Hey everyone! Been a long time hasn't it? I do apologize for that. I had hoped this chapter would be out before Christmas but ya know, life and stuff. Anyway, I do hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I did writing it. I worked with a couple of other writers and included cameos of them in this story. You may notice a difference in writing style in this chapter from the previous ones. I feel I've grown as a writer and with the gap in writing on this story it probably shows. Anyway, let me know what you guys think Enjoy!
A/N:
Judy sat on her side of the booth, flexing and stretching her arm. After closing the door to the private area Nick had procured, he then set about repairing Judy's broken arm. Unlike before, where Nick passed out almost immediately, this time he was awake for a few moments before slipping off to sleep. Judy watched as he curled into a ball on the seat meant for a larger mammal, wondering why he'd only been passed out for a few moments when he'd apparently repaired far more damage in the alley way.
Her attention was soon diverted as the large carriage called a storbus they'd procured passage on began to move. It was a massive device, designed to carry mammals of all different sizes. It could carry as many as ten elephants with compartments built underneath their seats to accommodate smaller mammals such as Nick and her self. These were common areas that were open benches that lined the walls. Above the elephants was a deck designed for larger mammals that also included a few smaller rooms built to house something the size of a lion or tiger. The seats were two benches facing each other that could sit two of the large felines on each.
Judy watched as the sights of the city rolled past, glancing to the front of the storbus where a team of 15 oxen or similarly sized mammals pushed on beams that attached to the front axle of the vehicle and steered them towards their destination. Behind the storbus a group of 6 elephants and 8 rhinos pushed a similar beam that mounted to the back of the vehicle. Together, the group picked up pace and set about moving faster than the smaller mammals could hope to move on their own. These teams were trained and conditioned to travel long distances and take turns shouldering the burden of moving the behemoth of a vehicle. As the vehicle traveled south towards their destination, Judy began to wonder who this "old friend" was that Nick spoke of.
The more she thought about who it might be the more concerned she became. Not for who this mystery mammal was, but for how little she actually knew about Nick. She'd only known him for a couple of days and here she was leaving the city on nothing but his word that it would help in her investigation. It was true, he'd saved her life a couple of times already and she intended on repaying him in some way. Perhaps showing that she trusted him would provide the answer to that.
As the sights of the city gave way to the trees of forest, Judy swivelled an ear towards the sound of a change in Nick's breathing. She turned and watched as he slowly opened his eyes and stretched in his seat.
"How long was I out?" He asked, hints of sleep still present in his voice.
"Maybe twenty minutes, so not long. We're just now leaving the city." She answered with a wave of her paw towards the window where trees steadily passed by.
"Good." He replied as he stretched some more. "We should be at Joe's in a couple of days."
"Joe? Is that the old friend you spoke of?"
"He is. We'll get out at the last stop before the sun is set, a small village called Chanki Chitto. There's a river nearby that we'll have to float down to reach him. Should reach his home around nightfall if the river levels are high enough. Otherwise we may end up camping on a sandbar." Nick gave a small shiver at the mention.
Judy smirked with hooded eyes. "Afraid of sleeping outside, Slick?" Nick huffed and returned her smirk.
"Hardly." He raised a paw and snapped a flame into existence upon his palm. "No, what I can't stand is the sand. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to get out of my fur?" He shook his head in disgust as he closed his paw, extinguishing the flame. "I'll be itching for days until it all comes out."
Judy considered it for a moment and had to agree. Nicks longer fur would definitely catch and hold more sand than her own, shorter coat would. Where she could simply wash and rub it out quickly, Nick would have to wash, brush and repeat several times before making a dent.
"So, Joe. He's going to be able to help with our investigation?"
"He is indeed." Nick replied.
"Okay, how?" While Judy was willing to trust Nick, she also felt the need to be in the know.
"He's a mage. An extremely powerful one at that. Harmless in nature, but he will be able to help us."
"How so?" She asked. Nick took a deep breath before deflating.
"I don't know." He admitted.
