"It's spring fever. That is what the name of it is." - Mark Twain

6:00 P.M

No matter how many times Nick visited Bunny-Burrow with Judy, he could never get over just how foreign it felt to him.

They weren't very accustomed to vacations, being busy police officers, but they had taken the time to come down to Bunny-Burrow to visit Judy's family over the weekend. Nick was hesitant at first, as on his last visit he had been subject to frequent attacks by hordes of Judy's siblings, who would swarm and tackle him to the ground in a playful manner. But Nick had reaffirmed his will to go at the idea of being able to taste some of Gideon's near-famous blue-berry pie, which he loved almost as much as Judy. Almost.

The farmland of Bunny-Burrow stretched out before them in an almost never-ending view. It seemed to go on forever, with hills and vegetable-choked farmland stretching for as far as the eye could see, with the only obstructions being the occasional raised mounds of earth that poked through the ground - The tips of rabbit burrows built into the dirt. Despite the fact that Judy had taken Nick to her homeland multiple times on vacation in the past, the sheer size of the sprawling fields and unending farmland never failed to amaze the fox. Having lived in the big city his whole life, such emptiness never failed to astonish him. He and Judy were just returning from a peaceful early-evening stroll, and in the distance, Nick could see the tip of the Hopps family burrow protruding from the soil. In Zootopia, no one could see as far as Nick was now unless they were standing on top of a skyscraper. The fox had grown to appreciate the many differences between the country and the city.

Meandering through the fields, Judy raised her paws above her head to stretch her shoulders and back. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of her muscles unwinding themselves and stretching. Meanwhile, Nick took advantage of the moment to stare at her as she stretched out. His eyes traced the outline of her body from the start of her toes to the tip of her ears, which stood on end cutely. Since they weren't working that weekend, neither fox nor bunny chose to equip themselves with their police gear, instead choosing to clothe themselves with more casual wear. Judy wore a pink and black plaid shirt, her favorite outfit for working on the farm. The sleeves drooped loosely around her wrists. Her usual baggy jeans were ditched because of the increased temperature, and instead she wore a more skintight, shorter pair of jeans. The fox himself wasn't wearing anything special himself: Just his usual outfit consisting of a wrinkled green shirt, striped purple tie, and tan-colored khakis. Nothing special, but it was Nick's favorite outfit.

As the fox and bunny walked back towards the farmhouse, the both of them couldn't resist eyeing the beauty of the countryside that came with each springtime.

Flowers bloomed around the land, their various colors of stark contrast against the sea of green grass. They were dotted all around the area. Save the flowers, the only splash of color other than the green beneath their feet and the blue above their heads was the large burrow tip in the distance, with its red, pink, and yellow brickwork. Its size was no coincidence though, as the family that called it home was a massive family at that, with 277 bunnies, including Nick's beloved and her parents, all living inside.

The sky was still sunny, but gales of wind would roar past occasionally - The run-off of a coming storm. And sure enough, in the distance, huge storm clouds covered the sky, blanketing the land below in massive shadows. They didn't look very threatening, but both Nick and Judy knew that with wind that boisterous and clouds that big, rain was soon to follow. The imminent storm was still miles away however, and both animals didn't allow the prospect of the coming weather to dampen their moods.

As they neared the house, Nick spotted a large purple flower in the ocean of grass. It was right next to the path they walked upon, and as they passed it, Nick reached down and plucked it from the ground. He looked at his mate and said, "For you." Judy smiled as she eyed the plant. Nick's charm never failed to make her heart flutter.

Nick caught a whiff of its scent as he handed it to Judy, who momentarily stopped to breath in the smell of the flower.

"Stop and smell the roses, right?" Nick said to her, causing her to smile.

"That's right! Even if it isn't a rose."

Nick smirked and admired the palette similarities between the flower's petals and Judy's irises. He wasn't an artist like his father, but he had inherited an appreciation for the 'artsy' things in life. He was about to make a comment about it, but his words left him and his smile evaporated into confusion when he saw Judy pop the flower into her mouth and begin to chew.

