Judy sat on the couch in the piano room wearing the second date dress Fru-Fru had sent her. A light pink dress that, according to Nick, was the same shade of pink as her 'cute' little nose and the inside of her ears. Touching her pink, twitching nose, Judy grinned as she couldn't complain anymore about Nick calling her, or any part of her cute. She'd heard it so often, she almost expected it at this point, and, as Nick pointed out earlier, he never called her cute to put her down or dismiss her as other mammals did, but as a rabbit buck would call his beautiful doe—cute meaning hot and sexy on the adorable side.
With a pleased smile while remembering Nick's awe and appreciation of her gorgeous body after helping her into her dress, Judy smoothed her dress with one paw. The material had a soft, velvety feel to it and was covered in little pink roses just a shade darker than the dress itself, which meant that depending on the way the light hit it, the roses would disappear and then reappear again as she moved. Nick said the disappearing roses added to the feeling of her being a fairy princess.
With her smile widening as butterflies danced around in her belly, Judy waited for Nick to finish loading their dinner into the gyro before he finished dressing. She couldn't wait for their second date to start, especially as they were now engaged. Lifting her paw to admire once more her green, heart-shaped 'diamond' ring, Judy giggled while remembering her sisters' ecstatic response to the photos she'd sent them of her engagement ring and then sent a text about what their second date would entail. Jannette and Janelle had immediately MuzzleTimed her to get the juicy details, which Judy was happy to divulge. They were happy for her and were wanting all the more to meet Nick, their future brother-in-law, on Sunday morning.
Pulling her phone out, Judy looked at the time again while wondering how much longer it was going to be before Nick came for her. She couldn't wait to get this second date started.
-/-/-
Nick slipped into his weight/music room to grab his guitar, but then paused at seeing his portable karaoke machine stashed in the corner. Although he planned to play and sing for Judy, he also wanted to involve her more in the date which meant the karaoke machine might be best for tonight. Then Judy could sing, too, and he was highly interested in hearing what songs reminded her of him.
Grabbing the box the machine sat in, Nick carried it out to the gyro, then went back to the music room and started rooting through the closet. Finally finding the box he was after, one that was full of different costume accessories—hats, glasses, vests, etc.—Nick carried it out to the gyro, too. He already had a song in mind that he could use the accessories with. With the box safely stowed away on the floor of the backseat, Nick then went for the ice chest that held their dinner and their drinks. Once it was stowed, Nick went for the ceramic casserole dish that held their hot, cheesy broccoli. Lastly, he went and got dressed.
Coming back into the piano room as he finished tying his purple tie, Nick gave Judy a wide grin as he looked over his fiancé's stunning body in that cute pink dress she was currently wearing. He still couldn't get over the fact she was his fiancé. Rolling the word around in his head, he realized why so many other mammals got engaged weeks or months prior to the wedding. It really did have a strong sense of permanence that 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend' didn't have. "Are you ready?"
With a bright smile, Judy's eyes roved down Nick's lean body. He was wearing black slacks and a white button-up shirt with a silver vest that matched the silvery hue of her grey fur. His sharp clothes matched her fur coloring quite well, and coupled with the purple tie which matched her eyes, he complimented her perfectly. He had also scrubbed and brushed his fur till it shined. And seeing his tail swaying gently behind him, she just wanted to wrap herself up in its fluffy softness. Raising her eyes to meet his stunning emeralds, she replied, "When am I not?"
Nick leaned down and planted a warm kiss on his fiancé's lips, then picked her up bridal style and carried her into his room and towards the balcony. Pausing with his paw on the door handle, he glanced at his bed, then down at his fiancé as he just remembered he hadn't told her where she'd be sleeping tonight in order to avoid the predators arriving first thing in the morning.
As Judy looked up in question, Nick flicked his ear and said, "Um, I don't suppose you'd have a problem with sharing my bed tonight, would you?"
Judy's ears immediately perked forward, and then a sly, heated smile crossed her face, even as she slipped her paws up behind Nick's ears to play with the thick fur she found there. "I thought you wanted to wait until after we met the parents."