"You don't know?" She watched Nick shake his head. "We're traveling to a remote village, then down a river, to find someone that you don't even know if they can help?" At that point Nick raised a finger and leaned forward slightly.
"I don't know how." He clarified. "Joe will be able to us get onto the right track. We know Bellwether has the Peace Stone but not where. She also knows that we're onto her and will no doubt hide it away where we may never find it. Even with my abilities, I can't track or sense it."
"So you think Joe will be able to tell us where it's located?" Nick shrugged.
"Oh come on Nick! You have to have some idea if you're willing to put that much faith into him being able to help us."
"Not a clue. But don't worry." He interjected before she could continue to berate him. "I've known him for several years. He has this uncanny ability to know what to do in any given situation. It's almost as if he can see the future."
Judy scoffed at that remark. "Come on Nick. You can't expect me to believe a mammal can see the future can you?"
"I don't expect you to believe anything, Carrots. Just trust me, he's our mammal."
Judy finally relented and went along with Nick. The rest of the trip was spent with banter between the two. Mostly Nick teasing Judy and her retaliating. Which caused Nick's arms to be severely bruised by the time the storbus came to a stop outside of a small village, seemingly in the middle of nowhere.
Judy looked around at what amounted to only a few buildings along a dusty, unpaved street, more a well worn path from paws, claws, pads and hooves regularly trampling out any new growth. The little community had the bare necessities and nothing more. On one side of the street sat a general store with paw-crafted items from brooms, shovels and rocking chairs to small trinkets and gardening tools on display. Next to it was a boutique- if one could call the small shop such, with a large window currently displaying a zebra, shears deftly clipping in his hooves, chatting away with the shaggy lion in his chair. On the opposite side of the street sat what looked like an inn, that was to be their first destination as Nick quickly paced towards the establishment.
"Have you been here before Nick?" Judy asked.
"A few times. Though that was several years ago."
As they stepped through the open doorway, Judy scanned her surroundings and took in the scene before her. There were tables lined along half the room with only a few mammals seated together. The other half consisted of what was the kitchen. Stoves and open fires with large pots boiling away filled the room with smoke and the smell of cooking food. The floor was bare, packed dirt and straw strewn around to help keep it dry. It was obvious the building had been built with nothing but mammals the size of a bison or smaller in mind. Nick had gone to talk to a whitetail deer buck, his antlers still in velvet and forming. He appeared to either work or run the place with the doe that was chopping vegetables to put in the pot. After a brief conversation, Nick passed the buck a few coins before retreating to Judy's side.
"We have a room for the night."
"A room?" Judy asked.
"Yeah, sorry, we'll have to share. He wouldn't give up two rooms for mammals as small as us." She nodded in understanding and followed as he led her to one of the smaller tables in a corner. Despite being out of Zootopia, they both knew Bellwether could have had someone follow them. Judy had seen no one enter the inn after them and now they both sat with their backs to a wall, looking out. The rest of the patrons paying them little to no attention. After a few moments of silence between them, the whitetail doe sat their drinks and a bowl of soup a piece in front of them. After she was gone, Judy took her spoon and slowly swirled the contents of the bowl around.
Throughout their journey here, she'd tried to think of ways to broach the topic of what happened back at the club. The black eyes haunting her memory as she stared blankly past her bowl. At some point Nick must have taken notice, she felt his paw on her shoulder pulling her out of her own thoughts. She blinked her eyes a couple of times as she turned to her head to face him.
"Are you alright?" His brow was creased and his eyes were looking into her own, concern clearly evident as they ticked back and forth over her features.
Judy cleared her throat and looked away before nodding absently. She glanced towards the doorway and noticed the sun had fully set, casting the outside world in darkness. Another glance at Nick's bowl showed he'd already finished his meal. From the look of things, quite some time ago. Judy quickly took a taste of her own and scrunched her face at the taste. While it may have been good warm, the now cold soup tasted oily. As if to punctuate the point, she just now noticed the cooled blobs of oil and butter floating atop the liquid. With a sigh she resigned herself to her fate and started to dip her spoon in for another bite when her bowl was swiftly pulled away from her.
