Disclaimer: Zootopia and all Canon characters are owned by Disney. All other characters, product names, trademarks, and copyrights belong to their respective owners.
…..
"Hey, Mrs. H.," said Nick with a half wave as he walked directly past the kitchen and common room toward his bedroom. No stopping for a pre-lunch snack or looking inside the refrigerator for something to take the edge off of a young mammal's indecisive hunger.
Raising a paw as a precursor to reminding Nicholas that she'd grown used to being called 'Mom' and was something the matter that he was back to calling her 'Mrs. H.'
But with a quick swish of his tail, Nicholas was down the hallway and nearly out of sight.
"Hi, Mom," came a soft voice from behind Bonnie.
"Bun-bun," replied Bonnie, turning around. "Did you and Nicholas have a good day at work?"
Judy shrugged, "I guess. Our early shift went fine. Nothing much is going on with everyone getting ready for Carrot Days and the Fundraiser. About the only thing that happened was that just before Nick and I finished our shift, Sheriff Hoofson assigned us parking duty for the Fundraiser tomorrow." And with a huff, she added, "Our last official day as Sheriff's deputies, and he puts us on parking duty."
"Is that why Nicholas rushed past without hardly saying anything? Because he's upset about being on parking duty."
Stepping closer to where her mother was, Judy sighed, "I don't know, maybe. I'm not sure."
Bonnie straightened Judy's collar, smoothed out a few wrinkles in her shirt, and after noticing a small drip on her tie that was older than today, asked, "Are you okay? You look out of sorts. Your fur is all mussed up, and your uniform is wrinkled."
Judy hugged her mom.
Bonnie's ears popped up. 'What could be the matter?' Taking a couple of silent sniffs, Bonnie was surprised to find that Judy wasn't steeped in her usual high dose of Farm Fresh Musk Mask. Something she'd grown accustomed to from both Judy and Nicholas, assuming, or at least hoping, that they were marking each other before bed and masking the marks in the morning.
"I didn't sleep very well last night. And this morning… Arrgh, I never have to hit the snooze button, but this morning, I just woke up tired. And late. I skipped my shower and accidentally grabbed my uniform from yesterday. All because Nick was being weird and didn't… uh, didn't get his paperwork done last night before bed like he usually does."
"I understand," said Bonnie, giving her daughter a squeeze and then breaking their hug. "You both are partners and very special friends and if one of you isn't in the mood for paperwork, it can be disconcerting. That's why your father and I make it a point to get at least a little bit of our paperwork done every night before we go to sleep."
Judy shook her head, "It wasn't just about last night. Nick's been acting weird since I saw him talking with Dad yesterday after Mr. Hayes left. One minute, he's all Nick-ish, making dumb jokes, talking about pranks he'd like to pull, and trying to figure out new things to deep-fry. Then it's as if he realizes we're having too good of a time, and he goes all distant on me like something bad is about to happen, and he's trying to spare me from getting disappointed or something.
"The thing that drives me the most nuts is it's all so subtle. I mean, last night, besides the paperwork not happening, I couldn't get him to pet my, uh, brush out my uniform the way I like it. It was like he was afraid his… brush would suddenly hurt the material. Aargh! I even stopped him and told him the material was pretty tough and he could brush harder. He did for a while, but… something's bugging him.
"Do you know what Dad talked to Nick about yesterday?"
Noticing how Judy's ears vibrated as she relayed her and Nicholas' bedtime woes, Bonnie gently pet her daughter's ears down into a more relaxed position and said, "No, I can't be sure. I was in the infirmary running interference for Michaela so she could examine Dalton without Janae's help. Dalton popped a stitch from over-exerting himself, and Janae refused to go outside and help with the fundraiser set up unless I stayed with Dalton in her place."
Judy rolled her eyes, "Talk about being all weird. If Dalton doesn't hurry and ask Janae to be his mate, I think I'm going to scream. Then I'll lock them both up in the same cell until someone pops the question and I get a sane littermate back."
Bonnie chuckled at Judy pantomiming throwing a key away, and said, "Yes, please, I wish you would. As a matter of fact, if you need help locking them up, let me know."
