Chapter 6: Steppin' Out with My Baby (Part 1)
Judy gave Nick's hand an encouraging squeeze. He seemed apprehensive about the arrival of Marian's friend Vivian, probably because of what just happened in the last few minutes.
Part of her felt guilty for unintentionally eavesdropping on Marian and Nick's conversation, but she knew that unless she'd left the room it would have been unavoidable. But, like Nick, she'd been so unprepared for the vixen to bare her soul like she did that she couldn't help but listen intently to what the vixen said.
Judy had known for some time that something bad had happened to Nick's father. His absence alone was a key giveaway, but Nick made a point to deliberately not talk about him. He probably thought he'd been successfully diverting Judy's attention away from the topic of his dad but, in reality, Judy hadn't been trying to force him to open up about it. Ever since she'd met Marian, she knew they'd suffered a loss, but not in a dramatic, father walking out on his family sort of way. She'd concluded that Nick's father had probably died, but that both Marian and Nick had managed to move past it. Now she knew that she'd been wrong.
She felt guilty for not trying to press Nick on the issue, but she also knew that Nick didn't actually work like that. He'd told her a couple of times that it was thanks to Judy's pestering that he'd been able to reconnect with his mother, but Judy knew that was only a half-truth. He'd resisted at first, but he never would have given in and opened up unless he'd wanted to in the first place. That was one of the things Nick didn't understand about himself. He'd spent a lifetime building up a wall against the rest of the world, he didn't realize that all he needed was for someone to show him that they cared. While Judy felt privileged that he'd allowed her to be that someone, she knew he still had some demons left to deal with. Judy, for her part, was more than willing to help him deal with those demons, and she found that the best practice was to take them one step at a time.
When Marian opened the front door, a tan-furred, corsac fox wearing a red cardigan and a matching red skirt waited for her on the other side. She had a pearl necklace around her neck, and a big, gaudy pair of sunglasses perched on her brow. She looked as if she'd waited entirely too long to be allowed in, but when Marian closed the door behind her, she promptly kissed the red fox on both cheeks in greeting and then wrapped her arms around Marian for a quick hug.
When they split apart, Vivian frowned. "Mary," she said, "what happened? You look like shit." Her voice was raspy, likely from a lifetime of smoking, and she spoke with the hint of an eastern accent.
Marian chuckled awkwardly. "Oh, nothing, Viv. Nicky and I were just talking- "
"Nicholas is here?" Vivian interrupted. She cast her eyes about the room, settling on the other pair of foxes and the rabbit there with them. She paid Judy and Clem no more than a passing glance, but as her eyes landed on Nick, she seemed to bristle with indignation at his existence. Brushing past Marian, she stormed up to Nick and stuck a finger in his face. "Look here, boy, I will not have you causing your mother any more pain after- "
"Vivian, wait, it's not like that!" Marian cut in, rescuing her son from the verbal lashing he was about to receive. "I'll tell you about it later," she added, placing a hand on Vivian's arm and gently goading her to lower it as if it were a deadly weapon. Vivian gave Marian a skeptical side-eye. "Fine," she relented as she dropped her arm to her side. As she sized the Tod up, who's ears were pinned to his head in reproach, Judy slipped her hand out from Nick's and moved to his other side, placing a hand on Clementine's shoulder. She wanted to be there for the kit in case she got nervous from Vivian's demeanor.
"It's…good to see you, Nicholas," Vivian said politely, as if she just wanted to demonstrate her good manners. "Why don't you introduce me to your friends?"
"Uh..." he sputtered, visibly trying to collect himself. Judy decided she'd take over for him for a bit. "Hello, Vivian. I'm Judy, and this is Clementine," she said, sticking out a hand for Vivian to shake. The vixen glanced blankly at her hand, then leaned in to give Judy the same double-cheek kiss greeting she'd given Marian. Judy adapted quickly and reciprocated the gesture. Clementine, meanwhile, seemed fascinated by Vivian, and didn't even notice she'd been introduced.
