A/N: I know, I'm a liar. So there's no confusion, I went and added chapter titles to the previous two chapters. Ch.1 is 'Wayfaring Stranger' and Ch.2 is 'Clementine'.


Chapter 3: Follow That Dream

The rest of the day went by with no major incidents. There was a brief moment where Nick was worried, because Sabine noticed during the home walk-through that he and Judy clearly had separate bedrooms, that their little deception about being in a relationship might come back to haunt them. But, with a knowing glint in her eye, she indicated Judy's room, which to be fair did somewhat look like it was designed by a little girl, and said, "Oh, you already have a room set up for her and everything! That's convenient."

Judy laughed sheepishly and wholeheartedly agreed.

Once all the forms were filled out and the walk-through complete, Sabine said, "Like I said, this is a special case, so expect to hear back in a day or two. I'm betting they'll try to let you know around the same time Clementine's cleared from the hospital."

On her way out the door she paused and said, "Just so you know, it will be my recommendation to approve. Not only can I tell you're serious about this, but Clementine herself clearly misses you. I just hope you're ready." With a smile and a wave goodbye, she was gone.

As he closed the door behind the springbok, Nick turned back towards Judy and sighed. Neither of them moved as they cast wayward glances about the room. With the absence of the social worker, it felt as if the entire room was blanketed in curtain of awkwardness. Fuck it, Nick thought.

"Judy- "

"Nick- "

They both chuckled nervously.

"You first," they said in unison.

"No you- "

"Blueberry pie," Nick said with a grin. Judy was playing at unamused, but he saw the corner of her mouth quirk. Silence fell again between them, but now they were staring into each other's eyes. Bright-green emerald mingled with brilliantly-purple amethyst as they both fought internal battles over what to say. Nick decided that this was too much work, so he cut to the chase.

"Are you sure?" he asked. It sounded like such a simple question, but Nick was pouring his heart and soul into it. Through his eyes he was trying to convey everything that words were failing to, about his doubts and insecurities. About what their future held in store if they decided to throw caution to the wind, started seriously dating, started raising a child together. As he watched her, he saw something click in her mind, and she adopted that look she always had whenever she set her mind to something, like a tough case. The look that said I am Officer Judy Hopps, and I don't know when to quit.

"Yes," she said simply.

Nick let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. "Okay," he said. All at once they embraced in a hug and, without thinking, kissed. As soon as they made contact, their faces split apart rapidly. Neither of them had anticipated the move, but both of them felt the tingle of electricity that fired through them. They chuckled nervously again. Nick looked down at the bunny in his arms with half-lidded eyes, unconsciously wrapping his tail around her.

"I didn't know you had it this bad, Carrots."

Judy giggled. "Speak for yourself, you've got it worse than I do."

Nick winked. "Was there ever any doubt?"

"Dumb fox."

"Sly bunny."

They kissed again, this time melting into each other. For the both of them, nothing had ever felt more right in their lives.


Nick and Judy decided that they would both need to take some time off in the, thankfully likely, chance that they got approved. To do this they, figured they would need to butter up Chief Bogo like there was no tomorrow. Surprisingly, when they explained the details of what they were about to do, the cape buffalo seemed more than willing to help them out.

"You do realize that neither of you have taken any time off since you started here, right?"

Nick and Judy eyed each other in front of the Chief's desk and shrugged. "Guess we never had a reason to until now," Judy replied.

The Chief snorted. "I just thought you were married to your jobs." He looked up in thought, scrunching up his eyes as he did some mental arithmetic. When he was done, he fixed them with a glare. "I can give you both thirty days of emergency leave without it looking too suspicious."

The partners both gaped, but before either could say anything the Chief stuck a finger in the fox's face. "Just answer one question; are you serious about this?"

"Yes, sir," Nick answered without hesitation. The confidence with which he spoke seemed to take the Chief by surprise, as his astonishment briefly flashed across his face. The Chief recovered quickly, however, with practiced ease. Nodding once, he turned his attention to Judy.

