Hello everyone, Trenton here, and I want to say something before you read this. While I was writing most of this, I was sick, and so my apologies if the grammar is bad or if the story in general is bland. Hopefully, I'll be returned back to good health soon! Also, in this chapter, I give a tiny hint towards Nick's parents. Rather it's correct or not, no one knows as Disney never shared some light on the subject. Hopefully, if there is a Zootopia II, more of Nick's past will be revealed.

Thanks, and enjoy chapter three!

One year ago, Judy had just moved into Zootopia. A gleaming city where anyone can be anything, or so she thought. It wasn't long after she joined the ZPD when she realized that the cities main motto was really a lie. Sure, you can be anything, but don't forget countless criticism and depressing nights, staring blankly at the ceiling as you lay in bed. Her first case could have been her only case, if it wasn't for Nicholas P. Wilde.

One year ago, Nick's life was run completely on scammed foodstuffs. As pathetic as it sounds, he actually made a living off of it, making around two hundred dollars per-sale-day. Life was normal, life was easy, life was enjoyable. And then there was one day, he was upstate for once, hoping to get bigger money with the bigger businesses releasing their employees at noon for lunch break. That day, he saw a rather unusual sight. A police officer (and a meter-maid) who just happened to be a bunny, a very gullible bunny, as her history shows. Nick scammed her into buying a "Jumbo Pop", an elephant-sized popsicle. He made around forty of his "Pawpsickles" with that one pop, and got it all for free. Of course, the joy didn't last for long, and just as the fox thought he had the last laugh, Judy accused him of "Felony Tax Evasion". And to think, he had been doing it since he was twelve.

"It's called a hustle, sweetheart." He remembered her saying. It was actually the same thing he had said to her the day before, after she figured out that her perfectly good twenty had gone into the making of dozens of over-priced popsicles. And that's how the grand adventure began. That week they narrowly escaped death several times and Nick even faked an attack on Judy. At the end of the week, Nick joined the ZPD as Judy's partner in crime and as a Junior Officer. Of course, as time passed, Nick was promoted to Judy's rank, Senior Officer.

One year ago, a fox met a bunny, and they went on a grand adventure. During those forty-eight hours, they grew closer than they ever imagined. Nick never thought that he would actually grow to like a bunny, and Judy never thought that she would grow to love a fox. And now, it was their one-year anniversary since their first case.

It was it was still dark when Nick received a call from her. Foxes naturally wake up early. Nick assumed that it was age old predatory instinct, but in the now, unless the early bird catching the worm means beating the traffic rush to the donut shop, there isn't much need for his ancient instincts. So he was laying there in bed, staring up at the dark ceiling, still slightly drowsy. Muted by the closed door, the faint sound of Nick's phone in the next room over made him grumble.

"Duty calls." He mumbled sarcastically under his breath. "That or my phone." He wanted to stay in bed, even though he knew there was no way he was going to fall back asleep, but if he didn't get up now he wouldn't make it to the phone. So he slung his feet over the side of the bed. He knew who it was: Judy. His mother rarely called, Finnic honestly would rather talk person to person and Chief Bogo didn't even have his number. Jogging through the doorway, he picked his phone up off the cabinet where he normally left it overnight. Even though he was ninety nine-percent sure that it was Judy, he checked to make sure anyways. And of course, it was her.

Nick quickly pressed the answer button and held the phone to his ear with one hand, leaning against the counter.

"Hey Judes." Nick spoke casually.

"Oh hey Nick." She said. From the tone of her voice, he could obviously tell that she had been awake for a while.

"You alright? Why'd you call?" He said, trying to cut to the point.

There was a slight pause on the other end of the line.

"You...don't know?" Judy sounded confused, like she expected him to have remembered something. He glanced over at a calendar hanging from his pantry door. There was nothing written under the date, no holiday, no special occasion.

"Am I supposed to know?" He said, tired and confused, but mostly tired.

"Nick," She said with a quick sigh, "It's been one year since we met. One year ago, today." She pointed out.

Nick took in a breath, nodding his head as he remembered (not really). He didn't remember what day they first met, and honestly he didn't want to remember. Those first few days he treated her like trash, something he'd never do now.

