"The ornament of a home is the friends who frequent it." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
It is those who walk by our side that define our way of companionship.
A true friend is not one who strides ahead, nor strays behind...
But one who stands recumbent, side by side.
For it is they who will pull you forward when you fall,
And walk with you to the end of it all.
As the bunny pulled into the hospital parking lot, she couldn't refrain from staring up at the looming building which stood in front of her.
The Zootopia General Hospital wasn't exactly the most colorful or dynamic building in the Zootopian skyline, but it had a paw-print of influence that arguably exceeded that of the ZPD itself.
During the dark hours of the now officially dubbed 'Night Howler Crisis', the hospital played an important part in not only restoring the savage-turned mammals to their passive states, but it also delved into medical studies on the effects and distribution of the peculiar flower (and drug). So without their help, the ZPD could have never pinpointed the precise details involving the drug which surrounded the whole fiasco.
The building itself was a multitude of various grey and white hues, but the most noticeable detail of the building were the massive glass panels and windows that adorned the walls, allowing anyone to easily see inside. Though, Judy couldn't manage to spot Nick's room, as his happened to be on the first floor, tucked away somewhere deep inside the building.
The bunny unhatched the car's door and slammed it shut with an audible thunk. She had just clocked-out from work for the day, and like every other day for the past week and a half, Judy has spent her free-time visiting Nick in the hospital. He'd told her multiple times that he was alright being alone, and insisted on Judy living her life instead of dwelling on his, but being the stubborn bunny she is, refused to accept that fact. Every evening she'd come in and visit Nick in the hospital for at least an hour; chatting with him, sometimes even spending the remaining night-time in that very room, only to wake up the next morning, plant a light kiss on Nick's forehead, and head out to work...
Alone.
Judy missed having her partner by her side. The Chief had temporarily assigned her a new partner though: a newly inaugurated rookie named Anhur Varike. He was a jackal from Sahara-Square that reminded her so much of Nick that it made her heartsick. Anhur had that same sly grin and sarcasm, but he wasn't a shifty looking creature. He was practically Nick with all the sarcasm and none of the cynicism. Judy admired that about him, and found the jackal to be an enjoyable partner, but she still missed her sly fox.
Anhur may have reminded her a little too much of her old partner, but nothing and no-one could truly replace her Nick.
Judy turned around and thanked the driver for the ride: Anhur himself. Judy and Nick didn't own their own car, and since taking the police cruiser just for a quick trip to the hospital might ruffle some feathers, Anhur offered to drive her himself, since he did happen to own his own vehicle. In fact, He'd been dropping her off here every evening... ever since Nick was hospitalized.
"Thanks Anhur, it's really appreciated!" She told the Jackal while watching him struggle to back out of the parking lot.
He rolled down the window in its entirety before saying, "No problem, Hopps. Hey, I'll see ya tomorrow at work then, 'aight?"
Judy nodded hastily. "Of course! Bye now!" She shouted out to him as he rolled his car out of the lot and drove off.
Taking in a deep breath, she began walking towards the hospital.
When she arrived at the front office, she immediately walked up to the receptions desk and placed her paws on its pink granite surface. She drummed her fingers expectantly as the receptionist, whom happened to be a pig, swiveled her chair in the bunny's direction and raised her hoof in a 'Just-one-moment' kind of gesture. Judy simply sighed and took the time to analyze the waiting room while she awaited her own conversion.
A long row of cushioned chairs set back-to-back were the only things that occupied the center of the room, spare a few tables topped with magazines. The walls of the waiting room had mirrors here and there, and more chairs aligned the perimeter of the walls themselves, which were a multitude of colors ranging from white to green. There weren't many visitors in the room today though: The only others in the room aside from herself and the receptionist were a couple of goats (they always traveled in packs of four or more for some odd reason, Judy noticed), and an elderly looking lioness whom lounged snoring loudly in her seat.
A voice caught her attention.