Tracing it's exit, she watched as Nick held it in his paws for a few seconds and scanned the room with his eyes. She did the same, and only now noticed the room was now empty of the other occupants aside from the buck who had his back turned to them, cleaning something. A second later the bowl was placed back in front of her.
"I suggest you hurry." Nick whispered.
Judy looked into her meal to see the blobs were gone and there was a light steam coming off the top. She took a quick taste and found she enjoyed it once it was warm. Realizing Nick may have taken a risk by using his abilities in public, she did as he suggested and quickly picked out the solid food within before tilting the bowl in her paw and drinking the remaining liquid. She then grabbed her cup and took a tentative sip. The burn of alcohol down her throat caused a slight cough from the surprise, but did not deter her. She quickly finished the drink and looked back at Nick to ask if he was ready to turn in for the night. She was taken aback slightly at the wide eyes that greeted her.
"What?" She asked. He promptly looked away as he shook his head. "Well, ready to call it a day?" She asked.
"Yeah, let's go." Nick replied somewhat eagerly. As they both walked around their respective sides of the table and met at the other end, Judy suddenly felt herself tipping over and reached for the closest thing in sight. Which just so happened to be a fluffy red tail.
Nick felt someone grip and pull his tail as though they were trying to run away with it. The action caused him to lurch up and forward onto his toes. He looked over his shoulder and saw the tipsy doe blinking while still holding onto his tail. Once settled back down, he removed her paw and stood behind her with a paw on each shoulder, guiding her to the hallway which lead to the establishment's rooms. The last thing Judy remembered before blacking out was making a remark about Nick's tail being fluffy.
Judy groaned in protest to the pain that seemed to permeate her head. From the moment her mind started it's ascent into consciousness, the dull ache made its presence known. She reached up and started rubbing her temples, trying to work out the pain of the vice squeezing on her brain. After a couple of moments another problem made itself known, someone was being very loud in a room nearby... or was it the dining hall of the inn? She cupped her paws over her head to try and muffle the offensive noise. After a moment she was able to look around and find her bearings.
The room was mostly bare. The packed dirt floor was the same as where they'd ate the night before with the only difference being there was far more straw present. There was a window with shutters that were pulled closed and a curtain to block any light trying to sneak through the cracks. The door, or lack thereof, was a heavy curtain that hung on a pole that traversed across the top. She spotted her armor in the corner and relaxed back down into the blanket she was wrapped in, having been able to do a mental inventory and account for all her belongings. But she felt there was something-
Suddenly the curtain passing as a door was pulled back and Judy gasped and sat up suddenly, causing the pain between her ears to spike and her eyes to close as she groaned and strained to stay up right.
"Easy, Carrots." A soft voice soothed. "It's just me." For all the mental fortitude she'd managed to acquire after waking, she'd forgotten they'd had to share the room. Through the pain, she sensed him sitting next to her. She opened a bloodshot eye to see him holding a bowl, mug and loaf of bread. Both the aforementioned items releasing steam into the air. She slowly sat up and accepted the welcome items. The bowl contained a sort of porridge and the mug contained an herbal tea that smelled of lavender. Looking back at Nick she raised an eyebrow in an unspoken question.
"It's lavender. The general store across the street had some. I thought it would help with the headache." She spoke a soft thank you through a raspy throat and took a small sip.
"What happened last night?" Judy finally asked. Nick smirked with his reply.
"You drank enough grog in one go to knock me on my ass. Honestly, Fluff, I thought you were going to die from alcohol poisoning." Judy was grateful for his soft tone as he spoke. She looked from her mug up to him once more, taking the time to study his features more closely. The bags under his bloodshot eyes showed there may be more he wasn't telling her. Clearing her throat, she turned back to the meal he brought her.
"So, did you sleep well?" She asked.
