(A/N) OMG you guys, I really need some sleep. XD

The wait was a little longer than I'd hoped, but I have been working on several different projects over the last few weeks and it took me a while to get back to this one. Once I did, though, it went really fast!

Also, this story is now on AO3 as well!

Thanks to Zephyr Fyrian for proofreading again, and I hope you guys enjoy the chapter!


The coming weeks felt very strange to Judy. Since going to sit with the other two foxes on the first day back to school, Nick had started to seem more and more distant as time went on. At first, he continued to sit with Judy and her friends and hung out mostly with them, but he was noticeably quieter. Judy had tried to ask him a few times if there was anything wrong, but he had avoided the question so far.

"Are you sure you're alright?" she had asked. "You seem quieter lately."

"No, I'm fine," he insisted. "Honestly, don't worry about me."

And she almost would have been able to believe that answer, if it hadn't been for what happened next. Following his change in attitude, Nick soon started hanging out with Trevor and Vanessa more and more often. Even when he was sitting with Judy, she would notice him occasionally staring wistfully at the table in the corner occupied by the other two foxes, as if desperately wishing he was there.

Finally, an entire week went by in which Nick sat at the other table every day, and Judy started to worry. So, when school started back the Monday after that, she was prepared to bring her concerns to the rest of her friends at lunchtime.

Sitting down at the table with Sharla, Mark, and Clara, Judy spoke up.

"Ok, so I've been avoiding talking about this," she said, "but has anyone else noticed Nick hasn't talked to us in a week?"

"I was thinking that too!" Sharla exclaimed. "I thought you would know what that was about."

"He's been hanging out with Trevor and Vanessa, hasn't he?" Clara said.

"Yeah," Judy confirmed. "And I'm worried that if we don't say something to him, he's just going to become part of their group. And I still…I don't trust them."

"You can't tell him that," Mark said. "He wants to hang out with them because he feels left out being the only predator in our group."

"But why did he have to pick…them?!" Judy said. "I mean…did you see how they treated that deer that Nick bumped into?"

"Well…the guy was kind of a jerk," Mark pointed out.

"Trevor made it sound like he was going to eat him!" Sharla exclaimed. "No matter what the guy said, that doesn't make it right to—"

"Look," Mark interrupted, "I'm not saying they're super nice mammals or anything, but have any of us actually seen them start a fight? It sounds to me like they're just using whatever they can to get other mammals to stop bothering them."

Judy sighed. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Mark was technically right. There was no doubt in her mind that Trevor and Vanessa were capable of antagonizing innocent prey for no reason, but she currently had no proof of this. For now, at least, it seemed they were just going to have to deal with Nick hanging out with the other foxes, and hope he would come back around sooner or later.


On the first day of spring break, Judy awoke early and got ready before any of the other bunnies in her room so much as opened their eyes. She hurried out of the room, hopping excitedly, anticipating what was to come.

Bonnie was in the kitchen, trying to fix breakfast for a bunch of Judy's siblings, so she decided not to interrupt. Instead, she headed outside to wait there, where it was less busy and she could more easily clear her mind.

The weather outside was starting to warm up and trees and grass were just beginning to turn green again, but Judy didn't pay much attention to this as she was too busy thinking about today. She had invited several of her friends to come over and spend the day, and she was excited to see them all.

Luckily, it wasn't long before Sharla and Clara arrived, and both seemed equally enthusiastic about spending the day at the Hopps' farm.

"So, do you think they're coming?" Sharla asked.

"Mark said he would be here for sure," Clara answered. "Judy, did Nick say he was coming, or…?"

"I…I hope so," Judy replied. "He said he wasn't sure if he was coming or not. But I'm sure he'll be here; he's spent so much time with the other foxes I'm sure it won't matter if he misses one day, right?"

Sharla and Clara both looked hesitantly optimistic, which didn't reassure Judy very much. Regardless, she tried her best to maintain her positive attitude. Besides, if Nick didn't come, there was nothing she could do about it anyway.

After waiting several more minutes, Mark arrived and came to join the others. Judy insisted they continue waiting for Nick, but after almost half an hour had passed, she realized he wasn't coming.

"Let's just…let's just go inside," Judy said, defeated.

Her friends following her back inside the house, Judy led them back to the room she shared with several of her siblings. Sharla, Clara, and Mark tried to cheer her up, coming up with all kinds of games for them to play that Judy normally would have found very entertaining…but nothing was going to make her feel better today. Try as she might, she couldn't stop thinking about Nick, and worrying that his absence wasn't just a phase anymore.

A few hours went by during which Judy's friends mostly played with Mallory and a few of Judy's other siblings, until Sharla finally decided they should just call it a day.

