A/N: Hey guys and gals! So, been a bit- February was the month from hell, but another installment is finally ready!

For anyone wondering when I'm actually going to give Jack and Skye some real 'screentime' so to speak, they'll be featured more from here on out...

They've been resting!

On vacation time!

I wasn't about to ruin that!

(\_/)
(x,x)

As always, major thanks to GameBoy for his help and editing! This one was a lot of fun to write, and he had some excellent input on protocol and fire control, among other things.

Ghostwolf88: Glad you enjoyed it! And yes, I noticed that pun. xD

Cimar: What can I say? I loves me some fluff! And thank you! =3

Sadly, things can't remain fluffy forever, and it's high time for things to take off... Let's do this!

Sincerely,
TOG.

Enjoy!

(b^,^)b

Agent Wilde 2: Mountains out of Molehills
Chapter 4

Sinister Salutations

A squirrel in a trenchcoat was seated in front of a computer, the screen showing a room containing a large water buffalo, grey wolf, russet fox, and a grey bunny. The wolf was pulling out empty folders as the buffalo spoke, the fox and bunny taking on increasingly uncomfortable looks as the exchange went on.

"I hope this is all worth it..."

The wolf had finished pulling folders, and turned his own monitor toward the other three mammals, displaying a similarly barren result.

"I am so very, very tired..." The squirrel muttered, his features were heavily worn and drawn, he looked like he hadn't groomed himself in weeks, his once proud, bushy tail was matted and clumped and he was growing emaciated from lack of food. He had plenty, he just couldn't stomach anything as of late.

He watched as the fox and bunny exchanged a glance before saluting and making their exit, the buffalo and wolf had a few more words before the wolf turned his monitor back around and the buffalo left.

"I can't keep this up any longer..."

The squirrel pulled a flash drive from the computer and made a quick series of keystrokes, running half a dozen prepared programs designed to render the equipment worthless in every sense. Just for good measure, he slapped a large, flat magnet to the board.

He palmed the small, oddly shaped storage device, donned a far too conspicuous purple fedora, and made to leave the hovel he'd been working out of for the most recent year of this ill advised act of revenge.

"I'm sorry, my friend, but I'm done... Penny wouldn't have wanted any of this."

The squirrel left the tiny building, shoulders slumped, head hanging in a shame he couldn't shake, knowing he was more than likely walking into a prison cell or an unmarked grave, depending on who found him first.

Who'd have thought tracking down a mole would be this difficult? I mean, sure, they're natural burrowers, operating under the radar... but even moles leave behind a tunnel to be discovered, one leading straight back to their originating tunnel.

This thought had been stuck in the minds of both agents all morning, they were getting frustrated at their lack of anything to show for all the digging they'd been doing, even having pushed more recent issues on the back burner in favor of putting all their efforts into narrowing it down to a pawful of primary suspects.

And then another thought occurred to the gray doe who was face down in a keyboard, causing her ears to snap up, whacking the the muzzle of the dozing russet fox she was currently seated on.

Nick nearly tipped the chair with the recoil from the abrupt wake-up call, "What is it?!"

"Nick? I know this is going to sound odd, and probably a little speciest, but... what if we're going about this from the wrong angle?"

Nick cocked a brow at the bunny as she turned to make sidelong eye contact, "...Go on?"

"What I mean is, we've been looking for anything from the rodent family, mice and squirrels, straight up to standard and large mammals, such as wolves, lions and what have you..." She furrowed her brow, continuing, "What's the one animal we haven't even given so much as a single thought?"

Nick ran through his mental checklist as quickly as he could, but he wasn't catching whatever it was she apparently had, so he shrugged.

"What if our mole, is literally a mole?"

Nick couldn't help but chuckle at the implications that suggestion brought to the table, but the fact she was dead serious in her statement was enough to keep him from bursting into laughter.

"...You're serious."

"I am."