"A pleasure, Judy," Vivian said, "What's your relation to Nicholas?"
"Well, I'm his girlfriend…" Judy paused, gauging the vixen's reaction. She gave no indication of what she thought beyond a miniscule quirk of her brow. Judy elected to consider that a good sign. "And Clementine is…well," she faltered. Judy wasn't quite sure how to explain Clementine to the vixen. Thankfully, she didn't have to, as Nick had finished composing himself and answered for her.
"I'm her foster father," he said confidently. Vivian regarded him with a shocked look of newfound respect for a moment. "When did this happen?" she asked.
"In the last few days," he replied with an air of impassiveness, but Judy knew he was trying to read the vixen.
"All grown up, are we?" Vivian teased scornfully. Nick looked as if he wanted to give a snarky reply, but stopped himself and shrugged. Vivian gave a thoughtful hmm, then hunched over closer to Clementine's eye level. The kit started, broken out of her stupor by the vixen she'd been studying. "Has Nicholas been taking good care of you?" she asked.
Clementine looked at Vivian wearily as she responded. Yes. Judy, too, she wrote on her notepad. After reading the kits reply, Vivian looked questioningly at Judy. Sensing what she wanted to ask, she said, "She doesn't talk. It's, um…a story for another time."
Vivian's eyes softened as she looked back to Clementine. "Well, I'm glad, then. It's a pleasure to meet you, too, Clementine." Clementine smiled and nodded in agreement, and received a smile back from the vixen.
Vivian stood straight and scrutinized Judy for a moment. Judy, suddenly feeling self-conscious, began fidgeting with the black tip of her ear that she had subconsciously pulled down over her shoulder. Vivian's stoicism as she considered Judy left the rabbit unprepared for what the vixen asked next. "What's next? Are you pregnant, or something?"
Judy balked when she registered the question, stammering as she tried to formulate a response. Nick chortled next to her, earning an outraged look from the bunny. "No," he said, winking at Judy, "not yet." Scandalized, Judy swatted his arm.
"So, you've been trying, then?" Vivian asked, giving Judy the most predatory grin she'd ever seen on a mammal.
"I wouldn't say we've been trying, but we've certainly been going through the motions," Nick replied, rolling his hand through the air. The smug radiating off of him was sickening to Judy. Her mouth was wide open in indignation and disbelief as her eyes flicked between Nick and Vivian. A minute ago, the corsac fox seemed like she wanted to throttle Nick, now they were joking along together like the best of friends. She could handle Nick's teasing with the best of them, and had even come to enjoy it. But when he had someone else to play off of, at her expense? About their sex life? That was too far.
"Knock it off, Viv, you're embarrassing the poor girl," Marian chimed in, barely suppressing her own laughter. "Besides, there's a kit here."
Judy spun her head toward Clementine. If she had to start explaining the birds and the bees to the girl, she would never let Nick hear the end of it. Thankfully, the baffled look on her face told Judy that she had no idea what they were talking about. The adorableness of her confusion was enough to lessen Judy's ire at Vivian, but she vowed that she would get Nick back as soon as she saw an opportunity.
After the introductions were finished, and after Vivian had a quick smoke break, they all took the bus to the heart of downtown, specifically to Arbor Street.
Arbor Street was famous throughout the city for its many family-owned shops and diners, and for the way the city planners were able to mesh the grace of nature with the hustle-and-bustle of the city. Trees grew all around the street, forming a natural tunnel that framed the street, but never growing in any spot that would block access to any of the businesses or apartments that bordered it. The result felt like walking through an expansive forest, with the convenience of being able to buy anything one could want along the way. The tunnel of trees also provided the street lots of shade, keeping it nice and cool even during the hotter seasons.
Judy watched Clem as she glanced all around in wide-eyed fascination. Judy herself had been to Arbor Street a few times before, but only ever on patrol. For some reason, it never occurred to her to visit the street as a civilian. Now she knew that was a mistake. It was absolutely beautiful. Judy had to keep reminding herself that she was, in fact, still in the city and not in some kind of enchanted forest.