"Mrs. Hopps, correct?" The voice asked Judy, whom turned around and faced the source.
"That's right. I'm here to see my husband, Nick Wilde." The bunny explained to the pig.
The receptionist nodded and handed her a plastic card attached to a thin cord. "Alright dear, here's your pass: You'll be able to go straight to your husband with it."
Judy pursed her lips. She'd heard those words before, and knew what to do, but nodded politely and thanked the receptionist nevertheless.
Then she began walking towards Nick's room.
Yep. She still hated hospitals.
The lights, the sounds, the smells.
All of it...
Hate.
Judy distracted her coursing conscious by focusing on the sounds of her own footsteps and breathing. After a blurry, bright, and boring amount of time, she finally found Nick's room: 115.
Inside, she heard laughter.
Judy noticed that one of the reverberating chortles indeed belonged to that of her mate. But the other one, sounded unfamiliar at first. It was a deep, hearty laugh choked with so much bass that it seemed to make the bunny's eye-balls shake in their sockets. She felt her bones vibrate within her, but it was accompanied by a pang of anger.
She had a feeling that she knew exactly who stood behind this door. She'd heard that laugh only once before: when she blackmailed Nick into helping her solve her first case. The mammal behind the laughter had certainly found it amusing that she had managed to 'hustle' the hustler. She may have only heard it once, but it was enough for her to remember...
Now, hearing that laugh again made her cringe in distaste. She didn't have a feeling anymore: She knew exactly who this visitor was.
Without wasting another second, she opened the door and walked straight in, not even bothering to take a glance through the peep-hole.
When she entered the room, she was more then pleased to see that the lights had been turned down, restricting the painfully bright haze that she had grown used to over the weeks of visiting Nick. Several slivers of evening light seeped through the glass in the windows, creating splashes of natural light here and there.
She heaved a sigh of relief when she saw Nick; still adorned in a cast for his broken arm, standing by the window, watching the activity outside. Most of his other injuries had been healed up surprisingly well. The severed artery had been a really frightening condition, but Judy was more then glad that even it too managed to recover. Thankfully for the both of them, Nick was pretty hard to kill.
Then her gaze rested on his visitor.
There, with a red-stained pawpsickle stick sprouting from between his muzzle, standing atop the bed like he owned the place, was Judy's least-favorite fennec fox: Finnick.
He was dressed in his usual attire consisting of a black polo shirt; completely devoid of any color aside from a thin red streak down the left side of his chest. Tan colored cargo shorts wrapped themselves around his small frame, and a pair of shades rested on his forehead between his massive ears. Alongside this, a plastic card identical to the one Judy clutched in her paw hung around the fox's neck.
When Judy had first walked into the room, she noticed an almost pleasant look molded into the fennec's muzzle, like he had just told a bad joke but had gotten a good reaction from it.
But when he locked eyes with her, his smile evaporated instantly. His malicious brown eyes flitted around the room, briefly settling on various objects before finally resting on her. Judy read his facial expressions, and as his eyes moved around, he seemed to be thinking:
I hate that, I hate that, I hate that too...
But when his eyes bore down on Judy:
I really hate that!
Judy was scowling at him, doing her best to look intimidating, though it didn't seem to be working: Finnick still stared at her with a look akin to disappointment. Neither mammal had ever gotten along very well in recent years, the only real exception was just a few weeks back at the Spring vegetable-contest that he'd crashed, with the two of them setting aside their disapproval of the other for the day, if only to enjoy the blueberry pie while it had lasted. Judy suspected that Finnick was in such a good mood at the time only because he and Nick had just finished up fighting those thugs; Something that Finnick himself had probably enjoyed a little too much.
Unfortunately, Nick didn't seem to notice the frown-fight going on between his mate and the fennec, and he clasped his hands together, smiling like everything was going just as planned. He decided to break the slightly awkward silence by following it with a statement of his own.
"Heya Whiskers; Great to see ya!"