"Well, I can't say we haven't seen or experienced anything more on the nose or ridiculous, so why not?" the fox conceded, after all, they couldn't rule out the possibility. If she was right, narrowing it down to a single genus and subspecies would be a major advantage compared to where they were at right now.

"I won't say I don't find the idea funny- because it's hilarious, but I'll back you on it, Fluff. We need a breakthrough or a miracle on this, we can't keep spinning our wheels."

"That's all I needed to hear." the bunny pulled out her phone and sent a message to director Bogo, before turning and booping the fox with her now twitching nose, tail flicking. The gesture getting his own tail swaying.

"C'mon Foxy, Bogo should meet us with Wolfard in a few minutes." she said as she hopped to the floor and pulled the tod along by his tie, something she seemed to take great delight in doing when she didn't want to wait for him to get moving.

As if she actually needs to encourage us to follow. Tail commented, She knows we wouldn't hesitate to leap off a bridge if that's where she was going. he finished with a chuckle.

Yeah, she probably does... Nick agreed, but I kinda like the whole excited game of 'grab the tie'.

You're just waiting for her to grab it by the knot so you can make a joke about it, aren't you?

Absolutely, one hundred percent.

Nick couldn't internalize the snorting chuckle following that thought, bringing the doe to a sudden halt while his muzzle was contorting into a toothy grin.

"And what's so funny now, Slick?" she asked, glancing back with her arms crossed, coy smile on her face.

Nick, currently too preoccupied to form a cohesive statement, simply said, "Knots."

Judy's face went from coy, to blank, to some strange look Nick couldn't describe, one side of her mouth drawing up and out, as her eyes seemed to gaze through him, into the distance... her ears changing shades of red by the moment.

Don't say it. she preemptively scolded Righty.

I didn't! ...He did! Righty replied gleefully.

Here we go again. Lefty commented.

Nick caught a whiff of that strangely sweet scent again, though now he was well aware of its origin.

Whoops... he thought, I think that might not have been the best choice of words.

Word. Tail stated.

...What?

Word, choice of word, as in singular.

Oh, thought you were using slang or something.

Moi? Use slang? Tail asked incredulously, Please, I am far too sophisticated to do so...

Uh-huh. Nick replied, unimpressed, he knew there was more.

Now, Tail continued, say something else knotty and see how she reacts! he finished, cackling.

You're terrible. Nick stated with a mental grin, That's for after we call it a day.

That's the spirit! Now you're thinking with Carrots on the brain!

Nick's eye twitched, he hadn't truly considered just how deeply that fuzzy gray missile had burrowed into his psyche- whether she knew it herself or not, and he took on a similar look to that of his bunny, they both looked... mortified? It was nearly impossible to describe, but the one mammal that passed by them was more than a little perturbed by the mirror image they formed.

After a few moments locked in place, they managed to snap out of the trance and make their way to the small gym in the lower levels of the building, it wasn't exactly what most would consider secure, but it was lacking several key items that nearly every other room held, short of the restrooms.

Cameras, audio feed and generally mammals this early in the afternoon. Not exactly the best place to discuss anything sensitive, but it was technically more secure than the rest of the ZBI when taking into account the tactics that had already been employed heavily by the saboteur.

Judy's nose crinkled up as the door swung in, it wasn't that they didn't keep the facility clean, it was just difficult to completely remove years of pheromones and sweat soaking into the room.

"Yeah... that's why I don't do my lifting here, too many smells." Wolfard's voice came across the room, he was lounging on one of the benches, heavy bar being used as an impromptu back rest.

Judy couldn't hold back the small cough that crept up her throat, her sense of smell was about as impressive as any small herbivore's, she couldn't imagine the torture a canine's nose was exposed to in this dense a reek, she could practically TASTE the horrid cocktail of mammal stank.

Glancing over, she was met with a small red kerchief, one she could only assume Nick had marked, as it was strong enough to drown out the vicious odor, he handed her a second, white this time, with one raised brow, she didn't need to ask. She rubbed the item under her chin before handing it back, getting a wink from said fox, who was all too glad to have a pleasant scent to replace the cavalcade of nastiness.

