What If – Competitive Much? Chapter Two (finale)

Written by Midnightopheliac

Edited by Cimar

Now that it was his turn, Nick picked up the dice. Throwing them down on the board, he rolled a 5. Moving his counter to Bunnyburrow Station, the tod bought it, enjoying the indignation on Judy's face that he'd bought yet another property.

Free from jail because of her husband's generosity, Judy scooped up the dice. Giving them a vigorous shake, as if she could transfer all of her annoyance into them, she flung them down on the table. Rolling and rolling, they finally stopped. Doubles. Picking up her counter, Judy moved four spaces to Vornay Plaza, which she purchased without a second thought. As she'd rolled doubles, it was her turn to go ahead. This time, she rolled a five. Pack Street ended up being the location of her counter, and as it was un-owned she bought it too.

Rolling a seven on his turn, Nick landed on and bought the Electric Company. He had his eyes on the Water Works now.

"Whatever it is you're thinking, stop thinking it." Judy warned, not liking the slow grin that was crossing Nick's lips.

Raising a paw to his chest, Nick gasped in mock hurt. "Oh come on now Carrots, I swear I wasn't thinking of all the ways I'm going to take your money."

"You'll have to fight me for it, Mr. Wilde." Judy pulled her stack of cash closer, eyes narrowing. Her husband had a plan, she could tell, but even after all their years together she couldn't figure out what that plan was.

Picking up the dice, the tod handed them to her with a wink. "Challenge accepted, Mrs Wilde."

Taking the dice from her mate, the doe rolled a four, moving her counter to Watering Hole. As it was un-owned she bought it, noting with pride that her pile of properties was starting to grow. She now owned 5 properties and Nick owned 6. She was catching up.

Aware that Judy was starting to match him, Nick knew he'd have to watch his game plan carefully and adjust accordingly. Picking up the dice, he watched as they rolled over the board, finally stopping. Moving his counter ten spaces, the tod tried not to groan aloud as he landed on Chance. Gingerly, he picked up a card, and when he turned it over he laughed. "Bank pays me $50, Fluff." He turned it around so Judy could see.

Blinking in disbelief that Nick seemed to always strike lucky, the doe grumbled under her breath as she handed over the cash. Now that it was her turn, she prayed for some of Nick's luck. She was almost tempted to rub her hind paws. Casting the dice down, she moved her counter along seven spaces.

The sound that left Judy could only be described as a screech, and Nick winced at the high-pitched sound, his ears flattening back against his head.

"Jail! JAIL!" She shrieked, glaring at the board before she looked up at her husband.

"You've been a very bad bunny." He teased, hoping to diffuse the situation. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law."

Disbelief marred Judy's face as her husband prattled on. "Don't you dare quote the Miranda warning at me, Wilde!"

Smirking, the tod shrugged his shoulders. He'd never been one to pass up an opportunity, especially when it involved tormenting his rabbit. "I'm a cop, it's only natural."

"And yet every time we arrest someone, you let me say it." Judy pointed out. She didn't mind being the one to read a perp his rights while Nick slapped on the cuffs, but occasionally it would be nice to swap roles, just to add a bit of variety. That, and Judy always loved the look on mammals faces when they realised they were being cuffed by a rabbit who was just shy of 3 feet when her ears were up.

Spotting an opportunity to butter up his mate, Nick offered her a charming smile. "It's more intimidating coming from the city's star cop."

Having spent enough time in Nick's company, Judy could tell right away when he was laying it on thick. Stereotypically she was a dumb bunny, but not much got past the doe these days. "You mean you're too lazy to say it yourself."

"That too." The fox admitted, picking up Judy's counter and moving it to the jail. Swiftly, he scooped up the dice and moved onto his turn. Rolling a seven, he ended up on Tujunga, narrowly avoiding jail too. It was a feeling he was all too familiar with.

Not wanting to sit in jail, Judy placed $50 in the bank to free herself. Shaking the dice, that came to land on five, and Judy moved the required number of places, her counter coming to rest on Savannah Central Station. As Nick owned it, along with Bunnyburrow Station, the doe was forced to hand over another $50. Looking at their respective piles, Judy had an idea. "I'll trade you. Cloud Alley for Rocky Road."

Surprised by Judy's offer, Nick mulled it over. Rocky Road was of lower value than Cloud Alley, so financially it would make sense, but the randomness of the offer made the tod question Judy's motives. "Appreciate it Fluff, but I'll have to pass." He declined, watching Judy scowl at him. With a grin it was his turn, and he rolled an eight. The move took him to Oasis Hotel, and Nick had to stop himself from fist pumping the air at the fact he'd landed on one of the most expensive and sought-after properties on the board. Counting out the $350 to purchase it, he enjoyed the pout that Judy wore as he collected the property card, adding it to his collection. As he'd rolled doubles, he went again, and this time ended up with a two. He landed on Go, earning double money.

