Chapter 40 Sorrows of a Fox

Edited by Euphonemes

AN: Okay okay...I know most of you were expecting to see John and Esmeralda's introduction and I was tempted to write it...HOWEVER...this was just too fun of a way to start up this chapter and I'm sure the majority of you guys felt like Judy did, a bit frustrated.

Well, not to worry. With how much folks are loving this side story, it will become just that, a story by itself. Might take me a while if I want an actual plot to it, or if you just want their adventures on the island, I can do a short story of that as well. I'll have a poll up in a few days on my Deviantart account so folks can vote on what they'll like to see for this side story. :)

"And?" Judy asked, her voice startling Nick out of his thoughts. Her foot was thumping a mile a minute as she watched Nick stare off into nothingness. The doe, irritated as the fox seemed mesmerized by the night sky, snapped her fingers next to his ears.

"Oh, what?" he asked with a coy grin.

He had been messing with her.

"Jerk…" Judy grumbled, crossing her arms across her chest.

Nick grinned. "Yes, but I'm your jerk."

Judy shook her head and sighed while muttering under her breath about obnoxious, lovable foxes.

"What was that, darling? Couldn't hear you," he replied to her musings.

"What happened to your mother and father?" Judy whispered harshly, changing the subject abruptly to avoid any more wit from her fox. She spared a fleeting glance towards Ake'cheta to make sure he hadn't woken before turning back to the fox. "I know that she didn't kill him, or else you wouldn't be here, so how did they get off the island? When did they marry? When did they have you? What happened to your mother? Why-"

Nick waved his paws at the bunny. "Woah, woah...slow down, mi amor...I am getting to that."

Judy's glare was easy to spot in the darkness, her eyes reflecting the sparse moonlight that shone into their cave. "Nicholas…"

"Alright, alright…" the fox snickered. "To start off, you are correct. My madre did not in fact kill my padre."

On that fourth day, the vixen had awoken with a start, and upon seeing John leaning over her, had punched him in the muzzle, knocking him over and onto their roaring fire. Shocked at first by seeing a fox who seemingly almost kissed her, she was doubly shocked when he leapt from the fire, his fur sizzling and sparking, and into a nearby pond.

A third, final shock came when he surfaced, revealing a soggy fox wearing a tattered navy uniform, a uniform she feared and knew well.

"You're a naval officer?" she stammered, eyes widening in fear as she looked around for anything to grab. Finding a half-consumed log sticking partway out of the mostly destroyed fire pit, she brandished it at the tod, who blinked back in surprise. "What do you want from me?"

John arched an eyebrow. "First, it would be nice for you to say, thank you."

"Thank you?" she asked.

John grinned. "You're welcome!"

"But...I...what…?" the stammering vixen replied. "For what?"

John sat down on a log across from the vixen. "For saving your life over the past few days."

"My...life?"

John leaned back, waving a paw in the air, nonchalant in his appearance, even with the fire-stick pointed at him as he counted off on his paws. "From the sun, your heatstroke, your fever, the crazy birds on this island...a whole lot actually." Seeing the stunned look the vixen was giving him, John shook his head and leaned forward. "Look, I'm going to forgive you for that mean right hook you gave me, as well as for trying to help me become a fire dancer…"

The vixen lowered the branch, ears dropping as she stared at the ground while he continued.

"...but I'll only do that if you do one thing for me, alright?"

"What would that be?" she asked, eyes narrowing in suspicion, her grip tightening on the weapon in her paw.

John grinned as he leaned forward, eyes twinkling in mirth. "What's your name, darling?"

Nick leaned back against the cave wall, smiling at memories of what his father looked like while telling this story. "When my father was telling me all this, I hadn't seen him so happy in years. Sure my father was puzzled by her response to him being with the navy, but figured it was more from waking up, being half delirious and having an unknown stranger looking like they were about to kiss you."