Judy spared a glance at her husband, and his infectious smile caused her irritation to slightly dissipate, at least to a more manageable degree.
She walked up to Nick and squeezed tight him in an affectionate hug. "It's great to see you too, Slick." She managed.
After she had pulled away, Nick looked expectantly between his two guests before saying;
"Well I'm glad that you both managed to show up." He looked to his wife. "Uh... sorry that I didn't tell you Finnick would be here."
"Ya didn't tell me she would be here either, stupid." Finnick grumbled.
Judy resisted the urge to call out the irritable sand-fox, but instead chose to let go of her annoyance and focus on the now. Another knock pierced the empty air, and Judy took no hesitation as she approached the nearby door before stealing a glance through the tiny peephole. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of the mammal standing outside.
With the exact same visitor's badge that Judy and Finnick had hanging around his meaty neck, it was clear that Chief Bogo himself had come to see them personally.
The bunny wasn't sure weather to be gratefully relieved or horridly terrified.
She unlocked the door and backed away, locking eyes with their new guest. He asked politely, "May I come in?"
Judy gulped before nodding, and then proceeded to back away even farther to let Bogo in. He squeezed through the comically small door-frame, and then took his place among the crowd of four mammals.
Nick wheezed a soft laugh. "Well I'll be darned! Haven't had this many mammals in the same room as me since they sliced me open! Haha!" His inappropriate input earned a snicker from the fennec, an approving grin from the buffalo, and a scowl from the bunny.
Bogo cleared his throat loudly. "Well, I'm pleased that you didn't break your sense of humor in the incident, Wilde."
The russet fox shrugged as best as he could with one arm mended in a cast. "Well what can I say? Broke pretty much everything else." He muttered bitterly, but with an undertone of whimsical levity.
At this, even Judy couldn't help but crack the slightest of smiles.
Bogo's booming voice broke the ensuing silence;
"I apologize that I couldn't manage to see you sooner, Wilde." He glanced out the nearest window. "I had plenty of paperwork, and a few personalevents that got in the way."
"And by personal events," Nick gestured with air quotes. "You mean Gazelle's latest concert, eh?" He asked, causing Finnick to bark a laugh.
Bogo's face twisted in anger and embarrassment. "The point, Wilde, is that I'm here now! I wanted to make sure you were alright!"
"Of course! I get that." He winked at the water buffalo. "But hey, if I wasn't flattened by that car and hospitalized, I would have gone right with ya, Chief!"
Judy bit hard on her cheeks to keep from giggling as she watched Bogo scowl, but noticed that he did seem somewhat flattered.
Finnick coughed loudly, no doubt trying to draw everyone's attention. "Speakin' of which, you coppers ever manage to catch the ass-hat that almost turned stupid here-" He said pointing to Nick. "-Into roadkill?"
Bogo smirked and crossed his arms before answering.
"That is actually one of the reasons why I'm here. Aside from checking in on stupid, I came to fill him in on our case involving the hit-and-run."
Nick smiled, excited about the appraising news, but soon frowned. "Wait, who you callin' stupid, buffalo-butt?" He retaliated.
Chief Bogo raised his hand and opened his mouth as if preparing to tell him off, but Judy interrupted.
"Ladies! Can we please conduct business without calling each-other nicknames?" She asked the crowd impatiently, her hands on her hips and her right foot thumping rapidly against the tile floor.
Bogo's face was frozen mid-tirade, and he looked like he really wanted to go off on Nick, but he eventually cleared his throat and straightened himself out.
"Very well. You're most correct Officer Hopps, this is a matter of importance, after all." He breathed in before exhaling audibly. "Alright. We caught the bloke who fled from the scene; the same one who put you in here, Wilde." Bogo said as he pointed to the hospital bed.
He let that sink in for a few short seconds before continuing.
"This hippo was found picking a fight with another citizen late last night... we apprehended both of them, but let out the other one soon after. We got the Hippo right where we want him, though."
