Back at Nick's and Judy's place, Vivian sat on the couch with Cotton in her lap as the little bunny played a game on her phone. Janelle and Amy had brought the little bun downstairs when they realized Judy had been injured—again—and when they found out why, Judy's sisters busted up laughing at their sister's bone-headed move. Sitting on the couch with Judy's legs on his lap, Nick laughed too, as he agreed with Amy and Janelle—Judy really had made a bone-headed move to the detriment of them both.
While catching her breath after her hearty laughter, Amy glanced down and noticed the fresh blood stain on the rug and offered to clean it, to which Janelle offered to help, too. Nick was grateful for their help knowing it was easier to get blood out of fabrics the fresher it was. Between the scuffles he got into as a teen, to the fights he got into while working for Mr. Big, and everything in between, Nick had his fair share of dealing with blood on clothes and other fabrics. After explaining where the cleaning supplies were, the two girls got to work scrubbing the blood from the beautiful, braided rug with its browns, tans, and dark greens that covered the thick rug.
Looking up from Judy's sisters, Vivian studied her son and his mate. Although the scent-neutralizing plug-ins her son was using were doing a good job of airing out the living room, there was no hiding from her nose what her son and his bunny had been up to before their infamous fall over the coffee table (Vivian had every intention of retelling the story to her grandkits years from now). Since her vulpine nose was almost as sharp as a wolf's, she knew the two lovebirds had done a lot more than kissing when they didn't come up for lunch.
Smelling that the two were having a harder and harder time holding back, Vivian knew that Nicky and Judy weren't going to make it past tonight before signing the marriage papers and Nick claimed his bunny. Looking down at the sweet little doe in her lap, Vivian wondered if Cotton might become a hiccup in their plans. Seeing how excited the little bunny was at the idea of spending time with her new foxy 'uncle' and 'gramma', Vivian figured the adorable kit would want to spend the whole evening with Nick and Judy once they returned home from their dinner with Daphyd. But if Nick and Judy had any hope of getting any sleep tonight, the earlier they signed the papers the better it would be for them.
This meant that Vivian might have to help out her son and his bunny with their plans tonight, so they went as smoothly as possible. After waiting so long for her son to find someone whom he loved and respected enough to imprint on, Vivian wouldn't be much of a mother if she didn't help clear any roadblocks that might stand in the way of him claiming his mate.
Lightly scratching Cotton's head, the young kit glanced up and beamed at Vivian with a wide, buck-toothed grin. Dipping her muzzle down, Vivian asked Cotton if she would sit with her Aunt Judy while she and Nick cleaned up the food out on the deck. Cotton readily agreed (her tummy was still a bit full), so Vivian stood up and asked Nick to accompany her upstairs to clean up after lunch.
Nick didn't argue as he sensed his mom wanted to talk to him. Standing up, he took Cotton from his mother's arms and set the little bun on the couch beside Judy. Cotton immediately showed Judy the game she was playing, and Judy gave her niece her undivided attention. Smiling at Judy and her sisters, Nick followed his mom up to the deck.
Grabbing two plates, Nick started loading them up with food for his and Judy's lunch while waiting for his mom to talk. Seeing as she had been teasing them earlier about having kits of their own, he didn't think she would question him about his and Judy's activities before Judy thoughtlessly (but joyfully) knocked them both to the floor. He was still irritated at his honeybun for her careless move, but figured if he was in her place, and Judy stated that she would claim him as her mate, he probably would have done the same thing.
As Vivian began gathering up the leftovers and bringing them to the counter to be bagged up and put in the fridge, she asked her son, "From what I was smelling in the living room, I take it you and Judy will be signing your marriage papers tonight."
Nick paused in putting food on his plate, then flicked his ear in agreement, even as he said, "Honestly, Mom, I'd prefer signing the marriage papers and claiming Judy this afternoon." At his mom's sharp glance, he explained, "If we're having dinner with Daphyd this evening, I'd like to go ahead and hand him the papers tonight so he can file our marriage first thing in the morning. That way I don't have to worry about forgetting them in the morning or something happening to them while they're sitting in Daphyd's office if I hand them over after court starts tomorrow."
Vivian thought about it a moment, then had to nod. What her son said made perfect sense and with how their instincts were pulling them together, the sooner Nick claimed Judy, the better.
While fixing Judy's plate, Nick shook his head as his tail swayed behind him. "The only problem is our guests. I know Amy is going fishing with Finnick in a little bit, but Janelle and Cotton are still here. Ignoring them to pack my mate up to my room and claim her isn't something a good host does—especially with little Cotton in the house." With a flick of his ear as his tail continued to swish behind him, Nick tried not to think about what he wanted to do with Judy once he got her alone in his room later.
Watching her son trying to juggle his overwhelming, instinctive need to be with his mate with his need to be a good host, brother-in-law, and uncle, Vivian had to smile. Her son had finally grown up into a handsome, responsible todd.
Setting the plate down, Nick planted his palms on the table and glanced at his mom, asking, "Was it this way with Dad? Was his scent like a drug to you?" Raking his claws through his head-fur, Nick continued, saying, "Whenever I smell Judy's heady, intoxicating excitement as her scent turns sweet as honey, it clouds my mind as my body responds in kind and my heart starts to race. And when she runs her questing fingers through my fur, when I taste her mouth-watering kisses, and feel her velvety-soft fur between my fingers and her smooth skin beneath my claws—I just want to drown in everything that is Judy."
Dropping his paw back to the table, Nick stared sightlessly at the plates before him, lost in thought. "I can't get enough of her and trying to hold onto a coherent thought becomes nearly impossible." Glancing at his mom again, Nick exclaimed, "I've never had to struggle with my self-control like I do when I'm holding and kissing Judy!" Flicking his paw through the air, Nick exclaimed, "Mom, Judy is a rabbit! I shouldn't get this aroused by my ancient food source!" Shaking his head again, he asked, "How long does this last? How long before I feel…" Nick waved a paw through the air, "normal again?"
With a soft chuckle, Vivian put down the dirty plates she was carrying, then stepped over to her son and pulled him into a hug. "Oh, son," she murmured with a warm, knowing smile. "You never really feel normal again. You're a red fox todd with a mate now—rabbit or not. These strong feelings and emotions you're experiencing now are your new 'normal'." Rubbing his back briefly, she then took a step back to look at him. Her little todd, her little Nicky, had finally grown up!
