Part 2: Judy and the Hopps Tribe
As expected, Nick followed the prey animals back to their village and sat with them in one of their many teepees. The hare, which he had recently learned was named Jack approached him. "Here, let me help you."
Nick moved his head back, hesitant for a moment, but ultimately let him remove the muzzle - particularly when he noticed a worried expression on the doe's face. Nick stretched open his jaw and massaged his snout. "Thanks, but I really don't need your help," Nick muttered.
"You do if you were planning on returning to your tribe. Those wounds on your back will no doubt infect if they're not cleaned," Jack beckoned the gray doe, "Judy will tend to your wounds."
Judy, the gray doe, crouched down before Nick with a damp washcloth and bowl. "I already told you, I don't need your he-" Judy placed the damp cloth on Nick's back. "Ow!" he hissed quietly.
"There, is that better?" she asked with a cheeky smirk.
Nick, in response, groaned in annoyance, but allowed her to treat her wounds just the same. "Rest easy, you have nothing to fear here," Jack told Nick, "The Hopps tribe bears no ill will towards predators."
Nick scoffed in response, not believing him considering the fact that they semi-kidnapped him themselves - just like the blue clothed prey animals did. "Get some rest, we shall see you in the morning. Come Judy."
Judy nodded, just finishing up patching up Nick's wounds with husks and sap. "I know you don't trust us right now," Judy said to Nick, "But please stay. We want to make sure you're okay." She smiled at him and collected her things, "Good night."
"Good night…" Nick uttered softly.
The two bunnies left the teepee and left Nick alone. He sighed and looked up at the night sky from a small gape at the top of the teepee. Though he felt safer there with them, he still felt trapped. He wanted to go home, but he was so tired and felt the fire of his fiery spirit low. So he decided to lie down and do as they had asked him to do and get some sleep.
The next morning, Nick was roused by a sweet smell invading his nose. He opened his eyes and saw that there was a wooden bowl full of delicious, plump blueberries! He couldn't believe his eyes, but his growling stomach didn't care. Nick took the bowl and started eating.
He sat there for a moment eating his blueberries until he heard the sounds of lively villagers coming from outside. Curious, he stepped outside of the teepee with his bowl of blueberries. He noticed a few prey animals walking around, but the one animal that really caught his attention was Judy.
She was picking off the husks from some ears of corn. She pushed her ears down and Nick couldn't help but watch her with admiration. Nick set the bowl down and sauntered over to her.
He put on his best flirty grin, "Hey."
"Good morning," Judy casually greeted him, not paying him any special attention.
"Good morning Judy," said another familiar voice behind her.
"Good morning Jack," Judy greeted the striped hare with a happy smile. She stood up to hug him.
Nick's jaw dropped and he scoffed. He turned to leave when Jack noticed him. "Ah, look who's up, Judy. How are you feeling today my friend?"
Nick scoffed again, ignoring Jack. Judy pouted angrily, marching past Nick and standing before him, thumping her foot. "Excuse me, but it's very rude to ignore someone when they ask you a question."
"Yeah, as is kidnapping someone and keeping them against their will. So if you'll excuse me Carrots," Nick tried to move past her, but Judy quickly moved in front of him again.
"Okay, first off, you'll want to refrain from calling me Carrots. And secondly, no one is keeping you here against your will. Jack tells me you were kept without food or water for three days alongside having your back whipped. From what we know, the nearest predator tribe is a few days journey. So if you'd like to make it back home alive and well, you'll let me tend to your wounds. Is that clear?!" the bunny ordered firmly with her paws at her hips and her face in his.
Nick stepped back, speechless, and actually a little terrified of the fierce bunny. A part of him wanted to argue, but he relented and went back inside the teepee in a huff. Does, he thought in annoyance.
Jack watched the exchange with intrigue, and an idea formed inside his head.
Judy gathered some supplies to treat Nick's wounds, she went inside the teepee and Jack followed. Judy knelt down behind Nick and began replacing the husks.
"Judy?"
"Yes, Jack?" the doe answered.
"Why don't you take our guest here and show him around the village? Perhaps that will put him more at ease while he recovers his strength," Jack suggested.
"Yeah, that sounds like a fun idea!" Judy agreed. Nick meanwhile just rolled his eyes in response. Jack nodded, believing the matter to be settled and stepped outside the teepee.
