"Just a heads up: We're gonna have a furry superconductor turned up full blast and pointed at you for the duration of this next chapter. I'll be honest, we're throwing furry science at the wall here to see what sticks. No idea what it'll do. Probably nothing. Best-case scenario, you might be turned into your fursona. Worst case, some #ALM affinity, which we'll cut out."
-Furry Johnson. Black Lives Matter. BIPOC Lives Matter. LGBTQIA2+ Lives and Rights Matter.

4th Peelian Principle: To recognize always that the extent to which the co-operation of the public can be secured diminishes proportionately the necessity of the use of physical force and compulsion for achieving police objectives.

The more physical force and compulsion you use, the less the public is going to co-operate with you. The less, the more the public will co-operate. If only there was a way to earn people's voluntary compliance. *Door bursts open, as George Thompson storms into the room with his book, Verbal Judo*. Now that we've got that sequence out of my mind. These Peelian principles are 191 years old. Older than my country. And even they're telling the cops that the more frivolously you throw around your 'use of force', the less 'police service' you are, and the more 'occupying force' you become.

Now, we continue Nick's journey in the academy. Far from his only friends. Far from his closest partner. And fairly certain that he's not having the greatest time of his life. Judy, on the other hand, gets confronted with some unexpected lessons from her partner Wolfard. . .

Disney owns everything. Including me. Disney, as you are now responsible for me, I expect you to feed me. Or, at least treat me like my cat. Man, would I love to spend a day chasing a chopstick across the floor.

Wrapped in Golden Braid

"I know I've said this a dozen times. . . But I appreciate that you've been giving up your time to give me these lessons, Sergeant Wolfard." Judy spoke, as she wrote down the information projected on the white screen as fast as she could. This course was supposed to take a 'prescribed' amount of time, but given it's one on one format. . . Judy was certainly she could cut that time down significantly.

For about an hour and a half after each shift, Wolfard had been teaching her the regulations and techniques around being a Field Training Officer. For the first few classes, it was mostly rehashing standards and principles, as well as covering what the FTO was responsible for and what the FTO was not responsible for.

The training officer was responsible for providing a good example, and for providing direction and constructive criticism to help foster good habits and a deep understanding of the job in a recruit. To put it simply, that is. But what the training officer was not responsible for was the recruit's level of engagement, and that was something that many FTO's beat themselves up over.

He shrugged, as he waited for her to copy the important bits down. "Don't thank me, I'm doing this for my own good. If there's more trained FTO's, the less likely I get drafted to take care of a newbie again. . . No offence."

Judy laughed, as she looked back at him and nodded. He tapped on the laptop, and the screen changed onto the next slide. "No offence taken, Sir. . . Y'know, I'm starting to see some of the techniques you've been using on me popping up in these slides about constructive criticism. . . You're pretty manipulative, hmm?"

She shook her head, as she began writing down the new information. The slide was titled 'the compliment sandwich', a priceless technique. Ah, how many times the wolf had used it on her in the past few months. . . She had to admit, it worked wonders.

If you needed to constructively criticize someone for something, one of the easiest ways to go about it was sandwiching the issue between two compliments. For instance, early on Wolfard had some complaints about her incident report writing. Instead of just telling her that she wrote five more pages than she needed to, he pointed out a very concise section of the report and talked about how he liked it a lot.

How it got to the point, delivered the information they needed, and didn't include anything that the Staff Sergeant wouldn't need to see. And then, he eased it in on a conversation about the five extra pages of information, and how it could have been shorter. By then, Judy was already over the moon with the compliments to notice that she was being encouraged to take another direction.

It was one thing to write the file out in extended fashion for the official file, but the incident reports were primarily meant to inform the staff sergeant of what had occurred in a concise, but detailed fashion. It was a 'heads up', and was required to be as concise as possible in the circumstances.

For instance, she didn't need to write out the entire witness statement, rather focusing on the bits of information that she gathered from the witness statement that was involved in the case. She didn't need to write about how the witness went on a tangent about their children.

And then, right at the tail end, he shoehorned in a compliment about how despite all of that, he couldn't find a grammatical error anywhere, even after reading it twice.

The wolf had skillfully done that to Judy, at least a few dozen times over the past three months. And Judy had been none the wiser. . . But her reports were now concise and detailed, and she never forgot her coffee cup in the cruiser ever again. It definitely worked.

The wolf shook his head at her, grinning. "That's the best part, they never even see it coming." He nodded, as he looked up at the clock in the corner of the little classroom. Wolfard had 'requisitioned' one of the many meeting rooms at the ZPD. By his argument, Bogo would never know, so he would never care. Judy thought that was a little brave, as she nodded, and the wolf clicked to the next slide.

"I think we'll probably finish up this section today. . . There's a quiz for next time, and then we go onto 'Trainer-trainee' conduct section. . . But, before we go there, I want a practical demonstration from you." The wolf mused, as he crossed his arms and leaned against the table behind the tiny podium.

She finished writing down the slide and looked up at him with a curious expression. "What do you mean, sir?" She asked, shaking her head slightly. Practical demonstration of what?

The wolf shrugged, as he grinned. "Give me some constructive criticism, Constable Hopps. With the sandwich method of course. I want some compliments here."

Judy snorted, as she leaned back in her chair. Judy had thanked him for a whole lot of things, and also praised many of the things that she'd been shown, and told over the past few months. And now he was begging for compliments and criticism?

Well, she had compliments. But, how was she supposed to work in criticism? She lifted her pen to her nose, tapping her lips as she thought. Judy also didn't want to roast him, like she did Nick. Nick deserved it, and she didn't have to report to Nick for anything.

Hmm. . . "I like how you de-fur your clothes before we go on duty." She spoke with a shrug, as the wolf suddenly shook his head with a confused expression.

"What?"

"I like how you use a roller to get any of the loose fur off your uniform before setting out at the start of a shift. It gives you a professional look. To finish the look though, you should make sure to keep your tie clip centred more between the buttons of your shirt. It'll reduce the number of times it gets knocked around. If you get that down consistently, then your entire uniform will be impeccable." Judy murmured, slightly embarrassed. She didn't want to criticize any of his procedures, especially since she couldn't think of one.

The wolf stared at her. Then, he looked down at his shirt. Raised a paw, and straightened the little tie clip on his shirt. "Somewhat harsh. . . And not what I thought you would go for. . . But alright then, fixed. Not perfect, but, a decent place to start. You have the right idea at least."

She sighed, shaking her head. "I'm not good at impromptu criticisms, let alone compliments. I don't know if you've done anything wrong, how am I supposed to come up with that?"

