Steve Hoppkins' final day in Zootopia was also his most hectic, and Judy found herself struggling to keep up with his busy schedule. His first appointment of the day was with the manager of the El Catipan Theater downtown, where he spent quite a bit of time negotiating a distribution deal for his films over the next five years. Then he stopped by another television station for yet another interview to promote his latest film, took only a short lunch break afterwards, and rushed to a printing company to oversee an order of movie posters and flyers that would be shipped to Hollywool the following week. Something about the order was incorrect, and he spent a long time getting it sorted out, but by some miracle he still managed to leave the printer and make his way to his final meeting with minutes to spare.

Judy dutifully stuck by his side every step of the way. She continued to be surprised at how effortlessly the rabbit was able to run around town, in contrast to her exhaustion over the whole ordeal. More than once, she had to spend a few minutes catching her breath while Hoppkins began his various meetings, and it seemed every time she recomposed herself, it was time to do it all over again.

Hoppkins' final interview was inside of a publishing firm that Judy didn't even know existed until today. Hoppkins gave a two-hour-long presentation in front of the board of directors, as well as several other mammals who participated remotely through video calls. Judy was not allowed to sit in on the meeting, but luckily, the building had free Wi-Fi, so she was able to distract herself with her phone the whole time while she waited in one of the nearby empty rooms.

And then, unceremoniously, it came to an end. Hoppkins poked his head in the waiting room, stated that it was time to go, and that was that. Judy followed him out of the building and onto the sidewalk outside. The only part of her job that remained was taking Hoppkins to the airport so he could fly back to Hollywool and finally leave her alone.

She had expected to feel a rush of emotions in this moment: relief that it was over, excitement that she was now five hundred thousand dollars richer, and satisfaction that she would never have to spend another minute in Hoppkins' presence ever again. However, his running back and forth across town over the past few days left her feeling drained and worn out, both physically and mentally, and right now she could only stand on the sidewalk and wait for her limousine to pick her up.

Hoppkins, of course, still had plenty of energy left, and he eagerly spoke past his stupid open-mouth grin. "Wow, that was a great tour, wasn't it?" He brought his paws to the collar of his shirt and proudly closed his eyes. "I'll say it was a great success!" He opened his eyes again and stared off dreamily, his smile growing even broader. "Of course, I expected as much. I am a Stallion Award-winning cinematic genius, after all." He faced Judy again and spread his arms wide. "Take a good look at me, Judy! This is what perfection looks like!"

This is what something looks like, all right, but it's not perfection. She forced herself to swallow the sentence, and instead offered an uneasy smile in response.

A noise emerged from Hoppkins' throat that might have been a chuckle, though it sounded more like a noise Judy had heard once from a giraffe who had got hit by a car. "I know. You don't have to say it: I'm basically God's gift to the world." He lowered his voice and added under his breath, "Eat your heart out, Roarsese."

Judy shuffled from foot to foot uncomfortably. She desperately wished that the two limousines would arrive already so she could escort Hoppkins to the airport and be done with this ridiculous conversation. However, the limos were nowhere to be seen, and a quick glance at her phone told her that it would be another ten minutes before she could expect for them to pull up.

"Cold?" Hoppkins didn't even bother to wait for a reply. He puckered his lips, exhaled deeply, and watched his breath turn into condensation in front of him. "Yeah, I guess it is rather chilly today." He looked back at Judy and wiggled his eyebrows. "You wanna cuddle to stay warm?"

The proposal grated against Judy's ears like a rusty nail on a chalkboard, and she shuddered away from him. "No, I'm fine," she insisted through gritted teeth.

Thankfully, he left it at that. "Suit yourself." He shoved his paws in his pockets, leaned against the brick wall behind him, and stared off into the distance. His smile faded away from his face, and he seemed to be deep in thought—a rarity for the rabbit, Judy was sure. His two buck teeth nibbled on his lower lip for a few seconds, and when he finally spoke up again, his voice was much more distant than usual. "Hey, Judy? How did you like working for me?"

