[IMPORTANT(ish) NOTES AT THE BOTTOM! VERY NEWS! SO ANNOUNCMENT! MUCH IDEA!]
He almost didn't have the heart to point out that carrot-themed wrapping paper kind of defeated the point of exchanging Secret Santa gifts.
Nick eyed the small orange-wrapped package under the tree, surprised that his partner would be so overt. She had to know that virtually every officer present was eyeing the carrot-coloured box expectantly, each one of them hoping that she'd drawn their name from the hat.
He was perfectly aware of the reputation she had earned over the last three years as the greatest Secret Santa gift-giver in the history of Precinct One. The rabbit had taken part in three exchanges, and all three times Judy had knocked it out of the park.
Although Nick had been attending the academy at the time, he'd heard the story of Judy's first Christmas at Precinct One. The general assumption was that she'd drawn McHorn's name from the hat, though she'd never admitted it outright. When the Christmas party finally came around, the stern-faced rhino opened his plainly-wrapped gift to reveal two season tickets to the National Ballet of Zootopia. More than a few officers had visibly winced as McHorn stared at the tickets blankly. Then a slow smile began to spread across his face, growing into a grin and finally giving way to thunderous laughter.
"Oh damn!" He roared. "I don't know which one of you is responsible for this, but you really saved my hide!"
Unbeknownst to his fellow officers, McHorn's wife had been none-too-subtly implying that she wanted the very same tickets for Christmas. By the time he'd finally picked up on the hints she'd been dropping, however, the season tickets had been entirely sold out. Though no amount of cajoling could get Judy to admit she'd been the gruff rhino's Secret Santa, the distinct bounce in her step for the rest of the evening made it relatively easy to figure out.
The real mystery was how the bunny had known what to get, particularly since no one had known about the rhino's predicament before that evening. Rumors bounced around, theories were formed and dismissed, but no answers were uncovered. It was eventually decided that the bunny had made a lucky guess.
Although Nick had been a part of the Precinct One family for several months when the next Christmas rolled around, he'd only really gotten to know a few of the mammals he worked with. So when he drew Higgins' name from the Secret Santa hat, he'd been at a loss for what to get for the hippo. He'd ended up going the safe route with a gift card to a popular herbivore restaurant. Higgins had smiled politely when he opened it and offered the customary 'thank you' to the gathered officers, but Nick had still felt just a little disappointed with himself.
For his part, Nick had opened his own newspaper-wrapped package to reveal a plastic pawpsicle maker – the kind you put in your freezer at home – and a bright pink t-shirt emblazoned with Everyday I'm Hustlin'. He'd laughed along with everyone, especially when he noticed his partner's playfully innocent expression. "Gee... who could possibly be responsible for this?"
Clawhauser shooed the fox back into the crowd, the white pompom of his Santa hat bouncing as he rushed to grab the next gift. The box he selected was the definition of nondescript. Wrapped in light beige paper, it bore a simple computer-printed label.
To: Officer Sofia Fangmeyer
From: Santa Claws
The tiger had held the box to her ear and given it a playful shake, then set her claws to work on the wrapping. The bland paper came off to reveal a dark plastic container, tightly sealed with several layers of packing tape. Peeling the tape away, she pulled back the lid to reveal a dozen small tins.
She'd carefully lifted one of them from the box. Small pranks had been part of the precinct's Secret Santa right from the beginning, and she'd been rightfully wary of a potential trap. But when she popped the lid off with a playful cringe, the mammals nearest to her were treated to the smell of an enticingly unfamiliar spice. The tiger had stared at the tin in her paw, an astonished expression on her face. Then she'd held it to her nose, drew in a deep breath and begun to purr softly.
It had taken a few moments to regain her attention, but eventually she'd explained that each of the small tins contained a different cooking spice from the Eastern Federation. Her mother had lived there before she emigrated to Zootopia, her grandparents still lived there and - on the rare opportunities she had to visit them - her grandmother always cooked these elaborate meals with all kinds of mouth-watering spices. Fangmeyer had always wanted to bring some of them back with her, but they were virtually impossible to clear through customs and she'd never been able to find them in the city.
The tiger had spent the rest of the evening trying to subtly sniff each mammal at the party, searching for any clue about her gift giver's identity. She'd eyed Judy suspiciously as she'd wandered past, but said nothing. Once she was out of earshot, Nick had leaned in closely to whisper in the bunny's ear. "She's wasting her time. If it had been me, I'd have wrapped and sealed it up weeks ago to keep the smell hidden. Probably while out of town, just to be sure."
She'd smiled softly; not her usual grin, but the little one she saved just for him. "Why Nick, are you implying something?"
