Hey again all.
First thing's first. I owe everyone an apology for how absurdly long this took. Most of my summer was spent abroad for an internship and when I got back to the states, classes were just ramping up. Regardless, it's my fault for pushing story updates down my priority list. Please do rest assured, this fic is not dead.
Anyway, how about some old-fashioned review replies to clear the air?
-A5TRON4UTA: I love reading your thoughts and future predictions for this fic! In response to one of your comments, I will say that Gazelle doesn't have a particular affinity for police officers, rather she displays gratitude for everything the ZPD (ie. Nick and Judy) did to cull the nighthowler threat and bridge the pred/prey divide. Also keep in mind that Wolford could have been embellishing a bit in the last chapter ;). I hope this new chapter meets or exceeds your expectations!
-Matrixd: Someone had to do it haha.
-Wolfx1120: I'm glad you like it! Thanks for the support.
-FloralFae: Nick x Gazelle is a unique pairing for sure, but it's new ground I enjoy exploring. I'm glad you like the story!
-The Bizzare Star: Thank ya :3
As always, please enjoy the chapter and I'll see you on the next one. -Wilde
"W-what?" Nick croaked, gazing upward at the gazelle in disbelief.
There was a beat in the conversation as the fox blinked his eyes. Perhaps the fall had knocked him cold? Surely, he wasn't face-to-face with the pop-sensation herself.
"Gaz, I think the boy's gone deaf." A voice scoffed from out of view.
"He did take quite a tumble…" Another replied.
Gazelle giggled, brushing aside a lock of golden hair that had fallen into her eyes. "I asked if you were okay, mister."
Nick swallowed the lump in his throat, immediately adjusting his demeanor. "Me? I'm fine! Ship-shape, actually." He faked a light-hearted laugh as he collected himself and moved to his feet. "Really, I should be the one asking if you're okay. You know, with me charging in here without a warrant, and all-that."
Gazelle snickered. "It's no trouble, officer." She said, resting a hoof on her hip as she acknowledged the fox's uniform. "But that would make you Nick Wilde then, wouldn't it?"
Nick felt his heart lurch as his name left her lips. "Y-You know who I am?"
She nodded. "Of course! You're the ZPD's first fox officer. Part of the team that ended the whole night howler mess, right?"
"Heh… Yeah, I guess that sounds like me." He rubbed his neck sheepishly. "I didn't know you kept track of those things."
Gazelle shrugged her shoulders. "Any improvement in pred-prey diversity within Zootopia's established institutions is news worth hearing about, I think." She grinned softly. "Coming from a girl who spends a lot of her time promoting social activism, I think the work you've done is very inspiring."
Nick could feel his tail beginning to sway uncontrollably at her compliment, prompting some of the makeup artists in the backdrop to giggle. Gazelle for that matter, only smiled, seemingly unfazed by his evident excitement. It was difficult to believe he had just been watching her perform live on a stage the day prior, and yet here she was in front of him, smiling and talking like any other person he had met on the daily.
"W-well…" Nick stammered while trying desperately to arrange a functional sentence in his mind. "I uh… T-thank you, really. And I must say, it's an absolute pleasure to actually make your acquaintance, Gazelle." He offered a paw to her, trying to look as if he weren't completely enveloped by awkwardness.
Gazelle beamed as she took the fox's paw lightly in hers. "Encantado de conocerte, Officer Wilde."
Nick had no idea what that meant, though he was too enamored with the pop star's appearance in that moment to brush up on his rudimentary knowledge of the language. Gazelle was wearing an aqua blue lace minidress with pink sequin embroidered high heeled shoes. The outfit perfectly emphasized the elegant curvature of her body, from her thin waist to her wide hips. Her angelic, golden-brown eyes were accentuated with a gentle application of eyeshadow and mascara, deepening the singer's already mesmerizing gaze. His passing infatuation was only interrupted by the shrill sound of someone screaming from outside the trailer.
"Wilde!" The voice howled, trembling with rage. "Get out here!" The tone was enough to make both him and Gazelle wince.
"Aheh… Please excuse me for a moment." Nick gulped audibly; his cheeks flushed red with embarrassment at the situation as he slipped quickly outside.
