"Hmm, you know, I just can't make up my mind," Judy said, rubbing her chin. She carefully eyed each choice with all the shrewdness of a bazaar trader. "There's just so many options. I think I have to run through each one again."
Nick had his face buried in his paws, and was uttering a pathetic whimper every few moments. "Please, Carrots, I am literally begging you. You're trying to decide between the colors of the car. I promise you it doesn't matter."
Judy refused to take her squinting eyes off the vehicles at the ZPD impound lot. Although they hadn't gotten clearance from Bogo yet, Judy was confident enough with Cam's information to head to the lot to pick out a car for the stake-out. Now, with the sun beating down from the peak of the sky, Judy stood in front of several nondescript, medium-sized sedans. One was white, another was a dark blue, a third was a dark red, and a fourth was an auburn orange. The pair had been reviewing cars for nearly twenty minutes.
Nick removed his head from his paws and looked up, only to see Judy scanning over the same four cars again. "I swear I will never ask for another thing from you for as long as I live if you just pick a car," he pleaded.
"Well hold on, I haven't decided yet!" Judy huffed. "We have to take safety configurations into account, too. Those are just as important as the color."
Nick returned to studying his paw pads close up, his whines getting more and more frequent.
The attendant at the impound, a portly beaver in a loose tie, just sat at his booth, lazily flipping through a magazine. "Hey," Judy called out to him. "How long do I have to choose?"
"Honestly, officer?" the beaver called back. "Ain't no skin off my tail, take as long as you like."
Judy beamed. "Thank you!" she called out, and resumed her careful analysis.
"Roberto, c'mon, don't be that way!" Nick called out to the attendant. "There has to be a time limit or something!"
The beaver squinted at Nick. "Remember when you cheated me at cards a few months back?" he called out, basking in his victory. "Yeah, consider this payback, Wilde."
"Hey, I pulled up my sleeves! It's not my fault there were five aces in the deck!" Roberto had resumed perusing his magazine. "Roberto, please, help me out here!"
"Sorry, can't hear you," the beaver replied, shutting the window at his booth.
"Wow, you genuinely are pathetic when you're bored, you know that?" Judy said, turning to her partner.
Nick found a chair and flopped back into it. "Well, my phone died because I forgot to charge it last night, so I'm literally watching my life pass before me in an impound lot."
Judy rolled her eyes. "You could help me, you know."
Nick perked up. "Wait, that's an option? I thought you were picking."
"Oh, I am definitely picking. I still value your input, though, as obnoxious as you may be sometimes."
He rose from his chair and walked over to her side. "Alright, so what are we thinking here?"
Judy rubbed her chin. "At first I was feeling the red one, because you know, red is really cool." Nick nodded sagely, playing along. "But then, I remembered that red is the most common color car to get stolen, and I don't want to arouse suspicion. Then I started thinking white, because white is boring, but a white car would stand out the most in night. Right now I'm leaning toward the dark blue one. It'll be well concealed for a stake-out."
Nick did his best to indulge his partner, although it bothered him that he couldn't tell if she was being serious or just messing with him. "What about the orange one?" he asked. "What are your thoughts on it?"
"Oh, nothing really, I just liked it because it reminded me of a carrot."
Nick's jaw dropped, dumbstruck. "Wait, are you serious?"
Judy doubled over laughing. "No, you dumb fox, of course not," she said between giggles. Nick's face broke into a frown before a cheeky grin overtook it. "Did you really think I'd consider a car just because it reminded me of a carrot?" she asked.
"I'm not sure, you know how you bunnies can get," he said. His shoulder reflexively flinched, anticipating the impending punch.
Sure enough, a tightly coiled bunny fist soon found its mark on Nick's arm. "Bunnies get punchy after getting repeatedly teased by smug foxes. Surely you've learned that by now?"
"What can I say, I'm a slow learner," he said, rubbing his arm. "Now, if you're being serious about the car, then a dark blue would help us be a little more concealed than the others, although I can't imagine that matters."
"Hey, you never know," Judy replied, indignant.
"My vote is for the the white one," he said, pointing at a homely sedan. There were fringes of rust along the wheel well, and the blocky headlights and hard lines told onlookers it was at least 10 years old. "That model is one of the most common on the road, so it definitely wouldn't stand out."
"Really? One of the most common? But it's so…" Judy struggled to find the right word.
"Ugly?" Nick asked.
His partner shuddered. "I was going to say well-worn, but yeah, ugly."
"Well, it's definitely not sold on account of its looks, that's for sure. It's safe, affordable, and has a lot of trunk space."
"Wait, how do you know that?"
He chuckled. "I owned one for years before I decided to ditch the hassle of a car in the city."