"Well, you could have just made something up." He said, shrugging as he clicked over to the next slide. Judy rolled her eyes, as she wondered why he didn't say that at the start. She could insult anything if she made it up. Hell, she could've just inserted one of the many thoughts she'd had about Nick.

The only thing on the next slide was the credits and the suggestion for the whole class to 'practice'. It was a class of one this time, so, they were done with that. "You didn't say I could make it up."

The wolf nodded, as he unplugged the laptop. "True, I didn't. But, that's it for that section for now. Tomorrow, I'll test you on everything you've learned in this unit. Then, if there's some time, we'll move onto that 'trainer-trainee' relations crap. It's pretty basic stuff, honestly. We'll probably get through it by the end of the day."

Judy closed her notebook, as Wolfard put away all of the equipment he'd borrowed around the room. "What can I look forward to in that unit, sir?" She asked, as she put her stuff back in her backpack, and slung it over her shoulder as she hopped down to the ground.

The wolf shook his head, as he put his laptop into a bag, and slipped the shoulder strap over his head. "Not much. Just talks about the standard things, about how to remain distant when letting them go on their own but always having their back. How to conduct professional and friendly distance, on the job and off the job. And, you know, not abusing the whole 'mentor-student' relationship balance. That sort of stuff."

"I'm surprised they needed a whole unit to teach that." She muttered, as she shook her head and began to walk out of the classroom with him.

The wolf laughed. "You'd be surprised. The number one problem we've had with FTO's is when they start having 'relations' with their students. That's why the first rule I'm teaching you tomorrow is, don't sleep with your trainee."

Judy froze on the spot, as her brain ran through what Wolfard had just said. She frowned and looked up at the wolf. "What?" Sleep with your trainee?

"Well, you see, we've had issues crop up now and then with FTO's who end up feeling. . . Attracted, to their charges. And vice versa, in some situations. . . Normally, a relationship between consenting officers is fine." The wolf said as he shook his head slightly.

"The issue is, how can the FTO rate someone they're sleeping with properly and is the student truly consenting to the relationship given the power dynamic? As I'm sure your aware, consent between people with power over the other can be a very grey area." Wolfard droned on, as the rabbit was attempting to deal with the mental image that had been conjured of Nick. Naked.

Not that she had much to go on for picturing. . . Or wanted to, for that matter. They were friends, after all. She shook her head, as she tried to focus on the topic. FTO's sleeping with their students? She could see why that was problematic. There was like, six issues with power over others in that kind of situation. Determining what was an abuse of power or not would be hard, even in the most willing of situations. And Judy would never think about that with Nick.

She blinked, as she saw Wolfard looking down at her with a curious look. Wait, she'd better respond, before the wolf thought something of her behaviour. "I'm surprised. . . That's a common thing?"

The wolf looked down at her, raising his eyebrows at her. "You'd be surprised. You're in a car, hanging out with them a lot. If you're not good at maintaining a good social distance from someone. . . It's not that hard for feelings to start cropping up, real or otherwise. Even if they're both earnestly attracted to one another, the rules remain the same."

Wolfard shrugged. "That's why I make a habit not to hang out too much with trainees outside of work. After the field training, anything goes, that's fine. But, until that point, it's a big no-no. Occasionally, we hear about an FTO at one of the other stations that gets shit-canned for it. . . Horny bastards."

Judy nodded, as Wolfard turned to continue walking out of the room and into the hall. "Well, duly noted." She responded as she thought about the idea of social distancing with someone she lived with. But Nick was a different case, she imagined.

She didn't have anything to worry about with Nick. Their relationship was already established as close friends. That was it, there was nothing more. He'd never be attracted to her, and she wasn't attracted to him that way. And she didn't need to think about that conjured imaged ever again.

As they made their way to the door, Judy searched for a way to change the subject as the wolf plodded along forward. A thought came to her head, and she jumped on the chance to segue away from that topic. "So, who was your field training officer when you started, Wolfard?"

The wolf turned to her for a brief second, as they walked through the hall. His ears fell for a second, as he turned back to face the front. "Officer Fangmeyer. . . They're a great officer, have you met them?" He asked as Judy shook her head in response. "They've taken a whole lot of shit and given it right back. Heck, they even berated my ass a few times." He mused as they approached the door.

She had yet to be formally introduced to Fangmeyer and had only seen them in the bullpen a few times. But she was proud to hear of their accomplishments. "Do you miss working with them?" She asked, as he pushed the front door open and stepped out into the breeze. Despite never meeting them, Judy was quickly told to address them correctly, should the opportunity ever occur.

He paused, taking in the nice cool wind like he always did. "Yeah, a little. They were certainly entertaining. . . We were due to be partners before I volunteered to train you."

Judy looked at the wolf, curiously. Why did he look upset? Was this what Ben was talking about before? "I'm sorry if I messed that up." She found herself saying, shaking her head slightly.

The wolf looked down at her and laughed. "No worries. It's not a big deal. We chat in the break room now and then. . . Besides, this has been a fun experience. You've done well so far. . ." The wolf started, as he turned to face her with his body. Judy noted the quick subject change, and decided to leave it alone. . . But she did have a new curiosity. "So, do you think you're ready for the SGP exam? You must be pretty excited."

She looked at him and smiled. "Yep, I can't wait. . . . Why do they call it the SGP? I would've thought it would just be 'FTO' exam or something." Judy asked. As far as it was explained to her, it was the final exam for the FTO course. She loved acronyms and their origins, but this was one that had been thrown around a lot without any explanation.

The wolf narrowed his eyes, as he turned his head to the side. "Because it's the Sergeant's Promotion exam?"

She stared at him, blankly. "The sergeants what?"

"The promotion exam? Constables can't be FTO's of other constables, so, Bogo greenlit this as your promotion course. You mean no one told you? That's why there's like, ten or so more modules."

"No, no one told me! Sweet cheese and crackers, what the heck?!"

Judy didn't know what the more appropriate response was. Happiness, or pure terror.

Three days later.

"The PEACE Model is the standard interviewing method used by the ZPD and most police departments across the world. It doesn't matter who you are interviewing; the victim, the witness, or the suspect, it works for all. And, it can be combined with other systems, such as the cognitive method." The guest instructor continued, as he pointed to the projector in the large lecture hall.

Nick was busy copying down the large chart on the screen, even before the jaguar began speaking. It wasn't going to be pretty, but it was at least going to flow appropriately.

"It's also comfortable for the interviewer, and the interviewee. It assumes that a calm subject with whom you've built rapport will be more likely to cooperate. And, I can tell you know, the science supports this. . . If any of you bothered to listen to the Major, you're already familiar with how voluntary compliance means." The jaguar continued, gesturing to the polar bear chuckling in the front row.