Resting her paws on his shoulders, Vivian said, "This overwhelming need to be with Judy feels so out of control right now because you have fully imprinted on your mate, but you haven't claimed her yet. Once you've claimed Judy and she is truly yours, then your instincts will calm down and you'll feel more in control, I promise." Squeezing his shoulders briefly, she added with a knowing smirk, "Trust me, going through the claiming ritual and spending the three days together solidifying the bond will work wonders on your anxious mind."
With a flick of his ear, Nick murmured, "I really hope you're right, because Judy has to go back to work in another couple of weeks and I need to be able to put my mask back on when I go to pick her up or drop her off." With a groan, Nick's ears canted sideways as he dropped his head on his mom's shoulder. "And I don't even want to think about Wednesday when we have to stand up in front of all those cameras."
Reaching up, Vivian rubbed her son's head, saying, "Well, if you claim Judy this afternoon, then with any luck, your instinctive need to be with her should calm down for the both of you by the time you need to worry about dealing with the media jerks."
Nick nodded against his mother's shoulder, but then lifted his head, turning slightly to meet her sky-blue gaze as he asked, "But what about Cotton and Janelle?"
With a wide grin, Vivian answered, "Let me worry about them." Smoothing down Nick's head fur, she added, "And I think I'll invite all the girls over to the apartment loft with me tonight so we can have a girls' slumber party. We can pop popcorn and watch a movie, then maybe put a blanket out on the lawn and stargaze for a while. What do you think?" It had been a long time since Vivian had a chance to spend such quality time with her kits, and although Amy, Janelle, and Cotton weren't her kits by birth, she already saw them as part of her family—especially dear, sweet little Cotton. Being her new 'Gramma Viv' was going to be so much fun!
Nick's ears perked up and his bushy tail started wagging. "That would help out so much, Mom." Pulling her into a tight hug, he murmured, "Thanks, Mom, for everything. For coming down and accepting Judy, and for helping me get through this crazy time in my life." Taking a deep breath, Nick added, "Thanks for always being there for me, Mom. You have no idea what that has meant to me, even when I was being the world's worst son."
Vivian chuckled as she hugged her son back. "You're welcome, Nicky, and I'm happy you finally figured out how much you need your old mom."
Returning her chuckle, Nick said, "You're not that old, Mom, and yes, I certainly need you." Giving her one last squeeze, he stepped back to see her bright smile.
"Now come on, let's get this cleaned up. You and Judy still need to eat before the doctor gets here, otherwise you won't have the energy to perform properly." With a teasing smile, she added, "You don't want to run out of steam before you've fully satisfied your bunny, now do you?"
The inside of Nick's ears turned red. Stepping back from his mom, Nick cleared his throat, saying, "Shall we get this mess cleaned up?"
With a laugh, Vivian turned back to the mess on the table, even as Nick finished fixing his and Judy's veggie burgers before helping his mom clear the table and put the extra food away. Once everything was done, Vivian opened the door for Nick to take his and Judy's plates downstairs, then carried the bag of trash down to the garbage can by the side of the house. Walking through the front door, Vivian saw Nick and Judy stuffing their faces while Cotton sat between them happily chatting while playing her game.
Amy and Janelle had also finished cleaning the blood up off the living room rug and were sitting on the small couch talking about the wedding. Vivian smiled as she joined them. With only a few responses from Nick and Judy about their suggestions, they enjoyed their time until the doctor arrived with Nick and Judy having finished eating with just enough time for Nick to clear their plates and answer the door.
As Nick invited the leopard doctor in with his deer nurse in tow, Vivian's jaw went slack. With Judy being a small prey mammal, she assumed her doctor would also be a prey mammal with an equally dull sense of smell as a rabbit—not a large cat with a sniffer almost as good a canid's! How were they to hide Nick and Judy's relationship from a feline when they were making out on the couch?!
Stepping into the fox's house, Leland was surprised by how spacious it was. Being a fox's home, he had assumed he would need to slouch or hunch over upon entering the house, but other than ducking down slightly to get through the front door, the large feline didn't need to bend down at all once he was inside the house. Curious about how the fox landed such a nice, big place (and in such a pleasant, affluent neighborhood, at that!), Leland followed Nick over to the couch where Judy was sitting next to a very young, white rabbit doe.
Seeing such a young rabbit in the company of a fox and looking happy about it surprised Leland, but he was glad to see it. It meant there was hope for Zootopia yet, especially as there were two more rabbit does sitting next to an older vixen. Leland assumed the rabbit does were part of Judy's family while the vixen looked like she might be Nick's mom. This made the leopard even more curious about Nick and Judy's relationship seeing as their families were getting along remarkably well.
Stepping in behind Leland, Kimberly had a similar thought (and questions!) that her boss and boyfriend had. There were two foxes and four bunnies in the same room and no one was bothered by it. This is something Kimberly wished she could see more of.
Stepping up to the couch, Nick scooped Cotton up in his arms (which had her squealing in delight) and carried her over to the chair by the window and sat down with the little bun in his lap. This gave Leland room to sit on the couch with Judy so he could check on her leg. The moment he sat down, though, had Vivian's ears flicking back as she watched the larger predator breathing in several deep breaths which caused his eyes to widen in pure shock.
When Leland first came into the room, Judy's and Nick's scents were strong in the room, but thanks to the neutralizing, fresh-linen scented plugins Nick had strategically placed around the house, the tawny leopard didn't realize there was more to their scent until he sat down on the couch. But the scent of 'excited bunny' and 'excited fox' mingling together on the couch left him with only one conclusion.
With his eyes widening as his jaw went slack, he stared dumbfounded at Judy, who glanced quizzically at him due to his odd expression, then Leland's gaze shifted to Nick sitting across the room.
Nick watched the doctor's comical expression, but didn't find anything funny about it. Slapping a paw over his face, Nick groaned, saying, "I knew we were forgetting something, Carrots."
Glancing at her mate, Judy gave him the same quizzical expression. Tilting her head slightly, Judy raised her brow as she silently asked him to elaborate. Nick simply tapped his nose, then pointed to the doctor, then down at the couch she sat on. It only took Judy a split-second to realize what he was getting at. With a groan, her face and ears turned a flaming red as Judy grabbed her ears and hid behind them as she slumped down into the couch cushion. "Sweet cheese and crackers," she muttered, "this is more embarrassing than when your mom was teasing us earlier."
As the other 3 bunnies in the room, along with the deer nurse, were looking between them in confusion, Nick sat up a little straighter (careful not to dislodge the kit in his lap) and spoke up again as he pointed to Judy, saying, "See, Fluff, this is why you need to think before you leap so this doesn't become an issue. Literally, think before you leap."
