Downtown Zootopia: Nick's Point of view

I held Nathan's paw as we headed off in the direction of the cafe, the joyful smile he had unearthed the inner guilt I bore, the guilt of not being a proper father for him. I felt so useless, unable to be a part of his life, only to look in from the outside.

I turned to Paul, "So how old is he?" I whispered, making sure that my son couldn't hear.

"He just turned seven, his birthday was just two days ago" he whispered.

I glanced back at my kit, who was just peering at the surrounding buildings as we walked by'I should have been there' I shook the thought aside.

I glanced back at Paul, I was curious as to what happened to him last night "So what happened last night, with Emily?" I asked, raising my eyebrows in curiosity.

"Nothing happened if that's what you're wondering" he revealed.

"So you two didn't..." I whispered to him while glancing over to Nathan, just to make sure he wasn't listening.

"Nick, why would you even think that?" he interjected, shocked by my assumption, "I mean, jeez, we only just met last night" he stated, trying to recover from the shock.

"Well, I was just wondering" I replied.

"You know just forget it, what happened last night is in the past, I don't even remember much myself" he declared, as he flung his arm around my shoulder. "Anyway, how far till we reach that cafe of yours?" he asked.

"Not much further, it's just up ahead" I revealed,

Suddenly, I felt my paw that holding on to Nathan drag behind. I looked back at him to see what was wrong, only to catch him tiredly rubbing his eyes. "Hey, what's wrong bud?" I asked, in a friendly manner, as I knelt to his level.

"Nothing Dad, just tired" he yawned, doing a little stretch.

"Tired eh? Well, we can't have that now can we?" I replied as I scooped him up, resting my boy on my shoulders.

"Dad, I'm not that tired..." he mumbled as he dozed off in between my shoulders, resting his head on my head. For some reason, it felt comforting to have him resting there, close to me, carefree of the worries of life.

"Fatherly instincts finally kicking in eh?" smiled Paul as he whispered into my ear

"Yeah" I replied as I heard Nathan snoring on my head.

Downtown Zootopia Twin Peaks Café

After a short walk, we finally arrived at Twin Peaks Café, inside; various mammals were enjoying cups of coffee, slices of cakes, sandwiches and other things you would find in a Café at this time of day.

This was the place where you'd find every cop in Zootopia during their lunch breaks, luckily for us; lunch doesn't start till an hour later, so there was no need to wait in line.

Surprisingly enough, Nathan was still asleep "Mom" he mumbled, as he hugged the back of my head.

As we approached the cashier to place our order, I turned to Paul "Just regular coffee?" I asked.

"Yeah, nothing special" he replied

I turned towards the Snow leopard cashier "Two cups of regular coffee please, and a blueberry muffin" I ordered.

"Make that two muffins" added Paul, I gave him a confused look "It's for Nathan" he replied. I turned back to the cashier, who began processing our order.

"Is that to go?" she asked.

"No" I answered.

"Name please," she asked.

"Nick Wilde" I replied.

"That'll be fifteen dollars" she stated.

I handed her the fifteen dollars, being careful not to disturb Nathan from his nap on my head. 'Now all we have to do is wait'

Paul and I moved over towards the corner of the Café, seating ourselves on the couch, I carefully lifted my kit from my shoulders and plopped him on the couch, he huddled up into a ball as he slept peacefully.

"He is a cute little thing isn't he?" I whispered to Paul, as I watched over the cute kit.

"Yeah, they always find a way to melt your heart. Listen, Nick, I've been meaning to ask...why are you here?"

"Hmm? What do you mean?" I asked, unsure as to what he meant. He just stared at me with a look of sincerity before continuing.

"Nick please, I need to know, you found out about Nathan and Nicole, we've all moved on, so why are you here?" he questioned.

"Paul I…" He raised his paw to silence me.

"Nick, if it's the guilt of responsibility, you don't need to worry about it. I just want to know"

I tried thinking of something to tell him, but my thoughts quickly led me to other personal things. 'Why am I here? what do I want?' I thought about my life, from my kithood to hustling days...to now.

I had always wanted to be a part of something to show the world that Foxes could be reliable and trustworthy since kithood it was the Junior Ranger Scouts, but that quickly shattered after they showed their true colours.

