Nick shuffled into the Wet Wolf Whistle, a Savanna Central bar known colloquially as the W3. It was getting to be late in the evening. The ambience was pleasant enough, dark and only mildly loud. The fox sat on one of the bar stools, rubbing at the side of his face with one paw. He groaned a little, squinting his eyes shut.
"Nick Wilde? Long time no see," the brown horse bartender said in an impressed voice. He walked over to him, cleaning out a glass.
"Hey, Jacob," Nick said without even looking. "Could you get me a Vodcamel tonight? Triple-humped?"
"That bad, huh?" Jacob said, his eyebrows raising.
"Yup," Nick looked at Jacob wearily. "I'm in love with a girl that I've driven to another guy. Also, I'm dating someone else myself."
"Got it," Jacob shook his head. "I'll go get you that Vodcamel." The horse poured Nick the stiff drink and set it next to him. "So, you want to talk about it, Nick?"
"Not really," Nick grumbled, having a small sip. "You know me, Jacob. Always running from and or ignoring my problems."
"Yup, that's healthy," Jacob said dryly. "I'll be here for the next couple of hours if you need me, Nick." Jacob moved off.
Nick slowly sipped his drink in silence, letting his thoughts mull through his head and crash into each other. Maybe once his senses were duller he'd feel like talking more. Then again, he tended to be a quiet, sullen drunk as well.
"Why, you must be Nick Wilde," an unfamiliar voice said. Nick turned his head and saw a small black bunny with medium-blue eyes.
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," Nick grumbled, his eyes looking upwards. "Serendipity, are you having a giggle up there?"
"You've heard of Serendipity, have you?" the bunny seemed amused. "Crazy ol' bunny, she is."
"You're Theodore?" Nick looked over the bunny, training his gaze on him. From Nick's first once-over of the bunny, he seemed well-groomed, suggesting personal pride in his appearance. He had gentle eyes, suggesting honesty and amicability. And, his posture and body language was relaxed, suggesting that he was easygoing, trusting, or gullible.
"Uh, yeah, that's what it says on my birth certificate, but everyone calls me Ted," Ted shrugged his shoulders with a friendly smile. "Heck, even Teddie works; some of my pals call me that!"
Nick nodded as if he had to internalize this. "Have a seat, huh?" He nodded his head toward the empty seat to his left, and he watched Ted climb into it.
"Hey Jacob," Nick waved the horse over. "How about you get this little bunny here something to drink on me?"
"Oh uh, that's awful kind of you," Ted winced. "Just the house beer's fine."
"Colt draft okay with you?" Jacob asked. Ted nodded, and was passed a small beer.
"'Spose you've heard I'm dating your partner, Judy?" Ted asked, sipping some of his beer.
"Mm-hm," Nick barely nodded, sipping his own drink, not looking Ted directly in the eye.
Ted smiled, then looked down at his beer. "She's kinda... uh, a li'l bit of a handful."
Nick's eyes wandered in another direction. "You don't say."
"Yeah... on all of the dates we've been on so far, she just... she packs the days full of stuff!" Ted shook his head in amazement, or maybe exhaustion. "I think I've seen more of Zootopia already than I've ever seen of my hometown of Bunyburrow."
"Huh..." Nick said, relaxing a little and taking another sip.
Ted took a big sip of his beer, wiping his mouth afterwards. "She like that at work, too?"
"Oh yeah, that's Judy all right," Nick finally managed the corner of his mouth to perk up a little. "She's got energy for days."
"I'm more of a laid-back buck, myself," Ted said, sighing slightly. "She's real nice, though. Prettiest doe I've ever seen."
"Mm," Nick began to nod, but then had to stop himself. He cleared his throat. "Yeah, I guess she's probably considered attractive for a bunny, huh?"
Ted nodded. "Uh, I don't suppose you've got any advice for me, for um... handlin' her?"
Nick chuckled briefly, but then his expression grew serious and he stared directly at the black bunny. "Ted, all I can say is... if Judy wants something, she's going to go after it full force. Nothing will stop her. No mammal; no force of nature. I think she's handled her whole life like that. So... if it's you she wants, you just better prepare yourself for that, okay?"
Ted's eyes grew wide. He nodded nervously. "Gh-got it."
There was a lull in the conversation as the two began to finish their drinks.
"She talks about you a lot," Ted admitted.
"Does she now?" Nick let his eyes look at Ted's for a moment.
"Yeah, you obviously mean the world to her," Ted grinned. "I'm a big fan of inter-species friendships; you can cover each others weaknesses and so forth."
Nick's slightly hindered senses made his eyes squint a bit. He was pretty sure he'd be getting angry at the bunny by this point, but the little guy's honesty also spoke to him. He felt a duality in his emotions and didn't quite know how to react.
"Have you got a friend like that?" Nick asked.
"Me? No; heck no," Ted smiled with seeming regret. "Like she talks about you? Like what she says you've been through together? I don't even have a rabbit friend that comes close to that."