Judy was very satisfied with that news. After Nick got hit, Judy spent a great deal of both her off time and her work time tying to crack said case. She also spent much time thinking about what happened during that tragic moment... if perhaps she should have stopped the offender from fleeing...
But it was too late anyways: Better to not linger on the past.
For the following hour, the mammal quintet discussed various topics ranging in complexity from the latest news to the most severe law enforcement cases.
Eventually, Chief Bogo exclaimed that he had to leave. Apparently he had some 'important documents' to manage...
"I best be on my way by now," the buffalo claimed. "Better for me not to Gazel-I mean dwell! Dwell! Better for me not to dwell on old news... Uh... Goodbye now."
And with that, the water buffalo began walking towards the door, but barely managed to open it before Nick decided to comment.
"Well," He began. "Isn't that swell?"
Judy watched as Bogo clenched his jaw hard, the veins in his temples pushing through the skin on his head. He then grumbled beneath his breath and walked out of the room closing the door with a loud, finalizing slam.
Judy heard Finnick snort behind her. She turned around and looked at him.
"Huh. There goes one big bag of bull." He huffed indigently before flicking the top of his shades, causing them to pop into place atop his muzzle.
Nick chuckled softly. "And by bag of bull, do you mean him or his personality?" He asked innocently.
"Nick!" Judy chided. "One of the few times Chief isn't heckling you, and you go and talk behind his back?"
The orange fox raised his hands in an 'I'm innocent' sort of gesture before equipping his near-trademark smirk.
"Hey now fluff, no need to point out the obvious! I'm just giving credit where credit's due. Two-for-two!" He said ecstatically.
Meanwhile, Finnick plucked the pawpsickle stick from between his teeth and swatted Nick over the back of his head with it, effectively snapping the wood slice in two; one piece deflected off the back of Nick's skull and pattered to the floor while the other was still held firm in the fennec's grip, splinters shooting out from the spot where the stick was divided.
"If any one of ya'll numb-skulls rhymes again I'm gonna throw up!" He froze, then tapped the tip of the broken pawpsickle stick against his chin, mimicking deep thought.
"Then I'll bite your face off!" He concluded.
Nick laughed, and although Judy was a little taken-back by the fennec's threats, she couldn't afford not to smile.
Finnick mumbled something even Judy couldn't quite make out before leaping from the bed and landing on the white-tile floor. He swiped the non-existent dust from his sleeves before starting towards the door.
Nick called out, "Now wait a second, Fin! Where ya goin' buddy?"
The tan fox halted in his tracks just a few feet from the door. He turned around, and using the shattered pawpsickle stick, pressed his shades down so that his eyes were looking straight at Nick.
"Chief Bozo's got a point... It is gettin' sorta late." He then jabbed his thumb upward, pointing at the clock directly above him. "8:22." He continued. "I got places to be."
He began to turn around, but Nick questioned him once more.
"Where to?" The larger fox asked his smaller (and considerably grumpier) counterpart.
Judy saw Finnick roll his eyes behind the sun-glasses.
"You two softies ain't the only one's who need to eat ya know. I got some, eh... business to take care of." He answered.
Judy raised an eyebrow in apprehension. Being the considerate cop that she was, she had a feeling that when Finnick said 'business', he really meant 'Con-Job.'
Finnick noticed the expression of distrust that donned the bunny's face. He crossed his arms before furrowing his brow and defending himself.
"Now hold up fluff-butt, I know what you's thinkin'!" He replied hastily. "But don't worry - I ain't doin' con jobs no-more..." He coughed once. "That much."
Nick's face morphed into that of approval. "So you got yourself a job?" He inquired. "Thatta boy, Fin!" The fox nearly shouted as he gave Finnick the double thumbs-up.
The bunny noticed that for the first time since meeting him, Finnick actually looked flattered. He kicked at the ground, lightly skimming it with the bottom of his right foot.
