"I'll see you later, Ben!" The lovely caracal smiled as Clawhauser nodded dreamily. Melissa came by every day to drop off a basket of delicious treats from her bakery. She insisted that it was her way of showing appreciation for the ZPD, but the fact that she always lingered by the front desk to talk to Benjamin wasn't lost on anyone. His eyes were helplessly drawn to the hypnotic sway of her tail as he watched her leave, already looking forward to tomorrow morning.

Previously...

"Excuse me?"

"Gah!" Startled, Ben swung around to discover a pretty caracal standing at his desk. She gave him a little wave, and Clawhauser felt his heart skip a beat. He always thought that expression was nonsense, but he'd be damned if his heart didn't actually skip a beat.

"Um...hi."

He blinked at her owlishly for a second before he responded. "Hi."

"Sorry if I startled you." She stepped forward, smiling hesitantly. "I didn't mean to."

"No. I mean, you didn't." Taking a deep breath, his focus briefly jumped to the delicious-smelling basket hanging from her arm. "How can I help you, Miss...?"

"Rooikat." Grinning, she reached out with her free paw. "Melissa Rooikat. Pleasure to meet you."

Now...

"Benjamin Clawhauser." He accepted the offered paw, shaking it with a smile. "Pleasure to meet you, Melissa. What can I do for you?"

"Right, so, here's the thing. I run this bakery over at Twelfth and Gully called..."

"Kit-Kat's?" Ben guessed.

"That's right." She nodded, surprised. "How'd you know?"

"I live near there. I've been meaning to stop in, but if what I smell in that basket is any indication..." Smiling, he patted his stomach ruefully. "I might never leave."

Ben felt inexplicably lightheaded when Melissa laughed at the terrible joke, and briefly wondered if he was coming down with something. He dealt with dozens of mammals every day - sloppy drunks, indignant youths, crying mothers, overly-aggressive lawyers – and none of them made him feel as vaguely off-balance as this lovely feline.

"Anyway," She continued. "The reason I came by today was to..."

"Hey! Hey, Clawhauser!"

Reluctantly turning to look at the newcomer, he saw Officer Cordell grinning at him. They were members of the same Gazelle Fan Club chapter, and the horse was holding up his phone with excitement. To his credit, Ben resisted the urge to growl before glancing back to Melissa. "I'm sorry...could you hold on a second?"

"Of course." She assured him. "No rush."

"Thanks." He turned to regard the other officer. "Hey, Dave. What's up?"

"Great news, bro!" The horse practically whinnied. "This new Gazelle app just got released! It lets you create your own voicemail recording in her voice! Check this out!"

He held out his phone and tapped the screen with one hoof. "Hello, this is Gazelle. You've reached the voicemail of Da-Vid-Cor-Dell. Unfortunately, Da-Vid can't answer the phone right now, but please leave a message and I'm sure Da-Vid will call you right back. Ciao!"

"I...um..." A small part of Ben was practically vibrating with excitement. The rest of him wanted to swallow his own tongue in embarrassment.

"Isn't that awesome!?" Cordell pressed.

"Yeah. Really cool."

"Download it so you can try!"

"Uh...maybe later."

"Are you..." Cordell trailed off as Ben glanced back to Melissa "...sure, buddy. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye, Dave." Turning back, Ben gave her a hesitant smile. "He's a big Gazelle fan."

She leaned in slightly, giving him a knowing look. "And you are...?"

For the first time since he was a teenager, Ben felt hesitant to express his enthusiasm. "I am...also a Gazelle fan...club...chapter president."

"Going all in on your passions, I see." She smiled, giving him a little wink that made his stomach do a little flip. He absently wondered if this was what going insane felt like. "I definitely approve."

"You don't think it's strange?" He asked, more accustomed to odd looks or the occasional bit of lighthearted teasing.

"About as strange as dropping out of medical school to start a bakery."

"Fair enough." Nodding thoughtfully, he backtracked to where their earlier conversation had been interrupted. "Sorry. What were you saying before Dave came over?"

"Right." Her ears tipped back a little as she glanced away shyly. "It actually seems silly now that I'm here..."

"I'm sure it isn't."