"It's so rigged." Judy hissed, folding her arms over her chest after she'd handed over his money from the bank.

"Luck of the roll, Carrots. Tell you what, I'm feeling charitable. I'll take Olive Street and Vornay Plaza off your paws for $400." He could see that Judy was struggling financially, and though it was only a game he still felt compelled to help his wife. It didn't hurt either that by purchasing those two pink properties, there as only one left to acquire.

Judy knew that handing over two properties of the same colour could come back to bite her in the butt, with her funds low she needed to make a quick buck. She could always buy the last pink property to stop Nick owning the whole set. "$400, and a kiss." She bargained.

"Oh Mrs. Wilde, you drive a hard bargain! Deal." He counted out the cash, handing it over in exchange for the two properties. His own cash pile was now dented, hit he owned more of the board. With that part of their transaction sorted, he slinked around the table, reaching for his wife to pull her close. Lips meeting, their kiss was slow and gentle, mouths exploring and lips caressing. Nick wanted more, wanted to abandon their little game for something much more fun, but he had a feeling he'd end up sleeping on the couch if he called it off now.

As they parted, Judy needed a moment to catch her breath. Even after all their kisses over the years, her fox could still make her knees weak and send her heart rate skyrocketing. Regaining composure, the doe licked her lips as she reached for the dice, noting the smug grin Nick wore as he took his seat on the other side of the table. Rolling snake eyes, Judy shifted her token to Community Chest, and when she flipped the card over to see her fate, she squealed, hind paws rocking as if she were happily thumping the floor. "Straight to Go." She turned the card so Nick could see, letting him take it from her as she moved her token, taking double from the bank. There was a hint of frustration in Nick's eyes, and Judy loved it. She made it her goal for it to appear a few more times in this game.

Nick rolled a four, passing Go and collecting this money before landing on Banana Lane. He purchased it, not really caring as it wouldn't provide him with much money, but it would stop Judy from getting her paws on it. Having rolled doubles he went again, this time moving his counter ten space to Olive Street. Thankfully, as he owned it, he didn't have to part with any money.

Taking her turn, Judy moved seven spaces and landed on Chance. Sighing, she reached for the top card, slowly turning it over. Her face fell when she saw what was written on it. "Get Out of Jail Free. Yeah, could've done with this card earlier." She whined as she stashed it with her property cards, figuring that she'd inevitably end up prison again.

Hiding his snicker behind his paw, Nick rolled the dice and they came to rest on snake eyes again. This time, however, it meant his counter landed on Cactus Grove. Loud, boisterous laughter left him as he put the money for the property into the bank, unbelieving of his luck. Gaze moving to Judy, he wished he had a camera. Jaw slack and eyes wide, the doe was staring at the board.

"I hate my life." She whispered, kicking herself for having sold Nick the other two properties of the set. He could put houses and hotel on them now, and she'd be screwed.

"Oh Carrots." Nick tutted, counting out his cash. He had enough to put one house on each, and he did so with a grin. "Now you can hate your life." Rolling again the tod moved five spaces, landing on the un-occupied Hill Street. Feeling charitable, and in need of reminding his wife just how wonderful life was, he declined the purchase, putting it up for auction. "$100." He started the bidding.

"$150." Judy countered.

Stealing a quick glance at his mates cash situation, the fox kept his next bid low. She had a fair amount of cash, but not enough to survive a few more trips around the board unless she started completing sets and buying houses. "$165."

"$175." Judy knew she was stretching her budget, but with Nick now owning a full set and houses, she needed to try and match him.

Forcing himself to appear contemplative for a few moments, Nick eventually shook his head, letting Judy win the property. "You know Fluff, you're looking a little low on funds there." He commented as she paid for Hill Street, adding the property card to her growing pile.

"You just play the game your way, and I'll play it mine, Slick." She parroted back his earlier words, the corners of her lips quirking up as she tried to stave off her grin.

With a roll of his eyes and a fond shake of his head, Nick handed Judy the dice. "Touché."

When the dice came to a stop they added up to six, and the doe moved her counter the required spaces. Cactus Grove. "Why?!" She groaned, head falling forward for her to face-plant the table, large ears barely missing the board and counters. She didn't want to lift up her head, didn't want to see the irritatingly smug smile on her stupid, handsome fox's face.

"Oh there's a house on that one! Let me see." Nick made as much noise as possible as he shuffled through his property cards, until he finally found the right one. "Cactus Grove with one house comes to $50, please." Holding out his paw, he waited for Judy to lift her head and pay him. The doe grumbled throughout the whole exchange. "You know you love me."