As the mother-daughter laughter quieted down, Judy said, "I wish Dad would give Nick a chance. He's such a good guy. He's caring, funny, smart, and once you look past the hustler, prankster mask he wears, he's the kindest, most loving mammal I know.
"All I could think about last night was how Dad refuses to see the good in Nick the way I do. I love Dad, but right now, I don't like him. And I don't like how he treats Nick.
"I don't know what to do about Dad, and Hayes and everyone else. I mean, I know what I want to do, but that would probably get me arrested, I just wish…
"Nick's been busting his tail being the best mammal he can be, but Dad… I don't know."
Bonnie pulled Judy back into a hug and gently brushed her head fur and ears. Gentle stroke after gentle stroke until she felt Judy relax.
"Better?"
"A little."
"Good. Now, why don't you go find your fox, and the two of you see if you can get some quality paperwork done before Lucas finds out you're here. Lucas has a long list of setup tasks for the Fundraiser and a shorter list of available paws because Colton still needs help with the Carrot Days booth."
Judy smiled, then nodded quickly as she glanced toward the hallway, "How long until Lucas finds out we're home?"
"Thirty minutes."
Judy bit her bottom lip for a moment, then, "There's this, umm, new spreadsheet I've been thinking about… Maybe an hour?"
"You've got forty-five minutes," said Bonnie, adding emphasis with a swat from a dish towel, "So hurry and get that tail moving!"
…..
Bonnie waited until Judy was out of sight down the hallway before relaxing a bit, 'Stuart Hopps, what did you say to that poor boy? Are you trying to run him off so you and that cretin Hayes can mate your daughter off?
'No, I can't believe you would be foolish enough to try that with Judy, but what exactly are you up to, and what can I do to keep you from driving my daughter away from me again?'
Tapping a claw on the counter, Bonnie prayed for guidance. Stuart needed to understand that Judy was in good paws with Nicholas, and Judy needed to be shown that a path with Nicholas existed, and all she needed to do was grab his paw and take it.
Still tapping, Bonnie's claw found a postcard from her little sister, Carolyn. It had been sitting there for a couple of days waiting to be read, 'Happy Birthday to me!' And turning over the card, 'I may be getting older, but I'm still not as old as you! Love-ya Sis!'
Bonnie smiled. Carolyn traded the family life for doing volunteer work for a charity. And some of that charity work took her to exotic places, which resulted in her older sister getting a selfie postcard with a smiling doe on it about once every other month,
And always on special days like her own birthday.
Bonnie checked an old hardcover calendar notebook she kept in with her cookbooks, then smiled again.
-/-/-
"Well, at least I was able to get the automated manufacturing line up and running again," huffed Brown, staring at the two trays of dart balls slowly rolling out of his processing machine.
Shaking his head, Brown returned to his workstation and woke up his computer. He'd thought his final tweak to the formula would be the answer. Enough so that he'd gambled with a production run of dart balls while waiting for the final simulation results.
Results that came back better in some important ways and worse in others. His adjustment to the prohormone levels had marginally improved the formula's ability to overcome the pred chemical resistance related to their breeding partners. Unfortunately, the rebound side effect for those who could resist the formula, however unlikely that possibility given his masterful changes, was an order of magnitude worse than any formulation he'd tested before. So much worse that there was a strong possibility the animal's savage reaction would be off the charts primal, unthinkingly vicious, and, unless expertly handled, quite possibly fatal.
'Not that I care if resistant preds ended up self-destructing in a haze of savagery, but the general public's reaction to seeing such a horrific response to what I plan on advertising as a savage preventative might end up hurting the cause more than helping it.'
"Which leaves the botanicals and the buffer to overwhelm the preds system such that a rebound won't happen," mumbled Brown.
The botanicals were always tricky. Most of Orange's early research was finding the sweet spot of the botanical proportions, a sweet spot that was more of a very small sweet range of the primary botanical and counterintuitive enough that it cost a few test subjects to figure out. Just under the sweet range, it would hit a pred like high-proof moonshine, which is what the base of his formula started out as. Just over the sweet range proportion, and the formula couldn't properly take hold of the pred.