"Oh I slept great." He waited till her tea was touching her lips. "Between our cuddle sessions, that is." The moment her mind processed his words two things happened. The first was her eyes bugged out wide, the second was an inhaling gasp that caused her to choke slightly on her tea. While she was having her coughing fit Nick kindly reached over and patted her on the back gently.
"Nick," cough, "I'm so sorry." Nick waved her apology off with a chuckle.
"No worries, Fluff, I'm just jealous all you wanted was my tail." He punctuated the statement by flipping said tail up from behind him. The look of horror on Judy's face had him chuckling softly. "Eat up, Fluff. We got a busy morning and a long day."
After managing to contain her embarrassment, Judy did manage to finish her meal and drink, the herbal remedy doing wonders for her head. The two made their way to the general store where Nick had been earlier that morning. He'd left the order with the wolf that ran the small store. Judy catching glimpses of him as he trotted back and forth between items he gathered, placing them into a wooden box sized appropriately for them. Being slightly too large for her to carry by herself. The proprietor was a slightly overweight wolf with fur as black as a moonless night and brown eyes that showed both a weariness and a sense of life, a couple of gray hairs sparkled in his fur appearing as stars in the night sky, revealing he was likely in his mid to late thirties. As they approached, Judy saw he appeared to be finished gathering their materials and was going over the contents in the box with a list he held in his paw. The two approached from behind, Nick clearing his throat to catch the wolf's attention.
"Ah! You've returned just in time!" He jovially exclaimed. "I was just double checking your list to make sure I had everything." The wolf proceeded to set the box down on the floor and handed Nick the piece of paper. Judy took the opportunity to look over the items while Nick mentally checked things off as he observed them in the box. Judy saw a large bag of flour, brown sugar, a tub of butter, baking soda, a bottle of vegetable oil, bag of raisins, pots, a skillet, metal plates, cups, utensils and a myriad of other ingredients stacked neatly and organized inside. Nodding his head, Nick seemed pleased with the collection.
"This looks good. How about the packs?" The wolf reached behind the counter and pulled two packs made of canvas that appeared to be packed tight. Judy watched as Nick opened each and examined the contents. Inside the larger pack was what appeared to be a canvas tent. And the smaller contained bedding. Nick then proceeded to pull a small pouch from one of his pockets and handed it to the wolf. Who then opened and examined the contents before smiling back and pocketing it.
"Now, about that other item I inquired on?" Nick asked. Judy raised an eyebrow in curiosity as her ears swiveled between the two canines.
"Yes, I'm afraid I don't have anything in stock in your size. You'll want to speak with Sands. She's a...peculiar fox, that lives close to the river. Just take the main road all the way to the bridge, then follow the trail on this side that goes up-stream. Her home isn't too far."
"Thank you, Mister?"
"Deagon. Brutus Deagon." The two shook paws with the wolf before lifting their respective loads and starting their walk down the road. Judy wearing the smaller pack and Nick the larger. They were also sharing the load in carrying the box. While it was slightly large for her, she noticed Nick's side had a longer handle to make up the difference in their height. She couldn't help but think he'd asked for that to be attached to allow greater comfort between the two of them as they shared the burden.
"So, what's this other item we're looking for?" Judy asked as they made their way out of town.
"We are in search of the greatest watercraft to ever navigate the waterways of Animalia, Carrots." He replied with dramatic flare.
"And what watercraft might that be?" She pressed.
"A canoe of course!" He exclaimed. Judy stopped short and shot him a disbelieving stare. Since they were both helping to carry the box it caused Nick to stop as well, turning to look at her with his signature smirk.
"A canoe?" She asked as if to clarify she had heard him correctly. The corner of his lips only pulled back further as he nodded once. Judy was aware of canoes, having lived on a farm with a large family they would often spend the hot summer days at a lake when there wasn't enough work to go around for everyone. It was then that she learned canoes were easy to tip, difficult to steer and only good for goofing around in. Explaining all this to Nick only made him chuckle as she shared a few stories of watching her siblings have to swim back with a sunken canoe or herself tipping over when trying to race across a lake in them.
