Are you ready for Chapter 8? It's the longest chapter yet. Last chapter, Nick and Judy reunited with each other, talked, and decided to use their powers to become superheroes. For this chapter, Nick and Judy are still trying to get the hang of their powers. Nick is having a harder time than Judy. He also attempts to make his costume. During this time, Judy has a bit of a talk with her mom. There may be a bit of drama in this one. But I still feel that it will be a good one. When I wanted to do this story, it was many because of Cimar's "What if" Collab. While I'm not featured, I still wanted to do a story for it since the idea seem to epic not too share. Whatever works, right? BTW, check out Cimar's stories. He's one of the best Zootopia fanfic writers on this site. Now, let's get this chapter going.
You have to know the darkness before you can appreciate the light.
Two weeks have passed since Nick and Judy agreed to become partners and superheroes. However, neither of them have been close to mastering their powers. Nick has been trying to control his teleportation day after day. So far, no luck. In order to get a better understanding of his new powers, he went to the only person he knew that could probably help him. Finnick's aunt, Malaloo.
One day, he went back to her VooDoo shop to talk to her. As he enters the store, it seemed like no one was inside. He decided to call out to her hoping she was around.
"AUNTIE MALALOO! AUNTIE MALALOO! ARE YOU IN HERE?!" Nick shouted out.
"BOY, WHAT DID I TOLD MY BONE-HEADED NEPHEW ABOUT YELLING?!" Malaloo shouted out.
"Sorry!" Nick shouted out lowering his volume.
Malaloo then came into the room.
"Ahh. The star boy returns." Malaloo said to Nick. "What brings you to my shop again?"
"Well... I came because I need some help." Nick said.
"What help do you need exactly, child?" Malaloo asked.
"Uhhhh... well..." Nick didn't really want to tell her everything. Just enough. "You said last time I had this 'force' inside of me. Let's say... I want to have control of that force, how do I do that?"
"What reason do you have for that?" Malaloo asked as she raised an eyebrow.
"Uhhh... well I am a school athlete. Getting a handle of my 'force' could come in handy." Nick stated.
"Hmmm..." Malaloo went wondering if that was the true case. Yet, she liked Nick and decided to give him the information he needed. "Walk with me, boy."
Malaloo led Nick to her back room and to a table with tarot cards on it. As she sat down, she shuffled the deck.
"You know how wizards would use wands to control their magic? What you need is a medium." Malaloo said.
"A medium? But I'm a fox large." Nick stated.
"Not medium as in clothes. An item. Take these tarot cards for example." Malaloo said as she places the cards face down on the table. "With these, I can use them to predict the future. I also have other items I can use for my spiritual abilities."
"So... in order to control my abilities, I need to have a medium?" Nick asked.
"Correct." Malaloo said as she finished placing cards on the table.
"So... exactly how do I know my medium?" Nick asked.
"Boy, how should I know? The medium is up to the person." Malaloo stated. "So you have to find your own."
"Don't you have mediums in this store?" Nick asked willing to buy one.
"I do... if you have $50 to spend." Malaloo said with a smirk.
"On second thought, I think I'll find my own." Nick said smiling awkwardly. "Well, thanks for the talk. I'll be leaving now. Bye, Auntie Malaloo."
Nick then quickly left Malaloo's store. Malaloo still had a smile on her face. She looked at her counter holding the black figurine of Nick.
"Now, what does the future say about you, boy?" Malaloo said before flipping one of her tarot cards.
As Nick left the shop, he started thinking to himself what could be a medium for him.
"How am I suppose to know what my medium should be?" Nick thought. "Ugh! But I need one to control my powers better. But the only times my powers really work when I wanted them to were when..."
Then... it hit Nick. The first time he used his powers was the morning he was on the roof. He covered himself with his covers and ended up back in his room. The same thing happened after his encounter with David's killer and Judy. He covered himself with a trash bag and ended up back in his room. The only times he actually wanted his powers to take him where he wanted to be.
"THAT'S IT!" Nick shouted out in realization.
Nick then dashed off with the idea of what to use as his medium. Meanwhile, in her Church Sanctuary, Judy was training herself by doing cartwheels and flips. After doing a triple backflip, she tried to summon her dagger. No luck. She wasn't any better at controlling her powers than Nick.
"Come on. Still nothing." Judy said to herself. "Whether I got these powers by an accident or some bigger reason. I need to know how they work."
It seemed like the only way to control her power was to remember how she was feeling everytime her powers kicked in. But in order to get full control of it, she had to do... something else.
"Okay. I'm gonna have to open up those things I bottled up for so long." Judy thought.
Judy closed her eyes and opened up the feelings in her heart that she bottled up. The horrible memories that she tried to forget.
"Daddy! Daddy, wake up!"
"You can't just take everyone! My dad did nothing wrong!"
"I have to run away. Run away from everything."
"Why? Why me? WHY?!"
Judy then opened her eyes back up and gasped. The memories were a bit too much for her. But as she looks down at her right paw, she realized that she was holding her dagger. Does she finally have control over it? Judy then calmly tried to get her dagger to disappeared and it did. Next, she tried to summon her dagger again. She got it to appear once again.
"Huh. Open up your bottle of emotions, master your powers. Okay." Judy said to her as she lifted up her dagger. "Let's see what else I can do with this."
The next day, after finally figuring out how her dagger powers work, she wanted to tell Nick the good news. It was a school day, so she had to go to St. Saberhagen's to meet up with him. She currently had on a white shirt with blue overalls that had one strip loosened. As she walks around the halls of the school, she couldn't help but notice all the students her age wearing uniforms. She hadn't really been around kids her age much. Excluding the party. But the main reason she was here was to find Nick. So she went to a male hyena student nearby.
"Excuse me?" Judy said to the hyena.
"What's up?" The hyena said to Judy.
"Do you happen to know a Nick Wilde?" Judy asked.
"Haha! Who doesn't know Nick Wilde?" The hyena laughed. "Are you one of his groupies? The fox even has bunnies fonding over him."
"It's not like that." Judy said firmly. "I just need to find him. Do you know where he is?"
"I think he's currently at Choir practice at the hall." The hyena replied.
"Choir practice. Got it. Thanks." Judy said thanking the hyena for the info.
The hyena nodded, happy to help Judy and then left. But then Judy had one more problem.
"I don't go to this school. How the hell do I find the hall?" Judy thought. She felt she would have to look everywhere to find Nick. If she was lucky enough to find him before he left for home.
As hope for finding him started to seem lost, Judy felt a weird... tingly feeling in her chest. It was like her powers were trying to speak with her.
"What? What's... this weird feeling I'm getting?" Judy thought while still trying to look casual. "Are... are my powers able to sense where Nick is?" As weird as it was, it was her only lead. "Alright, powers, lead me to Nick."
Judy went by her instinct and relying on her powers to lead her the right way. After a minute or two, Judy was finally able to make it to the hall where the choir practiced. As she looks at the kids in their black choir robes, she spotted Nick in the center of them. She really was able to find him with the help of her powers. It must be part of the connection she has with Nick. The organist played on the organs and Judy took a guess that they were about to sing. Not wanting to be a distraction, she sat down on one of the benches to watch and listen.
Make me a channel of your peace
Where there is hatred let me bring your love
Where there is injury, your pardon Lord
And where there's doubt, true faith in you
Nick then stepped forward as he sung his solo.
Make me a channel of your peace
Where there's despair in life let me bring hope
Where there is darkness, only light
And where there's sadness ever joy
As Judy listens to Nick's solo, he couldn't help but smile a little. It also felt like that song was speaking out to both of them since the song was about bringing hope and joy and where there is darkness, there is light.
After choir practice was over, Nick took off his robe and went to his locker. It seemed like he didn't notice Judy in the benches. As he puts his stuff up and prepared to head home, someone from behind him spoke to him.
"Hey there, Choir Boy." The person said.
Nick recognized the voice and turned around to see it was Judy.
"Judy?" Nick said surprised to see the bunny here.
"Helloooooo." Judy said in a cheery matter. "Saw you singing earlier. You're a surprisingly good singer."
"You saw that?" Nick asked.
"I did." Judy said smiling widely.
"How did you find me?" Nick asked.
"Remember that 'connection' thing we talked about before? And how your powers sometimes lead you to me? Seems like it works both ways." Judy stated. "That's how I was able to find you, Choir Boy."
"Hope you didn't come just to make fun of me." Nick said as he put his stuff into his locker.
"No. While fun that is, I actually come bringing good news." Judy said smiling.
"What is it?" Nick asked.