Nick's ears splayed to the side and he took a deep breath while trying to ignore the heated images her words suddenly brought to mind. With a raised eyebrow, he said, "Not like that." Leaning down to boop her nose, he explained, "Since we're having a bunch of jobless predators showing up in the morning, it would be better if they didn't know you were here." Pulling back to meet her vibrant amethysts that now darkened with guilt, Nick caressed her cheek with his nose and muzzle while saying, "So I need to hide my sweet-smelling, incredible fiancé in my room tonight and tomorrow morning so no one will be the wiser that she's here."
"Hmmm," Judy hummed as she tilted her head back, giving Nick access to her neck. Pushing the guilt down that was trying to bubble up, she focused on the emotions Nick was awakening in her as he dragged his nose down her neck and above her jugular vein. Shivering under the sensual touch, Judy murmured, "So it'll be like a snuggle party?"
"Something like that," he murmured back and then he flicked his tongue across her skin that hid the blood pulsing within. Breathing deeply of her intoxicating scent, Nick hated the idea of having to purify the air in his house of her earthy, lavender scent. Drawing back from her neck, Nick met her heated graze and tried to push his own desire back down. Taking another deep breath, he said, "Anyway, I just wanted to give you a heads up, so you're not surprised when I drag you to my bed tonight."
Sliding her paws from Nick's ears and down to his chest and over his silver, silky vest, she gave him a warm smile that couldn't hide the hunger in her eyes. Nick was a strong male who knew exactly how to set her skin ablaze with desire. She had never met a male like him before, and the fact they were now engaged made it harder to keep her paws off him. He was a mystery she had to explore, a grand adventure just waiting to be experienced.
Judy knew basic canid anatomy from the sex education class she had to take in high school. There were enough predators in Bunnyburrow, even back then, that they briefly covered feline, canid, and stoat anatomy (they were the main predators in town). But seeing a diagram on paper couldn't compare to the real thing, so she was curious to see what her fox was like. Of course, that thought had a fiery blush crawling up her ears, but the idea wouldn't go away. And knowing she and Nick were now engaged, that he had pledged himself to her, made her want discover him all the more. "I look forward to it," she murmured while pushing her own desires back down—or at least trying to. Nick was a hot fox and trying to keep her thoughts platonic was impossible. But knowing she was to meet Vivian tomorrow evening and her parents on Sunday morning did help a little bit. She just hoped Vivian would give her a chance.
With a grin, Nick laughed at her cute, sultry look as he opened the balcony door and stepped outside. "Come on, we have our second date to enjoy."
With a wider smile, Judy ran her paws across his chest, then nodded, saying, "Yes, yes we do."
With a shared chuckle, Nick closed and locked the door behind him, then carried Judy down to Suzie-Q and set her in the seat. Once she was comfortably sitting, he hurried around to his side and climbed in. Hitting the switch on 3 buttons in the roof, Nick started the video recording devices Honey had installed when Suzy-Q was built to record their flights. There were two cameras built into the short wings on either side of the gyro, and a third one built into the nose that shared a feed with a camera that recorded the cockpit. With as much as there was to see from the air, he knew Judy would miss something, so he wanted to be sure she could watch it all later. Starting the engine, the back propeller spun to life and the gyrocopter began moving forward. Nick steered it around to the back fence as there wasn't much wind for a quick takeoff.
Judy watched as Nick steered Suzy-Q to the back fence where a large, electric gate was situated. After pushing another button in the roof that opened the large gate, she turned towards Nick as he steered the gyro through it. With a teasing grin, she asked, "I thought we were doing a tour of Zootopia by air, not a ground tour of the Meadowlands."
Nick chuckled, then explained how gyrocopters, also known as gyroplanes, didn't have an engine attached to the rotors on the top of the gyro, but that they autorotated due to windspeed passing over them. The propeller at the back pushed them forward until the rotors were rotating fast enough for liftoff, similar to an airplane. But unlike an airplane, gyros were much safer. Even if the engine to the propeller were to be cut or stalled, the gyro wouldn't crash because the airflow over and around the rotors would keep them aloft and give them a soft gentle descent as they would basically be gliding.
"Really?" Judy asked, intrigued. At Nick's nod as they exited the gate and entered a flat grassy meadow that made for an impromptu runway, Judy then asked, "If we can't get a plane to your cabin due to a lack of a runway, how does a gyrocopter prove a better option?"