His question caught her off-guard. In the three days since she had known him, the only words that came out of his mouth were either to brag about his own accomplishments, promote his new film to whoever would listen, and boss around anyone who was on his payroll. Even when he had his private conversations with Judy, it always felt that he was trying to butter her up, or otherwise impress himself upon her. This time, however, he had asked a genuine question, as if he really was curious to hear what she thought of the experience.

Still, she knew him well enough to suspect an ulterior motive, and she only responded with a nonspecific, "It was a… memorable experience."

He simply nodded at her answer, still looking straight ahead at nothing in particular. He silently continued to think for a few minutes; Judy found herself worrying that he might hurt himself if he used his brain for too much longer. At one point, his lips pursed, and a small contemplative sigh escaped out of his nose.

Finally, however, he looked back at Judy and smiled at her. Unlike all of his other smiles, however, he did not open his mouth and show all of his teeth, and his dimples did not spread from one ear to the other. This one was, perhaps, the only time since she had met him that he had given her a real, authentic smile. "Can I be honest with you, Judy? I'm glad that you agreed to this. I know I can be a bit overwhelming, and I'm sure it wasn't easy for you to keep up with me—not to mention shielding me from being swarmed by millions of fans everywhere we went. But you did a good job. Thank you."

Hoppkins had said many things since coming to Zootopia that shocked Judy, but unlike all the other things he had said, this time she did not feel like she needed to take a shower afterwards. For the very first time, it felt like Hoppkins was making a genuine effort to be nice to her for the sake of being nice, and not just because he was lusting over her. She had not even known he was even capable of it.

She felt a smile creep onto her face. "Thank you," she responded quietly.

"In fact…" The very edges of his lips started to curl upwards, and Judy felt her unease begin to return. "You did such a good job…" He stopped leaning on the wall, stood up straight, and perked his ears straight up in excitement. "I'm going to ask you…" He reached his paw out, and eagerly exclaimed, "Please come with me back to Hollywool, Judy!"

Judy's heart sank in her chest. Just when it seemed Hoppkins was about to prove himself a decent mammal, he had destroyed all that in an instant. And even worse, his face now had a new expression on it that made her worry: determination.

She took a step back reflexively. "Passion Fruit Flower Clause!" she snapped.

Hoppkins took another step forward, completely oblivious to her sudden discomfort. "This isn't about our contract anymore. This is about something more."

Judy felt her heart race, and she was sure her nose was beginning to twitch. She turned her body, prepared to run away if she needed to, but continued to stand her ground for the moment. "This was a one-time job. I don't ever want to work for you again." She narrowed her eyes, trying to assert some dominance. "And there is no amount of money you can offer me to change my mind."

Hoppkins withdrew his paw like he had just been slapped. "Money?" He scoffed. "I'm not talking about money, Judy. I'm talking about…" His smile returned, and to Judy, this time it seemed sinister. "I'm talking about marriage."

Somehow, Judy knew that was exactly what he was going to say. "That's it. I'm leaving." Without wasting a second, she turned on her heel and began to walk down the sidewalk, anxious to put as much distance between herself and this Hollywool creep as she could.

He followed close behind, continuing to plead his case as he did. "Judy, from the moment I saw your face on the news, I knew: I had to make you mine! And ever since I first set eyes on you, I felt like you and I had a special connection. Surely, you must feel it, too!"

Judy planted her feet, whirled around, and glared at Hoppkins. She lifted her shoulders as high as they could go, raised her ears, jabbed a finger in the rabbit's direction, and spoke through gritted teeth in an attempt to assert herself as much as she possibly could. "No, I have not. Every minute I have had to spend with you has been the worst of my life, and the only reason I have tolerated it this long is because of the paycheck." A low growl emerged from her throat. "And if you think that I would ever be interested in marrying you, then you are truly delusional."

Hoppkins' smile faded from his face as he listened to her, and when she finished talking, he looked down at his feet in shame. "You're right, I am delusional," he admitted. He kicked the ground absently. "That documentary series I produced for HOP Max? I lied. It was only nominated for eight Elk Awards, not nine." His voice dropped to a mumble. "I'll never forgive myself for lying like that."

