Happy Thanksgiving!


The decision to include Wolfard and Fangmeyer in the party planning paid off. The two mammals had friends in faculty, and the group was able to secure an area used for tailgating. But their efforts had an unintended consequence. More mammals became interested and wanted to join in the festivities. Soon, what began as a small party meant to relieve stress became a full-blown rave. Nonetheless, the study group was glad the party still happened.

"Here you go, Hopps." Fangmeyer carefully offered the rabbit a small cup of beer.

Judy gracefully accepted. "Thank you." She took a large gulp and let out a sigh of relief.

The tiger chuckled at the gesture. "Are you glad Wolfard and I helped out?"

"Never thought I saw this but," Judy raised her cup in the air. "FREEDOM!"

"FREEDOM!" The tiger roared.

This led to many mammals nearby raising the drinks and shouting freedom to the heavens. The cheers lasted for a couple of minutes before dying down, and the activities resumed.

"Thanks again for the assistance," Judy said. "I don't think the party would have ever happened."

"Wolfard and I were wondering about the weekend ourselves when we overheard your plan."

"Apparently everyone else in Bogo's Contracts feels the same." Judy noticed many familiar faces attending the party.

"Hey, if they want to have some fun before having to study, they are more than welcome to so long they contribute."

"I'm surprised you and Wolfard manage to establish rules for the party."

"Even we have our limits. We get the blame if it gets out of control. I am not getting in trouble for this! But I'm more surprised at you going along with it. I've only seen you with your eyes glued to the book. What changed your mind?"

Judy sighed as she got comfortable on the table. "I wouldn't, but let's just say that this past month has changed my perspective."

"Whatever happened, I'm glad it was now than at the end of the year. I've heard the horror stories from family and relatives."

"Yep," Judy poured herself another drink before taking a large gulp. "But just in case, if I ever start to have doubts during the party, I give you permission to shake me out of it."

Fangmeyer bellowed out in laughter, nearly dropping her drink, "You got it, Hopps!"

Skye casually stood near the table of drinks with her beverage, enjoying the atmosphere. The vixen already had three cups of beer and was on her fourth. Since the party began and the study group separated, Skye went to get herself a drink. She chugged the first cup and had casually finished the other two. The vixen refused to admit it openly, but she needed this after going through many hurdles.

The arctic vixen caught sight of Nick approaching and was about to greet him when she narrowed her eyes and bared her teeth at the object in Nick's possession. "What are you doing with that?"

The red fox raised an eyebrow as he stopped in front of the vixen. "Huh?"

She pointed at the offending object: a briefcase. "That…" Venom filled her voice, and she felt disgusted for even referencing it.

Nick looked down before looking back up at Skye with a wide smirk on his face. "Oh, I'm sorry." He then placed the object down on the ground. "I rest my case."

Skye just stood deadpanned at Nick while he basked in delight from his joke. Even though the red fox would have to lug the object around for the duration of the party, the joke was worth it.

"You are so lucky that I'm trying to get hammered."

"What? Not in the mood for mocking law?"

Skye narrowed her eyes as she finished her fourth cup. "I don't even want to think about the word tonight," The arctic vixen raised her fist. "If anyone not in the study group tries to talk to me about law school, they'll get a knuckle sandwich!"

"Looks like you're already doing a good job of getting hammered."

"Watch it, Wilde! Or I'll rescind my exception for you!"

Knowing it was a veiled threat, Nick decided to push it further. "Really?"

"Really!" Skye began winding up for a punch. The arctic vixen thrust her arm forward but ended up stumbling on her feet.

Nick saw this coming and quickly caught the vixen before she face-planted the ground. "Alright, I think you've had too much."

"Objection!" Skye tried to get back up and succeeded, only for her to appear wobbling.

"Overruled. Let's find the other girls before you get yourself in trouble." Nick wrapped an arm around Skye, grabbed his briefcase, and began searching for his friends while trying to keep the reins on the arctic vixen.

Skye cheered and flung her free arm around which thankfully had an empty beer cup. The red fox was surprised to see this side of her. His task became slightly more difficult because of the sheer amount of drunken mammals he had to maneuver through.