Judy looked left and right before answering Nick. "I can control it. Watch."
Judy then closed her eyes and her dagger appeared in her right paw. Nick notices this and quickly covered it up with one of his binders. Not a good idea to show a dagger made of light in public.
"Can you not. At least not here, fluff." Nick said wanting Judy to not get caught. Judy vanished her dagger in Nick's request.
"Why not? Here's interesting." Judy said smirking. "Seeing the natural habitat of the infamous Nick Wilde. A-List Baller, Ladykiller, Choir Boy with the golden pipes."
"Haha! I can't even with you right now." Nick said actually smiling a bit. After taking a book out of his locker, he closed the locker. "Let's talk more in the courtyard."
Nick thought it would be better if they finish their talk in the courtyard of the school. Judy agreed and was willing to follow Nick. The courtyard was an open spaced area where the students would usually just sit and relax during and after school hours. Nick sat with Judy on a bench ready to talk. But they made sure not to get too close. They didn't want to cause a 'BOOM' again.
"It's pretty lit how you're able to turn your dagger on and off now." Nick said to Judy.
"How's your thing going?" Judy asked wanting to know Nick's progress with his teleportation.
"It's not. I haven't used my teleportation powers since the last time they kicked in." Nick admitted. "How exactly did you get your dagger to work?"
"When I think back to it, it was actually pretty easy. All I had to was release the feelings I bottled up." Judy said. "All the memories I wish I could forget. My dad dying, Roxxon blaming him, them taking all our money, mom being sent away, and every other thing that made my life a hellhole. I never wanted to think about ANY of those moments ever again, but at that moment, all the horrible stuff just went out... and just like that, my dagger appeared. Maybe that's what you need to do."
"The last thing I really want to do is unbottle EVERYTHING I stored up. Trust me, I have a LOT of things I'm not ready to release yet." Nick stated. "Besides, I think I figured out another way."
Nick then dug into his backpack and took at a sketchbook.
"See, I started coming up with designs for my costume." Nick said as he flip to some of the sketches. "I figured out in order for me to control my powers, I need to have a medium."
"You seem more of a fox large." Judy said thinking he meant clothes size.
"Not clothes. A medium as in an item to help me control my powers." Nick stated. "See, around the time I first had my powers, I noticed something. The only times my powers took me where I wanted to be was when I covered myself. Rooftop with my covers, end up back in my room. The forest outside the road where I ran into you, I covered myself with a trash bag, back in my room again. Every time my powers actually worked how I wanted them to, I had something covering over me. That's why I came up with this."
Nick then showed Judy some well-made sketches he did for his costume designs. Most of them had him with a hood over his head and a big cloak around his body.
"Most of these sketches have you with an oversized cape. Aren't capes for superheroes a bit outdated?" Judy asked.
"It's not a cape. It's a cloak." Nick stated firmly. "With the cloak being the main part of my costume, I should have complete control over my teleportation powers."
"Hmm. Not sure you really need to cloak to have complete control." Judy said.
"It will still help. Besides, I need a costume anyway. Two targets, one arrow." Nick said.
"Speaking off arrows, I'm getting a 'Robin Hood' feel from your costume." Judy said.
"I like wearing hoods and Robin Hood is awesome." Nick said proudly. "And for the record, I want the costume to be black, like my powers. Maybe a dark blue."
"Did you happen to make a sketch for my costume?" Judy asked wanting to know.
"I did, actually." Nick said before flipping over his pages. "Heres some of the stuff I came up with for your design."
He then stopped at his sketches for Judy's costume. Most of the sketches had her in a unitard with a sleek design. However, many of the sketches were a bit... revealing in the chest area. Judy wasn't a fan of that.
"Why do most of these show part of my chest?!" Judy asked looking a bit flustered.
"I thought all girls like this kind of style." Nick said.
"You clearly need to know more about what kind of style girls like." Judy said looking steamed.
"Fine, I'll draw up some new designs." Nick said not wanting to make Judy angrier.
"No thanks. Besides, I should be the one to come up with my own design." Judy said.
"Okay. So long as you actually come up with the costume." Nick said.
"Seems like you really forward with this superhero thing." Judy said.
"Why shouldn't I be? Maybe it's because I've always wanted to be a superhero when I was a kid. Then again, a lot of kids must have had a superhero phase." Nick stated.
"Just remember our deal. We're only doing the superhero thing to get back at the bastards that screwed us over. That's it." Judy said firmly reminding Nick.
"I know. But that doesn't mean we can't help with the small stuff. For all we know, the small stuff and our stuff could be connected. If helping others means helping us a bit, then we're doing the city a favor." Nick stated.
"I suppose." Judy said. "Still, remember our stuff is still more important."
"Do you even have anything to go on the stuff that happened with Roxxon?" Nick asked.
"No." Judy said as she rubbed her drooping ears. "Most lawyers aren't willing to help my mom and I. I barely have any info I need."
Judy had spent most of her time training, but not much time getting info on Roxxon. Nick, on the other hand...
"Randall Cooperman." Nick said.
"What?" Judy asked.
"A raccoon named Randall Cooperman. Head of the Gulf Division of the Roxxon Corporation. That's the guy you're looking for." Nick said.
Judy had a surprised look on her face. "How did you..."
"My mom works for Roxxon, remember? I looked through some of the files in my house and did some research. I found out that you weren't kidding about them putting the blame on your pop. It was his designs, but... some things seem off. Sure, nearly all the people on the rig died but to put the blame on only ONE person? I then found out that the only ones who benefited from that were some B-Listers and Cooperman himself." Nick stated.
"Randall Cooperman. I think I remember him now." Judy said. "He was at my old mansion when they took everything from us. I didn't remember his smug face until now."
"There. At least you now know who to look for." Nick said.
"Thanks." Judy said sincerely.
"We said we needed to help each other to solve our problems. That's what I did for you." Nick said.
Judy was thankful enough for her to return the favor.
"Steven O'Clawdon." Judy said.
"Come again?" Nick said.
"Detective Steven O'Clawdon. He's the guy you're looking for. The guy who killed your friend, David." Judy replied.
"Wait? He's the guy?!" Judy asked sounding stunned. "How do you know that?"
"I'm not a fan of the police, however, there is one officer I did trust. Officer Fangmeyer." Judy said. "I talked with her and I gave her a description of who he was. Male wolf, in his mid-40s, and had a scar on his face. That name came up."
"That's him alright." Nick said getting a bit mad. "What else did you get?"
"He's currently Detective of the ZPD. But the weird part is, he wasn't involved with the ZPD until AFTER the explosion." Judy said.
"Meaning the whole cop thing was front from the very beginning." Nick said looking angry. "That's why no one had info on him."
"How did he even get into the ZPD?" Judy asked.
"He did mention something about an uncle who helped him cover up David's death. He must have done the same for putting him into the ZPD." Nick said.
"This uncle of his must be pretty high in the food chain." Judy said with her paw on her chin.
"Grrrrr! O'Clawdon. That bastard... I'll make him pay soon." Nick said angrily.
As Nick gripped tightly onto the bench, his black mist started to appear on his paws. Judy happens to notices this.
"Nick, your 'dark' is showing." Judy whispered to him.
Nick notices this and quickly subsided it.
"Sorry." Nick said.
"Jeez! Weren't you just dogging me about showing off my powers in public?" Judy asked Nick.
"I know. Not my fault my powers run on emotions sometimes." Nick stated.
"Look. We'll get back at them. That's a promise." Judy said.
"Yeah." Nick said nodding. "But listen, we shouldn't go after them now. For all we know, each of these guys must have heavy goons working for them. It's too dangerous. I mean, I almost got killed the last time I encountered O'Clawdon."
"I agree." Judy said. "I bet Cooperman had some 'helpers' to keep some people quiet as you said. So we shouldn't go after them until we master our powers."
"Agreed." Nick said. "But don't worry. We WILL get back at the bastards who screwed us over."
"No doubt." Judy said.
Nick and Judy were about to shake paws as a symbol of their trust for one another, but then stopped midway after remember that they CAN'T touch. Otherwise... BOOM!
"Right, no shaking." Nick said.
"We'll just shake in our heads." Judy said with a smile.
At that moment, Nick's friends, Finnick and Ben showed up.
"Yo, Nicky?" Finnick said greeting his fox friend.
"Oh. Hey, Finn. Hey, Ben." Nick said greeting his friends.
Ben and Finnick then noticed Judy sitting with Nick.
"Who's this with you?" Ben asked.
"Ummm... this is..." Nick said about to introduce Judy.