The fox immediately found himself muzzle-to-muzzle with commander Raiona, the lioness livid as ever and practically fuming from the ears. She was flanked on her sides by Judy and a female ibex he hadn't seen before.
"That's him." The ibex huffed as her eyes narrowed on the vulpine afront her. She was an elderly caprine, with a small silverish goatee trailing off the end of her chin, shaggy white fur, and long recurved horns. Her eyes appeared hard, contributing to the look of disgust which hung across her face as she looked Nick up and down. "That's the one that ran in on us."
"Ran in on you? Wait, what?" Nick exclaimed, taken aback by the sudden vitriol in her words. "Ma'am please, you've got it all wrong… I was- "
"Can it, Wilde." Raiona hissed, her fur bristling. "I don't wanna hear a single excuse emanating from your lips. Your behavior—chasing apparitions with your sidearm drawn, disturbing the VIP trailer, and frightening our guests is disgraceful, and entirely unacceptable. I refuse to let such conduct tarnish the integrity of my operation."
Judy stepped forward, attempting to interject. "Commander, if I may…"
"You may not." The lioness growled in retort; her eyes remaining locked with the fox beneath her. "Wilde, you are going to apologize to Ms. Sinclair here for the mess you caused. After that, I'm discharging you both from precinct 17's security detail, effective immediately."
"D-discharged?" Judy gasped.
"Discharged." Raiona repeated firmly, and with increasing condescendence. "I don't care what chief Bogo says. I don't care if I have to fill out the paperwork for it. And I certainly don't care about whoever requested you. You two will be off my site before noon, or we will have a REAL problem. do I make myself clear?"
The ibex's spiteful expression had evolved to one of delight in a matter of seconds. She stroked her goatee with a crooked grin, seemingly amused that this 'intruder' would not only be out of sight momentarily, but would also be affording her a groveling apology.
Nick could feel his heart sinking into his stomach at the commander's draconian decision. To be discharged from any assignment regardless of the circumstances was an all but criminal offense at precinct 1, where excellence and devotion to service was valued above all else. Such was especially the case for this detail; a potentially once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to secure the most coveted venue for the single biggest musical icon in Zootopia.
Judy, for that matter, appeared completely dejected. Her ears hung limply to her sides, and her nose twitched softly as she stood in silence.
It was about that moment that Gazelle had emerged from the makeup trailer, looking both perplexed and visibly concerned at the verbal reaming the two were receiving from their commander. "Excuse me… Is everything alright?"
"Ah, Gazelle! My darling!" The ibex exclaimed, walking past the fox and his partner, and opening her arms in a beckoning way as if to embrace the singer.
Gazelle rolled her eyes. "Aneska, please don't tell me you're the one causing trouble for these two kind officers."
Aneska paused, taking a moment to ponder her answer before replying innocently. "No, of course not. But when I heard someone had broken into your trailer, I knew I had to get help!" She smiled sweetly, with an expression akin to how a grandmother might view her granddaughter. "I mean, I couldn't just stand by while someone put my Gazelle in danger…"
The pop star groaned, resting a hoof on her hip while she pinched the bridge of her nose. "I was never in danger. I opened the door to get some air, and he accidentally fell inside. That's all."
"But why was the fox outside?" The caprine persisted, albeit gently. "Maybe he was spying?"
Gazelle recoiled at her choice of words. "Dios santo Aneska… The 'fox' is an officer of the law. Possibly one of the most honorable officers in the city, at that!"
She strutted past the ibex with a defiant huff, standing in front of Judy and leaning down to her. "The same goes for his equally exceptional partner, whose leadership and optimism in the face of impossible odds makes me proud to call myself a Zootopian." She smiled at the bunny, prompting Judy's dispirited expression to brighten noticeably.
Gazelle then turned her attention to the lioness, who appeared thoroughly unamused with the singer's antics.
"Commander, we both know this is a misunderstanding." The singer spoke in a respectful, yet firm tone. "Please. I am asking you to reconsider your decision."