"Of course not." He'd nudged her playfully. "On a completely unrelated note, how was your visit home last month?"
"Totally uneventful."
"Well, that's good."
He'd never gotten his partner to say anything more on the subject, and the tiger's santa seemed to have covered their tracks pretty well. Even so, if it had been Judy, Nick suspected she might have slipped up somewhere. Perhaps left behind some clue or missed some tiny detail. What else could explain the small tin of delicious spice cookies sitting on their shared desk every Monday morning?
Judy's third Christmas was a bit more enigmatic and – in some ways – far more astounding.
The bunny had enthusiastically reached her paw into the drawing hat, but when she read the small slip of paper her expression (and ears) fell instantly. The precinct's rumor mill had gone into immediate overdrive, but the majority of officers refused to share what name they'd drawn, making it nearly impossible to guess who Hopps had gotten.
When the night of the precinct holiday party arrived, everyone watched with rapt attention as each gift was opened. For his part, Nick had gotten lucky. He'd pulled the name of a forensics technician who'd proceeded to quit a week later. None of the gifts seemed to stand out as the pile grew smaller. Finally, to everyone's disappointment Clawhauser revealed the last gift from beneath the brightly lit tree - a small envelope marked:
For Chief Bogo, from Officer Santa.
It was a long-standing tradition that the Chief opened his gift last, and he accepted the unremarkable envelope from Clawhauser with a wry smile. It wasn't much to look at and most of the mammals present assumed it was just a gift card. That was something that Bogo almost always received and had long since grown accustomed to. Even he recognized how difficult it could be to purchase a gift for one's superior.
Tearing the envelope open, he withdrew a simple holiday-themed card and opened it. His brow furrowed for a moment as he read the card's message, then the entire room watched in awe as the buffalo's features lit up with joy. It had taken him a moment to regain his composure, after which he'd cleared his throat and offered a faint, "Thank you."
No one ever discovered what had been written in that card, and by this point Judy had gotten much better at playing it cool. She didn't give anyone the slightest reason to suspect her that evening – but it didn't escape anyone's notice when she and Nick managed to avoid parking duty for the entire year that followed.
This year would be Judy's forth holiday party at Precinct One, and the air was rife with anticipation. Whichever name she'd pulled at this year's draw, she hadn't given away the slightest reaction. Judy had actually come to him for advice on keeping a straight face, and although Nick was strangely proud that she'd thought of him, it left him all the more disappointed when he spotted the bright orange wrapping under the tree. For god's sake, it even had a green bow on one end.
Shaking his head, looking over to where he spotted Wolford. The wolf was sitting almost perfectly still, ears upright as he stared intently at the collection of gifts. The fox wandered over and took a seat beside his friend. "Hey buddy."
One of his ears angled slightly in Nick's direction. "Hey."
"Enjoying yourself?"
"Sure."
He gestured toward the brightly wrapped pile. "So, any theor..."
"It's got my name on it." Wolford interrupted.
"What does?"
"That." He twitched his muzzle toward the offending orange box. "But it's a trick. It has to be."
"Huh?"
"A feint. A ruse. A red herring."
"Have you been drinking?"
"That's beside the point. She's messing with me, man. She's trying to get in my head."
"Wait, are you... are you talking about Carrots?"
"It's so devious..." Wolford muttered, glancing at Nick. "Every year, her gift has been plainly wrapped. Last year it came in one of those envelopes from the front desk! Why would it suddenly be so obvious?"
"You might be reading too much into this."
"Maybe." Wolford turned, staring at the fox with suspicion. "Or maybe she sent you here to say that."
"Okay…I'm gonna go over to the bar." Nick stood and slowly backed away. "Feel free to come hang out when you're finished being crazy."
Hastily putting some distance between himself and the wolf, Nick cast his eyes around the room in search of his partner. It didn't take him long to spot her sitting near the bar. Sidling up behind her, he hopped up onto the stool and graced her with his trademark smirk.
"So, Carrots, it seems that your mission to drive Wolford insane is coming along nicely."
"What?" Judy laughed. "What are you talking about?"
He gestured toward the anxious canine hovering near the tree. "He's convinced that you're intentionally messing with him. Toying with his fragile psyche. For shame, Officer Hopps."
"I am not!"
"Oh, really?" He peered at her curiously, gesturing over his shoulder. "Because you're not exactly playing it close to the chest over there."
"I have no idea what you mean."
Sighing, he placed his drink on the bar and turned to face her. "Says the bunny who wrapped her gift to look exactly like a carrot."
"Did I?" She asked innocently. "I don't think I did. I sure hope no one gets the wrong idea."