"Wait a minute. Isn't this the bunny that stole your wallet at the party?" Ben asked recalling what Judy looked like.
Oh boy. Things just got really awkward. Ben and Finnick didn't know that Nick and Judy made peace with each other already.
"Wait! Wait! It's cool! We're cool now." Nick said not wanting to make a scene. "Guys, this is Judy. Judy, this is my buds, Finnick and Ben."
"Hello." Judy said while smiling and waving awkwardly.
"Wait? You're... friends now with the bunny that jacked your wallet?" Finnick asked as he raised her eyebrow. "How... the hell did that happened?"
"I... guess you can say we had common ground." Judy said being honest. "See, my dad died the same night that Nick's friend, David, did."
"Oh." Ben and Finnick said after hearing Judy say that.
"Yeah. Judy had it just as rough as I had. That's why she did what she did." Nick stated.
"I see. Sorry to hear about your dad, Judy." Ben said feeling sad for Judy.
"Our condolences." Finnick said while bowing a bit.
"Thank you." Judy said to Finnick and Ben.
"Nick, mind if we talk to you for a minute?" Finnick asked.
"Right now?" Nick asked.
"Yep." Finnick said as he pulls Nick out of the bench and moves him away from Judy.
"We'll bring him back for you." Ben said with a smile following Nick and Finnick.
"Nice meeting you two!" Judy shouted out as the three left.
Once Nick, Finnick, and Ben were far enough, Finnick punched Nick on his left shoulder.
"WHAT THE HELL, MAN?" Finnick shouted out as he punched the taller fox.
"OWW!" Nick shouted in pain.
"You told us you weren't into bunnies. Now you're making your moves on the bunny that jacked your wallet at the party." Finnick said.
"It's not like that." Nick said looking red-faced. "Judy and I are just friends."
"Really? Cause it feels like you two might like each other." Ben stated with a grin.
"We only hung out a few times. Like the party... and us randomly meeting again... and me happening to find her... and it may have turned out that we also kinda met once as kids." Nick stated.
Finnick and Ben didn't say anything. The two just looked at each other then back Nick with a 'Really?' expression.
"Nick, just be honest with us. Are you into bunnies or not?" Finnick asked firmly.
"Judy is just a friend." Nick said as he gritted his teeth.
"We're fine with it if that's what you are worried about." Ben said.
"Again, I'm not dating Judy." Nick said firmly.
"We're just checking, man. Cause it sounds like she stole more than just your wallet. It sounds like she also stole your..." Finnick said.
"No. She did not still my heart." Nick said.
"Actually, I was going to say your virg..." Finnick said.
Nick immediately smacked Finnick in the head before he could finish that sentence.
"OWWW!" Finnick shouted as he places his paws on the spot Nick hit him.
"Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!" Nick growled.
"Ooh! Know that growl." Ben said sensing Nick was mad. "We better go."
"You better. Cause if you're done, I'm gonna head back to Judy." Nick said.
"Fine..." Finnick said as he finished rubbing his head.
Nick then left his friend and walked back to Judy, who was still on the bench.
"Were you boys talking about me?" Judy asked with a grin.
"You came up, yes." Nick replied as he sat back down with Judy.
Before Nick could say anything else, Finnick and Ben called out to Nick from the distance.
"Yo, Niiiiiiick?" Finnick and Ben went.
Nick and Judy both looked up at Ben and Finnick. The chubby cheetah and fennec then both gave Nick a thumbs up saying that they were okay with whatever the situation with Nick and Judy were. Nick responded to this giving them something that 'wasn't' a thumbs up. Even after being flicked off, Finnick and Ben smiled as they left. Judy just giggled.
"I like those two." Judy said to Nick.
"They're an acquired taste." Nick said. "Ben is pretty much the nicest guy you will ever meet. But he has a bit of a sweet tooth. Finnick, he's actually from my old neighborhood. He was known to be a tagger and got in trouble a few times. His folks sent him here to straighten him up. They're good dudes, but at times they can be... much. You know how friends are."
"No. I don't." Judy said looking sad. This was a sign that Judy didn't really have any friends.
"Oh." Nick said realizing that. "Well... that's why you have me now."
Judy felt some warmth from Nick's words. Judy has been alone most of her life. So she was happy to know she actually had someone that was a friend.
"Alright. It's been nice, but we should roll." Judy said as she gets up from the bench.
"Right. We should talk more next time." Nick said getting up as well and putting on his backpack. "The weekend's tomorrow. So I'm gonna try to work on the cloak for my costume."
"Okay. I'm gonna work on the capabilities of my daggers. Also, learning how to control the power output. Last time I used it, it was set to kill. Not a good hero thing if I kill the bad guys."
"Good call." Nick said. "Oh, one more thing. I need you to do one thing."
"What's that?" Judy asked.
"Talk with your mom." Nick said.
"Uggggghhhh..." Judy went as she rubbed her forehead.
Nick feels that Judy needs to bury the hatchet with her mom. Judy hadn't seen her mom since she almost ditched town. In fact, the last thing she got from her mom was a text with Fangmeyer's number.
"Look, from what you told me, your mom's not bad. You just need to put things at in the open and have a good talk." Nick stated. "Just get a smoothie or something and put it all out in the open."
"Easy for you to say. But... fine." Judy said willing to try. "I'll talk to my mom. Tomorrow."
"As long as you do that." Nick said. "We also talk more about our hero stuff later. Costumes, goals, oh and hero names."
"Kay. But I'll handle MY costumes. I refuse to have anything too revealing." Judy stated firmly.
"Whatever you say." Nick said while shrugging and smirking.
Judy then started to walk off. As she did, Nick said one more thing to her as she looked behind Judy.
"You know what they say. If you got it, flaunt it." Nick said with a smirk.
"Says the fox who wants to cover himself." Judy said smirking as well.
Judy then made her leave. Nick made his leave to as he prepares for the weekend. Nick would try to work on his medium while Judy would talk with her mom. The next day, Nick changed into a blue hoodie under his variety jacket and black jeans. As Nick walks down the stairs, he stops at one of the photos that hung by them. It was a picture of Nick and his parents with David and his parents. The six foxes were all smiling and happy. One could tell the foxes were really close. Nick started to remember the good times he had with David and his family. He takes the picture from the walk he walks down the stairs and into the living room with his parents already there.
"Hey, son. Surprised that you are still here this morning." John said. "I expected you to be out for another one of your runs."
"I was about to go out. Then I looked at this old picture of us with the Redds." Nick said.
As Nick walked closer to his parents, John took the picture to get a look at it too. Frankie got up from the couch to look at it as well.
"Ah yes. David and his parents, Lamar and Valerie." John said remembering them.
"You and Lamar were partners, right? You both tailored together?" Nick asked.
"Yep. Your father and Lamar started a small tailoring business after college." Frankie stated. "The two of them fixed up many suits before you were even born."
"I remember thinking of him and Valerie as an uncle and aunt. What happened after... that day?" Nick asked feeling that he should know what happened with them after David's death.
"After David died, they wanted some time to think and when we moved, we ended our partnership there. But... I actually did speak with Lamar a few weeks ago." John stated.
"Really?" Nick said surprised.
"He and Valerie still wish things were different. But even so, they chose to move forward." John stated.
"No matter what problems may happen to you, all you can do is move forward and hope for the best." Frankie stated.
"Move forward and hope for the best hope." Nick said.
Nick smiled lightly before going back up the stairs and looking at the picture one more time. As he was about to hang the photo back up, something happened. His teleportation powers activated again. Next thing Nick knew, he was in the middle of some neighborhood, still holding the photo. As Nick looks left and right, he is confused about where he was.
"What the..." Nick said still as he looks around. He then realized something. The houses, the corners, the old shops nearby, and a few mammals walking down the street being foxes. "This is my old neighborhood!"
Nick's powers have taken Nick to his old neighborhood. A fox part of Downtown, known as the Trots. But the question was... why? That question was about to be answered as Nick looked behind him as someone called out to him.
"Nick?" A male voice said.
Nick faces an adult male red fox wearing a sky blue dress shirt and dark green pants. The fox had a white muzzle and was slightly thicker and a bit more muscular than Nick's dad. The fox seemed familiar to Nick and it wasn't any more different for Nick.
"Uncle Lamar?" Nick said.
"Haha! It IS you." The other fox said with a big smile.
"I don't believe it." Nick said smiling as well.
The fox was David's dad, Lamar Redd. Nick walked up to Lamar and hugged him. It has been so long since he's ever seen him. Nick's powers didn't just took him to his old neighborhood. It led him to Lamar. Nick and Lamar then broke up their hug.