Nick gave her a cheeky grin and then replied, "A gyro doesn't require much of a runway for liftoff or landing, especially if the winds are blowing. If there wasn't any wind, you'll need a bit more of a runway but not much. And on the few times we might need a longer runway, we have the perfect terrain back at the cabin."
With a raised eyebrow even as warning bells sounded in her head, she asked, "And what is that supposed to mean?" She couldn't forget Nick saying the terrain at the cabin was rough with lots of large rocks and boulders—the perfect recipe for disaster.
With a wider, mischievous grin, Nick answered, "I don't know if I should tell you. I think the experience will be a hundred times better if you experience it firsthand." With a flick of his tail at her death glare, he added, "You know, a real Kodak moment." Laughing as Judy thumped him in the shoulder, he increased the speed of the propeller and enjoyed how the rotors were spinning at high speed which would give them liftoff in less than a minute.
"Nick, I'm not stepping anywhere near a mountain in this contraption until you tell me how we're landing and taking off once we get there."
Her death glare, with her brows narrowed and her nose twitching, was so cute Nick couldn't help leaning over to steal a heated kiss, which effectively shut his fiancé up. Breaking off the kiss, he watched her cute expression a moment longer. The annoyance had melted from her face and Nick watched his honeybun lick her top lip as a touch of hunger entered her bright amethyst gaze.
Grinning, Nick let his gaze travel down her exquisite body framed by her stunning dress. Stealing one last, quick kiss, he finally took pity on her and said, "There's no runway in the traditional sense, but there is a nice gentle slope near the cabin that ends in a . . . cliff." As Judy's jaw dropped, he added, "Landing at the base of the slope and riding up it slows the gyro down really fast which makes for a fast, safe landing."
Judy's ears drooped at Nick's explanation, then she asked, "And the take off?" She really didn't want to know. Although she wasn't afraid of heights, and as a small kit, she'd even dreamed of flying, but crashing into some rocky boulders or going up in a ball of smoke and flames at the base of a cliff had never been a dream of hers.
Nick flicked his ears as his tail flopped over in her lap. As she grabbed it with a death grip, he grinned at her and pointed to the ceiling and the rapidly spinning rotors. "Windspeed, remember. Once we run out of land, the wind is there to catch us and keep us aloft."
"You have got to be kidding me," Judy muttered. With a slack jaw, she stared at her fiancé as if he was deranged. Nick was serious about driving Suzie-Q off a freakin' cliff!
Leaning over to steal a softer kiss, Nick then said, "Relax. There's no way to crash this machine unless I deliberately run it into something, or I pull back too far and run the rotors into the ground at takeoff or landing. As long as the rotors are free to spin, then driving a gyrocopter off a cliff will not crash it. Trust me." Before Judy could comment further, Nick pulled back on the steering stick and Suzy-Q became airborne.
At the sudden sensation of leaving the ground, Judy took a deep breath, then quickly leaned over and excitedly looked out the window. As they zoomed over the grassy meadow while gaining altitude, Judy couldn't keep the sparkle of wonder out of her eyes. Glancing briefly at Nick who was watching her with a happy, dopey grin, she leaned over and pulled him into a short, heated kiss. Releasing him so he could fly the gyro, Judy sat back and said, "This is wonderful, Nick, thanks."
With a radiant smile of his own, Nick replied, "It only gets better from here." Judy giggled, then went back to looking out the large window that made up the bulk of the door. This was even more spectacular than she had first imagined. She had always wanted to fly but didn't think she would ever get the chance. Flying wasn't cheap, nor did Bunnyburrow have an airfield. There was a small airstrip outside Elk Meadows a few towns over, but they mostly dealt with crop dusters.
What sparked Judy's interest though, is when her best friend Sharla had flown on a plane when they were kits (Sharla's family had flown down south for a large family reunion when she was six and Judy was five). Upon her return, Sharla had told Judy all about the flight and what it was like to be up in the clouds (Sharla had a window seat). Judy had wanted to fly for herself ever since but had never had the opportunity. But here she was, sitting high above the ground as they flew up towards the clouds. It was even better than how Sharla described it. Of course, having a panoramic view of the world around her as she literally sat in the cock pit certainly helped. The dashing fox pilot beside her certainly added to the flight's charm.