Judy looked up at her partner. "You're telling me that you owned something like this when you were hustling people?" she asked, incredulous. "I figured you had something much cooler."
"One of the first rules of my old life was don't draw attention to yourself," he said. "Driving a boring car, especially one that looked so plain, helped quite a bit."
"I guess that makes sense," she replied. She pondered a moment more, before crossing her arms definitively. "Well, I've made up my mind. We're definitely taking the dark blue one."
Nick pinched the bridge off his nose and sighed. "Carrots, after everything I told you, why would you still go with that one?"
"Because the white one is too ugly. Also, we'll blend in."
"I thought you were going to take my opinion into account?"
"I did, and then I threw it away when I reconsidered just how ugly the white one is," she said.
Nick harrumphed and went back to sulking. "Hey Roberto, we'll take this one," Judy called out to the beaver. Roberto simply gave her a thumbs up, not taking his eyes off his magazine. "Keys will be here when you're ready to head out," he said.
"Carrots, don't you think this is a little premature?" Nick asked. "We haven't even gone to Bogo yet for clearance for the stake-out."
Judy started walking back to the cruiser. "I'm not worried. He told us to make this a priority, and we've already got a lead," she replied. "It might take some convincing, but I'm sure he'll go for it."
"Well, you don't need to convince me," Chief Bogo said. Nick and Judy were sitting in his office. Judy was prepared to argue her case, but the words never left her mouth. "Wait, really?" she asked.
Bogo looked up from the paperwork he was finishing. "Yes, Hopps, really. You found what sounds like a solid lead, and are immediately following up. Did you think you'd have to wear me down?"
Judy and Nick looked at one another. "Well…" Judy began.
Bogo sighed. "I hope I'm not such a hardass that two of my best officers automatically assume that I'll shoot down a promising opportunity to get ahead in a case." He looked up from his paperwork, and his eyes narrowed at the pair. "I presume that's not what either of you thought."
Nick gulped. "O-of course not, sir."
"Well then, it looks like we have nothing else to discuss," the chief replied, brandishing a cordial, if a bit chilly, smile. "Just make sure you both fill out the overtime papers that I'm sure this operation will put you on."
"Sure thing, Chief. We'll do it first thing tomorrow morning," Judy said.
At that moment, the door burst open and Fangmeyer stood in the entrance, panting. "Chief, we may have a few… issues out at Tundratown," he started. He glanced between Nick, Judy, and the chief. "Oh, uh, whoops, sorry. Didn't know you were busy."
"Never mind that, Fangmeyer, Officers Hopps and Wilde were just leaving," Bogo said.
"Wait, aren't you guys supposed to be on patrol?" the wolf asked, cocking his head to the side slightly. "What are you doing back here?"
Before Nick or Judy could say anything, Bogo spoke up. "They brought up a few concerns about their route, which have been dealt with,. Now, the real question is what are you doing here in my office, instead of where you were assigned for the day?"
Judy and Nick took that as their cue to leave the office. As they closed the door behind them, they overheard Fangmeyer start, "W-well, you see Chief, it's like this…" Bogo sat in unamused silence. The door shut with an ominous click.
"I'm really glad not to be Fangmeyer right now," said Judy as they made their way down the stairs.
Nick chuckled. "How is that different than any other day?"
Judy laughed with her partner. She started toward her desk. "I'm gonna see what I can find in records about this John Woolenstein guy," Judy said. "I figure we've got some time to kill before the stake-out."
Nick shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, that's true. What time do you think we should get there?"
"Not sure, definitely after nightfall, though." Her phone buzzed with a text message. She quickly pulled it out of her pocket. "Oh, that's the information from Cam," she said. "I'll go through this and see if there's a time that the mammals have shown up to the laundromat regularly."
"Alright. I'll help you go through those records, then."
Judy nodded, and the pair headed for their computers. Nick made a note to make some thermoses of coffee; it was going to be a long night.
Nick and Judy crept up about a block from the laundromat, careful to keep an eye out for anyone that would be wary of the car. The clock read a little after 9 p.m., and the cloudless sky opened up a view to a full, rising moon. The lights of the city drowned out most of the stars in the sky, leaving only the brightest visible to the naked eye. Judy killed the engine while Nick poured her a cup of coffee from his thermos. She laid her seat back a bit in a facade to show her composure, but the light tapping of her feet gave away her anxiousness.
Baobab Avenue had seen better days. Boarded up windows and broken-down cars dotted the streets, and everything had a strange orange glow from the incandescent street lights. Nick peered into the darkness around him; he knew the neighborhood well from before he was a cop. Every day, it seemed like there was a new business venture that less-than-scrupulous men like Nick had been could take advantage of. Sitting in his police uniform, watching the corners that he once hustled on, gave him an uneasy feeling in his stomach.