According to the Major, the guest speaker was a retired officer of the ZPD, notorious for his interviews. Not in a bad way, but rather in the way that he almost always got a confession from his subjects, using the PEACE model.

An amazing feat, Nick had to admit as he finished the brief chart. He'd been interviewed before, and he never cracked. "There are five phases to the PEACE framework, and each one is essential to the success of the interview. Lo and behold, right there at the top is the P, for Planning and Preparation. What'dya know? Everything you've learned in the last module, right at the start."

The teacher continued to speak sarcastically, earning a quiet snort from the fox. It was a mammal after his own heart, with that snark. He continued to write, as the teacher clicked to the first slide that elaborated on the P of PEACE.

"Where you interview, what to have there, etc., you know all of that stuff. But the moment you walk in that door, you introduce yourself, and you start building rapport with the subject. Now, I will say this once, regarding interviewing suspects, and anyone really, the key to the whole thing is to know as much as you can before you walk through that door." He spoke sternly, as he pointed to his audience.

"Know everything you can about the offence, about their family, about their actions around the time of the offence. Anything that you think will help you build rapport with them, and call out any lies you come across. But, more on that later. Build rapport by paying attention. Are they wearing a hat with a sports team on it? Comment on it, ask their favourite player, whatever you think is appropriate. After a bit of rapport building, slide right into the E." He continued, as he clicked to the next slide. Nick narrowly caught the last bit of information on the last slide and redoubled his efforts on this one.

The jaguar cleared his throat. "Engage and explain. Tell them why they're there, even if it's obvious. Giving a witness statement, victim statement, being investigated, whatever. Tell the truth. You tell them the reasons and routines of how it's going to go. As I'm sure you've been told, get them to tell you the whole story before you start writing it down. Get them to tell it, then go through it a second time. Not only will it refresh their memory the second go around, but it will give you insight on any additional questions that you may have, and you can write them down and have them at the ready."

He paused and looked at the slide. "Never let them have a single doubt of why they're there, and what is going on. Tell them how it's going to go, and not only will you help their nervousness, you will instantly build a rapport built on respect. As soon as that done, we go onto A. Account clarification and challenge. This is the part where you start taking down what they're saying, and getting their account of what has happened. Start the same way as always, on blah blah at blah blah, I did see, hear, whatever."

Nick wrote furiously, as he kept up with the Jaguar. He looked like an older cat and had to be up there if he was retired. But he certainly still had his speed. "Don't interrupt the account, unless you need minor clarification on spelling or wording of things, as this is supposed to be the pure, unclarified account of what's happened. As soon as they have finished their account of the events, this is where you can ask questions and review what you've been told."

The jaguar waited for a minute, while the entire class scrambled to keep up with him. "Probe topics for more detail, get checkable facts and introduce topics that you need answers to. And, I remind you, keep these open-ended questions. Asking them if the car is red is not acceptable, ask them what colour the car was. If you need special help to know the difference, make sure there's a 'what' somewhere in the question, not an answer."

Nick did his best not to snicker. This was one salty cop. And the Major was nearly bucking with laughter in the front row, clearly enjoying the salt. "This is also the point that you can get clarifications, or even challenge their account. This is, in essence, the fun part. There is nothing better than having a suspect tell you a story twice, and convincing them that you believe everything they've said. And then, pull the wool off their eyes. 'So, why do the video footage and cellular data put you at the scene of the crime, not at your mother's house?'."

At this point, the whole room was chuckled. The jaguar grinned. "'But, uh, um'. See, this is why you need to know everything you can. Hell, I even had knowing too much 'somewhat' backfire once, I knew a B&E suspect's girlfriend was pregnant before he did. . . It was a weird congratulations moment. But hey, it was easy for him to confess with the thought it would help reduce the sentence, what with a family on the way." The instructor spoke, comically grimacing.

"Now, if you get a confession here, you'll have to start a new witness statement and get them to start over at the beginning. However, let's pretend this is just a witness, to finish out the peace model." He continued, as he clicked onto the next slide.

"C, for Closure. This is where you thank them for their help, tell them their information will be really important and let them know where to contact you if they think of anything else important. Here, you can establish a great rapport with a witness, enough to leave a positive imprint of the police on them. Will they be more willing to call the police, report something, give a witness statement, if you're professional and nice at the end? Yes, yes they will." He murmured, as he clicked through to the next slide.

Nick shook his head, as he started writing down the second E, for Evaluation. The jaguar shrugged, as he faced the class with a frown. "Evaluation. Analyze the info you got, apply it to the investigation, and evaluate your success as an interview. If you could've done it better, then remember that, and learn. That is the PEACE model of interviewing, briefly. I'm sure that Major Friedkin will have some handouts for you tomorrow, and have you practice next class?" He asked, looking down at the polar bear. Nick took the opportunity to scribble down the last few points, while the polar bear nodded vigorously.

"Good. . . Now, I want to cover one last interview model. . Just a mention of it, ." The jaguar continued, as he clicked forward to the last slide of the presentation. Nick almost started to write it down, when he saw the large red X, on a nearly empty slide. The only thing written on the slide was the title, and it was in red as well. ". . . The Reid Method."

His tone shifted, to one of. . . anger? "This is a warning, not a lesson. The Reid Method is an aggressive interview style, that is used to continually berate your suspect by assuming their complicity. The intention is to get a 'confession'. But, statistically, over half of those confessions are false. . . This is not a joke. Several mammals have spent decades in jail because they confessed to a crime they did not commit due to a Reid interrogation. They always retract the confession, but no one cares at that point. In some cases, only DNA evidence has cleared these mammals of the charges."

His eyes appeared to glow, as he angrily pointed at the board. "Do not let anyone on the force convince you this is an acceptable interview model. It isn't. It never will be. It's unethical. . . And that's your warning. . . If I so much as hear about a Reid interview occurring at the ZPD, I will personally track you down, and use it on you. . . And you don't want me to do that. . . Also, don't use this on your significant others. Many a marriage has been destroyed from it." The Jaguar added, attempting to alleviate the gloom in the room. It worked, a bit, as the room slowly chuckled.

But Nick didn't chuckle. The fox never could, talking about the Reid method. He was, unfortunately, familiar with the technique. . .

He didn't even need those details to know it was used on him once before. . .

The officer told him that the evidence all pointed to him, of a crime he hadn't done. That Nick had this one chance to explain or justify it. That he would be convicted, either way, but that a confession would help him. The officer tried to shift the blame off of Nick, saying it was his 'circumstances' as a fox, not him himself. That it was excusable, somehow less serious than personally motivated.