"And not only that, they're usually on the heavy side." She finished with as little of a pout as possible, her attitude towards Nick's plan growing lower by the second. It seemed to have no effect on Nick's demeanor though.
"Tell me fluff, what kind of canoes were these?" Judy could tell he knew something she hadn't realized or didn't know yet and wasn't going to just tell her. Instead, lead her on and maybe tease until she caught on.
"The kind that go on the water." She sassed back. Hearing Nick chuckle had her spirits lifting slightly and they continued to walk down the road, her sensitive ears beginning to pick up on the sounds of water running along the banks of a river.
"Yes, but I think that describes all canoes, doesn't it? I'm guessing the kind you're used to are made from hollowed out tree trunks?" He looked over at her as she nodded an affirmative. They could see the bridge crossing the river now. The aged wood that spanned the expanse- that was maybe as wide as a giraffe was tall, was wide enough itself to allow one elephant across at a time. Though she doubted the half rotten timbers could support such a load. Sure to Brutus's word, there was a smaller side path that led up-stream.
"What we're looking for is something very different from what you're used to carrots." He explained.
"How so?" She questioned.
"You'll see when we get there… hopefully." The last word was added with a tone of uncertainty.
They walked the rest of the way in an understanding silence. It didn't take long before they could see a shack just off the trail. They walked up and set their cargo to the side before knocking on the door. The "house" was more of a treehouse than a traditional living space. It was built several feet above the ground using the trees like stilts. Judy thought it strange considering she'd found Nick living nearly underground in the old tree stump. They didn't have to wait long before they heard steps across the wooden floor. The mammal that opened the door had to be the strangest thing Judy had ever seen. At first glance, she thought it might be some sort of grey/red fox hybrid until she looked more closely. Nick had introduced them and was inquiring about a canoe made from… birch bark?
Judy's curiosity kept her from listening to further details as she studied the mammal in front of them. Her fur was longer and a darker red than Nicks, reminding her of a flower she once tasted called alcea rosea that tasted very sweet. Her ears were nearly as long and slender as a rabbits with grey tips. The tip of her tail, paws and underbelly were also grey. But her front teeth were what really drew Judy's attention. Instead of sharp fangs, this mammal sported large buck teeth, like her own. Eventually, her attention turned to the mammal's green eyes. Eyes that unlike Nick's, which seemed sharp and able to see straight into one's soul, were soft, caring and showed understanding as they stared back into her own.
"Back into my own?"
Judy blinked as she realized the mammal in front of her was now looking directly at her. Realizing she'd been caught staring, she started to sputter out an apology only to be cut off by the mammal in question.
"I-I'm so sorry!" The...peculiar fox like creature giggled slightly at the blushing rabbit as Judy tried to hide her ears behind her.
"It's quite alright. I've grown used to it over the years. I suppose you'd like to know what species I am?"
Judy glanced over at Nick who was leaning slightly away from the two but watched the interesting exchange with his usual nonchalant attitude. Looking back at the...
Vixen?
Doe?
Doxen?
She nodded her response.
"I-I was curious." Judy looked up at her with both embarrassment and relief.
"Well, some call me a Box and others call me a Funny. I don't really have a species of my own. You see, I'm a hybrid between a rabbit and a fox." She stopped for a second to let that sink in. The rabbit's twitching nose was slowly picking up its pace before stopping completely as realization dawned on the grey doe. With wide eyes she managed to form a sentence.
"Ho-how is that possible?" To which the doxen just shrugged.
"Nature finds a way." She replied with a smile.