"You ever been on a stake-out before, Carrots?" Nick handed her the cup and began pouring himself some coffee.
She shook her head and took a careful sip from her cup. "Hasn't really been an opportunity for it since I've joined, and you've been my partner for most of the time that I've been on the force."
He nodded. "Well, don't worry your fluffy little tail. They're mostly boring, to be honest. Lots of sitting around doing nothing without a guarantee of any action."
"Wait, you've been on a stake-out before?"
He drank deep from his cup and sighed as the warmth of the brew went down his throat. "Yeah, a few times here and there. Mostly just keeping an eye on a property that some associates were interested in, seeing who went in and out, that sort of thing. Surveillance, I guess."
"And what did you tell your 'associates?'"
He shrugged his shoulders. "The truth, although occasionally I might have popped out to give a mammal or two a warning about what they were getting into." He winked at his partner and tapped his chest. "Heart of gold in here, scout's honor."
"Well, that's reassuring, I think," Judy said. She pulled out a manilla folder with the photos that Bogo had shown them when he assigned the investigation.
"I want to go over this one more time," she said. Nick rolled his eyes. "Okay, one more time," he said.
The photo showed an otter, a spotted hyena, a white stoat, and a boar exchanging stacks of cash next to a nondescript brick building. It had been taken about 10 blocks from Baobab; why the mammals met where they did was still a mystery to Judy.
"We don't have any names to go off of, but Cam said that four mammals matching these descriptions have been seen around this laundromat," she said. "Although we should keep a close watch on anyone else coming at this hour, if we see any of these four then it confirms our suspicions."
Nick chuckled. "Okay, thank you, Ms. Narrator, I think I get it."
"C'mon Nick, this is serious."
He put his paws up in surrender. "Relax, Carrots, I know. We might as well settle in, we've got some time to kill."
Nick glanced at the car's clock. Quarter past eleven. Geez, this could not be going any slower. The foot traffic on Baobab had all but dwindled to only the most nocturnal mammals. A few stragglers here and there stumbling out of bars were the only company the pair had on the worn down street.
Judy had been glancing at her phone, browsing various social media sites. From where Nick was sitting, it looked like she'd been bored the whole time.
"Hey, Nick," she said, putting her phone away. "Can I ask you something?"
Nick drained the last of his third cup of coffee; he knew making a large pot was a good idea. "Sure, Carrots, shoot."
"Remember how Clawhauser was asking me about dating this morning?"
Nick coughed a bit as the coffee went down the wrong pipe. "Uh, yeah. Why?"
"Well, I never hear you talking about any dates, either. I figure you know the city pretty well, so you'd know where to meet people."
"Carrots, are you asking me to help set you up with someone?"
She shook her head vehemently. "Oh, no, nothing like that, I was just wondering if, uh, you were seeing anyone."
Nick cringed. "Fluff, remember how I said I wasn't a big fan about getting grilled about my personal life either?" His words came out a little harder than he'd meant to, and he could see the tiniest glimmer of hurt in her eyes.
"Oh, right, sorry," she backpedaled. "I wasn't trying to pry or anything, but we don't have to talk about it if you don't want." Nick could tell she was doing everything she could to keep her ears from drooping.
He sighed. "No, Carrots, it's alright. I just… I've just been on my own for a while. Been busy, you know?"
"Busy with what? No, sorry, that's a dumb question."
He barked a single, dry laugh. "Relax, you don't have to be so uptight." He shook his head. "Damn emotional bunnies…"
"You better watch yourself, I'm giving you a pass this time."
He leaned back in his seat and smiled, though it faltered quickly. "And I don't know, busy with work, I guess. I was so focused on making and saving money, I never really had any time for a relationship. Don't get me wrong, there were dates here and there, but nothing ever long term."
"What were you saving up all that money for?"
He laughed loudly. "Honestly? I don't even know. I had a pipe dream once to build an amusement park for predators, but it was just that; a pipe dream. It was silly. Really, I think I just liked the idea of having more money than I did the previous day."
Judy's eyes widened. "I don't think that sounds silly!" she said. "Nick, that sounds like an amazing idea. What would it have been like?"
"Well, I had this idea that the park could be for predators to go a little wild, you know? Let go of the trappings of society a bit, go down on all fours, chase something, stuff like that." He carefully eyed his partner; Nick was patently aware of what he was describing sounded like. "That's… not weird, is it?"
"I don't think so," she said. "I bet a lot of predators would like a day where they could run and cut loose. Besides, it would've been a few hours at a park; it's not like it would be dangerous or anything." She paused and smiled at her partner. "I bet you'd have been a great amusement park owner," she beamed.
Nick felt his heart in his throat. "Aw geez, Carrots, you're gonna make me blush."