"Man, look at you. You've really grown." Lamar said. "You must have picked up that I was thinking about you."
"Maybe." Nick said. "I was looking at this old photo of us at the house." Nick then showed him the picture. "Next thing I know, here I am at the old stomping grounds."
"Here you are, indeed." Lamar said. "It's good to see you, little man."
"You too." Nick said happily.
"So, heard that you have been quite the basketball player. I heard your team might actually make it to State Finals." Lamar said.
"If I don't screw up the next few games." Nick stated.
"You won't. The townsfolk and I are rooting for you." Lamar said. "It's because of you, some of the other fox kids want to straighten up themselves."
"Huh. Didn't know I was such an inspiration." Nick said finding it had to believe.
"Believe it, my boy, you are." Lamar said with his paw on Nick's shoulder.
While Nick was close to Lamar and thought of him as an uncle, he actually considers him more to be like a second father. He always gave him positivity, just like his dad.
"Hey, Uncle Lamar, you're still a tailor, right?" Nick asked.
"Of course." Lamar answered.
"I'm doing a little side project. Think you can help me out?" Nick asked.
Lamar gave Nick another smile. This pretty much said that he was willing to help Nick out. Meanwhile, Judy was at a local juice bar. She decided to take Nick's advice and buy some smoothies before talking with her mom. As Judy waited in line to order, she looked at the money in her wallet.
"Jeez. After the smoothies, I might be low on cash for a while." Judy thought starting to look worried about her money. She hasn't really been pickpocketing in a while.
As Judy looked down on the floor and see that the person in front of her had dropped their wallet. Judy's pickpocketing side started to peak its head.
"Someone dropped their wallet. Talk about an easy pick." Judy thought with a smirk. As she was about to pick up the wallet, her head called stopped her. "NO! Remember what Fangmeyer said and remember that you are trying to be a superhero. No more stealing."
Judy stopped herself from pickpocketing in time. But she still had to give the owner her wallet. So she picked it up and tapped on the person in front of her.
"Excuse, miss? I think you dropped your wallet." Judy said to the possible owner.
The person turned around and what Judy didn't know, is that the wallet owner happened to be Finnick's aunt, Malaloo.
"Oh! Thank you, child. Oooooh, my head would have turned." Malaloo said as she takes her wallet back and puts it in her purse.
"You might want to make sure everything's in there." Judy said being polite.
"Hmm..." Malaloo went as she looked into her wallet. "Everything seems to be accounted for. Thank you, dear. You must be a good bunny."
"Really, I'm not." Judy admitted which was odd. It was like she couldn't help but be honest today. "I mean, I just did want anyone would normally do."
"Well, I'm still grateful to you, child." Malaloo said with a smile. Malaloo then held her paw out. "You can call me Madam Malaloo."
"My name is Judy." Judy said as she shakes Malaloo's paw.
As Judy shakes Malaloo's paw, her powers didn't activate because she started to have control of it. However, just like Nick, Malaloo did sense something deep inside Judy.
"This bunny... she has a strong force that's almost identical that Nick boy." Malaloo thought in surprise. "Could she be..."
"You know, not to sound weird, but you look familiar." Judy said after getting a good look at Malaloo. "Or maybe it's just cause I ran into a fennec fox the other day."
"Hmm. This fennec wouldn't happen to be around your age, short-tempered, and mouthy." Malaloo asked.
"He was my age. But didn't know if he was short-tempered. He did have a short of vibe though." Judy said. "He also goes to this prep school."
"Then you HAVE to have met my nephew, Finnick." Malaloo said.
"Finnick. That's was his name." Judy said. "He was a friend of my friend, Nick."
"Nick? Nick Wilde?!" Malaloo said with a look of surprise. She then thought "So she DOES know Nick. Then does that mean...".
"HEY!" Shouted an impatient male bear. "MOVE IT! YOU'RE HOLDING UP THE LINE!"
"FOOL, WHO DO YOU THINK YOU'RE TALKING TO?! I WILL BITE YOUR ARM OFF IF YOU YELL AT ME LIKE THAT AGAIN?!" Malaloo shouted out angrily.
Nearly everyone in the juice bar, including the bear and Judy, was totally scared by that shout from the fennec, most of the people in line stepped back and away from her.
"Sorry for the outburst, dearly." Malaloo said to Judy apologetically.
"Ah ha ha ha..." Judy laughed awkwardly and still looking a little scared.
"Let's talk real quick out of the line. I'll make it up to you later." Malaloo said wanting to know more about Judy.
"Okay..." Judy said not sure, but willing to talk.
Sitting on one of the chairs, Judy and Malaloo talked for a bit. Malaloo was holding one of Judy's paws. She wanted to get a better read of Judy's powers.
"Hmmmm..." Malaloo went as she closed her eyes.
"What?" Judy said waiting for a real response.
"Interesting. I sense a strong unusual 'force' within. A force that people rarely have." Malaloo said.
"A... 'force'?" Judy asked looking confused.
"The only other person I sense a similar force from was that Nick boy." Malaloo stated. "There... different, but alike."
This really caught Judy off-guard.
"A similar force from Nick? Can she actually sense our powers? Is she really able to do that?" Judy thought.
"I sense hope within you." Malaloo said as she let go of Judy's paw. "It's small but strong. Like yourself."
"Hope?" Judy said.
"Yes. I find hope is something that everyone should have. Even when life has given you a bad paw. Wouldn't you agree, dearly?" Malaloo asked Judy.
"Hope..." Judy thought. She then gave Malaloo an answer. "Hope was something I didn't have for a while. But I'm slowly started to regain it."
"Hmm." Malaloo said with a smile. She then opened up her wallet and took out a $10 dollar bill. "For you trouble. Use it to buy yourself a nice smoothie."
"Oh!" Judy said not expecting to be given money. But she happily accepts it. "Thank you very much."
"You take care now, Judy. I'm sure our paths will cross again." Malaloo said as she gets and waves goodbye to Judy.
"Yeah." Judy said smiling and nodding.
Malaloo left the juice bar, which felt weird to Judy since she didn't buy anything. But Judy didn't really care about that. She just looked at the $10 bill she was given.
"Huh. I was given money and I didn't have to steal. If I knew being honest could get me money, I would have done it long ago." Judy thought feeling pretty happy.
As Judy get back in line to by her smoothies, Malaloo had left the shop with a serious look on her face.
"So... she's the other one." Malaloo said to herself.
Malaloo may know more about Nick and Judy's powers than she lets on. Meanwhile, back with Nick and Lamar, Lamar took Nick to his tailoring shop. It was filled with suits and fabrics Nick started recalling the many times he went into this shop. He had some good times here. As Nick walks up to the front counter, he sees a female vixen with light orange fur and blue eyes. She looked quite beautiful in fox's terms. This was Valerie. Lamar's wife and David's mom.
"Is that little Nicky?" Valerie asked after seeing the little fox.
"Aunt Valerie!" Nick said with a smile.
Valerie runs around the counter and gives Nick a hug. A little bit too tight for his taste.
"Oh ho ho! Look at you! You've grown quite a lot have you." Valerie said happily as she still hugged Nick.
"Aunt Val, too tight! Too tight!" Nick said feeling like he was being squeezed too much.
"Oh! Sorry!" Valerie said as she let go of Nick. "It's been so long I just had to get a good hug in."
"It's fine. I missed your hugs." Nick said as he straightens up his body after the hug.
"What are you doing back in the Trots?" Valerie asked.
"I was looking at this picture of us and decided to come here again. Pretty sure I was due for a visit." Nick said. He didn't want to tell them how he really got here.
"I see. Well, we're glad you did." Valerie said with a smile.
"Nick also came here for a side-project." Lamar said.
"Is it something for school?" Valerie asked.
"No. It's just something personal." Nick said.
"What is it exactly?" Lamar asked.
Nick didn't want to say too much. Saying "I want to make a cloak to control my superpowers." wasn't going to fly with them. So he had to drop some of the details.
"I'm trying to work on this little thing for someone. A cloak, actually." Nick stated.
"A cloak, huh?" Lamar said. "The thing about cloaks, they are like capes, but better. A cape is just an add-on to a shirt. But a cloak... it hugs you."
"Sounds like you know a thing or about cloaks." Nick said smiling. "Since that seems to be the case, can you help me with my own cloak?"
"Ha! Can I? Of course I can." Lamar said boldly and confidently. "But, we can't do it here."
"Huh?" Nick said sounding confused.
"If you want a cloak, then there's another place we need to go." Lamar said. He then looked at his wife. "Val, let's close the shop for a bit. We're taking Nick on a little field trip."