If I couldn't be anything but shifty and untrustworthy, I might as well be part of something big. So I decided to try for a family, I tried so hard to just make it work with Nicole, to love her, care for her, to provide for her and raise some kits of our own, but I ruined it.

It wasn't until I met Judy that my dream was accomplished, being a cop and solving cases with her, being a part of Zootopia, something big, I was a fox that could be trusted.

But it didn't occur to me until it happened, 'I was a cop, and I was reliable and trustworthy...but why? Who would I show it to? Who could I share it with?'

I looked at the still sleeping kit, he was someone who looks up to me, someone who needs me, I couldn't let him down. I guess, in the end, I just wanted a family of my own, someone to protect, someone to share the wonders and joys of life, someone to love and to love me back.

I realized that it had been a long time since I felt protective or caring about someone, I cared about Judy, and the goddess knows that I would do anything to protect her. But it wasn't the same as the feelings I held for my lost mate, feelings of desire...of intimacy...of something the heart and soul yearned for.

Judy asked me earlier if I still loved Nicole, and I think I found the answer.

"Paul, I just want to mend my relationship with Nicole, I want to be a part of her and my kit's life, I just want to be there for them" I revealed truthfully.

He spent a while thinking, contemplating my words "Alright Nick, I'll trust you on that, but if I ever catch you with someone else..."

"You won't trust me" I assured him.

"Nick Wilde" I heard someone beckon

"Our order must be up" I stated, looking at the cashier staring at our direction.

"Don't worry, I'll get it" offered Paul.

As he left to fetch our order, I looked at my son, sleeping on the couch right next to me. He began to stir and mumble in his sleep "Dad... don't go"

"Don't worry bud, I'm not going anywhere" I whispered, as I gently caressed his head.

Paul came back with two cups of coffee, and two muffins on a tray "Need any help?" I asked.

"No, it's fine" he replied, setting the orders on the table in front of us. "Hey Nick, watch this" he whispered, grabbing a blueberry muffin, he began wavering it in front of Nathan's nose.

His nose began twitching slowly, as his eyes opened, the adorable kit got up and did a little stretch, yawning as he did "I smell food" he yawned.

'Heh, that's cute' I thought to myself.

"Finally awake sleepyhead?" I asked.

"Where are we?" he mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"We're at the Café bud" I answered, as I patted his head.

"What's that delicious smell?" he asked, sniffing the air.

"It's your favourite, blueberry muffins" answered Paul.

Nathan's face changed from being tired to being excited the instant he heard those words, with two paws he grabbed one of the muffins sitting on the table and began to bite down on the little treat.

'Blueberries, no denying it, he's mine alright' I thought to myself, as I watched him enjoy his snack.

We were enjoying this calm peaceful moment until Paul's phone began ringing, I saw how troubled he looked again, he looked quite reluctant to answer the call, but he did so anyway.

"Hello? yes, it's me, I.., no she's not...really? Oh thank you, thank you so much" he blurted as the call ended, he turned towards me with a look of relief on his face.

"Listen, Nick, I need to go and fill out some papers, can you watch after Nathan for a bit?" he asked.

"What? Me? Look after..."

"Yes, yes" he interrupted "come on Nick, it's really important; it'll only be for a moment" he pleaded as he put on his coat.

"Why can't you take him with you?" I asked, unsure if I was ready for this heavy responsibility.

"It's not the place a seven-year-old would go, boring office, not much fun for him, it'll only take a minute, I won't be long!" he shouted as he ran out the Café.

'He didn't even drink his coffee' I thought to myself, as I stared at his untouched steaming cup of Joe.

I looked down at my son, he looked up at me, still chewing on the muffin, staring at me with a look of curiosity "Dad" he asked.

"Yes bud" I replied, giving him a welcoming smile.

"Can I ask you a question?" he asked.

"You already have" I joked, chuckling to myself, much to his annoyance. I coughed to recollect myself "Sure, ask away" I replied again, this time wondering what he would ask about.

"Did it hurt?" he asked.

"Did what hurt?" I asked back, unsure what he was asking about.

"When mom scratched you, did it hurt?" he asked again.