As Judy followed her friends back outside to say goodbye to them, she almost thought she was feeling fine. But as she stood there outside, looking around at the beautiful spring weather and feeling the gentle breeze, her thoughts drifted back in time to the Carrot Days festival, to when Nick had first stood up for her…and she couldn't take it. She squeezed her eyes shut tight to hold in the tears, but they were already streaming down her face.

"Judy?" Sharla said, turning back to face her. "Judy! Are you ok?"

Judy slowly opened her eyes and looked up at her friend, the tears obscuring her vision. Both Sharla and Clara were right next to her, looking at her sympathetically. Mark looked stunned, like he wasn't quite sure what to do.

"I…" Judy started, her voice breaking. "I just…"

"It's ok, Judy," Sharla said gently, pulling the bunny into a hug. "I'm sorry today didn't go like you wanted it to."

"What if he doesn't come back?" Judy blurted out, more tears filling her eyes. "He was one of my best friends and I don't want him to leave! Why…why doesn't he talk to me anymore…? Did…did I do something wrong…?"

She had to stop talking and just let the tears come, as her voice was starting to get choked up. Not wanting to stand, she knelt down on the ground and cried, closing her eyes as Sharla and Clara embraced her. A few seconds later, Mark joined in the group hug too.

Judy and her friends stayed that way for a long time, giving the little bunny all the time she needed to work through her emotions. She couldn't remember how long she cried, but she felt exhausted and numb when it was over. Sniffling a little and wiping the last of the tears from her eyes, Judy stood up, and the rest of her friends did the same.

"Thank you…" Judy said softly. "All of you. I…I'm so glad you're all my friends."

Sharla smiled.

"I'll never stop being your friend, Judy," she replied. "And…I don't think you did anything wrong. You're a great friend to Nick."

"Maybe he just needs some time," Clara suggested.

"Yeah," Judy said, trying to feel optimistic. "Yeah, you're probably right. I was worrying too much…"

"It's ok, Judy; we're here for you," Sharla said.

"Mark is too, but he doesn't know what to say," Clara added.

Mark nodded, confirming her words.

"Aw, you don't have to say anything," Judy replied, walking up to the other bunny and hugging him. "I know you care."

"Mm-hmm," Mark said.

Judy proceeded to hug both Sharla and Clara once more as well, and the four friends sat in silence for a while as they waited for their parents to arrive. Soon enough, the parents of all three arrived to take them home, and Judy waved goodbye before heading back inside the burrow where she hoped to distract herself from the emotional day.

"I miss you so much, Nick," she thought. "I know you need to be with your own kind too, but please…please don't stop being my friend."


As the weeks went on, Nick continued to spend almost all of his free time hanging out with Trevor and Vanessa, and Judy slowly started to get used to his absence. For a while, it felt really wrong to not have him there, but after some time had passed it just started to feel more or less normal. Judy tried to stop worrying about whether or not Nick was coming back; all she knew for sure was that he wasn't here now, and as far as she knew he was perfectly fine with that.

March turned into April, and soon April turned into May, and all hopes of Nick coming back were pushed far to the back of Judy's mind, as his return seemed more and more unlikely with every passing day. Before too long, Samantha and June started sitting with Judy and her other friends at lunch again, and though Judy was glad to see her other friends again, it did feel like the final sign that Nick really wasn't coming back. She knew it was no coincidence that Samantha had deemed it safe to sit with them after Nick had been gone for months, and it reminded her that as much as she might still be hoping for the fox to return, everyone else had accepted that he had moved on.

Finally, on the last week of school, Judy decided she needed to talk to Nick, if only to know for sure that he really wasn't coming back. It was the end of fifth grade, the last week they would ever walk through these halls as students, and it seemed like as good a time as any to talk to her friend before summer and their eventual transition to a new school. A time was ending, and if her friendship with Nick was ending too, it might as well be now.

"You guys go on ahead and sit down," Judy said to her friends in the cafeteria. "I'll be there in just a minute."

Her friends giving her confused looks, Judy hurried across the room to the table where Nick sat with Trevor and Vanessa, trying to mentally prepare herself for what might happen. She knew there was nothing she could do if Nick decided he didn't want to be friends anymore, but the thought scared her regardless. This felt like her last chance to hold onto their friendship, and she didn't want to mess it up.

"Um…Nick?" she said timidly as she approached the table.

All three foxes stopped talking and turned to her, causing Judy to freeze. Trevor and Vanessa both had disdainful looks on their faces, or at least that's how they looked to Judy. Nick just looked surprised to see her.

"Hi, Judy," Nick said. "Why…why are you here?"