"It's our anniversary." Judy continued. Nick let out a soft chuckle.

When you put it that way, it sounds like we're a couple. Sure, it's a possibility, but not now anyways.

"My apologies," said Nick, "I can't say I have the memory of an elephant...or a yak." It took Judy a moment to catch on, not that they were on the topic of their first case one year ago.

"Anyways, I was wondering if you wanted to hang out today." She piped cheerfully through the line. "You know, to celebrate." A faint smile spread across Nick's lips.

"You know what, that sounds like a good plan." He acknowledged. "Your place in an hour?" He suggested. Judy had other plans.

"Well, actually, I was hoping to go over to your apartment."

Nick was surprised. They always went to Judy's apartment if they are going somewhere. It wasn't that Judy disliked Nick's home, in fact the reason that she suggested it was so that she could see it for the first time in a few months.

"Really?" Nick said lightly, still surprised.

"Not to invite myself over-"

"No! Your fine!" He interrupted. "My place in an hour." Nick smiled, happy to have a houseguest. It had been quite a while since his last visitor.

"If that's ok with you."

Nick chuckled.

"That's fantastic with me."

"Your place in an hour?"

"It's an honor."

"Alright, thanks Nick! I'll be right over."

Nick paused, thinking hard. An idea popped into his mind.

"How 'bout I drive over there and pick you up?" He suggested lightly with an open mind.

"Oh Nick, it's fine." Judy said in a "pshaw" sort of way.

"I insist." Nick spoke seriously. "I know you've been having car troubles lately. It would be the safest way."

Judy rested her head in her palm. It couldn't hurt. He's being very open and polite, if anything, seize the moment while it lasts. No harm done.

"Alright then." Judy finally answered. Nick smiled on the other line. "Are you sure? Because I could always just take my ca-"

"It would be my pleasure." Nick said in his natural, cunning voice. One of the pros of being a fox, nevertheless a con-artist, is smooth-talking. A true fox can persuade anyone with ease.

"Ok then." Judy said with a light shrug. "Thanks."

"Not a problem." Nick answered with a victorious smirk.

"Bye!

"Bye. Love you."

"Wha-"

Nick hung up quickly.

Nicholas hummed a tune as he drove to Judy's apartment. It was odd for him to be this happy, and even more so for him to outwardly express it. He drummed on the steering wheel, keeping in rhythm with the song on the radio.

The fox was dressed in a yellow Hawaiian shirt (what else) with his favorite dark indigo tie and light brown pants. As for his Hawaiian shirts, he had bought them at a thrift store in a variety of colors: green, yellow, orange, red, and blue, though he wore his green and yellow ones most often as they seemed to match anything. He was growing to love that shirt, almost as much as his green one. It was the same shirt he was wearing when he first met Judy.

The apartment complex Judy lived in was surprisingly close to Savannah Square, a popular tourist spot in the heart of Zootopia. Judging by the powerful legs that Judy had, being a bunny, Nick wouldn't doubt it if she could walk (or hop) there herself. He turned the last corner, driving down a street parallel with Judy's apartment. He looked up at the sign broadcasted at the very top floor.

"The Havens at Savannah Square"

Nick parked his car in a vacant parking space. Looking out the windshield, he could see Judy, leaning against the wall just outside the front doors. She had her earbuds in and her foot was rhythmically tapping to the beat of a song, a song that Nick was almost positive was "Try Everything" by Gazelle. The song did catch many animals interest, both predators and prey, with its positive message and it's catchy tune. Nick was not one of these animals. Sure, the song wasn't anywhere near as bad as nails on a chalkboard, but he just didn't find it interesting.

Nick, leaving the car on, opened his door and stood up. He waved his arm, giving a quick whistle. Judy was staring at her feet without a clue.

"Judy." He called aloud. After no response, verbal or physical, he called slightly louder.

"Judy!" Still, no movement. With a sigh, Nick peaked back into his car, pulling the key out of the ignition and tucking it into his pocked. He trotted up to the unexpecting bunny until he was standing just feet in front of her.

Finally, after she saw a new pair of paws standing besides her own, she looked up, immediately taking the earbuds from her ears.