Nick denied it. He flat out denied it and refused to cooperate. He tried to explain that he was never there, he was not involved with Mr. Big's operations. The officer tried to claim he was being sincere in his interest in helping him. But that was a lie, Nick knew it, and he wasn't playing.

He started offering Nick alternatives for why the fox had committed it. Maybe he did it because he wanted to kill his business opponents. Or, maybe it was an accident, and they had pulled the gun first during the deal and he reacted.

But either option was a confession. And Nick told the officer to kiss his ass for trying to trick him, he'd never even been in that alley. Unfortunately for the officer, that standoff lasted for three hours and went nowhere. But Nick remembered the seething anger he felt.

The officer left with nothing. Not a damn thing. Because there wasn't a thing, Nick hadn't shot anyone. He didn't have any part of Mr. Big's crime organization anymore. He was just the nearest fox that the bastard officer found, and he was dragged to the station for three damn hours of interrogation.

If he could remember the guy's name. . . Nah, he had to be gone by now. He couldn't still be working at the ZPD, Nick had left a scathing complaint about him at some point. Fucking wolf.

By the time Nick roused to the world around him, people were already filing out of the room. The guest inspector, whatever his name was, was talking to Major Friedkin as they exited the building.

Robotically, Nick gathered his stuff and placed it into his duffle bag. Forcefully. He hauled the strap over his shoulder and headed for the exit. Internally, his mind kept running through the officer's trick questions and shouts. Nick hadn't thought about that day in years until that instructor started talking about it.

As much as Nick wanted to try and remember his name, and find out what happened to that officer, he also didn't want to deal with remembering any more of that trauma. But, if he wasn't fired, Nick was going to have a problem.

It was Friday afternoon. There were no classes, no runs, no workshops that they had to do. And, they could even sleep in tomorrow morning, it was Saturday. But that left him with a lot of time to himself this afternoon. Three months ago, Nick would have thought it was a good time for homework. However, lately, he hadn't had much to do in that 'area'.

He had nothing else to do after class, all the way out here without friends. And, it helped when you had a buffalo dead set on ruining his sleep. If he stayed up doing homework at the desk, the bull wasn't brave enough to watch questionable material. Therefore, all he had to do was wait until the bull was snoring loudly, and then he could get some sleep.

Bumped his average to about 5 hours of sleep, a definite improvement over 1. And, he was killing all the assignments, so there was that.

Nick exited the 'school' structure and crossed the small compound over to the dormitories. It was a pretty bland, grey structure. Very 'functional' architecture, something that Nick was fairly fond of sometimes. That is when they didn't look like a converted parking garage like this one did.

He entered the structure, and headed towards his little shared room with a blank, thumping walk as he tried to shake himself out of the funk he was in. That was several years ago. That was why he was here, wasn't it? To be better than cops like him.

He could positively use that memory, as a measure of his success. Lazily, he opened the door to the dorm and walked inside the tiny structure. The bunk was on one side, and two desks on the other. One desk was way smaller, clearly for the fox. . . How accommodating they were. Each had a small closet for clothes, but other than that, the entire room was pretty bare.

Nick flopped his bag onto the bed and took a seat with a sigh. He pulled out his phone and looked at the time as his ear flitted back and forth.

It was 6:41 PM. The last time she'd talked to him, she said she was on the evening shift, which ended around 11:00 PM. If she worked today, which given his luck she did. That. . . Sucked. He would have to wait until then, at least. Which left him with a whole lot of time to himself, unfortunately. And his thoughts.

Still. . . He needed to hear-

The door clicked and opened slowly before his young buffalo roommate stepped through the door. Nick looked at him and smiled cheerfully. "Hello, Bill." The fox began, as the buffalo looked at him with a surprised look. And, a slightly embarrassed look, too. . . What was going on?

"Hey, uh, Nick. . . Me and a bunch of the other recruits are going to a party down by the river today. Y'know, since we're about halfway through the course now. We wanted to know if you'd like to join us, maybe?" The buffalo began, straightening his back slightly.

Hmm. . . Nick wondered how genuine that invitation was. . . However, that was kind of rude of him. Despite how standoffish Nick had been during the entire course, the rest of the class was mostly nice to him. And, a party did seem like a good way to spend the next several hours, waiting for Judy to get off shift. . .

"Nah, I'm pretty behind on the community policing assignment. Thanks for the invitation, though. Maybe next time?" The fox lied slightly, as he shrugged. As much as it was a good idea, Nick was not in the greatest mood right now. Partying while unhappy, was probably not the best idea.

Besides, he got plastered pretty easily. If he somehow managed to forget to call Judy, he'd be pretty upset with himself. The buffalo nodded. "Alright, no problem, next time for sure. Good luck on your assignment then?" He offered, kindly. Nick smiled wider and nodded to him.

"You guys have fun. I guess I'll see you tomorrow, or later tonight." Yeah, way later, if anything. Which meant he'd probably be asleep when the buffalo arrived, and the damn bastard would be watching shit again. Eh. . . Nick guessed he'd earned one, at least. . .

The bull nodded, as he stepped backwards out of the doorway. "Yeah, see you tomorrow." He finished, before closing the door behind him.

And Nick sighed, loudly. He slowly rose and opened his bag. Nick pulled out his laptop and walked over to his little desk.

He sat down, opened the laptop, and turned it on. Maybe he should have gone to the party. . . He wouldn't be sad all the time, right? It would distract him. And, he could always call Judy tomorrow, or something. It wasn't like it mattered when he called her.

But, as the laptop booted up, he found himself opening up Zoogle and staring at the search bar. What was that officer's name? It was Wolf-something, wasn't it. . .?

He typed in ZPD Officer, space, and typed Wolf. As the suggested options popped up, he read through them slowly.

Wolfmeyer. Nope

Wolfard. Definitely nope, that was Judy's FTO.

Wolfhanssen. Nope Nope.

Wolfrump. Hardly.

Wolfbashar. Nope.

Wolfy. Was he just being speciesist, remembering the name as wolf-something?

Wolfsei. . . . Wait, that one rang a bell. . . Yes, that was his name, wasn't it? Was there a picture on Zoogle?

He hit enter, and the screen filled up with news articles. The first that caught his eye was an article named 'Wolfsei cleared of any wrongdoing in investigation'. . . Yeah, Nick was pretty sure he'd found the right one. There were a few more questionable articles, but first Nick needed to be sure he had the right Wolfsei. He clicked images, and immediately he saw a photo of that very officer, grinning at the camera like the smug wolf he was.