"I was talking with my sister the other day and she was telling me about some of the ZPD's new youth outreach programs - she's a teacher, by the way – and how much they've done to help the kids at her school." Her words came out like a tumble, and Ben nodded to show he was following. "I kept thinking that it was really great that the ZPD was going the extra mile when this idea popped into my head to do something for them in return."

"That's not necessary." He assured her. "That's just what we do."

"I know. I just thought, you know, since everyone knows how much police officers love donuts – that's not offensive, is it?"

Smiling, he gave his ample belly another meaningful pat.

"Right. So, since I own a bakery, I thought I could bring you all a basket of fresh pastries every morning to say thanks." She paused. "I mean, as long as that isn't against the rules or anything."

"It's fine." He assured her. "I mean, that's really nice of you and I'll make sure it's okay."

"Here, let me give you my number." Rummaging in her bag for a moment, she produced a business card. "Give me a call if there's an issue. Otherwise, I guess I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Absolutely. I'll be here."

"Great! It was really nice to meet you, Ben."

"Yeah." He nodded, waving absentmindedly as she walked away. "You, too."

~o~o~o~

Although it had been a long year for Ben - even if you didn't count his recent time on probation - it had also been a year of self improvement. Since his disastrous meeting with Gazelle on the day she'd visited the precinct, he'd been on a quest to get back to a healthy weight.

The last twelve months had been a hard road, and he had a long way to go. It was easy to get discouraged; he still wasn't anywhere near as slim as a healthy cheetah should be, but a combination of hard work and determination (and the painfully unavoidable 'motivation' provided by a certain bunny) he'd managed to cut his weight in half. He was getting closer every day.

On top of the physical work, he'd also finally summoned up the courage to go to counselling to help not only with his eating habits, but also with the lingering issues he still carried over his long-ago duty injury. His therapist had helped him develop a way to cope with the negative thoughts he had about his leg. Whenever he found himself dwelling on it, he'd pause, take a deep breath, press one paw against the side of his thigh, and silently recite the affirmation they'd come up with together.

This was HIS leg.

Being injured hadn't taken it away. It was a part of him and always would be.

The prosthetic bone structure was a part of him, too. It needed him as much as he needed it. Without him, it was just a pile of titanium and carbon fiber parts.

He gave it purpose, and it gave him strength.

They were a team.

In the beginning he'd have to say the words over and over to banish the oppressive thoughts. Now, it usually took just a single repetition to re-center him.

After he met Melissa, he discovered that he needed it even less, and it didn't take long for 8am to become Ben's favorite part of the day. No matter what else was going on, he always made sure he was at the front desk to greet Melissa when she arrived.

As the weeks passed, it wasn't missed by the other officers that she would stay a little longer each time. A quick 'good morning' was quickly replaced by 'how's your day so far?', which soon evolved into 'how was your weekend?'. Before long there were shared jokes and stories. On one occasion the Chief himself had to walk by the front desk, loudly clearing his throat to remind the cheetah that there was actual work to be done.

Eventually, Bogo suggested that if Clawhauser was going to spend so much time chatting with her every morning, he could just stop by the bakery to help her carry everything to the precinct. The cheetah agreed without a second's hesitation and, before long, the two of them were walking together every other morning.

It was on one of those walks that he actually told her about his leg, startling himself in the process. It wasn't that it was a secret, exactly; he'd just never felt particularly comfortable talking about it. He was prone to be a little neurotic – most cheetahs were – and he worried that it might alter other mammals' opinion of him.

Rather than the semi-morbid fascination he's seen from others, she'd simply glanced at the limb in question with a mildly interested look. "Really?"

"Yep." Ben nodded, laughing a little nervously. "Genuine after-market cheetah parts."

"It doesn't look any different." She noted. "If you hadn't told me, I'd never have noticed."

And that was it. Ben's 'big secret' – or at least the closest thing he had to one – was out there, and nothing bad had come of it. It hadn't been swept under a rug, but it didn't loom over ever conversation like he'd feared it would. She'd even affectionately called him 'peg-leg' once, and he'd surprised himself by laughing.

He loved every moment they spent together and was well-aware that he was starting to fall for her. The only question was when he'd be able to gather up enough courage to do something about it.