Bogo and Wolfard simply exchanged an all too knowing glance, brushing off the exchange so as to leave the pair with some semblance of professionalism, Bogo opted to clear his throat to get their attention.

"Oh! Right..." Judy responded somewhat bashfully, "I think we might have a way to narrow down our list of suspects, sir."

Bogo gave a grunt, Judy hadn't been around the buffalo long enough to know that was as close to 'proceed' as he generally gave, short of extreme circumstances. Nick started for her.

"Agent Hopps made a very interesting observation today, sir." the fox stated before nodding at the doe, who took the pass and continued.

"I know how this is going to sound, sir... but have there been any Moles here in the past?"

Bogo raised a brow with a somewhat confused look before responding, "Yes, Hopps. That much was in our initial discussion, that's the entire purpose of your current investigation."

Nick couldn't help but snicker at the buffalo's response, he was just as bewildered as the fox himself, initially. Judy gave the fox a jab in the arm before continuing, all that did was turn the snicker into a laugh.

"I mean a literal mole, sir. Eulipotyphla Talpidae."

Wolfard couldn't help but laugh at the statement, "You've got to be kidding... you're saying our mole is exactly that, in both form and function?" after coughing from inhaling the caustic scent on a particularly hard inhale between laughs, he added, "Oh, that is rich, if that's true, I'll buy you two coffee for a YEAR."
It wasn't that the idea was so absurd to the wolf that it wasn't possible, it was simply far too contrived, as if there were some odd mammal out their writing some sort of goofy story and had a penchant for on-the-nose humor.

Miles away, a small black wolf sat bolt upright in his chair, he wasn't sure why, but for some reason, he felt the fur on his scruff stand on end. "Oh no... they know..." he immediately began typing in the hopes of preventing the mammals at hand from becoming too knowledgeable of what he'd been doing, pulling at their strings like a demented puppet master.

Wolfard gagged slightly, eyes drifting in opposite directions momentarily, something that the other three didn't miss.

Nick cocked his head to the side, "You okay, Scruffy?"

"What?" Wolfard replied, eyes snapping back, looking quite unfazed by the brief lapse in, well, function.

"You looked a little- a lot out of it for a sec there."

Wolfard gave the fox a look that said 'You sure you're okay?' before turning back to the doe expectantly.

Bogo made a mental note to send Wolfard to medical for an evaluation before he brought a hoof to the bridge of his nose, "Okay, Hopps... I'm going to give this the benefit of the doubt, for one reason, and one reason only, on the condition you answer one simple question."

Judy beamed at that, watching as Bogo continued, "What, exactly, brought you around to such an... odd, conclusion?"

Judy could only shrug, she didn't really have an exact answer for that, "It just sort of... clicked?"

Letting out a sigh, the buffalo took on a very grim expression- more so than usual, that is.

"To answer your own inquiry, Hopps. Yes."

Judy's smile grew, "He died in action, Hopps." and just as quickly fell.

"...Officially." Bogo added, looking quite annoyed now.

Nick's curiosity was piqued, "Officially, sir?"

"Meaning we never recovered a body."

Judy's smile came back slightly, "So there's a possibility that he's not actually dead."

Bogo let out another grunt, "I wouldn't stake my career on it, but yes."

Nick chimed in with a very smug grin settling into place, "And I'm willing to bet his records are also nowhere to be found."

Bogo's eyes flashed at the fox, "...That would be correct... they were gone before we had a chance to destroy the hard copies." the buffalo stated with a growing unease, he didn't like where this conversation was going. A rogue agent was one thing, but one with as intimate a working knowledge as this particular mammal would have would be-

"Wolfard?"

"Yes, sir?"

"Call in the Old Dogs. I need to have a word with them."

"Yes, sir." Wolfard was all too happy to make his escape from the stench-ridden room, and made to leave for his office, he had a cell phone, but he also now had an excuse to leave the gym. He stopped dead when his ears caught a tiny voice coming from the ceiling, Judy's ears immediately locked on to one of the near useless vents, Nick, Wolfard and Bogo followed her line of sight to the vent in question.