Glancing over at Nick as he began the tour, Judy couldn't help but smile. Her foxy fiancé was an excellent pilot and a very knowledgeable guide as he talked about the land and places they flew over. She could sit and listen to Nick talk all day long . . . well, at least when he wasn't trying to annoy the carrots out of her. But when he was being charming like he was right now, she could easily spend all day listening and talking to him.
For the first part of the tour, Nick flew Judy over the Meadowlands with its spectacular view of its verdant meadows, woodlands, and rolling hills. Judy was over the moon to be able to see everything from a bird's eye view. Everything looked so tiny! The trees looked like bushy grass and the buildings and vehicles she saw looked like they were owned by ants! But it was beautiful all the same, especially seeing the sunlight reflect off the streams and rivers of the Meadowlands as they meandered through the forests and grassy plains before emptying into one of the many small lakes that dotted the area.
After showing Judy the forests and grasslands of the district he called home, Nick finished the Meadowlands' tour by doing a flyby of the Bird Sanctuary. Killing the engine to the propeller as they flew over allowed the gyro to slow down so Judy could take in the multitude of birds flocking around the wetlands. Stately storks, egrets, herons, and pink flamingos, along with red and blue footed boobies. There were sandpipers, gulls, and terns roaming the shores. Blackbirds and many colorful songbirds flitted about the tall marsh grasses or perched atop the tall cattails swaying gently in the breeze.
And, of course, there were ducks, geese, and loons. Hundreds of them: wood ducks, mallard ducks, bufflehead ducks, white ducks, black ducks, white geese, Canadian geese, greylag geese, common loons, the yellow-billed loon, the pacific loon, and many, many others she'd never even seen or heard of before. It was an amazing sight, and as Nick had cut the engine to the propeller, the gyrocopter was virtually silent with the exception of the spinning of the rotors as they soared over the land which prevented them from scaring the majority of the birds.
As they continued flying over the wetlands, Judy finally spotted the swans she had been looking for. The trumpet swans were beautiful and elegant and quite noisy with their loud trumpeting call. The mute swans, easily distinguished from the slightly larger trumpet swans by their orange and black beaks (trumpeter swans had black beaks), were much quieter and sedate as they swam quietly through the water. And of course, there were the regal black swans which had been imported from Pawstralia decades ago. They were beautiful and sleek and really popped out against their white counterparts.
Watching them with wonder shining in her amethyst eyes, Judy couldn't get enough of them. It made her impatient for her leg to heal so Nick could take her on safari by land or boat through the wetlands so she could see the birds at a closer distance. While studying the swans, she noticed a fourth breed she was unfamiliar with and which looked like a hybrid between one of the white species and the black swan, for it had a white body and a black neck and head. Pointing to several swimming with several young cygnets, Judy asked, "Nick, what are those black and white swans? They're not hybrids are they?" As they were wild birds, Judy didn't think so.
Nick looked to where she was pointing, then grinned as he answered, "No, those are the black-necked swans of South Animalia. They're actually closely related to both the mute swan and the black swan, so I guess you can say that in the historical past, they're a hybrid of the two." With a shrug, he added, "They're also pretty quiet like the mute swan, so mistaking them as a hybrid is understandable."
Judy nodded, then went back to watching the various birds swim, dive, fly, or scurry along the muddy banks and beaches of the wetlands. It was an impressive sight, made even more impressive by getting a bird's eye view of everything. Turning to look at Nick, she asked, "Once my leg heals, you'll bring me back for a ground tour, right?"
With a wide smile, Nick replied, "Of course. I already promised you a tour of the Bird Sanctuary and I always keep my promises."
With a smile full of happiness and love, Judy leaned over and kissed Nick softly, then, not being satisfied with just that, she leaned further over and gave him a deeper kiss. Pulling back after a moment and licking her lips, she said, "I love you, Nick."
Meeting her loving smile with one of his own, he said, "I love you more."
Judy giggled as she reached over and caressed her fiancé's cheek. "I don't think that's possible." At his raised eyebrow, she clarified, "As much as I love you, it's hard to think anyone could love more than I love you."
Nick chuckled as he reached over and caressed one of her ears, then ran his claw down her cheek to her chin. "Well, now you're just being sappy."
With a smile as she ran her fingers through the fur along his jawline, she said, "Maybe, but it's true." Glancing out the window to make sure they weren't going to be flying into a flock of birds, she then pulled Nick back into a slow, sensual kiss.