"Yeah, pretty much. Sort of. Uh..." He glanced at Judy briefly. "The con-jobs are at a minimum though, honest! I'm just doing them occasionally to get a little extra bank on the side."
"What's your occupation?" Judy asked: She had to know.
The fennec chortled quietly before answering. "Oh, just little things... loans, protection, betting-"
"Betting?" Judy interrupted.
"Betting is huge! Equal chances for every foo' dumb enough to choose the wrong contender. Unless of course, things get... shifted, so to speak. Plenty of corporate mover-and-shakers that're willing to cash out top dolla' for something as simple as a beauty contest, or foot-race. Life is good!"
"You scheming little-" Judy started.
"Genius!" Nick finished appraisingly.
The bunny shot her mate a glare powerful enough to disintegrate stone.
"Uh, I mean..." He began correcting himself. "You scoundrel!"
Nick leaned forward a little bit and whispered loudly, "I'm so proud of you!"
Judy elbowed him with a little more force then necessary.
"Alright, alright!" He complained, rubbing his side tenderly. "Spare me, Carrots!"
Judy simply rolled her eyes and eyed the fennec fox again. He had his paw on the door handle and was half-way out the door before he turned around and did something Judy did not expect.
On his muzzle was a smile. Nothing fake, forced, or malicious: Just a plain, simple smile.
He pointed a finger gun at Judy and mimed shooting at her. "Take care you two. It was nice talkin' with ya." And at that, Judy actually smiled back.
"See ya, Smalls." Nick stated with a smirk
"Ciao."
With that, the tan fox closed the door shut for the last time that night.
Judy breathed in deep and exhaled slowly while running her paws down her head, flattening her long ears against the back of her neck. A voice behind her broke her trance-like state of mind.
"Hey Whiskers?" She heard Nick ask easily.
She hummed in question at his comment, turning around and eyeing him as he leaned against the glass-panel window.
"Thanks for showing up again tonight." He continued. "I know that you and Fin don't always get along very well, but he had the right to show up as much as you did."
Judy nodded in response, but soon furrowed her brow as she pondered back to all the events that had taken place in this hospital room within the last hour or two.
"Nick... I dunno about Finnick. He seems pretty..." She began, but soon lost her words.
"Shifty? Conniving? Devious? Shady?" The fox suggested.
"No. Well, yes, he does appear like that sometimes, but that's not what I meant." Judy stated.
"Go on, fluff."
Judy exhaled through her nose. "Fluctuating. That's the word I'm looking for." She hesitated momentarily. "I don't know whether to trust him or to hate him."
Nick huffed a single chuckle. "Well that's Fin for ya. Always so evasive..." He said while gazing out the window, almost longingly, as if thinking back about past memories with the titular sand fox.
The fox swiveled his head and looked Judy in the yes. "But in all seriousness, you can trust him, Carrots. He may sometimes seem... well... like everything you said, but he's got a good heart." Nick paused and grinned widely before finishing. "Even if said heart is made of ice."
Judy leaned forward a tad and closed her eyes shut while giggling into her paws. When she gathered her bearings, she commented back to her mate.
"Trust him? Come on, Nick! That lil' guy runs a Sweep-Stakes Parlor for crying out loud!" She claimed jokingly.
Nick just shrugged, the top of his cast scraping against the base of his neck. "Aw, don't be like that fluff-butt! Finnick really helped me out!"
Judy lowered her head and raised her eyebrow while eyeing Nick. "You're not talking about that fight are you?" She questioned.
"Perhaps." The fox admitted.
Judy crossed her arms. She then decided that it was high-time her and Nick discussed over said topic.
"Speaking of which, Nick, we gotta figure out what we're gonna do about those Bunny's that kicked the smug out of you." She reminded him.
Nick placed his hand over his heart, mocking offense. "You wound me, whiskers! Mind you, I still have roughly seventy-five percent of my smugness intact!"