"Ni-ick!" Judy whined. "I know, I know. How many times do you need to bring it up?"
With a cocky grin, Nick answered while listing the reasons off with his fingers. "When my shoulders…ribs…and lower back stop hurting I might stop…maybe." With a flick of his paw, he added, "I'll have to think about it." Since he was still hurting because of Judy's thoughtless move, he wasn't going to stop teasing his beautiful honeybun any time soon.
With another groan while still hiding behind her ears, Judy mumbled under her breath, "Dumb, irritating fox."
As Nick laughed at her response, Janelle finally had enough of being left in the dark and exclaimed, "What are you guys talking about?"
Nick merely met Janelle's frustrated gaze with a confident, smug one of his own, but he didn't reply. Instead, he folded his arms and turned his deep, emerald gaze on his fiancé.
Judy refused to meet her sister's gaze as she tugged her bright red ears further down over her face as she muttered, "Nothing… Nothing you need to worry about."
Janelle snorted at her sister's lame response, even as Amy sat with her paw raised to hide her wide, knowing smile. Although she wasn't sure exactly how far the two went, after what she heard in the shower this morning, Amy could just imagine the trouble the two had gotten into earlier before Judy popped her stitches knocking them both to the ground. The fact Vivian was sitting beside her with her face in her paw and shaking her head in exasperation only strengthened Amy's hunch that Nick and Judy had gotten up to a lot more than just kissing!
Seeing Nick's smug grin, Judy's embarrassment, Amy's knowing look, and Vivian's exasperated look, it finally clicked in Janelle's head on what the leopard was obviously smelling. With a roll of her eyes, Janelle said, "Geez, you two, what were you up to earlier before Judy flipped you both over the coffee table?"
Kimberly caught on about the same time Janelle did, though she hardly let herself believe Judy and Nick's relationship had already progressed to that point, even as Cotton kept looking back and forth between all the adults in confusion. "What?" she finally asked. "What did Uncle Nick and Aunt Judy do before Aunty Judy made them both fall?" Being the curious little bunny that she was, Cotton was extremely interested to learn what the adults were talking about. And why was Aunty Judy all red? What was she so embarrassed about?
Janelle shook her head, saying, "Just adult stuff, nothing for you to worry about."
"Ahh," Cotton whined. She hated it when the adults used that line on her. This or when they told her she would understand when she got older. She hated that line, too.
Jumping off the couch, Janelle walked over to Cotton and held her paw out, saying, "Let's go out back and look at the flowers. There's these huge flowers growing behind the garage that are as big as you are."
Cotton's ears perked forward and her eyes started to sparkle. "Really?"
With a warm laugh, Janelle replied, "Yes, really. They're not only big, but very pretty, too."
"Okay!" Taking Janelle's paw, Cotton slid down from Nick's lap and hopped over to Vivian to hand her the phone she had been playing on. After Vivian put her phone in her pocket, Cotton held her paw out to the older vixen and said, "Come on, Gramma Viv, you have to come see the pretty flowers, too."
Vivian's heart melted as she took the little bun's tiny white paw and let her pull her from the couch. "I would love to join you, Cotton." As the little bunny led her from the living room, Vivian was bound and determined to convince one of her boys to adopt the sweet little doe. Either Nick or Finnick just had to adopt the two little bunnies. If one of them did, she might even consider moving back to Zootopia so she could spoil Cotton and her sister rotten.
Amy considered going with Janelle, Cotton, and Vivian to the backyard, but she was curious to see how this would play out, so she decided to stay. What would Judy's predator doctor and his prey nurse think of the odd couple? Grabbing the couch pillow and hugging it as she rested her chin on it, Amy waited for the drama to unfold.
Leland pointed a finger between Nick and Judy for several heartbeats, then stopped his finger and gaze on Nick as he asked, "You two are mated?" This realization had him completely stumped. As a doctor while studying different species, he had learned that red foxes mated for life and weren't ones to mess around before taking a mate, but weren't Nick and Judy moving too fast?
Then again, Leland considered, going by how he acted around Kimberly after their dates, and the instinctive urges he had around her (wanting to lick and nibble her ears and neck, the desire to hold her close and run his claws through her fur, kissing her senseless and losing all track of time…), Leland considered maybe the two small mammals weren't moving too fast after all. Maybe he was moving too slow? How soon would Kimberly want to become his mate? Would she want to be mates with a predator? Dating—yes. But mates? Dating was a temporary arrangement, but being mates was permanent. Is that what Kimberly wanted from their relationship in the long-term?
Leland wasn't sure, but he didn't think Kimberly would reject him going by the way she kissed him and left herself so vulnerable and open to him—she fell asleep leaning up against his chest during their first date, for crying out loud! After he brought her home from a nice, sit down dinner at an exclusive restaurant, they curled up on her couch to share a glass of wine when she fell asleep against him after only taking a sip! Yes, they had been working long, stressful hours at work, but still, what female prey just falls asleep using a predator's chest as her pillow? Other than the rabbit doe in front of him, that is? He couldn't forget Kimberly telling him how she caught Judy sleeping against Nick's chest when she walked in to give them the discharge papers.
As much as it stroked his male ego to see how much trust Kimberly had in him, Leland was so glad she didn't show such a vulnerable side to anyone else. He had absolutely no ill intentions towards her, but being a doctor at Zootopia General, Leland had heard and seen his fair share of rape victims come through their emergency room doors after hanging out with the wrong guy. But seeing how much faith and trust Kimberly already showed him, Leland didn't think it would take her long to be comfortable with the idea of being his mate, provided she did, indeed, want a permanent relationship with him. But how soon was too soon to ask?
Nick flicked his ear, then shrugged with his arms still crossed. "We will be soon enough." (This answer surprised Leland as he was sure, going by their mingled scents, that Nick had already claimed Judy.)
A wide smile spread across Kimberly's lips at Nick's answer, even as she covered her mouth in happiness. If she was prone to squealing, she would have. Looking between the two, she asked, "So, you two are already a couple with plans to become mates?" Since she had just started dating Leland, Kimberly wondered how long it would be before they could consider becoming mates? Would Leland want to take her, a deer doe, as his mate? She truly hoped so. And if so, Kimberly hoped it wouldn't take Leland long to decide he wanted her in such a permanent way since she had been crushing on him for years.
Nick was too surprised by their ready acceptance of his relationship with Judy to say anything, even as Judy peeked between her ears to see their reaction. Noticing that both her doctor and nurse were sporting warm smiles, she asked, "You guys aren't disgusted that I'm…I'm in a relationship with a fox?"