"Oh Yes, yes it did, but daddy's fine now" I assured Nathan, giving him a big smile.

"Okay," he replied, still munching down the muffin.

I took a sip of coffee, tasting the bitter taste 'Forgot to put the sugar in' I placed down the cup, and grabbed the other muffin on the table; as I began to munch down.

"Dad..." he asked.

"Yes bud" I replied again, biting down on a muffin, tasting the mixture of blueberries and muffin dough.

"Can I ask you another question?"

"Sure" I replied, with a mouth filled with a muffin.

"How come, you never come home?" he asked. I was afraid he might do this, ask me something that I couldn't answer him.

"Well...what does your mother say?" I asked.

"Mom says that it's because you're always busy, but I think she's lying" he revealed, he sounded so disappointed.

"Well Nathan, police work is a really, really busy job, it takes almost all of my time just to do anything" I lied.

"Then where do you sleep?" he inquired, tilting his head sideways, with more curiosity than disappointed in his voice.

"I sleep in my office" I explained, which was sort of the truth, as I recalled the late work nights spent sleeping in one of my desk drawers.

"You have an office?" he questioned.

"Well, not really, it's just a cubicle" I revealed.

"Wow, a cubicle" he replied, as his gaze turned to the window.

As I looked at Nathan, I thought back to when I was around his age, I felt that it was my responsibility to make sure that no one hurt him in any way. "Nathan" I began.

"Hmmm?" he mumbled in reply.

"Do...do you get bullied in school?" I asked, concerned if anyone would hurt him just because of his species.

"Well… I used to in my old school, they used to pick on me just because I was a fox" he replied in a saddened tone. I felt my blood starting to boil with anger, I was mad at the fact anyone would hurt him just because he was a fox, just like I was. I gave Nathan a big tight hug, pulling him in, wrapping my arms and tail around him.

"Nathan, if anyone ever bullies you again, you tell me, okay?" I added.

"Okay Dad"

I let Nathan go from the hug, I realized how in reality, he was just like me, but he was still quite innocent in this harsh world of ours.

"Hey, how about we go for some milkshakes later?" I suggested.

"With blueberries?" he asked in excitement, wagging his little bushy red tail.

"Yep" I replied, smiling at his excitement over blueberries.

Suddenly Nathan let out a gasp, as he pulled himself closer towards me, lowering his ears in fear, with his tail curled up as he hid behind me.

"What's wrong bud?" I asked concern about his sudden behaviour change.

"It's that scary rabbit from the other day" he revealed.

"Who?" I asked, wanting to know who made him so scared.

"Her" he whispered, as he pointed towards the entrance of the café. I stared at what his paw was pointing at; the culprit was none other than Judy.

"Nathan, you don't need to worry about Judy, she's harmless" I tried to assure him, but he didn't seem very convinced, I let out a sigh "I'll show you"

"Hey Carrots, over here" I beckoned to her, waving my arm in the air.

"Dad don't" he whimpered, as he hid behind me, tucking his tail in even tighter.

"Oh hey Slick, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"Oh you know carrots, just here for the coffee" I replied.

"You and your coffee, would it kill you to drink something without caffeine? Anyway, what do you have there?" she asked Judy, gesturing towards a still hiding Nathan.

"Judy, I'd like you to meet my son, Nathan" I declared. "Say hi Nathan," I told him as I tried to move out of the way.

"H-hello" he muttered, as he clung tightly to my back.

"Hey, you don't have to be afraid, I won't hurt you" she assured. Nathan was still reluctant in trusting her, as he still hid behind me, trying to hide from Judy.

"Don't worry about him, he's just a bit shy" I assured her, "anyway, what are you doing here fluff? In uniform too" I asked.

"Well Sick, I'm on an early lunch break, and unlike you, some of us love police work. But since my partner is 'busy' I'm finishing up on some paperwork" she revealed.

"How about I make it up to you, we're going for milkshakes later, care to join us?" I offered.

"I'd love to, but I've got to get that report on the last bust we did, written up for the chief" stated Judy.

"Come on Fluff, I'm sure the chief won't mind," I told her, after some consideration she replied.

"How about this, give me thirty minutes, and then I'll meet you two there later" she suggested.

"Sounds like a plan" I replied.