Judy let out a frustrated sigh, then pointed at the sidewalk behind her. "I am going to walk away now, and you are not going to follow me. If you do, I will arrest you for harassment. Am I clear?"

"Harassment?" Hoppkins' eyes opened wide, and he threw up his paws. "No! Don't do that! That's a death sentence for someone like me!"

"Good, then you won't follow me." Judy turned to walk away once again. "Goodbye, Mr. Hoppkins."

"But what about all I've done for you?" His words stopped her in her tracks. "The limo, the restaurant, the dress…" His hideous smile returned. "I mean, come on, you did accept the gifts I sent up to your hotel room last night. Surely that means something, right?"

Judy was sorely tempted to turn back around and leave without saying another word, but his last statement caught her attention. She had not stayed in the hotel last night, and she had expected for Hoppkins to find that out just as he had the night before.

Somehow, however, he had missed that. And she already knew how to use this new information to her advantage.

She smirked at him. "Who said I was the one in the hotel room last night?"

"Don't be coy, Judy. You checked in last night, I sent up a tray of hors d'oeuvres, and the butler informed me that you were very pleased with them." He shrugged. "You cannot possibly look me in the eye and tell me that wasn't you."

"That. Wasn't. Me." Judy crossed her arms and sneered at him, finally feeling a semblance of control over this conversation. "I let a friend enjoy the room in my place."

Hoppkins' smile disappeared in an instant. "What?"

"And she really did enjoy it a lot. Thanks for giving her the opportunity. It was the best night of her life."

Hoppkins stared at Judy, completely dumbfounded. He raised a finger and opened his mouth to protest, but no words came out. Instead, all he could manage was a nonsensical stammer, which he repeated a few times before he finally lowered his finger and gave up.

Judy nodded in satisfaction. "Good. You understand, then." Her smile turned into a frown. "Now, understand this: You hired me to do a job, and I did my job. And now that my job is done, I shall expect my paycheck as soon as you get back to Hollywool." She tapped two fingers to her forehead in a pretend salute. "Good day."

She turned around and began walking down the sidewalk once again, this time with much more confidence in her stride. She only made it a few steps, however, before Hoppkins called to her, and his words once again brought her to a stop.

"What more do you want from me, Judy? I've given you everything that a bunny could ever want. Money, luxury, the chance at fame…" His face looked at her in desperation as he struggled to understand. "What else is there? What more could you possibly want?"

Judy shrugged. "Maybe this should be a lesson for you: you can't buy love." She started walking again. "Good day," she repeated.

"There's someone else, isn't there?" Hoppkins' voice raised to a shout. "Another bunny!"

She rolled her eyes, but didn't bother to turn back around. "No, there's not another bunny," she called behind her shoulder.

"Not another bunny…" Hoppkins' voice was so quiet, she hardly heard him if not for her sensitive ears. "Then that must mean… Oh, God!" He suddenly sprinted after Judy, reaching her only a moment later and placing a paw on her shoulder. "Judy, you have to tell me—"

Judy whirled around, batted away his paw, and glared at him with fury. "Touch me again and I'll place you under arrest!" she warned loudly. He went stiff with her yell, and she took the opportunity to double down. "I've told you multiple times that I'm going to walk away, and you won't let me walk away. I've made it as clear as day that I am not interested in having a relationship with you, and you won't take no for an answer. I'm sick of dealing with you! It was a mistake for me to take this job, it was a mistake putting up with you as long as I have, and right now the only thing I want to do to you is—"

"Hey!"

The voice that interrupted Judy was not Hoppkins'. Both bunnies spun around to find the source of the voice, and Judy felt her nerves start to calm as she saw Nick jogging towards them from across the street. He was dressed in his police uniform, complete with a winter jacket to help fight off the cold, and the expression on his face was a rarity for the fox: he was anxious.