~o~o~o~

About a month after Melissa had first walked into Ben's life, Nick found him sitting at the front desk with a particularly dopey expression on his face. He guessed it had been at least half an hour since the object of Ben's affections had left, and the cheetah was still staring dreamily at the precinct doors.

It was painfully obvious how he felt about her. Almost as obvious as it was that she felt the same way. It was starting to feel like if they were left to their own devices, they might just keep orbiting on another until one or both of them crash-landed in the friend zone. Shaking his head, Nick decided that something needed to be done.

"Heya Ben." He chuckled when the cheetah jumped in surprise. "What did your crush bring us today?"

Seemingly annoyed by the abrupt return to reality, Ben glared at the smaller mammal. "Melissa's not my crush, Nick."

"I don't recall mentioning Melissa." Nick responded with a pointed look. "But hey, whatever you say, big guy."

"She's not."

Sighing, he climbed up onto the desk and looked Ben dead in the eye. "Look, it's usually my policy to stay out of this kind of thing, but you obviously need a little push forward."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really, so I'm gonna be super clear about this." He leaned forward, speaking slowly. "Ask Melissa out on a date."

"But..."

"Ben, a blind mammal with a head injury could tell you two like each other." He held up a paw, cutting off the cheetah's argument before it began. "I get that it's hard, believe me. I had to get beaten half to death by a murderous ram before I worked up the nerve to ask Carrots out, and even that had to wait until after she woke up from her drug-induced psychosis! Remember that?"

"You know I do, Nick."

"Then take it from me, the universe will either pull you together or rip you apart if you let it. Better to just take the reigns yourself."

"I know...it's just, I'm not..."

"Dammit." Nick groaned, running a paw over his face in exasperation. "Y'know what? We're going with plan B."

"What do you mean, plan B?"

"It's the plan where we ask Melissa out for you by text."

He eyed the fox dubiously. "I don't think she'd believe that."

"She might if it came from your phone."

"My pho..." A bolt of fear went through him as he grasped at his phone pouch and found it empty. Looking back at Nick in terror, he found the fox smirking at him. "Where's my phone, Nick?!"

"Carrots snatched it while you were in dream-land." The fox's aura of smugness intensified. "She's going to go ahead and ask Melissa out, by text message, from your phone."

"You can't!"

"Can and will, buddy."

"I'll just tell her you stole my phone."

"Go right ahead. She'll still ask why we sent that particular message." He shrugged. "If you're honestly not interested in her like that, all you have to say as much. She'll understand, you'll both have a good laugh, Carrots and I will look like jerks and the two of you can go on being friends."

"But...I..."

"Unless you are interested, in which case you'd probably prefer to ask her out in person." He cocked his head, a look of innocent curiosity on his face. "Are you interested, Ben?"

Ben took a deep breath and slowly counted to ten. "Of course I'm interested, Nick."

"In dating Melissa?" He specified.

"Yes." The cheetah briefly considered taking a swipe at the smug mammal before him. "Now please call Judy and get her to bring my phone back here."

"This phone?" Nick reached into his pocket, holding up the device in question.

"You had it? But you said..."

"I was bluffing, Ben." He explained. "Hustling, if you will. You dropped your phone and Carrots found it just outside the bullpen. She asked me to bring it back to you."

"Why?"

"You know why, buddy." Tossing the phone to the stunned cheetah he added. "And not for nothing, Melissa sent to a text about ten minutes ago. Apparently, she really enjoyed talking with you this morning and wants to know if you're free for lunch."

"She did?" He scrambled to unlock his phone, quickly finding the message. "She did."

"Yup."

"So you already knew...?"

"We're friends, Ben. You think I'd do that to you if I wasn't sure?" Nick actually looked affronted. "Never start a hustle unless the risk is worth the reward."

"You're such a..."

"Are you going to berate me?" He pointed at the nearby wall clock, which had just reached 12:00. "Or are you going to go find some better company over your lunch break?"

"...this isn't over, Nick."

"Sure. Now get out of here, you crazy kid. I'll even watch the front desk for you."

Sparing the fox one last glare, Clawhauser left without another word. Stepping out of the precinct, he turned in the direction of Kit-Kat's, barely even aware of the carefree smile on his face.