"Oh, Nick! Sorry, I didn't see you." Judy said quickly.

Nick chuckled. "Yeah, aren't you bunnies supposed to have incredible hearing?"

Judy rolled her eyes. "Funny," she commented sarcastically, "and yes, rabbits have sensitive ears. Do you ever wonder why I listen to my music at volume two?" She showed him her phone and the volume that she was listening to her Try Everything at.

"If there was a fox he would have bit you." Nick remarked as he began to walk back to the car. "Oh wait, there is."

Judy followed Nick back to his car, hopping into the passenger seat with a responsive chuckle.

"It's funny, my parents use to say that all the time."

"Did they really?" Nick said buckling his seatbelt and starting the car. "It's just a joke I've heard on the street."

"No, it wasn't a joke. My parents were very literal." She said seriously. Nick's smirk faded.

"...Oh…"

There was an awkward silence that lasted for a while until Judy finally spoke.

"Anyways," She said, buckling her belt, "thanks for driving me." A smile returned to Nick's face.

"Anything for you, carrots." Judy blushed and immediately looking out the window.

The two drove through the thicket of downtown Zootopia, driving into a part of town that Judy hadn't been to alot, only in police cases. There was a part of the city, hidden from view by the large skyscrapers of downtown, a place where most of the predators lived. Now, as a predator or as prey in Zootopia, you had equal rights, but most predators seemed to stick to predators, and prey to prey, which is what made Nick and Judy so unique.

Finally, after driving for a while and having scattered conversations, Nick pulled up to an apartment complex. It was red-brick with white supports and glass windows that hung out over the edge as the more luxurious appartments. Overall, it looked very modern, and very nice. A large sign at the top of it read, "Velvet Towers", which explained the dark red color that most of the building's exterior displayed.

"Wow." Judy remarked, pressing her nose against the window.

"What, did you think I lived some hole?" Nick snickered, pulling into the parking area.

"Well...you did." She said. Nick rolled his eyes.

"I moved." He stated simply. "Took some money out of an old savings account."

Judy thought back to the first time she saw Nick. It was actually from across the street on her first week of her job. At first glance, he seemed to be some father with no mother present and had some sort of tragic backstory that he'd rather not talk about. Turns out he sold scammed popsicles for a price way to high.

"Lemme' guess," she said, turning to the fox, who was already wearing a smug grin,

"Pawpsickles?"

"Pawpsickles."

Judy laughed as he pulled into a parking space.

"Have the ZPD found out about that yet?" She asked, getting out of the car. "You could still be punished, fired even."

Nick laughed, getting out of the car and closing the door, locking it behind him.

"Trust me Judes, with the leftovers from the apartment, I can easily afford a lawyer."

"Nicholas Wilde! You're under arrest!" Judy proclaimed.

Nick, or Nicholas, leaned forward onto the top of the stroller, resting his head in his arms.

"For what? Hwurting your feewings?"

"Felony tax evasion."

Nick's smirk faded quickly.

"Yeah," Judy continued, "two hundred dollars a day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year, since you were twelve, so times twenty, which is one million four hundred and sixty thousand, I think, I mean I am just a dumb bunny, but we are good at multiplying."

Judy chuckled aloud, thinking back to their humorous past.

"What's so funny?" Nick asked, keeping his eyes ahead of him as they walked.

"Oh, nothing." She said. "Just...thinking."

Finally, they were standing at the base of the apartment, two large, glass double doors in front of them. Nick stepped forward, opening the door. For an awkward moment, Judy just stood there, waiting for Nick to walk through. It took a moment for realization to smack her upside the head and see that he was patiently holding the door for her.

"Oh," she said, hurrying quickly through the door, "thanks!" Inside the lobby was filled with predators, from lions, to tigers, and even bears. The sight of a rabbit entering the building with a fox was rather unusual. Judy earned the gaze of several other predators, lounging in the lobby. She even saw a few lean over to their companion next to them and whisper something, most likely about her. Looking back ahead, Nick was now in front of her, walking swiftly with his hands folded behind his back. He nodded his head as a way to say "Hello" to a lioness behind the front desk. She gave a polite wave with a smile and went back to the computer she was previously on. She followed him to an elevator. It was only when the elevator door closed when Judy started to talk.