After their little exchange, Nick had cleared his throat to regain their attention. After expressing their need to be moving, the duo followed the hybrid named Sands down to sandbar along the river where there were several canoes of varying sizes tied to trees. She showed them to one that was appropriately sized for Nick and would obviously be large enough for her and their gear. Judy studied the craft from stem to stern. It was unlike any boat she'd ever seen before. The hull was made from the bark of birch trees, the inside floor was made from strips of cedar, as well as the rest of the wooden parts. It was all tied together by what looked like thin roots, as if someone had simply sewn the parts together. She was impressed. Even with as big as it was it felt comparatively light to its size. Ever aware of their time constraint, Nick urged that they leave as soon as possible. They said goodbye to Sands as Nick paid for the craft and they loaded their gear before shoving off and floating down the river.
Judy still felt apprehensive at the idea of trying to go so far down a river in an unstable craft. After the first few minutes that fear quickly evaporated. The canoe they were in was much more stable than the ones she remembered growing up with. Even though it would tip if someone leaned to one side or the other, it wasn't enough to cause alarm. Judy sat bewildered for a moment and contemplated why this canoe was so much more stable than the ones her family used. She turned around to see Nick smirking back at her. The portion of the river they were currently floating down was calm and allowed her to turn around in her seat and face him. Before she could say anything, he articulated her own question for her.
"You want to know why the other canoes tipped so easily and this one doesn't." It was a question but more of a statement. Judy could only nod her affirmation. "It's simple, the canoes you used were dug out canoes. They had the same width from bow to stern. This canoe is much wider in the middle with a flatter bottom, giving it more stability." He finished saying with his chest puffed out and head held high. Judy looked at the parts of the canoe he had described and realization dawned on her. She had been so caught up in studying how the canoe was made that she had overlooked the overall design. She turned back around in her seat and helped Nick to paddle their craft down the river once more. The two delved into silence for a while as they took in the scenery around them. The river cut through several hills as it weaved across the landscape. Seeing the layers of sediment stacked within the hillsides gave her a sense of traveling through time as they worked their way down river.
"These hills are the start of the Appalachian mountain range. The further south we go, the less we'll see of them." Nick commented after noticing her observing the hillsides.
The two continued on their journey in relative quiet. Pointing out various sights along the way, Judy usually being the more enthusiastic of the two after spotting something of interest. A few times they had to stop and get out of the canoe. The water being too shallow to ride over. The two would easily traverse the rocky waterway before climbing back in and setting off.
On a couple of occasions the water was deep enough over rapids that the two were able to float across. While they weren't dangerous, or really even big, the small bouncing and increase of speed still had the rabbit smiling as they avoided larger rocks hidden beneath the water. As the day wore on the sky slowly began to change to an orange color. The pair quickly found a sandbar along the river and set about preparing their campsite. After the tent was pitched and the fire lit, thanks to Nick, Judy watched as Nick was preparing a yeastless bread he called bannock. She watched as he added flour, baking powder, brown sugar, raisins and mixed it all together before placing it in a pan that had been heating on the fire. He then lifted it up so the top of the bread was facing towards the fire. He then moved to where he was sitting more beside her as opposed to the opposite side of the fire, keeping an eye on the bread as it cooked as well as being able to see her better. She sat there glancing at him from time to time while she prodded the fire to entertain herself. Despite usually being a high energy bunny, she found it very relaxing to sit by the campfire and watch as the coals slowly burned to ash, becoming entranced by the red and orange glow.
Hearing Nick shift positions next to her pulled her gaze from the fire to him. Laying on his side while propped on an elbow, she watched the fire dance in his eyes for a moment before speaking.
"Nick?"
"Yeah?" His gaze never left the fire.
"Do you think what Bogo said is true? About the zebra?" He let out a heavy sigh before answering.
"Yeah, I do." Silence fell between the two as Nick refused to meet her gaze. Instead, letting the fire dance in his eyes. A moment longer and Judy stood from where she sat and moved to kneel beside him, pulling his head to her chest in a hug. Nick was not expecting this. Anger, screaming, hate, all of those he'd planned for. But not this.
"I'm sorry." She whispered into his ear. In his shocked state, all he could do was remain still. Swallowing, he eventually found a reply.
"For what?" He asked.