Judy smirked easily, then paced over until she was near toe-to-toe with her mate.
"But seriously, the Orin brothers need to pay for their crimes. You and Finnick did act in self-defense for the most part, I suppose..." She waved her hands irritably in the space in front of her. "But that still doesn't excuse you from fleeing the crime-scene, slick." She finished, hands placed on her hips.
Nick pursed his lips. "Well, whaddya suppose we do, huh? If we tell the ZPD, it might have some pretty disastrous after-effects against me." He guessed.
Judy thought for a moment. The two of them didn't exactly have to report the incident in full detail to the ZPD... they could simply just arrest the bunnies for battery charges.
The bunny informed the fox of her plan, which involved the two of them tracking down the thugs and detaining them for their crimes... without the ZPD's consent.
"So... sound good?" Judy asked the fox, who was diligently stroking the hairs beneath his chin as he pondered over Judy's idea.
"Sounds good to me." He eventually decided.
Soon after, a tranquil silence followed as the two animals prepared themselves for a good nights rest. Nick was busying himself by brushing his teeth in the minuscule bathroom tucked away in the entrance hall of their room. Meanwhile, Judy stared out the large window at the darkening skyline, silently thinking to herself...
Ugh... I can't believe this is our plan! It goes against the rules of the ZPD... but I suppose a little vigilante justice would suffice. They won't care in the end whether or not we tell them before busting down the Orin's door and hand-cuffing those bastards to a moving police cruiser!
That thought put a smile on Judy's face.
She glanced back at the bathroom door - still closed shut as Nick dealt with his personal hygiene. She sighed longingly...
That Slick-Nick... there's no way on Earth that I can let him get out of this the easy way... He has to learn his lesson... Somehow...
Out of the blue, a thought rooted itself in her mind: An idea worthy of any seasoned hustler.
Yes... I'll teach him his lesson... Perhaps I'll take a page out of his book and... Oh yes...
The bunny smiled devilishly.
It was then that she heard the bathroom door creak open, her ears shooting up in detection as the squeaking noise emanating from the hinges reached her sensitive ears.
Nick strode out of the washroom, his fur was smoothly combed and his cast had been replaced for a more comfortable one, smaller in size and softer in texture.
Even with the ugly cast, Judy still believed Nick to be handsome.
He settled himself atop the bed, but not before swiping away at the mess of cords and other medical equipment that had been placed upon it. He reclined back, stretching his limbs outward as he flexed his tendons.
"Ahem." Was Judy's only response.
The fox froze and opened one eye curiously. He then smiled and shifted his weight in the bed, scooting over to the far side so that Judy could squeeze in next to him.
She did just that.
After clambering beneath the covers for a few short, but sweet minutes of silent nuzzling, Judy decided to enact her plan. It was time to teach Nick his lesson.
"Nick, you do realize that arresting those bunnies for a past crime without telling the ZPD beforehand is against the regulation codes?" She asked him, to which he nodded.
"Yeah, I get that. Kinda silly rule if you ask me, but I ain't the chap who wright's 'em." He replied nonchalantly, green eyes still closed shut.
The bunny smiled as she continued her explanation. "And you do realize that I could easily spill the beans on you for your misdeeds... right?"
When he heard that statement, his eyes instantly shot open. He raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What're you gettin' at, Fluff?" He questioned her.
Judy kept smiling innocently.
"Oh, I was just wondering... I mean, when you first joined the force, you did swear an oath not break those regulation codes, after all. I'm just saying that since you not only beat-up 3 defenseless civilians with your pal Finnick, but you also fled the scene and lied to me about it... I don't like being lied to Nick: And I think you need to learn your lesson."
The orange fox gulped, and prepared to open his mouth and speak out in his defense, but was shushed by Judy when she used her paws to clamp his mouth shut.
"I could easily report you for lawful-misdemeanor while off-duty... but I personally believe that you need to learn your lesson in a different, more personalized way!"