Judy patted a fresh new husk on Nick's back. "It looks like your wounds are healing nicely...uh…?" she trailed off, not knowing how to address him.
"Nick," he replied.
"Nick," Judy repeated. "You should heal up nicely in no time."
"Well that's great to hear. I'm sure you and your boyfriend can stop worrying about me now and let me go home."
"He's not my boyfriend," Judy replied.
"Alright, your husband then," Nick said.
"Jack is my adopted brother," Judy corrected.
"Brother?" Nick asked, unable to believe his ears. "Well, whatever he is to you, just know that as soon as you're done treating my wounds, I'm going to be on my way."
"No you're not," Judy said firmly. "I said your wounds were getting better, not that they're fully healed yet. You could still be at risk for infection if you're not careful."
"Thanks for your concern Carrots, but I'll manage." Nick stood up, attempting to leave the teepee and the village, but Judy once again stood in his way.
"Absolutely not, I'm not going to let you put your health at risk," she stated firmly. "If I have to watch you all day to ensure your well being, I will."
"Is that so?" the fox asked with a humored smirk, "Well you might be able to keep an eye on me during the day, but I highly doubt you'd be able to watch me at night."
"I can go without sleeping," Judy uttered, confidently.
"I suppose you can, but I highly doubt those cute lavender eyes of yours can see in the dark like mine can." Judy's confidence faltered a bit. Nick chuckled confidently, "I'm sorry to say it Carrots, but I guess there's really nothing you can do to keep me tied down to this place."
A moment later…
"I stand corrected," Nick muttered miserably as Jack tied a rope to his wrist and then one to Judy's.
"Okay Judy, let's see if you can teach this fox some manners," said the hare as he finished tying her wrist.
"Don't worry I will," Judy replied. Nick rolled his eyes and glanced over to the side, noticing that they were right at the village's edge. This was his chance for freedom!
He took the plunge and ran off, running towards the trees in the distance. This was it! He was home free!
"Whoa!" Nick grunted when he felt something jerk his arm and stop him in his tracks. "What the-?" He looked back behind him, Oh right, I forgot.
He saw the bunny holding onto the rope and planting her feet hard on the ground, preventing him from moving any further. "Let go, Carrots!" he tugged on the rope, hard but gentle enough to not hurt her.
He pulled Judy forward, almost dropping her, but she tugged back. "No!"
Boy was she strong for a bunny! He hated to admit it, but she was right, he was greatly weakened after being forced to fast for three days.
Nick let out a strained grunt as he tried to force himself forward, but then he heard a light thud. He looked back to see that she had sat firmly down on the ground with an innocent, yet mischievous look on her face. Nick's jaw dropped.
The nerve of this bunny!
If that's how she wanted to play, then game on! Nick pulled forward, not caring if he would have to drag her with him. He came to realize that he was struggling an awful lot, "How are you this heavy for a bunny?" he strained as he pulled.
Once he stopped and seemingly gave up in a huff, Judy stood up and slowly circled around him with a coquettish gait. She placed a paw at her hip and swayed her hips side to side, all while keeping a flirty half-lidded gaze on him. "I'm sorry, Nick. Am I a little too much for you?"
Nick couldn't help but keep his gaze locked onto the bunny. "I-I…" he stuttered, admiring her beauty.
Judy stopped circling him, then suddenly without warning, she yanked at the rope tripping Nick. "Whoa!" he yelped as he fell right on his back.
That sly bunny, she had pretended to flirt and circle him as an excuse to wrap the rope around his feet and trip him.
Judy looked down at him and giggled, offering a paw to him. "So, are you going to let me show you around or not?"
Nick stared at her in disbelief, then quietly nodded, giving into her wishes. He gave her his paw and she helped him up. Judy led him back to the village, both of them still tied at the wrist.
The whole way back, Nick kept his gaze on her in admiration. Okay, I admit she was charming. In her own stubborn, irritating dumb bunny kind of way, Nick thought as they arrived back at the village.
So, I let her show me her world.
Nick and Judy strolled through her village. Throughout the tour, Nick saw various species of prey animals making up Judy's village. Little bunny and lamb children ran around playing happily. Nick found himself smiling at the peaceful tribe.