"Hmm. I thought you would say that." Valerie said with a grin.
It looked like Lamar and Valerie were about to take Nick on a trip to somewhere else. Nick wasn't sure where, but he hoped that it would help him get his own medium. That way, he could finally control his powers.
Meanwhile, at the Trailer Park, some rings from the doorbell of Bonnie's home. Bonnie was still in her pink robes as she walks up to the front door. Bonnie opens up the door and sees that it's her daughter, Judy. Judy was holding two medium cups of carrot and lime smoothies. Judy smiled awkwardly as she held the cups up.
"Thought you could use a break from wine." Judy said to her mom.
Bonnie then takes one of the smoothies.
"Wine's pricey. So I've been cutting back anyway." Bonnie told Judy. She then let Judy come into the trailer. She then takes a sip of the smoothie before saying "I'm surprised that you are still here. I was thinking you would have skipped town. Or worst."
"That officer was nice enough to let me go after talking with her." Judy said as she closes the door behind her. "It turned out she really did want to help me."
"Well, that's good to hear." Bonnie said sounding a little relieved. "So, what brings you here today? Not in any more trouble, I hope."
"No. I'm done with getting into trouble." Judy stated. "I just came to see how you were doing. Since it's been a while."
"As you can see, I'm fine. As fine as I'll ever be." Bonnie stated.
"Did you... happen to find a new job yet?" Judy asked. "Hopefully, one without a manager that's a dick."
"Not yet. Definitely don't want to be a waitress." Bonnie said as she sits on the couch. "What about you, Bun-Bun?"
Judy took a sip of her smoothie before responding.
"I do some small stuff, but nothing big yet." Judy said as she sits in the chair. It was really a lie though. Judy always counted on pickpocketing to be her way of making money. But since she stopped, her cash flow was starting to get low. But she didn't want to tell Bonnie that.
"As long as you have something." Bonnie said happy enough.
There wasn't tension in the air, but the air was thin. Judy and Bonnie didn't really know what to say to each other besides the basic "How are you?" or "What you been up to?". That's how it's been since Judy's dad died. But Judy promised Nick that she would try and open up.
"Soooooo, any plans for today?" Judy asked.
"Nothing really. Besides staying in the house. Maybe cook up some food for later." Bonnie said.
"Oh. You started cooking again?" Judy asked a little surprised.
"I've always still cooked. Just not as often as I used to." Bonnie stated. "I still remember the days when I cooked every day. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Even before you were born. I remember when I just married your father, he would bring a bunch of vegetables from the farm and I would slice and dice them a hundred different ways. His family farm always had the best produce." Bonnie started to actually look happy.
"The Hopps Family Farm. I... don't remember it." Judy said with her ears drooping down.
"You were still very young. Practically a baby, still." Bonnie said.
Judy then got off the chair and sat on the couch with her mom.
"Could you... tell me more? About the farm and Bunnyburrow? Before the bad stuff?" Judy asked.
"It's a long story. Several long stories." Bonnie said.
"I'm not going anywhere." Judy said while shrugging and smiling a bit.
With Judy not planning on leaving yet, Bonnie decided to tell Judy more Bunnyburrow and the old family farm. It felt like ancient history, but Bonnie was more than happy to tell some stories.
Meanwhile, Lamar and Valerie took Nick on a drive to a spot in Downtown known as the Foxes' Den. Nick was expecting with the name that it was some bar. But it wasn't. A was actually a HUGE building, closer to a warehouse, where foxes gather around and craft. Many of the foxes in the Trots were quite artistic and showed off their artistic talents here. From making paintings, basket weaving, and cloak making for festivals. Nick was actually quite amazed by this.
"Woah! I didn't know the Trots had a place like this." Nick said in awe.
"Being a fox is still hard for most of us, yet we all have our own talents. Everyone who comes here puts their talents to use." Lamar stated.
"Painting, weaving, annnnnd cloak making." Valerie said.
"So dope." Nick said still in awe.
"Yep. The thing about the Trots is that all of us foxes look out for each other like a pack. A family." Lamar stated.
Nick's attention then went to a wall of photos. Many of them were old and in black and white. One photo was of a pack of foxes marching together. Another one was a bunch of foxes as a band with instruments. There was even one with an all fox basketball team that with a champion trophy. All these foxes seem to have accomplished a lot. Then... turned his head and froze with the next picture he saw. It was a picture of David with his black hood on and on the left of the frame was a newspaper article with his name on it. This photo was clearly a tribute to him. Lamar and Valerie slowly walked up to Nick and sees him looking at the photo.
"We were training that boy to be the next spy boy." Lamar said to Nick.
"What's a spy boy?" Nick asked Lamar.
"Your papa didn't tell you, boy?" Lamar asked looking a bit stunned. But he still decided to tell him what a spy boy was. "A spy boy is basically the lookout. He travels far and fast. He runs out in the unknown unprotected and unseen. He looks out for trouble and lets everyone else know first. Your old man used to be a spy boy."
"Pop?! Pop was a spy boy?" Nick asked sounding really surprised.
"One of the best too. Your papa loved this neighborhood and made sure to look out for everyone. That's the job of a spy boy." Lamar stated.
"Even before we were planning to make David the next spy boy, he was already halfway there. He always did what he could to keep other kids from trouble." Valerie stated.
"I always thought it was just me and the guys." Nick said.
"You were a special case, Nicky. David, he... he loved you as if you were his own brother." Valerie stated starting to look sad.
"I know. I felt the same way." Nick said looking sad as well.
Nick had always felt guilty for David's death. He also felt that Lamar and Valerie should hate him for being one of the causes of his death. Yet, they didn't seem to hate him for it. But it didn't help that they son was gone. Nick wanted them to know the truth, even if they didn't believe him.
"Lamar, Val, you should know while I did steal that car stereo, David didn't die from an overdose." Nick said firmly.
"We know. We believe you." Lamar and Valerie said.
Hearing those words, Nick was totally caught off guard.
"What? You do?" Nick asked.
"Nick, if there one thing about being a parent is knowing your own child. We know our boy sure as hell more than the ZPD." Lamar said firmly.
"Language." Valerie said not wanting Lamar to curse in front of Nick.
"Please. The pup's pretty much a grown tod now." Lamar replied to Valerie. He then looked back at Nick. "Nick, we know our David didn't die from an overdose cause we know he didn't do any drugs."
"We also believe you that some cop actually shot our boy and so did your parents." Valerie stated.
"What? Mom and Pop... believed me? That's impossible." Nick said in disbelief. "They haven't trusted me since that night. That's why we moved."
Lamar and Valerie looked at each other. Clearly, John and Frankie haven't told Nick enough. He was a little kid anymore, so they decided to tell him for John and Frankie.
"Nick, we all really did believe you that night. But that wasn't the point." Lamar stated.
"The point was... if you really were right and someone covered up David's death, then that means your life would also be in danger." Valerie stated. "We didn't want John and Frankie to suffer the same fate of losing a child. That's why we told them to move."
"YOU told them to move?!" Nick asked even more shocked.
"Yes. It was the only way you could be protected." Lamar answered. "You were still just a young boy with a bright future."
Nick now started to feel really depressed. He was in the dark about this the whole time. Not only did his parents actually believed him, but Lamar and Valerie were the ones to suggest that their family moves to Savannah Central. It was a lot to take in for him.
"So... why didn't you do anything for David?" Nick asked sounding serious.
"We WANTED to. But we're not strong enough handle it. If we tried, we might be killed just like David was and he wouldn't be avenged." Lamar stated.
"So... if someone was strong enough, would you let them handle it?" Nick asked.
"Nick, you're not..." Valerie said looking worried.
"No. Not me. Someone else." Nick said even though he really did want to be the one to avenge David. "Anyway, I didn't just come here to coup."
"Right. You said you needed a cloak, right?" Lamar asked. "Follow us."
Lamar and Valerie then took Nick to the part in the building where the cloaks were being made by some other foxes. Many of them had very unique styles. Including figures formed by beads.
"Now the key to making a good cloak is patience and a steady paw." Lamar said. "See these ones with the bead patterns? Each bead is part of a large design. You have to pay close attention cause one mistake and you will have to redo all your work. Hours, days, even months. It takes years to master this kind of work and each year you have to master it again."
"Each year? You mean you make a new cloak every year?" Nick asked.
"Each year, you're a new person, son." Lamar said. "That's why we spend that time making a new cloak. Some people get infuriated, then give up on finishing their works."
"As much as I want to, I don't think I want to spend over a year to make a cloak." Nick stated.