She heaved a sigh of relief. "Nick, you're just in time—"

Nick approached them and quickly cut her off, pretending he had not heard her. "Is there a problem here, Officer Hopps?" His tone was much more pointed than she expected, and also far louder than was necessary.

She raised an eyebrow, wondering why he was acting so strangely, but he lifted his chin slightly—barely enough for her to even notice—and pointed his snout behind her. Judy turned around and looked, and all of a sudden, Nick's actions made sense.

A small crowd had gathered around them, intrigued by the very loud, very public argument. Some of them had cell phones out and were recording the whole exchange, but most of them were just standing still, staring at Judy as she unloaded her verbal tirade against Hoppkins. If Nick had not interfered, she might have said or done something she would regret, and there would have been countless witnesses to the event.

She was also sure that he had chosen his words specifically to remind her that she was a police officer, albeit not currently in uniform like he was, and that she needed to act like one. She quickly composed herself, adopted a more neutral tone of voice, and turned back to Nick. "No, no problem." She looked back at Hoppkins, fighting off the urge to glare at him. "I was just bidding Mr. Hoppkins here farewell."

"Hoppkins?" Nick turned to the larger rabbit and adopted his signature sly smile. "Why, I don't believe I've had the pleasure!" He extended his paw. "Nick Wilde, ZPD."

Without missing a beat, Hoppkins took his paw and gave it a firm shake, flashing his putrid open-mouth smile in return. "Steve Hoppkins. Hollywool legend."

Nick let go of his paw, and Judy could have sworn she saw him quickly pat it against his pant leg to wipe it clean. His eyes widened in recognition. "Oh, of course! I know all about you!"

Hoppkins blinked in confusion. "You do?"

"Sure! I've seen every single one of your movies! The Fastest Sloth, Hoof, My Neighbor Elk—all of them! I even saw that student film you made while you were at UZLA: Untitled Project!" Nick let out an excited giggle and leaned forward. "I know I shouldn't ask this, but can I get you to sign something for me? I don't have any paper on me, but perhaps you'd be willing to sign the fur on my tail? I promise, Mr. Hoppkins, I would never wash it again as long as I live!" Before Hoppkins could respond, Nick's eyes widened and he let out a gasp. "Oh! I just thought of something! Sir, do you think you could possibly put me in your next film? I'd be more than happy to be an uncredited extra in the background who dies in the first three minutes! It would be enough simply to know that I appeared in one of your movies! If you can find it in your heart to—"

"Actually!" Hoppkins had remained in stunned silence this entire time, as if he was genuinely shocked that someone in Zootopia finally recognized him for his work in Hollywool, and the more Nick talked, the more uncomfortable he looked. He finally composed himself enough to raise his paws and cut Nick off. He cleared his throat and managed to force a smile, though it was not as big as usual. "I'm afraid you have to be part of the acting union in order to be an extra in Hollywool." From his tone of voice, it sounded more like an excuse than anything else.

Nick's face contorted into disappointment. "Aw, bummer." He brought a paw to his chin and began to stroke it thoughtfully. "However, I did participate in my high school production of Ofurro. I played Catsio, and I did a superb job, if I do say so myself. Do you think that would be enough to get me in?"

The rabbit continued to stare blankly at him. In the past three days, not a single mammal in the whole city had interacted with him with such enthusiasm, and he struggled to fully comprehend what was going on.

Judy, on the other hand, found the situation incredibly amusing, and had to put a paw on her mouth to keep herself from laughing. She took another glance around and was relieved to see that the crowd had completely dispersed, leaving just the three of them alone on the sidewalk. Feeling that Nick had done enough, she dug her elbow into his arm playfully. "All right, Officer Wilde, I think you've tortured him enough."

Nick looked at her incredulously. "Torture?" He dramatically placed a paw on his chest. "I merely asked the nice Hollywool celebrity if I can play a bit part in a film. How is that considered torture?"

Judy smirked at him cheekily. "The torture would be committing your so-called 'acting' to film for all eternity. Don't you think subjecting all those poor animals to such a thing for hundreds of years is just a little too mean?"