Gripping the steering stick tightly with his left paw, Nick kept the gyro flying steady out of pure instincts rather than any conscious thought as he slipped his right paw across Judy's cheek and rested his fingers below and behind her ear. Pulling her further into his seat, Nick tasted deeply of her as their tongues did a slow, sensual dance together.
As they finally pulled back for some air, Nick teased, "You want us to crash, don't you?"
With a sly smile, Judy replied, "I thought you said you couldn't crash in this machine."
"Yes, but we're getting awfully close to the ground and ploughing through one of these bird's nesting grounds or crash landing on the water and sinking isn't how I imagined our night going."
Judy immediately released Nick to sit back in her seat, even as she glanced out the window. Although they were still a good distance above the ground, they were definitely much closer to it than they were before. "Right," Judy mumbled as her ears and nose turned a dark shade of pink, "no crashing the gyro on our second date."
Nick chuckled while giving her a teasing smile, then turned to look back out the front windshield. Reaching forward to flip the engine back on, the silence was shattered by Judy's phone ringing.
Digging it out of the little pink purse she had brought with her, Judy groaned to see it was her parents. After talking to her dad earlier this morning, she had forgotten to call back and now she was regretting that little oversight.
"Let me gain some altitude, then you can call back and talk without the motor drowning out your words," Nick said. At her nod, he flipped the switch that engaged the propeller in the back of the gyro, and they shot forward. Pulling back on the steering stick to pull the gyro's nose up, they quickly gained the necessary altitude to safely disengage the engine again.
As the motor's roar died down, Judy took a deep breath and punched the call button for her parents' number. Pasting on another fake smile, she fervently prayed that it was her mom calling and not her dad because there was no way they could pass this off as anything but what it was—a date.
But as the call connected, the face Judy saw was her mom's. With a relieved grin, she said, "Hi, Mom."
"Hi, Bun-bun. Is everything okay?" Bonnie wasn't too worried when her daughter didn't immediately answer. Seeing as she was now dating Nick, she could think of several reasons why her daughter might be slow in answering the phone.
"Yeah," Judy answered. "Everything's super-duper." At her mom's raised eyebrow at her odd phrase, Judy explained, "We just needed to gain some altitude so Nick could cut the engine again, otherwise it would have been too loud to hear each other."
Bonnie's ears dropped at her daughter's confusing words. "What are you talking about, Bun-bun?" It was obvious from the little she saw through the phone that Judy was sitting in the seat of some vehicle, but what did she mean 'altitude' and 'cutting the engine'?
"Well, Mom, Nick and I are on our second date and we are currently flying over the Meadowlands Bird Sanctuary." Turning the phone around and pointing it out the window and angling it down a bit, she gave her mom a view of the large variety of birds swimming or skimming over the water below.
With a gasp as she clapped a paw over her mouth, Bonnie exclaimed, "You're flying!"
With a happy hum, Judy turned her phone back around so she could look at her mom. "Yep, we're hundreds of feet in the air," she replied excitedly.
Bonnie's ears drooped again and her jaw went slack. "You're in a plane? Is it safe? You said you cut the engine."
A hearty laugh from the side had Judy looking at Nick, and as he began speaking, she moved the phone so her mom could see him, too.
"Don't worry, Bonnie, it's extremely safe." Waving to Bonny as Judy twisted the phone around, he then explained, "We're in a gyrocopter, not a plane, and cutting the engine will not cause us to fall." Waving towards the window, he added, "As you can clearly see."
Judy moved the phone to look out the front windshield, then turned it back to Nick as he said, "I've been flying for a decade now, and I have the flight path of all the other planes and copters in the sky and the Air Traffic Control has my flight path, so there's no worries about running into anyone else."
"Well, okay, if you say so," Bonnie murmured. Taking a better look at Nick's clothes, she then added, "You clean up well, Nick. You look really nice."
With a grin, Nick replied, "Not as nice as your daughter. Judy is exquisite in her pink, rosy dress." Reaching over to take the phone, he panned it around to show off Judy in her velvety pink dress with the little vanishing roses.
"Oh, my, Judy, you look stunning." With a wide smile, Bonnie added, "I don't think I've ever seen you look so beautiful. No one will call you a tomboy again if they catch you wearing that dress."