"What the heck, Hopps? Did you just... Eat my present?" He asked her with eyes wide and eyebrows scrunched in apprehension.

His mate fixed him with an innocent stare. She then noticed Nick's look of horror and fascination. She shrugged. "What?"

"What was that?" The fox asked while chuckling. Judy then realized just how confused her partner was.

"Oh, well... In bunny culture, if your significant other gives you a flower during springtime, it's a custom to eat it! Been that way for as long as I can remember." She said.

Nick raised one if his eyebrows. "But why? I mean, that flower could have been toxic for all you know!" He exclaimed to the still smiling bunny.

"Not sure, it's just been a custom here in Bunny-Burrow. I guess it's because the bunny who receives the flower treasures it so much, that the only thing they can do is eat it."

Nick casually shrugged. "So it has a few quirks. I like quirks! But I can see where you're coming from."

"As for the toxic part, don't worry about that. Us bunnies know our plants when we see them! That was a Viola Odorata, or just commonly called a violet. It's edible."

The fox smirked. "Well, I suppose we best get you back to the house before you start eating the rest of the little flowers, now should we?"

Judy smirked at him, rolling her eyes before leaning forward and elbowing him in the sternum.

He dusted his shirt off before saying, "I'll take that as a yes, then. Let's get going." Judy winked at him and began walking ahead. Nick shook his head and smiled smugly as he watched his wife strut off towards her home. He watched her lower-body sway hypnotically from side-to-side as she put more distance between them.

Nick's ears shot up in detection when he heard Judy call from ahead without looking back, "Quit staring and pick up the pace, fox!"

"But I don't think I want to, Carrots!" He yelled back at her as he trained his eyes on her tail. "The view back here is great!"

He laughed to himself as he ran up ahead to join his mate.

6:10 P.M

When they reached the burrow's entrance, with its easter-colored stone raised from the ground like the entrance of a cave, they promptly let themselves in. Most of Judy's siblings were running around outside, minding their own business and playing with one another. Only a select few had entered the house for dinner, but the dining room was still packed with bunnies ranging in size and shape. Nick and Judy squeezed their way past the crowd and found a seat at the table.

Nick looked out the single window that adorned the dining room, and saw that the clouds had gotten closer, albeit not by much: The storm was still far away, and Nick doubted it would reach them in time for the annual Bunny-Burrow vegetable contest. The contest was held every year mid-spring, this year being presented rather close to the Hopps's property. From what Nick had gathered about the contest, participants could choose to enter their largest grown vegetable for the chance of winning first place: Which was accompanied with a handsome prize of 500 bucks. Judy's family chose not to enter this year, as all of their grown crops had been raised with no genetic defects.

Nothing better then celebrating mother-nature's organic mishaps than with a contest, Nick thought to himself.

The idea of parading around genetically-malformed vegetables was something that amused Nick.

Much to the cynical fox's disappointment, he had heard from Gideon that the largest blue-berry was not the size of a basketball as he had hoped, but was only a mere few hairs-widths wider then the average blue-berry: That one had been grown by Gideon himself.

The sound of Judy's father, Stu, broke his train of thought and Nick turned his attention toward the older bunny, who sat at the head of the table next to his wife, Bonnie.

"Good having you all here tonight, especially you Nick!" Stu smiled at him proudly.

Nick couldn't help but remember the first meeting he had with Judy's parents, all those years ago. Well, it wasn't that long ago, but long enough that the change in tone was evident between the fox and his mate's parents. Their first meeting hadn't gone very well, as he recalled. Judy had taken him to her home town of Bunny-Burrow to meet her parents. They had been only dating at the time, but they knew they were meant for each-other. Nick was a bit hesitant of the idea of a fox coming to a town filled full with bunnies, but Judy had assured him that he wouldn't be the only fox there. She told him of her relationship with Gideon Grey, whom Nick wanted to hate because of the way he had treated Judy when they were children, but couldn't manage to do so: He was simply too likable. Both foxes had struck up a friendship the moment they started talking to each-other. Nick was personally hoping for the other fox to be present at the farmhouse for dinner, but Nick knew that he wouldn't be available: He was no doubt down at the festival, setting up his own little pie stand and maybe even entering his own vegetable to be judged.