"Hey now!" Nick seemed offended by her words, and it was hard to tell if he was kidding or if he was serious. "Don't you remember that phenomenal job I did getting Bellwether to spill her guts on the Nighthowler case?"

Her eyes narrowed. "And do you remember Howl-o-ween at Pennington's house?"

"That doesn't count," Nick quickly responded.

Judy placed a finger on her palm. "And the mock trial we did for Arnold Barker—"

"That doesn't count, either!"

Judy added a finger to her count. "And let's not forget that one time in the Rainforest District when you were undercover as a hyena."

Nick froze at that. "Oh. You know about that…"

"Everybody knows about that!" Judy chuckled.

"Then why did nobody tell me about that?" Nick pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a disappointed sigh. "I spent weeks working that job! Weeks, Carrots!" He brought his palm up to his forehead and bonked it lightly. "The least someone could have done was tell me my accent was wrong!"

"What would the fun have been in that? And it's not like your life was in danger or anything; it was just a cheesecake smuggler."

"Oh, you know about that, too? I thought Chief Bingo Board told everyone it was an illegal arms dealer!"

"Yeah, he did, but then you sent him the fake lottery check and he decided to spill the beans."

"Allegedly, Carrots. I allegedly sent him a fake lottery check. And even if I did, it's not my fault that he didn't notice it was a check for zero dollars! How was I supposed to know that he would actually try to cash—"

"It's you!"

Hoppkins' sudden scream silenced Nick, and Judy flinched in pain. The rabbit had remained quiet during the whole conversation, his eyes darting back and forth between Nick and Judy as they bickered. But now he was done being quiet, and he stared at Nick in disbelief.

"It's so obvious now! She's with you!"

Judy's eyes went wide, and she felt her heart drop at his words. She and Nick had gone to great lengths to hide their relationship from the world, and she had been very deliberate while dealing with Hoppkins to not even hint that she was with somebody else. But, obviously, now she had slipped, and even though it was merely a guess at this point, she was sure that her reaction to the accusation would only confirm Hoppkins' suspicions.

Nick, however, managed to catch himself and offer a casual reply. "Well, yeah. I mean, we are partners on the force—"

"No." Hoppkins' eyes narrowed, and he glared at Nick with an intensity Judy had never seen from the rabbit before. "You called her Carrots and she did not stop you. No bunny girl would ever tolerate a nickname like that. The way you two talk to each other, the way you two look at each other…" He jabbed an accusing finger at Nick. "You are not just her partner on the force—you are her partner in life!"

Judy's only solace right now was that the sidewalk was completely deserted, so there were no prying ears nearby to overhear Hoppkins' words. That was but a small comfort, however, compared to the sudden fear and dread that now crept along every inch of her body. Hoppkins was the last person in the whole world that she wished to know this secret, and now that he did, she was not sure what to do or say. She could only stand still, look back and forth between Hoppkins and Nick, and desperately try to think of a way out of this.

Nick stared at Hoppkins' finger for several seconds, studying it with a look of indifference, then raised his head so he could look Hoppkins in the face. His eyelids drooped, but he did not smile, and when he spoke, his tone was calm.

"Yeah, so what?"

Hoppkins and Judy both dropped their jaws in unison. Judy wondered if Nick had gone insane. The two of them had agreed long ago that their relationship needed to remain a secret, both for their own safety and for the safety of those they cared about. For Nick to so openly admit to it—to Steve Hoppkins, at that—was something she had never expected, and while she fully trusted that he knew what he was doing, she still couldn't help but silently wonder if he had lost his mind.

Hoppkins managed to croak out his words first. "You won't even deny it?"

Nick shrugged. "Why should I? You're right. Judy and I are together." He wrapped his arm around Judy's shoulders and pulled her close to his side; she was still too stunned to fight against it. "Romantically."