Judy's ears heated up again, but she beamed brightly all the same. "Thanks, Mom." Looking down to run her paw over the skirt of the dress, she said, "I don't feel like a tomboy when I'm wearing it." With a soft, happy giggle, she glanced coyly at Nick and said, "Nick makes me feel like a fairy princess."
Bonnie's gaze softened at seeing her daughter's happiness at being with Nick, along with the lengths he was going to show Judy just how special she was. Flying! He was taking her little Bun-bun flying! And while wearing such a romantic, beautiful dress! Her little tryer really did luck out when she caught Nick. A lawyer and a pilot! And by this time next year, he'll be her partner on the police force—a cop. It really showed just how committed Nick was to her little Bun-bun. And with how radiant she looked as she glowed with happiness told Bonnie that Judy was safe in Nick's large paws.
Interrupting his soon-to-be mother-in-law, Nick said, "She is a fairy princess and she is constantly dazzling me with her wit, beauty, and charm." With a wink at Judy, he added, "Her magical powers are immense and I am left helpless and at her mercy."
"Ni-ick!" Judy laughed as she smacked his leg (he was still holding the phone so Bonnie could see her better).
"Well," Bonnie said as she continued watching Judy's coy smile as Nick teased her. "I can see you're enjoying yourself, so I'll go and let you two enjoy your date."
"We will, Mom, and if you want to see some pictures of our date last night, Janelle and Janette have a few." Judy's smile was bright as she waved goodbye to her mom.
Turning the phone around to look at himself, Nick said, "Goodbye, Bonnie. Judy will call you in the morning. I have a few things going on, so Judy will have lots of time to fill."
"Okay, Nick. Have a good evening and take good care of my little girl."
"Oh, I will. Take care." Nick pawed the phone back over to Judy as Bonnie cut the call. After Judy took the phone, he reached forward and reengaged the engine and they shot forward once more. With a grin, he glanced at Judy and asked, "When are you going to tell her we're engaged?"
Judy shrugged as she put her phone away and then glanced at her engagement ring. Wriggling her fingers and watching the way the light played across the large heart-shaped 'diamond', Judy replied, "Probably this Sunday when she comes to visit."
With a flick of his ear, Nick asked, "Do you think she'll say we're moving too fast?"
Judy leaned back in her seat in thought for a moment, then said, "Maybe, but I don't think she'll complain too much. She knows that once I make a decision, I don't change it."
Nick nodded, then reached over and took Judy's paw. With a light squeeze, he flashed her a brilliant smile and said, "You ready to see the Rainforest District? It's even more spectacular than the Meadowlands."
Judy squeezed his paw back and nodded eagerly. "I'm always ready to do anything with you."
Leaning forward, Nick stole another quick kiss, then looked forward while steering the gyro down his flight path towards the mist-enshrouded cliffs and deep valleys of the Rainforest District.
-/-/-
Bonnie sat in her grandmother's rocker for a moment after getting off the phone with Judy and Nick. She had taken a few minutes to herself and escaped into her room to call her daughter and find out how her date with Nick had gone the night before. By the looks of it, it went well considering they were already on their second date. And flying! When Judy was really little, she always talked about wanting to fly. She would watch the songbirds and chase the butterflies while imagining herself flying. Of course, that was before she decided to become a big city cop and make the world a better place. But with Nick, it looks like Judy finally fulfilled her kithood dream to fly.
With a happy hum that her little Bun-bun would no longer be alone, Bonnie relaxed back into the rocking chair and began rocking as she glanced over the various family pictures that were hanging on the wall. The walls of the room weren't big enough to put up pictures of their whole family (that was what the walls in the great room were for), but in here, Bonny and Stu had hung pictures of their parents, grandparents, and so forth, along with pictures of their littermates.
Seeing the pictures reminded Bonnie and Stu of the hard work and struggles their ancestors went through to give their children and grandchildren what they had, and motivated Bonnie and Stu to live up to the legacy they inherited. Looking at the various rabbits that stood or sat in the photos, Bonnie wondered what legacy Judy and Nick would be leaving their kits (Bonnie was sure Judy would want to adopt at some point). Their legacy would have to be something amazing considering what their parents had already accomplished in saving Zootopia from a deranged ewe who was terrorizing the city.
