"The two of you, take some time to rest. Judith, you especially – I can tell you are quite shaken from this experience." Mr. Big sat back in his tiny chair, eyes hidden behind his bushy eyebrows as he looked over the duo. "We will look over the documents you brought us and take into account your encounter. I will call for you two tomorrow."
"Yes, sir," Nick said, giving a small bow before turning to leave. Judy echoed his words and turned to follow after him, but a brief call of her name by their boss stopped her. Judy turned around to face Mr. Big once again, ears raised and eyes locked on him curiously.
"You did well today. I'm proud of you." The shrew's statement was quiet, and from feeling of Nick relaxing that she detected, she took it as a rare compliment.
"Thank you, sir. I hope to make a habit of that." The bunny said, a smile crossing her muzzle. Mr. Big simply nodded and offered his own smile, before waving them off. She turned around and the two of them continued out of the room, walking side-by-side down the hall.
"We make a pretty good team, don't you think?" Judy asked once they were around the corner.
Nick smiled slightly and nodded. "That we are. You did great today, Carrots." The two fell into silence as they walked down the hall, and it slowly grew into something awkward.
Judy could feel that Nick was fighting the urge to say something, from the way he kept opening his mouth slightly before shutting it. When they reached her room, Judy stopped and grabbed Nick's paw before the fox could continue without her. He froze mid-step, tail giving a flick before he turned to face her, tugging his paw away with a curious expression. "What is it?" The bunny asked.
"That? That's a paw, Carrots. I thought you knew this? Did they not teach basic biology out in the sticks?" He gave a small laugh as he waited for her usually infuriated reaction, which he would smirk at.
His slight, smug expression fell at her response, the bunny choosing to ignore his comment about Bunnyburrow. "What's bothering you, I mean?"
"Nothing's bothering me," Nick replied a little too quickly. He flinched at his own hastiness, glancing away from Judy for a moment before letting his gaze rest on her again, arms crossing over his chest.
"You're a bad liar," Judy said, raising an eyebrow in expectation. "Something's bothering you. What is it?"
"The only thing that's bothering me right now is a little gray bunny who won't back off," Nick said, tone falling to one harsher than he wanted as his defensiveness became hostility. He felt guilty when he saw Judy visibly flinch, and he noticed the warm light in her eyes harden to something colder.
"Fine," Judy hissed softly. "I just wanted to try and help, but fine. I get the hint. I'll back off." She backed up and pushed the door to her room open, not bothering to flick on the lights as she turned around and slammed the door. In her movements, she didn't notice Nick's face flash with regret, and she didn't notice him reaching out a paw to her door just before it slammed on him. She also didn't notice his upset expression as he turned away, or how his shoulders slumped slightly as he walked down the hall to his own room.
"Dumb fox," Judy muttered, undressing from her suit in the dim light of the room.
~ óÓÒò ~
"Remind me why we're doing this again?" Judy asked, walking back to Nick with a look of irritation spread across her face. She had been running through these "target drills" all morning now, and she was tired of them. Every practice round she fired hit its mark, every target fell, and her time continued to get shorter.
"Because it isn't perfect yet," Nick sighed, holding out two magazines for Judy's practice weapon. It was a modified P99, remade for her size, firing rubber 9mm rounds for her practice runs. The bunny doe rolled her eyes and took the magazines, dropping her spent ones and loading in a fresh one.
"There's no such thing as perfect," Judy replied tiredly, checking over her weapon before sliding it into her concealed holster. She could feel Nick's eyes on her as she returned to the starting point, and felt her ears burn slightly as she caught him muttering "I wouldn't say that," under his breath. "What was that?" She asked, glancing at Nick. The fox blinked and flicked an ear dismissively, turning his eyes from her and to the field before her.