Meanwhile, Ben and other similar-sized mammals congregated at a table for a game of beer pong. Ten cups of beer were set up in triangle formation at opposite ends. Wolfard and Clawhauser were on one team, and an oryx and a kudu were the opposition. The game had been competitive from the beginning, and both teams were down to their final cup. The turn now belonged to Clawhauser and Wolfard, and the cheetah currently held the ping pong ball.

"Alright! This one is for all the marbles!"

Ben wounded his arm back and thrust it forward, releasing a ping pong ball. The object sailed through the air momentarily before falling onto the table. The cheetah and other law students watched anxiously as the ball inched closer to the opponent's last cup. The cheetah and the wolf held their breath as the ball bounced off the table at its closest point to the cup and reached its peak. The ball then began its descent…right into the last cup.

Cheers erupted from the students as a Wolfard wrapped his arms around Clawhauser as best he could in a hug. "Way to go, Ben!"

"OH M GOODNESS!"

"NOT SO FAST!" The Kudu cried.

"Yeah!" The oryx concurred. "We still have our turn!"

The oryx picked up a ping pong ball and wasted no time throwing it at their last cup. The ball bounced across the table as all eyes watched. As the distance closed, the oryx and kudu became more hopeful for the victory while Clawhauser and Wolfard grew more terrified at the defeat. Everyone else leaned in close and held their breaths. The ball made one final bounce a mere inch away from the cup…and promptly sailed over it.

"LET'S GO!" Clawhauser screamed and pumped his fists in the air, not caring that he had spilled his drink in the process.

While the students celebrated with the cheetah, the oryx and the kudu began to bicker and blame each other for the loss.

"YOU IDIOT!"

"ME?! YOU THREW THE BALL!"

"Oh shut up!"

"You shut up!"

"No, you!"

"You!"

Fru Fru held a cup as she sat in Troy's paw while the polar bear held a plate of snacks in the other. The polar bear bobbed his head to the music, permitted by the shrew to enjoy himself within reason. He was also allowed to loosen his tie and have the top button undone. Since it was no longer a small party, Fru Fru decided it was best to limit her activities for safety reasons and her reputation. That didn't mean she couldn't enjoy the environment, dancing to the music playing.

"College parties not your style?"

The voice caused the two to pause and look down to see Jack standing before them, holding a drink and a plate of carrots and celery.

The arctic shrew chuckled and motioned Troy to give Jack a lift so they could continue the conversation. The polar bear obeyed, giving the shrew her snacks before bending his knees to pick up the rabbit.

"Thanks," Jack said, carefully balancing his drink and snacks. "You didn't have to do that."

Fru Fru waved her paw. "Nonsense! Besides, it will be easier to hear you over the music and noise."

"True. True." Jack conceded.

"And to answer your question, I'm just avoiding unnecessary trouble. Are you enjoying the party?"

"I'm doing my best. Similar to you but for different reasons. While I love to get myself hammered, some of us need to be sober enough to carry the load until the others do too."

The shrew nodded. "I would prefer that it just be the study group, but it's still better than having to cancel the whole thing."

"I understand. Maybe we can try this again in the future. If we're lucky to find the time that is."

"I'm positive that we will. Just have to be patient!"

Jack could only chuckle as he and Fru Fru settled into Troy's paws and enjoyed the party. "You know they might leave us to clean the mess when it's over."

Fru Fru shook her head. "Don't worry about it! Fangmeyer and Wolfard promised the place gets cleaned or else no more joining our parties."

"Good to know! Now to see that the party doesn't go too late into the night"

"We can only hope for the best," She quickly returned to her cheerful attitude. "But let's focus on enjoying the party! We worked hard for this!"

Jack could only nod as he bit into a celery stick and sipped his drink.

After spending some time with Fangmeyer, Judy decided to search for Nick and the others, wanting to strike up a conversation and check on them. The rabbit hoped they were having a good time as her. But she didn't have to go too far to find the foxes.

"You girls want to give me a paw here?"

She and Fangmeyer recognized the voice and turned to see Nick dragging a drunken Skye up to them. The girls giggled at the display. The arctic vixen had put all her weight on the tod and was swinging her head sideways. She had a wide grin on her face while waving around an empty cup.

"Sweet cheese and crackers! How many did she have?"

"More than a few," Nick said.