Things seemed as he expected out of a prey tribe, until he saw other more...unique members of the village. Nick's jaw dropped when he saw a handful of predators living in the village and being marked with paint to display their membership within the tribe.
Nick's jaw dropped, he couldn't believe it! They actually had predator members in their tribe?! And not just predators, but they were all foxes! There was a chubby red fox, a short fennec fox, and a pale yellow furred arctic vixen.
The minute they saw Nick, they all greeted him with a warm, "Welcome newcomer!"
A male rabbit drew a circle with blue paint around the chubby red fox's eye. Jack approached the foxes and the vixen immediately lit up with excitement. "Jack!" She ran to him and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. Jack grunted a little, but then chuckled happily.
"Hello my darling," he said before they both leaned in to kiss each other.
Nick's jaw dropped and both the red fox and the fennec fox, smirked at his reaction. To them this was commonplace, but to Nick this was new, odd, yet intriguing.
A little while later, Nick sat with Judy by a low fire. "So, that vixen is Jack's wife?"
"Yes," Judy replied while weaving a basket.
"And no one has any issue with a prey animal marrying a predator?" Nick asked curiously.
"No, of course not," Judy replied, "Why? Is such a marriage forbidden in your tribe?"
"N-No! No. It's just...I didn't think a lot of prey animals trusted predators given our feral history." Judy gave Nick her full attention. "I-I mean don't get me wrong, my tribe has trusted and even traded with prey tribes in the past, but I always thought that there was some underlying fear in prey animals that would make them think that we predators were nothing but savage animals that well...couldn't be trusted. My experience with the blue clothed prey animals didn't really help in changing that perspective either." Judy's gaze, lowered. Saddened to hear him say such things. "But…" he continued, "Being here, it all feels different."
"Different how?" Judy asked.
"Like there is no difference between predator and prey. Like we're all just animals and that's all that matters."
Judy smiled, "So, a good, different?"
"Yeah, I guess you could say that fluff," Nick smiled happily, "So, a bunny and a fox, huh?"
"Yup," Judy chirped happily, knowing he was referring to Jack and the vixen named Skye's relationship. "Jack was a member of the Savage tribe that lived across the river before he came here. A group of blue clothed prey animals arrived one day and massacred his entire village when he was still a child. One day while my father was out with a scouting party he came across Jack and he's been a member of our family and the Hopps tribe ever since."
Nick's eyes widened in shock and disbelief, "A group of prey animals attacked his village?"
Judy nodded, "The blue clothed prey animals view us as savages too, despite being the same." Nick allowed her words to sink in before she continued. "His story isn't too different from his wife's. Skye also had her tribe destroyed by a group of blue clothed prey animals. She managed to escape and our tribe eventually found her. Much like you, she didn't trust us either, but she eventually came around and began trusting us. Of course, I think it helped that she and Jack eventually fell in love. After that, we just started taking in new members to our tribe that had been left without a home, regardless if they were predators or prey."
Judy occupied herself with her basket again, while unbeknownst to her, Nick smiled tenderly at her - full of admiration for her and her village's kind view of animals as a whole.
Suddenly, they heard a young high-pitched series of giggles. Nick and Judy realized that it was a little bunny girl of about two years of age. "Heeheehee! Foxy!" she said as she approached Nick. The little bunny grabbed Nick's snout, sticking her little thumbs into his nostrils and pulling them outward.
"Nngh!" Nick grunted in pain. He jerked away rather harshly to the point that the little girl fell back and landed on her rump.
The little bunny's eyes immediately filled to the brim with tears and she started to cry. Nick's expression instantly shifted from pain stricken to concerned and remorseful when he saw the little bunny crying.
Nick gently placed his paws under her little arms and lifted her off the ground, "Shh, no, no, hey. Please don't cry Tiny Carrots. I'm sorry," he lightly nudged her with his snout and the baby sniffled. Hearing his gentle demeanor, the baby calmed down and hugged his nose with a happy giggle. Nick let her hold onto his snout for a moment then set her down when her mother called for her.
"Bye-bye Foxy!" said the child as she waved back at Nick and waddled over to her mother. Nick smiled, touched by the innocent moment. Nick glanced over at Judy and realized that she was smiling at him.