He hummed vaguely, letting his eyes drift over the crowd. "So tell me, what did you get for the lucky mammal this year?"
"It's called a Secret Santa, Nick. Emphasis on secret." She chided him gently. "Besides, how do you know I didn't pull your name?"
Nick chuckled, rolling his eyes lightly. "Don't try to psych me out, Carrots. Wolford is one thing, but you'll have to do a lot better than that to get into my head."
"Just give me time, Slick." She winked, taking another sip of her carrot martini. "Since you're asking, who do you think got your name?"
"It's called a Secret Santa, Carrots." His imitation of her voice was less than impressive. "Besides, I'm not the focus of everyone's attention this evening."
She rolled her eyes lightly. "You don't know the half of it. I've lost count of how many 'subtle' questions I've had to dodge so far."
"That's what happens when you're here to grant one mammal their heart's desire." He threw his arms out to encompass the whole room, drawing an amused snort from the bunny. "To hear some of the other officers talk about it, you're basically magical."
"Come on, Nick. You can't just expect to have your heart's desire handed to you in a box. Sometimes you have to go and find it."
Nick turn back to face her, a curious expression on his face. He couldn't quite identify what it was that had piqued his interest, but there had been something unique in her voice; something that made his ears perk up and left his tail swaying happily from side to side. "What does that mean?"
Before she could answer, the music faded and Clawhauser's voice came piping out the speakers. All eyes turned toward the cheetah standing next to the tree with his traditional Santa Claws hat pulled over his ears. "Alright, everyone! You know what time it is!"
The various officers and support staff of Precinct One gathered round as Ben started passing out packages. One by one, each of them accepted and opened their own gifts. Some sparked laughter, others brought groans and eye rolls, and each one brought a smile to someone's face.
Having pulled Francine's name from the hat, Nick watched with smug amusement as she opened the small envelope to find a ten-visit pass to the Mystic Springs Oasis. It had been a calculated risk, but Nick was a natural gambler and was pleasantly surprised when the elephant just blushed slightly, thanked her anonymous Santa and tucked the pass into her pocket.
Even as all this was happening, however, everyone kept one eye on the mysterious flash of orange. The cheetah seemed to delight in picking up gifts close to it, without actually selecting it. Finally though, after nearly all of the other gifts had been handed out, Ben finally picked up the eye-catching package and gave the label a quick glance. Feigning uncertainty, he glanced between the package in his paw and those that remained beneath the tree, pretending not to notice as Wolford's tail twitched impatiently. Eventually deciding he'd had enough fun, Ben turned and placed the orange-wrapped box in the wolf's paws.
Gazing reverently at the gift he'd been handed, Wolford slowly began to unwrap it. The first layer fell away, uncovering a slim aluminum case. Releasing a small clasp on the side, he opened the case to reveal a simple card. A slight hush fell over the room as the other officers leaned in, the air practically crackling with anticipation.
His paws trembled slightly as he slowly opened the card to discover…a Buga-Burger gift certificate and a hastily scrawled note.
PSYCH! Merry Christmas, cricket-breath! - Santa
"Oh, what the hell?!" He yelled, holding up the gift certificate for all to see. Realizing that the wolf had been duped, the sounds of amusement began to ripple through the crowd.
"It's not funny!" He announced over the laughter of his fellow officers. "I'm gonna find whichever one of you is behind this! There are going to be consequences!"
"Alright, alright." Gently pushing the indignant wolf away from the tree, Clawhauser coughed loudly to recapture everyone's attention. "While Officer Wolford is plotting his revenge, we're just going to move on to the next gift. I'm pretty sure this one is for Wilde."
"Pretty sure?" Nick asked as the smiling Cheetah handed the gift over, raising an eyebrow when he turned over the printed tag. "Ah. I see."
To: Rockin' Fox
From: Sneaky Santa
Although it was large enough that Nick needed both paws to accept it, he was surprised by how lightweight it was. Placing it on the floor, he proceeded to strip the wrapping away as quickly as he could, tearing the last few pieces away with one claw.
Inside he found another box taped to the bottom, much smaller than the first. Lifting it up to the light, Nick examined it closely. It was only an inch wide; small enough to fit in his closed paw and visually unremarkable. "Well, this is underwhelming."
"Maybe there's more inside?" Clawhauser ventured as the other officers murmured softly to one another. "Good things come in small packages, right?"
"Only one way to find out." He quipped. Peeling off the thin strip of tape on one side, Nick had to use one claw to retrieve the tiny roll of paper within. He could feel the eyes of every mammal in the room upon him as he unfurled it cautiously and revealed the message:
Come and find me.