~o~o~o~

Walking into Kit-Kat's, Ben was distracted from the jingle of the bells over the entrance by the sight of an angry looking coyote leaning over the counter. On the other side, Melissa stood a step or two back, paws clutching her apron and eyes wide in shock. A surge of protectiveness rushed through him as the angry mammal opened his mouth to speak, and Ben cut him off by loudly slamming the door behind him.

The coyote swung around to glare at him, angry words clearly on the tip on his tongue, and flinched away from the ZPD badge.

"Is there a problem here, sir?" Ben asked, sharply. "Well?"

"I...no." The coyote muttered, glowering as he shuffled backward. "No problem, officer."

"Then I think you should be on your way."

"I..."

Ben moved forward, deliberately pressing into the other mammal's personal space. "Not. Asking."

As if suddenly realizing how much smaller he was than the officer in front of him, the coyote's bluster faded considerably. He turned to give Melissa one last baleful look, and – if only to save face - shouldered past Ben on his way to the door.

"What was that about?"

"Unhappy customer." Melissa sniffed, releasing her grip on her apron and wiping her paws anxiously. "I...uh...I guess you can't please everyone."

"Apparently not." Ben agreed, watching in annoyance as the coyote blatantly jaywalked across the street. "What was his problem?"

She sighed, calming a little at his concerned expression. "He wanted a refund, I said no, and he decided to call me...something not very nice."

"Wha..."

"If it's all the same, Ben, I'd rather not talk about it."

"Okay." He agreed, a little reluctantly. "No problem."

Shaking off the unpleasant experience, she gave him a warm smile. "Never mind that; look at you here in the middle of the day. I guess you got my message."

"Yeah. Yeah, I sure did." He swallowed nervously, taking the leap before he could talk himself out of it. "Actually, I was wondering if you...uh...you'd like to get dinner, too. Like, on a date."

"Aw, Ben." She responded, and for a brief moment he feared the worst. "And here I was starting to wonder if you were waiting for me to ask."

"You were?"

"Sure, I'm old-fashioned enough to wait, but I wasn't going to wait forever."

"Oh. Well, okay then. I guess it's a date. Where...uh...where would you like to..."

She took his paw and his heart gave a now-familiar flutter. "How about we talk about it over lunch?"

"Yeah." A renewed smile appeared on his face. "Yeah, that sounds great."

~o~o~o~

"Morning, Benji."

"Morning." The cheetah responded, gazing dreamily at nothing in particular.

"You're looking a little out of it. You okay?"

"Okay."

"I take it you two had fun last night?"

"Yeah." Ben sighed. "Fun."

Grinning mischievously, Nick leaned against the reception desk and glanced up at his friend. "Y'know what I was thinking about earlier? How awful cupcakes are, right?"

"Mm-hm. Right."

"Right." The fox's grin grew even wider. "Say, how about I go grab us some nice wheatgrass smoothies? Sound good?"

"Sounds good."

"Want to go for a run with Judy later? It'll be awesome."

"Yeah. Awesome."

"You're always welcome to join us."

Startled by the unexpected voice behind him, Nick was completely unsurprised to find his laughing partner. "Funny, Carrots. Real funny."

Pointing at the dazed-looking cheetah, she gave him a curious look. "Is he alright?"

"I'm sure he's better than alright. Someone had a date last night. Judging from his expression I'd say it went pretty well."

"Ooh. Who's the lucky lady?"

"None other than the Pastry Queen of Precinct One." He glanced over to the main doors in time to see the caracal in question walk in. "And speak of the devil..."

Melissa did a poor job of hiding her eagerness as she made her way across the lobby, coming to a stop at the front desk and smiling shyly. "Hi, Ben."

"Hi." He responded.

"Not to interrupt." Nick's voice startled them both. "But should we leave before the two of you start making googly-eyes at each other?"

Suddenly realizing that Nick and Judy were there – and who they actually were - Melissa froze in surprise. "Oh! I didn't see you there."

"We can be very inconspicuous."

"But...you're you!"

"We sure are." Nick agreed, smiling faintly. "Who'd have thought?"

