A Fox for Kitmas (for combat engineer)

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AN: Another story in the Judy adopts teen Nick series/ A follow on to 'I know you don't like me.'

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"Nervous, Nick?"

"No," he quipped, keeping his tongue from saying anything snarky about how he was being led into a den full of hundreds of bunnies with sharp bity teeth and claws and pitchforks oh-my.

"You don't seem not nervous," she said, sitting next to him. Offering a paw on his leg. The train shook slightly as it went around a curve, the fox frowning.

"That's not me doing it. Blame the train."

"Do you want to talk?"

"No, not really," he said, looking away. Out through the window, to the wide open fields covered in a thin dusting of snow. Low slung clouds boxed the sky in, making his first trip out into the country feel decidedly not very 'free' and 'open'. Just more being hemmed in, and this was it on easy mode!

"Okay then," Judy said, paws up as she backed off. "But know that if you want to talk, I'll be right here."

"Thanks," he said, giving her a cursory smile. Politeness! Glancing upwards, he thought out. 'There you go mom, I'm being nice to her.'

The train rattled some more, as they began to slow as they approached Bunnyburrow. Judy had said that if he really didn't want to go and wanted to spend Kitmas in Zootopia, then no sweat they could stay in the city. But she was very insistent on how nice Bunnyburrow kitmas would be, and all the things her family would be doing, and how sweet and kind and nice it would be yadda yadda.

Ah, emotional manipulation one-oh-one.

How had he got suckered into it?

Sympathy? Guilt? His eyes narrowed. The bunny was making him go soft and he knew it. He should have called her bluff on the many times he could…

But he didn't. He'd just joked about how she'd have to rent a truck to take all the presents, and she said that Bunnyburrow Kitmas' didn't work like that… But no worries, she'd be bringing them all a fox for Kitmas this year. Cue him joking about being wrapped up in paper and tied up under the tree.

They'd laughed, he hadn't formally said no…

And now he was pretty sure it was too late.

The rumbled up to the station and Nick, grabbing his bag, walked up to the door with Judy his friendly legal guardian. A push on the button, it opened up, and…

"HI JUDY!"

There was no platform, only bunny. Nick would have snarked, were he not terrified.

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A few knocks came at his door. Nick, looking up from his shed fur covered four-beds-put-together, narrowed his eyes. "Nick?" came Judy's voice from outside.

"I'm still brushing myself," he said, a growl starting to form in the back of his throat.

"Okay," she said quietly. "I'll… I'll just give you time. And I'm sorry."

"You don't have to be."

"Well, I… I'll check in in half an hour, kay?"

"Kay," Nick said, rolling his eyes. Urghhhh… And with that, back to brushing his stupid tail and trying to get the filth out and the furs back into order etcetera etcetera. Lots of bunnies giving him side glances and bad looks, yeah, he was expecting that. He could totally handle that. What he hadn't expected though were the kits.

Or the tsunami.

Made up of kits.

Lots on lots of dumb little kits, who wanted to cuddle and snuggle with the 'foxy woxy'. The sounds of furs coming lose as he put his muscles into his brushing ripped out. He could still feel those stupid little paws working into himself and…

He growled, letting his tail go and fluffing it up behind him. A wave here, a wave there, making sure the furs were in order again.

Finally.

And with that he slumped down onto his bed, face in the pillow. This had been a stupid idea.

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"It's not a stupid idea Dad." Judy crossed her paws, looking over at her father. Age had been greying his furs, and a pair of glasses rested on his nose, but he still resolutely did not need help with anything and would always speak his mind. Just like, after calming down a bunch of crying and upset bunny kits, suffering from scraped knees and bruises, he'd spoken to 'the ultimate origin of their injuries.'

"Listen," Stu said, back. "You know full well how grabby and clingy the fluffle is. And while you can go off an adopt whoever you like back in the city, I'd at least expect you to know whether they could cope with it or not. As it happens, he couldn't."

"You have to admit they were more grabby this time," she said.

"You have to admit the mammal was more aggressive in getting them off," he replied, arms crossing. "Now I think I'm being very reasonable here. Am I angry with that fox of yours? Yes. Very. But I'm giving him a pass this time as that's what he is, and it's you who should have known better."

Judy was about to reply, only to pause, four words ringing through her head. Nose twitching slightly, she stood up, walking over to her father. "'That's what he is?'"

"Yeah," Stu said. "I'm not gonna get mad at a weedkiller for killing plants, and…"

"-So you think he's always a loner," she pressed. "Always aggressive, always nasty, always…"

"Oh, so you say he can change, he can make up his mind," Stu said. "In that case as he chose to toss, yank, and throw those kits off him hard onto the concrete, he can join them on the chore line."

"No," Judy said, putting her foot down. "He got spooked by all those bunnies climbing onto him, he yelled at them to get off and they didn't, so he panicked." She shook her head. "I'm trying to help him open up and adjust, which he's doing. But it'll take time, and he's not a bunny…"

"I can see that," Stu said, shaking his head. "I can see he's not a bunny too. So why couldn't you see that?"

"I could see it," she snarked.

"Then why did you choose this?" he asked. "Why something so… -Why not just a bunny or a hare or something similar. They have orphans too."

"Because I wanted to make a difference, Dad," Judy said, turning away.