He laughed, shaking his head before looking at Judy. "To answer your other question, my mother's name was Esmeralda, and as father puts it, had a laugh that could fill one's heart with joy, a twinkle in her eye that could cause the strictest priest to forgo his robes and piety, and a temper that could make the worst storms at sea feel like a mid-afternoon zephyr."

Judy was silent for a moment, chewing over what she had been told. "She sounds wonderful. Well, besides the temper part."

Nick smiled. "Father does have a way with words. Though I'd like to say it's the same with me, as I do know a certain bunny that quite matches that description. A voice like an angel, a heart warmer than the sun, a disposition of kindness that even the Pope would envy."

"So," Judy coughed into her paw, a blush creeping up into her ears as Nick smiled warmly. "How long were they on the island?"

"Two months," Nick replied. "During which they had quite the adventure, though I wasn't privy to all of them, as father only had a few hours to tell me their whole story. Suffice it to say, they both learned a lot about each other. Where they were from, how old each other was, how long dad was in the navy...how long Esmeralda had been a pirate."

"A what?!" Judy shouted before covering her mouth and looking in fright at Ake'cheta. Thankfully, somehow, the coyote was still asleep. How is he still sleeping through all this? the rabbit wondered.

"He's a heavy sleeper."

Judy looked at Nick, an eyebrow raised. "What?" he asked. "I know that look of yours. It's that, 'I have a question but don't know if I should ask it out loud for it will make me look like a dumb bunny,' look."

Before she could stutter out a retort, Nick scrounged around on the floor, clasping something in his paw. "Just watch."

Judy watched in confusion as he tossed a pinecone in his paw a few times, before chucking it towards the sleeping canine. She cringed as the pinecone sailed towards their companion and…

Ake'cheta raised a paw, snatching the cone from the air. With eyes still shut, he threw the pinecone back at Nick. The fox ducked, the object sailing over his head and out of the cave, bouncing out of sight and over the cliff edge.

"I'm not a heavy sleeper," the coyote said, finally snapping open his eyes. "One does not need to be asleep to rest." Rising from his slumber, Ake'cheta stretched his arms and popped his back. Standing up, he made his way past the two conversing mammals. "I will go and make sure we haven't been followed and be back before it is time to take over my watch duties."

"But, I thought you said that you covered our trail?" Judy asked.

Ake'cheta frowned and replied calmly. "One does not simply walk into El Foso de la Desesperación."

With a swish of his tail, he was gone, leaving the two alone once more. Judy stared at Nick, the beginnings of a grin starting to form. "Heavy sleeper, huh?"

He pushed her shoulder lightly while replying in a mirthful tone, "Oh shut it."

Both shared a chuckle before Nick returned to telling his story, regaling Judy with the more notable tales of his parents' time on the island. From their first few days together, their first date...to the incident with the coconut, two snails and an iguana, which made Judy snort in amusement. All the while Judy listened intently and, unbeknownst to either of them, slowly leaned closer to Nick until her head rested on his shoulder. And for Nick, he slowly found his arm and tail wrapping around the doe.

It just felt right.

Nick made it all the way to the rescue of his parents before he noticed Judy yawn, the rabbit's eyes half-lidded with exhaustion. He stopped, admiring the bunny leaning against him, making sure to pull her closer. She snuggled into his side, placing a paw against his chest as she chirred in a sleepy, bemused state.

Nick leaned against the wall, noting how uncomfortable it may be, but not daring to move in fear of jostling his tired bunny. Several moments passed in idyllic quiet before Nick heard a soft murmur that stilled his heart.

"What happened to Esmeralda?"

Her voice carried a heavy exhaustion and her words were mumbled, but the sadness was implicit in her words.

Here goes nothing… Nick swallowed back his own emotions, relying heavily upon the bunny next to him for strength.

"It was Bellwether…"

Judy's eyes flickered open, her voice losing all of its tiredness. "What? How? That must have been..."

"Twenty-eight years, two months and eight days ago. I barely can remember her."