The meet-up with Judy's parents, however, had been disastrous. Stu had reacted exactly how Nick feared he would; scared, frightened, and worried that his precious daughter was dating a shifty fox.

But what he hadn't expected was for the old rabbit to whip out a can of 'Fox-Off' and spray him directly in the face with it. The repellent was painful, but after the apologies had been given and the tears had dried, Stu began to warm up to Nick. Now the two of them were old chums, and have grown to respect one another. Stu was proud that Judy had managed to find the right mammal, even if said mammal was a shifty fox.

After reminiscing of old memories here on Judy's farm, Stu's voice once again broke Nick's train of thought. He hadn't heard much of what the old bunny had said to the crowd, but he had heard a few choice words which painted the picture of that evening's vegetable contest.

"So regretfully, we'll just have to wait and see whether or not the event is cancelled. That storm ain't slowin' down, and there's a good chance it'll rain out the contest." He said.

Nick heard one of the other bunnies sitting at the table let out a discontented, "Aaawwww!"

Stu hurriedly added to his previous statement before he was bombarded with more whining bunnies;

"Ah-eh, but d-don't worry!" He stammered. "I'm sure that if the festival is canceled, it will be rescheduled tomorrow!" He claimed with a reassuring smile.

"But for now, let's dig in! Dinner is served!" Bonnie said.

Then the horde of bunnies swamped the table, grabbing for food and piling carrots on their plates. Nick sat back with his plate already filled with crickets and blueberries. Bonnie had been considerate enough to get the fox his own custom meal, as vegetables and celery weren't exactly his most favored dish, to say the least.

As the family ate, they discussed various topics that came to mind. One such subject involved the last visit that Nick had paid to the farm, which had been during the previous summer. Another conversation revolved around the idea of bunnies eating gifted flowers, which Nick just had to ask: The concept was something that intrigued him. Bonnie and Stu, being the eldest bunnies at the table, gave their take on the matter. Both believed similarly to Judy, in that the tradition had been devised as a means to express affection not for the gift itself, but more for the giver and the giver's appreciation.

"So yeah, it's perfectly normal 'round these parts to eat any flowers that yer given," Stu said with finality. "As long as they ain't any of them ol' Night Howlers! Ha!"

He laughed and elbowed Bonnie, who rolled her eyes at her husband's comment. Nick himself had taken the moment to glance at Judy, who in turn was staring at him. They both stifled their own chortles as they remembered their first case involving the Night-Howlers.

Nick shuddered. Mental images involving wolves with tasers, him and Judy flushing themselves down a toilet, and the two of them falling down a water-fall passed through his mind.

But one memory tugged - No, clawed - at the fox's conscious more then any other.

He remembered Judy tripping, her ankle torn by some haphazardly spaced tusk. He remembered the feel of the ram's hard horns as he knocked them aside and into that pit. Worst of all, he remembered the peak moment of their daring plan: The act of Nick chasing Judy around on all-fours, pretending to be a savage beast. Pretending to kill her.

It may have been staged, but Nick was worried. He was worried that he might have hurt Judy. That was the last thing he wanted. To have her blood on his hands would have been an absolute nightmare.

He pushed those dark thoughts aside and gazed toward the wall, where he stared out the window at the coming storm.

Nick's eyes widened at the unexpected sight: The windstorm had somehow halved the distance between the house since Nick last looked at it. It was no more then half-a-mile away at this point: Practically at the doorstep of the homestead.

