When Nick next opened his eyes, he was surprised by a faint pink glow low in the sky. He must have dozed off. He leaned his head up, careful not to wake the rabbit whose head rested on his chest. The sun wasn't yet visible, thankfully, so he surmised it must still be pretty early. Good, no rush. Nick smiled, and for a moment he simply watched Judy rise and fall with his breath, her frame silhouetted by the easy dawn light. Sleep was already creeping back in at the corners of his vision, and Nick had half a mind to let it. Then again, it probably wasn't the best idea to wait and risk getting caught sneaking back by an early riser. No need to feed into the gossip, right?

He sighed and rolled his eyes at the thought of the rumors making it back to Judy's parents. Freeing an arm, he gave her shoulder a gentle nudge.

"Hey," he whispered down to her. She stirred just enough to signal to him that she was half-awake. He nudged again. "C'mon, Fluff, it's dawn. We should head back."

She only gave a small groan and shut her eyes tighter, and Nick countered with a couple taps on her head with a finger. Without opening her eyes, she found his wrist and guided it to the base of one of her ears. Nick chuckled and scratched obligingly.

"Okay, now I know you're up. If we head back now, you can still get some sleep in a real bed. Sounds good, right?"

"Hm mm," she said, shaking her head.

"Okay, if we head back now, we won't get busted by the early breakfast crowd."

She opened her eyes, sighed, and rolled onto her back in the cool grass. "I know, I know."

"What time is it, anyway?" he yawned.

Judy fished her phone out of her pocket and held its glowing screen up toward his face, making him squint. "We still have a few hours before anyone is awake. It's the weekend, so everyone will be sleeping in anyway. We'll have most of the day free." She hopped up to her feet spryly.

Nick rubbed an eye and groaned. "Okay, you can't be that awake already."

"Come on, up and at 'em."

Nick sat up, stretched his arms out in front of him, and yawned once again. Judy grabbed his hands and tried to pull him up to his feet, but to no avail.

"You gotta put your back into it," he said with a sleepy smile.

Nick rocked back as she unceremoniously dropped her hold on the fox. He finally stood and brushed off the seat of his pants.

"You sore at all?"

He glanced at her. "Hm?"

"From sleeping under the stars."

"Fluff, I can sleep anywhere." He stretched his back and winced at the loud cracking sound. "Almost anywhere." Nick took one last glance out over the rolling countryside and turned to face Judy.

"Shall we?" He gestured to the path back to the burrow with a faux-gentlemanly air.

Judy curtsied theatrically. "Let's."

By the time they reached the burrow, the sun was starting to peek over the horizon. As Judy had predicted, no one yet stirred in the normally bustling Hopps home, though that was sure to change before long.

"So, meet you back at the dining room for breakfast in a few hours?" said Nick, hands in his pockets as they reached the first of the series of winding halls that lead off toward his room.

"That's the plan. Think you can find your way back without me?"

He glanced down the dark, quiet hallway. "I think I'm starting to get the hang of the place, Carrots."

She gave him a proud smile. "Well, look at you."

He actually did look down at his shirt and finally noticed the grass stains and dirt. "Yeah, look at me." By the time he looked back up, Judy had already closed the distance for the inevitable hug. He freed his hands from his pockets just in time, and she squeezed him tight and buried her head in his chest. Nick hugged back, tentatively patting her on the back of the head. "That's right, bring it in. I tell ya, you bunnies really are just so-"

"Thanks, Nick." She glanced up at him after a second. "Really." She buried her face in him again and hugged even tighter.

Nick's eyes widened for a second. He leaned down, wrapped his arms around her, and squeezed her right back. "Of course."

She finally relinquished her grip on him. Judy cast a sideways glance at the hall that eventually lead to her room. "Well, I guess we should get that last hour of sleep."

"Yeah. Sleep tight."

"You too," she said, turning to go and shooting him one last smile.

Back in his room, Nick set an alarm on his phone, then wasted no time losing his shirt and collapsing onto the bed. Grey light peeked through the slim gap in the curtains as if the new day already wanted his attention. Fussing with the the curtains only managed to create another angle for the sunbeam. No matter how he adjusted his pillow or tried to ignore it, that tiny sliver of morning seemed determined to niggle at his heavy eyelids. With a huff, he finally tossed one of the many blankets that adorned the bed over the curtain rod.

Nick sighed like his soul was trying to escape his body and float up to the ceiling. As he exhaled, it seemed to him that he was sinking deeper and deeper into the mattress and blankets, the white plaster ceiling drifting further and further away before his eyes. And as he drifted off to sleep again, he managed one more coherent thought: This had turned out to be a really good day.