Rolling her eyes lightly at her partner, Judy extended her paw. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Miss Rooikat."

"It's Melissa. Melissa Rooikat, I mean. Is me. Heh..." She shook the bunny's paw a little awkwardly. "You can just call me Melissa."

"Judy Hopps." The rabbit responded smoothly, gesturing to her partner. "Nick Wilde."

"I know. It's so amazing to meet you two. I'm...er...kind of a fan of yours." She admitted shyly, quickly adding. "Not in a crazy-mammal kind of way, though."

"How reassuring." Nick gave her a wink. "I guess if Ben likes you, we can give you a shot."

"Thanks. I promise I'm usually not this scatterbrained. I'm just a little nervous."

"There's really no need to be. We're just regular mammals."

"Speak for yourself, Carrots. I think I'm amazing."

"You just need to get to know us better. Oh!" Judy gave an enthusiastic little bounce. "We should do a double-date sometime!"

"That'd be great! Does that mean you two really are...you know..." She trailed off, gesturing between them with a hesitant smile.

"Romantically entangled interspecies law-enforcement associates?" Nick ventured, chuckling when Judy gently swatted his arm.

"Well, I was going to say dating, but I just didn't want to assume."

"We are indeed."

"Yay!" Melissa grinned, bouncing a little on her toes. A second later, her ears fell in embarrassment. "Sorry. It's just that the two of you make such a cu...riously charming couple."

"Nice save." Nick quipped as his partner tried not to giggle.

"Sorry." She repeated, laughing nervously and glancing away. "My mouth and brain aren't always on the same page."

"It's okay. I don't care what page you're on." Ben gave her a sappy smile.

"You don't?"

"Nope. I want to read the whole book."

With a soft sigh, Melissa reached out to take his paw. "That's so sweet."

"Carrots, did we just get ejected from the conversation?"

"I think so. Do you think we've ever done that to anyone?"

"Good gods, I hope not." Eyeing the two felines, he winced when they actually rubbed noses. "Right, that's it. You two are disgusting and we're leaving. Later, Ben."

Nick paused, waiting for a response. "Ben? You hear me?"

"Don't bother, Nick." Shaking her head in amusement, Judy took her partner by the arm and led him away. "He's gone."

~o~o~o~

Much to Nick's annoyance, the next two months did absolutely nothing to diminish the pair's sappy sweetness. Like before, Melissa still lingered every morning to talk to Ben, but now those conversations held a much more affectionate tone. Eventually, even Bogo stopped trying to discourage them and it just became part of life at Precinct One. That was what made it all the more noticeable when she simply didn't show up one morning.

"Hey Ben, where's your sweetheart today?" Nick pointed behind him, where a half-dozen uniformed mammals orbited the coffee machine in obvious agitation. "The break room is lacking muffins and the natives are getting restless."

"I don't know. She should have arrived by now." Which was something Ben was trying not to worry about.

"That doesn't seem like her."

"It usually isn't." He agreed, eyes fixed on the door. It wasn't the first time it had happened, exactly. There had been one or two times when she'd discovered she was out of some critical ingredient and had to run out for more. Once she'd come in to find that a fuse had blown, and she hadn't had a replacement. Unable to start the ovens, she'd spent an hour searching for an open hardware store that still sold actual fuses.

"Maybe she's not feeling well?" Nick ventured.

"She wasn't feeling sick when she left this morn...I mean, she'd have called to let me know if she wasn't feeling well."

"Well, well, well. Way to go, big guy." Nick laughed, playfully elbowing Ben's side. His smile fell when the cheetah didn't even respond. "Are you really that worried?"

Ben gave a hesitant nod. Like every other workday, she'd woken up that morning at 5am and headed to the bakery to get started for the day. He'd tried to do the same, but she'd insisted that he go back to sleep and promised they'd see each other a few hours later. "I know it's silly, but I've just got a bad feeling."

"I get it. Tell you what; how about you and I drive down there and see what's up? Best case, it turns out you have nothing to worry about, and while we're there we can pick up enough donuts to keep first shift from revolting."

"Yeah?"

"Sure, buddy." Nick nodded sincerely. "Now c'mon. I can hear those crullers calling my name."