"Oh sweet cheese and crackers, they were all looking at my like I was glowing or something." Judy said in a rather paranoid way.

"Well, what would you think if you saw a tiger walk into your apartment lobby?" Nick said, selecting the button for the top floor. The elevator began to rise, a small screen at the top of the room slowly counting up as they rose, "3...4...5...6". Nick glanced over and saw that Judy had still not dropped the matter. "Judes, just forget about them," he said, leaning against the wall, "you came here to see me, right?" Judy nodded.

The elevator reached the top floor and the doors opened to reveal a long hallway ahead of them with one single window at the very end. Nick motioned Judy to follow him with a wave. Judy relaxed, thinking about what Nick had said, why she had came here. Nick walked down the hall until he came across a door. The letters "316" were placed at the top in gold. Nick reached inside his pocket, taking out a keycard and swiping it in a small slot above the door handle=. A red light on the slot turned green and Nick twisted the knob, opening the door. Inside was a well furnished, clean apartment. Honestly, Judy thought that Nick's home would be cluttered, but everything was very organized and neat.

"Wow." Judy said. "It's...tidier than I expected."

"Cleaned it just for you." Nick said, closing the door behind them. Judy peaked into a room. Inside was a bed with red sheets, a TV, and a wardrobe with several different colors of Hawaiian shirts all hung neatly. Focusing back ahead of her, there was a kitchen and a dining room, and a living quarters with a flatscreen, a couch, and two chairs.

"Would the guest like a tour of my humble abode?" Nick said, a wild look on his face.

"Sure." Judy said happily. Nick led her into the kitchen first.

"I just installed new countertops," he said, swiping his paw down the polished granite that had been placed, "they use to be fake granite." The fox walked over to a door nearby, opening it up. Upon opening the door, a light flicked on automatically, revealing shelves upon shelves of miscellaneous foodstuffs. "And this is my food pantry," he said walking inside; Judy followed her, "I've got everything here, from canned fruit to cane sugar." Nick stopped in front of one item, taking it from the shelf and turning to Judy.

"Do you remember these?" He asked. In his paws was a clear, sealed sack that was filled with blueberries, and not just any blueberries, Judy's parent's blueberries, which were much more delicious than store bought ones.

"Are those from the farm?" Judy said, stepping closer.

"Sure are." He said, turning back around and placing them back on the shelf. Next was the dining area. There were six chairs, which were rather unnecessary, as more than half the time there was only one inhabitant in the apartment, Nick himself. A blue cloth split the table in two, a vase of flowers, a paperweight, and a picture were all laying on top of the cloth. Judy examined the picture first, as if seemed to be the only picture he had in the house besides abstract paintings and sceneries. In the picture was a young fox kit sitting in the lap of a larger fox wearing a green suit. Nick's father. Judy supposed. Nick never talked about his parents, most likely because of some sort of tragedy involving them, rather it's fights, divorce, or even death. Judy just decided not to ask.

The living area was next. The TV was standing on top of a small table, surrounded by a long couch with a chair on either end and a fireplace not too far from the TV.

"It's really cozy." Judy complemented, flopping down in one of the chairs.

"Yeah, that's what I aimed for." He said lightly, collapsing onto the couch near to Judy. "It's not too much, I personally think it's rather small-"

"I love it." Judy interrupted with a smile. "It's cleaner than my place."

Nick laughed. Being the responsible, go-getting bunny that she is, he would think that her apartment was far more clean than his.

"Is that so." He said with a prideful smirk. "Anyways, what's the plan?"

"Hmm…" She said, drumming her fingers on the couch. "Well, I was planning on maybe a movie," she hummed

"Mm-hm." Nick said, slouching back in a relaxed position as he found the chair's recline lever. "Go on."

"And then after that, maybe we could go somewhere to eat?" Judy suggested.

"So…" Nick said with a mischievous look, "like...a date?"

Judy immediately regretted her words.

"Geez Nick," she said rolling her eyes, "why do you have to make everything awkward? And no, it's not a date...just two friends hanging out." Nick chuckled, loosening his tie and placing his hands behind his head.