Nick, Marian, and Vivian all had contented smiles on their faces, but they were clearly not as dazzled as she and Clem were. The two vixens had mentioned that they came here once a week, so they'd gotten used to the wonder of Arbor Street by now, and Judy assumed Nick had probably been here several times himself in the past. She'd ask him about it later.
While still packed, the street wasn't suffering from a deluge of pedestrians like a busy street downtown normally would. Though famous, Arbor Street seemed to command a certain amount of respect from the city and was never overcrowded. The group had ample space to breathe, but Judy kept a tight hand on Clem's anyway, just to be safe.
Marian and Vivian were walking slightly ahead of the group, trading gossip they picked up throughout the week. Clem was still losing herself in sightseeing, tugging ever so slightly on Judy's hand as if to urge her to walk just a little bit faster. Judy glanced over at Nick, who seemed lost in thought. "Penny for your thoughts?" she prodded.
"My thoughts are worth more than a penny, thank you very much," he answered coolly.
"You drive a hard bargain, Mr. Wilde," she replied, placing a hand to her chin in mock consideration. "How about two pennies, then?"
"Now who's driving a hard bargain?" he asked, and Judy fluttered her eyelids innocently at him. "Very well," he relented, "two pennies it is."
They walked in silence for a moment, Judy waiting expectantly for Nick to say something. When he didn't, she cleared her throat pointedly. "Well," she demanded.
"Well, what?" Nick replied.
"Your thoughts?" Judy answered with growing agitation.
"Where's my payment?"
Judy groaned, eliciting a chuckle out of the Tod that only served to aggravate her more. "You're unbearable sometimes, you know that?"
"Only sometimes? It seems I've been slacking."
"Fine," Judy said, aggrieved, "don't tell me. I don't want to know what's in that big head of yours, anyway."
"As you wish," Nick said with a little bow, standing back up with his typical smug grin on. The sight caused Judy to fume even more, and she swore she could feel steam coming out of her ears. She stuck her nose up at the fox and turned away, determined to not let him get to her anymore. But, after walking down another block, she knew it was hopeless, and apparently so did Nick.
"You still want to know, don't you?" he asked in a voice laced with so much self-satisfaction it seemed like it smacked her in the face. She knew there was no point in denying it.
"Of course I do, you…you nitwit," Judy pouted. She barely noticed Clem's hand slipping out of her own, incensed as she was both by the Tod's uncanny ability to vex her and her own inability to ignore it.
"Ouch, breaking out the harsh language now, are we? That one hurt," Nick said with a twinkle in his eye, rubbing a spot on his arm as if she'd punched him. Judy was about to respond when she was cut off by Clem's notepad smacking into her side. She looked down to see the kit's face scrunched up in worry, and accepted the notepad from her. Why are you mad?
Judy sighed, her shoulders slacking as she released some of the anger that had been welling up inside of her. "I'm not really mad, Clem," she said, handing that notepad back to the kit and grabbing hold of her hand once more. "Nick just knows how to push my buttons, that's all." That wasn't entirely true, she was a little mad, but she supposed that she had gotten a little carried away.
"What you have to understand, Clem," Nick piped in over Judy's shoulder, "is that bunnies are very emotional. Sometimes they just can't get control of themselves. Don't worry, you'll get used to it."
"Maybe we just find it difficult, sometimes, to be around dumb foxes." Judy said, winking at Clem.
Nick cast his eyes around at their group, and made as if he was about to deliver some bad news. "I don't know how to tell you this, Carrots," he began, "but it looks like you're surrounded by foxes."
"Yeah, but you're the only dumb one, so I think I'll be fine," Judy barbed, eliciting a giggle out of Clem. Judy beamed at the girl, and they gave each other a high-five.
"Guess I walked into that one," Nick said dryly. Before Judy could direct him into something else he could walk into, Marian sprang upon her and grabbed hold of her free hand.