The bastard himself. . . He'd been fired, right? Nick switched back to the web search and began to-

"Cadet Wilde, report to the front office." A voice blared through the speaker above him, as he rolled his eyes in frustration. What could the front office want. . . The last time they called him there, they were asking about a reported theft in the dormitories. Because of course, the first person to talk to was a fox, right?

He closed the window and powered down the laptop. He would have to remember the search later, for when he got back. He wasn't going to forget the name again, at least. That fucking smug bastard.

The fox glowered over that image all the way over to the main complex, as he headed right for the front offices and reception area. Why that bastard was allowed to smile after what he'd done Nick would never know. They should've busted his teeth out after Nick's complaint. He'd better have been fired. . .

As he marched into the small lobby area, it was clear to anyone watching that the fox wasn't in the greatest of moods. His face wasn't angry, but, between his eyes and the bristled fur, it was obvious that it wasn't the best day for the fox.

Then, he heard laughter, as he approached the large glass doors into the front office. Boisterous laughter, of a few people, clearly enjoying a good joke.

And. . . One of the laughs was much higher than the rest. And, very familiar to Nick. his ears perked up instantly, as he looked through the windows with excited eyes.

As he gazed through the glass door, he saw who was standing by the front counter. It was Major Freidkin, and the guest instructor, laughing together. And right beside them, laughing along, was that rabbit. Who'd already clocked the fox, and was watching the orange creature through the clear glass.

"When I first saw this rabbit in my class, I knew she'd make it as an officer. Never thought toilets would be her biggest obstacle in the Academy, though." The guest instructor joked as Judy shook her head. Nick pulled the door open and stepped through.

The two others turned their heads towards him at the sound, as he walked into the room with a surprised expression. And, slightly curving mouth corners. He didn't expect. . . Why. . . How? Wasn't she supposed to be working? Wait, did 'how' even fucking matter to him? She was here, that was the important part.

"Hey, Nick!" Judy spoke, chipper as usual as she gave him a slight wave with a mini hop. Friedkin smiled, amused, which terrified the fox more than anything else. Why was she smiling at him? The instructor glanced from Judy to him, and then back with a curious expression.

Nick didn't know what that meant. . . And, he didn't want to ask. "Hey, Carrots. . . Major, sir." He spoke, nodding to the two larger mammals with a smile. "What are you doing here?"

She shrugged. "Well, I had the day off for once, so, I figured I'd finally come down and see you. I had no idea that one of my college instructors were going to be here, though. This Jaguar taught me a lot, back in college." The rabbit added, gesturing to the towering jaguar.

He let out a snort. "And more importantly, you remembered it, Hopps. It's students like you who make me proud. . ."

"It's your teaching that makes me the way I am, so, you have yourself to thank for being proud." Judy countered as she shrugged.

"Yes, I am very proud of myself, too, thanks for noticing. . ." He muttered as he glanced over at the Major for a brief moment. She nodded, and he let out a sigh. "As much as I'd love to stay and chat, I'm going to have to make my way back to Watanobbi eventually. Major, shall we go for that coffee?" The jaguar interjected.

"Certainly. You can tell me what retired life is like. You traitor. . ." The polar bear teased him, shaking her head. "It was nice to see you again, Hopps. Remember what I told you, though. Get back to me on that, right away." The ursine spoke sternly, waggling a paw at the rabbit.

She nodded at the polar bear, as the fox stood there clueless about what they were talking about. He'd somewhat hoped to join the conversation, not be tiptoed around. . . But maybe they did have somewhere to be. "I will definitely consider it. . . But I don't know if I deserve that honour Major. . . Not after what happened. . ." The rabbit spoke, looking down at the ground as her ears drooped.

"Hah!" The polar bear exclaimed as she shook her head. "What 'happened' after, is why you deserve it most. . . You'd better have a first draft done by next week. I'll get it approved by the Commissioner, and that'll be that. . . You'll do fine."

They continued to talk as if Nick was somehow aware of their discussion. This was frustrating, but. . . Nick feared clap-back from the two massive predators. "I guess so, Major. . . I'll get it done right away." How in the world could the Major order her around? They weren't in the same unit. . . Eh, Nick had better not get involved. . .

"Cadet Wilde." The polar bear spoke up, causing his head to snap up to face her. "I'll see you in class. C'mon, traitor." She teased again, as she gestured and began walking towards the exit.

The jaguar laughed, as rolled his eyes. "It was nice to see you, Judy. Feel free to visit the college anytime, I'd love to catch up some more. . . Wilde. It was nice to meet you." The jaguar spoke to him with a nod, as the cat began to follow the bear.

The fox nodded back, as they walked away. "It was nice to see you too, Mr. Zumaz!" She called after him, as they both waved to each other.

Nick raised his hand in a sheepish wave, as he watched the two exit the door. When he turned back around, the rabbit had crossed her arms and smirked up at him. "Hey." He repeated, somewhat sheepishly.

"Hello, slick. . . What, are you surprised to see me?" She teased, as she moved her arms out with a disappointed shrug.

He snorted. "That depends. Are you the reason that I was called to the office? Or, am I in trouble for something, which, I never did?" He asked, comically. He knew she was the reason, but, eh. Playing around was fun.

"No, it's just a total coincidence that I, your friend and roommate, happen to be here at the same time you get called to the office, for peeping in the showers again. What, am I not a good enough reason to come to the office?"

"It's an open shower room, Judy. You know that. I try not to peep, but it's pretty hard when half of everyone's junk is basically at my head height." As per standard, the male and female shower rooms were both very open, with only a small barrier between the showerheads.

However, as the short one, Nick had to deal with the fact that so many males didn't give a damn about putting towels on, and proudly wandered around. It was their right to, however, it would be nice to have a conversation without someone's 'equipment' on display.

This just reminded him that it was the last time he told Judy about anything if she was just going to relentlessly tease him about it. "Say whatever you want, peeping tod. . . Have you eaten yet, peeper?"

". . . I don't like that nickname. Everyone has their likes and that's okay, but there isn't anything in that shower room I'd be interested in seeing on a personal level. . . But no, to your question, I haven't eaten." He said, shaking his head. Normally, he went for dinner around 7 at the cafeteria. At least then the line wasn't ten miles long.

She laughed, as she gestured her head toward the door, and began happily walking toward the door. "C'mon then, Nick. I know of a good restaurant nearby."

He frowned. "Wait, you're going to make me walk there? After a hard day of classes?" He teased mockingly, as he began to comically drag his feet behind her.

