The destination that Judy had in mind came as a surprise to Nick. Before she had come up with the idea, the fox didn't make any sort of plans as to where he and his companion were going to enjoy the holidays. Not because he didn't wish to celebrate, but because trying to head out at this time of year was easier said than done. Everywhere within Zootopia, regardless of which district, roads were flooded with holiday traffic, presumably from all of the shoppers trying to get to the nearest store or back home to their families.
Judy, though, insisted that they go to somewhere special, and leading up to the present moment she kept the location a secret from Nick. The only clue he ever received upon him asking was that it was outside of the city.
And once the fox saw for himself where the bunny had brought him to, he was sure glad that he didn't just settle for his original plans.
What the vulpine was taking in was a blissful place he thought only existed in the Christmas-themed picture books for toddlers. The surrounding space he and Judy strolled around had a nice covering of opaque snow. Although it wasn't as heavy as the kind that covered every square inch of Tundratown, it was enjoyable amount that practically screamed the holidays.
As they passed up an area with some pretty lights twinkling in a continuous pattern, they started to approach a small cultivation of spruce trees peaking up from the flat and snowy ground. A little sign adorned with strands of holly upon it read "Pick Your Own Tree."
After looking at some that stood in a variety of different sizes, Nick ended up pointing to one that caught his eye. Tapping on his bunny's shoulder, he remarked, "Look at that one! Carrots, wouldn't this one look great?"
"I wholeheartedly agree," Judy replied. "But… this is probably one of those trees where all of the needles fall all over the floor. Take it from someone who's had experience with that kind of thing. My family brought one home awhile back."
"Didn't know that," the vulpine replied. "When we visit the farm, the only tree I ever see your family put up is that big artificial one with the multi-colored lights."
The doe continued, "That tree came into play shortly after the messiness we endured with the real one. I kid you not, for awhile my siblings and I ended up calling it 'The Pine Needle Apocalypse.'"
Nick's mind painted the picture of what he imagined that "Pine Needle Apocalypse" looked like. Taking his mind off of the whole tree discussion the two of them were having, the vulpine remarked, "This place is just beautiful!"
Smiling over at her fox, the rabbit replied, "I knew you'd like it, Slick."
The tod replied, "Sure beats my idea of just staying at home with that crackling fireplace scene playing on the TV. Beats that by a long shot."
Nick held onto Judy's paw as she lead him through the snow and up to a spot where specks of white light could be seen sparkling in the nighttime. As soon as they got closer to the source of it, the vulpine's jaw dropped in awe as he looked around.
Standing untouched behind a weathered, protective wooden fence was the largest depiction of a Christmas village he had probably ever seen. On a long surface that held everything above the snow, the display was truly a sight to behold. It was evident to both of them that a good bit of work went into the crafting and construction of it all.
Every part of the scene was both beautiful and heartwarming, among its factors were a number of painted houses in various sizes and colors, an ice rink with several little figurines moving around in figure-eights, and a winter carnival scene with a lit ferris wheel. Navigating around the whole display was a little black train, sounding its little whistle as it continued to repeatedly go in circles.
And that had only been a fraction of the wondrous construction.
"Feast your eyes, Slick," the bunny beside him said. "I heard that this is called the 'Holiday Village.'"
Nick muttered, "Gosh, this puts all those little displays like this in those craft stores to shame. This is gorgeous, Carrots!" Turning his head to the right, his eyes caught sight of a series of wood carvings that looked like tribal totem poles. "What are those over there?"
"I don't know," Judy replied. "Looks like there's some little sign on the ground beside them. Let's go see what they say." Once they got a closer look of what they wanted to see, she continued, "It says there that the one in front of the others is called The Bear of Love, and that it symbolizes the love that connects all that is living."
The fox nodded his head as he listened to what Judy was telling him. The gray bunny then pointed to a large construction not too far away from where they were both standing, and he looked over in that direction.
"And you know we haven't even went over to the barn over there," she remarked.
His tail wagging, he beckoned, "Well, Fluff, what are we waitin' for? Let's head over there and check it out!"
As the two went in the direction of the huge, rustic red barn, they noticed that a bunch of other mammals were heading to the same location, too. The doors to the building were wide open, and they started to hear the sound of a cheery, uptempo Christmas tune coming from inside.
Once Nick got towards the entrance, he saw a little metallic sign that said "Christmas Dance Party" on it to his left.
The floor of the barn was illuminated by a series of lights that shone in a festive red and green, and several couples, as well as some kits, could be seen dancing to the fun music resonating around them. Just about everyone enjoying themselves was either laughing with joy or had a big, kit-like grin upon their muzzle.
As Judy took Nick by the paw and lead him to a spot on the wooden "dancefloor," the music slowly started to get quiet and fade away. A cougar familiar to the rabbit walked into view, heading towards the microphone on the elevated platform where some instruments and speakers were. He appeared to be festively wearing some sort of Santa Claws hat on the top of his head.
Following the feline shortly afterwards were three other mammals—a cheetah, a reindeer, and a wolverine. These three were the other members to his band, that would probably be playing for those present momentarily.
The feedback that came from the platform's microphone got everyone looking in his direction, and the cougar standing there strapped a guitar around his neck. The cheetah positioned at the drums did a quick sound check, hitting the hi-hats with his drumsticks. The reindeer at the keyboard played a chord that twinkled around the barn. The wolverine picked up the bass and plucked one of its strings, resulting in the reverberation of a very deep note.
"Isn't that your friend?" Nick couldn't help but ask the bunny beside him. "Bobby Catmull?"
"Mhmm," Judy replied as she nodded her head. "I read that his band was going to be here in the article about this place."
Right after the question was answered, the cougar on the platform said into the microphone, "Happy holidays, everybody!"
After he made his little declaration, the folks gathered around started to break out into a small state of enthusiastic clapping.
Bobby continued, "So we've been performing at a couple of small venues around the area, and we thought that this would be the perfect spot to come and supply some tunes to get everyone in the spirit of the season." He turned around and pointed over to the cheetah by the drums. "But before we begin, I'd like y'all to give Hunter, our new drummer, a round of applause."
The applause that he asked for filled the space once again, and the drummer nodded his head as his ears took it in.
Nick watched them as they carried along for a short amount of time, up until the moment Judy got his full attention. Once his emerald eyes became fixated upon her, she gave him her paw with a bit of a flourish.
"Shall we dance?" she asked him.
Dancing wasn't something the fox achieved mastery of, but he accepted the lagomorph's proposition anyway. The rabbit escorted him to where the others were, and two of them proceeded to slow dance, swaying back and forth as they moved in a circle.
"Did I tell you how amazing this surprise was?" Nick asked.
Smiling back at him, Judy replied, "I've been keeping a tally of how many times you have. And I'm getting the idea that will be heading here next Christmas, am I right?"
"Absolutely, Carrots. As well as the year after that and the year after that."
Author's Note: Hey there, readers! I don't about you, but I was in the mood to write another holiday story before the new year begins. I know this one is kinda cheesy, but I hope that y'all enjoy it. As always your feedback is gladly appreciated.
'Til next time, everybody! :)