"Ok, I hear you carrots. How about you check some movie times," He said getting up off the couch, "I have an idea of my own."

"What?" Judy asked, watching the fox curiously towards the kitchen.

"You'll see." Nick said, his back turned. An amused grin remained on his face as he opened the pantry, reaching inside and taking out an armful of ingredients.

Judy couldn't keep to herself. She peeked into the kitchen, trying to get a glance at what he was doing. She noticed his arms were full of ingredients as he emerged from the pantry, one of them being blueberries.

After a few minutes, Nick had all the ingredients laid out on the countertop. Judy had long finished searching for the movie and was now curiously trying to see what the fox was doing in the kitchen. Finally, Judy couldn't wait anymore. She quietly got up and snuck into the kitchen. Nick was inside, retrieving a few items from the fridge, he closed the door and turned around.

"Oh," he said in slight surprise, "I was just about to call you in."

"What'ch you making?" She said curiously. Out on the counter was a sack of flour, a sack of sugar, vanilla, blueberries, and other various foodstuffs.

"You mean what are we making?" Nick corrected, setting the ingredients form the fridge out on the counter: milk and butter. "I want you to make it with me." He said, leaning up against the counter. "What do you say?"

Judy flashed a smile.

Chaos had broke out in the kitchen. The ground was covered in a light blanket of flour, which was also sprinkled all over the place, including all over the two animals.

"No! What are you doing? Don't set the mixer on high!" Nick said, rushing to the mixer. Flour poofed out of the edges of the bowl, spraying both animals in the powder. Nick reached over to the side of the mixer and switched off the machine, shielding his eyes from the spewing flour.

The blades inside slowed to a stop. A long pause broke out in the room, Nick's fur dusted in white powder and Judy, standing at a distance, biting her lip.

"Sorry…" she squeaked, an embarrassed look flushed her face.

"Have you ever cooked before?" Nick asked sarcastically, trying to ignore the kitchen, his kitchen which looked like it had just gone through a blizzard.

"Ehh…"

"What is that supposed to mean?" He said, dusting off his shirt and pants. A cloud of flour fell to the floor.

"Well I do cook," Judy said, "I just normally order...or make something simple."

Nick let out a deep, disappointed sigh. Surprisingly, Nick had experience with cooking. In his younger years as a con-man, he would often bake things to sell. Eventually, he figured out that he was running more of a bakery than a con-job, but by the time he invented "Pawpsickles" he was a good baker. And ever since that moment, his talent seemed to carry with him. And there was no way he was going to let his best companion get by without learning the basics.

"Ok, come 'ere." He said, motioning her over. Once she was standing at his side, he picked up the flour sack and set it in front of her. For a split second, she thought that he was going to dump it on her head, but instead he picked up a measuring cup. "So from what it looks like, we've lost almost all the flour," he said glancing in the now empty bowl. "We need two and a half cups of flour." He instructed handing her the cup.

Judy stared at him for a moment before diving the cup into the flour and pulling it out.

"Now, level it off." Nick instructed patiently. Never in all his life would he think he would be making a cake with a bunny, but he was, and he had done so many other things with her as well.

"Like this?" She said, emptying the excess flour back into the sack.

"Perfect. You're doing excellent." He encouraged. She lifted the cup and dumped it into the mixing bowl. "Easy now." Nick added, hoping she wouldn't spill.

After another cup and a half of flour, vanilla extract, baking powder, and a few other importing ingredients, Judy was feeling rather successful.

"What next?" She said, dusting off her hands.

"Two eggs." Nick said, turning for the fridge while Judy waited by the bowl. Opening the fridge, Nick opened a carton of eggs, taking out two of the best in the dozen. Before long, Judy had fracked the eggs and was turned on the mixer. She watched as the ingridents blended together into a creamy batter.

"To think," Nick said, breaking the silence, "one year ago, I hated your guts and you wanted to help me into a jail cell." Judy laughed, hopping down from the mixing bowl.

"No, I wanted you to help me on a case." She replied.

"That was the best week of my life." Nick replied, staring deeply ahead of him.

"Was it really?" Judy asked.