"Oh Nick…" Judy gripped him tighter in an embrace, hugging his chest as the tod felt his chest tightening, not from her strength, but from what his father had told him. He pulled her even closer, blinking back tears as he continued. She suspected a reason for Nick never discussing his mother, but hadn't thought it would be because of that reason as well as simply not knowing until just a few days ago, himself.

"Like I said, mom had been a pirate, but that was a closely guarded secret only she and father knew. As I said earlier, after they were rescued, good old dad told them she was a castaway on that island for well over a year and nobody was the wiser. Once they got ashore, Mom told Father a little secret that she was the last mammal to know about."

Judy's interest was piqued now. "What was it?"

Nick's features further wilted, his ears splayed out flat and tail laying limp in Judy's paws as she tenderly stroked it, hoping it would soothe him. His features relaxed and he let out a heavy breath before speaking again. "The hidden lair of Black Bart. It proved to be the means that created what you see now. The only fox Don in all of Califurnia...and the reason why my mother was murdered in cold blood."

The fox slumped against the cave wall, idly picking at a button on his vest shirt. "Father...father doesn't know how Bellwether connected the dots between my parents' newfound fortune, Esmeralda's origin and the legendary treasure of Black Bart. They tried to be careful, only bringing out a bit of the gold, and valuables to sell, at a time to fund their expenses. As my father rose in the navy's ranks, they relied on the treasure less and less until they left it alone completely. Who needed pirate gold when you're an admiral?"

Judy didn't know what to say, so she kept silent, holding onto him, rubbing his arm in a message of solidarity and oneness with Nicholas.

He continued, though his voice wavered much more than his usual self. "It was a few years after I was born. Madre and Padre were celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary when a knock at the door sounded. Surprised at having guests, my father opened the door and was instantly slammed to the ground by a moose, then pinned down by several rams in military uniforms."

Nick's face contorted into one of rage, a growl coming from deep within his throat. "And in walks Bellwether like she owned the place. The daughter of the current Magistrate and heir apparent of that title. A stuck up twenty something sheep with a thorn in her hooves and something to prove…."

Judge Bellwether sauntered through the doorway, eyeing the struggling tod on the floor with a shrug before she caught sight of the vixen struggling in the corner, held back by two elk. Esmeralda struggled against the far larger mammals, her tail flicking in agitation.

"Why Commodore Wilde, you truly need to work on your hospitality. Not a single thing for me to eat here…" Bellwether glanced over the dinner table filled with fish, blueberries and several root vegetables, running her paw along the finished wood before rapping it twice with her hooves. "Oh, these are good!" she grabbed several of the berries and popped them into her mouth before turning abruptly on her heels towards Esmeralda.

"To what do we owe the pleasure of your company tonight, Oler-Clima*?" the vixen said with a glare.

"Oh, temper temper," Bellwether chided. "I might have to fix that if you don't learn to respect your superiors. And it's Judge Bellwether. I know you're a mongrel, but at least learn some respect if you can."

Esmeralda growled, but bit her tongue as the sheep took her time reaching John, still struggling on the floor.

"What is the meaning of this?" the tod snarled. "I'll have you reported to the Admiralty for this intrusion and assault!"

Dawn laughed. "Oh no, you won't." She cheerfully patted him on his cheek, only darting back when John snapped his jaws at her hoof. Her cheerful smile disappeared as she examined her hoof, a glare sent down at the officer. "Oh, you really don't want to do that."

Bellwether snapped her hooves. A servant darted forward, the prairie dog holding an ornate oak box, large compared to his size. Placing it down, he undid the latch and held the container open to the ewe.

John's eyes widened. "How do you have one of those? Those are only for the military to use and train with!"

Bellwether handled the dueling pistol in her hooves, smiling as she looked down the barrel and aimed it around the room. "Oh, the perks of being rich. But you know that well, don't you, Commodore?"

John stayed silent until Bellwether's aim landed upon his wife. "What do you want!" he barked.

Bellwether quietly walked over to the dinner table. Leaning against one of the chairs, she didn't even look at either fox in the room as she spoke next.