The rabbit turned back to him as she pushed the door open, and scowled. "It's like, only half a kilometre away, Nick. Don't be a kit." She shook her head, as she continued picking up the pace.

Nick quickly didn't have the opportunity to drag his feet, as he started walking normally to catch up to her side. "Fine. . . I'm buying this time, though." He added, raising a finger defiantly as he walked right by her side, smiling down at her.

"Well, I'm not going to argue with that." She responded, as they walked to the sidewalk by the road, and started heading in the direction of the nearby town. Lots of recruits went to the down now and again since it was so close. But, Nick himself had only visited it a few times.

"So, where are we going?" He asked, looking at the rabbit with a smile.

"It's a nice little family-owned restaurant, I went there a few times when I was at the academy. I don't know how their predator food is, but their herbivore stuff is great." She spoke cheerfully, as they walked down the sidewalk.

"Hey, foxes are omnivores. As long as they have a fruit platter, with blueberries, I'll be able to survive just fine." He teased back, as he winked at the rabbit.

She rolled her eyes. "So. . . You've been at the Academy for a while now. And, it'll be a bit before we get there. I want you to tell me everything." The rabbit asked as they padded their way down the road.

As if somehow, he hadn't texted her everything as it was, of course. However, he guessed that was way different than talking in person. . . "Well, buckle in then, because I have some wonderful stories to tell you. . ." He muttered, as his brain scrambled of where to start.

"Really? Oh god, that must've been awful to hear. . ." Judy grimaced, as she took another bite of her carrot cake. Just the reaction Nick had expected when he started the story of the unkind buffalo. There weren't many other appropriate reactions to that scenario.

Nick laughed, as he cut a piece of his blueberry pie with his fork. They'd talked about him for quite some time, all the way through the main course, and onto the desert. He enjoyed their battered and fried beetles, and she must have enjoyed the veggie stew. It was all gone.

Nick didn't usually order dessert. He didn't even want this pie if he was honest. He was shovelling it into himself forcefully, knowing that there was barely enough room in his stomach for a pea.

But he didn't want this night to end. It'd been so long since he saw her smile at his jokes. Heard her laugh. Or scowl. Or admonish him. He didn't even understand why he missed her so much, just so long as she was here. Texts didn't count, phone calls didn't count, not even video chats he thought would matter.

This. This was where it was at. Eating dessert, with his best friend. He lifted the cut piece to his mouth, and readily forced it in and chewed it, happily.

As he swallowed, he smiled at her. Luckily, if all they did was talk about him, there was an untapped resource for the rest of the night. . . "So, how has FTO training been going for Ms. Carrots?" He asked playfully, as he cut another chunk off. But he let it sit on the plate for a minute, as he grinned at the rabbit.

If he ate all of his too fast, she'd feel like she needed to rush hers, and then everything would be over too soon. Not acceptable. Was he overthinking this? Maybe?

She laughed. "Well, if you want to be bored, we can talk about that."

"Bore me, rabbit." He teased, as he readied his fork to stab the piece. Slowly.

She rolled her eyes. "Okay then, but you asked for it. . . We've been covering a whole bunch stuff about how to be a good field training officer, and, it's pretty boring stuff, really. How to give constructive criticism, how to write performance reports, how not to. . . be too friendly with your trainee-"

"Wait, what?" Nick interrupted, brow raised comically as the slice of pie slowly slid off of his fork. Why was not being friendly with your trainee part of the course?

She laughed, as he gaped at her with an amused expression. "Yeah, it's one of the courses. Well, not really, it's more an overarching FTO/Trainee relations course. How to be a friend and a mentor, but not be in a situation where you're unable to give proper critiques. But, that's the synopsis. Apparently, it's a big issue sometimes."

Nick shook his head, chuckling to himself. "Well, I don't think I have much to worry about in that department. You're pretty mean to me as it is." He teased, as she smirked at him.

"You earn it, most of the time." She retorted as she took another bite of her carrot cake.

Nick nodded, unable to argue with that point. "What else are you learning? I take it Wolfard is a good teacher?" He asked as he retrieved the slightly ruined piece of pie that had impacted the plate unceremoniously. It was still edible, right?

She sighed, shaking her head. "Well, I just found out a few days ago that this isn't just an 'FTO' course. They're making me take the Sergeant's Exam. . . And, they're going to promote me accordingly." July spoked, as she looked at the cake with an unsure gaze.

Nick cocked his head to the side. She was getting a promotion. . . And, she was looking at the table with that expression? Why? "That's. . . Good, isn't it? Aren't you happy?"

She nodded, as she looked up at him with a slightly faked smile. "Yeah, I am. It's just, pretty sudden. . . Usually, officers don't get promoted this fast. And, it's a lot of responsibility."

"But they've got good reason to promote you, right?" He asked, watching her as she frowned.

And then, she nodded. "They do. They argued that point very well. . . And, it's the only way I can be your FTO, so, I want it. It's just pretty sudden."

"Yeah, but you've mastered everything life has thrown at you so far. . . I'm sure you'll do great. . . And hey, you'll be making more money then, right? When's the promotion?" The fox asked as he tried to ease her out of her concerns.

She smiled at him, his words helping somewhat. "As soon as I'm done my training, in the next few weeks. . . And yeah, I'll be making more money then, so, that's pretty good. . . . I might as well go with it, right? Besides, I think I'm the only one who can keep you in line. . . I think no one else could take you being a thorn in their side."

He laughed, as she giggled at her joke. Success, she was happier. "You're damn right, Carrots. Although, good luck with that one. With you getting a promotion, I plan to be an even bigger thorn, Sergeant Carrots." He taunted, as he sliced off another piece.

"I'm not a Sergeant yet, Nick. . . But, thanks. . . I'll ride your ass even harder then." She mocked back, as he shook his head.

"How's working with Wolfard been?" He asked as they continued to slowly eat their desserts.

They chatted into the late hours of the night when the shop owner kicked them out (but, kindly). That was fair, it was pretty dark out. As they walked back up to the dormitory, a sudden thought crossed Nick's mind. Where was Judy supposed to stay tonight? It was nearly midnight. . .

"So, are you staying somewhere in town tonight?" He asked, curiously, as they stood by the glass front entry doors. A small, yellow light illuminated them, in the darkness of the night. "Because, if you don't work tomorrow, we could probably do something fun tomorrow. I don't have any class or anything."

She cocked her head to the side, smiling up at him. "Sorry, Nick, but unfortunately I can't. I've got to get back on the road to Zootopia. Wolfard is going to be giving me a review tomorrow around noon, unfortunately. Knowing this is my sergeant's exam has. . . Kind of shifted a lot of weight on studying." The rabbit concluded as she shrugged.

