not sure?"
"Well, how 'bout we git you a place ta stay? I'm pretty sure that you won't be able ta stay with Nick at the hospital…" recommends the canine.
"I guess…"
"We'll head to transition housing" indicates Justine as she puts the cab in gear. "Short term housing, especially with Nick probably heading to the states for rehab, and you being married and all … you ARE gonna get married, right?" asks Justine unsurely.
"That's the plan" Judy assures her guide. "I've got the papers here, along with a copy of them for Nick to sign. Senior gave me a copy of the Team's phone numbers in case I need to call and get witnesses too."
"Good. Anyway, here's the operations center for the in-transition housing. I'll come along in case there's any problems, okay?"
Judy's bright, appreciative smile was the only answer needed.
…
After only a minor discussion with the young giraffe at the main desk concerning Judy's eligibility for temporary housing, a housing unit was secured and our unlikely pair sets off to do a bit of shopping.
Their first destination was the base PX (Post Exchange – sort of a like a military base department store). The first thing on Judy's mind was either a new phone or a new plan in her own name. Judy finally settled on a new plan with the same carrier as her folk's plan so she could keep all of her old contacts, complete with a new sim card. Judy's next purchase was a new laptop and personal Wi-Fi device. That way she could do video conferencing with the mammals she intended to contact concerning both hers and Nick's future employment options.
Then it was off to get a few fursonal grooming items as well as more than a few new outfits for herself (including undergarments) and a couple of casual clothing items for Nick, since all she could imagine him having at paw were military uniforms of some sort.
Finally, a visit to the base commissary topped the list for some necessary food items so the doe wouldn't have to rely on restaurants or fast-food places to eat at.
After taking Judy to her new temporary living quarters and helping the doe carry in her new purchases, Justine gives Judy a quick hug.
"If ya need anything, just call, I'm never that far away, okay hun?" instructs the canine as she paws the do a business card, with her fursonal cell number scrawled on the back.
"I can't believe that you've been such a big help, being one of Nick's ex's and all…" begins the small doe.
"We parted on good terms." admits Justine "I don't think that either of us realistically figured it'd last. The job is hard on any kind of long-term relationship. The hours and days that Team members are gone, the not knowing if they're gonna come back alive or not … them not being able to share what they've gone through. Senior's right, Nick needs ta git out, and hopefully with the injury he's dealing with now and with you beside him, this is his chance to go out with a bit of dignity and not in a pine box!"
"That's what I'm hoping for, but in the long run I plan to stay with him, come hell or high water."
"Well, it's been interestin' and a lot of fun, but I kinda need ta get back ta work. Take care of yerself Hopps."
"I plan to, and thanks again Justine, stay well and be safe."
…
After putting her groceries away, then placing hers and Nick's new clothes in the small closet and her few toiletries in the bathroom, grabbing a quick shower and donning a fresh change of clothes, Judy sets her plan in action.
Setting up her new laptop, Judy goes through her list of contacts in her phone and synchs the two devices. After making a list of contacts that she deems as worthy of consideration, the doe begins the arduous task of prioritizing the list. With that feat accomplished, the next item is to begin contacting mammals, going with the least desirable first and finally moving to the most desirable.
A little over two hours later, Judy decides to give the hospital a call to check on Nick's condition.
Relieved that she contacts Shorttail and not Wools, Judy learns that Nick is awake and wondering where she is. Telling the nurse to relay that she's on her way, Judy hangs up and heads out to see Nick.
~0~
AN: I understand that few if anyone is recruited for special ops right out of basic or advanced training, it simply fits the story line.