Indeed, Gazelle might've trended towards the leaner side (exempting her most-honest hips), but her willful personality was incredibly strong. Afterall, she understood well that she hadn't reached the top of the music world by being a pushover.
Raiona only scoffed. "With all due respect Gazelle, I don't see any reason to alter my decision. Though I do apologize for any reservations you might have regarding it." She smiled politely, bowing her head, and crossing her wrists as she did so.
Gazelle crossed her arms, lifting her chin as she stared the lioness eye to eye. 'So that's how you wanna play?'
"Then with all due respect commander, I don't see any reason to continue playing this venue. I'm sure we can find other districts with more… accommodating precincts. I do apologize for any reservations you might have regarding that decision." She reciprocated the feline's grin, turning on her heel back towards the makeup trailer with a small wag of her tail.
Nick's jaw dropped. Was this singer really going to bat for them over this? The fox could see everyone else in the group with the same staggered expression, including Ms. Sinclair, who appeared on the verge of a panic attack over how quickly she had lost control over the situation. Only commander Raiona appeared calm. The lioness's tail lashed from side to side, her foot tapping rapidly against the asphalt as she contemplated the ultimatum she had just been given.
"Hang on."
Gazelle's long ears stood upright as she stopped. A smirk, just barely perceivable, crested on her lips while she waited for Raiona's reply.
"Yes commander?"
The lioness sighed, rubbing her temple with her index and middle fingers. "You win. Officers Wilde and Hopps will retain their assignments. For now."
"Wait… You're letting them stay?" Ms. Sinclair protested softly.
"Qué bueno!" Gazelle exclaimed with a grin, clasping her hooves together as she returned to the group. "Funnily enough, Aneska was actually supposed to request security to accompany us to the Preyda set. You know, instead of trying to get them fired. Isn't that right?"
"Well, yes… But…"
"And it seems we have two very capable officers here who would be well suited for the task, wouldn't you agree?" The singer continued, turning her gaze from the ibex to Judy and Nick.
"You can have one officer." The lioness interjected.
"One?"
"That's right. One officer is more than sufficient to manage security on-set." She said, appearing less than enthused. "Seeing as you've already developed an accord with officer Wilde, I might as well allocate him to the task."
Nick had to stifle a chuckle at the blatant look of mortification on Ms. Sinclair's face when the commander relented with those words. Still, as excited as he was to be carrying out a one-on-one security detail with Zootopia's queen of pop, a large part of him couldn't help but to feel disappointment that Judy wouldn't be joining them. The fox looked to his partner imploringly, his eyes conveying an almost apologetic look.
Despite this, Judy returned his gaze with a reassuring look of her own. If anything, she appeared more relieved to be keeping their assignment than dismayed about not going with Gazelle in that moment.
"Officer Hopps," Raiona continued, suppressing the annoyance in her voice, "we should discuss a few things to ensure there are no more misunderstandings going forward. If you would please follow me back to the central hub…"
Judy nodded with a hesitant agreeance. "Yeah, sure."
She sighed softly and turned to leave; but not before taking a moment to flash a hopeful grin in the direction of the singer next to her. "You know, some people say to never meet your heroes. Something about inevitable disappointment, I guess. But after meeting you in person, I'm starting to think those people must've had the wrong heroes." The bunny put out her paw, as Nick had done earlier. "Thanks for standing by us."
Gazelle bent down slightly, bringing her eyes to the lagomorph's. "We must speak up for what we believe to be right, sí? Injustice only flourishes in the complacency of the bystander." The singer smiled as she spoke, taking Judy's paw gently in her hooves. "Keep on fighting for what you believe in officer Hopps. The people of this city rely not on figures like me, but in heroes like you."
"I'll try… Heck, I might even try everything." Judy replied with a sheepish grin, quoting the lyrics with a wink.
"Heh, that's the spirit! Until next time chica!" Gazelle snickered, standing up straight and giving a small wave as Judy began her walk back to the main area with Raiona.
"Ahem." Ms. Sinclair coughed in a not-so-subtle manner.
The singer's cheerful disposition faded as she turned around to face the ibex, who was impatiently gesturing to an imaginary wristwatch on her arm.
"We're late."