Part of Judy was still in disbelief that Nick would so openly discuss their relationship like this, but seeing Hoppkins' reaction to this news, she suddenly felt like it was worth it. His expression rapidly changed from upset, to angry, to offended, and his face turned so red underneath his fur that his eyes became bloodshot. Hoppkins was clearly not used to the sight in front of him, and the longer he had to look at it, the more vile his expression became—and the more control he lost over the situation.

She reached around Nick's waist and gave him a sideways hug, making sure that Hoppkins could see it clearly. She looked at the brown rabbit with a mischievous grin. "Does this make you uncomfortable, Mr. Hoppkins? A fox and a bunny in a relationship?"

Hoppkins' paws curled into fists, and his knuckles turned white. His teeth gritted so hard it was a wonder he did not chip any of them. His foot began to rapidly thump against the ground, and a growl escaped his throat so low and sinister it sounded like it belonged to a big cat rather than a bunny.

"Unnatural," he snarled under his breath. "It's unnatural!" He looked straight at Judy, locked eyes with her, and raised his voice to a scream. "Are you insane? He is a fox! What could he possibly offer you?!"

Nick's paw patted her shoulder reassuringly, and he spoke up before she could answer. "My mother's recipe for blueberry cupcakes. I'm pretty sure that's what won her over."

Judy rolled her eyes theatrically. "Oh, you've caught me, Wilde. I was perfectly happy being single until your super-secret family recipe came into my life."

The fox flashed a smug smile in her direction. "I knew it. You only like me for my food."

"Hey, a clever bunny never passes up an opportunity for food."

Nick pressed his free paw to his chest and let out a small gasp. "Is that all I am to you, my sweet bunny girl? Nothing more than a cook book?"

Judy stuck her tongue out. "Of course not! You're also good for reaching things on the top shelf."

"Ah, yes, how could I forget?" Nick raised his paw as high as it could go. "Why yes, Carrots, of course I'd be willing to grab a fresh roll of paper towels off the top shelf. Why did you bother putting them up there anyway? In fact, how did you put them up there in the first place?"

"Your job isn't to ask questions, Slick, only to grab the paper towels."

"Yes, but you know it would be so much easier if you just put them on a lower shelf, so why don't you?"

"Because maybe I like looking at your fluffy tail every time you stretch up like that, you dumb fox."

They were so engaged in their conversation, Judy did not even notice a limousine pull up and come to a stop beside them. However, she was aware of Hoppkins grabbing his ears, yanking them past his cheeks, and yelling some kind of nonsensical noise as he ran to the limo.

"Oh my God, shut up already!" he screamed, though by now both of them had paused their conversation anyway.

Jonas appeared from the driver's side, ran around to Hoppkins' door, and opened it for him. Hoppkins ran up the small steps as fast as his legs could carry him, then paused at the top and turned around to look at the two of them.

He did not even bother to hide his disgust. "You freaks of nature…" He stared directly at Nick and pointed at him. A crack of lightning flashed behind him—which was really the mood lighting inside of the limo resetting itself—and he yelled at the top of his lungs, "You have made an enemy of a very powerful mammal, Nick Wilde! This won't be the last time you hear the name 'Steve Hoppkins'!"

He might have meant for it to sound like a threat, but his delivery was so over-the-top, Judy had to stifle a laugh because it came across as little more than a cheesy attempt at recreating some old B-movie melodrama.

Nick snorted in mild amusement, then called back, "Of course not! I'm already planning on taking Officer Hopps to see your next movie! It will make for a great date night!"

Hoppkins did not like that. He let out a blood-curdling scream, punched the frame of the limousine as hard as he could, and shot Nick one final glare. Then, several seconds later, his face finally contorted into pain from the bruise that was rapidly forming on his paw. He turned around, jumped towards the mini-fridge, yelled something about needing ice, and Jonas closed the door behind him. A moment later, Jonas returned to his driver's seat and began to drive away.