Bingo. Lefty stated, as Righty also swiveled toward the source of the voice.

"That won't be necessary, Chief." The voice said.

The vent all four mammals were currently staring at swung down on its hinges with a squeak, and a very disheveled looking squirrel dropped unceremoniously from the opening, his coat was ripped in several places, bloodstains adorning various portions of his attire, most notably, his fedora, which was actively dripping blood. One of his ears was missing, though how it was removed wasn't clear.

Judy was the first to the tiny mammal, carefully lifting the maimed creature off the floor.

Nick and Wolfard continued staring, both extremely confused, and wondering what the hell was going on.
Bogo, on the other hand, recognized him even in his current state... this squirrel had been MIA for years, he was an intelligence expert from Bogo's early career, when he was simply the Chief Coordinator for agents being dispatched for field work. This squirrel was supposed to be dead, then again, so was a certain mole.

"Secret?" Bogo asked, currently incapable of believing his eyes.

"The one and only, Chief!" The squirrel piped up, attempting a salute before crumpling into a heap in the doe's paws.

Bogo glanced around the room, he was currently questioning why all the crazy happens when Wilde was around, but couldn't discount the fact that since the bunny came into play, said crazy made a leap to unbelievable.

"Wolfard? Medic, now. Make sure they know it's Micro-fauna."

The wolf didn't need to be asked twice, he was already making the call.

"As much as I'd like to question you now, Secret... I doubt I'll get much out of you when you go into shock, or pass out." Bogo stated, still taken aback, a very rare occurrence for the buffalo, at least genuinely so.

"I'm fine, Chief! and I know where you can find Mo-" The squirrel never finished his sentence, trying to stand again resulted in the already hemorrhaging mammal to finally drop.

Judy was staring at the squirrel in her paws, he looked like death warmed over, there was no telling just how much physical abuse he'd endured before arriving here, they were all trained in emergency aid, tourniquets and whatnot, but the only surefire thing Judy could surmise with a mammal this small, was he was likely closer to death than she had been herself just months ago, his breathing was shallow, he was steadily bleeding, and she couldn't apply pressure to any of the wounds without doing further damage to the poor creature due to his size... and he was cold as ice. That was at least one thing she could do something about, clutching the bloody clump of fur to her chest, she just stared up at the other mammals for a moment, eyes begging for something to help.

"Who is this, sir?" She asked, eyes shifting to the door as she started toward it, the others close behind, she could at least cut the distance for the emergency dispatch to cover, being quite small themselves.

"He's... an old agent, one that's been sorely missed for quite some time."

"He was calling you 'Chief'." Nick pointed out.

"A VERY old agent, by average life expectancy." The buffalo said with an annoyed tone.

Naturally, Nick very much wanted to press the buffalo further on the matter, but it was currently serious time, and even Nicholas wasn't about to start joking excessively when there was a mammal dying in the vicinity.

"And what," Nick began instead, "were the exact circumstances of his disappearance?"

"After he's stable, Wilde." Bogo deflected the question, he wasn't in the mood to discuss anything right this minute, he may be seasoned, both in the field and out, but even he wasn't accustomed to mammals effectively returning from the grave.

Judy was every bit as curious as Nick, but she was a bit preoccupied herself at the moment, her ears picking up the sound of several very small vehicles coming from down the hall, thankfully the building's accommodations included a vehicular dispatch for their emergency services, being designed with Mega-fauna in mind.

The tiny ambulance came to a screeching halt in front of the five of them, out came a stretcher, which Judy gingerly placed the squirrel on, the ambulance was shortly followed by a literal, portable operating room, contained within a sterile, semi-soundproofed, plastic cube. The first responders had already stripped the squirrel and started running IV's to keep him from dying on the spot.