"You could go faster, and complete the course with fewer shots." The fox nodded to the targets. "If you ever get put into this kind of situation, you want to take out as many as possible while staying on the move and-"
"Yeah, I get it, do better," Judy snapped. She was still more than a little frustrated with the fox from the other day. She would've avoided Nick for the rest of the week if it weren't for Mr. Big instructing Nick to train Judy to better take care of herself if something ever happened. And while the fox had seemed reluctant, he didn't seem hostile.
Nick sighed again and nodded. "Yeah. Try the run again. If you can get it under 30 seconds, you're done." The fox stepped back and pressed the red button that set the timer, giving Judy her signal to start. As she leaped forward and began the run again, she could feel Nick's eyes always on her. A part of her was annoyed at the constant observation, but a part of her felt something like comfort from it. The rest, was just indifferent and focused on the task at paw.
"Thirty-two point four seconds," Nick said when Judy returned. "Getting better. Run it again."
~ óÓÒò ~
Judy smacked her padded fists together with satisfaction, giving her protective helmet a final tap before turning back to the ring. She had been completely unaware the Mr. Big's estate had a complete set of gym equipment in the basement, along with a full boxing ring, until today. If she had known sooner, this little 'practice fight' would've happened much sooner. Nick was stood at the opposite corner, making the final adjustments to his helmet before slipping on his boxing gloves.
Judy sized him up as she waited for him to finish. Dressed in gray gym shorts and a white tank top, the fox looked more built than when he wore a suit. She could easily see his desceptively muscular physique clearly now, and it slightly impressed her. If she were simply walking by him on the street, she wouldn't think him to be as fit as he was.
"Alright, Fluff," Nick called out to her. "You've got two minutes to take me down."
"I only need one," Judy called back, grinning widely in anticipation. Finally, a chance to get back at Nick for her first night here. The fox, however, smiled and shook his head.
"Alright, Raymond. Start the timer." Nick made a show of popping his neck as the polar bear overseeing their sparring match huffed in affirmation, pressing a button on his phone.
Judy immediately fell into a classic boxer pose, bouncing on her feet as she and Nick drew near. She took a moment to analyze his own pose: a more relaxed boxer's stance, arms tucked close to his body, which was turned to the side to make him a smaller target. He was bouncing on his feet as well, but the timing was constant.
Judy decided that that's how she'd strike first. Waiting until Nick bounced on his front foot, Judy launched herself at him, feet raised to kick him. The fox, as she expected, blocked her with his arm, but between his bouncing and her force he was pushed back. One arm flailed behind him as he tried to regain his balance, but Judy had already landed and was taking advantage of the opening.
Darting forward, she threw several jabs at the fox's midsection, forching the fox further back as he struggled not to trip. She made to throw a left hook at his muzzle as he pulled himself forward, but much to her surprise the fox ducked below the blow and gave her a right hook of his own. Judy recoiled from the blow taking the chance to rotate with the blow. As she did, she lowered herself down and kicked out a leg, trying to sweep out Nick's feet from under him. The fox had backed away, though, causing Judy's leg to meet nothing but air.
As she rose, Judy saw Nick coming close for an uppercut, and beat him to it, punching the fox right in the bottom of his muzzle. The reynard stumbled back from the surprisingly strong blow, giving Judy just enough time to dart in again and punch his midsection yet again. The fox was ready this time, however, blocking her attacks with his forearms. Judy tried to punch past his defense, and as a result didn't have time to react when the fox spun away from her and dropped down, mirroring her sweeping kick from before, only being successful with his. The bunny doe fell back and found herself staring at the ceiling as Nick reared his arm back to bring down on her.
Judy, thinking fast, lifted up her feet and wrapped them around Nick's arm, before twisting on the ground to bring the fox down with her. Then, she let go of his arm and rolled to her feet, running to the far side of the ring before jumping backwards and onto the elastic rope. As Nick stood, the bunny launched herself at him, hitting him square in the chest with her feet and knocking him back into the ropes behind him. As Judy jumped up to deal a final blow, Nick once again ducked, this time catching the front of Judy's legs with his arm and sending her to the floor.