"You still could, you know," she said after a moment. "I mean, I'm sure you've got a lot saved up. It's not like you couldn't still open a park."
Nick shrugged. "Yeah, I might down the line, but dreams change, you know?" he said. "I was actually considering going with Finnick about 10 months ago to check out loan options to see how much a down payment would cost."
She paused. "Wait, you were seriously going to do it? What stopped you?"
"Nothing stopped me, Carrots. I think Finnick got tied up with something that day. We tried rescheduling, but a few weeks later, I met you, and soon I was signing up to be a cop. Priorities shift, you know? I'm your partner, and, well, I guess that's more important now."
Judy was silent, and her ears drooped. She turned to him slowly. "Nick… did you change your dreams because of me?" Her voice was very quiet, and the effort to keep it from breaking was obvious.
Nick looked at Judy and felt his heart breaking in his chest. He'd only seen her cry once before, and it was under the bridge when she apologized during the Nighthowler case. Sweat was beginning to bead on the fur of his forehead. "Carrots," he began slowly. "I-I didn't change my dreams because of you, you changed my dreams. No wait, that doesn't make any sense…" He stumbled over his words, struggling to find the right ones. "You, I mean, look. I didn't give up on anything because of you. Meeting you gave me a better dream. Yeah, I might have been a great amusement park owner, but you made me into a better mammal. That's worth a lot more than being a theme park carney."
He swallowed heavily, and the pads on his paws were clammy. Despite the cool night, he felt like he was baking in an oven.
Judy sniffled once. "Y-you big dumb fox," she said, straining to keep her voice together. She reached her arms out to Nick and embraced him. "W-we're on a mission, dammit, you can't make me get all emotional on an official investigation." She was mumbling into his uniform, and he felt little damp spots where her eyes were.
Nick slowly placed his arms around Judy, and held her there. "Did I, uh, say something wrong? Hopps, talk to me, I'm sorry if I sai-" That was all he could get out before she pulled out of his embrace and landed a solid punch on his shoulder for about the fifth time that day. "Cheese and crackers, Carrots, what'd I do? And easy, I'm gonna bruise there at this rate."
Judy laughed weakly and wiped her eyes. "You didn't say anything wrong, dummy," she said. "And that was the only way I'd get your attention to make sure you understood that."
Nick rubbed his shoulder, trying in vain to soothe the dull throb. "You could have used your words, you know. I have functioning ears."
"Yeah, but that wouldn't have been as fun," she replied, gathering her composure.
An awkward silence fell over the car like a flurry of snow. Nick didn't like it; he was always able to talk with Judy, but after a moment like that, he was at a loss for what to say. He cringed when he recalled their moment on the skytram, after he told her about his incident with the Ranger Scouts.
"Thank you, Nick," Judy said. "For sharing that, I mean. Really, thank you." Her eyes, more indigo than lavender in the low light, smoldered with a quiet determination as she gazed at her partner.
Nick was caught off guard by the sheer purity of her eyes. He felt his stomach drop again, and his throat was dry. He found it difficult to make eye contact, instead choosing to look around the car rather than directly at her. C'mon, this is your partner. You can't get flustered every time you talk to her like this. "D-don't mention it, Carrots. I figure I gotta open up about my backlogs of boarded up feelings sometime."
He paused, trying to think of a way to shift the conversation away from him. "What about you, Fluff? You ever change your dreams?"
Judy shook her head and smiled. "No, much to the frustration of my parents, believe me. Ever since I was a kit I dreamt of being an officer with the ZPD. I guess when I got to Zootopia, I wanted to make this huge difference, but now I'm just kinda happy to serve on the force, you know?"
"Well, duh, it's because you've already made a huge difference, remember?" he laughed. "It sounds like you made your dream, then, Ms. Hotshot ZPD Officer."
"Yeah, I guess I did. And you're just as hotshot as me, buster, don't pretend like you're not."
The pair shared a chuckle. Nick went to pour himself another cup. A young couple strolled past the car on the opposite side of the street, seemingly glued together at the hip. The man whispered something in his companion's ear, causing her to break into a fit of giggles. Nick turned his head to Judy, who looked torn between keeping watch and absentmindedly looking out the window.
"Hey, Carrots, if you reached your dream, what's your new one?" he asked.
The question pulled her out of her trance. "Huh? What do you mean?"
"Well, you're an officer of the ZPD now. You made it, dream accomplished. What's next for Judith Hopps?"
"I'm going to forget that you called me that," she warned. She looked into her cup of coffee in her lap for a few moments, stuck in thought. "And, I… I guess I never thought that far. Becoming a police officer was all I ever wanted. I've just been taking it day to day ever since I got to the city."
Nick eyed his partner. "Not really thought about the future much? Can't say I blame you. You're in a good place, you should bask in it for a while," he said. He reclined his seat even further. "Take it from someone who never took the time to sit back and relax a bit."