"Sure was. Life was more interesting in those five days than it was for me in ten years, falling off bridges and breaking into abandoned asylums." Nick couldn't help it but smile when he thought of it. Just thinking about that week made him nostalgic. He had been on other cases with Judy since then, but one as fun as that one was.

"I'll never forget what you did for me, just before we got on that sky tram." Judy said. "I was getting chewed out by chief. To think, I wouldn't have been an officer if you hadn't stood up for me like that." She let out a faint chuckle, her paw grazing the spot on her chest where she would wear her badge. "Before that, I never would ever imagine partnering with a fox, let alone a predator." There was an old statement that ran across Judy's mind, something about how opposites attract. Their differences fill in gaps that each individual could never achieve on their own.

"You know, when I was cub, I viewed everyone the same." Nick spoke. "It took me several bruises and a muzzle to realize that not everyone can be you're friend." Haunting thoughts of his childhood rushed back, but were quickly pushed out of his mind as his common words replaced them. Never let them see they get to you. "Thinking back to it, when I was nine, maybe, I had a friend who was a rabbit."

"Really?" Judy said, her ears perking up. She had never heard of any times that she had interacted with other rabbits besides herself and her parents.

"Sure did, what was his name...Jack. That's it. At that age, I never would have imagined being enemies, and neither did he. Then, a year later or so, I attempted to join the Scouts." There was a pause between Nick's words. "After that, I never talked to him, or anyone else like him again."

There was a long moment of silence as the two shared emotions.

"Nick...I'm so sorry." Judy said, placing her paw over his own, her ears folding down behind her head.

"No, Judes, your fine. In fact, if it wern't for you, my view on prey would never have changed." His spirits lifted as he let out a chuckle. "I'd still be in Sahara Square scamming people out of their money."

They both laughed.

"I knew a fox in my childhood." Judy said. "Though I can't say we were friends. His name was Gideon Grey. He gave me this." Judy pushed back the fur on her cheek to reveal three parallel scratches that had scared. Nick looked shocked.

"No wonder you carried around the fox repellant." He remarked.

"Yea, after that, my parents became over protective over me, almost never allowing me to play or even communicate with anyone outside of the prey kind." Judy explained. "So when I went to Zootopia, I didn't have much experience with anyone besides bunnies. You were one of the first predators I met."

Nick awkwardly scratched the back of his neck.

"Geez Judy, if I would have known." He said apologetically.

"Forget what you would have did. Look at us now. We're baking a cake for crying out loud." Nick laughed.

"Yea, never would have imagined."

"So, what's the next ingredient?"

"Oh, milk." Nick said. "Can't forget that."

Nick turned for the fridge. He reached inside and took out a carton of milk. Judy was standing next to him, waiting for him to retrieve the ingredient. The problem was, he thought she was still by the mixer. Nick closed the fridge with his open paw and spun around, bumping right into Judy.

One of Nick's claws sliced into her fur on impact, slicing a clean cut above her waist.

Judy yelped, falling to the floor with her hands around the cut.

"Ahh! N-Nick!" She said, squinting her eyes shut. Nick rushed to her aid, kneeling down next to her. Nick looked at the wound as blood began to drip down Judy's shirt.

"What have I done?" He said in horror. Quickly, he scooped Judy up, placing her upright on the countertop.

Nick hesitated, opening a cabinet and fetching a small cup. He quickly filled it with water.

"Judy, this may hurt…" He said, turning to her. Slowly, Nick poured water into the wound. Judy gripped the side of the counter, squeezing until her knuckles were white. Nick set the cup down, taking hold of Judy's shirt. His claws had cut into the shirt as well. Nick pulled up just above the cut.32

Turning, he opened a drawer. He needed some kind of fabric to apply pressure to the cut, but all the rags were too small.

Hesitating, he looked around until his eyes landed on his yellow Hawaiian shirt. Quickly, he began to unbutton it. Judy let out another gasp, small tears forming in her eyes. The cut was around four inches long, running just across her stomach, and from what it looked like, calling for medical help wouldn't treat it fast enough. Was it possible that she could die? The very thought infuriated Nick. Tightly clenching his half unbuttoned shirt, he tore it open, turning back to Judy with only his white undershirt on now. She had a lot of blood on her now, dark red liquid staining her clothes.