"And whose fault is that?" Gazelle replied with irritation, again pinching the bridge of her nose as she often did when dealing with the caprine. "Look, please just let them know that we're on our way. Officer Wilde can escort me."
Ms. Sinclair grumbled a string of incoherencies to herself as she removed an old flip phone from the inside of her blazer. She dialed a number and pressed it to her ear, but not before flashing an intensely scornful look towards the fox. What in the world did this old goat have against him? Nick didn't know, but before he could ask, she retreated into the makeup trailer without so much as a parting word.
"Well… She's an awfully blithe personality…"
"Aneska?" Gazelle scoffed. "A dreadful woman, really. Don't let her bother you too much though. She always takes issue with new faces around here. She'll come around eventually."
'Yeah, right.' Nick thought to himself. He slid his palms into his pockets, turning his eyes to the singer with curiosity. "You know, I'm no expert in the world of showbiz, Gazelle. And I certainly don't mean to speak out of turn here… But you two seem to be operating on completely different wavelengths. Is there a particular reason you're keeping someone with that kind of temperament around?"
The singer shook her head slightly, as though she'd heard the same question numerous times before. "It's a complicated issue. Let's just say there are certain agreements which legally bind talent managers to their clients. Regardless of how they might feel about each other."
"Oh." Nick looked at his feet, somewhat embarrassed he hadn't been able to piece two and two together. "Apologies. I uh… I didn't know."
Gazelle however appeared unbothered. She only smiled gently, lifting his chin with one of her hooves so that their gazes were connected again. "Don't fret over it. I appreciate your concern for the situation, officer Wilde. Really."
"Yeah, of course." He could feel his tail beginning to sway involuntarily again. "And please, call me Nick." He smirked, removing a concealed pair of silver aviator sunglasses from his shirt's chest pocket, before slipping them over his eyes. "Shall we be on our way then?"
Gazelle stifled a giggle. "Por supuesto Nick. Lead the way."
The Preyda set had been arranged in the Palm Hotel's banquet hall on the tower's second level. To avoid an overabundance of attention, the duo would be moving discretely through the back of the building and entering through cordoned off areas available only to the VIP guests.
At several intervals during their walk, Nick noticed himself staring at the singer. It wasn't his fault, he thought. With someone like Gazelle, it would be considered almost criminal not to admire them. What the fox didn't expect however, was that Gazelle would occasionally look back at him. Of course, her eyes would dart away the moment his gaze met hers, and none of them would say a word. The more rational part of his conscience told him to ignore the butterflies in his stomach when this happened. Afterall, being head over heels for an intensely beautiful celebrity crush was normal! But expecting them to reciprocate such emotions would be downright absurd. Still, the more whimsical part of his mind told him otherwise. Every time he looked at her, Nick remembered the moment from the concert. It couldn't have been a coincidence…
Unfortunately, the fox's fever dreams would have to wait, as their eventual arrival at the banquet hall would cut his contemplations short. Maybe some things were best left unanswered anyway.
Nick held the door open for the gazelle as they entered. It took a few seconds for his pupils to adjust to the murkily lit room. When they did, he could make out various lighting technicians, photographers, hotel staff, and Preyda representatives turning their heads in unison towards them. In that moment, he could feel every eye in the room trained on him. Mammals appeared to be watching from all corners of the set, whispering with curiosity.
"Gazelle is here…"
"Oh my."
"She's gorgeous."
"Who's the guy she has with her?"
"It's that fox officer."
"Her escort, I think. Lucky son of a gun."
"A bit short though..."
"I thought Gazelle was into tigers."
"She doesn't have a boyfriend, right?"
Now, Nick wasn't so naïve to believe fame and fortune came without a discernable degree of public scrutiny, but something about the way they were analyzing him rubbed him the wrong way. Until very recently, Nick had spent most of his life flying well under the radar. So, this sudden wave of unwarranted and unfamiliar attention from a crowd of mammals he didn't recognize made his fur bristle in a less-than pleasant way.
"Nick."
The fox looked up to see the singer smiling down at him reassuringly. She appeared as calm as ever, coolheaded and relaxed as though she had done this ritual thousands of times before.