"Enough of your dilly-dallying back here," the vixen said, pointing frantically at a nearby shop, "there's someone I'd like you three to meet." Holding the bunny's hand tight, Marian led Judy, Clem and Nick into the shop in question. Judy had just enough time to read the name of the shop on the door as Marian hustled her inside, a bell on the door jingling at them in greeting as they entered.
On the inside, the Curios of the Cat had several aisles of shelves stacked to the brim with knickknacks and baubles of varying shapes and sizes. On the walls were paintings, tapestries and other works of art that depicted everything from beautiful landscapes to raging battles between opposing armies. The shop itself had a dusty, cozy atmosphere, almost like a study, but the items for sale seemed to demand her attention, so much so that Judy found it difficult to focus on any one thing for too long. Eventually her gaze drifted over to a counter along one of the walls, behind which stood a thin feline-looking mammal towering over them, who she would have described as bookish were it not for the eye-patch that covered his right eye.
Judy took this all in in an instant, for just as soon as the bell stopped ringing over the door, they were greeted by a surprisingly boisterous voice emanating from the feline. "Welcome, welcome, to Xander's shop, where you'll find anything-" he began, cutting himself off as he saw the group. When his eyes landed on the two elder vixens, he gave them a smile so wide Judy thought his face might split apart.
"Marian! Vivian!" he bellowed, moving out from behind his counter. As he did it became clear that he had been standing on some kind of stepstool, because though he was still the tallest one in the room, Judy no longer had to crane her neck so far to look him in the eye. In the blink of an eye, he rushed to Marian and enveloped her in a bear hug, lifting her off the ground and twirling her around.
"Put me down, you old fool!" the vixen cried while swatting at Xander, though her laughter gave away the fact that she didn't mind the hug at all. Complying nonetheless, Xander set her back down on the ground and set his eyes on Vivian. His greeting for her was much more conservative, resorting to a simple double-cheek kiss and simple hug that was Vivian's custom.
"I see you've learned your lesson from last time," Vivian said in an icy tone, but Judy could see the corner of her mouth quirked up in a smirk. Xander barked out a laugh. "Xander knows he will break you down eventually, but he also knows that today is not that day," he said with a wink. Vivian scoffed and shook her head in response, and Judy could hear her mumbling something under her breath, though it was too quiet even for her ears.
"Now," Xander said, clapping his hands together, "Xander would like to know who these wonderful strangers you have brought with you are and, more importantly," he added with a wave of his finger, "whether or not anything in his shop has caught their eye."
Marian moved to Nick's side, placing a hand on his back. "Xander, allow me to introduce you to Nicky, my son and the first fox to join the ZPD," she said with a flourish, as if she were a presenter on a game show revealing a prize behind a curtain. The smile she gave Nick radiated with pride, but he waved his hand bashfully and offered it to Xander. Xander clasped Nicks hand with both of his and shook it enthusiastically. "Of course," he said, "everyone in the city has heard of Officer Nicholas Wilde."
Nick chuckled. "Just Nick, is fine."
"As you say, Just Nick."
Chuckling again, Nick wrapped an arm around Judy's shoulders, clearly opting to take over the rest of the introductions. "If you've heard of me," he began, "then you've likely heard of the even more famous Judy Hopps."
Xander's head snapped in her direction with a wild look in his eyes. Though Judy thought it impossible, his smile grew even bigger as he looked at her. "Yes, yes, of course! Xander thought you looked familiar!" he gushed, snatching her hand and giving it such a hearty shake that Judy thought he might rip her arm out of its socket. "The hero of Zootopia, here in Xander's shop? Splendid, yes?"
"Oh, it was just…all in a day's work," Judy replied awkwardly, still not used to the hero worship she sometimes got.
Xander's antics must have been amusing, because from her side Judy could hear some bubbly laughter coming from Clem. Xander must have noticed as well, because his ears perked and he stopped shaking Judy's hand immediately, much to her relief. Xander knelt down in front of the fox kit, and in a much gentler tone asked, "And who are you, little one?"