It was a strange scene to witness, watching the process from above on such a small scale. The damage to the mammal now clear, the majority of it was hidden under his coat, though they'd have to wait for the post-op to find out exactly what had been done to him, he looked a sight worse than Judy and Nick combined when they'd been hospitalized.

"Does this count as 'stable', sir?"

Bogo let out a sigh, "Not now, Wilde."

Something big happened... Tail mused, Nick had to agree.

Clearly, but what would keep Buffalo Butt quiet?

Your guess is as good as mine, pal.

"Is he... missing his teeth?" Judy quietly chimed in, drawing attention back to Secret, who was currently under full anesthesia, they'd begun spreading and cleaning the wounds, one by one, enough to inspect for any visible internal damage before closing them. Sure enough, looking more closely they could see- or rather couldn't see the small buck-teeth that should have been visible in the squirrel's slack jaw under the mask strapped to his head.

That's just sick. Judy thought, she couldn't imagine losing her own.

His mouth isn't bleeding though... Lefty commented.

If someone just ripped them out as a form of torture, shouldn't it be bleeding? Righty added.

"Fluff?" Her eyes were pulled over to the fox currently reaching toward her, she went cross-eyed as his paw went to her shirt collar, plucking a tiny white object from her chest. "I think you've got them..."

He held up a small set of prosthetic teeth, with what looked like the male side of a USB drive where they would normally end in a bony point.

"What...?" Judy was still processing the idea that the tiny mammal was coherent enough to pop out the prosthesis and lodge it in her shirt when he was literally knocking on death's door.

Wolfard's curiosity was clearly apparent, as he tentatively sniffed at the object before snatching it from the fox. "No way..."

Wolfard immediately bolted for his office, Bogo just called after him as quietly as he could, so as not to disturb the operation currently taking place. "Bring it back before you go digging, Ralph!"
The wolf just gave the buffalo a 'thumbs-up' as he rounded the corner.

"What's he rushing off for?" Judy questioned.

"Adapters." Nick replied plainly, "I swear, that wolf lives for tech and information... for him, that drive must be like a gold nugget to a prospector." he added.

They returned their attention to the operation once more, Judy couldn't help but ask the obvious question, "Think he's gonna make it?"

"I'd hope so, Hopps. He's likely got more information than just what's on that drive, and I've got questions only he'd be able to answer." Bogo replied, concern flashing in the buffalo's eyes as he spoke, "Where he's been all these years aside, the fact he was moving through the facility undetected tells me he's either our hacker, or the one making physical entries to Wolfard's office... possibly both, and I want to know where his point of entry is, at the very least."

Nick could tell there was still more the director wasn't telling, but he also knew he wasn't going to get an answer right now.

They continued operating for what felt like hours, and must have been as it was well into the afternoon before the surgeon, a mouse, came out, pulling off her mask to fill the director in on the extent of the damage.

She was wearing red scrubs, though not simply because they wouldn't show stains from blood, an ID clipped to her chest pocket simply reading 'Elizabeth'. She spoke with both gentility and an air of authority, "He's got several broken ribs, lacerations to his liver, a mild concussion, multiple 2nd and 3rd degree burns... his ear appears to have been removed with surgical equipment, my guess would be a simple scalpel. This was personal, whoever did this wanted him found, and they wanted it to be fresh." She stated, adding, "And they knew how much they could do without killing him, he's at least had a heavy anticoagulant administered, which is why none of the wounds had stopped bleeding before he got here. He's going to be under until we're sure he's not going to die on us."

Bogo nodded, he'd expected it was foul play, but he wasn't expecting it to be quite that bad. "I'm a bit surprised he was even coherent when we found him- or he found us, as it were."

Elizabeth frowned at that statement, "They must have given him something to keep him moving before they let him loose, he shouldn't have been able to form a clear sentence in his state." she crossed her arms, adding, "I'll ask Jonathan to run a tox screen, he might have more issues than just physical, after this." she finished with a sad glance back to the nearly mummified squirrel.

"Let me know as soon as I can speak with him, will you?"