"Tell me where Black Bart's treasure is."

John blinked back his surprise. "What treasure? I don't know what you're talking about. His treasure sank with him along with my friends years ago!"

"Tut tut…" the ewe sang before snapping her hooves. A large paw hammered John's muzzle, eliciting a whine from him and a shout from Esmeralda. "There will be no lying to me tonight."

"I already told you, I don't know-"

Another snap, another paw sent into his muzzle. This time the tod's vision swam before him. He could vaguely see a hooved mammal approaching him before his muzzle was lifted up too high, his neck searing with pain.

"I don't like liars," Bellwether laughed. "I know it's what your species does naturally, but you need to learn how to speak the truth for once."

His muzzle being twisted towards the ceiling, John couldn't even snarled in protest as she pointed the gun between his eyes. "Now, won't you be a gentlemammal and tell a lady what she wants to know?"

"Vete al infierno!"

Bellwether looked over to Esmeralda. "Ah, the pirata* speaks!"

Esmeralda's head jerked back in surprise. Bellwether laughed in response. "Oh, did you think I would never find out about your family's dirty little secret? Why else do you think I'm here? A simple house call to celebrate your wedding anniversary with you? Oh no, no, no!"

Bellwether sauntered over to the vixen, waving the gun as she walked. "I would threaten you with a gun, but a noose would do you better, don't you think? it's the only necklace that would look good on you, hehe."

"You'll get nothing from me."

"Essy, stop!" John yelled, only to have his muzzle forced into the floorboards.

"Oh no," Bellwether laughed. "By all means, let her continue."

Silence met the ewe's words, filling the air with a torrent of anger and malice directed at the small prey mammal. Bellwether eventually sighed. Shaking her head, she crossed her arms. "I didn't want to do this, but even some mammals have limits to their patience." Looking back to the largest of the rams, Bellwether spoke quickly. "Find their child."

"No!"

The roar was simultaneous from both foxes. Several mammals branched off into the house, and it wasn't long before a child's wailing cry filled the room. The two foxes struggled more against their captors, screaming out their son's name as a mountain goat entered the room with the fox kit in his arms.

"Please, leave him alone!" John roared.

The goat handed the kit over to Bellwether, whose eyes twitched. "Does it look like I'd want to hold that...thing?" She shooed the mammal away. "Place him on the ground. Prop him up, make him a better target."

"No!"

The guttural cry of rage came from Esmeralda, and Bellwether had little time to react before a clawed paw slashed across her face.

"You horrible, oveja sucia!*"

Bellwether felt her head slammed against the floor, as the vixen above her smashed her head repeatedly against the wood. The ewe did the only thing she could do before her henchmammals could react…

She raised her arm, and pulled the trigger.

The shot was deafening inside the small room, as smoke and gunpowder filled the air around the two mammals. A pained cry followed, soon by another…

"ESSY!" John roared, panic overtaking him as she watched his wife slump over and onto the floor, clutching at her stomach. Bellwether pushed herself back from the trembling vixen, righting her glasses before looking at the gun in her hooves.

"Oops, guess the noose was too good for you," Bellwether stammered, looking from her gun to the vixen whining in pain on the ground.

Esmeralda chuckled.

"What's so funny?" Bellwether huffed.

The vixen grinned, coughing up blood. "Joke's on you...John doesn't know...where the treasure is. Only I...did."

One of her guards, the moose, glanced quickly outside as the sound of startled cries came from houses nearby. "Judge Bellwether, we need to leave now before someone finds out you're here."

"I…" the ewe stammered, again staring at the gun before dropping it to the floor. The moose was next to her in a flash.

"We'll make it look like a home intrusion gone wrong. But we need you to leave, now!"

"What's going on?"

Everyone in the house turned towards the door, where one of the Wilde's neighbors, a sleepy looking raccoon stood, wiping at his eyes. In an instant he was snagged by the moose.

"Hey! Put me down!"