Judy's eyes followed the limousine as it left, and once it turned a corner down the road, she finally allowed herself to relax. She had managed to put up a good façade while bantering with Nick, but in truth, she had been scared the whole time. It felt like an eternity since Hoppkins had first dropped the bombshell about wanting to marry her—though, in actuality, all that had happened since then took less than ten minutes—and the only reason she had not completely lost her cool was because Nick had come running to her rescue just in time. And even then, the change in Hoppkins' demeanor when he had realized their secret still frightened her, and she was not sure how much longer she would have been able to last.

But there was no need to worry. As long as her fox was here, she knew she was in safe paws.

She grabbed Nick's paw and gave it a squeeze. "Thanks," she whispered.

Nick squeezed it back. "You're welcome." He looked down to her and gave her a reassuring smile. "Guess it's a good thing I just happened to be walking by at that moment, huh?"

She locked eyes with him and studied his face. "Yeah, that's an interesting coincidence, isn't it?" She looked deeply into his green eyes. "Now Nick, you haven't been keeping an eye on me this whole time just to make sure I was safe, have you?"

It was a very Nick thing to do, and she half-expected for him to admit his guilt. However, he shook his head, and she could tell from his demeanor that he was sincere. "Honestly, Carrots, I had no idea you were here. I'm just on patrol, and I happened to walk past right then. Simple as that."

"Well, regardless, I'm glad you came." She turned back to look at the corner where Hoppkins' limo disappeared. "He's going back to Hollywool now." She let out a sigh. "I guess we'll see whether he actually pays me or not after all of this."

"He'd better." Nick let go of her paw and patted her shoulder encouragingly. "I reread that contract of yours. The language is pretty clear. I'm not worried."

"Oh, really?" Judy shot him a look and smiled. "And what about that last threat of his? You're not scared of that in the slightest?"

Nick shrugged. "Not really. I mean, how powerful can he really be? He made a film called Lazy Writing, for crying out loud." He lifted his head and looked down the street, and his smile returned. "Hey, looks like your ride's here."

Judy spun around, and just as Nick said, her limo was just turning the corner behind them. She saw Ricky wave at them through the windshield as he pulled up, and she raised her arm high and gave an enthusiastic wave back.

"I guess I'd better leave you alone so you can enjoy your last hour." Nick raised a paw. "See you later, Car—"

"Oh, no you don't!" Judy grabbed Nick's paw before he could walk away, anchoring him firmly in place. "You're not leaving until you've taken a ride with me in this thing."

Nick tried to pull his paw away. "I'm kind of on duty right now," he mumbled, though Judy could sense the temptation in his voice.

By now the limo had come to a complete stop. Ricky exited his driver's door and walked around to the other side of the car. "Hello, Judy!" He tipped his hat in Nick's direction. "Officer. I hope nothing's wrong."

Nick politely shook his head. "No, nothing's wrong, I was just—"

"Something is very wrong!" Judy exclaimed. She turned to Ricky and adopted a worried expression, though she spoke in a sarcastic tone of voice to let him know that she was just joking. "Ricky, when was the last time the inside of this limousine was properly inspected for traces of dihydrogen monoxide?"

Ricky played along, bringing a paw to his mouth and gasping loudly. "Oh no! I'm afraid it has been quite some time!" He opened the door and peered inside. "My goodness, Judy! There appears to be a great amount of dihydrogen monoxide inside here!" He held the door open and waved at the two of them. "You'd better come take a look at this, officer!"

Nick glanced at Judy just long enough to mumble, "Water, huh?" Then, without protesting any further, he adopted his usual sly smile, walked up to the limo, and made his way up the steps. "You can call me Nick," he told Ricky as he passed the tiger.

Ricky nodded at the fox as he disappeared inside, then turned back to the bunny still standing on the sidewalk. "Well, Judy, you've got me for one more hour. Where do you wanna go?"

Judy felt a big smile spread across her face from ear to ear. She felt an extra spring in her step as she followed Nick up the steps and into the limo. She was free of Hoppkins, she had a ginormous paycheck coming her way, and now she got to spend the next hour of her life in pure luxury with her favorite person in the world.

"Ricky…" She spread her limbs out in all directions, let out a giddy squeal, and flung herself onto one of the comfy seats. "Surprise me!"