~o~o~o~

When they arrived at the bakery, Ben was disappointed to find that Melissa wasn't there either. On the other paw, Helen – Melissa's best friend and business partner - grinned at him the second he walked in.

"Morning, Catsanova."

"Hey, Helen. Have you seen Melissa today?"

"Sure, she was here earlier." The slim bobcat chuckled. "Whistling a happy little tune, I might add. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

"When did she leave?" He continued, sidestepping the question as he looked around the room. "I haven't seen her since she left this morning and I'm a little worried."

"Aww, Ben. You're such a sweetheart." Amused, Helen clapped the flour from her paws. "She was here when I got in at seven, and she went out around eight to get more powdered sugar."

Ben glanced at his watch. "That was nearly an hour ago. Shouldn't she be back by now?"

"Probably, but you know how Melissa can be. She's too nice for her own good. I bet ya ten bucks she somehow got roped into helping change someone's tire or something."

"I guess, but she's not answering her phone."

"Ben, I'm sure she's fi-"

"Hey guys?" Nick interrupted, gesturing to his phone with an unsettlingly worried expression. "It's Carrots. She knows where Melissa is."

~o~o~o~

For about the hundredth time in the last hour, Melissa cursed herself for being so stupid as she forced a weak smile for the mammal across the table. He was still talking, though she'd stopped really listening almost twenty minutes earlier. Then again, he'd more or less been rambling for the last thirty, so the coyote probably wasn't even listening to himself anymore.

Just over his shoulder, she could see the exit. If she ran, she could probably get there in five steps. Four, if she really pushed it. She wouldn't run, though. She knew she couldn't, and dropped her gaze down to the chipped linoleum table, keeping him from seeing her fight the urge to cry.

Why didn't you tell anyone, you idiot? Why did you let it come to this?! She berated herself silently, blinking back tears. If you had, you'd be talking to Ben right now instead of sitting here like a scared little kitten! So stupid!

She knew exactly why she hadn't said anything; she'd been embarrassed. She hadn't wanted Ben – or anyone else - to look at her with pity, so when he'd walked into the bakery to find another mammal threatening her, she'd passed it off as nothing more than an angry customer.

She and Mark had only been on one date, and the coyote's tendency toward suggestive comments had pretty much guaranteed there wouldn't be a second. Afterward, she hadn't seen or heard from him in nearly a year. In all honesty, she'd been so busy getting Kit-Kat's up and running that she'd practically forgotten about him. Then, a few weeks after she met Ben, Mark had called her out of the blue.

She'd been surprised to hear from him, of course, but not enough to hang up. He didn't seem like the same mammal, and the conversation had started out pleasantly enough. He'd asked how she was and what she was up to these days, and so on. Gradually, the questions had gotten more personal and she'd grown more and more uncomfortable. Then he started talking about how much he missed what they'd had together and how much he wanted to start over.

She was so shocked that she'd simply said 'no thank you' and ended the call. The phone had started ringing again before she'd even put it down. She should have ignored it, or shut him down once and for all, but it just wasn't in her nature to be mean. Like an idiot, she'd answered. She'd even apologized for hanging up on him, for goodness sake!

She tried to make it clear that she wasn't interested in seeing him again, but he just wouldn't take no for an answer. He'd say something like 'when you care about someone, you need to be ready to fight for them' and start all over again.

It had gone on like that for a while. He'd call her to ask for another chance, and every time she was polite or tried to let him down easily, he'd accuse her of leading him on and sending mixed signals. It getting to the point where she was even starting to believe him, embarrassed that he might actually be right. She'd tried blocking his number, but he'd come back a day later with a new one.

It had been more frustrating than frightening at first, but she knew it was time to involve the police when Mark showed up at her business and started shouting at her. Just as she was getting ready to rush to the kitchen and lock the door, Ben had appeared like a guardian angel and come to her rescue. The sight of a uniformed police officer had taken the wind right out of Mark's sails. Melissa wasn't a vindictive mammal, but a part of her did delight in watching him slink off with his tail between his legs.

He'd simply stopped trying to contact her after Ben had scared him off, and for a little while she'd believed that the coyote had finally gotten the message. She hadn't heard anything from him at all, then he unexpectedly approached her outside the bakery earlier.