"I mean, I know my parents will expect me to settle down at some point, have some kits of my own, do the whole 'family' thing, but I've never really seen that as a future for me, you know?" she asked.
"Geez, Carrots, tell them to get off your back," Nick laughed, staring at the ceiling. "You're plenty young, you've got more than enough time for that if you're ever so inclined."
Judy chuckled along with her partner. "Don't talk like you're some dried up old codger, Nick. You're not that much older than me."
"I'm over 30, Fluff. I might as well be a zombie as far as the city is concerned."
"Well, if being 30 means you can still be a kickass partner for the best bunny cop in Zootopia, then 30 sounds pretty alright to me," she said, a victorious note in her voice.
"Hah, first, I'm 32, but I appreciate the vote of confidence," he began. "Second, you're the only bunny cop on the force. So by default, you're the best." Still reclined in his seat, he turned to his partner. "And third, thanks, Hopps." He gave her a warm smirk.
"Don't mention it, old man-oh my gosh" she began, before breaking into a hybrid whisper scream. "Nick, are those the guys?" She gestured to the laundromat, where three mammals, a boar, a spotted hyena, and a stoat were walking. It was definitely the same three from the photo, though the otter was nowhere to be found.
Nick ducked low, and Judy followed suit. "Holy crap, Carrots, your reporter friend actually came through," he whispered. She shot him a triumphant grin. "I told you this was a good lead," she said.
The pair did their best to keep a low profile on the three mammals. The boar was toting a duffle bag along with him. While the boar and the hyena were walking confidently, the stoat seemed to be keeping his head on a swivel, and jumped whenever he ran into a trash can. The boar turned and grunted at the noise; the stoat froze ramrod straight and started walking forward again. The hyena shot the boar a dirty look before heading inside.
Nick turned his gaze back to the photo; sure enough, the stoat was rubbing his hands in it, and seemed to be looking around. "Looks like he might not be fully onboard with this," he whispered to Judy, who nodded in agreement.
The three walked into the laundromat without fanfare. Nick and Judy could see well enough from where they had parked their car, but if the three went into the back of the restaurant, they'd slip from view. Inside, it seemed like a bighorn sheep and come forward and greeted the three.
"It's Woolenstein. You think this is just a friendly visit?" Nick asked, and was swiftly met with a stern shush from his partner. The boar took off the duffle bag and opened it for the ram, who looked to be nodding. For the next few minutes, things were quiet while the four made conversation, though the stoat didn't seem to be speaking up much.
"Shoot, why didn't we think to bug the place before we got here?" Judy asked, turning to Nick.
"Uh, duh, because that would have been a dead giveaway. If that ram is involved in something like this, he'd definitely be able to smell out a wire," he replied.
"Maybe, but if we'd been subtl-" she said, when suddenly the hyena grabbed the ram by the collar and lifted him off the ground. Judy's eyes widened; the boar was apparently talking, and she could practically see the stoat quivering.
"You think the hyena is hired muscle?" Nick asked.
"Not sure, definitely a possibility. We could check to see if Woolenstein had any known accomplices that were male hyenas."
"Uh, Carrots, that hyena is definitely a woman."
"Wait, what? How do you know?"
"Hyena chicks are much bigger than the guys. Trust me, they definitely run the show."
In the laundromat, the hyena had put Woolenstein down, who promptly scurried to the back of the laundromat. When he returned, he brought something small, rectangular, and black and handed it to the boar. He flipped through it; it looked like a small notebook to Judy. The boar seemed pleased, and handed the duffle bag back to the ram, who snatched it away and nearly tripped over himself as he ran to the back. The hyena raised her paw, and the three departed from the building.
Judy and Nick's eyes trained on the three the whole time, but when they stood outside on the sidewalk, the stoat froze and looked directly at the car. The officers ducked down below the dash as quickly as they could.
"Oh no, do you think he saw us?" Judy whispered, her voice barely audible. The night was extremely quiet, and she could hear the faint sound of conversation from across the street. Hushed tones were exchanged for a few seconds before Judy overheard a masculine voice say "Go check it out," followed by the sound of very heavy paws coming toward the car.
Her eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, and her heart was pounding out of her chest. Nick felt his paws shaking; they couldn't turn the car on and gun it; that would definitely give it away that they were spying on the laundromat. He tried frantically to think of something, but his mind was stuck in panic. The footsteps drew nearer, and Nick estimated the hyena was only about 20 feet from the car.
"Nick, whatever you do, just follow my lead," Judy breathed. "Trust me." Nick wasn't sure what she had in mind, but he nodded.