With a light chuckle, Leland said, "Not at all." Holding his paw out to Kimberly, he added, "Seeing how close the two of you were on Tuesday gave my Kimberly the courage to ask me out on a date." As Kimberly stepped up and took Leland's large paw in her much smaller hoof, Leland explained, "One of the reasons we decided to do a home visit today was to thank you and to see if the two of you weren't possibly a couple yourselves."
Nodding warmly, Kimberly said, "If you were a couple, we wanted to ask if you would be open to double dating?" Meeting Leland's golden gaze, she murmured, "Leland and I have been on two amazing dates already with a third one planned this evening, but there are several date ideas we have that would be better if there was another couple with us."
Nick and Judy's ears immediately perked up. "Really?" Judy asked excitedly. "Nick has taken me on two incredible dates as well!" With her ears straight up and her nose twitching in happiness, she added, "We'd love to do double dates with you two, wouldn't we, Nick!?"
As Judy turned her liquid pools of amethyst on him, Nick finally found his voice. With a warm smile of his own, he said, "Yes, yes, we would. I'll be entering the police academy this fall and will be Judy's partner next spring, but since I'm a fox and she's a bunny, we want to keep our relationship under the media radar until I graduate, so it would be an immense help to us if we could double date with you two."
Leland and Kimberly were both surprised to hear Nick would also become a cop, but were happy and excited for him, too. In their opinion, the city could use more small mammals on the force, especially ones who worked so well together and happened to be prey and predator. The city was boasted as the place where predator and prey could live in harmony with each other, but how could that be when so many things divided them and where pred and prey partners (on the job or in life) were typically looked down on? Kimberly and Leland both hoped that Nick and Judy being partners on the force could change a lot of opinions in the city about how preds and prey could (and should!) be acting towards each other—as trusted equals.
After expressing their congratulations to Nick, Leland got to work re-cleaning Judy's wound and removing the stitch that was barely hanging on, then he poked and prodded the torn tissue to see the extent of the damage. He said the muscle seemed to be healing nicely and it was just the tissue and skin directly around the stitches that seemed to be torn, but it wasn't anything too serious.
Not wanting to restitch the torn skin, Leland re-shaved the newly growing fur and then applied butterfly band-aids to the skin to keep it together. Seeing as the rest of the stitches were meant to come out tomorrow morning, and the skin and tissue were healing nicely, Leland went ahead and removed them, too, to save the couple a trip to the hospital.
After applying a few more butterfly band-aids to replace the stitches he just took out, Leland said the butterfly band-aids he used to replace the good stitches could be removed tomorrow evening, while the ones he used to replace Judy's popped stitches should be left on until Wednesday. He also told them to keep the bandage wrapped around Judy's injury on till Wednesday, as well, just to ensure the leg finished healing properly and that the butterfly band-aids didn't pop off, either.
After Judy and Nick agreed to his treatment plan, Leland rewrapped Judy's leg and put his supplies back in his black doctor's bag. Once everything was put away, the four of them exchanged numbers, with Kimberly once again expressing how happy she was to know that while being prey, she wasn't alone in her love of a predator. Grabbing Judy's paw, the two felt an instant connection to each other.
They then sat and talked about some date ideas. Once Judy's leg healed, they discussed going dancing—Nick knew a few ballroom and swing dancing joints they could go to, while Kimberly knew of a karaoke place where they could rent a room, order food and drinks, and sing without anyone else bothering them. Nick and Judy immediately warmed up to that idea as they had enjoyed their last karaoke date immensely.
Nick also suggested going to some of the big shows at the large hotels downtown, such as the Tournament of Kings at Excalibur Hotel, Paranormal Mind Reading Magic at Bally's (Nick knew Judy would be a skeptic but assured her it was still really cool to watch while trying guess how he does it), and Penn and Teller at Rio's which was a magic, redirection, and comedy show that was really fun to watch.
Kimberly suggested attending Terry Fator's ventriloquist show at the Mirage. Some of her friends had attended it last year and really enjoyed it, so she had been wanting to see it herself. Leland, on the other paw, suggested they see the Blue Manx Group at the Luxor as their music show was out of this world. He had also enjoyed Le Reve~The Dream at the Wynn Hotel with the group's synchronized swimming mixed with their incredible acrobatics. He had also seen the Illusionist at the Palm Springs Hotel.
Speaking up from the small couch, Amy suggested going to one of the huge waterparks that was here in Zootopia or maybe visiting Sea World and watching the dolphins and orcas perform. Although she was a mechanics geek who loved the jeep rallies, Amy also really loved water and had always wanted to go to Sea World and see the shows the dolphins, orcas, and seals put on and meeting with the performers afterwards. This dream wasn't as big a dream as her dream to be part of the jeep rallies, but it was something she had wanted to do since she was a child after some of her grandparents had told her of the time they had been able to go. Since then, it had been on her bucket list, but Amy had never quite found the time to go. If she started dating Finnick, though, she might just get the chance.
Leland and Kimberly turned to the light-tan doe sitting behind them on the small couch in surprise. As they had been focused on the fox and bunny in front of them, they had completely forgotten about the other rabbit in the room. Her suggestions, though, were good ones and Leland and Kimberly suddenly glanced at each other while wondering what the other would look like in a bathing suit.
Realizing they had never introduced their guests to Amy, Nick and Judy remedied that oversight and told Leland and Kimberly that Amy might be joining them on their dates before too long because she was currently pursuing Nick's fox friend, Finnick. The doctor and nurse duo were happy to hear this and wished Amy good luck with a speedy catch. Amy laughed at this analogy as Finnick was taking her fishing this afternoon.
Judy suggested Amy text Finnick now and let him know their parents left early, so if he wanted to spend more time fishing, he could come pick her up early. Amy was excited for the suggestion and immediately pulled her phone out to text her new fox-flame.
While Amy was texting Finn, Judy turned back to Leland and Kimberly, saying, "Just to let you know, Nick and I are engaged, and the wedding is set for this Tuesday evening."
Leland's tail flicked in surprise, even as his black and gold ears perked forward. Kimberly, on the other hoof, had her jaw go slack as her large, tan ears flicked in her surprise. They knew the two were extremely close, but to hear how they were already engaged and will be married in just a few short days—neither had expected this. But looking between the fox and bunny, there was no denying how happy they were.
Seeing the look of bafflement his two new friends were sporting, Nick stood up from his chair and walked over to Judy. Picking her up, he sat down on the couch where his honeybun had been and plopped her down in his lap facing the other two. Wrapping his arms around her middle, Nick pulled her tight against his chest saying, "What can I say? My instincts won't allow me to let her go."