Wanting to get her own back, Judy brought a paw up to her face to hold her chin, tapping a finger thoughtfully on her face. "Hm, do I know that?" She paused for longer than usual, using Nick's physical reactions as her cue. She could see worth starting to tinge his gaze, and as guilt crept up on her for tormenting him, she nodded. "Yes, yes I do."

The tension left Nick's body and his shoulders sagged. He knew Judy loved him, but there was always that nagging feeling in the back of his mind that she could do better than some former con-mammal. "Give me the dice please, Carrots." The doe had scooped them up and had been holding them, but when Nick finished his sentence they were being hurled at him. Snatching them out of the air, the tod turned wide emerald eyes to his mate. "Oh, someone's getting a little aggressive." He commented, spotting an opportunity to throw Judy off her game. "I like it." He waggled his eyebrows.

"Mind on the board and out of the gutter, Nicholas." Judy admonished, shaking her head. She couldn't let his mind wander that way or else they'd never finish the game.

"Of course, Judith." Nick couldn't resist using his mates full name either. She know how much 'Nicholas' annoyed him, and he knew how much 'Judith' annoyed her. He was only being fair and paying her back. Rolling a ten, the tod moved his counter to Watering Hole, and the sudden appearance of Judy's open paw in front of his face had him leaning back in surprise.

"Pay up, Slick." She watched as the fox counted out the rent, and when she was satisfied Judy took her paw back, adding the cash to her pile. It was back to Judy's turn and this time she rolled a three, which took her to Flock Street. Without a second thought she purchased it, grinning with delight as she now had a full set and could start demanding more money from her opponent. With her remaining funds she put a house on each, grimacing at the fact she only had $100 left by the end of it.

Rolling a five, the fox counted out the steps, landing on Water Works. He bought it. Now he owned both utility properties. The small noise of despair and the whispered 'no' as Judy realised how costly it would be to land on one of them made him grin.

Judy's next turn took her to Pack Street, which she already owned. The same happened to Nick as his turn took him to Haymarket, one of his existing properties.

The dice tumbled onto the table once again, and this time Judy moved her counter eight steps, landing on Shady Place. "Remember that time we were patrolling here and we spotted that shifty caracal?"

"Fluff, it's in one of the most dangerous parts of town, of course it's full of shifty characters." Nick had been a little apprehensive when Buffalo Butt had assigned them patrol in one of the roughest areas of the city, so he'd remained on high alert the whole time. Judy was more than capable of taking care of herself, but as her partner both at work and out of it, her safety was paramount to Nick.

Shrugging, the doe knew she couldn't buy the property with her remaining $100, so Nick purchased it for market value. "Still, there's something off-putting about how sweet the tufts of fur on their ears are, contrasted to their creepy nature." Judy shuddered, remembering how the cat had looked her up and down when they'd walked past him.

"Catstro's always been creepy." Over the years, Nick had crossed paths with the caracal on several occasions, and none of them had been pleasant. He'd owed money to Mr. Big and back when Nick had first been working for the mob boss, he'd been tasked with collecting payment. The tod had learned pretty quickly that the cat was wiley, almost as sly as him.

Triumph crossed Judy's face as Nick answered her. "Ah ha! So you do know him!" He'd told her he had no idea who he was when they'd spotted him, and Judy had gotten the distinct impression that Nick had been lying to her. She still didn't know why, but she figured it didn't matter.

"I'll say it again, I know everyone. I also know you're currently losing." Nick grinned as he changed the subject as he rolled a six, taking him to Oasis Hotel, which he already owned. Having rolled a double, he went again, this time getting seven. As he moved his counter around the board, his grin suddenly evaporated. Income Tax.

Unable to stop herself, Judy broke out into laughter, doubling over with the force of her chuckles. "Oh the irony!"

"I'm an upstanding citizen, Fluff. I pay my taxes." The fox declared, counting out the right amount of cash, his gaze down and ears back flat against his head. It still niggled at him that Judy had managed to hustle him with his confession. He'd known he was lying on the form, so mentioning his income to a cop had been asking for trouble.

Snorting as she took the money and added it to the bank, Judy couldn't resist leaning over to boop her husband on the snout, as if he were an unruly kit. "Yeah, now you do, and only because I make you sleep alone if you don't."

"Forcing your poor, loving husband to sleep on the couch. For shame." Nick brought a paw to his forehead, palm facing Judy in a dramatic fashion as he sighed.