She'd been ready to run back inside, but he'd been so apologetic. He'd told her how terrible he felt for acting the way he had. That he'd never meant to frighten her, and that he was so sorry for the way he'd made her feel. He'd said that he was in therapy now, and that his therapist suggested that making a legitimate effort to apologize for his behavior was a critical part of his treatment.

Like a naïve idiot, she'd let herself feel sorry for him. Then, when he'd asked if she'd be willing to get a cup of coffee so they can talk for a bit, she'd stupidly convinced herself it was the right thing to do. That she could spare fifteen minutes to do a kindness for another mammal. He'd even suggested coming to this busy diner, surrounded by other mammals so she wouldn't have to feel uncomfortable.

The waitress had just poured their coffee when things started to go sideways. He'd begun telling her something about his therapist, Joan. Then, halfway through the story, the name changed to June and the alarm bells in her head started to go off. When she asked whether it was Joan or June – just in case she'd misheard – his momentarily panicked expression told her all she needed to know.

She'd been about to stand when he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back down. Before she could call out for help, he'd opened his jacket to reveal a gun and told her she wasn't leaving until he'd gotten through to her. Both his voice and his smile had been terrifyingly sincere when he said that her life was the only one in the diner that mattered to him.

Melissa had spent half an hour sitting across from him, too scared to run, before she noticed the number of mammals sitting around them had dwindled to almost nothing. The breakfast crowd was heading off to work, and the idea of being in here alone with him had brought on a rush of fear, so much that she didn't notice when the waitress came by to top up their coffee.

"...ing to eat, hun?"

Snapping back into the moment, Melissa looked up at the matronly boar in surprise. "What?"

"I asked if you'd like something to eat?"

Glancing at Mark, who didn't seem very happy at being interrupted, Melissa shook her head. "No, thank you."

"Nice slice of pie might just brighten your day." The waitress smiled.

"I'm fine, really."

"You sure? You're looking a litt..."

"She said she's fine." Mark growled. "How about you take a fucking hint."

The boar sniffed in irritation but didn't make any further comment as she walked away.

The instant she was gone, Mark was back to staring at her and muttering about their imagined future together, periodically squeezing her wrist to ensure he had her attention. His other paw remained inside his jacket, never straying far from the gun tucked into his waistband. Every time he grew particularly agitated or excited, she'd watch his fingers brush against it and feel her stomach give a frightened lurch.

Despite that, when he stressed how much she needed to 'ditch that useless fatty', she still had the momentary urge to reach out and bury her claws somewhere sensitive.

Across the diner, she could see the only other customer, a gruff-looking black bear, had finished his meal several minutes ago and seemed to be looking around for the waitress. After several more agonizing minutes, he gave a faint grunt, tossed a pawful of bills on the counter and walked out. She was about to be alone, but when the idea of calling for help came to mind she felt her throat squeeze in fear.

Somehow, the sound of the bear crossing the room had managed to break Mark out of his rambling train of thought. Trailing off, he took his eyes off her for the first time and turned toward the sound of the door. The door hadn't even closed before Melissa felt a wave of hopelessness crash over her.

Then the bear turned, looked her dead in the eye, and the whole world changed in the span of five heartbeats.

Beat... The instant Mark twisted to look behind him, moving his paw well away from the gun in the process, a loud WHUMP! sound came from the kitchen door.

Beat... Something bright orange and impossibly fast struck the centre of Mark's chest, driving the air from his lungs with a strangled yelp.

Beat... Lurching in pain, Mark finally released his grip on her wrist as he and his chair tumbled backward.

Beat... A much more subdued POP! followed and suddenly a pair of yellow wires were attached to Mark's chest. There wasn't time to wonder about their source before the coyote began to jerk and spasm on the floor.

Beat... As if from nowhere, a black-clad wolf appeared on top of Mark, flipping him onto his stomach and planting a knee sharply between the coyote's shoulders.

From somewhere behind her, paws grabbed her and pulled her away from the table. As she was forcefully guided to the exit, she watched the wolf wrench Mark's paws behind his back and force a set of pawcuffs onto his wrists. The stunned and battered mammal barely made a whimper as he was none-too-gently hauled to his feet. Just before she reached the door, Melissa saw Mark's 'gun' clatter to the ground; nothing but a cheap water pistol with a coat of spray paint.