"Only four!" The vixen shouted.

While moderate, Judy was still amazed at the display. "Wow, Skye let herself go big time!"

Fangmeyer raised an eyebrow at the statement. "That surprises you?"

"She and Jack tend to be the more serious types in our study group. Never took either of them to embrace the party life."

"Huh, interesting. You think Jack is the same right now?"

"Only one way to find out." Nick raised his arm holding the briefcase. "Who wants to join me?"

Judy finished her drink and hopped off the tigress's shoulder. "Count me in!"

Nick smirked up at the tigress. "Trade ya!"

Fangmeyer sighed and shook her head as she went to relieve Nick of Skye. She carefully slung the arctic vixen over her shoulder, the latter enjoying the transfer and dropping the empty cup in the process.

"Weee! Again! Again!"

The tigress narrowed her eyes at Nick while discarding Skye's empty cup. "If she pukes on me, you're paying for the shampoo and conditioner."

Nick waved her off as he and Judy began searching for Jack. Expecting the worse, Fangmeyer carefully shifted Skye so that if she did vomit, the projectile would miss the tigress entirely. She decided to search for Wolfard, curious if he let himself go as well.

"Come on, Skye. We're going on a little adventure."

"Yay! Adventure." The vixen slurred.

Judy texted the shrew if she had seen Jack and received a reply stating the buck was with her and at the outer edges of the party. With that information, Nick and Judy focused on getting away from most of the students. They carefully weaved through the crowd of mammals, taking care not to get crushed by the larger students. It didn't take long for them to reach the edges of the party and begin searching for the three mammals.

"Having a good time?" The rabbit asked.

Nick shrugged his shoulder. "Eh, I'd prefer it just be the study group, but this is fine."

Judy nodded in understanding. "Yeah, but I think mammals would have crashed the party regardless."

The fox chuckled. "I wish you were wrong on that but a fair point."

"By the way, why are you carrying around that briefcase?"

Nick only smiled. "I'll explain when we find Jack and Fru Fru."

Still confused, but Judy agreed.

To their surprise, the party was tame amidst concerns of it getting out of control with so many law students involved. Maybe they weren't the only ones sober enough to keep themselves under control.

Five minutes later, a polar bear caught Nick's attention, and he moved closer to see if it was Troy. Indeed, the bear wore a three-piece suit, indicating he belonged to Fru Fru.

"I think I see Troy."

Judy stopped and found Nick pointing. She followed his direction and saw the mammal in question. "I think you're right. Let's check."

They got closer so the mammals could hear the two call their names.

"Fru! Jack! Troy!"

The polar bear turned around and revealed Jack and Fru Fru in his paws, confirming their suspicions. The three mammals saw Nick and Judy approaching.

"Juju! Niki!" The arctic shrew waved them over.

Jack noticed the briefcase Nick carried. "You did that joke. Didn't you?"

Nick had a huge mischievous smile on his face and nodded.

"What joke?" Judy looked back and forth between the mammals, trying to figure out what was going on.

Still smiling, Nick placed the briefcase on the ground. "I rest my case."

The action elicited eye rolls from Jack and Fru Fru while Judy was still trying to process everything. Her lawyer mind began analyzing the facts. There was Jack's comment about a joke. Then was Nick carrying the briefcase around. Next was him placing the briefcase down. Finally, his statement, "I rest my case." Even with all the facts, what did Nick resting his case on the floor have to –

"Nick!" Her ears went erect as confusion turned to anger. Her foot also thumped rapidly as embarrassment began to creep in. Her first response was to punch the fox in the shoulder.

Nick yipped from the pain but kept his smile. "Took you long enough."

"Anyways!" Judy exclaimed, trying to save herself from further embarrassment. "Nick and I have been looking for you!"

Thankfully for her, Jack obliged. "Miss us?"

"I don't know about Carrots, but I was wondering if you got yourself drunk."

The buck scoffed. "Why would you think that?"

Judy answered. "Because Skye is hammered right now, and we were wondering if you gave in."

"Please, I know better. Two is enough for me. But seriously, is Skye being taken care of?"

The rabbit nodded. "Fangmeyer is looking out for her."

"That's good. Not to sound mean, but whoever is sober will have to carry the load until the hangovers recover."