"And you?"

"Yes, sir," the bunny echoed her partner, anticipating the question.

"Good," the chief replied. "One last thing, Wilde," he said, the corner of his mouth lifting up ever-so-slightly, "Are you two official yet?"

Confusion danced across Nick's face for a moment. Then he laughed. "No way, you too?"

"What?" Judy asked, eyeing both the buffalo and the fox warily.

Chief Bogo didn't answer Judy, keeping his gaze on Nick, but now there was a predatory gleam in his eye. "Answer the question, fox."

Nick smirked at the Chief. "Yes."

"Yes wha- " Judy began, but was interrupted by the Chief smacking a hand on his desk and producing a loud thump. "I knew it," he said, grinning widely, and for the life of her Judy couldn't recall any other time when she had seen the Chief act like this.

"What the…bell is going on?" she asked, more forcefully this time. She was tired of being interrupted and she wanted answers now.

Nick gave her his trademarked, smug grin. "Looks to me like Chief Buffalo-Butt here just won the betting pool."

A look of pure incredulity appeared on the bunny's face. She glanced back at the Chief, who was still grinning like a mad idiot and too caught up in his victory to mind what Nick had called him. She fixed a glare back onto Nick. "Are you telling me," she seethed, "That there was a pool on…" she faltered, finishing up by waving a finger between her and the fox.

"Yep," Nick replied with a pop.

Judy exploded. "And you knew? You knew and didn't tell me?"

Nick shrugged. "I didn't want you to freak out."

"Why would I- " she cut her rant short, taking a deep breath and mumbling a quiet sweet cheese and crackers under her breath. When she continued, she was the image of grace and serenity. "Why would I freak out about our coworkers betting on us shacking up, Nick?" she asked sweetly.

Nick chuckled, not buying the act. "You're right, what on earth was I thinking," he said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

Judy let out a silent hmm and slowly turned her head to the Chief. "Right, then can we go?" she asked venomously.

At the question, Chief Bogo cleared his throat and put his stony façade back on once again. The act was so convincing that Judy wouldn't have believed he had ever broken it if she hadn't just witnessed it. "Of course, and I'll take care of the paperwork. See you in thirty days." On their way out the door the Chief called out one last time. "And Wilde, make sure to tell Clawhauser that he and I won."

As the door clicked shut Judy gave Nick a look that, if looks could kill, would have turned him into ash on the spot. Before he could say the witty remark that popped into his head, she punched him on the arm and proceeded down the hall. "Hey, I'm pretty sure partner abuse is frowned upon, fluff," he complained, rubbing the spot where she hit him. It wasn't unusual for her to playfully swat his arm whenever he successfully got under her fur, but this time it really hurt. Realizing he was being left behind by the irate bunny, he quickly sped off to catch up to her.

Through the lobby they went, Judy stomping by the front desk without saying a word to the portly cheetah who managed it. Clenching and unclenching her fists, she stormed out the front door, catching wayward glances from the cheetah and their other coworkers nearby.

"What's eating her?" Clawhauser asked as Nick propped himself onto his desk.

"I'll tell ya, Benji," Nick said, stealing a piece of a donut from the open box nearby, "but you gotta promise to let me go afterwards, alright?"

"Sure thing, Nick, just gimme the goods," the cheetah replied, vigorously nodding his head, folds of his skin jiggling as he did.

Swallowing the piece of donut he stole, and licking his fingers dramatically, Nick leaned in to whisper conspiratorially into the cheetah's ear. "You and the Chief won."

It took a moment for what he said to register, but when it did the cheetah let out a squeal so loud Nick thought it would break every piece of glass in a two-mile radius. "O. M. GOODNESS! I knew it would happen someday but, seriously, couldn't you guys have hurried it up a little. It was beginning to take so long a lot of us were beginning to think it would never happen. But then the Chief got involved, and that spurred some more interest again, and- " The cheetah cut his rambling short as he remembered how angry the bunny in question seemed to be when she marched out the building. "Oh, she found out, didn't she?"