"Just hold on Judy, you're going to be alright." He said as he wrapped the fabric around her. He wrapped it across her waste, pulling it tight so that it covered the wound.

"N-Nick! Ow! It hurts." She said, small tears forming in her eyes. Already, Nick's shirt was turning red from the constant blood flow.

"I know. I know Judes." Nick soothed, carefully wiping away a tear, making sure not to make the same mistake twice. "I got to get you to the hospital." He said, placing a paw under Judy's back and one under her knees. With a grunt, he lifted her off the counter.

"Nick, no." Judy said, clearly still in pain. "They'll blame you."

"So be it. After all, it is my fault." He said, carrying her out of the kitchen and towards the front door.

"D-Don't say that." She said, her breathing still rapid. She placed a paw over the cut, triggering a wave of pain to pulse throughout her trembling body. Judy let out a cry of pain.

"Don't touch it Judy." Nick instructed, opening the door with a hand underneath the rabbit. "It's ok. It's ok." He soothed. "It's going to be ok.

Nick took the stairs to avoid the animals at the front. If they had seen him walk in with a rabbit, and walk out with a blood-soaked mess, questions would certainly arouse. Especially since they are natural enemies. The truth is Nick would never hurt Judy, and he's already spent plenty of time assuring her that. Through it all, the two have proven that foxes and bunnies, through nature-given instinct, can override Mother Nature's cruel cycle.

By the time Nick reached the bottom of the stairs, his breath was long gone. He was already partially covered in Judy's blood, which was showing no sign of stopping. Nick just hoped that his shirt would aid, if any, at stopping the blood flow. He put her in his car and drove ten miles above the speed limit just to get to the local Emergency Center.

Getting out of the car with Judy in his arms, he expected the worst. He looked like a scene at the natural history museum, an image from ten thousand years ago. He rushed into the center, straight up to the front seat to a doe behind the counter who was looking pale.

"She needs medical attention. Now." Nick said, in a panicked tone. All the doe did was nod as she rushed down a hallway behind the desk. Soon enough, a group of doctors came out with a rolling bed. They ushered Judy onto it and quickly took her back. Nick overheard one of the doctors talking to an armadillo behind a desktop computer.

"...severe blood-loss…all available assistants needed...possible result of a savage fox…"

Nick bit his lip as he passed, trying to stay with the bed. Looking over a doctor's shoulder, he could see her. Several of the doctors were patting her and telling her things for comfort. She wasn't responding, only looking past them at Nick. He couldn't tell what she was saying with the way she looked at him. He just assumed that is was something like, "It's not your fault."

After having the cut cleaned, stitched, and bandaged, Judy was placed in an ICU room. She laid silently in bed, an IV's in her forearms. Nick sat silently in a chair to her left, waiting for word from a doctor. He looked awful. His white undershirt was now partially stained dark red, making it seem as if he was shot or stabbed, or both. From time to time, he would look up from the floor and over to her. She was awake, her eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. He would question if she was even alive if her chest wouldn't rise and fall constantly. Finally, he couldn't stand the silence any longer.

"Judy?"

There was a pause as she inhaled and exhaled slowly.

"Hey, Nick." She sounded awful, her voice raspy and her words quiet.

"I'm so sorry you have to be in here." Nick said, folding his hands and hanging his head, staring down at the tile floor.

Judy took another long breath.

"Don't blame yourself. You didn't mean too." She said tilting her head towards him. "We never finished the cake."

Nick laughed. He didn't know why. It just seemed that someone who had lost enough blood to stock a blood drive and had tubes connected to them would care about other things than an unfinished cake.

"Judy, when we get out of here, I'll buy you all the cake you want." He said, a smile returning to his face. He hadn't smiled since their talk just before the incident.

Just then, there was a knock at the glass door of the room and in walked a beaver wearing a labcoat and holding a clipboard.

"Hello Judy, and Nick...Wilde, was it?" He asked. Nick nodded, the smile giving way to a straight face. "My name's Dr. Bridges. I have your reports right here, Miss. Hopps," He said with a smile, "but before that, I have some questions that I need to ask you two."