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing, Foxy," Judy mocked him with a good natured giggle, while Nick just rolled his eyes.
The next day, Judy picked some fallen apples just below an apple tree. Nick meanwhile sat against the tree, still tied to Judy at the wrist, relaxing in the shade. Judy looked up at the tree, noticing a beautiful plump apple hanging from the tree. "Look at that apple, Nick. It's so beautiful."
Nick looked up at it, "You want it?" he asked, wondering if that'd make her happy.
Judy shook her head, "No. I mean, I would, but I've tried reaching for it before and I can't jump high enough to reach it."
Nick glanced back at it, then at her, then back at it. He stood up and ran up against the tree, leaping off of the trunk and jumping toward the dangling apple. The fox managed to successfully swipe it off of the branch and grab it.
He held it on the tip of his fingers and stood with pride, "Got it!" Judy's eyes widened a bit in surprise. "Impressed Carrots?" Nick asked with a cocky grin.
Judy rolled her eyes, "So you're taller than me." She resumed her apple picking and Nick's grin lowered to a sad frown, realizing that she had misinterpreted his actions as an attempt to show off.
He softened his voice and crouched down beside her, "Hey, I wasn't trying to-here." He offered the apple to her with a warm smile. Judy brought a paw over her heart, touched by the sweet gesture. She took the fruit from him and grabbed a stone knife to carve the apple in half. She handed half of it to him and he took it.
They both took a bite from their half, their eyes never leaving one another's gaze. After they ate their half, Judy kissed Nick on the cheek, causing the fox's eyes to widen and his body to freeze, "Thank you."
She stood with her basket of apples, blushing and looking back at him with a loving smile. An enamored smile curled up Nick's face.
Some time later, the two strolled by a beautiful area within the forest. The trees were lush and green, the sun shining bright, making way for sunset, and the blue water sparkling between the hovering lily pads. It was truly a romantic sight.
Judy led Nick down a small hill leading to the lake, tugging playfully at the rope and Nick wholeheartedly followed her into the lake. As soon as they went in, a sea of dragonflies fluttered all around the area. Nick was in awe at the majestic sight - they looked just like red-seeded dandelion petals wafting in the breeze. It was all so beautiful.
But of course, not more beautiful than the bunny swimming by his side. The two waded through the floating lily pads, circling one another, never breaking from each other's tender gaze.
After some time swimming, they surfaced back up on the land, embracing each other. Nick wrapped his arms around Judy's waist and brought her close to him, while Judy rested her paws on Nick's muzzle, lowering his head so she could nuzzle the top part of his snout. They then pressed their foreheads together and stared lovingly into each other's eyes.
A while later, they ran paw in paw up a hill where they could see the whole village and the landscape just below in the distance.
"Wow…" Nick uttered quietly in awe. Judy smiled, happy that Nick was finally feeling a lot more comfortable and safe around her and her village.
Just then, up in the sky they heard a bald eagle screech. Nick looked up and sure enough, it was the bald eagle that lived near his village. "Hey…" Nick uttered softly, happy to see it.
The eagle screeched again as if calling to Nick, as if reminding him of home and of a part of him which he had abandoned, of a freedom he had yet to fully recover. Nick's smile faltered as he watched his winged friend fly off into the distance. He extended a paw toward it as if telling it, 'wait' or 'come back'.
Judy noticed his sadness and couldn't help but feel sad herself. "Are you okay?" she asked him with concern, gripping his paw with both of hers. Nick turned to her and managed a soft, reassuring smile, "Never better fluff," he uttered playfully yet quietly. Though Judy knew he was still hurting, she did not pry any further. She simply nodded and led them back toward the village.
Her instincts were on point however, as Nick's smile faded once again. He continued to stare in the distance where his eagle friend had flown. He missed his village terribly, but now that wasn't the only issue. In all the time he had spent at the Hopps Tribe, he had almost completely forgotten his original mission of returning back home. As leader of the Wilde Tribe, he knew it was his duty to return to them. But now...there was also Judy.
For the first time in my life...I felt my heart torn two ways…
...
Once again, apologies for the late release but regardless I hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving or a good Thursday last week if you don't live in the US. I know I'm thankful for you my dear readers. Take care, comment, and I'll get back to my Tumblr posts. I know I haven't as of lately but I'll get right on that :)