"Just follow my lead, vale?"
Gazelle began a slow walk, swaying her hips with a subtle confidence as Nick tagged along shortly behind. She waved politely to the lighting and stage crew as she passed them by, occasionally stopping for a selfie or autograph whenever some of the bolder staff members initiated it.
The vast room had been cleaned out extensively, with the empty space now functioning as a bustling photographic studio. The center of the room was brightly illuminated with dozens of stage lamps, arranged so that Gazelle could model in the most picturesque light. For this, the enormous windows which normally offered panoramic views of the distant city skyline there had been blotted out with large black tarps.
Adjacent to the set was a small canvas chair with Gazelle's name spelt across the backrest. She took a seat, pushing a lock of golden hair out of her eyes as she crossed her legs. Nick stood by closely, keeping his paws tucked inside of his pockets while he surveyed the technicians at work.
"So does it ever get to you?"
The singer looked at him. "What do you mean?"
"All this." Nick said, gesturing with his paw to the setting they were in. "The lights, the attention, the constant posturing… Heck, I've been with you for all of five minutes and I'm already feeling overwhelmed."
Gazelle appeared slightly taken aback by that question. No one had ever asked her it. She crossed her arms at her lap, contemplating her reply for a few moments.
"A long time ago, maybe. But it's something you get used to after a while." A reminiscent smirk, however small, appeared on her lips. "Sometimes I forget what it's like to be able to do the things you want without being judged or photographed at every public moment. Little things like going grocery shopping, playing my guitar in the park, or driving and singing with the windows down. But even something as simple as getting a coffee without someone recognizing me these days is near-impossible."
Gazelle must've realized she was pining to the fox. She quickly faked a lighthearted laugh, though Nick could see straight through it.
"Gazelle, you're on in two minutes." One of the photo directors announced loudly.
The singer uncrossed her legs, placing her palms on her knees as she stood. "I guess that's my cue." She smiled at the fox, turning away as she prepared to take her place in the center of the room.
But Nick's tail flicked nervously. Something about what she had told him compelled him to speak.
"Gazelle?"
She stopped, turning her head over her shoulder as she connected her gaze with him.
There was a slight pause as the fox mustered up the courage to say what he wanted to say. He gulped, and then cautiously, he opened his mouth. "Maybe I could buy you a coffee after the shoot?"
Wait. Did he just ask Gazelle out for coffee? Was that seriously his plan? Nick's heart was racing. He had pursued some questionable ventures in the past, but this was an entirely new level of ludicrous. The fox could feel his ears and cheeks burning red with embarrassment, and every voice in his mind screamed for him to backpedal. But something in his gut urged him to press on. He took a deep breath.
"I-if you're free. No judgement, no cameras. Just you and me out of the spotlight for a bit. It's the least I can do to repay you for defending my partner and me earlier."
Gazelle at this point had turned around completely, appearing visibly stunned and maybe even the smallest bit flushed at what she was hearing. "O-oh." She had not been expecting this. The singer pressed her hooves together, looking at the floor for a moment, and then to the vulpine. "Nick, no repayment is necessary… I didn't do those things with compensation in mind, really."
The flicker of hope in Nick's eyes dimmed almost instantly. His gaze fell to the floor, and his ears dropped despondently.
"But…" Gazelle continued, her voice soft like a whisper, "If you're just asking to get a coffee together… I'd love to."
The fox's ears shot skyward. "R-Really?" He choked, seemingly unable to verbalize anything else while he recovered from the emotional whiplash.
The singer giggled. "Really. Return to the hotel's lobby after your shift. I will find you, Sí?"
"Uh… Y-Yeah, Sí." Nick stammered, smiling weakly as the reality of her words began to settle on him.
"Vale. I will see you then." She winked at the vulpine with a teasing grin. "Hasta luego, officer Wilde." She flicked her tail as she strutted to the center of the set, swaying her hips enticingly as she did so.
Nick stood there in astonishment for a long while, watching with a similarly dumbfounded expression as the singer left him. He could not believe that had actually worked.
Nicholas Wilde, what have you gotten yourself into…