Stu had caught Nick's eye and followed it to the clouds outside. He gulped and breathed in before uttering his next few words;

"Well... Looks like the festival might be cancelled after all." Stu said with an undertone of sadness in his words.

Bonnie took the moment to add her own comment. "That sure is unfortunate." She then turned toward the sea of bunnies.

"Kids, don't get your hopes up too much! I have a feeling the contest ain't happening tonight. "Not with this weather, no no!"

A few bunnies groaned in disappointment. Nick thought he heard one of them in the back mutter softly, "Yay!"

Before he could decide whether or not he heard that, the fox detected Judy speak at his side. Nick turned his attention toward his mate.

"Aaaw... Sweet cheese and cra-"

"Watch your mouth at the dinner table young lady!" Nick heard Bonnie's voice pipe up from his left. He bit his cheeks together and resisted the urge to laugh out loud.

Judy scowled at her mother before continuing. "I was looking forward to that contest! I was gonna take Nick there."

Nick plastered on his half-lidded smile and rubbed his wife's shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry, Carrots, there's always tomorrow, right?"

Bonnie nodded. "Yes dear, there's always tomorrow. This festival is too big to just get dropped because of a little rain."

CRA-BOOOOOM!

Thunder shook the house, and the sound of a downpour outside flooded the ears of every animal in the dining room. Bonnie shifted her weight in her chair and laughed nervously.

"Make that a lot of rain!"

After dinner, the crowd of bunnies had flooded upstairs and into their various rooms, leaving Nick, Judy, Bonnie, and Stu alone in the dining room. They all worked together by taking the time to clean up and do the dishes. Nick soon discovered that cleaning up after twenty-plus bunnies was no easy task. He had no clue how Bonnie and Stu had managed to do so, on top of raising and taking care of their dozens of children. Still, the old pair of bunnies seemed pleased with their lives, and loved all their children deeply.

Nick admired that about them.

Growing up as an only child, he had often found himself desiring a brother or sister to play with, especially since he didn't have very many friends in his youth. He figured Judy had no such problem. Another problem Judy didn't need to wrestle with was family dysfunctionality. Sure, living in a house with that many siblings would drive anyone crazy from time to time, but Nick doubted that his mate's childhood was as twisted as his own.

At the time, it seemed that his washed-up dad cared nothing for his family, leaving Nick's mother to take care of everything most days. His father had fallen on tough times, with his tailor shop, Suitopia, having just closed down. Nick could still vividly remember the night his father had abandoned him.

It was much like this one: Windy, rainy, with claps of thunder accompanied by flashes of lightening in the distance. Storms were rare in Zootopia, but every once in a while one managed to find its way to the mammalian city. That was one such day.

Nick didn't witness the event of his father's leave with his own eyes, as he was in his room with the pillow clutched over his ears: trying to block out the sound of his parents arguing. Their shouts at one another were louder than usual, and it was clear to the young Nick that something was different about this quarrel. It was more significant and meaningful than the others that had preceded it. Nick knew something bad was going to happen.

After a few minutes of hoarse yelling, Nick heard a crash of something downstairs. He would later find out that in her bout of anger, his mother had thrown a plate at a wall. Nick's blood started to pump, and he could hear his heartbeat in his ears.

He remembered hearing his dad shout out, "DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO!"

Then his mom followed up with something he couldn't quite hear from his room - Something soft, but surely biting.

And finally, "SHUT UP WOMAN! JUST SHUT UP!"

Nick had heard his mother cry out, and then it got quiet - but not in a good way.

The young fox remembered bolting from his room and running down the stairs, stopping at the base of the staircase as he gazed down at the sight below him.

Right next to the front-door of the house, Nick's father was standing over his mother, who was lying on the ground. His fists were clenched and teeth were grit together in frustration, but his anger melted away at the sight of his wife upon the floor, her lip slightly bleeding. He bent over to her height and reached out, trying to help her up, but she waved him away in disgust.

"Just get away from me!" Nick's mom yelled at her husband.