"Uhrmph!" The fox muffled through Judy's paws, but she was on a roll, and refused to slow down until she reached her destination.
The bunny smirked victoriously. She had him right where she wanted him.
"So... I'll turn you in to Chief, and then he can decide what to do with you... Unless..."
It was at this point that she chose to release her hold on Nick's muzzle, allowing him the opportunity to speak.
"Whiskers, don't you even thin-" His opportunity was a short lived one, for he was halted when Judy meshed her face into his, their lips connecting in an inviting kiss.
After a few brief seconds of pleasure for Judy, and utter confusion for Nick, the bunny broke the kiss as she pulled away, licking her lips in satisfaction.
"Unless..." She continued. "You give yourself to me for an entire night. I get to do whatever I want with you, and you need to obey me like the good fox that you are."
Nick blinked a single time. "You're joking." Was all he said.
Judy smiled a seductive smile as she gazed into his eyes. "Us bunnies never joke when it comes to multiplying." She replied with a wink.
Nick cleared his throat in discomfort.
"So lemme get this straight: You're threatening to turn me into Chief... unless I become your blasted sex-slave for an entire night?"
"Yeah, pretty much." She confirmed.
"That's blackmail, you know?" He told her.
"I don't like to think of it as blackmail-" She grinned from ear to ear. "-It's called a hustle sweetheart!"
Nick stared dumbfounded at his mate. He was (for once) at a complete loss for words. Soon enough, a smile tugged at the corners of his snout.
"You sly bunny, you!" He said with an undertone of admiration. "Though... I must say: It doesn't sound like that much of a punishment to me, honestly." He said jokingly.
Judy smiled deviously.
"Don't get too comfy, Slick... I'll prove you wrong on that one." She boasted as she cuddled up closer against him.
The fox felt the temperature in his face rise up a few million degrees.
"Uh... Carrots, I'm injured. I can't... I-I don't know if I can-" He stammered, but was interrupted by Judy's snickering.
"No, you dumb fox! Not now of course! I wouldn't want to break anything when I grind you into next week." She muttered.
"Oh ha-ha, Hopps: I'm laughing so hard." He sighed. "Officer, does this not count as cruel and unusual punishment?" He asked flatly.
"I don't think so. This is between you and me after all... You can always back out if you want, but then of course, I'd have to spill the beans to Bogo. Your choice."
The fox frowned and sighed once more. "I'll stick with your idea, thank you very much..." A smile materialized on his muzzle. "Sly, sly bunny..." He said as he ruffled Judy's head with his good arm. "The hustler has become the hustled!" He continued.
"Again" Judy reminded him, smiling all the while. "I'm glad that you want to go through with this... it'd be a shame if I had to turn you in. And as for when, well... when the time is right. Certainly not while you're still injured though. Gonna have to wait until you heal up, of course. Then we'll get to work on your... compensation."
Judy closed her eyes one last time. "Until then, sleep well, Nick." Within a few minutes of silence, the bunny was already asleep.
But the fox however, was still wide awake. He couldn't stop thinking about what he'd just gotten himself in to. In the end, he couldn't even decide whether this was going to be amazing or excruciating.
He looked down at the dozing bunny curled up tight against him, and smiled.
"You're gonna be the death of me, aren't you Carrots?" He softly asked her.
Yet in truth, he wouldn't have had it any other way.
Hey Everyone!
I hope you enjoyed this nice, long, and detailed chapter! This is probably the most fun I've had writing for this story as of today! I enjoyed this chapter way too much! I certainly hope that you do too! :D
More is on its way soon, so stay vigilant my friends!
And as always, feel free to drop a favorite, review, or even follow this story of mine! All of them help me tremendously, and all are greatly appreciated! I love every single one of you guys that's stuck with my craziness the whole way through!
Thank you for your time, and stay in-tune for chapter 15, coming your way soon! :)
As always,
Peace!