Nick knew exactly what he was going to ask about. After all, baking wasn't a very legitimate answer when a fox walks into an ER with a blood-covered bunny.

"You see," the beaver continued, "we were in such a rush to give you the medical attention you deserved upon arriving that we never got around to what exactly was the cause of this accident." Dr. Bridges attention shifted to Nick. "Care to explain, Mr. Wilde?"

Nick had lied his whole life. He was a con-artist, scam-artist, hustler, a liar even. It was in his job. But it took Judy, some common sense, and his new job as an officer for him to realize that lying doesn't solve all your problems. It only delays the result.

"Doctor," Nick began, "it was an honest accident. Judy...she-"

"I was holding a kitchen knife when I slipped. The knife grazed me." Judy interrupted. "Nick, here, rushed me to the hospital, using his own shirt to try and stop the bleeding."

Dr. Bridges scribbled something down on the clipboard.

"Is this true, Mr. Wilde?" He asked. Nick glanced over at Judy, then back to the doctor.

Well, I guess lying can sometimes solve your problems.

"Yes sir, that is correct."

The doctor returned to the clipboard, writing a few more things down, then tucking it at his side.

"Well then, thank you both for your honesty, and especially you, Mr. Wilde. Without your aid, this situation could have been much more severe." He said walking over to a machine behind Judy. He pressed a few buttons and flipped a switch. He then walked over to Judy, removing the tape on top of the IV's and he slowly removed them. After placing the needle in a hazardous compost bin, he stood back in-front of the two.

"Well, Judy, you're all stitched back up. Your blood pressure is back to normal. You're free to stay the night, if that's what you prefer, but honestly, as long as the stitched aren't tampered with, you're free to leave." The doctor reported.

Nick and Judy both exchanged looks. Judy gave a slight nod.

"I think we'll leave, if that's fine with you doc." Nick said.

"Sure thing," he replied, "I'll just need signatures from you both and you can walk right out of here."

Nick scribbled his signature on the clipboard, and helped Judy, who was still relatively weak. Nick had to help her walk, an arm around her shoulder as they walked out.

"Oh, and one last thing, Mr. Wilde." Dr. Bridges said, catching them just before they left. "Would you like this?" He held out Nick's yellow Hawaiian shirt, stained in blood, the same one he wore when he first met Judy. After a long pause he responded.

"Nah. Trash it." He said before exiting. Yes the shirt did bring back memories, but he had treated her like trash when he had met, wearing that shirt.

From now on, I think I'll stick with green.

They had both returned to Nick's apartment, as Judy insisted they finished hanging out. Nick trashed the cake batter, as it had been left out for so long, and cleaned up some of the dried blood on the kitchen tile. After everything was clean, they turned on the TV. And so they both sat on the couch, Judy's head laying against Nick's shoulder and Nick's arm swung around her neck.

"Happy Anniversary, Judes." Nick had said, a warm smile on his muzzle. Fatigue was getting to Judy, most likely from the pain-meds given to her at the hospital. Slowly, she fell asleep, her head nuzzled deep into Nick's chest, smelling the scent of his clean green shirt and cologne.

The last thing she saw him doing was filling his claws to a dull curve.

Hello everyone, Trenton here! So I really wanted to explore the hurt/comfort part of this story deeper in this chapter. I apologize for how bland the story got around the middle. Towards the end, I got more inspired to write and so I think it turned out a little better. This chapter took me around a month to write, simply because I got so sidetracked in other things, and when I tried to write, I ended up getting stuck with writer's block. Anyways, I finished the story mostly in one day. I recently hurt my foot really badly, and so I have a cast and crutches for a week, so what better to do when I have to lay in bed all day! (I got my injury just hours after getting out of school for summer! My famous last words were, "Hey! Watch me do this flip!".)

Anywho, thanks for all the support I've gotten on this story. I really hope you've liked this chapter and I'll try to update much more often now that summer has arrived. Thanks for reading, #pray4trentonsfoot (if I see one post on Instagram with this I will go ballistic), and have a great summer everyone! Don't be stupid like I am!

I'll update as soon as possible! Bye!

Trenton