Which is why Orange locked down the botanical proportions over a year ago.
Drumming his hoof fingers on the desktop, Brown looked again at the simulation results. 'Maybe a different buffer would nudge the proportions off the top of the sweet range, improving the ability of the formula to overwhelm a pred without impacting the fix that handles breeding partners, and possibly… for the cause, bring the intensity of the rebound effect back down to a more manageable level.
'A day, maybe two to synthesize enough of the buffer, another day for a manufacturing run, and his glorious plan would be back on track.'
Smiling now, Brown was about to order his worthless minions to capture him a fresh test subject when a new dark thought reared its ugly, fuzzy, long-eared head.
"Hopps."
The bane of his existence. If there was one animal in the world that could ruin his plans, again, it was her. And he hadn't seen a status update on the rabbit in over a week.
Bringing up the secure app on his computer, Brown punched a message on his keyboard.
Brown here. What's the status on the ZPD?
A new skull and crossbones shaped disc in the upper righthand corner of his display was his entertainment while he waited for a response. Then it disappeared.
No change. Regular patrols, standard comms, no overtime that I can see. As quiet as I've ever seen them run.
What about Hopps and that pelt partner of hers? Are they still investigating the wreckage of my lab?
Logs show they're out there every day.
And?
And not much. It looks like they submit the same report every day and then go home.
The same report?
Yes. Investigation ongoing. Reviewing CSI reports.
Every day?
Yes.
What about that wolf cop you said was partnered up with Hopps?
Wait one
Same. Investigation ongoing. Reviewing CSI reports.
Brown stared at the screen long enough that the spinning skull and crossbones showed back up.
He let it spin as his fingers drummed the desktop again.
Anything else?
Brown refocused and typed. Doesn't feel right. Press harder. Animal acquisition in progress. I don't want any rabbit interference.
My hack is better than your feelings.
Prove it. End of line.
A middle-finger icon danced around on Brown's screen, but only briefly before a laughing skull and crossbones overwrote it.
Brown scoffed as he went to gather what he needed to hopefully make his next test, his final test. "Damned hacker. Grow up, why don't you."
-/-/-
"I know. We haven't found anything new here either. Thanks for the update, Officer Pawson."
…
Dr. Okunpi chuckled, "Okay, Connor it is. I'm Brandt, and yeah, you're right. At the rate we're going on figuring this out, we'll either be retired or best friends after all the status calls we're making."
…
"Yup, you and your mate enjoy your evening out. We'll talk tomorrow, same bat-time, same bat-channel."
Brandt groaned as he hung up and holding his phone between his hooves, bowed his head and tried praying for guidance.
Unfortunately, all he could muster was the blessing his dad always used at Christmas dinner, "Rub-a-dub-dub, thanks for the grub—"
"Yay, god?" added a voice from behind him.
Without looking up, Brandt nodded, "Yeah, for all the good it'll do. Yay, anyone who can tell me what the hell I'm missing because I'm driving myself nuts trying to figure it out."
"Sometimes, the best thing you can do is take a break and clear your mind. You'd be surprised how often a brilliant idea has hit me in the middle of a bad movie or taking a walk with my mate."
Smiling now, Brandt turned to his boss and said, "I'm going to need one hell of an awful, oh my gods terrible flick to get me past the wall I've been beating my head against for the last week."
Madge nodded and put a paw on Brandt's shoulder, "We can't give up. Billy's state hasn't changed in the slightest since he was brought in, and Miss DePawly is still an emotional wreck. They both need us, and I need to stop hearing about 'other girls' pursuing her mate."
"I know," said Brandt. "I sent out a priority alert to all the City EMTs and Ambulance drivers to ignore the new protocol requiring them to immediately administer a dose of the Nighthowler antidote to all suspected savage mammals, conscious or not."
Madge silently nodded.
"I don't like it any more than you do, but it's all I've got left. In every patient we've gotten, the antidote they were given completely masks what I know has to be there. I just can't see behind it. It does something to the terrorist's drug that I can't unwind. And without being able to isolate out this new drug, I've got a bunch of nothing to work with."