"Yeah, the Chief basically told her himself," Nick said with a lopsided grin. Jumping down from the desk, Nick waved Clawhauser a two-finger salute and made his way for the door. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got some damage control to do."

"Good luck!" the cheetah called out to his back.

Nick waved a dismissive hand at Clawhauser behind his back, then picked up the pace and started jogging to catch up to Judy. He had a plan in mind to calm the bunny down. He was just going to have to fight dirty.


Though Judy tried to sustain her anger at Nick, she had to admit that she had no defense against his puppy-dog eyes. After Nick successfully used his weaponized adorableness to calm Judy down, they had compared each others I'm sowwy looks to try to determine who had the more sad and pathetic guise. They agreed to disagree, and settled on a tie. The rest of the day passed much like a normal day would. Cuddling up on the couch, they watched a movie together, and kept each other entertained by cracking jokes at the movie's expense.

I can't believe it took us so long to get here, Judy thought. Everything is different but it feels completely the same. She supposed, because of that, she could forgive everyone for the betting pool. There was one major difference though; their sleeping arrangements. On their first night as an official couple Nick had tried insisting that he would sleep on the couch when they got Clementine, but Judy would have none of it.

"I don't want to rush you," he'd said.

"Nick, for the last time, I'm sure," she'd replied, and thankfully the fox didn't push it any further. Sure, it had been a little awkward at first, but once they got snuggled up into position on his bed, it felt to Judy like she had finally found something that she didn't even know was lost. The loud snoring that emanated from Nick as he quickly drifted off to sleep told her that he felt the same.

We'll just have to work on that, Judy thought of the snoring.

Shortly after they started their second day of leave Nick received a call from Sabine. They had been approved and, even better, Clementine was ready to leave the hospital. Deciding that it would be best for Judy to meet the kit at home, so as not to overwhelm her, Nick left to meet Sabine at the hospital by himself. While somewhat disappointed that she wouldn't be there to get her new charge from the hospital, it did give her the perfect excuse to make a phone call, the thought of which set her stomach into flips. So much had changed in such a short amount of time, but she was excited about that change. The direction her life was going seemed somehow a natural extension of the direction her life had taken up until this point. Now came the hardest part.

Telling her parents.

Her finger hovered over the call button. Stamping out the last bit of her hesitation, she mashed the call button with more force than necessary. The muzzletime call rang no more than twice before the screen was filled with her mother's face, who was holding the phone too close and at an unflattering angle.

"Judy, what a surprise!" her mother called out, and Judy could tell from what she could see and the laughter she could hear that her mother was wrestling with some of her younger siblings. Apparently having had enough for now, her mother called out again. "Alright, everybody! If you don't go wash yourselves this instant there'll be no lunch for any of you!" That sent the little ones in motion, and within seconds Bonnie Hopps had collected herself and righted the phone. "That should buy me some time. What's up, Pumkin?"

"Hey, mom," Judy said, smiling at the nickname, "I've got something I need to talk to you and dad about." At the worry that flashed across her mother's face Judy quickly added, "It's not bad, it's just an…update."

Bonnie looked skeptical, but relented. "Okay, dear, let me go find your father."

Thankfully it didn't take the older doe long to find Stu Hopps, and in no time at all they were in one of the few places where they might be able to maintain some privacy; the tool shed.

"Not that I'm hankerin' to get rid of you, Jude," her father said, "but it is kinda cramped in here, if you take my meanin'."

"I'll try to be quick, dad," Judy replied with a sigh, "but you guys have to promise not to freak out."

Her parents exchanged nervous glances. Glances that lasted a little too long. They're doing that thing where they can communicate without speaking, Judy thought, suppressing a groan. She knew she was about to be in for an earful about how dangerous her job was, about how worried they were about her, about-

"Okay, Pumkin, we won't freak out."