Judy started to speak, but she was unnerved by the other two foxes watching her. Her heart rate started to increase and she was panicking.

"You have to say something, Judy!" she screamed internally. "This is your chance! Don't pay attention to those two; just talk to your friend!"

"Are you going to talk, or are you just going to stand there looking scared?" Vanessa asked, chuckling.

"She's not going to talk," Trevor laughed. "She's too afraid we'll eat her if she says something wrong."

Both Trevor and Vanessa had a laugh at this, and Judy clenched her fists in outrage, furious enough to scream at the two foxes but still too nervous to open her mouth. Nick glanced between Judy and the other foxes, looking incredibly uncomfortable.

"Hey…" he finally said calmly, holding up his paws. "Look, it's not her fault she's scared. Let me just—"

"I am not scared!" Judy blurted out, her anger finally overcoming her fear.

Trevor and Vanessa laughed again, looking at Judy like an ancient predator would have a prey they were about to eat. Almost instinctively, Judy felt herself freeze up again, as if some part of her was telling her it wasn't a good idea to bother with these mammals.

"Hey, you guys," Nick said nervously. "Can you please not scare her like that? Judy's my friend."

Those words warmed Judy's heart; at least, if nothing else, she knew that Nick still viewed her as a friend. She would have been smug about how annoyed Trevor and Vanessa looked after Nick's reprimand, but she was too busy focusing on just how good it felt to hear her friend still stand up for her like that.

"I'll be right back," Nick said, getting up from the table. "I'm just going to go see what she wants, ok? I'm sure it won't take long."

He left the table and led Judy over to a quiet corner of the cafeteria, where they were out of the way of other students and wouldn't have to risk being overheard. Both kits were silent for a few awkward moments, before Nick broke the silence.

"So…what is it you wanted to talk to me about?" he asked.

"I…" Judy started, hesitating. "I just wanted to know…why do you never…? Am I not your friend anymore, Nick? I never see you anymore and I…"

She had to stop herself before she started crying again, but judging from Nick's sympathetic expression he understood what she was trying to say. He put a paw on her shoulder, and Judy realized it had been a long time since he had comforted her this way. Looking into his green eyes—which despite his calm expression looked just as fierce as ever—she was reminded of how much time had passed since they first met. Was Nick still the same kit who had stood up for her two years ago? Or were those days finally coming to a close?

"Judy…" Nick said softly. "I'm sorry I haven't seen you a lot lately. You are still my friend and you'll always be my friend, but I…I'm a predator, and I just don't feel like I fit in with all of your friends right now."

Judy closed her eyes tightly, determined not to cry. Once she was confident she'd held back the tears, she looked Nick in the eyes again.

"But you fit in with Trevor and Vanessa, right?" she said, her tone a little more accusative than she had intended.

"Look, I'm sorry for the way they treated you," Nick replied. "I've tried to explain to them that we're friends, but they don't really understand."

"Do they treat all prey like that?" Judy asked.

"Yeah…" Nick sighed. "I don't really like it, but—"

"But you still hang out with them anyway, don't you?" Judy said harshly.

"You still hang out with that bunny who hates predators!" Nick shot back, anger creeping into his tone now too. "I'm sure I'd have to cover my snout when I talk, to hide my fangs, if I came back to sit with you guys now! Why can't you understand I need this?"

"Need what?" Judy demanded. "Need to scare helpless prey just so you can feel like a 'real' predator? I thought you were different than them, Nick!"

"Who is this 'them' you're referring to, huh?" Nick challenged. "And since when do you call yourself a helpless prey? I thought you hated being looked at that way."

"Y-you're missing the point!" Judy replied angrily.

"Doesn't look that way to me," Nick said. "I think I understand perfectly. And by the way, I wasn't planning on staying away forever, but I'm not sure I want to come back and sit with you after this."

He turned to walk away, back towards the table with Trevor and Vanessa.

"Nick, wait!" Judy pleaded, following after him.

"Just leave me alone!" Nick shouted back.

Judy stopped and stood there, watching as her friend walked away and doing her best not to cry. Telling herself she could worry about it later, she made herself turn around and go back to the table where the rest of her friends were waiting for her.

"Don't ask me about it," she said as she took her seat.

"O-ok," Sharla replied.

Her friends shared concerned glances, but didn't press her any further. They could tell that whatever had happened, Judy did not want to be forced to relive it right now.


Judy had expected the end of her time in elementary school to be a bittersweet experience, but instead it just felt disappointing. It was almost as if it hadn't happened at all; the years had come to an end and that was all there was to it. She wasn't reliving all the memories she'd made there, and she wasn't eagerly looking forward to the future either. She was simply tired, tired of thinking about Nick and their conversation, tired of trying to understand why he had changed so much, tired of not having a moment to let her emotions calm down.