Judy gasped as her breath escaped her lungs, rolling over as soon as she found her breath, only to meet one of Nick's padded fists meeting the side of her helmet. With nothing but sheer anger behind the action, Judy coiled her feet up between them and kicked out, launching Nick across the mat. The fox let out a pained whine as he landed. Judy rose up to her feet and began making her way to Nick as the fox rolled over, gearing up to jump at him for a finishing blow before a loud buzz cut through the air.
Judy lowered her arms in disappointment as Nick rolled over, letting a pained laugh escape himself. "That... Was the longest two minutes of my life," Nick groaned, propping himself up on his elbows.
"Funny, that was the shortest two of mine," Judy snarked, grinning as she offered Nick a paw up. It felt good to beat him like that, in a sort of sadistic way. But she felt much better now, and her aggression towards the fox had disappeared somewhat.
"You know, there's an adult joke to be made there, but that's beneath me," Nick chuckled, taking her paw and rising back to his feet.
"And there's an adult joke I could make there," Judy picked up, "but that's beneath me."
"Oh, maybe country bunny's not so innocent after all?" Nick asked, looking down with what appeared to be feigned interest. "Color me impressed."
"I'm about as innocent as you are clever," Judy fired back, both of their grins widening.
"Why, Carrots, you're not the most innocent thing on the planet! Didn't you hear yourself just now?" Nick shook his head and made a small 'tsk' sound.
"Oh shush, you." Judy couldn't help but laugh and step away as she punched Nick's arm. The fox just laughed and rubbed where she had hit, both of them walking out of the ring. Raymond rolled his eyes and made a gagging expression as they neared.
"What's the matter, bud?" Nick asked innocently as they neared. "Furball?"
The polar bear just rolled his eyes and shook his head, not bothering to give more than a terse huff as a response.
~ óÓÒò ~
"What do you think?" Nick asked, cutting carefully into his soybean steak and trying to drive away the gravy from his mashed potatoes.
Judy looked up from her own meal: an eggplant rollatini with a small side salad. "About the food?" She asked. "It's great. I wonder if the chef could give me the recipe?"
The two were having a dinner at a restaurant Judy hadn't caught the name of, but given their surrounding mammals and the design of the interior – fancy, victorian style everything, gifting the building with a great grace – told her it was a 'fancy' one. It didn't bother her, though – the food was delicious. They had been given a private window table that overlooked the street below, the hustle and bustle of Zootopia's evening life creating a comforting background hum to accompany the faint orchestral music.
"That isn't what I meant," Nick replied, taking a moment to take a bite from his steak. "I meant of your new... Job."
"Oh," Judy muttered softly. It had been little over a week since their meeting with Sandcat Sanchez, and she had been using her spare time between Nick's training and her own exercise routine to contemplate her new line of work. She was no longer as averse to it as she had once been, seeing the potential to do good in the absence of her role as a ZPD officer, but some aspects still made her uneasy. For instance, their more lackadaisical responses to criminal activity. "It's... Different. But I'm not sure what my role is supposed to be."
"At the moment? You're supposed to be learning of my line of work," Nick replied, cutting another bite of his steak. "Which is something between a bodyguard, and a hitmammal."
Judy paused mid-bite, slowly lowering her fork as a chill traveled up her spine. "A hitmammal?" She asked, Nick confirming with a casual nod.
"Of sorts," Nick explained. "I do my best to not spill blood if at all possible."
"But that doesn't mean not at all," Judy said.
Nick nodded again, taking another bite of his meal before setting down his fork. "You know what we do – it's what is commonly referred to as wetwork or contract killing by those in the business, and by other terms by those outside of it – murder, slaughter, et cetera. But it isn't all so black and white."
Judy nodded shallowly, gesturing for Nick to continue. The fox leaned back in his seat and ran a paw between his ears. "I didn't want to do this line of work, but an awful lot of things pushed me to it. Money. Favors. My father."
"Your father?" Judy interrupted.