"Right then, see you guys then" she declared, leaving the café.

I waved Judy a goodbye, as I felt Nathan come out from hiding behind me.

"See, Judy's nice isn't she?" I asked him.

"I guess so" he replied in reluctance.

I let out a sigh, it might take a bit more work for Judy to win him over "Come on, let's go get some milkshakes"

Savanna Central Zootopia The Mockingbird Restaurant: Nicole's Point of view

"I'm sorry, we're looking for someone more qualified" I don't know how many times I've heard those words today, then again who could blame them. I'm an arctic fox with not many qualifications and barely a college degree, who would hire me? The Mockingbird Restaurant is the last place on my list of hiring; the interview with the manager, an elderly black bear had ended. I learnt not to get my hopes up as I waited to hear those crushing words again "I'm sorry, we're looking for someone else"

I waited outside the manager's office, thinking about my chances of getting this job; I got out my phone and began browsing through my gallery. I stopped at a very personal and special photo, it was a photo my brother took of my kit when he was just a newborn, and there he was, wrapped up in his little blanket, covered in dark brown fluffy fur.

"Aww, that's adorable" I heard someone whisper.

I jumped at the sudden voice of the stranger, I looked at just who was peering over my shoulder, and it was a female Otter.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, I was just curious" she blurted out in defence.

"It's alright; It's alright, no harm done" I replied, trying to calm her down.

"Really? Because I can take a hint" she questioned.

"No, really it's fine" I assured the Otter.

"Oh thank God, because the last time this happened, let's just say it didn't end well..." she revealed.

"Uh-huh," I mumbled in reply.

"Nicole White?" I heard someone beckon.

I turned towards the source of the voice, it was the manager "Your résumé looks appealing enough, there's a shift here tonight, we'll see how you handle, and if you work well, you're hired" he announced.

"Thank you so much for giving me a chance" I replied, glad that I was given at least a chance to prove myself.

"Don't worry about it" he assured, the manager then stared at the Otter. "Oh Isabel, I'll leave Nicole under your charge, make sure she's ready for tonight" he ordered.

As the manager returned to his office, the Otter walked up next to me "I guess we're going to be co-workers now eh?" she stated.

"Yep"

"I'm Isabelle by the way, Isabelle Riverton" she revealed.

"I'm Nicole, Nicole White" I answered back.

Savanna Central Zootopia Robert's Frosted Glass: Nick's Point of View

As Nathan and I sat next to the frosted up window, I thought about all the memories I had about this place, though we were poor, I remembered how Dad used to bring me here occasionally. It wasn't much, but to eight years old me, it was the best thing in the world.

Seeing Nathan there happily slurping down his milkshake through the straw, made me realized why Dad brought me here, it was so he could make his son happy, to make it a father and son thing, I remembered how this special moment was only shared between me and Dad.

As I looked at my kit enjoying himself, it made me feel the urge to show my Dad that just like him, I have someone to share my father-son moments.

"You like the milkshakes?" I asked Nathan

"I love them, they taste like sweet sugar clouds" he declared, giggling as he tried to drink without the straw, only to get some cream on his nose.

I grabbed a tissue, provided by the table, and begun to wipe his nose. "Achoo!" he sneezed.

"You know bud, my Dad used to bring me here when I was little," I told him, as I disposed of the tissue.

"Did you enjoy it?" he asked, looking up at me with those shimmering blue eyes of his.

"I loved it, it was the best thing in the world" I revealed.

"Grandpa Sounds amazing, I wish I can meet him"

"Ah, well..." I mumbled as I thought of how to introduce Nathan to Dad, and Mom as well. They'll love him, I'm sure of it, but then they'll want to know about Nicole, and oh boy, I do not want to be there when that happens. 'If they find out that I unintentionally ran out on her, I'm as good as dead'

"I asked Mom about grandpa once, she just said that he went somewhere far away" stated Nathan "don't tell Mom, but I don't think he's coming back" he whispered.

"Well Bud, one day, I'll take you to meet my Mom and Dad, okay?" I promised I couldn't keep him away from Mom and Dad forever; sooner or later he'd have to meet them eventually.

"Okay, it's a deal," he said, holding out his paw for me to shake, I only smiled at my son as I shook his tiny paw.