Madge shrugged, "After all the work we did making sure EMS personnel carry the antidote in their standard inventory, suddenly telling them not to use it is going to be hard."
"I know. And sitting here wishing for a savage attack doesn't exactly make me feel any better."
"How about I tell you to skip work tomorrow and take a long weekend? You look like you need at least two awful movies and an extra-long walk."
Brandt chuckled as he looked at the light jacket now in Madge's paws, "Me thinks you are one step ahead of me."
"Yes, I am. See you Monday, Brandt. Take some time off. It'll all come to you in due time."
-/-/-
"Nicholas, Judy," called out Bonnie, waving a paw as she walked up carrying a large picnic basket, "I hate to ask, but would you two please do me a favor?"
"Sure, Mom," replied Judy, closing the box she had just filled. "We're done until the last load of hay bales shows up, right Nick?"
Bonnie looked around at the farm's former soccer park and play areas which were now hosting a venue large enough to hold a few thousand small to medium mammals. On the far side of the open space from the house, a large stage was under construction, with port-a-potties being set up to her left along the tree line. And opposite the line of port-a-potties, marked booth spots were being painted and numbered, creating an area for merchandise vendors, muzzle-painters, and a few artists splitting their wares between here and their Carrot Days booths.
Turning to inspect the activity closer in toward the family parking area entrance, Bonnie saw that Nick had almost single-pawed created a shuttle drop-off area out of hay bales for the spectators that couldn't walk in from a temporary parking field being groomed a few hundred yards to the other side of the entry drive. Squinting across the field, Bonnie nodded in satisfaction as she took a closer look at the stage construction; rabbits may be small, but her kits knew their way around tools and hard work. The stage was well on its way to being solidly built with enough canopy-covered wing space to the sides so that each act would have plenty of room to prepare for their competition time.
Which led Bonnie's eyes to the low table and three chairs sitting in the grass in front of the stage. The judges' seats. Judge Beans, of course, would be one. Mayor Ackerbunn, the second. But the whole town was waiting for the third judge to be announced. Lewis had invited Simon Howl to be the final judge, but no one really held out much hope he'd be there… but you never know.
Nick dropped the hay bale he'd been carrying, usually a two-rabbit job, and then dropped himself on top of it, "Yes, yes, a respite from the toil! My kingdom for a merciful paw and maybe some gruel from my taskmaster. The evil bunny that she is, always making the fox work."
"Quite a thespian, isn't he?" said Bonnie, giving Judy a side hug, and doing a mental happy-dance at catching a whiff of Farm Fresh Musk Mask on her daughter.
"Yup, a total drama fox."
"Thffftftt."
"Mature too."
Nick tried to stick out his tongue but was thwarted by a Judy paw on his muzzle.
"So, what did you need?"
"elp ifting eavy hings?"
"Don't worry, Nicholas, it doesn't involve lifting anything heavy, just changing a light bulb or two and swapping out the batteries in a few smoke alarms."
"Ewww," said Judy, pulling her now drool-covered paw from Nick's muzzle.
"Sounds good," said Nick, standing and taking the picnic basket. "What's this for?" And after a few sniffs, "Smells good."
"Thank you. I was hoping you two could take dinner to a friend of mine and help her with a few things around her house. Her normal helper has been out of town for a bit, and one of her smoke alarms has stopped working. She can't reach it to change the battery and needs someone tall to fix it for her."
"Of course," said Nick, straightening up and flexing, "One tall fox who's all about fire safety, at your service, good lady. All I need to know is who is this damsel in distress, and where might we find her fire hazard of a castle?"
Bonnie clapped.
"Mom, please don't encourage him. Once he gets going…"
"To be, or not to be? That is the question."
Shaking her head, Judy asked, "So, who's your friend, and where does she live?"
"Lillian Dassie, and she lives on the outskirts of Piney Bluff."
Judy's brow furrowed, "I know that name. Yeah, from grade school. Wasn't she the one who got shunned for living in a rabbit neighborhood? Yeah, I remember now, none of the kits from around there would even go to her house for Trick or Treating."