His alarm seemed to go off minutes later, but the golden ray of sunlight that slanted between the curtains suggested otherwise. The clock on his phone agreed. He had actually overslept just a bit. He rubbed his face and plodded off to the shower. Truth be told, Nick had expected to feel completely exhausted this morning, but mostly just felt grimy and groggy. Not that he would say no to a cup of coffee right now, of course.

Once he was dressed, presentable, and mostly dry, he set off down the hall once more. The closer he got to the center of the burrow, the louder the sounds of daytime life grew. Between the rambunctious youngsters excitedly chatting about their weekend plans and the bleary-eyed teens attempting to text and walk simultaneously, Nick was able to make his way without turning more than a few heads. He was probably old news by now, anyway. The latecomers eventually filed into the dining room. While it still buzzed with activity, it was wasn't quite as packed as it was the night before.

This time, Nick knew better than to follow the stream of rabbits. He didn't have to hang back for long. As expected, Judy was already waving him down. He caught her eye and waved back, and she immediately began making her way through the crowd.

"Well, look who's actually up in time for breakfast," she said, finally reaching him. She was as chipper as ever. In their time working together, Nick had grown begrudgingly accustomed to their different morning personas.

"Good morning to you, too."

"Morning. Did you sleep okay?"

He meant to answer, but a yawn decided to speak for him. Judy gave him an pitying 'I thought so' smile and pointed to a row of shiny metal carafes.

"Coffee's that way."

Nick gave her a thumbs up and shuffled toward them. She followed along, and soon enough both had steaming mugs in their hands.

"If you want something to eat..." she trailed off as Nick held up a finger to silence her. He closed his eyes and took a long pull from his mug.

"Okay, continue," he said.

"There's cereal over there." She thumbed over her shoulder at a pair of tables surrounded by bunnies. "We usually do a bit more for breakfast on the weekend, but with my folks out of town and all…"

"You're too busy keeping the place from burning down to make waffles, I know." The smell of the coffee was already dispelling what was left of Nick's morning fogginess. "Your parents must really be something," he said as they took their places in the breakfast line.

"They really are." She handed him an empty bowl from one of the stacks on the table. "I know it must seem like I complain about them a lot, but they're amazing."

"Hopps, please. I practically had to beat you with a stick to get you to complain at all last night." Nick gave himself a generous helping of corn flakes and scooted along with the line. "Now, where to?"

Judy scooped herself some cereal and reached for a bowl of sliced strawberries to top it off. "You know what? You pick."

It didn't take him long to spot an empty table. He glanced back to confirm that Judy saw him leave, then set off toward it. He was halfway there when a familiar voice caught his ear from the corner of the room. He smiled to himself and changed course, heading instead toward the table half-filled by Cindy, her children, and a relatively tall rabbit that Nick assumed was her husband.

"Mind if we join you?"

Judy's sisters' ears perked up as she noticed him.

Her face immediately lit up with the bright smile she had worn when they met. "Oh, hi! Of course, grab a seat!" She tugged her husband's sleeve excitedly, and he eventually tore his attention away from his futile efforts to stop the kids from spooning cereal into each other's laps. "Look, Arthur, it's Judy's fox." She glanced back up at the fox. "Nick, right? I told you I met him last night, remember?"

Her husband looked at her, then up at Nick. "Hm? Oh, the blocks guy, huh?"

Nick sipped his coffee. "Yeah, that's what they call me."

Arthur chuckled and stuck out his hand across the table. "Well, pleased to meet you, Nick." He broke off the handshake when he heard a cry from further down the table. "Oh, cripes. I better deal with that." In an act of war, one of the kids had overturned her bowl and spilled its contents squarely in the lap of her brother.

Judy had set her breakfast down on the table while they were shaking hands. "He's not usually this friendly in the morning," she said to her relatives as she took her seat.

Cindy laughed at Nick's exaggerated, long-suffering eyeroll. "He's perfectly charming, if you ask me. How did you two sleep?"

They answered simultaneously.

"Fine, thanks," said Nick, spoon halfway to his mouth.

"Ugh, not enough," said Judy. Nick coughed on his mouthful of cereal. His sideways glance at her was quick, but not quick enough to keep Cindy's eyebrows lowered. She gave her sister a smirk, but let it go.

"So, any special plans for today?" she asked Judy.

"We haven't really talked about it, but I have an idea or two. You know, take him out to see the sights."

Nick shot Cindy a look over his coffee. "There are sights?"

Judy answered for her. "Several, in fact. After we pick the place up a bit, you can see for

yourself. I was thinking we'd check out the trail to the lake, if that sounds fun to you."

"So, does that mean no farmwork today?"