Used to Nick's antics, Judy snickered. "The only shame around here is that I have to let you back into bed when the forms submitted, so I'm no longer able to starfish." Before Nick had come along, having the whole bed to herself had been bliss. Since their decision to become a couple though, Judy had been forced to give up half of the bed. It wasn't a compromise she'd made lightly.

"You love our cuddles." The tod pointed out. There was no use in Judy denying it. Every night she snuggled up with him, gently pulling his tail over her like it was a blanket. The first time she'd done it, Nick had yelped, caught off guard by her sudden grab, but now it was second nature.

Not wanting to torment Nick further, or make him question her adoration, Judy conceded. "Do I love them? Yes, yes I do."

The duo continued to play, making their way around the board until all the properties had been snatched up. Nick managed to control ¾ of the board, including the two most expansive lots - Oasis Hotel and Palm Street. For Judy, the game turned into a procession of rent, taxes, and jail. On occasion Nick would make her deals so she could earn back some of her money, but properties never changed paws. Instead, the tod would ask for a kiss, or for her to finish his paperwork at the precinct. It kept Judy in the game right up to the moment she landed on Palm Street, with its three houses.

Having no other choice than to give Nick all of her remaining money and mortgage her properties, Judy was still short. Eyes closing as the realisation sank in that she'd lost, the doe sighed in defeat. It was only when her eyes opened that her annoyance set in. "That wasn't fair! You bought nearly all of the board and never had a lot of money!"

"That's the point, Carrots. I didn't have a lot of money because I invested it as soon as I got it, and the returns were marvellous." Nick didn't want to gloat too much, but the situation called for it. He played the game by the same basic strategy each time, tweaking it if the dice rolled something disadvantageous.

"I demand a rematch." Judy knew she could win, that she could beat Nick at what was seemingly his game.

Stretching, the tod yawned. The game had gone on longer than he'd anticipated, but even though it was late the fox's nocturnal nature meant he wasn't really that tired. It didn't hurt to play it up, though. "Eh, I'm all tuckered out."

"You only won because you were a con-mammal." The doe's brain to mouth filter refused to cooperate. Realising how rude her comment was, Judy clamped her paws over her mouth, amethyst eyes widening.

It would've been a crime for Nick to let such an opportunity slide. Lifting a paw to his chest, he placed it over his heart, calling on all his years of acting back when he'd been hustling. "Oh Carrots, you wound me! There was nothing deceitful about this game, we played by the rules."

"Sorry, Slick." Judy knew her husband was just being a drama king, but she still felt the need to apologise for her below the belt comment. "I get to pick the game next week, right?"

A ball of dread settled in Nick's gut. The look on Judy's face made him nervous and his earlier smile fell. "Whatever it is your thinking, stop thinking it." His bunny could be just as crafty as a fox when the situation called for it, and the tod had a feeling next weeks game could see him losing. "Anyway, you know the rules." He gestured to the board and the fact she had lost.

"Do I have to? If Chief finds out I did it, he'll kill me." Judy gulped. She liked her job, loved it even. Bogo could be a nightmare when he was made the butt of someone's jokes, and if he handed her parking duty as punishment she would make sure Nick knew her displeasure.

Leaning back, Nick raised his arms behind him, cradling his head. The smile he wore was of pure satisfaction. "I can see it now, death by Buffalo Butt. Bets a bet, Fluff."

"How about another deal?" Judy offered, having thought of a way to try and worm herself out of pranking their boss. She was fine with pulling pranks on others, you didn't grow up in a warren with hundreds of bunnies and not pull a prank or two, but Bogo could have a short fuse at the best of times.

Quirking an eyebrow, Nick dropped his arms, paws coming to rest by his side. Playing with the carpet, he shook his head in disbelief. When would Judy learn? "You want to make another deal?"

"Next week I chose the game. If I lose again I'll go through with the bet, if I win then it's off." She declared, narrowing her eyes in challenge. She was sure that this time, if she got to choose their game, she'd win.

Not too worried about what Judy had in mind, Nick couldn't see the harm in letting her try and salvage the situation. "Sure. What've you got in mind?"

"Poker." Judy was dead serious.

Nick blinked, caught off guard by her response. There was no way on the planet his wife really wanted to challenge him to the game that was a con-mammals pièce de résistance. "The emotional bunny wants to challenge the former con-mammal to a game of poker?"

"Don't underestimate me, Slick." She warned. Growing up in a large household had meant Judy had never been short of other mammals to play against, and her ability to suddenly become highly emotionally had helped her win many games. It was easy to trick ones opponents when they couldn't get a solid read on how you were feeling.

Curious, Nick offered out his paw. "Alright, deal." They shook on it. Another idea struck the tod, and he offered his wife a cheeky grin. It would certainly up the stakes of their little game. "Can we make it strip poker?"