"Then maybe you can finish the work that others didn't." Valerie said to Nick.
"That backroom over there..." Lamar said as he pointed at a door at the far end of the room. "... it's a room full of failure stories. This work can drive someone crazy. But not one with patience, diligence, and grace. Has your papa ever told you about strength and control?"
"Yeah. He has." Nick answered. "He says we need to have strength in both body and mind. People with great strength also need control. If you can't control yourself, then you can't control a damn thing in this world."
"Exactly." Lamar said glad to hear that. "This place helps us find that control. And with that, we find the strength we need."
"The strength we need." Nick thought as he looked at his paws and thought about his powers.
"Now, how you go pick out a cloak and let's see if we can't finish it." Valerie said to Nick.
"Okay." Nick said.
Nick then walked into the room that Lamar pointed for him to go to. As he enters the room, saying that there were only a few cloaks would be a complete understatement. There had to be close to a hundred unfinished cloaks in the room. As Nick slowly walks around looks at each cloak, he sees each one has a different style. Red ones, green ones, purple ones, ones with feathers. But none of them were really Nick's style. As he continued to walk, something caught his eye. After only glancing at it for a split second, Nick walks to the cloak. As he faces it, it takes it out of the hanger.
The cloak was black and blue striped and his size. It was even close to being finished. Nick didn't know what it was about this cloak, but it was like it was calling out to him. As if this was the cloak he should take. Whether it his powers or some other reason...
"This is it. This is the cloak I want to use as my medium." Nick thought as he lifted the cloak up.
Meanwhile, as Nick may have finally found his medium, Judy was still at the trailer house with her mom. The two were actually having a good time. The first that the two have had in a long while.
"Haha! Seriously?" Judy asked after laughing.
"I'm serious. It was the first time I ever slapped a fox right in his face. But it wasn't like he didn't had it coming." Bonnie said trying to hold back the rest of her laughter.
"Wow. Didn't know you could be so gutsy, mom." Judy said.
"I'm not as frail as I seem." Bonnie stated with a smirk. "I had quite the rebel phase when I was your age. You father used to like it."
"Dad..." Judy said starting to look sad. "What... do you remember about dad?"
"*sigh* It's always a touchy subject for me." Bonnie stated. "Your father... was a smart man. Smarter than most would take him for granted. Yet, like most bunnies, he was scared about most things and liked playing the safe game. That's why he really wanted to stay at Bunnyburrow."
"But that's when things went down, right?" Judy asked.
"Right." Bonnie said nodding. "We, as in the town, turned out to be dumb bunnies. None of us expected to do the things bunnies do to be a bad thing. Farming, having hundreds of kids. But the money well in town was running dry and so was resources. Hundreds of farms didn't mean there was enough food to go around."
"I already knew this stuff, mom. You told me before and I did some reading." Judy stated.
"Well, your father and I had a front-eye view of that." Bonnie stated. "You lost many of your uncles and aunts because of the riots, starvation, or... a third reason."
"Did Bunnyburrow even recover after all that?" Judy asked.
"Your guess is as good as mine. After your father got the job at Roxxon, we moved right away. I mean, the money was good. The money was REALLY good." Bonnie said.
"But..." Judy said expecting a but.
"But your father died... and the bastards at Roxxon took it on them to take everything your father worked for." Bonnie stated. "But you know this already."
"Still wish I could forget." Judy said as she rubbed the back of her head.
"You and me both." Bonnie said with her arms crossed. "We lost a lot and now we're stuck here. *sigh* I still wish things were different."
"Me too, mom." Judy said agreeing with her mom.
"If I knew things were going to happen the way they did, I wished we stayed in Bunnyburrow." Bonnie said.
"What?" Judy said a bit surprised. While Judy agreed that she wished things were different, she didn't really had intentions of her family staying at Bunnyburrow.
"I mean, Bunnyburrow had its problems, but it was still a good town. It's not like the high population was the main problem."
"It WAS the main problem, mom." Judy stated firmly. "Most rabbit parents had more kids than they knew what to do with them. Plus most of them barely even knew their kids. Let alone how many they had."
"Yet, rabbits still got by. It was only because of that law, things had to change." Bonnie stated. "The town was fine the way things were. Bunnies being bunnies, doing simple farming, having a bunch of kids, and not having a care in the world."
Bonnie had always wanted a simple life. The life that every bunny in Bunnyburrow had. But Judy... Judy didn't want any of that. Judy believed that all mammals should be different, even if they're the same species.
"What is wrong with you?" Judy asked looking a bit angry.
"Huh?" Bonnie went.
"You would rather have every bunny live in a rural fantasy that things are fine just being simple? That all bunnies should be the same? Mom, that's just dumb." Judy stated.
"I know it sounds dumb, but..." Bonnie said.
"It doesn't sound dumb. It IS dumb." Judy stated firmly. "It's basically saying that every bunny from the burrows was too scared to do anything more than carrot farming. EVERY bunny."
"Now, Judy..." Bonnie said as she gets up from the couch. "... being a bunny was natural to us. Being different from how we were was difficult because of our biology."
"Well, that's a poor excuse if I've ever heard one." Judy stated not liking what her mother said. "Biology had nothing to do with it. It was the fact that everyone was a coward to do anything different. All they ever thought about was growing carrots and having way too many kids."
"That was the way Bunnyburrow worked." Bonnie said sounding serious. "You either was a provider or you raised the kids."
"Oh ho! That's rich. That's only every other household family." Judy stated. "The only difference was that other families didn't try to have hundreds and hundreds of kids. Cause do you know where that led to? One word: OVERPOPULATION! Bunnies screwed themselves from LITERALLY screwing themselves. Are you saying that you would have really wanted that?"
"Yes!" Bonnie answered firmly. "The only thing I ever wanted was to be mother and wife. So when I had to take that pill and could only have you, it was upsetting. And it was only more upsetting when your father died.
Judy felt a little hurt from her mom's words. To her, it felt like Bonnie was saying that she would rather have hundreds of kids instead of just her. Which would also imply that she would rather not have her at all.
"See? It's thoughts like that why Bunnyburrow got screwed over. Bunnies not knowing when to stop. Parents having hundreds of babies, then their babies having hundreds of babies, and even the parents having hundreds of more babies AFTER their babies had babies. It's a ridiculous cycle. A cycle I'm smart enough to not get involved in." Judy said firmer than before.
"And what cycle do you think is out there for you?" Bonnie asked looking mad. "The cycle that involves dropping out of school? That involves you running away from all your problems? That involves living some abandoned house off the streets?"
Looks like Bonnie had already known that Judy didn't live in some cheap apartment but in an abandoned church. Guess it wasn't that had to believe. Still, Judy didn't really let that comment slide.
"It's still better than the cycle you're in. Drinking, popping pills, quitting job after job, and waiting for a handout that may never happen." Judy shouted out angrily. "At least dad had enough guts to do something different and kept at it."
"And look where it got him!" Bonnie shouted out in anger. "He's dead and now we have nothing from it."
Those last words, to Judy, that really crossed the line.
"This was a mistake. I can't do this anymore. It's one thing to bad mouth me. But not dad. Never dad." Judy said as she rubbed the sides of her head with her paws. She then made her way for the door. "I'm out of here."
"Oh, big surprise! There goes Judy. Running away from everything! Just like always!" Bonnie shouted out in anger.
As Judy was about to open the door and leave, she paused before her paw reached the knob. She was tempted to leave and never come back. But it was her mother's last words to her. Running away from everything. That was she usually does. Or... what she usually did. Instead, she decided to go back to her mom and say one more thing. If she was going to leave for good, she would at least put everything out in the open. As she goes back to the living room, Bonnie is surprised that she's still here.
"Do you know how long you were away when dad died?" Judy asked her mom. "Two years. Not two weeks, not two months, but TWO... YEARS! That's how many years I spend jumping from foster home to foster home."
"Are you still going on about that? Judith, your father had died. He was the love of my life. I counted on him for everything. I needed your father." Bonnie stated.
"I NEEDED HIM TOO! BUT I ALSO NEEDED MY MOTHER! BUT INSTEAD, SHE JUST LEFT ME!" Judy shouted out.
After hearing Judy's words, Bonnie was put into total shock.
"W... what?" Bonnie uttered.
"I was there when dad died. He was right in front of me. It pained me more than anyone." Judy said before she started to break into tears. "I know you needed help. But so did I. Help from my mother. Comfort from my mother. But you weren't there for me. You barely even saw me or write to me. It was like you didn't want me. Or rather... " Tears started to flow more. "... would you have wanted me to die the same night dad did?"