Thankfully, with a long summer ahead before the beginning of sixth grade, Judy figured she would get her chance to relax and take a break from all of her school drama, to just be herself again and not have to feel stressed about anything.

A few weeks into the summer, Judy found herself walking outside around the farm, trying to clear her head and get some time to herself. It was so hard to think inside the crowded burrow, especially during summer when all of her siblings were home and more energetic than ever.

While Judy was walking, she came across her older siblings Peter and Chloe, both of whom seemed to have had the same idea about going for a walk to get some space to think. They were both talking and laughing; they seemed so carefree and Judy immediately wanted to join them.

"…and then she said she thinks he's lying about the whole thing, so I don't know who to believe anymore," Chloe was saying as Judy ran up to join them.

"Chloe, I barely understood a word of that," Peter laughed. "How do you keep all this stuff in your head?"

"Hi, guys!" Judy said.

"Oh, hi, Judy!" Chloe replied. "Did you want to walk with us? Peter and I are just complaining about obnoxious mammals at school."

"Sure," Judy said.

"You know, Judy, I haven't seen you that much lately," Peter noted. "You're keeping to yourself a lot now, kind of like Chloe used to when she—"

"Shut up!" Chloe interrupted, laughing nervously. "You do plenty of your own weird things, you know…"

"I've never stolen any of my siblings' homework and then proceeded to lose it, though," Peter said.

"That was over a year ago!" Chloe replied. "And I'm still mad you got rid of it…"

"It was homework, Chloe!" Peter laughed. "I gave it to my teacher, like I was supposed to do, which I would have done sooner if someone hadn't lost it."

"What are you guys talking about?" Judy asked curiously.

She had always liked the way Peter and Chloe argued with each other while still getting along and having a good time; it was definitely something she couldn't do with James. Plus, she needed something to take her mind off Nick, and this seemed as good a topic as any.

"Do you remember when Peter wrote that history paper on the war that he wouldn't let me read?" Chloe asked.

"Yeah, I think I remember you saying that a while ago," Judy confirmed.

"Did she ever tell you about the part where she snuck into my room and took the paper, and then lost it under her bed so I had to turn it in two weeks late?" Peter added, eliciting further nervous laughing from Chloe.

"No…I don't remember that part," Judy laughed.

"I still wish I could skip a few more grades so I could hurry up and take that class," Chloe lamented.

"You'll be bored for a lot of it, though," Peter said. "It isn't all just about predators; there's a lot of other history you'd probably sleep through."

"Hey, Chloe?" Judy asked, a thought having just occurred to her.

"Yeah?" Chloe said.

"Why are you so interested in predators, anyway?" Judy asked.

"I…they're just…cool," Chloe answered, sounding a little nervous. "I don't really know how else to explain it. But you already know that, since you're friends with a fox."

"Yeah…" Judy said. "Actually, Nick isn't really…we're not talking to each other right now…"

"What?" Chloe exclaimed. "Why not? Weren't you guys like, best friends or something? What happened? I noticed he hadn't come over in a while, but I thought that—"

"Chloe, slow down and let your sister explain," Peter said, shaking his head.

Chloe glared at him, but shut up nonetheless.

"Well…" Judy started hesitantly. "Several months ago, Nick met these other two foxes who invited him to sit with them, and he started hanging out with them a lot more. But, they're also not very nice to prey, so I went to talk to him about them and—"

"'Not nice' how, exactly?" Chloe interrupted curiously.

"Well, I mean, sometimes they try to scare prey by acting like they're going to eat them or something," Judy said. "So I—"

"Wait, really?" Chloe asked. "Like, what kind of stuff did they say exactly? They didn't, like, actually threaten to eat someone, did they?"

"Well, no," Judy admitted. "But they've definitely used their predator traits to scare prey. Like, when I went up to the table to talk to Nick—"

"What do they do exactly?" Chloe pressed. "Do you ever hear them snarl? Do they bare their fangs—?"

"Chloe!" Judy exclaimed, while Peter was quietly laughing and shaking his head. "Do you actually want to hear what happened, or are you just going to keep asking me about Nick's new friends?"

"Oh!" Chloe said, looking embarrassed. "I'm…sorry; I got a bit…carried away. Anyway, you can continue. I'll try to shut up now. Peter, if you don't quit laughing, I'm going to pull your ears off!"

This, interestingly enough, only caused Peter to laugh even harder, while Chloe glared at him. Judy wondered if Peter knew something more about Chloe's interest in predators that she didn't, since it seemed to be something of an inside joke among them. But, she didn't want to ask either of them about it right now, what with everything else going on.