"Will do, but don't get your hopes up on it being any time soon." the mouse replied as she turned to take her leave, mumbling, "I need a coffee..." as she pulled out the phone currently ringing in her pocket, "Brisby!" she chimed in a more cheerful tone than she was feeling, rounding the corner as her voice receded with her.

"I swear this is the month from hell." Bogo groaned as he too, stepped away while the squirrel was toted off to the medical ward, Operating Room and all.

"Anything we can do in the meantime?" Nick asked after the director.

"Not until Wolfard gets what he needs and brings me whatever is on that drive." Bogo pressed the call button on the elevator just down the hall, "Go home for now, and watch your tails... this is only going to be the start of things." he looked like he'd aged several years as he looked back at them, adding, "Don't leave without at least a standard sidearm and a vest."

Judy raised an eyebrow at the order, "You really think they'd just attack a ZBI agent in broad daylight, sir?"

"They already have, Hopps." Bogo replied in a tired tone as he vanished behind the doors. "You'll be notified as soon as Wolfard gets back to me, that thing's probably locked down tighter than Fort-Ox, given he hasn't already."

Judy and Nick stood there for a moment, eyes meeting with dozens of questions shooting between them, Nick didn't bother to stop his tail from wrapping around the doe as they made a slow trail to the armory, they weren't anticipating an attack on their way to the penthouse, but they weren't about to risk being wrong.

They made their stop at the armory, Nick picking up his Akita 9mm, Judy retrieving her twin customs, they didn't bother with extra clips, as they were only taking the weaponry as a precaution. That business sorted, vests firmly strapped down under their work attire, they left the building. As they made their way to the fox's convertible, he made to unlock the vehicle remotely... That's when they were brought to a very real, and very extreme awakening upon approaching said vehicle outside, he never did like parking in that garage, to many assault vehicles being poorly parked, it always worried him they'd damage his precious red baby.

The usual 'chirp' he received came out almost as a gurgle, like the battery was going, and it wasn't stopping.

That can't be good... need to get it serviced, I guess. he thought, Judy on the other hand, heard something familiar under the odd sound and grabbed the fox by his tail, Nick let out a pained yelp as he was forcefully pulled back by the doe.

OW! Tail keened, What was that for?!

"What's the deal, Fluff!? That thing's sensitive!" Nick all but barked, very confused as to the sudden physical outburst from his partner, who had taken a low vigil atop the toppled tod.

...Am I just hearing things? the doe wondered as her eyes came up in apology to her fox.

After today, I'd say no... but I'm not hearing a kaboom, either. Lefty stated.

"Sorry, Slick... I thought I heard a-" The doe's apology was cut short as the aforementioned kaboom came, shaking them to their respective cores.

"...Bomb." She finished, volume and tone going low and shocked.

Nick's convertible had erupted in a glorious, blazing inferno, leaving shredded, melting metal and fiberglass in its place.

The fox watched in horror as his beloved vehicle burned in front of him, had he been able to find his voice, he'd have been a screaming mess. As it was, his jaw simply hung slack as his eyes drifted from the burning wreck to the doe currently staring at him wide-eyed, she was currently frozen in place and couldn't turn around to see the spectacular mess of a once-vehicle.

"...Thanks." Nick finally managed to voice after working his jaw a bit.

"Don't mention it..." the doe said with the shocked look still in her eyes, "Also, WHAT THE ****?!"

Nick's jaw dropped again as the doe used a very fine four letter word he'd never heard her utter before, usually she just rattled off vegetables or some such.

"I know we've got a psycho watching us, but a BOMB?!" she screeched out the last word.
****ING UNDERHANDED **** SUCKING ******S! Righty screamed, writhing in fury.

"...A little extreme, yes." Nick replied, sounding far too calm for the doe's taste just then, "Did you just-"

"YES!" she squeaked out, "I'm a little flustered at the moment!" a bit of an understatement, she was well beyond simply 'flustered'. "They tried to blow you up!"
Righty was all but frothing at the proverbial mouth, Lefty letting out a very uncharacteristic growl that was far more predatory than any herbivore should ever emit, both of them having flared out to the sides, twitching with unchecked rage.