"Oh. . . Fair enough. Wait, you drove here?" He narrowed his eyes. "You have a car now? Or, did you rent one?"

Judy was never one for renting things, as far as Nick knew. "Yeah, well. . . The promotion thought kind of made me go out and. . . finance a used car." She said, as she shrugged and pointed to a small little car in the nearby parking lot. Fitting in that would be. . . interesting for the fox. But, probably not impossible.

Nick glared at her, narrowing his eyes at the offensive rabbit. "You mean. . . We could've driven to the restaurant. And you made me walk?" He mockingly scoffed, as he turned away and crossed his arms. "I'm so hurt, Carrots."

"Considering the pie you ate, you should be glad I made you walk!" She responded as she punched his gut. He laughed, as his body rocked back and forth slightly. As if that pie would matter, the next time Freidkin ran them.

"Hey, am I not entitled to a little dessert now and then, Carrots? You're the one who got carrot cake." He retorted, shaking his head at her.

She crossed her arms and frowned at him. "You've still got blueberry gunk on your lips."

He stared back at her, narrowing his eyes as he licked one side of his muzzle. He didn't taste anything.

"The other side, fox." She said, shaking her head.

He repeated the process, finding just the smallest chunk of blueberry filling. . . Wow, she had to be staring pretty hard at him to have noticed that. Silly bunny. "Better?"

"Cleaner. I don't know about better, it's still your mug after all." She muttered, shaking her head.

"Har-har, Carrots. Are you going to keep mocking me all night?" He returned fire.

"Not at all." She spoke, softly and sweetly. The fox's brows raised, curious at the change until the rabbit suddenly pirouetted, facing her bunny-but towards him. "I'm leaving now." She muttered as she began to walk away.

Eyes trained on her flicking tail, it took half a second for Nick to realize he was staring, as he yanked his gaze back up. "Hey!" He called at her, causing her to pause and look over her shoulder.

He held his arms out wide, a grin forming on his muzzle. "No hug goodbye?" He asked, tilting his head to the side as his ears perked towards her.

She looked the fox over carefully. . . Before she shrugged. "Nah. You'll get one after you graduate." She retorted, as she turned around and continued walking away. She waved back at him absently. "Bye, fox! I'll visit soon if I get a chance." She chimed, as she headed for her car.

He snorted and waved back at her. Pointlessly, since she didn't seem to turn around to see it. "Bye, rabbit. . ." He nearly whispered to himself, as he turned and opened the dormitory door. He walked down the hall, and towards his bedroom.

To his surprise. . . The bedroom door was open already. He stepped inside and looked around.

There was the buffalo, leaning on his desk with a rather. . . curious, concerned expression on his face. And, a fifth of liquor in his hands. As the fox stepped, in, the buffalo turned to him with that same surprised expression.

"Oh, Nick!" The buffalo spoke, as he stood up straighter. The big bovine smiled at him, somewhat nervously.

Nick smiled back, as he tilted his head to the side. "Hey, Bill. . . Did the party end already?" He asked, fully suspecting the answer was no. The bovine was holding a bottle of whisky in his hands. Clearly, the party was not supposed to be over yet.

Surprisingly, the buffalo didn't seem that drunk. . . "No, not at all! I, uh, was going out to pick up some more liquor." He responded as he lifted the obvious bottle. Obviously. . . "And, I needed to grab some. . . things, from my room, while I was out. . . I-I didn't drive, our DD did." He clarified, luckily. Although, as far as Nick knew, he walked there.

How much did Nick want to bet that the 'thing that he'd come back for was condoms? Probably pretty high. . . Well, at least he was getting lucky. "Oh, well, that's good I suppose." Nick responded as he walked over to his bed. Given that he'd be thrown out of the academy for drinking and driving, the fox was pretty sure that he was telling the truth.

Of course, he'd also be in trouble for bringing alcohol into the dorm. . . But Nick was pretty sure that the bottle was leaving with him, and would be gone by morning. "Hey, um, if you want, you can come back to the party with us. Everyone's still having fun, and we'll probably be going for a while longer still."

Nick smiled, shrugging as Bill looked at him. "Nah, I'm pretty tired. . . I already had my fun for the evening. Thanks for the offer, though. You go have fun." The fox responded as he yawned and stretched. He was a bit tired. . . Despite being so high energy when Judy was with him. . . Eh, not important.

"Alright. Well, have a good night." The bull said as he walked toward the door. Nick looked at the laptop, still sitting on the desk. Did he want to bother with continuing that search? Eh, nah. . . It was a memory worth forgetting. At least he remembered the wolf's name now.

"Hey, Nick. . ." The bull asked, standing by the door with the knob in his hand. "I have a question if you don't mind. . ." Bill spoke, piquing Nick's curiosity as he turned to face the bull.

What could he want to ask? Nick grinned, as he shrugged. "No problem, go ahead." He muttered as he leaned against the desk with his hip. Whatever it was, it was probably banal-

"That, bunny. . . Is she your girlfriend? I'm sorry, I saw you two talking through the front doors, and, I was. . . Curious. No judgement!" He hurriedly added, raising the hoof with the bottle in it. Nick blinked in surprise, as he thought about that.

Him? Judy? Dating? Well, it must have looked kind of like that, didn't it? He shook his head, as he slily grinned at the buffalo. "No, nothing like that. . . We're just good friends. She's the reason I'm in this mess."

"Oh. . ." The buffalo spoke, with a nod. "I see. Sorry for intruding-"

"No problem, it was a fair question." The fox interjected with a shrug.

"Ah, right. . . Anyway, I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" The buffalo murmured, clearly wanting to get out of this awkward interaction.

Nick nodded. "Yep, see you tomorrow." He added, as the buffalo nodded and finally stepped out of the door, closing it behind him.

The fox chuckled, as he leaned against the desk. Him, a fox. And Judy, a rabbit. Dating. What a silly thought that was. . . Not that he didn't find her attractive. No, quite the opposite, if he was honest with himself. Her adorable nose. Those beautiful ears. And that little twitching tail. Not to mention her personality, too, which always drove him up the wall with how smart and witty she was.

No, he definitely found that rabbit of the attractive sort. But, her, and him? In some kind of a relationship. That, that was ludicrous. He'd never imagine something like. . .

Except now he was. . . And. "Ah, fucking damn it."

Nick stared at himself in the large mirror, slowly regarding the fox that stared right back at him. The orange fur, the green eyes. The cream-coloured underside. It was the same fox as before, wasn't it? Sure, there was now the blue uniform, black tie, tactical belt, and all the accoutrement of a real police officer.