Then she was outside, blinking in the bright sunlight. A pair of ZPD cruisers were blocking the street at either end, keeping mammals back. Turning back at the diner, she instantly spotted the black bear. Looking at him straight on for the first time, it was impossible to miss the shining gold ZPD badge clipped to his belt. She wanted to say something – anything – but the words just wouldn't come. As if he understood, the bear gave her a nod and a little smile, then pointed to something behind her.

She knew he'd be there even before she laid eyes on him.

"Ben!" Rushing into the cheetah's embrace, she threw her arms around him and held tight. "I'm so sorry! I should have said something but...but I didn't...I'm so sorry!"

"It's okay. You're okay now. I've got you now." He whispered, one paw moving in slow circles on her back as she finally let the tears fall. "I've got you."

~o~o~o~

Sitting at his personal desk, rather than the precinct's front desk, Ben eyed his wall calendar thoughtfully. It'd been a few months since the day in the diner, and Melissa was doing much better now that the incident was fading into memory.

The first thing she'd done was spend a couple of weeks visiting her parents in Califurnia. She'd spend the entire packing process repeating that she just needed some time away and assuring him that she'd be coming back, even when he promised that he believed her the first time.

She started seeing a counselor after she got home. They'd been helping her understand how she wasn't at fault; that Mark's actions were his own. One of the hardest things for her had been convincing herself that she'd done nothing to encourage him. They were also helping prepare her for the day she'd need to testify against him in court.

Outwardly, Ben had focused on being a supportive boyfriend. Privately, he been calling in a few of the favors he'd collected over the years. Following a quick chat with a friend in Mammal Resources, an unexpected 'computer glitch' had caused the time-off records for Oliver Stein – the plainclothes officer who'd been in the diner that day – to mysteriously vanish. In the interest of fairness, MR had restored all of his annual paid vacation days and apologized for the inconvenience.

After Ben had gotten coffee with one of his old academy classmates, now working as a guard with the Zootopia Department of Corrections, Mark found himself relocated to a different cell while he awaited trial.

It was just as good as any of the other cells, for the most part. It wasn't any colder, or darker, or smaller. He didn't have to share it with anyone dangerous or disgusting, and the mammals in the neighboring cells weren't overly bothersome. That said, if it did share a wall with the facility's not-particularly-quiet HVAC system, and if its proximity to the main sewage output pump did leave it with the vague – albeit permanent – smell of stale urine? Well, that was just bad luck.

Tilting his chair back and listening to his lunch break tick away on the desk clock, Ben ruminated on how he'd been affected by the coyote's actions.

Officer Stein had notified dispatch of the situation via text message, which was why it hadn't gone out over the radio. By the time he and Nick had arrived, the block was already cordoned off. As each mammal left the diner, they were grabbed by a ZPD officer and rushed away until the diner was finally emptied. Ben had hated the idea of leaving her in there for so long, taking only a little comfort in the fact that Mark spent the majority of it in a SWAT sniper's crosshairs.

He'd wanted so badly to do something but had been told in no uncertain terms to stay put. Standing behind the yellow caution tape and watching the black-clad SWAT officers stealthily move through the diner's rear door, he'd suddenly felt completely and utterly helpless. He'd been forced to acknowledge that even if he had been allowed inside the diner, he would have been more hinderance than help. He'd be too loud and too slow and just too...fat.

In the last eight years, there had been times when his overweight body had made him feel hopeless, useless, and even worthless. But that had been the first time it'd made him feel genuinely helpless.

He'd already resolved to lose weight, but now he understood that wasn't going to be enough. Reaching over his desk, he flipped to a date nearly a year away. Circling it several times, he wrote in what felt like a terrifyingly ambitious goal and took a step back to consider it.

November 9 – Patrol Officer Fitness Re-qualification

It was going to be hard, he knew. There would be times that it'd feel next to impossible. He'd want to quit before he got there, but he wasn't going to. Not this time.

Come hell or high water, Ben was never going to feel that helpless again.