"I know you do," he said. "But you'd have done it to any kit you took in like that. There's probably who knows how many little young bunny or hare or pika kits out there, who'd fit in with you and you with them so much better. It would be so much easier."

"I didn't want something that was easy."

"Wha… Now don't tell me you chose to make this life changing decision and all your criteria was 'how hard can I make it for myself?'" Stu shook his head, paws out. "Yes, I know you're always trying and pushing yourself. Now maybe that works for your job, but with an adoption? With your future and our family's future and don't forget his future as well? I can see you care for him, but what if you're biting off so much more than you can chew that you hurt both of yourselves."

Judy's ears lowered, and she looked back. "I can't just let him down again," she said, shaking her head. "To be passed around in the system again until he's thrown out at the end. I can't just hurt him like that."

Stu shook his head. "And so you're locked in, Jude. You jumped in and are now stuck. Maybe if you'd have held back a bit, chosen something easier, we wouldn't be in this situation. And that fox wouldn't be set up to take your fall."

Judy sighed. "I always knew I could fail him. I said it myself when I first me him. And maybe he wouldn't be hurt as much if I'd just left him struggling and suffering on. But he'd still be getting hurt." She looked away. "I still needed to try something."

"No, you didn't," Stu began softly. "You chose to."

She slowly turned and looked back, smiling. "I suppose I did. I chose Nick. And I want to make it work, for both of us. And he does too. Do you?"

His ears collapsed down the back of his head. "Of course I do Bun-Bun!"

"Well," she said softly. "Just give him space. Give him time. And not a giant horde of tail petting bunnies."

He smiled a bit. "You know, I think I know just the thing for him!"

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Knock-Knock-Knock…

Looking up from his Gamepup, Nick let out a grumpy response. "Yeah?"

"Heya… Nick, son, fox," Stu said, looking in. "Sorry about them little kits earlier. I-uh, didn't realise they should be briefed about over petting."

"I get it," Nick said, "you probably thought they'd be sensible and running in fear away from the big bad fox. Easy mistake to make."

"Now, a little less of that tone, please," the brown bunny began, before looking down. "Anyways, now you're part of the family, I thought I could give you something you might find a little amusing."

Nick's ears rose, his head tilting. "Oh don't worry. Not really a part of the family…"

"-Now don't you say that," he said, as he hopped up onto the bed, a big brown book on his lap. "Anyway, I thought you'd enjoy a little paruse through this fella here!"

He opened it up and the fox blinked. "Are these Judy's…"

"Baby pictures?" he said. "Oh yes!"

The two shared a glance, Nick beginning to smile, as they began looking through.

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Judy looked on grumpily.

"So she really?" Nick asked.

"Uh-hu," her older brother said. "And then she…"

Judy was caught off by a tug on her leg. "Yes Cotton?" she asked, looking down.

"Did you really…"

"YES," she moaned, looking over venomously at her father.

He smiled and winked at her.

As another tug came at her side. Judy looked down at Cotton again. "The answer is yes."

"But… you don't know the question."

"Fine," she said, rolling her eyes. "What's the question."

"We were baking gingerbread bunnies and I thought that as Nick is not a bunny he might not want gingerbread bunnies, though maybe he might as foxes used to eat bunnies. But I thought I'd make a few gingerbread foxes for him as I though he might like them can I go give them to him?"

Judy blinked, looking down at the small plate, half a dozen gingerbread foxes all piled up. She felt her heart swell. "Oh of course you can."

She watched as her little niece walked over and, pausing, did not tug Nick's tail. Instead she tapped him on his knee and he looked down, eyes going wide and ears going back.

And his tail wagged.

A Lot.

"I thought you'd like these cousin Nick," she said.

A huge smile grew across his face. "Yeah. I do. Thanks, cousin Cotton."

Judy watched as he ate them down, before slowly and then firmly brought Cotton into a hug.

Something not missed by all the other little kits. "He's hugging again?"

"He's hugging?"

"Nick's hugging again!"

His eyes widened, and he looked around nervously. "Uhhh."

"We can hug him!"

"Hug the fox!"

"Nick hugs!"

"Uh, ten at a time, please," he said.

The kits all got into groups of ten, all up in a line.

"Okay, I set myself up there," he shrugged, as it began.

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"So, things getting better?" Judy asked.

Walking back into his room, he ducked under and looked back. "Yeah. Dare I say it, I think I had a good time."

Judy smiled at him. "Glad to hear it Nick. Night," she said, knowing that he'd be up half the night playing his games. 'Nocturnal inclinations' meaning he'd 'never get any sleep anyway'.

"Yeah, night Mom," he said, walking in and closing the door.

Judy froze in shock, her heart beating and fluttering and he legs wobbling. He called her…

She sat down, finger going under her eye. Even thinking that he'd come to love her, she knew that he'd had his own mother for so long that she'd probably never…

But now he'd just…

There was a crack as the door opened, Nick poking his head out. "That, uh…. Was in the legal sense, as technically, uh…"

She dove in and hugged him. "I know, son."

He trembled, before holding her tight. "I'm never going to hear the end of this, am I right?"

"No," she sniffed, looking up and smiling. She felt a long bushy tail wrap around her, and pinched his cheek. "Merry Kitmas, son."

He held her tighter. "Merry Kitmas, mom."