Nick had always liked puzzles, and now those well-maintained parts of his mind spun into action. It had taken him the span of a heartbeat to recognize the tidy cursive of Judy's handwriting. His eyes darted between the note in his paw, the now-empty box, and the curious faces all around him.
"Well? What does it say?" Clawhauser asked.
He scanned the room for any sign of his partner but, except for an empty martini glass on a nearby table, the bunny was nowhere to be found.
"It says...um..." Nick paused as he recalled the bunny's earlier comment, the last puzzle piece fell into place and his heart did a little backflip in his chest.
"Nick?"
An uncharacteristically earnest smile spread across his face and he felt his tail begin to wag furiously behind him. He stuffed the slip of paper into his pocket, sprinted toward the exit, and didn't spare his co-workers a second glance as he yelled back over his shoulder. "Gotta go! Merry...whatever!"
Bursting out the front doors of Precinct One, Nick looked around frantically for any sign of his partner.
"I'm over here."
His head snapped around to find her leaning casually beside the precinct doors. "Carrots, I...uh...hi."
"Hi, Nick." A tiny smile curled the corner of her lips. "So, am I in your head yet?"
"Oh...well..." He held up the slip of paper. "After what you said earlier...does this mean you...?"
"It means I'm interested." She emphasized, pushing herself off the wall. "I have been for a little while now."
"Interested...in me?" Nick cocked his head to one side as he tried to process this new information.
"Yes, interested in you." She laughed, stepping a little nearer. She was close enough that, if he wanted to, he could reach out and grab her.
And he really, really wanted to.
"As in...y'know...interested?"
Though she was more than a little amused at seeing the poor fox act so flustered, she was beginning to think she should have written more on that slip of paper. It was clear she'd have to make this very unambiguous for him.
"How about this? I, Judy Hopps," She pointed to herself. "Am interested in dating you, Nick Wilde." She reached out, placing her paw on his arm as a hint of nervousness appeared in her eyes. "And I'm really hoping that you are, too. Otherwise this is about to get really awkward."
That finally snapped Nick of out of his trance. "No! I mean, yes! I am one hundred percent interested, too!"
"In me?" She teased, smiling brightly as the previously unnoticed tension vanished from her body.
He nodded his head vigorously for a few seconds, then froze as his brain caught up with his behavior. She laughed softly as he tried to recover his normally cool demeanor. "I mean...er...what I mean is, I can't really say that I'm surprised. Ladies can't resist a fox in uniform, you know."
"Okay, a little less interested now."
"C'mon, Carrots." He gave her his most charming smile and leaned over, bringing their eyes level. "You know you love me."
"I like you, smarty-pants." Reaching out to tap him playfully on the nose, she giggled at the indignant snuffling sound he made. "Don't push your luck."
Nick let out an amused chuff of air. "I'd say all my luck went toward you drawing my name out of the hat."
"I didn't."
"What?"
"I didn't actually draw your name." She shrugged. "I got Wolford."
"Seriously?" She nodded. "Then who pulled out my name?"
"The officer who traded me for Wolford's."
"Oh."
The pair stood in not-quite-awkward silence for a moment, neither of them really knowing where to take the conversation next. Judy coughed lightly, scuffing one of her feet against the pavement. "So...did you want to, y'know, go back inside?"
"Not really." He admitted. "Did you?"
"Not really." She winced as a thought struck her. "We're going to have so many questions to answer tomorrow."
"Let's not worry about it tonight, Fluff." He took her paw, and the pair began to walk in the general direction to the nearest metro station. "Right now, I'd rather just enjoy my Christmas present."
"You're right." She sighed, hiding from the cool evening air by nuzzling into his side. "Merry Christmas, Nick."
"Merry Christmas, Carrots."
Fun Fact: If I'd actually stuck to my original publishing schedule (which I obviously failed to do) this glimpse would have been released on December 24th. Oh well, mid-May is basically the same as Christmas, right?
IMPORTANT(ish) ANNOUNCEMENTS
Production News:
Tired, Air, and Mortal are already finished and will be published just as soon as I'm done using them to stall for time. On the other hand, Epiphany is only about one-third complete and Vote is still in the earliest stages. I have NO IDEA what to write for Excitement, so...
Calling All Authors:
In response to my vicious case of writer's block on Excitement (and because I don't want to publish some nonsense just for the sake of publishing) I'd like to invite any interested writer to take on that glimpse and show people what they've got! If more than one person is interested (I dare to dream), then I could even publish it as a separate anthology.
Roster Change:
The last two glimpses, Guarding and Baby, have switched places. This is because Baby was always meant to be, at most, a short vignette. Guarding is going to be a multi-chapter story, alongside Sheriff and potentially two others.