A/N: Welcome to my first Zootopia story! For now I'll label it a one shot with potential to be a full blown story. As my first go at writing for the characters I'm not sure how well their characters are portrayed by me, but I did my best! ^^; I hope you all enjoy it!
All rights belong to Disney. I just have ideas for the characters that beg to be told. lol
His left ear twitched, his mouth slightly agape, showcasing his canines slightly as he stared at her in shock. He couldn't believe what she was telling him. There was no way it was true. No way, no how.
"Sooo, let me make sure I understand you correctly here," Nick said, his voice chock-full of disbelief, a stark contrast from his aloof personality. "You're breaking our weekly tradition to go out on a...date? If this is a joke Whiskers, I'm not laughing."
"It's not a joke, Nick. It's the truth." Judy responded, fluffing her ears as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Whoa, she never fluffed her ears! He frowned. Maybe this was more serious than she let on.
"But you know Saturday nights are our movie nights! We've been going on strong for months now, and I'm proud to say we have never missed a single one. I even have them all labeled on the calendar as, 'Movie Night with Carrots'. Come on! I thought you were my best friend?"
"Aww, Nick, you know I am. This is just…" She sighed, turning to face him. "This is just something I'm doing for my mom, you know? She seems to think I need somebunny now that I'm on my own, with a successful career to boot. I don't want to let her down."
"But you're willing to let me down?" He asked, crestfallen. "I see how it is."
"No!" She grabbed his paws with her own, pouting, her little button nose twitching slightly. "Please don't misunderstand. I see you everyday Nick, to the point that there is hardly ever a moment when we're apart, but I haven't seen my parents in a long while. I think this is my mothers' way of showing that she loves and misses me. I'm only doing it for her. I guess…maybe, it's a teeny, tiny bit out of, um, guilt?"
Nick sighed, knowing there would be no stopping her. Not under those conditions. "Fine, okay, I understand."
"I knew you would," she said, beaming at him. "I'll be back before you know it, and we can watch a movie then if it's not too late. In the meantime, why don't you spend some time with Flash?"
His ears fell back. "He's going on a date with Pricilla." How bad could it be that a sloth was his only friend besides the rabbit that stood in front of him? Was his life really that pathetic these days?
"Ah, I see," Judy said, nodding. "Those two make a lovely, if er, speedily challenged, couple."
Nick chuckled, his first of the night since Judy broke the news to him. "That they do, Carrots. That they do." However, it wasn't long until the frown returned. "Please tell me you at least did a background check on him? Just for my peace of mind."
Judy giggled. "His name is Dave, and do you really think my mom would send me out on a date with somebunny she didn't do a thorough comb over of? I wouldn't be surprised if she knew exactly how many pieces of fur covered his body."
"You know she just had that new litter," he said, shrugging a shoulder. He was grasping at straws, but he had to try anyway. "Perhaps her hands were full."
"My mom is an amazing rabbit. I trust her judgment. Stop being an overprotective big brother, Nick. I have this under control. It may be my first date, but I wasn't at the top of my class for no reason," she said, proudly. "Have more faith in me."
"Ugh, okay. Fine." He said, sighing as he took in her appearance. Judy was…radiant. She had definitely went through the paces of dolling herself up, and he was sure her date, Dan, Daisy, whatever, would be hard pressed in taking his eyes off of her. She was gorgeo-er, adorable. Passable at best. She wore a light blue dress that hugged her in ways he didn't think a dress could. He was initially surprised by that. She hated dresses since they prevented her from moving at her natural fast pace. On her feet she adorned a pair of sparkly white heels, another first, and atop her head sat a light blue bow. Yeah, she was definitely…passable. At best of course.
It had been a little over a year since they had met. Nick could honestly say he was happy to have her in his life. It wasn't something he would voice out loud, that lousy carrot-recording pen had a bad habit of showing up at the worst moments, but he cared about her a lot. She was his best friend, and he was her partner with the ZPD. Looking out for her care and well being was part of his job now, and that meant protecting her from potential snot nosed suitors as well. At least, it felt like that should be a part of the job anyway.
To be fair, the thought of Judy dating never crossed his mind until she sprung it on him mere moments before. She seemed content as she was, working, hanging out with him, sleeping, and didn't seem to mind the lack of a mate. It probably was only natural, as her mom seemed to think it was, for her to move on to the next step in her life. She wasn't getting any younger, after all. If she wanted to start a family, now would be the time, but something nagged at him deep inside. He wasn't ready for her to take that next step, not yet. He knew it was a selfish thought, but it wasn't like he had turned into a saint due to working the beat now. He was still a fox through and through.
"Are you okay, Nick?" Judy asked, her bright amethyst colored eyes, stared deeply into his. He swallowed, his throat unnaturally dry.
"Yes, I'm fine, whiskers," he told her, his signature half-lidded glace making a return. "Go out and have yourself a good time."
He was surprised when her arms wrapped tightly around him in a hug. She stepped back quickly, tugging on his tie, and gave him a quick peck on his left cheek when his body proceeded to lower to the appropriate height. "Thanks Nick, that means a lot to me."
A knock on the door echoed in both of their ears, causing them to jump away from each other. They both passed glances off to each other. "Um, well, that's my date I'm sure." Judy said, playing with her paws nervously.
"Yeah, most likely," Nick said, stuffing his own paws into his pockets. "You might want to, you know, get that. Would hate to see you keeping your beau from the Borrows waiting."
"Hey! It's just a date, remember? Just to please my mom? He's not my…beau." Her nose twitched quickly.
He stared at her, quirking an eyebrow. She seemed a bit…scared? No, not his Judy. She was braver than a pack of wolves. Still, just in case…"Yeah, I know. It's all for your mom," he said, throwing an arm casually around her shoulders. "You're going through with this just to make her proud. I totally understand, but I would like to point out that things happen. He might be, as they say, 'the one'." He used his free paw to make quotation marks in the air. "One day you're breaking movie nights with me for a complete stranger, the next, you two will be standing on the alter making googly eyed kissy faces. Aww, isn't that just special?"
Judy gave him a narrow eyed look, breaking free of his hold. "Can we please move just one step at a time? I haven't even met him yet."
Nick chuckled. "It's not too late to cancel if you're getting cold feet, Carrots. Just stay here and spend the night with me. What do you say?"
The knock came again, louder this time. She rolled her shoulders back and let out a breath. "No, this is something I'm going to see though to the end."
"Atta girl," he said, low under his breath, as he watched her walk down the stairs to greet her suitor. He might not want her to go, but he wouldn't hold her back. He couldn't do that to her, even if seeing her fall right into the arms of that busy body bunny made him want to rip all of the furs off of his body. He was a predator after all, which meant he understood the look Derek had in his eyes as he stared at Judy. His best friend was quickly becoming that bunny's prey and he didn't like it. No, he didn't like it at all.
But he just wasn't at all sure there was anything he could do about it.
A/N: So there you have it. The first chapter! I might just leave it as is if there's not much interest. I really tried keeping them in character, but I doubt it was a spot on. x.x I've only seen the movie once so far, so until I can watch it over to my hearts content I'm doing the best I can. xP Thanks so much for giving it a read! If you would like me to continue, please let me know! I'd love to expand on this particular story, as I have plenty of ideas to branch it out with. ^^
Thanks again and until next time! Destiny