Bonnie sighed, "Yes, that's her, the poor dear. She's the sweetest soul you'll ever meet, and to hear how some of her neighbors have treated her over the years is so disheartening. But yes, she was shunned ages ago, and that's why she needs help now and again. So would you both be dears and take her dinner for me and help her with a few things around her house?"
…..
Washboard dirt roads just outside the town limits turned into a decently maintained wide gravel road. The road traversed through a treed region with gentle hills until it ended at an elaborate brickwork neighborhood entrance with a faux gatehouse in a well-kept grassy center island.
Waving toward a wrought iron streetlamp, Nick asked, "So, is this considered the high-rent district in Bunnyburrow?"
"Pretty much," replied Judy, nodding toward a two-story house that had nothing to do with farming and said, "There's more going on in Bunnyburrow than just farming, and for those that can afford it, they buy into neighborhoods like this. The guy who owns the used car dealership in town lives down the street over there. I heard a mated couple with an internet business live a street over, and a couple of members of the Town Council live up that way."
"So, hustlers and small business owners like Moi," said Nick.
"Sure," chuckled Judy. "Except not like you. You won't see a predator anywhere near Piney Bluff, let alone living here. The only reason Miss Dassie is still living here is because her family had enough money to buy a place here before the neighborhood went all high-class and was gerrymandered such that if she ever moves out, no one other than a rabbit will be able to move into her old place."
"I think that's the turn," said Nick, looking up from his map app and pointing toward a cul-de-sac. "How about the Mayor? Does she live amongst the well-heeled, which would be living pretty large considering how big a rabbit's foot is?"
Turning, Judy said, "Har-har, and no. Most of the time, the mayors run on being a bun of the people, and living in the ritziest neighborhood in Bunnyburrow doesn't poll well in that regard. The closest one to living here is old Mayor Burns, who grew up in the neighborhood on the other side of that treed area. It's a lot more working-class than this place and fits Mayor Burns to a tee."
Parking in front of a small one-story bungalow-style house sandwiched between a forested area on one side and a privacy fence of trees and bushes put up by whoever lived in the mini-mansion on the other side, Judy said, "Mom was right about the house being on the edge of the neighborhood. It's been too long since I've been out this way, but if I remember right, it's all trees and open space way back behind this part of the neighborhood, and" waving a paw to the side of the house with the trees, "way over there too."
"Pretty area," said Nick, getting out of the truck. "Kind of… I don't know, a cloistered feel to it with all the trees. It feels more closed in here. I can't quite put my finger on it, but…"
Judy grabbed the picnic basket out of the truck bed and handing it to Nick, she gave him a quick peck on the side of his muzzle, "You sound like a farmer needing his open spaces. What happened to that city slicker I fell for back in Zootopia?"
"Still here, just enjoying the fresh air and the girls who make pink gingham look sexy."
Judy shook her head as she rang the doorbell and said, "You don't look so bad in that denim shirt either."
"Yup, just wait until I find a ballcap and piece of straw to chew on, I won't be able to chase the girls off with a pitchfork."
"Oh, be still my beating heart," said Judy, holding her paws to her chest and batting her eyes. "How will an innocent farmgirl like me ever be able to resist a fox as devastatingly handsome as you?"
Nick smirked, "I'm kind of hoping you won't."
Judy raised herself up on her tiptoes and pulling Nick's muzzle closer—
—didn't notice that the front door was opening.
"Hello," said an elderly hyrax doe.
"Oh," said Judy, caught with her paws still holding Nick's muzzle. "Hi, Miss Dassie, I'm Judy Hopps, and this is Nick Wilde.
"Nick, uh, had something in his teeth," said Judy, stepping slightly back from Nick, "But everything's okay now. So, my mom asked us to stop by with some dinner and said you needed some help with a few things that only my tall boyfriend here can do."
"With a space in the middle," said Nick quickly. "You know, boy… friend, not boyfriend, because that would be weird. Me being a fox and Judy being a bunny, and both of us being just friends."