The hyena was only a few feet from the car, her hackles raised. Standing nearly six feet tall, Beth was a force to be reckoned with. If someone was spying on her and her associates, she knew what she'd have to do, although she doubted Peter would like it. When she got to the window, though, she couldn't help but chuckle to herself. A bunny was straddling a fox in a heated kiss, seemingly unaware of her presence. "Damn kids," she muttered before knocking on the glass. The bunny looked up and gasped, wide eyed; the fox's shirt was opened and he seemed to be panting. The rabbit got off him and rolled down the window. "Uh, c-can I help you?" she asked.
Beth smiled and bared her teeth a bit; she always got a kick out of spooking prey. "Yeah, this ain't a street for lovebirds, especially no bunny and no fox. I suggest you two beat it."
"Yo, who is it?" the boar called from across the street.
"Nothin', lemme handle this, just relax," the hyena called back.
"S-sorry, we thought the street was deserted, and we just couldn't wait until we got back to the apartment," Judy said, putting on the most convincing dumb bunny act she could muster. "You know how it is." She laughed nervously.
"Don't tell me nothin', when it's clearly something, now who the hell is it?" the boar yelled again.
"Just two kids neckin', now shut up and get to the car!" Beth screamed back. The boar huffed and started walking away, while the stoat made his way up to the hyena, looking both ways across the empty street before crossing.
"H-hey, are you sure it's nothing? I mean, I feel like being wary is probably a good idea right now," he said, halfway across the road.
Nick flinched, only guessing what hellfire the hyena would rain down on the little stoat. Beth, though, didn't scream at him, and instead picked him up in her arms. She gestured to Judy and Nick through the window with her free hand. "Look, pumpkin, it's just two kids mackin' on one another, not unlike what we do now and again." She punctuated the sentence by affectionately nuzzling the stoat between the ears, causing him to shudder. "Now just trust me, it's nothing." She scratched his cheek, and he let out a strangely anxiety-ridden purr.
"Now then, you two, get lost," she said, returning her attention to Nick and Judy. "And have a little patience and just wait till you get back to your apartment. You don't wanna get hit with an indecent exposure charge, trust me," she said, a barking laugh escaping from her lips.
"O-oh, right, sure thing, right sweetie?" Judy said, turning to Nick.
"Uh, yeah, of course! Let's get back to my place, Carrots, w-we'll continue this, um, there."
"That's the spirit," Beth said, smiling before her face turned darkly sinister. "Seriously though, get the hell out of here before I change my mind." She made a point to show off her fangs again.
"Y-yes ma'am," Judy said and put the key in the ignition. The engine roared to life, and the pair pulled out of their spot and sped away.
"Are y-you sure we should have just let them go?" Peter asked as Beth set him down. "What if they saw something?"
"Relax, Pete, a damn bunny and a fox rippin' the clothes off one another ain't nothin' to be worried about. And even if they did, all they saw was a few mammals goin' into a laundromat. What's to tell?"
"I guess, but I'm still worried about it," Peter said, rubbing his paws together. "It just feels like we're so exposed, you know?"
""Oh, I'll show you exposed," Beth teased before spanking the stoat on his butt. Even in the darkness, she could tell a crimson blush was blooming underneath his white fur.
"Hey, c'mon," he whined. "Not in public…"
She looked around and laughed. "What public? Ain't no one here but us." She crouched down and nuzzled him again. "Also, you notice how that fox called the bunny 'Carrots?' How come you don't have any nicknames for me?"
Peter sputtered. "D-do you want me to give you a nickname? I thought you'd think it was cheesy."
"Nah, I definitely want a nickname," she said, showing off her teeth in a smile. Peter gulped. "And order me around once in a while, it gets a little old bein' in charge 24/7."
Peter's jaw hung slack momentarily before he shut it. "Seriously? Me order you around?"
She shrugged and stood up. "Hey, I'm still a girl, and a girl likes to be taken care of once in awhile."
He stood up a little straighter, and offered his paw to her. "O-okay then, um, kitten, let's get back to the car. The, uh, night's still young." To Beth, it seemed to be more of a question than a statement, but she grinned and took his paw. "Sure thing, Pete. Kitten, huh? I like it, bet it grows on me." They pair started walking back to where Raul had parked their car. "Oh, and Pete?"
"Yeah, Kitten?"
"If you ever order me around or call me Kitten in front of Raul, you will literally wake up dead, understand?"
She felt his paw tighten inside hers. "O-of course, Kit- Beth."
"That's my little man," she said, and scooped him up in her arms. "Now, what were you saying about the night still being young? Because I'm pretty wired and that bunny and fox goin' at it gives me a few ideas…"
Peter could do nothing but whimper excitedly.