With a bright, buck-toothed smile, Judy reached behind her to caress Nick's cheek. "My instincts won't allow me to let him go, either." With her nose and ears turning a dark pink, she added, "Nick is the first male to make me want to…" She paused as her nose turned bright red and started twitching. "…to breed like a rabbit."
Nuzzling between Judy's ears, Nick murmured, "I'm still waiting for that experience."
Judy hummed into the caress, even as Kimberly and Leland smiled as they congratulated their fellow pred-prey couple, even as they began wondering about the possibility of their own wedding to the wonderful mammal they were now dating.
Up until now, the idea of actually dating had been so far-fetched that actually dating still felt like a dream, so thinking of anything beyond the happiness they felt from spending time together as a new couple hadn't crossed their minds. But hearing of Nick and Judy's wedding that was happening just a few days from now had them both thinking about how it would be to have their own wedding. How would it work? Would their families be happy for them?
Leland thought his parents might be okay with it so long as he was truly happy. He couldn't be sure about his older brother, Wayland, though. How would his brother react to the news that he was dating or marrying a deer? Wayland was completely open to inter-species relationships since he was married to an African golden wolf, but at the same time, his brother wasn't too keen on prey mammals. He found them annoying, even repulsive at times when they showed fear towards him or other predators, so Leland didn't think Wayland would appreciate his younger brother falling for one, even if Kimberly wasn't the timid, fearful type.
Leland's younger sister, Amberly, was another issue altogether. She was forever trying to hook him up with her elite girlfriends (she was married to a high-paid leopard lawyer of a big business firm and had a lot of rich, elite friends in the business world). Leland was forever rejecting the blind dates and ignoring his sister's invitations to parties and get-togethers with her ritzy friends.
But it never failed, whenever Leland came home for the holidays or for a family visit, his sister would always invite at least one girlfriend (usually 2 or 3) over, as well. Leland always found going home tedious for this reason as Amberly's friends always glued themselves to him and he needed to be rescued by his father, mother, or brother. It was a complete pain in the tail and he started resenting his sister for her constant meddling. Why couldn't she take 'no' for an answer!?
Leland didn't want to know how Amberly would react once she found out he was dating a lowly nurse (his sister's words), or worse, that the 'lowly nurse' was a roe deer or that he was suddenly entertaining ideas about marrying the highly intelligent, pretty little doe nurse. He hoped (hoped) his sister wouldn't have a screeching fit, but he wouldn't put it past her, either, as Amberly was a little high-strung (understatement of the year). Leland really didn't understand how her husband put up with her.
While Leland was worrying about how his family would take his relationship with a deer doe, Kimberly was worrying about the same thing, especially as she suddenly had images of her wedding to Leland. Since she, nor her family, were rich, Kimberly didn't want a big, fancy wedding. A small, beautiful, private wedding would suit her just fine, one outside in nature would be perfect. In fact, having the wedding in Leland's huge, beautifully landscaped backyard would make her happy.
But seeing as Leland was such a prominent surgeon at Zootopia General, would he want a small wedding? His whole family was well-off with Leland's brother-in-law making almost as much money as Leland did. Would his family agree to a small, private wedding? Would they even approve? And then there was her own prey family. Would her timid, deer family even feel comfortable attending a wedding with a bunch of large predators? Kimberly doubted it.
Once her family found out she was dating a large predator whose ancestors once hunted mammals similar to their own, Kimberly had no doubt they would try every means possible to convince her to breakup with Leland, never mind the fact that he was such a high-paid, sought-after surgeon who treated her at work with professionalism and respect, and as a princess when they were out on their dates. She really couldn't find another male who would treat her better, but Kimberly didn't believe her family would care much about this fact.
She had two older brothers and two younger sisters, making her the middle-child and oldest daughter, so her family expected a lot from her, especially as she now had the highest paying job among her siblings (thanks to the pay raise she got from Leland). Her parents always told her and her sisters to marry someone rich who could take care of them, but somehow, Kimberly didn't think her parents would remember their own words once they found out Kimberly's 'rich' boyfriend was a leopard.
While worrying about how she was going to break the news to her family (and wondering how long she could go without telling them), Kimberly turned her attention back to Judy, as her new friend continued talking.
Smiling brightly at Kimberly and Leland, Judy invited them to their wedding on Tuesday night (they still needed to finalize the time and place but would let them know once they did). Nick thought of the Tigard and Okapi couple who would (hopefully) be hosting their wedding, and wondered how Landon and Delilah would feel about another couple of mammals learning about their own pred-prey relationship, but since Kimberly and Leland were a pred-prey couple themselves, he didn't think they would mind too much.
After Judy once more promised to text them with the exact time and date once they had it, Leland and Kimberly left for Leland's house to change and get ready for their third date, with Leland and Kimberly both stealing glances and smiles at each other the whole drive to Leland's upscale mansion.
It wasn't long after the happy couple left that Finnick showed up. Knowing he was picking up Amy this afternoon, he had spent all morning cleaning out his van and scrubbing it from top to bottom. He had even changed his bedsheets and washed and put away his laundry. As a finishing touch, he had pulled out Nick's Febreeze Fabric Refresher and sprayed down his seats (he was cleaning out his van over at Nick's bachelor pad). Noticing how his charcoal grey leather seats were looking a bit worn, Finnick decided it was high time he put some seat covers on them.
Running down to the storage room Nick had given him to keep his extra stuff in, Finnick rummaged through several boxes until he found the unopened plastic package that protected a pair of seat covers that fit his van seats. He and Nick had commandeered several boxes from a transport truck that had jack-knifed and spilled its cargo all over the road and bar ditch. The company had salvaged what they could, leaving the heavily damaged boxes to be loaded up and hauled off to the dump.
He and Nick figured that it was a complete waste, and to save perfectly good 'goods' from rotting in the landfill (they were very conscientious of the planet's health), as well as add some green to their wallets, they had snuck in during the chaos and grabbed as many boxes as they could from those that were in the ditch (they left the most heavily damaged boxes but took the partially damaged boxes). The fact it was evening and raining helped in them going unnoticed while commandeering the goods.
Once they got the boxes home, they discovered all the boxes contained vehicle accessories: seat covers, steering wheel covers, floor mats, windshield shades, car fresheners that hung from the rearview mirror… Some of the items had to be trashed after being smashed and ripped when their boxes were damaged, but most of the items were still good as they were fabric or flexible plastic and/or rubber and were packaged in plastic so the rain didn't cause any damage. After taking the few things that interested them, they sold the rest and made more cash than they had in a long while as there was no overhead charge they had to pay out. Talk about easy money!