And, weirdly, a radio. Why were they given a radio on their belts? Not a clue, this was a ceremony. They weren't taking calls, let alone how were these radios even relevant, they stayed at the Academy. Maybe it was just to avoid having an empty pocket on the belt? Maybe. But, as an additional part of the uniform, there was the frilly, silly golden cord.

Now, Nick understood the point of the gold braid from a ceremonial perspective, draped over his shoulder in some regal fashion. It was supposed to be 'Class A' style ceremony, after all. Sure, he was certain that the braid probably had a real name. Some deeper meaning, linked to the past of the ZPD or something. It was probably told to him, too, at some point.

However, Nick didn't care. To him, It was a golden braid thing. That was all. And sure, the uniform had changed, but, had the male within it? It was silly to ask because he knew the answer. Nick Had changed. It was the same fox staring at him on the outside, but inside. . . He felt much different. Thanks to that sly bunny.

He'd made it to the end. The goalpost. Somehow, after everything that the academy had thrown at him, he'd survived. And, that was despite the fact that the Major had certainly made a concerted effort to drive him right into the ground. There were many challenges, physically and mentally, that he had faced in these six months. However, as Judy had told him If you worked a problem with your brain rather than your brawn the solution was likely easier than you thought.

It was how Judy got through obstacle courses designed for animals a dozen times her size. Of course, Nick had one advantage over Judy. Simulations of Tundratown, and the Rainforest district, they were nothing compared to the real thing some days. When you actually get stuck in a blizzard, it was a whole nother thing to deal with. Nick had spent his entire life in that city and had learned how to survive a long time ago. He had to when he was on the street.

Now, the humongous criminal fight was an. . . Interesting event. It took Nick a while to figure out that he was quicker, and that was his best advantage. A huge animal exerts a lot of energy, and force trying to swing and whack a small creature. If that animal just waited, until the final second of that punch. . . Chances were, they were completely unbalanced by the time you got behind them. If you just 'kept' their momentum going for them, you could do some real damage.

Nick had learned a helpful principle on the street. If you can use your opponents against themselves, then you would always come out okay. Even if usually that meant playing two fools against each other, rather than one fool against gravity and inertia. But hey, it worked.

And after all of that hard work, pantings, and strained muscles, he'd made it to this moment. It was time for graduation.

It was time for him to receive that badge, pinned upon his chest and shining in the sun. At least, in a few minutes.

Judy had visited several times in the past few months, to Nick's pleasant surprise. Sergeant Judy Hopps, anyway. As soon as her training was over, she visited nearly every week. And every time, they'd go out to eat and chat about how their lives were going. Apparently, that promotion had done very little to change who that bunny was. Much to Nick's. . . relief? Eh, he didn't know how to put it.

They chatted about everything. She talked about the people she and Wolfard had helped, the criminals that she had arrested, and all the fun bits of being a police officer. Like how Wolfard played pranks on her sometimes after she got promoted, and how they pranked others. Purely in good fun, of course.

They talked a lot when she visited. A lot, a lot. He spent several nights lying awake, happily thinking about their chats. And her. . . .But that wasn't the point. There was something that, despite the relevance, she had not talked to him about. Somehow, this had slipped the little bunny's mind, or she actively chose not to. Nick knew better, he knew it was an active choice. Actively, she decided not to talk to him about this, even when he woke up this morning and received a morning text about her coming out to see his grad. She didn't say a thing, the dumb bunny.

Was that what she and the Major were talking about that one time before he'd come in? Maybe? It would make sense.

He looked down at the piece of paper again. The simple piece of paper, telling him that he was Valedictorian of the class troop. A hard-won honour, and one he didn't think he truly deserved. But, the paper also informed him that the special guest was going to be giving him his badge, on the stage after their speech.

That was fair enough when he first received this notice a few days ago. Major Friedkin had run him through what he'd have to do, and how to be professional about it. How he shouldn't bring his hat as he wouldn't get to throw it on stage. To brush your fangs, keep a straight tie. the regular stuff. All for the special guest, and that photo opportunity.

Normally, it was the mayor who would be giving the address. Or a retired officer. Or the Chief, who would be giving that speech. Standard practice, Nick had assumed.

However, when he'd been helping set up the stage earlier today, none of those were the name that he'd seen on the posters they'd put up at the lobby.

Instead, the posters said 'Sergeant Judith Hopps, Zootopia's Hero'.

And Nick had gotten. . . Minorly miffed. The rabbit had intentionally failed to tell him about all this. . . And now, she was going to be pinning a badge on his chest. He knew she was already at the Academy, he'd seen her car in the parking lot up front. . . He just didn't know where.

"Sly bunny." He spoke softly to the mirror, as he smiled at his reflection. Or rather, at the image of the rabbit in his head. She had such moxie. She could clap back at whatever he threw at her, and keep coming back for more. But now, he didn't know what to do about this little secret. How was he ever going to get her back for this transgression?

The door clicked open, and the Major stuck her head in and looked around. Nick turned to look at her, just as she smiled down at the fox. One of the first times he'd seen such a smile on her face, Nick imagined. Well, a smile that she let him see, anyway.

"Up an' at 'em, Wilde. Show starts in 15 minutes. If you're not there, I'mma make you start this whole course from the beginning." She spoke, slightly gruff but no longer with the anger of before.

He smiled and nodded.

"You know who's speaking today, don't you?" She asked as she let the door swing open. He nodded, slightly shaking his head.

"Yeah. . . Y'know, that rabbit never told me. . ." He mused as he shrugged.

The polar bear shook her head, chuckling. "Sounds like a regular Hopps thing to me. C'mon, let's get going." She said as she gestured out the door with her head.

Nick nodded, as he grabbed his Snarlbucks coffee from the table, and slipped his sunglasses on.

The polar bear frowned at him. "Hey, I'm a fox. I've got sensitive eyes. . . And the rules were no hat, not no coffee." He responded to the frown, as he began walking toward the door. The Major rolled her eyes and began walking down the hall

"You'd better take those damn glasses off, and put that cup in the trash before you get on the stage. . . Or else-"

"Will do, Major." He needed to look good for the photo with Judy, after all.

Author's Notes:

To address any questions about Fangmeyer, they are called 'they' by Judy and Wolfard because that is how they choose to identify. Looking at the 'no gender' in the wiki, I found this to be the perfect solution, as well as a perfect moment to have some inclusivity in this story. I realize that Wolfard is also ungendered so far in the canon, but, he has his own. . . Secrets, here.