Clementine wrote down her response and presented her notepad to Xander, who arched an eyebrow at the action, clearly puzzled. "Clementine, eh? Can you not talk, Clementine?" Clem's face scrunched up in a frown, and Judy stepped in to help her out. "She doesn't like to talk. It's a…long story." Judy hoped she wouldn't have to expound any further, and thankfully she didn't. Raising his hands in surrender, Xander said, "No, it is not Xander's place to pry." Plastering a smile back on his face, he ruffled the fur on top of Clem's head and said, "Besides, a pretty face such as yours will do all the talking for you, no?"
"So," he started while standing back up, "what brings you all to Xander's humble shop?"
"We just wanted to pop in and see how you were doing, Xander," Marian answered as Xander moved back behind his counter, stepping back onto the stepstool so that he was towering over them all once more.
"Is that all?" he asked, "One of Xander's associates just delivered some new things. He is sure that if you look around you might find something of interest."
"There's always something of interest, Xander, but not interesting enough to pay what you charge," Vivian snarked, prompting Xander to clutch his chest and sway about as if mortally wounded.
"How is it a beautiful creature such as yourself can hurt Xander so?" he asked, pouting at Vivian like a child being scolded by a parent.
"Because the truth always hurts. Isn't that right, Nicholas?" Vivian replied, elbowing Nick in the side as she did and earning a laugh from Xander. Nick laughed along good-naturedly, but he was a little annoyed. He'd prefer if the vixen didn't try to start airing out his dirty laundry in front of someone he just met. Thankfully Xander seemed to hold fast to his proclamation that it was not his place to pry, because he didn't ask for any further details.
Feeling a tug on his pant leg, Nick looked down to find Clem holding out her notepad to him. Can I sit on the counter? "Let's find out," he replied, and lifted the kit up into his arms. "Do you mind if she sits up here?" he asked Xander, nodding at the countertop, "I think she feels a little left out of the conversation," he added, and Clem nodded in agreement.
"Not at all," Xander replied with a bright smile and a pat on the counter. Nick sat her down on the counter, and she immediately wrote something down in her notepad and presented it to Xander. "You want to know about Xander's eye?" he asked, pointing at his eyepatch.
Nick jolted. "Uh, Clem, it's not polite to-"
"Nonsense," Xander announced, interrupting the Tod, "Xander would love to tell her the tale, and what a tale it is if he says so himself." He fixed Clem with a stare, commanding the kits attention.
"Long ago," he began, his voice low and somber, as if he were revealing a dark secret, "Xander was tasked with retrieving an item for a king of a far-away land. The Scepter of the Gods…" he paused as Clem tilted her head in confusion. "It's like a really fancy stick," he supplied, receiving a nod from the kit. "Now, Xander had sailed the seas for over three years searching for this scepter, facing many dangers along the way. He traversed many tombs filled with diabolical traps, bested a score of foul beasts, but he would not rest until he had the scepter in his hands."
Nick watched Clem out of the corner of his eye, finding the girl clearly enamored with Xander's tale. Nick knew a con artist when he saw one, and Xander clearly was one, but so long as Xander didn't try to pawn some 'Scepter of the Gods' off on Clem, he supposed he could let the girl enjoy the story.
Xander continued, oblivious to Nick's judgement. "Eventually, Xander found the scepter, and set sail back to the king. But," he boomed, slamming a hand on the counter and startling Clem, "treachery was afoot. Xander's crew wanted the scepter for themselves. They turned against him!" Now Xander mimed wielding a sword, fighting off a host of invisible enemies. "Xander fought off the whole crew, one by one, disposing of them with ease! But his first mate, his right-hand mammal, was a tiger, and a ferocious one at that! His name was Bartius, and Xander himself was the one who taught Bartius how to swing a sword."