Now Bonnie broke into tears and covered her mouth with her paws.
"Oh my god. What have I done? I've been a horrible mother." Bonnie said feeling an overwhelming amount of guilt. "All I ever did was think about myself. I didn't even realize what losing your father meant to you. I wasn't strong. I wasn't there for you enough. I'm sorry, Judy. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
Bonnie kept sobbing and apologizing to Judy. She must have really feel sorry for leaving Judy alone for two years. Judy could tell that from all her crying. It was similar to the crying she does.
"I'm not asking for the best mother. I'm not even asking for a strong mother." Judy said still crying. "I'm just asking for a mother."
Judy didn't care if Bonnie hasn't been the best mom. She just wanted her to be in her life enough and help her through the tough times. As long as Bonnie showed her love, that was all that matter. Bonnie then went over to Judy and hugged her. It felt like it's been so long since Judy had felt the warmth of a mother's hug. Judy then hugged embrace her mother back. As she did, her powers activated. Once again she was about to see her mother's hopes.
Judy found herself in a bright clear field. Her attention went into a graduation stage. There were empty chairs that no one was sitting in. But what got Judy's attention was seeing her with her mother. Judy was wearing a white cap and gown and Bonnie was wearing a white dress suit.
"Look at you, valedictorian." Bonnie said happily.
"It's all because of my hard work, mom." The other Judy said proudly. "I told you a bunny can be more than just a bunny."
"Yeah. You did. Your father would be so proud of you." Bonnie said.
"I know he would, mom." The other Judy said to Bonnie.
Bonnie's hopes for Judy didn't imply that she wanted her to graduate from college. It implied that she wanted Judy to be successful in life. Something that Judy always wanted from her mother. Judy then smiled lightly. As she did, a second later, there was a big white flash and Judy was back in the living room, still being hugged by her mom. She still hugged her mom, but as she did, she noticed something about her left paw. As she had it nearby Bonnie head, it emitted a small glow.
"Why are my powers doing?" Judy thought.
After two seconds, the glowing stopped and Bonnie felt sort of... different. She then stopped hugging Judy and walked somewhere else.
"Mom? Where are you going?" Judy asked.
"I'm gathering up all my pills and my wine bottles and getting rid of all of them." Bonnie said boldly. "No more feeling sorry for myself or slowly killing myself."
Judy was a bit stunned by this. While she did want her to quit drinking and taking pills, she was will to do it so easily. It was like she had been reborn. Judy then figured out how. She had a new ability. The ability to heal and cure people of drug addictions. Another handy power to have.
"You really serious about this, are you mom?" Judy asked her mom.
"Very." Bonnie said as she started dumping her pills into the garbage disposal. "I want us to start over, Judy." Bonnie then looked at Judy. "That is... if it's okay with you."
"It is, mom. It is." Judy said looking happy.
Things were rough for a while, but it seems like Judy and Bonnie were finally able to work things out between them. The mother and daughter were now feeling closer than ever.
Back with Nick, he walked out of the room holding the black and blue striped cloak and put it on the table. Valerie sees the cloak Nick took out and looks slightly grim from the sight of it.
"Lamar..." Valerie whispered to Lamar to trying to get his attention to look at Nick.
Lamar sees the cloak Nick took out and was just as shocked as Valerie. Lamar then walked over to Nick.
"Nick, not that one." Lamar said telling Nick not to use that one.
"Why not? I like this one." Nick said.
"Out of all the cloaks, why did you pick this one?" Lamar asked Nick.
"I... don't know. I saw it and it was like... it was calling me." Nick replied. "Why don't you want me to use this one?"
"Just give it here, boy." Lamar said wanting to take the cloak.
"No!" Nick said keeping the cloak away from Lamar. "I like this cloak the best and I won't give it up unless you give me a good reason."
After Nick said that, Valerie was started to break into tears and turned away. Lamar was also doing his best to keep his composure too. Nick sees this and looks very concern.
"Why is Val crying?" Nick asked.
"It was his cloak." Lamar said.
"His cloak?" Nick said looking confused. A second later, his confusion went away when he realized whose it was. "You mean..."
"*sigh* Yes." Lamar answered.
The cloak that Nick took was David's cloak. That's why Valerie and Lamar looked so surprised to see that Nick token it. It's no wonder why Nick liked that cloak so much.
"Now that you know..." Lamar said.
"I want to finish it." Nick said sounding both firm and serious. "I owe it to David to finish this for him."
"Nick, why do you need this cloak so much anyway?" Lamar asked.
A hard question for Nick to ask. He couldn't tell the real truth. So he said what he could tell them and tried to make it convincing.
"There's someone out there. A fox like us who also knew David. He's incredibly strong like you wouldn't believe and hates injustice. He wants to get justice for David. But he needs this cloak to do it." Nick said lifting the cloak up. "If this was made by David, if I finish this, then I feel like I help and avenge David. It NEEDS to be this cloak."
"Are you really telling us the truth?" Lamar asked.
"I haven't been more truthful in my life." Nick said seriously. He dropped the part saying that the incredibly strong fox is him, but was still being truthful.
Lamar and Valerie looked at each other, whether to believe Nick's words or not. But by looking at his emerald eyes, they could tell he was telling the truth. Lamar then got a needle and string to give to Nick.
"Then let us help you out too." Lamar said helping Nick work on the cloak.
As Nick to the needle, Lamar and Valerie coached Nick on how to stitch the cloak properly. Nick knew most tailoring from his dad, but it always helps to get a refresher course. After a bit, Nick thanked Lamar and Valerie for the cloak and the lesson as he went back home. As he did, he hung the picture back on the wall and kept working on the cloak secretly in his room. He spends the next 3 days working on it and used all his free time. After many hours of hard work...
"Done!" Nick said as he lifted up the finished cloak.
As a final touch, he added a blue brooch with a gold ring to keep the cloak together. Nick was proud of the work he did to finish David's cloak. As he feels the fabric, he started remembering something David told him.
David, you're so amazing. Will I ever be as awesome as you?
No. You won't. You might be even better.
"David..." Nick thought still feeling sad about his death.
Nick then faced himself in the mirror as he put the cloak on. He kept it open and he didn't put the hood up yet.
"Not bad. It's a perfect fit." Nick thought as he looked from the mirror. "Still need to have more for my costume, but at least the most important part is done. Just need to work on the suit part and a mask."
Nick then wanted to put the hood up to see what it looks like. But as he did, something weird happened. Shadow mist started to form from Nick's body. Nick immediately stopped putting the hood up.
"What was that?" Nick asked himself thinking at his powers were going nuts again.
He didn't know if it was good or bad, but he still felt tempted to put the hood on. This time, he put the hood on completely. Even had his ears through the holes. Once again, shadow mist surrounded his body. Nick didn't know what was happening, but it seems that the cloak and his powers were changing his body. As Nick looks at himself in the mirror, his body was completely black. His face was still red-furred, but the top part of his face was covered in a shadow. Once more, his eyes were completely white. Nick's new look completely caught him off-guard.
"WAAAAAAHHHH!" Nick shouted out before falling to the ground. He then looked at his now blacken body. "What the..."
"NICK? ARE YOU OKAY UP THERE?!" Frankie shouted out from downstairs.
Not wanting his mom to see him like this in case she comes up, Nick took off his hood. He quickly reverted back to his normal self. He took the cloak off and then opened up his door. He sees no one in the hall.
"UHHHH... NOTHING, MA! JUST SAW A ROACH! GOT IT!" Nick shouted out.
As he closed the door, he locked it too just to be safe. He then picked back up his cloak, put it back on, and went back to his mirror.
"Okay. Let's do this again... and no freaking out." Nick said to himself.
He closes his eyes and puts back on the hood. Once again, his body changed. As he opened his eyes, he didn't freak out this time. But he was in a bit of awe.
"Woah. Black body... pure white eyes... shadow covering enough of my face. I think I just got my costume." Nick thought. "Well, besides the whole 'kinda look like a bad guy' thing. But this still looks pretty sweet."
Nick actually like the dark style. It suited his powers pretty well. But it still felt weird that his body changed because of the cloak. Why and how? Nick didn't really care. But there was one thing he cared about.
"Will I ever be able to control my powers now?" Nick asked himself.
He had to test it out. Is his cloak the perfect medium for him and can it really help him control his power? Only one way to find out. First, Nick closed his eyes and thought about where he wanted to be. The roof of the house. He opened his eyes and... founded himself on the of his roof. Exactly where he wanted to be.
