A/N: Hello, fellow Zootopians! I have another drabble for you. I've been waiting to hop into this guy's head for a while now, so let me know what you think :).

Thanks to Combat Engineer, HawkTooth, Berserker88, and Cimar of Turalis WildeHopps for your latest reviews! I appreciate the thoughtful feedback.

And thank you to everyone who reads, faves, and follow. Enjoy this little slice of Zootopia.

Happy reading ~ Euphonemes

Off the Trail

Chapter 6 - Old Habits Die Hard (A Companion to "Run": Chapter 5: Part IV)

"'Oh, it's just a few posters,' he says. 'It's only one city block,' he tells me. Hmph. I'm gonna get you for this, Nick Wilde."

The untrained eyes of passersby would have seen a stack of fifty glossy posters walking itself down the street. The resilient face of Judy Hopps gleamed in the noonday sun as the stack of posters bobbed and weaved between the legs of pedestrians. Every few feet, the stack would stop, and one would lift off from the pack and attach itself to the brick walls of the buildings that lined this street.

Of course, a stack of posters walking itself down the street was patently ridiculous. No, a curious mammal simply had to look behind the posters to see a beleaguered fennec trying his best to contain posters nearly twice his size. In fact, one such curious mammal — a young hippo who had broken away from her mother's grip — peeked behind the glossy curtain and tried to touch the carrier of the posters. Finnick's low growl ensured the young hippo stayed far back.

When Finnick had first been conscripted into the veritable army of volunteers assisting Nick and Judy, he had been a reluctant soldier. Time spent with these posters meant time away from his other more profitable ventures. And it also meant more time around the two smallest police officers in Zootopia — though they were small, they still had big, shiny (and legitimate) badges. They (and by "they," Finnick meant Nick) had relegated him to duties like leaking press releases and slapping posters onto walls. It was nothing overly consuming...save for today's exercise; but, it was enough time to leave open the possibility for Finnick to slip up and share a detail about what he was truly up to these days.

One poster caught a gust of wind and took off prematurely. Finnick nearly dropped the whole stack as he jumped and grumbled some unpleasant words while retrieving the wayward face of Judy Hopps. The poster actually looked pretty good, but the gloss was cheap and slippery. It was like holding together fifty sheets of frozen pawpsicle juice (which Finnick would never dream of making on his own).

"I am so gonna get you for this, Wilde," Finnick vowed as he reset his stack. Nick had been calling on his old buddy more often these past few weeks. He was probably getting nervous about this whole election bit. Everyone always saw the coolness of Nick, but Finnick knew what simmered beneath that smooth exterior that had pulled off uncountable cons. The first fox police officer now managing a campaign to turn a bunny into a mayor…Nick Wilde had a lot on the line.

Really, Finnick shouldn't have been doing any of this. He shouldn't have even been near Nick…or his bunny partner. Sure, he and Nick had some good times together riding around in the beat-up van that backfired every time he hit the gas. But now, Nick was different; he had to be. His job demanded it. Finnick still laughed whenever he saw Nick with that badge on (a long way from the "Junior Detective" sticker), but Nick's new role in deterring crime was no laughing matter.

Yet, despite the potential threats to Finnick's income streams, Nick somehow convinced his old pal to help hang up "a few posters." Old habits die hard, Finnick mused discontentedly as he pasted the next poster onto crumbling red brick.

For what it was worth, Finnick thought the rabbit was onto something. For years, he and Nick had hustled on this street, practically a treasure trove of fools easily parted from their sweet, sweet cash. And Finnick had watched this part of town take a serious beating over those years; these days, most mammals didn't head down here after dark. The place could use some perking up, and maybe (a big maybe) the bunny could change a thing or two.

Just because he might agree with her, though, didn't mean that Finnick didn't groan with disgust whenever the bunny talked about opportunity. She constantly rattled on about it, this carrot farmer's daughter talking about making everything better. Even after one year, she was still so new – so fresh – to the city. Sure, she patrolled the streets…but had she really lived on them?

Perhaps that's where Nick would help her the most. A lifer – just like Finnick – who knew his way around the alleys where the real Zootopia lived. Maybe Nick could put some sense in that bunny…or at least write up a good speech so she can pretend to get it. They hadn't been too bad yet, and Finnick could easily sniff out Nick's handiwork in between all the pretty lines about opportunity.

Finnick reached yet another blank spot on the brick wall and readied another poster until he saw another curious mammal close to him. This tiger cub had already reached out his little paw when Finnick's eyes caught him. The tiger stopped cold, and Finnick watched as the paw started trembling.

Finnick waited. Soon enough, some mother or father would run up after chasing him down and scold him for being near a fox, or a brother or sister would shout at him to catch up and get away from that stinky fennec (though fennecs generally take great pride in their self-grooming). A painfully long time passed before Finnick realized that wasn't going to happen. Instead, the cub stood alone, trembling, shaking out the wrinkles in what looked to be a shirt that had been passed down for three generations.

Life on the streets is hard, Finnick constantly reminded himself of that. It was an easy way to dodge nasty emotions like pity or grief. It had always worked for the fennec, as it had for Nick until recent events altered his perception. But something about the cub flipped a switch in Finnick's mind, and he set down the stack of posters.

The tiger quickly pointed to the topmost poster and, without a fuss, Finnick slipped it off and handed it to the tiger. "Here you go, kid. You know what you got there?"

It was probably too much to hope for this cub to be literate, but maybe the pictures would be enough to get the message across. With a heavily furrowed brow, the cub examined every inch of the poster, gasping as recognition dawned like the golden rays shooting out from behind the bunny. The cub could barely contain himself as he jumped up and down and shouted, "Opportunity!"

Finnick almost let his grimace sneak through, but the poster he shoved in front of his face saved the day. With a grunt, Finnick dismissed the cub before something mean slipped out, but he did watch as the cub's striped tail swished happily while he left. Those big bunny eyes stared confidently over the cub's shoulder and gleamed all the way down the block. Finnick thought about telling Nick what he had just witnessed, but then the fennec looked toward the stack of posters twice his size and thought better of it.

The posters were heavy as Finnick picked them back up, but something else felt a little lighter. He almost let a smile seep through…until another gust of wind blew a poster high into the air. As Finnick started leaping toward the sky, he snarled, which amused some passersby and horrified others.

"I'm still gonna get you for this, Wilde!" Finnick shouted as the face of Judy Hopps floated high above.

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