The moose didn't listen, grabbed the raccoon by the neck and twisted. The poor mammal went limp immediately, his cries ceasing as he was dumped on the floor.

"There's the home intruder, now let's go!"

Bellwether nodded, but first walked over to where John still lay struggling on the ground. She grabbed his muzzle and pointed it towards the baby fox crying on the ground nearby. "Consider this your warning, fox. You are not to intrude upon my affairs, ever. Do I make myself clear?"

John offered a pitiable nod.

"Good."

The ewe stood as the moose jogged back inside. "Judge, we need to leave now before the neighbors arrive."

Bellwether nodded, dropped the gun near the dead raccoon, then ran out the door. The two deer holding John down both gave him a good kick before fleeing after her. John was up and to his wife's side in a flash, cradling her head in his lap as she smiled softly at him.

"Is...Nicholas...safe?" she wheezed as John frantically tried to staunch the flow of life from her wound, her clothes and ground beneath her growing crimson.

"He is…" John sobbed, tears streaming down his face. "You're going to be alright, mi amor. I hear the neighbors coming. You'll be okay."

Esmeralda chuckled softly. "You...have always been a terrible liar."

John choked back a sob. "It's because I never would want to lie to an angel. It might get me banned from heaven and being with her forever."

"She'll be waiting for you." Esmeralda's whole body shuddered and a grimace overtook her features. "Please, let me hold Nicholas."

"But…"

Esmeralda grabbed onto his paw and squeezed hard. "Let me hold our baby…so he knows...I love him."

John helped Esmeralda into a sitting position, leaning her against the wall before he ran over to the bundle of blankets, gently scooping their crying toddler from the mass. He turned. "Here he is, Esmeral…"

He stopped, his world crashing into nothingness at the sight before him. John moved forward slowly until he reached his wife's form.

"Essy? Darling?...mi amor?" John cried gently as the sound of mammals came from outside.

Even among so much blood, Esmeralda looked angelic. Her eyes were closed , her paws limp at her side, and a sad smile graced her lowered muzzle. For all he knew, she was merely asleep, looking much like when John had found her washed ashore on Guadalupe years before. Though this time, she had found a peace John would never know until he met her in heaven.

As the de la Wilde's neighbors approached the house, an anguished cry tore through the night sky, the sound itself halting all in their tracks. Nobody would go near the home as the racking, sorrowful screams and cries split the air.

The males present took off their caps, making the sign of the cross over their chests. They didn't need to go inside to know that the heart of their friend was broken.

A large zebra turned towards his neighbor, a brown bear, his brows knit together in sorrow. "Renaldo, fetch the padre."

Judy sat next to Nick, his tears catching moonlight as they flowed down his cheeks and onto her own. The sobs racking his body shook hers as the fox let out all his anguish. Anything Judy could do to physically help him, she did. Judy nuzzled closer to Nick, feeling him wrap her arms around her possessively, squeezing her tightly against him and not letting go.

For twenty-eight years, two months and eight days, your father carried that secret with him..Judy thought in sorrow. She looked up to see Nick weeping. And yet you had no idea the truth...oh Nick...

Judy sobbed with him, their release of every emotion, every memory, and every hardship shared, echoing in this tiny, dark cave.

She thought of how else she could make it better, what she could say between heaves and sobs. But words weren't needed.

And words weren't wanted.

Judy simply held him tight, weeping with him until they both mercifully escaped into a dreamless slumber.

AN: *hides behind boulder* Uh...yeah...that happened. Please don't be mad at me! *hides from thrown rocks and pinecones*. If I promise some WildeHopps fluff in the next chapter, would that work for everyone to make up for the waterworks here?

Translations:

Pirata: Pirate

Ole-Climar: Smell-Weather (Yeah I know, dumb pun and not spelled correctly for Bellwether's name, but, Nick had to get those puns from somewhere, right? Plus its just fun to say. XD)

Horrible oveja sucia:Horrible Dirty Sheep