"You've most likely heard of him," Nick sighed. "He went by a few names in the underground – some of which were very ironic, other very fitting. Like 'Birdie', 'Hood', and 'Red'. He tried to quit the business after he met my mother, but... He couldn't. Kept getting roped back in for one more job – just one more job. When I was old enough to do some snooping I found out about his line of work, and instead of pushing me away... He let me in. Had no shame in it. Saw it as just another job, as if he were a chef or a clerk. I met a few... Business partners when I was little, mostly by accident, but they all set expectations. I could never escape that. So when the world kept turning me away from everything, just because I was a fox... So I turned to the same business as him. Don't think I liked it, though. My point is, I'm not entirely here by choice. If I could, I'd just move elsewhere with a nice big house, and keep to myself. But I can't."
"Why can't you?" Judy asked.
"Mr. Big has what is called a "Marker" for me." Nick sighed. "It's like a blood pact, used on the most prestigious of... Underground workers, like myself."
"Only to the most prestigious. Like you, and your father?" Judy watched curiously as Nick picked up his fork and began to rotate it in his paw, seemingly more interested in it than continuing, though he did just that a moment later.
"Exactly like that – Masters. There's four 'ranks' to this :novice, dilettantes, journeymammal and master. Novices are the ones you see a lot on the news – some crook, probably trying to make a name for themselves, taking out gang targets or something. Dillettantes do it because they're desperate for money, but most back out of the contract. Journeymammals, though, can pull off crimes well enough, but most often end up getting caught. Everyone else is considered a 'Master'. Most, like my father, have military training – he was in the Zootopia Defense Force before I was born. Most masters work for the government, and only some are tied to a crime lord... Like me." Nick took a bite of his mashed potatoes, clearly attempting to hide his unhappy expression. "The marker is, again, a sort of blood pact or contract. Until we've repaid the debt it binds us to, we're stuck with the crime boss."
Judy let out a small "Oh" and picked at her food for a moment, letting silence settle between the two. Nick had cleared up some unspoken questions she had, but there was now one she was internally debating about asking. Just as the silence was growing awkward again, Judy gave in and asked. "What did Mr. Big do for you?"
Nick was quiet for a long time, taking deliberately slow bites of his meal to stall for time. When he finally began to run low on steak, he sighed once more. "He... Saved my mother, in a way. Got her out of a deathtrap of an apartment and into her dream home. It was what I'd been working towards for so long, when she began to fall ill because the building was rotting from the inside out... I got desperate. But it wasn't cheap, so I've been bound to Mr. Big ever since"
Judy was quiet as she continued picking at her food, trying to think of something to say in response. Finally, she found her voice, and muttered an "I'm sorry,".
"For what?" Nick looked up from his plate, cutting apart the steak again.
"That you're stuck doing something you don't like. That you have to be bound to something like this. That you can't get out of this." Judy opened her mouth to continue, but Nick held up a paw to silence her.
"Don't be," the fox said, a hint of sorrow tinting his voice. "It's my own fault."
"But still," Judy insisted. "If nothing else... I doubt I'd be here if not for you. Be it because Mr. Big would've had no partner for me, or if I'd of had no one to count on until now."
"You mean... You didn't have someone to count on before?"
"No," Judy said with a sad laugh. "Almost all of my family is out in Bunnyburrow. No one really believed in my dream but me, and I hadn't been in the city long enough to make any friends... But thanks to you, Fru-Fru, and even Mr. Big, I have a family. Sure, we might be a bit disfunctional," she made a point to stare right at Nick with joking accusation as she said this. "But still a family."
That brought a smile to the fox's face. "Well, we try," he said. "But I think I know who makes us so disfunctional – it's that darned Kenny, isn't it? Always being a prankster."
"I'm sure he's had some influence from a certain fox," Judy teased, grinning as the air around them grew less tense from the humor.
"Who? Did we get a new fox? Why did no one tell me?"
"Ugh, you're ridiculous," Judy groaned, chuckling through the irritation.
"I thought I was Nick?"