Judy was speeding, that much was obvious to them both, but neither had said anything. They were about 15 blocks from the laundromat, but she still hadn't let her foot off the gas. "Hey, Carrots, I think we're good now," Nick said finally, clutching at the safety handle inside the sedan. Judy showed no signs of relenting. "Fluff!"
"O-oh, right," she said, gently applying the brakes. The car coasted to a cruise before they stopped at a red light.
"That…" Judy began.
"Yeah, that was… something," Nick finished. His shirt was still unbuttoned, but be didn't care enough to refasten it. He was having a hard time thinking straight; the soft texture of Judy's lips pressed frantically to his, the subtle scent of fear tinged with excitement, and the sensation of her paws rubbing against his chest was so fresh in his mind. He felt like a brick of clay, and the mark left by Judy's kiss was still imprinted into his mouth.
"Nick, I'm sorry about what I did," she began. "I couldn't think of any oth-"
"Fluff, relax, i-it's okay," Nick breathed. "It was really smart; I was frozen like an idiot when I heard that hyena coming over."
Judy felt her cheeks and ears burning. She turned away from Nick, looking at the floor. "Yes, well, it still wasn't professional of me, and I couldn't ask your permi-"
"Judy," Nick said, touching her shoulder. She jumped at the touch and looked at her partner. "I said it's fine, we got out safe. It was quick thinking. You did good. We did good."
She struggled to maintain eye contact. "A-alright, Nick, thanks." She exhaled a breath she didn't realize she was holding in, and felt the stress begin to leave her taut muscles. "We really got out of there, didn't we?"
Nick laughed. "Hah, hell yeah we did. Very well played dumb bunny routine, by the way. That hyena bought it hook, line and sinker."
She found herself giggling along with him. "You too, that whole 'Oh, yeah, let's get back to the apartment,' was pretty slick yourself."
The pair quickly found themselves graduating from subdued snickering to being doubled over in laughter, completely ignoring the green light in front of them. The tension of the moment unraveled quickly through their heavy breaths in between bouts of hysterics.
"O-ow, oh god, it hurts to breathe," Judy giggled, clutching her chest. Meager hiccups persisted well after what they were laughing about stopped being funny.
"Ah, I'm right there with you, Carrots," Nick said, wiping his eyes. "Oh, man, I think I really needed that." He glanced up at the light; it had turned back to red while the pair were laughing. "Hah, what was it that hyena said?" he asked. "'You don't want an indecent exposure charge?' How ironic would it have been if two cops got busted for it on a stake-out."
"They'd never hear the end of it," Judy said. "Man, the heat that Bogo would throw at them would be insane."
Nick wasn't paying attention, though. He was zoned out, staring at the dash. "Hold up, Carrots. "Her exact words. She said, 'You don't want an indecent exposure charge, trust me.' That's exactly what she said."
"Yeah, that's what the hyena said," said Judy. "I got it."
"No, Fluff, you're not getting it. She said 'Trust me.'"
"Yeah, but so wh..." she said before stopping himself. "...Nick, she said 'Trust me' Like she's been there before."
Judy's foot started tapping excitedly, and Nick's mouth broke into a wide grin. "If she's been there before, we'd have records of it. I can't imagine there's too many hyenas with an indecent exposure charge who's close to a white stoat."
"And if there's records of it, we'll get a name!" Judy exclaimed. "Nick, that's brilliant!" She threw her arms around the fox, squeezing tightly. Nick was a little dazed at Judy's display of affection, and tentatively put his arms around her.
He wanted to laugh with her. He wanted to tightly embrace her back. He wanted to gently rub her ears and stroke her cheek, and he wanted to hear her gasp when he smiled and showed off his fangs. More than anything he wanted to feel her lips with his again. Nick felt himself screaming in his head to do many, many things, but his muscles felt locked up, like a machine with a wrench jammed in between the gears. Instead of what he felt himself want to do, all he could get out was a quiet, "Heh, easy, Carrots, ribs still hurt from laughing."
Judy pulled back and grinned sheepishly. "Oh, sorry Nick, got a little excited." The light turned green for the second time while they were sitting there, and she pulled out and began heading back.
Nick could almost picture a small Finnick on his shoulder, shaking his head in disgust. "What the hell you doin', Nick," mini-Finnick asked. "Don't lie to yourself and say you ain't got any feelings for this bunny."
Oh, right, like I'm gonna take advice from you when you're 4 inches tall. Never imagined you'd get tinier, but here you are. Nick retorted in his mind. He didn't realize just how sassy his inner monologue had become.
"You ain't gotta take the advice, you just gotta listen," mini-Finnick said. He hopped up onto Nick's snout and poked him between the eyes. "You haven't felt this way about anyone for as long as I've known you, now quit actin' like an idiot and denying what you already know."
Nick swatted at his snout, and mini-Finnick vanished into a puff of smoke. Judy scanned over her partner. "Uh, Nick? What are you doing?"