"Yeah," added Judy, "Nick's not my boy– I mean, he is a boy, but he's also a fox that's a boy, so that's totally different if you know what I mean."
Looking back and forth between the two now grimacing young mammals who were also still standing quite close to each other, Miss Dassie replied, "I'm Lillian. You must be Bonnie's kits. She said you'd be by. Thank you so much for coming."
…..
Judy nodded her thanks as Lillian handed her a box of bulbs from the bag of supplies they'd bought at the Bunnley's new store on the way here. 'Mom was right about Miss Dassie, Lillian, she's super-sweet.' Handing a bulb from the box to Nick, Judy snuck another peek at Lillian. She'd not met many hyraxes in her life, but those that she had had always reminded her of pikas or super-fluffy rabbits with small rounded ears along with the biggest difference that stuck out, or didn't stick out in this case, Lillian's barely there stub of a tail hidden under her thick greyish-brown fur.
'Who the heck would shun this wonderful doe because of such small differences should be ashamed of themselves.'
"I have a small step stool if you think your Nicholas would like to use it."
Judy smiled as she watched Nick stretch tall enough to reach the ceiling of the small house and swap out the last of the old lightbulbs with the new LED ones they'd brought. "No, thank you, Nick's pretty tall. Mom says it's nice to have someone tall around who can reach the upper shelves and cabinets."
"I'd imagine he's pretty strong too."
"Uh-huh, he's been helping out around the farm a bunch."
"His fur looks fluffy. Does it take a long time to brush out in the morning?"
"No, not really. Nick's got a couple of special brushes he likes, and as long as I can get to his fur right out of the shower, it goes pretty quick."
"Excuse me, Lillian," said Nick, showing her the smoke alarm he'd just taken down from its spot near a light fixture. "Your alarms aren't beeping because of the batteries. They're beeping because they've expired and need to be replaced."
"Oh dear, is that hard to fix? It's been so long since my fellow put them up."
"No, it's not hard. Mrs. H. asked us to stop on the way here and pick up some new alarms, just in case. So, if it's okay, I'll replace all your alarms with new ones that have long-life batteries, and all work together wirelessly, so if one goes off, they all go off."
"Yes, thank you very much," replied Lillian, smiling as Nick programmed all the alarms before breaking out the tools he'd need to install them.
"You must be very happy. Nicholas is so smart and handy."
"Yes, yes, he is," cooed Judy.
"While Nicholas is finishing, would you be kind enough to help me with dinner?"
"Of course," said Judy, finding the picnic basket they'd brought. "My mom said she marked everything for you, and all you have to do is heat it up."
Leading Judy to the kitchen, Lillian had her set the insulated basket on the counter while saying, "It was so fortunate for me that your mother called earlier to check on me. My fellow has been so busy lately that he hasn't been able to come by like he usually does. I miss him greatly when he gets so busy, especially on days like today.
"Will you and Nicholas be able to stay and join me for dinner? Your mother's cooking is always so wonderful. It would be a joy to share it with you."
"Well, that's very kind of you, but my mom cooked all of this for…" said Judy as she and Lillian unloaded the basket and set the wrapped packages out on the counter.
Packages marked 'Lillian,' 'Nicholas,' 'Judy,' and 'Dessert only if you eat all your dinner.'
"…well, I guess, thank you. We'd love to stay for dinner."
-/-/-
'Another day wasted, and I've got nothing to show for it,' thought Brandt, walking to his car. 'And the vending machine hay and grain meal bars you ate instead of dinner tasted like sawdust.'
Reaching his car, Brandt set his notebook on the roof and used his phone to search for some real food. Madge was right, he needed something else to think about, and a decent take-out place fit the bill.
Unfortunately for Brandt's stomach, his scrolling through a list of nearby restaurants was interrupted by an incoming call.
A call that his phone's caller ID claimed was from an EMT he'd only recently met.
"Hello, this is Dr. Okunpi."
-/-/-
"Yum," said Nick, patting his stomach, "Mom's blueberry crumb cake is always so good."
Judy rolled her eyes and told Lillian, "Nick's never met a blueberry anything he's not immediately fallen in love with."