As it was, Finnick had kept these seat covers with a matching steering wheel cover and floor mats. He liked them because the color scheme matched his van. The set was of a red, yellow, and orange sunset scene on some beach, with black silhouettes of several palm trees loaded with coconuts and with a hammock strung between two of the trees. The hammock was empty and seemed to be waiting for the viewer to climb in and enjoy the evening breeze. Looking out over the ocean, you could see a sailboat in the distance, and unless you looked closely, you completely missed the three sharks circling the small sailboat.
With Finnick's small size, he saw a lot of details larger mammals didn't notice, and even Nick didn't immediately pick up on the sharks. Finnick was already thinking of keeping the seat covers due to the color scheme, but when he saw the sharks circling the boat, he suddenly got a kick out of another's mammal's misfortune (even if the scene was made-up), and immediately hauled them to his storage room. Since it would be a shame to have only one part of a set, Finnick grabbed the steering wheel cover and floor mats, as well.
Finnick had never gotten around to actually using them, and now he was glad. Not that he was trying to impress Amy or anything (that was the farthest thing from his mind—truly it was), but since he had something to make his van look a tad nicer, why not use it? Amy was a classy doe and he didn't want to pick her up in a smelly bachelor pad that was his van—that was it. There was no ulterior motive to him cleaning up his van. No other reason at all.
After putting on the steering wheel cover and slapping down the floor mats, Finnick ran the seat covers through the wash on the quick cycle to remove the creases and the plastic smell, then dried them and put them on. He also changed out the stack of books he usually sat on for a thick memory-foam cushion Nick had acquired for him a few years ago but he had been too lazy to pack the cushion out and switch it for the books (he had gotten used to using the books and didn't see the need to change it). Now he saw a need, so without giving it another thought, the books were thrown in the storage room while the foam cushion with its black cover was now sitting on the driver's seat.
With his van looking and smelling better than it had in years, with the exception of the gray door he and Nick had used to replace the original door after some jerk side-swiped it in a hit and run. The van had been parked on the side of the road while he and Nick were running one of their hustles and came back a couple of hours later to find the damage. To say he was stock-raving mad was an understatement. If Nick hadn't been with him to calm him down, he would have done something stupid that would have landed him in jail or in some ditch.
Trying to investigate the crime proved difficult as there were no working cameras on that street, nor could they find any witnesses to the hit-and-run (this particular street didn't see a lot of foot traffic and there were no windows facing this part of the street). They never did find the culprit, to Finnick's ire. After finding this van door at the junkyard, Nick helped him install it and promised to help him paint it after Finn bought the paint. But every weekend he planned to paint it, something came up and either he couldn't do it or Nick couldn't. After a while, he gave up, thinking he would get to it someday.
Although he didn't have time today, Finnick wondered if Amy wouldn't be willing to help him paint the door before she went back on Thursday. He could offer to help her rebuild her '56 chevy if she helped him with his van. That would be a fair exchange, wouldn't it?
While thinking of the fun it would be to repaint the van door with Amy, Finnick re-entered the warehouse and took a quick shower to wash off all the sweat and grime he acquired while cleaning the van. After finishing, he dressed in his fishing clothes(the nicer set): medium-brown shorts and a dark-green polo shirt with a black racing stripe down the right side. Then he climbed back in his van and headed towards Nick's house.
Not wanting to crash the party, Finn planned to grab a late lunch at Sonjay's while waiting for the family to leave and Amy to call him. He had just pulled into the parking lot when he received Amy's text letting him know he could come early. Finnick wasn't about to pass up the chance to eat free food (the leftovers from the barbeque) and then fishing early with Amy. In his opinion, you could never spend too much time fishing.
Leaving Sonjay's, Finnick drove down the road and turned onto Nick's street just in time to see a large, green sports car down the street pulling out of Nick's driveway. This was a complete shock to him as Amy hadn't said anything about having any guests over besides her parents and siblings—and Finnick knew the carrot-farming, country bunnies hadn't driven over in that expensive sports car—even if they could see over the steering wheel…which they obviously couldn't it being a medium-large mammal vehicle.
As the dark, forest-green sports car drove past, Finnick realized it was a Jaguar F-Type, but the windows were too dark to see who was driving. With a flick of his large, sand-colored ear, Finnick figured he'd find out once he arrived. Pulling into the driveway, Finn cut his engine and hopped out and hurried inside as his curiosity was eating him up.
Stepping inside, Finn smelled Cottontail's blood which made his ears flick back, but as he came around the couch, he saw the lovebirds snuggling together as if they didn't have a care in the world, while Amy was waiting for him on the small couch. She immediately flashed him a bright, buck-toothed smile which he returned before opening his mouth to ask, "Okay, who was the leopard and deer that just left and why do I smell Cottontail's blood?" Although Finn couldn't see who was in the car, the strong scent of male leopard and female deer in the room couldn't be mistaken.
With a giggle, Amy spoke up to answer Finnick's question and took great delight in further embarrassing her happy-go-lucky sister who had the bad habit of leaping before she looked. Finnick was surprised to hear the tale but seeing Judy's bright red ears which she was hiding behind had the small fox laughing. Nick couldn't hold back a chuckle, either, even as he dropped his muzzle to whisper softly in her ear, reminding her that he still planned to punish her tonight.
Judy groaned at his soft, husky promise. As her heart rate started to climb, she muttered under her breath, "Nick, shut up…just shut up." Nick chuckled again, though he did shut his trap as her scent told him everything he wanted to know.
Amy was curious about what Nick had said (his words were too soft to hear) but seeing how red her sister was and figuring she was about to die of embarrassment, Amy took pity on Judy and turned to Finnick, saying, "In your text, you said you hadn't eaten lunch yet. Shall we get you a plate?"
Meeting her light-blue gaze, Finn nodded, saying, "Yeah, I'm starving." Hearing that, Amy hopped off the couch and slipped her arm through Finn's, then guided him into the kitchen. Finn let her lead him while thinking it wasn't so bad to be touched by another mammal (normally he hated it, but Amy's touch didn't seem to bother him for some reason).
As she pulled out the leftover food from the fridge and put it on the breakfast bar, Finn grabbed a paper plate and started making a couple of burgers. He wasn't much into the kabobs seeing as he was eating a veggie burger. He was already getting double his weekly allotment of veggies in the burgers alone—he loved fruits but didn't care as much for vegetables—but he would take some corn on the cob.