"It would seem that way." came the tod's still calm response.

"How are you not freaking out right now?!"

Nick's eyes flicked to the wreck, then back to his bunny, "Oh, I am. I'm just having a hard time expressing it at the moment." inside, he was a roiling combination of curses, panic and shock... Tail was far more vocal in his response.

THEY BLEW IT UP! Tail bellowed in melodramatic fashion, THOSE MANIACS ACTUALLY BLEW IT UP!

What if he hadn't bothered using the key-fob to unlock the car?
I LOVED THAT CAR!

What if there was a secondary trigger besides the remote locks?
THOSE SEATS WERE COMFY, DAMMIT! Tail howled into the mix.

What if they'd gotten inside and tried to start it?

...What if Judy had skipped ahead of us like she usually does? Tail added to the list with something between a keen and growl.
This thought hit him the hardest, if this had been on any other day, the last he would have seen of her would be that terribly warm smile being engulfed in flames, he would have lost the one thing that he'd genuinely cared about since he was a kit. And unlike the loss of his mother, he doubted he'd ever come back from it, at least in any functional aspect of 'living'... he'd have a hard time calling it anything more than simply 'existing' at that point.

"Judy?" the fox said as his tail and arms wrapped around the doe as if his life depended on it. Hell, at this point it did.

As with their exchange in the complex, her real name immediately grounded the doe, wiping away the panic that had started to set in when her mind started looping the image of her fox being consumed by the flames.

"Arm's reach, from here on out... please?" he asked in a whisper.

Judy just nodded into his chest, they couldn't bring themselves to move.

The explosion had drawn the director himself out to the scene, he got a good, clear view from his window, and he was going to collect his agents himself. Just as the fire department pulled up to the scene.

"Wilde, Hopps. Inside, now." he said, adding in a gruff holler "And take the back entrance!" before the media screeched onto the scene, hungry for a story.

Nick gladly made his escape, keeping Judy held to his chest, blocking the doe from sight. He was beyond grateful the buffalo had come himself, Bogo was well practiced with news stations and their insatiable desire to twist even so much as a simple 'good morning' into a murder threat to meet their twisted ends for a juicy story, it was one of the reasons he'd been given the position, he could diffuse a situation with an astounding flare. The fiery wreck would be plenty enough for the media vultures as it was, and they were going to be far more prevalent in the area with it being this close to the ZBI building. If they'd been able to find out this was an attack against one of his odd pairs in the bureau, the two would be hounded to no end, and their investigation would be brought to a grating halt.

The mammals dedicated to preventing a PR freakshow had been hot on his trail, and immediately began handling the mass of reporters and camera crews that had converged on the scene, in part to allow the swarmed firemammals to do their job and control the blaze, giving the buffalo a very brief respite to prepare a public statement that would minimize the potential for mass hysteria.

The director glared at what was once a car, visage growing darker by the moment while the fire department cordoned off a safe zone around the fire, unfortunately all they could do now was let it burn itself out.

He woke up with a headache that morning, now he knew why.

Nick plopped into his office chair, Judy still clutched tightly in his arms, both of them gazing at their reflection in the computer screen.

...We could always go the traditional route, Lefty mused into the silence, just shoot 'em.

What are you talking about? Judy replied, eyes still blankly locked on the stretched reflection in the monitor.

Revenge, naturally. Left stated, as if it were obvious, Nah, that's not good enough...

Would you just stop? the doe asked, not in the mood for this.

Dip 'em feet first in acid?

Quit it. the doe reiterated.

You're right, not personal enough... we could skin 'em?

NO! Also, gross. Judy replied with an internal gag.

...Strangle them? Lefty posed.

...I'll think about it.

With our FEET.

Okay, really... just stop.

You're right. Lefty conceded, Why strangle them when we can just beat them to death!? she added, tone well beyond murderous.

ENOUGH! We've got an issue here! Judy fumed at the vibrating appendage.