"Now, Carrots," replied Nick, holding up a finger, "you know that's… uh," Nick thought for a second and finally said, "Okay, you're right, I can't say no to a blueberry, but you have to admit, this batch of berries was special."
Judy patted Nick's paw, then intertwined her fingers in his and said, "I told you. If you're smart, you'll lock up the rest of the crumb cake in the refrigerator.
Lillian laughed, "It's so wonderful having a young couple over. How long have you two been together?"
Judy's eyes went wide, then looking at her and Nick's paws together on the table, she quickly put both her paws in her lap and said, "We're not together, I mean not a couple. We're, you know, friends."
"Real good friends," added Nick. "Partners, work partners, not the other kind."
"Yeah," said Judy, nervously grooming a red-furred tail tip that had made its way into her lap sometime during dinner, "just best friends."
"Of course," said Lillian. "That's how my fellow and I are, best friends, and we have been since we met as kits in grade school."
"You're not mates?" asked Judy, "I thought from the way you spoke of him that you were."
"No, no. That's not been in the cards for us. My fellow and I are just special friends."
Paw sliding over to Judy's under the table, Nick asked, "You sound like you wish there could be more between you."
Lillian nodded as a wry smile crossed her muzzle, "Please forgive me. Sometimes, I can be quite the foolish old doe. The times may be changing, but not fast enough for this old doe's heart. My fellow has too many mammals, prey, and predators, counting on his wisdom to let him undo decades of steady progress by taking me as his mate. Because of our circumstances, my fellow and I are each tasked to carry the joy and the burden of our love for each other separately. I long ago accepted my lot in life and have made it my goal to ease my fellow's burden and multiply his joy whenever we can be together.
Lillian dabbed at the corner of her eye with a lace handkerchief before noticing the silence and the maudlin looks on the muzzles of her guests. Trying to ease the mood of the young couple so obviously in love, Lillian said, "Don't let this old doe put a damper on the evening. Times were very different years ago, but they have been changing for the better recently. If my fellow and I were young again and just starting out together, I know things could be different. You just have to grab hold of your together dream and make it work for you better than ours did for my fellow and me."
With her guests still silently holding each other, Lillian stood and gathered up her dishes. Setting them on the counter, Lillian looked over and, before either Nicholas or Judith thought to break out of their moment, asked, "Would you two do me one more favor before you leave?"
"Sure," replied Judy after a few silent moments of pushing away the relationship dilemma that Lillian had brought up. A dilemma that sounded eerily close to hers and Nick's. "Anything we can do to help."
Nick also nodded as he stood and picked up his and Judy's dishes, saying, "I'll take care of the dishes."
"Actually," said Lillian, taking Nick and Judy's paws and walking them over to a broad set of glass double doors leading out to the backyard, "tonight is the anniversary of my fellow and mine's first date. Usually, we'd sit out in the garden and watch the sunset together to celebrate, but this year he had no choice but to be away.
"I know you're just special friends, but with my fellow being gone and me not being able to get around by myself like I used to, I was hoping you two would do me the favor of watching the sunset for us. This old garden has seen a lot of joy over the years, and it would break my heart knowing that after all this time, I'd disappointed her."
Nick looked through the doors toward the close in part of the backyard and, not seeing much of a garden or anywhere to sit, asked, "Are you sure that's what you want? I'd be happy to walk with you out to your spot. We have time, right Carrots?"
"Thank you dear, but tonight doesn't need an old doe and her worries. Tonight needs fresh possibilities and loving mammals braver than I'm able to be."
Judy half-smiled, "If you're sure. Like Nick said…"
Lillian opened one of the doors and, motioning Nick and Judy outside, said, "Yes, thank you. You'll be doing me a great favor. These old legs are worn out tonight, and I don't want tonight to be the night of sadness I've long feared would eventually come.
"The path is to the left of that oak tree over there in the corner of the backyard. "It's not too far of a walk. You'll know the spot I'm talking about when you see it."
Nick smiled at his bunny and holding out his elbow, said, "Shall we, Carrots?"