Judy's ruminations were cut short by her mother, and now it was her turn to look skeptical. "Really?" she deadpanned.

"Really, really," her father replied.

Taking a deep breath, Judy began to psyche herself up. Okay, I can do this. Just get it out real quick. Like a band-aid, just rip it off. Don't give them any time to process. Just say, 'I'm dating Nick and we're adopting a girl'. Yeah. That'll work. Here goes.

"So, I…I have a boyfriend, now…" Judy began, drawing out the last word. Perfect, she thought ruefully.

Her parents exchanged another one of those glances before apparently coming to some sort of agreement. "It's Nick, right?" Bonnie asked, and Judy's jaw dropped.

"Uh…yeah…how'd you know?"

Bonnie waved a hand dismissively. "A mother knows. Besides, I doubt you'd be wafting this much if it were just some buck." She said it as if the idea of Judy dating a fox was the most uninteresting thing in the world. "I remember when you guys came to visit; you guys were inseparable!"

Judy thought back to that weekend, a little under a year ago. She had been able to convince Nick to join her on a visit to BunnyBurrow for a weekend. She told him she wanted him to experience the Harvest festival, which was true, but secretly she'd also wanted him around to try to ward off any suitors that her parents might try to throw at her. Even without her asking him, he accomplished this masterfully, deftly manipulating any bucks that clearly annoyed her into either leaving her alone or making a fool of themselves. At the time Judy had thought he was just being a great friend, but now she was beginning to understand that the fox had likely had an ulterior motive. Apparently, her parents picked up on it faster than she did.

First all our coworkers, now my parents, Judy thought with a mental facepalm, was there anybody besides us who didn't see this coming?

Judy sputtered, trying to think of a reply. To be honest Judy had never expected this revelation to go bad, they had gotten over their own fox prejudices and started working with Gideon Grey after all, but to have it be going this well was something else entirely. She was even more shocked by her father's response; or the fact that he hadn't even said anything yet. "And dad…you're okay with this, too?"

Her father's eyes shifted between Judy's imploring face and Bonnie's cautionary expression. "Well…Jude…" he started slowly, "It's certainly not something you see every day…" he took a deep breath, "but…well I trust you. And if you can trust Nick, then I can trust him, too."

Judy beamed. She felt like a giant weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "That's…" she wavered, voice cracking. "That's wonderful to hear."

Bonnie gave her husband a loving smile before turning her attention back to Judy. "See, Pumkin? Nothin' to worry about. I mean," she chuckled, "it's not like you're pregnant or somethin', 'cause that would've been outta this world."

And just like that the moment was gone.

"Oh, yeah," Stu chimed in, "can you imagine? A fox and bunny try'na raise kits together? That'd be crazy!"

"Stu," Bonnie chided, "That's not exactly what I meant."

"Guys," Judy cut in, trying to gain her parents attention but failing miserably.

"Come now, Bon, I don't even want to think of the logistics of that."

"Nobody's askin' your opinion on 'logistics', Stu."

"Guys," Judy tried again, again failing to stop her parents arguing.

"It is sad that Jude won't be able to have kits of her own, though."

"I highly doubt they've even talked about that, yet."

"Guys!" Both the elder rabbits stopped talking and finally looked at her, giving her their full attention. This should go well, Judy thought. "…On the subject of kits…" she broached carefully. Both her parents' eyes bugged out of their skulls, they gave each other another one of those looks, and then Judy's phone practically exploded with the sound of them trying to talk over one another.

"Are you really pregnant?"

"How did it happen?"

"When did you find out?"

"Will they be hybrids?"

"How many are you havin'?"

"What're the logistics like?"

"GUYS!" Judy shouted, and it thankfully had the intended effect. Both her parents went quiet, but they still looked at her as if they wanted to jump through the phone screen to pester her with more questions. Judy herself felt like her nose was trying to twitch off her face. She took a steadying breath. "It's…kind of complicated, so no questions until I'm done. Okay?" Her parents nodded rapidly.