Now Xander gave Clem a dastardly grin, baring his teeth like a predator who just watched his prey make a fatal misstep. "But Xander didn't teach him everything he knew."
He resumed the playfighting more fervently, grunting with effort at his mock parries and swings. "The fight lasted for hours, but Xander was winning, yes! Just as Xander struck the final blow, Bartius tried for one last swing, and…" he traced his finger over his eyepatch and winced like he was in pain. "It was the most difficult fight of his life, but Xander always wins in the end."
His shoulders slumped and he shrugged. "The rest of the tale is not so exciting. Xander reclaimed command of his ship and made it back to the king to present the scepter. For his service, Xander was given this…" he said, and pulled something out from behind his counter. It was wrapped in a purple felt cloth, which he delicately unwrapped before Clem. It was some kind of amulet, made out of silver, adorned with what looked like a coat-of-arms. It was a bird of some kind, holding a banner in its talons that had writing on it in a language Nick didn't recognize. Clem gaped at the amulet reverently, as if it were the prettiest thing she'd ever seen.
"It marks Xander as a friend of the king, and says that he is always allowed in the king's court." Just as delicately as before, he wrapped it back up in the felt, and then offered it to Clem. "Xander would like you to have it." With a wink, he added, "Xander doesn't travel much anymore. Perhaps you can use it someday in his stead."
Clem stared at Xander disbelievingly, then carefully accepted the gift, seemingly wary of disturbing the felt covering too much. After gently setting the amulet down on the counter beside her, she snatched up her notepad and scribbled something down, showing it to Xander.
"You are very welcome, little one," he said, patting Clem on the head.
Vivian snorted. "That's a better story than the one you told us. How much of that is true?"
Xander gave the vixen a devilish grin. "You say the truth hurts. Xander says the truth is boring."
Nick laughed at that. "You hear that, Carrots?" he asked while turning, expecting to see the grey bunny by his side, but she was nowhere to be found. "Carrots?"
There was so much to look at in Xander's store that Judy couldn't help but find herself distracted by it all. As Clem was being placed on the counter, her eyes started to wander around the shop, and she unconsciously drifted into one of the aisles.
There were trinkets of all shapes and sizes, various forms of jewelry adorned with every color under the sun. She passed by a barrel stuffed with dozens of wooden swords for children. One section of shelving was occupied by seemingly hundreds of snow globes from places Judy had never even heard of. Another section had a number of little wooden carvings, totems from long lost cultures. A draft passed by overhead causing a few wind chimes hanging from the ceiling to ring their soft tunes. Judy felt as if she could spend hours in here and still not see everything Xander had to offer, even if most of it turned out to be simple knickknacks you could buy at any corner store.
She turned the corner into the very last aisle and stopped. A few feet in front of her was a jack rabbit wearing an immaculately pressed suit, which almost made her feel underdressed in her simple outfit. His posture was perfect, as if he found slouching offensive, and Judy unwittingly straightened her own back at the sight of him. Most eye-catching of all were the black stripes that coated the silver fur on his face and ears, almost like he was wearing zebra print. His hands were clasped behind his back as he was appraising something on the wall. Judy's eyes followed his to find a tapestry that was somehow more eye-catching than the jack rabbit himself.
The threads used were colored in earthy tones; yellows, browns, and the like. The style made it look like it was a cave painting from the tribal era. Centered at the top was a depiction of the sun. Under the sun was a lonely rabbit, surrounded on all sides by dozens of other animals; wolves, foxes, weasels, and other predators. The bottom of the tapestry featured a group of rabbits now running from the predators, with one unlucky rabbit left behind.
"Do you know the story this tells?" the jack rabbit asked her. Judy nearly jumped out of her fur, because she hadn't realized that she'd drifted closer to the jack rabbit as she examined the tapestry. She turned to meet his eyes, but his were still locked onto the tapestry, as if she wasn't worth looking at.
"Uh…no," she stammered, not quite sure why she felt so out of place next to this mysterious stranger.