"Ohh. Ohhhhhhhh!" Nick went in awe. "Okay, back to my room."
Nick tried to use his powers again and... he made it back to his room. Nick was actually controlling his powers... for real.
"Ha... haha! Yes!" Nick said happily.
As good as this was, a simple back and forward wasn't enough. He really had to put his powers to the test. A real test.
"Hey, mom! How long til dinner?" Nick shouted out.
"5 minutes!" Frankie shouted back.
"5 minutes, huh? I can do 5 minutes." Nick said to himself.
After rubbing his neck, Nick was finally ready to test the limits of his powers.
"Okay. Let's do this." Nick thought.
Nick then teleported to the roof again, still by his control. First, he tested out short distances by going to the roofs of the other houses of the neighborhood. So far, it worked. He easily teleported to each rooftop. It didn't seem to be a problem for him. Then he tried testing farther distances. From the roof of his school to the roof of a tall apartment building in the Sahara, to even an empty lot in Tundratown. As Nick teleported to more and more places, he started to feel more and more thrilled. He was really glad to finally control his power.
"Okay. One more test." Nick thought with a smile.
Next place Nick teleported to was the tallest building in the center of Downtown Zootopia. The building was at least over 80 stories. Nick stood by the edge of it. He was ready to jump off the edge.
"Alright. If I really got control of powers, I should be able to jump and teleport in the nick of time. If not, I'm a fox pancake. Hope it doesn't come to that." Nick thought.
This was... beyond crazy for Nick to do. But he really needed to test his powers and be absolutely sure his powers worked. After taking a deep breath, he jumped. Nick was now falling fast. But even so, he still seemed calm and fearless. Dropping down story after story getting closer and closer to the ground. When he was close to hitting the pavement, Nick vanished into black mist. Nick then reappeared on the top of another rooftop. After that, Nick knew without a doubt, that he can control his powers now.
"Nice. Totally not a fox pancake." Nick thought feeling relieved. Nick then had a wide grin on his face. "I got to tell Carrots."
During this time, Judy was back at the church, training herself. She seemed more motivated than before. Doing some more flips and dagger training. She figured out she can not only summon her daggers but throw them as well. She aimed her daggers at three cans and knocked down all three of them with perfect accuracy. Judy had a wide grin on her face. She was really getting the hang of her powers. As she continued her train, Nick pops up from behind her.
"Hey, Fluff." Nick said greeting the bunny.
"EEP!" Judy uttered. She then reacted by throwing a dagger at Nick, who she could recognize because of the cloak.
"Woah!" Nick said before teleporting out of the way and coming back. "Jeez! Watch it!"
"Who are..." Judy said before taking a guess. "Wait a second. Nick?"
The fox chuckled before taking off his hood. He then reverted back to normal again.
"Hey, Judy." Nick said waving at the bunny.
"Woah! THAT'S your costume?!" Judy asked in awe.
"Pretty sweet, right?" Nick asked showing of his cloak. "Turns out, all I needed was the cloak. The rest of the costume comes with it. Check it." Nick then put his hood up and he changed. "Hood up." He then took his hood off and changed back to normal. "Hood off." He then put it back on and changed again. "Hood up." Then he takes his hood off and changes back to normal again. "Hood off." He then repeated this process for a while. "Hood up! Hood off! Hood up! Hood off! Hood up! Hood off!"
"I get it!" Judy said wanting Nick to stop.
"Sorry." Nick said with his hood still up.
"I will say this. You look amazing. I can barely tell it's you. However, you do slightly look like a bad guy." Judy stated.
"I know, right. But hey, dark heroes are totally in." Nick said. "Also, check this out. I can control my powers..." Nick then teleported to several different corners of the church before stopping in front of her. "... at will."
"Bravo, Nick." Judy said clapping. "By the way, the cloak looks beautiful. You actually made that yourself."
"Actually, I can't take all the credit." Nick said as he took off his hood. "David actually made this cloak. I just finished it."
"Ohh..." Judy said feeling sad.
"The weird thing is... when I saw this cloak it was like it spoke to me. And that was before I knew it was David's." Nick said. "It also feels... different than I expected. It feels like more than just a medium. It's like it's... a part of me." Nick stated as he lifted up his cloak.
"A part of you?" Judy asked.
"Yeah. Maybe it's because it belongs to David or maybe it's because of the bond we had or it's because of my powers. Either way, I want to use this cloak and avenge him." Nick said.
"Well then, I'm glad that you found your medium." Judy said happy for Nick.
"Thanks." Nick said with a smile. "By the way, how's your training going? I didn't know you could throw your daggers... at other people."
"Sorry about that." Judy said feeling awkward about that. "Yeah. I figured that out when I was learning my power control. After testing them, I learn I could do so much with them besides fatal stabs. I can also cut through almost anything, stun and drain people, have my daggers go through items, and some other stuff I didn't know I could do."
"Woah! Sounds like you learned a lot about your powers." Nick said impressed.
"I'm still learning." Judy stated with a grin.
"How are things with you and your mom?" Nick asked.
"There... better." Judy said with a sincere smile. "We both admit we made mistakes and we had our own pain that we didn't want to admit. But in the end, we talked it out and couped."
"So things worked out? That's good to hear." Nick said happy for Judy.
"Mom ... asked me to move back in with her." Judy said.
"Oh." Nick said sounding surprised. "What did you say?"
"I told her I'll think about it." Judy responded. "I mean, I'm not saying I don't WANT to move back in. It's just... I don't think now's the right time."
"What do you mean?" Nick asked.
"I'm still trying to master my powers and get back at the head of Roxxon. I don't want to move back it just yet." Judy said. "I have to get stronger. Not just for me, not just for my dad, but for my mom and everyone else that suffered too."
Judy seemed more motivated than she ever was before. Nick felt that Judy was a bit of a different person now. She even wanted to help more people than just herself. Someone better.
"Hmm. Are you really the same bunny that jacked my wallet?" Nick asked with a smirk.
"Hey! You make it sound like I was always a bad girl." Judy said.
"Well, you were a bit of a problem child." Nick said leaning down to Judy still smirking.
Judy puffed out her cheeks, looking a bit mad. Her anger then went away when she realized something.
"Oh. I just remember something I wanted to talk to you about. Do you know anyone by the name of Madam Malaloo?" Judy asked.
"Auntie Malaloo? Yeah. She's Finn's Aunt." Nick said.
"I met her when I was at the smoothie bar." Judy said. "This might sound weird, but... I think she can sense our powers."
"So, she sensed your powers too." Nick said. "I figured she was able to sense your powers because they're similar to mine."
"Think we can trust her?" Judy asked looking concern.
"She was the one who told me about needing a medium and before that, she helped me connect to you. I trust her." Nick said.
"Well, she didn't seem bad to me either. Even offered to pay for my smoothies." Judy said.
"What?! I had to pay for the brew for that spiritual bath." Nick said sounding fussy. "Hmm. Maybe we shouldn't trust her."
Judy responded by laughing. She could tell Nick didn't like paying for what he needed. The fox then realized how long he's been out. His mom said dinner was going to be in 5 minutes. He was close to passing the time limit.
"Oh! Crap! I just remember. Mom's making dinner and I got to get back." Nick said looking worried. "We'll talk more next time. Be sure to work on your costume."
"O... okay." Judy responded.
"See ya, Ju..." Nick said about to put his hood back up.
"Nick, wait!" Judy shouted out halting Nick.
"Yeah?" Nick said pausing.
"Thank you... for wanting to help me." Judy said with a smile.
"We're partners. That's what we do for each other." Nick said with a smile. He then put on his hood and changed again. "See you, Judy."
Nick then vanished. Leaving Judy to be in the church by herself. Judy seemed pretty lucky to have Nick for a parent. She wanted to do what she could to be a worthy partner for him. More motivated than ever before, Judy goes back to training. As she does that, Nick makes it back to his room. Right in the nick of time.
"NICKY, TIME FOR DINNER! COME ON DOWN!" Frankie shouted from downstairs.
"COMING!" Nick responded.
As Nick took off his cloth off and puts it away in one of his drawers, he had a wide grin on his face. He finally had a way to control his powers. Nick was now more confident in himself as he walked down the stairs to get himself some food.
Meanwhile, back at Malaloo's Voodoo Shop, Malaloo was busy craving from some white plastic. Once she was done, she made a white figurine of a female bunny. The female bunny looked exactly like Judy. She then places the figurine on the shelf beside the fox figurine she had already made.
"These two... they are the divide pairing." Malaloo thought.
Malaloo seemed to have a big interest with both Nick and Judy.
End of Chapter 8.