Nick waved a paw. "We'll deal with that tomorrow. As Skye said before the party, no discussing law outside of making the party possible and keeping it from being shut down."

The others agreed. This was a rare break for them to enjoy a little relaxation. Knowing it would not be until after an exam for another break, they were committed to enjoying the party to its fullest.

Nick decided to lead the distraction by asking Jack a question he had on his mind for a few weeks. "Hey Jack, how are you and Skye?"

The striped rabbit tilted his head in confusion. "Huh? Why would you ask that?"

"Well, seeing how you two normally hang out with each other, I'm just wondering if something is going on."

The buck's head straightened back up, and his ears perked. "Who says we hang out a lot?"

"Well," Fru Fru interjected. "Every time the study group has met up, you and Skye are always sitting together."

"Even when we just eat, you two are sitting next to each other," Judy added. "So it may have been a surprise to us that you haven't spent a lot of time with each other since the party started."

Nick smirked at the implications. "It seems that love is in the air between the study group's more serious members."

"That doesn't mean anything!" Jack fumed, but then got an idea and smirked at Nick and Judy. "By your logic, Nick and Judy should be in a romantic relationship by now, given they've known each other longer than Skye and myself have."

At the mention of them in a relationship, the mammals in question became silent and embarrassed all of a sudden. They were thankful that the limited light and the party atmosphere shielded most of their facial reactions.

Fru Fru saw their reactions and smiled, thinking Jack's statement may be true. "Hey, he's right. If I recall, Judy was the first to join the group. The rest of us came on the second day. Why did you talk to her first? Everyone else at the time had doubts after the first day's spectacle."

Nick quickly composed himself, shoving his emotions in a briefcase. "I told you. I saw potential in her, and I had to begin on the first day before everyone else paired up or wanted to go lone wolf. Look how well that decision paid off."

Judy was still shocked over their friends' responses. It was the second time to her knowledge that mammals thought Nick and Judy were in a romantic relationship. Did her interactions with Nick give off those vibes? She didn't have time to think further or respond when Nick quickly excused him and her.

"Anyways, Carrots and I just wanted to check things out, and it's clear that you two are doing fine, so we'll be going now!" The fox grabbed his briefcase and took off.

It took a moment before she realized the rabbit was alone before Jack, Fru Fru, and Troy. The grey rabbit opened her mouth and raised a finger to speak but second thoughts and followed after Nick. With their backs turned, the two failed to see the mischievous grins on their friends' faces. Even the polar bear had a small one before moving to pick the two mammals up.

Jud padded up to Nick as he continued to walk the outer edges. "Nick, wait!"

The fox slowed down but kept walking. "Can you believe Jack? Having the audacity to turn my question about him on us?"

"Nick!" The rabbit grabbed the fox's arm and stopped, forcing him to do the same.

"What are you doing?" While the tone of his voice wasn't hostile, it was clear that he wanted to move on from the conversation.

"Why?"

The question caused him to turn around, and he saw her questioning and worried look. "What do you mean?"

Judy slowly released his arm, trusting he would not try to evade the conversation. "Everyone else wrote me off after the first day. Why didn't you?"

Nick remained silent as the question hung between them. The party seemed to be non-existent as the two continued to stare at each other. It was good for them that nobody else was paying attention.

The fox finally responded by taking a deep breath. "I didn't want to see you fail."

Now Judy was more curious than ever. Why would a fox, her species' natural enemy, not want to see her fail?

He closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "Seeing you devastated on the first day of Contracts…the state you were in after meeting with Bogo…I couldn't live with myself I didn't attempt to try to help. I rather not discuss this further if that's okay with you."

Nick suddenly felt being squeezed, and he found Judy snuggling him. He could have sworn he saw tears, but even with night vision, he couldn't tell.

Judy was overwhelmed. She had met many mammals, including her family and friends, that cast doubt and discouragement on her career goals. But very few offered support. To hear it from a natural enemy made it more meaningful to her. "Thank you." In the midst of rampant emotions, she could feel him reciprocate the hug.

Nick's smile returned. "You're welcome. Come on. The night is still young, and there's plenty of party to be had."

Judy nodded and broke from the hug; satisfied with the answer. "Okay."