As Nathan returned to drinking his milkshake, I noticed a familiar giant black blur coming to a halt in front of the frosted window. A grey figure in the shape of a rabbit emerged from the black blob, and made its way towards the entrance, making its way towards us.

"Hey, Nick" bellowed Judy.

"Hey Carrots" I replied. Judy sat next to Nathan, much to his discomfort. The milkshakes seemed to have softened him up, as he was curious with Judy, but he still kept his distance.

Judy looked at him in awe "Look at you, you're just the most adorable thing ever" she stated.

"Since you're here," I started "want me to buy you something?" I offered.

"Sure, Nick, I won't be here long though" she replied.

"Well, any request?" I asked.

"Just a Vanilla ice cream, thanks" she replied. I got up and headed towards the counter.

Judy's Point of View

As I waited for Nick, I looked around, studying the place, it'd looked just like something from the nineteen forty's. Looking around, I noticed that Nick's son was looking at me curiously.

"What's it like being a cop," he asked.

"Well it's fun, but serious work" I replied, giving him a warm smile.

"Is it hard?" he asked again.

"Well, it was in the beginning, but I got used to it" I answered.

"Okay," he replied.

A moment of silence passed between us, silence, boring silence, I couldn't stand it, the silence between us quickly got on my nerves. I tried to make some conversation with the kit.

"So what do you know about Nick?" I asked, wondering how much does he know about the father that never was there.

"Well... not that much, but I do know that he's the best dad ever!" he bragged, a nice wide smile on his face.

'Heh, everyone always thinks their parents are the best at a young age' I thought to myself. I began to think about my parents, and how they were doing with all my younger siblings and a few grandkits to look after. My thoughts were interrupted by the fox kit, who says the one thing almost every kit or cub says.

"I need to go to the bathroom" he uttered.

"Oh, I'm sure there's one here" I replied, I turned to ask the elderly Mountain goat seated behind me "Excuse me, do you know where's the bathroom?" I asked politely.

"Sure, it's just over there, to the right" pointed the goat.

"Thanks" I replied, as he returned to gazing at the newspaper.

I turned back to Nathan "Come on, follow me" I beckoned; as I led him towards the bathrooms, "are you going to be alright in there by yourself?" I asked him, as we stood outside the bathrooms.

"I'll be fine, I'm seven after all" he replied with a smirk as he went inside. As I waited outside, I noticed Nick walking towards me.

"Where's Nathan?" he asked.

"He's in the bathroom" I replied.

"Heh, kits, anyway, here's your ice cream" he declared, handing me my vanilla ice cream on a cone, suddenly an idea sprung to mind, one that has been in the works for weeks.

"Thanks, Nick, listen...it's been what? One year since we solved the original Night Howler case, so I've been thinking..." I started 'now's the moment Judy, ask him, ask him out now' I thought "maybe we should celebrate with dinner? Tonight?" I asked.

"Oh sure Carrots, dinner sounds great" he replied with his signature smile.

'Oh my gosh, he said yes, woohoo Judy! Yes! Okay, well it's not technically a date, but it's still something' I thought.

"Great Nick, I'll see you there" I added, as I walked out the door, tasting the ever so sweet ice cream.

"See you later fluff!" he shouted.

Nick's Point of View

'Dinner with Carrots, I hope the food there's nice' I thought to myself. 'Hmm, Nathan seems to be in there for quite a while, I should go check on him'

"Nathan, are you alright in there?" I asked, wondering what took him so long.

"I'm fine Dad, just some tummy aches" he replied.

"Alright, don't take too long" I replied.

Feeling reassured, I felt my phone buzzing, I checked just to see who was messaging me

'Hey Nick, I realized that I forgot to tell you where we're having dinner, silly me. It's a new place called the Mocking Bird Restaurant, oh and wear something nice.

-Judy

'Wear something nice, looks like Pawaiian shirts are a no go, I'm sure I can scrounge up something nice to wear' I thought to myself. Suddenly my phone started buzzing again; I checked who was messaging me, only to find that it was from Paul.

'Where are you guys!? I left you with Nathan for one minute and you guys disappear! Reply now.

-Paul

'Oh boy,' I thought to myself.

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