"For not being there when you needed me." The guilt her voice carried traveled through his ears and to his heart. Like a python wrapping it's victim in coils, Nick felt his own emotions tighten in his chest. He wasn't sure how to react. No one had treated him this way since…
He gently pushed her away so he could sit up.
Feeling him pull away from her had Judy's heart slightly panicking. Until she felt his arm wrap around her and pull her into his chest. The sudden shift had her stiffening for a second before leaning into him and wrapping her arms around his torso. Ever since he'd saved her from the rams in the alley, she'd felt…
"Why do I feel drawn to you?" Judy looked up to see him looking down at her, their noses nearly touching. Is that how she felt? Drawn to him by some unseen force? It almost sounded silly, and yet... she wanted it to be true.
Before either could say any more Nick's nose twitched and he turned his head toward their meal cooking.
"Food's done." He stated as they pulled their arms away from each other. They spent the rest of their evening eating in relative silence, only glancing and offering meek smiles to one another as they sat side by side. Eventually retiring to the tent where both fell fast asleep, facing one another.
The next morning came early for the pair as Judy prepared pancakes and Nick began packing the tent and other items they didn't immediately need. After quickly eating breakfast and cleaning their cookware, they once again set off down the river. The journey was made mostly in silence as they approached their destination. Nick pointing out landmarks as they traveled. It took nearly half the day before they came to a wide but shallow stream that fed into the river. The pulled the canoe up onto a sand bar and Nick led Judy into the forest down a well worn trail that started near the river where they tied up the canoe. They followed it as it wound its way through the forest.
"So what kind of mammal is this friend of yours?" Judy asked.
"The interesting kind." While that wasn't what she meant, she went along with it.
"Interesting how?"
"In three hundred years, I've never met anyone else like him. You'll see when we get there." With an annoyed huff, she turned her attention back to the trail. Looking further down she could just make out what looked like a large dirt mound with a thatch roof.
"Is that what we're looking for?" She pointed towards the building.
"Yep, that's the place." They walked the rest of the way towards the shack. It was large, compared to what either of them would need. A chimney sticking up through the middle of the roof with smoke rolling out. Nick stepped up to the door with his paw raised, ready to knock when it suddenly swung open. The mammal which stood before them wore simple tan colored clothes with several pockets. A rope belt around his waist and a dark brown cloak hung around him. On top of his head was a back trifold hat. What stuck out most was the type of mammal he was. A lion with fur nearly as white as snow and piercing blue eyes. He was slightly shorter than chancellor Lionheart, a slight gut but with a much stockier, more powerful build than most lions she'd seen.
"You're late." He accused towards Nick.
"A mage is never-" The lion rolled his eyes before cutting Nick off.
"You were suppose to be here… two… days… ago." As he was speaking, the lion seemed to notice Judy for the first time. As his speech slowed he began leaning towards Judy, studying her as though he'd never see anyone like her before. Unable to take her eyes off the strange lion, Judy heard Nick speaking softly to him.
"Joe, what do you see?" He asked. With his muzzle now close, Judy felt as well as heard him sniff her as his eyes seemed to look into her soul. The whole experience was a bit off-putting.
"Nothing." Was his curious reply before he narrowed his eyes at her. His next words carried curiosity as well as a touch of possible hostility.
"Who are you?"
A/N:
Well, what do you think? I know it's a bit of a cliffhanger and I didn't intend for it to be that way but writing this chapter literally spanned over an entire month. With the holidays bogging things down considerably. But I do want to announce that I plan on going back and rewriting the previous chapters. I don't plan on changing the plot in any way, just improve the story telling. I don't know when this will happen but I hope soon. I want to give a big thanks to Sandsstill and BrutusDeagon for allowing me to use them as characters in this story, you guys are awesome, thank you so much for allowing me to incorporate you into this story and for all the help you've been. A very special thanks to Togdoesstuff for being my main editor and helping me make my stories legible. He's done several last minute editing jobs for me and has always been dependable. Thanks bud.