"Not unless you're itching for it," added Cindy, her head in her hands and her eyes on the commotion unfolding at the other end of the table. She seemed to enjoy watching her husband's futile attempts to keep the embattled siblings separated while he mopped up the mess. "I should help, but he's so cute when he gets like this," she sighed fondly.

"You're terrible," Judy laughed at her sister. She grabbed a handful of napkins and hopped up to help her hapless brother-in-law.

Nick chuckled at the scene and turned his attention to aimlessly swiping through his phone while he ate. Nothing but spam in his e-mail, but that wasn't a surprise. Clawhauser had a bad habit of forwarding every discount code he got. And no new texts, of course. After all, Judy was right here, and Finnick wouldn't be up before noon on the weekend. He was about to slip it back into his pocket when something on the wall caught his eye.

In front of him stretched a wide angle photo of the entire Hopps clan. Hundreds of bunnies were gathered in front of the burrow, pressed in shoulder to shoulder on what looked like a bright summer day. He stood to get a better view. Two pairs of elderly rabbits sat in wooden chairs, and behind them stood a middle-aged couple that Nick assumed must be Judy's parents. From there, the orderly rank and file of bunnies quickly devolved into a mass of faces squeezing in where they could.

"Hello? Nick?" Judy was once again by his side. Her sister's family had cleared out, probably to get the kids washed up. He hadn't noticed them leave. "Everything okay?"

Nick unfurrowed his brow and looked at her. "Oh, yeah." He shot her a smile that probably looked reassuring. "Just had a thought."

"Well, it's about time for us to pitch in with the cleaning." She scooted her chair out, took his bowl, and stacked it on her own.

"So, the lake, huh?"

"That's the plan," said Judy, tossing her brother-in-law's pile of wet napkins into a nearby trashcan. "I mean, unless you'd rather do something else. It's a nice walk and it's supposed to be a beautiful day, so I was just thinking I'd show you somewhere I used to hang out."

"Another one of your favorite spots?"

"One of the best. It's not too far out past the hill."

"The hill from last night?"

"Yeah, the hill from last night."

"Sounds good," he said softly, glancing back down at his phone. "Hey, is it okay if I catch up in a minute? I think I need to make a call." He saw her eyebrows raise and her ears perk up, her mouth suddenly a serious line. "I'm not trying to duck chores, promise."

She chewed her bottom lip before speaking. "Okay, but no whining if you get stuck mopping. Come find me in the kitchen when you're done."

"Deal." He finished his lukewarm coffee and added his mug to the pile of dishes. Judy hefted the stack and turned toward the kitchen.

"And it's supposed to be nice out today?"

Judy paused and turned back toward him. "Gorgeous, I think."

"Gorgeous." He let the word hang in the air for a moment. "Then yeah, definitely the lake."

"Okay, definitely the lake," she said with a decisive nod.

She opened her mouth as if to say something else, but instead just exhaled and smiled up at the fox. Nick came back with a crooked smirk and a here-goes-nothing sigh. She quickly turned back to the kitchen, stopping only to snag the occasional bowl that had been left behind. Nick remained where he stood, watching her until she disappeared behind the swinging kitchen door. He glanced down at his phone, flipped it over in his hand, and looked back up at the photo.

The shot was a mess, really. For every few smiling faces, there was someone not looking at the camera, or yawning, or frozen mid-conversation. He scanned the crowd for Judy, but she was lost in the sea of rabbits. Judging by the date scrawled in the corner of the photo, it must have been taken around the time she left for the academy. Just before, probably. His gaze drifted back to center frame and the elder rabbits that occupied it. Had he seen a picture of her parents before? He must have. He'd certainly spent enough time in her apartment. Maybe he just hadn't really looked. Judy's folks looked kind. They looked proud. They looked just like he imagined they would, he decided.

Nick finally looked down at his phone and unlocked it, mentally kicking himself for having to find the number in his contacts. He remembered copying it down from his pre-cellphone era address book, just in case, but could no longer recall it off the top of his head. Without giving himself a chance to think, he hit "Call".

His heartbeat threatened to drown out the dull electronic ringing. Nick paced a few feet away from the table, then turned back. He was suddenly aware of his death grip on the phone. Breathe. Be cool. A simple phone call, then the lake. He took another step closer to the Hopps family portrait and passed his eyes over it, phone buzzing in his ear all the while. Oh, there she was. Center right, arm around one of her sisters, wearing a blue gingham shirt and a big smile. Easy to miss in the crowd, but hard not to notice her now. He heard his own name and took a deep breath.

"Hey, mom."

Thanks for reading and for all the kind comments. If you enjoyed this, you might be glad to know that I've already started writing the follow-up fic. So stay tuned!