While he ate, Amy filled him in on today's happenings and how her little niece ended up in Judy's box of plushies—hence her parents leaving early as everyone was in a panic to find her. She also told him how happy the little bun was to gain a new foxy uncle and grandma and how excited she was to be going shopping with her aunts and grandma Viv the next day to find a flower dress for the wedding.
Finnick was surprised that they had told Cotton about the wedding, so Amy explained how her niece woke up in Nick's arm and caught her aunt Judy having a tongue war with him. Finn's jaw dropped a moment before he slapped a paw over his face and wiped it down his muzzle. Turning back to Amy, he pointed his sharp-clawed finger at her and stated, "I bet you a hundred bucks those two won't make it past tonight before signing the marriage papers and Nick claims your sister."
Amy cocked her head slightly and asked, "Marriage papers?" She was confused. Didn't they need witnesses and an authorized signature?
Seeing the puzzled look on Amy's face and hearing her question, Finnick explained how most foxes preferred a private wedding ceremony, but not many could afford one here in the city, so instead, foxes had marriage registration papers they needed to fill out, date and sign them, followed by the ancient fox ritual of claiming their mate, and then turning the papers in to be filed with the city. Once the papers were signed and dated, the couple was considered legally married as husband and wife as long as they got the papers filed within 3 days of signing them.
Amy was surprised, but she did see the appeal of such an intimate arrangement. With her huge family, being able to run off and get married so easily would be nice when dating and marrying one of your ancient enemies. Seeing how hard it was for Judy and Nick to keep their paws—and mouths—to themselves, Amy saw how convenient it was for them.
With a bright smile while remembering how Nick and Judy were acting in the shower this morning and wondering how far they went this afternoon, Amy met Finnick's brown eyes and answered his earlier bet by saying, "I won't take your bet seeing as it's a losing bet. If I'm going to bet on something, then it'll be on something I know I can win."
Finnick's grin grew bigger as he said, "Smart girl."
Amy beamed at him, then asked if they could take Cotton fishing with them. Finnick was surprised that Amy would ask—this was her little niece they were talking about—who just happened to be a little bunny! They were talking about catching and eating catfish! What was Amy thinking to invite her little niece!?
Laughing at Finnick's confused and slightly outraged expression, Amy explained how Cotton was an open-minded and adventurous little bunny who wouldn't be bothered by them fishing. Furthermore, her niece would have fun playing on the shore and exploring the new environment while waiting for the fish to bite.
Finnick thought about it for several minutes as he finished his corn and started on his second burger, then finally said, "Okay, if Cotton doesn't mind coming along knowing we plan to eat anything we catch, then I'm willing to let her come."
Feeling thrilled at Finnick's agreement, Amy reached over and gave Finn a quick hug. Releasing the surprised fox, she sat back on her barstool and clapped her paws. "Don't worry, she'll come. She's one of the few bunnies back at the burrow who know I like to fish."
"Ril-wee?" Finnick asked around a mouthful of food. Taking a drink of the lemonade Amy had gotten out for him earlier, he started over, saying, "Your little niece really doesn't mind the fact you fish? Or that you eat the fish you catch?"
Shrugging, Amy explained how Cotton and her sister Sasha were orphans. Amy further explained how she had watched them for weeks at a time when they were little. One time when they were almost 4 (the kits were now 5), Cotton had come across her fishing gear in the little apartment she rented that was close to her work. After explaining to Cotton what fishing was, the little bunny was curious to see what it was like, so she took Cotton and Sasha fishing with her.
Sasha didn't do any fishing, but merely sat on a rock and drew the flowers, bugs, frogs, and trees that grew along the river. Cotton, on the other paw, smelled the flowers, chased the bugs, hopped after the frogs, and tried climbing a few of the trees until Amy caught her first fish. Seeing the slimy fish struggling on the line had Cotton's eyes grow big as walnuts. Amy thought she would have to throw the fish back as it looked like her niece might start to cry, but then Cotton blew her mind when she excitedly hopped up and down wanting to catch a fish, too.
Finnick was even more surprised to hear a little bunny was interested in fishing than when he found out Amy enjoyed catching and eating fish. Laughing to hear Finnick question her on what her family fed them to have bunnies who enjoyed fishing, Amy then explained how Cotton never ate any of the fish they caught, but she sure was thrilled when she caught her first fish, going so far as hopping up and down in her excitement. Sasha even drew several pictures of it.
Now, when the two little girls stayed at her place, Amy always took them fishing. After hearing Amy's tale, Finnick shook his head, but then he smiled. Suddenly, he was extremely interested in meeting the little bunny who enjoyed fishing so much. Stuffing the last bite of his burger into his mouth, he washed it down with his lemonade and then hopped down from the breakfast bar, even as Amy did.
Stepping outside, they saw Janelle and Vivian strolling around the yard, laughing and talking while watching Cotton chase after a bright blue butterfly. Calling out to her niece, Amy introduced her to Finnick, then asked if she wanted to go fishing with them. Cotton was ecstatic.
"Really!?" Cotton asked while hopping up and down. Turning to Amy's small fox friend, she asked, "I can really go fishing with you, Mr. Finnick? I won't be in the way, will I?" She was used to mammals outside her family (and some within her family) complaining that she was noisy and getting underfoot and shooing her off.
Finnick was surprised at the little bunny's politeness to him, and so he answered, "Amy tells me you like fishing." At Cotton's eager nod, Finn then asked, "Have you ever been catfishing?" Cotton shook her head, so Finn held a finger up and said, "Then you absolutely must come. Catfishing isn't like catching trout. You have to be patient and cunning to catch a catfish." Cotton eyes grew big as walnuts again and Finnick couldn't believe how cute and adorable she looked. Clearing his throat, Finn tried not to be affected by the cute little bun. "Anyways, you can come along if you want."
With a clap of her paws, Cotton cried, "Yay!" Next, she threw herself at Finnick who wasn't much taller than she was and gave him a great, big hug, saying, "Thank you, Mr. Finnick. I won't get in the way, I promise." Rubbing her cheek against his chest, she added, "I promise ta be the most cunning-est, quietest little bunny and help you catch the biggest catfish ever!" Giving Finnick one last squeeze, Cotton then stepped back and flashed the small fox a blinding, buck-toothed smile.
Finnick was frozen. Having a bunny kit hug him short-circuited his brain. Rabbits in general avoided foxes, but bunny kits would sometimes act like he had the plague. So for little Cotton to engulf him in a tight hug made him feel like he'd been transported to an alternate dimension. As the synapses in his brain started firing again, Finn decided it wasn't a bad feeling to have a little rabbit doe clinging to him—especially since she took after her Aunt Amy so much.