"Oh no... I'm sorry! It was an accident! It was just an accident-" His father stammered, but was cut off by his mother.

"I know that, and I don't care! Just back off!" Then she noticed her son, arms clasped against his chest and tears streaming down his eyes, standing at the base of the staircase.

"Nicholas! Come here, sweetie! Come here!" She beckoned him forward by waving her paw. Nick obliged, running over and burying his muzzle into his mother's neck. Nick heard her scream to his father, "Get out of here!"

Nick raised his head and locked eyes with his father. Little did either of them know, but it would be the last time father and son would see one another for the next six weeks, until the courts had arranged the divorce. Nick's dad had his jaws hanging open in bewilderment, his eyes glazed over at the scene before him. He slowly stepped back.

"I'm sorry." He said one last time before turning around and exiting the apartment, walking into the night without another glance back.

Nick's conscious pulled him back to the present, where he sat upon the bed in Judy's room. He looked at the clock which sat atop a nightstand in the corner of the room.

11:46 PM

He breathed in and exhaled heavily. The past few hours had been a blur. After cleaning up the leftover dishes and silverware from dinner, Judy and Nick had occupied themselves by continuing conversation with Stu and Bonnie. Two hours later, they had excused themselves and retreated to Judy's old bedroom, which was tucked away in the corner of the house, farther from her other sibling's rooms. Nick was thankful for the added privacy, as the army of bunnies could often prove to be an interrupting bunch. He and Judy had talked to each other for some time before she had excused herself to the washroom.

While Judy was busy in the washroom, Nick himself took the time to reminisce about his screwed-up childhood.

He thought back to all the terrible moments, but even though they had never stopped haunting him, one fairly new memory shown through the cloud like a lighthouse piercing through the darkness of a hurricane.

The memory of his most recent meeting with his father, which had been only 2 months ago, shown brighter then all the terrible thoughts combined. He and has father had patched up their fragmented relationship. After 13 years of silence, the two of them had taken the first few steps to rekindling their broken bond.

Nick was happy for his father, who had managed to turn over a new leaf. He had been against inter-species relationships for some time, but his son's arrival and pleading had at last convinced him otherwise. Nick still remembered that day, and he remembered it well. Aside from the little get-together with his father, he and Judy had indulged themselves in their first mating session.

Now that was unforgettable.

Eventually, Judy exited the washroom wearing a carrot-patterned pair of pajamas. Nick eyed her up and down and had to resist the urge to burst out laughing.

He cleared his throat and choked back a chuckle. "Well you look nice tonight." He said jokingly.

Judy smiled back at him as she approached the bed, intent on ignoring his teasing comments. "So... Real bummer that the contest got cancelled, huh?"

Nick shrugged. "Yeah, I honestly was looking forward to checking out those deformed vegetables: Especially if it meant getting to try some of Gideon's blueberry pie!"

The bunny rolled her eyes. "Shoulda' known you'd have your reasons."

Nick smirked before responding, "You know me well enough to expect as much, Carrots!"

"But yeah, tell me about it... All that anticipation for nothing!" He yawned momentarily. "I'm pretty beat, whaddaya say we get some shut-eye, eh Whiskers?"

The bunny nodded her head. "I'll take you on that offer. I'm pretty beat. We can always go to the festival tomorrow, like my dad said."

"Yeah... Like your dad said." Nick repeated softly, eyes glazing over for a nanosecond as he thought back to the face of his own father, that was, before a clap of thunder shook his thoughts. He mentally chided himself for thinking back to such bitter memories in front of Judy. The last thing he wanted was for her to get worried about him.

Together, the two mammals then made themselves comfortable as the cold of the night encroached upon their bodies. Bundled up, they staved it off well, and soon enough, their minds began to drift off into dreamless sleep. They both were anticipant of the contest to come, but as the powerful thunder outside ravaged his eardrums, and the memories of his father's abandonment weighed heavy against the fox's heart, the cynical side within him couldn't help but expect the worst.