Nick had finally moved, his eyes having been focused on the doe's in the warped reflection in front of them, his knees came up, pressing the doe into his chest. Judy could see what was behind the controlled, nearly emotionless expression he'd plastered on, she didn't like what she saw.

"Nick?"

"Mhmm?"

"You okay?"

He just nodded, muzzle brushing between her ears, he was far from it, but he wasn't about to break in front of his bunny, if he could help it. In this particular case, he couldn't.

We could've lost her... was the prevailing thought as his eyes began to glaze over.

"...Nick."

She'd be dead, and we'd be alone again.

Tail wrapped up around them both, so far as he could reach.

"I'm fine, Nick... we're fine." Judy was trying to cut off the inevitable storm she could see brewing behind his eyes. She had no clue what he'd witnessed all those years ago, and neither of them knew the true extent of the damage the scene had caused, much less the years of burying it so deeply.

His grip just tightened.

I don't want to be alone anymore.

She went cross-eyed as a wet drop hit her square on the nose.

His ears drew back.

"Nick."

His claws began extending, grip becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

"NICK!" Judy squeaked, alongside the scent of fresh blood it finally snapped the fox out of his spiral.

He reflexively jerked away.

Did I...? he began while the doe pressed a paw to her arm, it wasn't deep, but he'd drawn blood. The fox's eyes went wide, flicking between his paws and the bunny before he leaned too far and tipped the chair back, slamming into the ground.

"I am so sorry! I didn't mean to-"

Judy finally got the opening she was looking for, she flipped over and grabbed his muzzle in her paws, abruptly ending the apology and forcing him to look her in the eye.

"Calm down... it's okay." she wasn't angry, she wasn't scared, she was concerned. Strangely that only made it feel worse for Nick, he'd rather have her screaming at him than to see those eyes looking at him so sadly.

She ran her chin over his muzzle, once on each side, the mingling scents doing their job, calming the fox. "Think I'm mad, Slick?" she asked softly, eyes going warm, getting a tiny smile from him.

She could hear his heart slowing to its usual steady thrum, "It's just a little prick, nothing serious."

Tail immediately followed up, That's what she'll say if she ever sees you naked!

Cheeky little... Nick thought, the wisecrack finishing off the dark spiral he'd begun, You KNOW that's a lie.

Tail just chuckled, even Nick wasn't in on the silent 'thank you' going toward the doe. Being inside the fox's head in a literal sense, he'd never been able to break him out of those panicked moments when he was a kit.

Think he's gonna tell us what's really wrong? Righty asked, finally finished with her fit of rage.

I hope so, we can't have him snapping when we're in a tight situation... Judy replied, adding, any more than he can with us.

He'll talk. Lefty stated firmly, he gave his word.

They picked up the chair and returned to their sitting position, Nick wanted to get her arm looked at, but she just wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone right now, and she wasn't about to leave him alone after that.

They'd be sleeping on a cot tonight, Bogo was insistent that they remain on site until he got confirmation from dispatch that their place had been fully inspected by their I.E.D. boys, and they'd had a chance to give the place a good sniff.

Jack and Skye weren't much better off, having received a similarly vicious 'hello' this afternoon, though theirs was a strange spring-loaded mechanism in their shower, it had been set to smash the smoked glass door, flinging sizeable shards everywhere, thankfully not doing any serious damage, both sporting a few fresh cuts along their extremities and cores. They'd bandaged what they needed to, grabbed their bug-out-bag and made for the bureau. They would soon come to learn that the twisted mind behind the macabre device was the same that had planted a bomb that morning in a cherry red convertible and arranged for a once-friend-turned-maimed squirrel to be brutalized. They weren't the only agents targeted today.

A/N-MkII: Things are heating up, literally. Who's behind the attacks? Are they in cahoots with the wolf? WHO ATE THE LAST COOKIE!? WHY AM I ASKING YOU ALL THESE QUESTIONS?!

Spoiler Warning:

There are no spoilers!

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