Judy looked back at Lillian and seeing her smile and nod toward the path entrance, put her paw on Nick's arm, took a deep breath, and said, "We shall."
The backyard was small and well-kept. It backed to trees that separated it from its neighbors. It was as if the trees and tall bushes created an island out of Lillian's backyard.
"She sounds lonely," said Nick as they found the path, and he took Judy's paw in his now that no one could see them.
"Not lonely," said Judy, rubbing the side of Nick's paw with her thumb, "resigned. She and her friend made the best choice they could years ago, and they've been living with it ever since."
Nick nodded as the trees started to thin, and the path led to a clearing that overlooked the rolling green hills to the west of Bunnyburrow.
"Wow, this is almost as pretty a view as on Lookout Point."
"Yeah," said Judy, "And look over there. Another path coming in from that other neighborhood I told you about."
"A private spot where two mammals that can't be seen together can be together," replied Nick, squeezing Judy's paw. "Kind of romantic, I guess."
Judy lightly hip-bumped Nick and said, "It's very romantic."
In the waning light of the sun starting its descent below the horizon, Nick led Judy over to the single bench in the small clearing so they could sit down.
As a gentle breeze blew, Nick scooted close to Judy, put his arm around her, and wrapped her with his tail.
The sweet fragrance of Night-Blooming Jasmine wafted in on the breeze, followed by crickets chirping their special message of attraction.
Judy snuggled close and rested her head against Nick's side.
"It's beautiful here. I think I like this spot more than Lookout Point."
"I have a knife, do you want me to carve out initials into one of the trees?"
Judy patted Nick on his chest, "Nope, I'm happy having you right where you are."
Nick's tail tightened around Judy as the sun was now more under than over the horizon.
"You know," said Nick quietly while watching the sunset, "I saw a picture on someone's desk. It was taken on the day of their mating ceremony. He was wearing a tuxedo, and she was decked out all in white.
"They looked happy."
Nick felt Judy nod.
"When I saw that picture, my first reaction was I wanted to be that guy. A tux, my girl in a beautiful dress, both of us in front of everyone celebrating. A line of mammals throwing rice at us."
"Birdseed," said Judy, it's better for the birds.
Chuckling, Nick said, "Birdseed then. Do rabbits throw bouquets?"
"Uh-huh, except whoever catches it, eats it. So, you have to be careful what kind of flowers you use."
"And smushing cake into each other's muzzles?"
"No cake smushing, girls don't like it when strawberry cake messes up their makeup."
"Blueberry."
"That too."
"I heard some couples freeze the top layer of their cake for their first anniversary."
"That wouldn't work in my family. Too many grabby paws when there's cake around."
"Elevated chair dancing?
"Depends on which Uncles show up and how much moonshine they bring with them."
The clouds parted around a nearly full moon as the rest of the sky darkened with the setting sun, and a chorus of katydids and chirping crickets filled the clearing with their soothing music.
Nick sighed, "I don't drink."
After the third go-round of drawing a pattern in Nick's leg fur with her claw, Judy whispered, "Miss Dassie and her boyfriend made it work for them. We'll figure something out."
Both lovers went quiet as the final bit of the sun slipped below the horizon, and the fireflies came out.
As dusk fell upon the valley, Nick said, "A heartbeat after I first saw that picture, I promised myself I'd stay focused on what was really important. A big ceremony with a blueberry and strawberry layered cake, lots of decorations, and presents isn't what's most important. Sure, I'd like to brag on my mate, have our names flashed on the big scoreboard at Pigley Field—"
"Please tell me you wouldn't actually do that."
Putting a finger on Judy's lips, Nick said, "As much as I want to tell everyone what I've got and how happy I am. The most important thing in my life is you."
Judy pushed away Nick's finger with a kiss and, pulling his muzzle to hers… she missed the brightest part of the moonrise as she let her kisses show her fox exactly how important he was to her."
…..
A/N: Quirky-Middle-Child created a beautiful piece of art for this chapter. If you'd like to see this work, it's on DeviantArt at: www{dot}deviantart{dot}com/mikey2084/art/Sunset-in-Bunnyburrow-1097405769