With a smile, Bonnie tried to imagine what heights Judy and Nick could reach as they continued supporting and working together. With a bright smile while imagining the possibilities, she clapped her paws together in excitement, then stood up and went in search of Janelle and Janette to see some pictures of her little girl, all grownup and on a date with her future husband. Bonnie knew that if Judy was already on the second date with Nick, then it was mighty serious. Judy had always turned her nose up at dates, seeing as the bucks were never worth her time and attention. But now, she was on her second date—two nights in a row—with her handsome fox boyfriend!
With a skip in her step, she left her room. Humming as she went, she wondered where Janelle and Janette might be at this time of day.
-/-/-
After touring the Rainforest District and seeing many of the tropical birds that flocked there (birds of paradise, the rare quetzal bird, colorful parrots, and even a big-billed toucan) and the many rainbows that danced among the mist shrouding the large trees and massive cliffs of the district, Nick then flew over Savannah Central and pointed out the ZPD Precinct 1 building. Judy was impressed with it and realized only now just how big it was. She also wasn't aware that the roof was covered in green grasses and several small trees. Nick informed her that every year, on the first day of spring and the first day of Autumn, the ZPD always held a large barbeque on its roof and had several different types of skill competitions. Not that he ever had the pleasure of attending, but the news always did a little cover story on it.
Judy was excited about attending the fall picnic and asked if Nick would accompany her. Since the Academy didn't start until November 1st and the picnic would be held near the end of September, Nick of course said yes. There was no way he was going to let Judy go there alone if he had a choice. Who knew who might show up to stare at her tail and make a swipe at her ears? Nick could just imagine all the bucks trying to get into the ZPD after Judy's conference on Wednesday.
After the flyby over the ZPD, Nick flew over and showed Judy a large fountain that marked the spot where the first prey and predators came together to set the groundworks of the village that would become Zootopia, a place where predator and prey set aside their differences and worked together for the betterment of all.
Judy was excited, and Nick promised to take her there in person once her leg healed enough to walk. With another date planned, Nick then took Judy in and out of the massive skyscrapers of downtown. Judy sat in awe of the gigantic buildings and interesting architecture. Seeing the downtown from the ground, and from a distance at that, didn't come close to showing off the majesty and scale of the downtown area and its massive buildings that reached up into the clouds. It was truly awe-inspiring.
As they left the downtown area, they flew over Sahara Square and its sweeping vista of shifting sand dunes and shimmering heat waves. It was a spectacular view in its own right, and then they flew past the Palm Springs hotel that was built sky-high and in the shape and color of a massive palm tree. It was quite the feat of engineering and Judy happily listened as Nick told her about its construction, the events that were held there, as well as many of the movie stars, singers, and business tycoons who stayed there or owned a suite on one of the upper floors. Gazelle herself was rumored to own a large suite near the very top of the hotel.
Moving on, Nick took Judy flying over the Canyonlands with its austere beauty and tall, sandstone cliffs and deep gorges. Judy couldn't imagine how hot it must be down there, and yet she couldn't deny its stunning beauty.
After leaving the heat and sun of Sahara Square they flew towards the arctic regions of Tundratown. Nick didn't fly through the heart of Tundratown as the winds could be brutal and cause a white out (the strong winds itself would hardly be felt in a gyro due to its auto-rotating blades). Instead, he skirted the edge along the coast to show Judy the winter wonderland that she had only glimpsed from the ground.
Flying around the northern tip of Tundratown, Nick then returned to the Meadowlands. Stopping at one of the small airfields, he topped off his gas tank, then took off again, heading to a little out of the way spot with a spectacular view of the sunset. After landing, Nick gave Judy a brilliant smile, saying, "Are you ready for dinner?"
WingedKatt here. I hoped you enjoyed the chapter. And surprise, I'm dropping two chapters this week so you don't have to wait for the second half of their date. So you don't have to wait, you can go straight into enjoying the next chapter.
For those of you who are now interested in gyrocopters and haven't yet watched the video I suggested a couple of chapters back, here's how to find it again: Top Gear for Gyros 2-Gyroplanes Explained. It's a 15-minute YouTube video and explains how a gryrocopter/gyroplane works and how safe they are.
Ch. 70: Second Date-Karaoke, should be up.
I hope you have a great weekend. Let me know if you have any thoughts or questions.