He stopped swiping at the air on top of his snout, suddenly aware that Judy was still very much driving directly next to him. "Oh, um, fly," he said, eyes shifting left and right. "There was a fly in here."
"I didn't hear any fly."
"I guess I imagined it, then," Nick said. Internally, he smacked himself in the forehead. He knew how weak that sounded. "I'm actually pretty tired, Carrots, starting to hallucinate and stuff."
A look of concern flashed across her face. "Tell you what, why don't I just drop you off at your place and I can take the car back myself," she said.
Once again, the tiny creatures that turned the cogs in Nick's heart tried to direct him toward refusing. Tell her you're fine. Don't look weak in front of her, you're better than that.
"I… thanks. I'd appreciate that."
Moron.
Judy made her way to Nick's dilapidated building. He unbuckled himself and stepped out of the car, his body more liquid than solid. "Hey, since we technically just got off the clock, I'll asked Bogo and he said it'd be fine if we came in a few hours later," she called out to him through the window. "I'll be over tomorrow morning; I'll text you the time later tonight. Get some sleep, okay?"
His hand limply made a poor facsimile of a salute. "Roger that, Officer Fluff. Have a safe drive back."
She nodded once, and pulled out, bound for the precinct.
Nick trudged upstairs to his apartment, each step feeling heavier than the last. He wasn't sure where this tiredness was coming from, or even if it was just an act he'd put on so well for
Judy that he believed it himself. He fumbled with the key in the lock, and cringed when he stepped on his obnoxiously loud squeaky floorboard. Peeling off his clothes in the kitchen, he made his way to the shower.
He yelped when he was scorched by steamy water. He coiled up against the back of the tub, trying to avoid the blistering streams blasting out of his showerhead. He looked and saw that yes, he'd turned the hot water handle, and yes, his apartment manager had fixed the hot water heater, perhaps a little too well. He turned the cold handle, and what had felt near-boiling was now provided a soothing warmth as it cascaded down his body.
He sat in the shower until he lost track of time. The drops of water from his snout stopped getting counted at around 350, and the body wash remained untouched in the corner. Images of bunny muzzles frantically meeting his and his shirt buttons getting undone danced through his mind. Efforts to think of anything else proved fruitless.
He could tell the water was steadily losing its heat. Sighing, he stepped out of the tub and into his bathroom-turned-sauna. He toweled off slowly, missing a number of spots he didn't care to fully dry. The bathroom door open and steam flooded into his living room like a tropical fog.
His bedroom door lie open, and he threw on some boxers that had been draped over the corner of his bed. One spot on the back of his thigh immediately wet the fabric, but Nick hardly cared. Flopping down onto the bed, tiredness fought to overtake him, but the engine of his mind was flooring it.
Unconsciously, he raised a paw to his lips. The felt dry and harsh. One of his fingers made it's way onto one of his fangs, which he poked at gingerly. Still razor sharp, just like always. He pictured Judy feeling the same fang, and her visage flickered between excitement and panic.
An arctic hare strolled into the scene, and opened his mouth, showing off the dull teeth inside. The dream/hallucination Judy felt his teeth, but showed no panic, just breezy joy. Judy removed her hand and stroked his cheek. As the pad of her paw gently touched the corner of the hare's mouth, Nick felt his heart fighting to claw out of his chest. No amount of forced squinting could remove Judy's and the hare's mouths from inching closer together.
Nick's window was open; a cool breeze blew in from outside. His ceiling fan turned lazily; he still couldn't help but feel clammy and sweaty, seeing Judy nuzzle up to the hare. Rubbing his eyes, he struggled to replace the hare with himself. The hare slowly shifted into an amorphous blob, and coagulated into a portrait of himself, decked out in his Hawaiian shirt, orange tie, and brown slacks. Dream-Judy cocked her head and resumed tentatively stroking his cheek.
His heart refused to back down, but what had been an erratic pattern settled into a regular, albeit frantic, rhythm. Every time Dream-Judy moved her muzzle closer to his, he could feel the fur on his tail stand on end, and his mouth would go dry.
"Well," Dream-Judy said. "What are you waiting for?" Nick's mind compelled his conjured image to close the distance between his snout and Judy's. Right at the moment of contact, everything vanished and Nick sat up, panting heavily. He hadn't even realized he was breathing hard. Glancing at the clock, the numbers 2:23 mocked him from behind the plastic. He had yet to find one wink of sleep. Laying back down, the phantom sensation of Judy pushing him to the floor of the car, undoing some of his shirt buttons, and pressing her lips to his immediately replayed themselves.
He stared at the ceiling, the drab tan swirling in mockery of his sleepless night.
"Aw, cheese and crackers."