She told them everything. About how the fox kit was an abuse victim, about how Nick had felt an incurable need to take care of her, about how she felt that same need to be there for them. She told them how that, for the time being, they would only be foster parents until the kit's father relinquished his rights or, if they had to, they went to court for them. Finally, she told them about some of the other details they had learned.

"Her full name is Clementine Eileen Kistunegari, which apparently translates to 'fox hunt',"

"That's…interesting," Bonnie mumbled.

"And she's eight years old," Judy finished.

Silence reigned over them for a time. After what felt like an eternity Bonnie's face scrunched up in worry. "I'm…I'm proud of you, Pumkin, but this all seems like it's goin' so fast."

Judy sighed. "I know, mom, but it feels right. I don't know how else to explain it."

"Jude…Jude the dude…I mean," her father sputtered, "well…um…if you're sure this is what you want…"

Judy's expression hardened. She was getting pretty tired of people constantly asking if she was sure. "Yes, dad, I am. What happened to trusting me, huh?"

Stu opened his mouth to respond but his words died in his throat. His mouth snapped shut with a click, and he adopted an apologetic look as his ears drooped behind his back.

"Pumkin, honey," Bonnie cooed, gaining her daughters attention, "we'll support you no matter what. Just…give us some time to process this, okay?"

Judy wasn't entirely satisfied with that, but she knew her parents were trying, or at least willing to. That she could be thankful for. "Okay, mom. Also, I think it goes without saying that I'd like this to stay between us for now."

"That's a 'roger' on that one, Jude."

"Absolutely, hon, and I'm assuming because of her…special circumstances you guys won't come up to visit anytime soon?"

The question took Judy a little by surprise, especially if they still needed time to 'process' everything. "You want to meet her?"

Bonnie looked at her daughter as if she just sprouted three heads and started to dance. "Of course," she answered, sounding vaguely insulted, and Judy was struck by the utter sincerity in her voice. Some of her earlier frostiness at her parents thawed.

"It'll probably be some time, yet. We have to make sure she's comfortable with us, and all that."

Bonnie frowned in disappointment. "Alright, hon, just keep us updated."

Sensing the end of the conversation, Judy put on a big, loving smile. "I will. Love you, guys!"

"Love you, Jude!"

"You too, Pumkin!"

Judy hung up the phone while letting out an explosive sigh. The call had simultaneously gone better and just as poorly as she had expected. While she was still surprised at how well they took the news of her new foxy boyfriend-Judy laughed at the thought-she knew they would get hung up on the news of her basically becoming a mother overnight. Judy jolted, the thought hitting her like a wrecking ball. That's right, I will be a mother in just a few minutes now, won't I. Somehow, she hadn't really processed that fact until just now. Obviously, she knew that they were about to be responsible for a kit, but somehow actually applying the mother label made it all seem real.

In the back of her mind a small niggle of doubt made its existence known. Maybe her parents were right. Maybe this was too much too soon. Judy didn't immediately try to squash the doubt this time, but she wasn't actively feeding it either. She was just acknowledging it, allowing her mind to process the strands of that doubt so that, whatever conclusion she decided upon, she would know that she was absolutely, one-hundred percent committed.

One of Judy's ears sprang in the direction of the front door as she heard the sound of jangling keys. She turned just in time to see the door open and for Nick to walk in with a pink, Gazelle themed backpack over on arm and the other arm supporting Clementine, who had her face resting on his shoulder. Judy instinctively let out a silent aww as her heart fluttered at the sight, and that small niggle of doubt in the back of her mind withered and died in an instant.

Though she never really doubted it, she was certain now. She was all in.


A/N: I realized how short the last two chapters actually were, and I know as a reader I prefer longer chapters, so this one will be starting that upward trend. Next chapter will be even longer, at 5000+ words, and it's looking like that'll be the standard moving forward. This story wont be very long, I don't think, but there are still a few more downs to go through before we can end on the ups. Anyway, let me know what you think.

Cheers.