"Judy's pretty special," Nick understated, nodding. "She'll leave an impression on you. Bad guys with her feet, her friends with her arms. She's got a hug like a vice."
Ted seemed worried. "Oh uh, haven't got caught up in one of those yet...!"
Nick smirked. "Like I said, that type of thing is probably coming, so watch out."
"Got it..." Ted grinned bashfully. "Hey, maybe we should drink to Judy, huh?"
"Well, I already kind of have," Nick rolled his eyes with a wry grin. "That, and we're both out of drink. Hey Jake, another round for the bunny and I? I'll just take water this time."
"Oh, I'll pick up this round- hey wait, water doesn't cost anythin'," Ted looked stymied.
"Hmhm," Nick chuckled. "Politeness is a game much like chess is, Teddie, and I like looking a move or two ahead."
Ted laughed, holding up his refreshed beer. "To Judy, then?"
"Yup, to that crazy bunny," Nick muttered warmly, clinking his glass with Ted's.
Judy perused the Maulgreens closest to her apartment. On many occasions she liked shopping, even for groceries, as she loved finding deals. On this particular day, however, she felt listless. She pushed the shopping cart through the aisles, looking for the things she usually bought.
"Blah," the bunny said, tossing in her favorite cereal.
"Blah," she repeated, placing in a half-gallon of milk.
Judy huffed in annoyance and frustration with herself. She was having fun with her dates with Ted, she should be happy. But with Nick growing distant, she felt a pain in her heart, almost like a longing. She wondered what she should do; maybe some fresh blueberries would cheer the fox up? Or as fresh as the ones in Zootopia's supermarkets got, anyway. She made her way over to the produce section and saw a familiar face there.
"Oh, no way! Vivian!?" Judy's ears perked up and she smiled, rushing over to see her. Vivian was hunched over, peering at some fruit.
The pretty red fox straightened up and watched Judy's approach. Lacking the cream underbelly that made Nick's colors blend into each other handsomely, Vivian's coat looked more distinct with the more typical red and white red fox coloration. She also had nice, kind-looking medium blue eyes.
"Judy!" Vivian smiled, placing some fruits in her cart. "Great to see you!"
"Hey!" Judy smiled. "Um, how are things going with Nick?"
"They're going just fine," Vivian nodded with a bright smile, closing her eyes. "Nick's such a gentlemammal."
Judy scoffed, placing a hand on her chest. "What? My Nick is a gentlemammal? Could have fooled me!"
Vivian laughed into her paw. "How are things with your own boyfriend?"
"Ah, they're good," Judy looked of to the side. "Ted's a real sweetheart." She swallowed, then looked back to Vivian. "Uh, Vivian, this is going to sound a bit weird, but..."
Vivian blinked at the pause, her ears twitching.
"Would you... mind if I still hung out with Nick from time to time, even when we're not on the job?" Judy winced.
"Why on Earth would I mind?" Vivian shrugged. She smirked. "I'm a big girl. I can share."
"Sh-share?" Judy started laughing nervously. "Aheh, no... I don't mean- ...I just... what?"
"I'm just saying I have no problem with it," Vivian shook her head. "I know what you two have been through together; partners like you two don't grow on trees. Not like these apples do!" She placed a few into her cart.
"I'm feeling like you should maybe be a bit more hesitant about this?" Judy said. "I mean, I already get so much of his time on the job..."
"And that's on the job," Vivian shrugged. "Can't really be yourself there too much; talk about the really important things." Vivian tossed a few lemons into her cart, then she scrutinized a bunch of grapes before placing them in carefully.
"But he's your boyfriend," Judy pet her own shoulder tentatively.
"Judy, I..." Vivian bit her lip, hesitating. "I have some pretty 'out-there' views on the world. I'll just put that out there right now."
"What do you mean?" Judy cocked her head.
"Well, for instance," Vivian swallowed, then shook her head and grew a pleasant smile. "Look, there are way too many types of mammals in this world for just one to give you everything you need, right? Emotionally, physically, even spiritually, if you're into that. I just feel like... people should be a little more open with their feelings about each other and what they need from each other."
Judy seemed a little perplexed. Vivian smiled carefully.
"Look, what I'm trying to get at is... if you need Nick emotionally or for fellowship, he's yours, right?" Vivian said. "Me being with him doesn't really change any of that."
"I... wish I could say that I felt like it hasn't," Judy frowned. "But... thank you, Vivian." She smiled slightly. "I guess I'll see you before long at your fruit stand. S-say, what do you do for the winter there, anyway? People don't buy frozen drinks, do they?"
"Oh, I like to mix it up a bit," Vivian shrugged. "Maybe come by one day soon and I'll show you!"
"Sure," Judy said, starting to move away. "See you later."
Judy walked by the blueberries and sighed, staring at them as if they had the answers to her feelings. She grabbed a big box of them.