"You can carry on, Judy," Peter said, once he'd finally stopped laughing.

"Yeah, and for your brother's sake you'd better talk for a long time, because I'm going to kill him once you get done," Chloe added.

"Well, the thing is…" Judy started, trying to remember her place. "I went to ask Nick if there was a reason that he didn't want to sit with us anymore, and he said…he said he wanted to hang out with his own kind…"

"Wait, did he say you weren't good enough for him because you're a bunny?" Chloe asked, starting to sound angry. "If he did, I'll go over to his house right now and—"

"No, that's not it!" Judy corrected. "It's just…he said he didn't fit in with me and my friends because we're all prey and he's the only predator."

"I guess that would get to be lonely," Chloe said thoughtfully. "He probably worries about scaring you when he's with you and all your other friends. It might be hard for him to really be himself… It's not your fault, though."

"That's almost exactly what Nick said!" Judy exclaimed. "But I don't understand! Why should it be so hard for him to be himself around us just because he's a predator? It's not like you have to act…well, predatory, just because you're a predator."

"Did you ever think that maybe he wants to, though?" Chloe suggested.

"What does that mean?" Judy demanded, starting to feel a little frustrated. "Nick is a nice kit; he wouldn't want to scare prey or hurt them or—"

"Why do you assume he has to be aggressive to other mammals in order to be, as you call it, 'predatory'?" Chloe asked. "Look, I don't know him that well, so I could be wrong, but…maybe he just wants to be able to growl and show off his fangs and all that without prey telling him he's too 'scary' or whatever."

"Wh-what…?" Judy said, now feeling even more confused. "Why would he need to growl? Are you assuming he has anger problems or something?"

"No, but…here, look," Chloe explained. "Telling a predator kit he can't ever snarl and has to keep his fangs hidden all the time would be like telling a bunny kit not to jump. And you've seen how well that works when Mom tries it."

"I…I guess so…" Judy replied uncertainly. "But it just seems so…aggressive."

"That's how it seems to prey because our instincts tell us to be afraid of those things," Chloe said. "Or something like that. Anyway, the point is that he probably feels like he can't do any of that around you because he's trying not to scare you. Especially after what happened with Gideon Grey, and that little incident you had the first time he—oops! I wasn't supposed to say anything, was I? Peter, if you repeat any of this, I'll bury you alive."

"I've already gotten so many death threats from you I've lost count," Peter said. "And I won't tell anyone what you're talking about, but I really have no idea what it is anyway, so you shouldn't need to worry."

"You're right you don't know what it is," Chloe said threateningly.

"It doesn't matter if anyone knows about that accident now," Judy said. "That was two whole years ago. Besides, Nick isn't talking to me now anyway, so I don't…"

She stopped, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

"I will not cry this time!" she thought furiously.

"Judy, are you alright?" Chloe asked, concern in her voice. "Hey, come here, little sis."

Chloe bent down and pulled Judy into a hug, embracing her younger sister tightly as she started to cry again. A few seconds passed and Judy pulled herself together again, wiping the tears away. She was so tired of being an emotional little bunny; she was supposed to be strong and confident, but the tears seemed to come every time she thought about Nick.

"I just wish he was still my friend," Judy said, her voice still a little choked up. "But even if what you say is true, the other foxes he was hanging out with were really mean to other kits for no reason!"

"Maybe Nick feels like he doesn't have anywhere else to go," Chloe suggested. "You just need to let him feel comfortable being himself around you, and then he won't need to hang out with those jerks."

"I guess…" Judy said. "But I doubt he's going to want to listen to anything I have to say now!"

"Just…give it time, then," Chloe replied. "Maybe by the time school starts back, you'll both have cooled off a bit. Look, I've been in a lot of stupid fights with my friends, so you're not alone in this. You and Nick were really close, so I'm sure he'll come around eventually. But…until then, maybe you just need to think about something else for a while."

"Yeah…you're right," Judy agreed. "Thanks a lot, Chloe."

Chloe smiled.

"Hey, that's what you're totally awesome big sister is here for," she said. "Now, since we've gotten that all worked out…who's on board to go eat some blueberries?"

"Oh, no, not again," Peter muttered.

"I like that plan, Chloe!" Judy replied.


(A/N) LOL Mark is definitely me. I never know what to do when someone is crying. :'(

What did you guys think of the chapter? Let me know!

Also, HAPPY ASEXUAL AWARENESS WEEK TO ALL OF MY FELLOW ACES OUT THERE! (if any of you are reading this lol)