With a laugh, Amy gave Cotton a hug, saying, "I think you just broke my friend, Cotton." As her niece looked up in confusion, Amy explained, "Don't worry, Finn isn't used to get hugs from bunnies. Most rabbits would rather curse a fox than hug him."
"Oh," Cotton murmured as she felt sad. Finn seemed like a lot of fun for a grown-up, so it saddened her to hear how others didn't like him simply because he was a fox.
Hearing the little bun's sadness when she learned how he was mistreated by her own kind had Finnick's heart skipping a beat. Amy's niece was too cute and adorable for her own good—and his! With how completely accepting she was of him as a fox, Finnick had a hard time believing she was real. She seemed like one of those elusive fairies dancing among the willow trees that you read about in fairytales, not unlike the sweet, ethereal-seeming doe smiling knowingly at him from over the little bunny's shoulder.
Coughing into his shoulder in an attempt to bring himself back to reality, Finnick wondered why nothing had changed. 'Whatever,' he thought. Having two fantasy-like bunnies following him around didn't seem so bad. Meeting Cotton's expectant gaze, Finn clapped his paws together, saying, "Shall we go? Those catfish are pretty sneaky so there's no time to waste!"
"Yes!" Cotton cried as she hopped over and slid her small arm through Finnick's arm, even as Amy laughed. Stepping up beside her niece, Amy reached down to grab her small paw.
Smiling up at her aunt for a moment, Cotton then turned towards the back porch and pulled the stunned fox and her aunt forward. "Come on!" she ordered happily as her white, cottony tail flicked excitedly.
With a laugh, Amy followed Cotton and didn't miss how Finnick didn't pull his arm out of Cotton's. This fishing trip was going to be a lot more fun than she first expected.
As the trio disappeared inside the house to tell Nick and Judy they were off, Vivian slipped her arm through Janelle's and guided her towards the house. Janelle had originally wanted to go fishing, too, as she had never been fishing before, but Vivian had urged her to remain silent, telling her that this outing would be a good bonding moment for the three. At Janelle's questioning look, Vivian remained quiet, but now that they were alone, the older vixen asked, "Janelle, have you ever thought of moving to Zootopia?"
Janelle was surprised at the question but admitted she might consider it if she could live in a neighborhood like this. Vivian grinned at her answer, then asked if she wanted to meet some of the neighbors. If she was serious about living in Zootopia, then the bunny needed to have some good friends whom she could depend on if she ever needed help. Janelle was a naturally social mammal, so she readily agreed. But after saying goodbye to Nick and Judy and stepping out on the porch, Janelle asked Vivian if it was wise to leave the two lovebirds alone.
With a smile, Vivian pointed out that after the epic fall Judy caused them both, she didn't see them getting up to too much trouble. Thinking to herself, Vivian knew her statement wasn't false as once they signed the marriage papers everything would be legal. It's not trouble if you're already married.
As the door shut behind the two, Judy, who was still sitting on the couch with Nick, stared at the door for several moments. Turning to Nick (after the tumble to the floor he wasn't wanting to move much), she looked up and asked, "Did they seriously just leave us alone?" Judy hadn't been expecting this. After everything that had happened today, she wasn't expecting to be left alone with Nick before they left for their dinner with the judge.
With a wide grin, Nick gathered Judy up in his arms and stood, grunting only once, then said, "Yes, yes they did." Turning towards the stairs, he looked down at the bunny in his arms. With a hungry glint smoldering in his dark green eyes, he added, "I'll need to borrow a couple of your prescription painkillers if you want me to knot you."
Judy's eyes widened at what he was saying, but once it clicked, a hungry grin of her own spread across her lips as she murmured, "Take as many as you need." Wrapping her arms around his neck, Judy locked muzzles with her mate as her scent told him she was eager and ready to be eaten by the hungry fox who was packing her up to his den.
FYI: The big hotels mentioned in the chapter are all major Hotels and Casinos in Las Vegas, Nevada. The shows mentioned are actual shows playing at the various hotels and casinos. Tournament of Kings at Excalibur Hotel and Casino is a show I actually saw when I was in middle school when my friend's family took a vacation to Vegas and I got to go with them. The show has expanded since then, but I still remember the live jousting tournament and eating food from that time period. Paranormal—The Mind Reading Magic Show at Bally's Las Vegas is performed by Frederic Da Silva. Penn and Teller are the longest running headliners in the history of Las Vegas. The duo performs their magic, redirection, and comedy show at Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino.
Terry Fator is a ventriloquist who walked away with a million dollars for winning the second season of America's Got Talent. He has since signed a 5-year contract with the Mirage in Las Vegas. Blue Man Group is a 3-man group who performs their musical light show at the Luxor Hotel and Casino, but they also perform their show at venues across America, and even had a world tour about 13 years ago. Le Reve ~The Dream at the Wynn Hotel involves a massive performance of synchronized swimming, incredible acrobatics, and music. The Illusionist is actually based off a 2006 movie by the same name. Going by the theme of the shows our 2 pred-prey couples are discussing, I figured having an illusionist performing at the Palm Springs Hotel and Casino would be a good fit, especially since the Palm Springs Hotel actually exists in the movie.
African Golden Wolf is native to North Africa, West Africa, the Sahel, northern East Africa, and the Horn of Africa. Genetically, the species is about 72% Gray Wolf and 28% Ethiopian Wolf, but was once thought to be an African variant of the Golden Jackal. Their fur color varies by individuals, but is typically a yellowish color to silvery gray with reddish limbs and black speckling on the tail and shoulders. They are an intermediate species, sized between the African jackals and the small subspecies of gray wolf. African Golden Wolves weigh between 7 and 15 kg (15-33 lbs) and are 40 cm in height, though there is a large size variation geographically, with the Western and Northern African animals being larger than their Western African cousins. They are a monogamous species that is highly territorial, with the offspring remaining with the parents to raise the younger pups. They eat bugs, mammals as big as gazelle fawns, carcasses, human refuse, and fruit.
WingedKatt here. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. There are several eager bunnies in this chapter who are looking forward to the happenings in the next chapter. Next time, we'll see how Finnick and Amy's fishing trip goes, we'll meet a few neighbors, we'll see what Landon's decision is about letting Delilah host Nick and Judy's wedding, then we'll see Nick and Judy exchange their vows.
Ch. 88 will post in 2 weeks.
If you have any thoughts or questions, let me know. Have a great weekend and be safe.