"It's an old story, a myth, from back when rabbits were more…primitive," the last word seeped out of him as if he found the idea repulsive. He lifted a lazy hand at the sun at the top of the tapestry. "It tells the tale of Lord Frith, who created the world, including the prince of the rabbits-"
"El-ahrairah," Judy finished for him, suddenly remembering the tale. The sun, Lord Frith, created the world and all the animals, including El-ahrairah, prince of the rabbits. Frith favored El-ahrairah and his progeny, but they soon grew so large in number that they were consuming everything upon the world, leaving desolation in their wake. Frith warned that if El-ahrairah didn't do something to stop his children, Frith would take matters into his own hands. El-ahrairah refused, showing his arrogance and vanity.
So, Frith called for a meeting of all the animals and gave them special gifts. To the wolf; great teeth. To the weasel; great speed. In this way, Frith created all the predators in the wild, and tasked them with hunting El-ahrairah's children. Angered by this apparent betrayal, El-ahrairah confronted Frith and demanded an explanation. Instead, Frith gave him his own gifts. Long legs for jumping, big ears for hearing, and Frith told El-ahrairah, "The world is your enemy now. If they catch you, they will kill you. But first, they have to catch you."
It was one of her pop-pop's favorite stories to tell, from a time when rabbits had more to fear than a bad harvest. Personally, she wasn't a big fan of the story, but she understood why it was so popular. Bunnies were often a fearful bunch.
The jack rabbit finally deigned to look at her, quirking an eyebrow at her appreciatively. "So, you do know it?"
Judy chuckled at him nervously. "Yeah, but it's…been a while."
He hummed in acknowledgement, then went back to staring at the tapestry. After a beat of silence, Judy's attention drifted to one of the shelves. There was a series of metal bowls ranging in size arranged from smallest to largest. Each bowl was accompanied by a wooden stick inside them. Judy grabbed one of the bowls, cupping it in her hands. It looked like a mortar and pestle, and she absentmindedly started tapping the stick inside the bowl.
"You don't know what that is, do you?" the strange rabbit asked her, bringing her back to the moment. She shrugged. "It's just a mortar and pestle, right? Used for grinding up stuff?"
"No," the rabbit said with a smirk, looking like a parent about to teach their child something. Judy scowled at him. She was starting to get annoyed by his condescending attitude. Still, she was curious about the bowl she was holding, and so offered it to the rabbit. Instead of taking it from her like she expected, he deftly placed his hands over hers. Cupping the bottom of the bowl in one hand and holding the wooden stick in the other, he began rhythmically guiding the stick along the edge of the bowl, circling it at a steady rate.
"It's a prayer bowl, sometimes called a singing bowl," he said, and Judy noticed that he was staring at her, not even paying attention to the bowl. For the first time she took note of the color of his eyes. They were a light, grey-blue, like tiny, swirling oceans beaten by a storm. She also realized that as he guided the stick over the rim of the bowl, a low tone started emanating out of it. Softly at first, but growing louder as he continued the motion.
Judy felt as if she were falling into this jack rabbits' eyes. She was not growing attracted to him. No, it was more like he knew something she didn't, some sort of secret only he was privy to, and she wanted to know what that was.
"Carrots?"
Like a derailing train her thoughts crashed into one another, and she was broken from her trance. Blinking furiously, she slipped her hands out from the rabbits hold and spun on her heels. "Nick, hey…" Judy said, drawing out the greeting.
Nick quirked an eyebrow at her cageyness. "You alright, Carrots?"
Judy nodded a bit too eagerly. "Yep, I was just talking to…" she paused, scrunched up her face and turned back towards the jack rabbit, who was placing the prayer bowl back in its spot on the shelf. "Actually, I never got your name."
"That's because I never gave it," he replied, sticking out his hand for her to shake. "Jack Savage, at your service, and you're Judy Hopps."
With a grimace, Judy shook his hand. "You recognize me from the news, don't you?"
"Indeed, I do," he replied, offering his hand to Nick next. "Nick Wilde, I presume."
Nick seemed more wary of the jack rabbit, giving his hand a look like it might burn him. Apparently deciding that it wouldn't, he gave Jack's hand one firm pump. Suddenly Jack sniffed at the air, and gave the pair a knowing look. "I see the rumors of your relationship are true."
Nick scowled at the jack rabbit while Judy sputtered at the random statement. "What makes you say that?" she asked.
Jack sniffed the air again, as if to confirm what he already knew. "Your scents are all over each other. I'd have to chop my nose off not to smell it."
Self-consciously Judy gave herself a good sniff and realized that he was right. She smelled like Nick, and she'd bet that he smelled like her. It seemed like such an obvious thing now, but she just hadn't thought about it. It wasn't like she was trying to keep it a secret, anyway, but she wasn't trying to flaunt it, either.
"Inters aren't looked upon too kindly by this city," Jack continued, "you're going to make some enemies, I'm sure."
"Are you one of them?" Nick growled, sneering at Jack. Judy was taken aback by Nick's sudden aggression, and placed a hand on his arm in an effort to calm him down.
Jack waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, no," he said, "I've no time for petty bigotry. I just hope you know what you're in for." With that, he turned around and started walking away. Before he got too far, though, he turned back around and fixed Judy with his cobalt eyes again. "Do you know what else El-ahrairah was called?"
With a twitch of her nose, Judy shook her head.
"'Lapine', which in the old tongue meant 'Prince of a thousand enemies.' Seems fitting to me, though I suppose in your case it'd be 'princess', wouldn't it?" Judy didn't respond, but it seemed Jack wasn't expecting her to. "But what do I know?" he asked with a shrug. "Good day."
As Jack walked away, Judy turned her head to find Nick looking at her expectantly, like he was waiting for her to explain something. Judy shrugged at him, not knowing where to begin in describing the strangeness of her encounter with Jack Savage.
"Who's El-ah…El…uh…" he stammered, trying to pronounce the foreign word.
"El-ahrairah?" Judy snickered, earning a reproachful look from the fox.
"Yeah, him."
Judy sighed, grabbing hold of his hand and leading him back to the front of the store. "I'll tell you later." Truth be told she was starting to get hung up on what Jack said at the end. She knew that inters still faced discrimination from time to time, but she hadn't experienced anything too bad herself. Certainly, it couldn't be as bad as the jack rabbit was trying to let on, right?
Judy shook her head as they rejoined the group at the counter. No, she was convinced that things would be just fine.
A/N: As always, a big thanks to everyone who's read, followed, favorited, and reviewed thus far. Your interest in this story ensured that it was never far from my thoughts for long.
So...it's been a while. I don't really have a good excuse. A bad week at work resulted in some major writer's block, and then I got distracted by Mass Effect: Legendary Edition and now it's been two months since the last upload. I just want to say that, in case anybody has been wondering, this story is in fact NOT dead. The good news is that the next two chapters likely wont take nearly as long to get out, because the next chapter is really just an extension of this chapter, and the chapter after that is halfway done already.
The stuff about Frith and El-ahrairah comes from the novel Watership Down by Richard Adams, and is really just a story that I enjoy a lot and wanted to include in some way here.
Jack Savage makes an appearance, and likely his only one. Originally he was supposed to come off as something of an asshole, as I'm not a huge fan of the character, but instead he's just here to foreshadow some things to come. Like I said, he probably wont show up again, but we'll see. Xander is a character I created for a singular purpose, and I didn't even get to it here, so he'll definitely be in the next chapter. Hopefully some of you like him, he's kind of grown on me. I was able to use him to set something else up, so that's good, I guess.
Anyway, let me know what you think, but I also want to ask you all something. I've been using the line breaks that FF provides in their Doc Manager to denote scene changes and such, but I notice when I preview the story myself they can be hard to see. Would you all prefer I denote the scene changes some other way, or do the line breaks work well enough?
Cheers!
