"Alright, I'd like to start off with a toast to my wife," Nick smirked, one paw in his suit pocket, the other holding a glass of champagne. "Get ready, this is gonna be long."

The fox laughed, which the crowd around him happily returned.

"Everyone in this room has seen Carrots and I at some of our worst and best moments, and we want to thank you very much for that, but I have to say, you really have no idea what we've seen in one another, so I'd like to tell you. I met Cottontail a little less than eight years ago – she's old, I know," Nick paused and chuckled at the punch Judy delivered to his arm.

"Sorry, sorry – I'm old. Anyway, I met her about eight years ago in an ice cream shop. At the time, my pal, Finnick, and I were in the scamming business of selling pawpsicles, and Carrots was a new cop who we – well, scammed. Back then, Carrots wanted a real case, so she decided to take on the Night Howler Case, which at the time was nothing more than several missing animals with empty case files. This rabbit then scammed me – I never paid taxes, it was a whole thing, it's not important – and I ended up on one of the wildest rides of my life. We were chased by jaguars, wolves, rams; we almost got iced by Mr. Big; we flushed ourselves down a toilet because Carrots doesn't know when to put her phone on silent; we even high jacked a train! Long story short, I let the first rabbit officer convince me to become the first fox officer," Nick smiled, then paused slightly, his eyes watching his feet as he made his way forward.

He was now near the center of the room, the guests seated in chairs at tables around what had been designated the "dance floor." Judy, along with her Maid of Honor, Fru Fru, and Nick's Best Man, Finnick, were all seated at a long table placed horizontally at the head of the room.

"That was the best thing that ever happened to me," Nick stated in a soft voice, taking pauses between thoughts. "This bunny saw the best in me, saw me for more than just some fox. She was the first animal to do this, and she flipped my whole world upside down. Since then – well, you know – it's been just as wild a ride as that first case together. Carrots and I have faced our pasts together, have solved numerous cases, and have been in the hospital more times than I would have liked. We lived in my awful apartment together; we stayed up late watching movies together; we laughed together; we bought a home together; we brought four amazing kids into this world together, we planned this wedding together. Personally, I have watched this little bunny take on the world and win. It's, by far, the scariest and sexiest thing I've ever seen," Nick snickered at his joke as Judy let out a noise of indignation, and the crowd burst into a fit of laughter.

"Sorry, sorry! My point here is… there is no one I would have rather spent just about the last decade with, and there is no one I would rather spend the rest of my life with," Nick stated.

The fox then reached down and removed his cellphone from his suit pocket. He unlocked the phone and showed everyone his homescreen: a picture from about two years prior, on the day the kids at been born. The picture depicted an extremely exhausted, but happy Judy, and a smirking Nick holding their four newborn children, who were all swaddled in hospital blankets and sleeping peacefully.

"Despite the new phones I've gotten and the pictures I've taken over the years, this picture will always remain my favorite, and it has been my homescreen for so long for that reason," Nick sighed as he looked at the photo. "With that, I'd like to change it."

Nick turned and faced Judy, as the crowd let out noises of approval.

"If you please, Carrots," Nick said as he gestured dramatically to the empty space in front of him.

Laughing, Judy stood and made her way to the center of the room with Nick, who stepped back and made a show of taking what he considered to be the perfect picture of his wife. Nick then set the new photo as his homescreen and showed the laughing audience. The phone now depicted a smiling Judy, her head slightly tilted to the side, and her wedding dress billowing around her.

After the audience expressed approval of the photo, Nick put his phone away, and reached for a hidden pocket just inside his suit jacket. A moment later, his paw revealed a carrot pen with dulling orange color. He waited for the audience to quiet down some, then pressed the "play" button on the side of the pen. Judy's voice, clearly happy, as well as some background noise, filled the room.

"Yes."

"This was when I officially proposed to Carrots, in front of just about everyone here today," Nick continued.

He stepped forward, planted a kiss on Judy's cheek, before he pressed the "record" button on the pen.

"A toast to my wife – who I love now and will love always," he said to the pen and the crowd, before releasing the "record" button.

"Oh, and I'll try to love the kids now and then, too," Nick grinned as he raised his glass and drank with the crowd.

The guests clapped and cheered as Nick leaned in and kissed Judy once more.

"Alright, you've talked enough, Drama Queen, it's my turn," Judy giggled as she pushed Nick to sit down.

The bunny then graciously accepted a full glass of champagne from a guest and waited for the crowd to settle. Now the center of attention, Judy cupped her champagne glass in both paws and began her toast.

"I'd like to thank you all for everything you have done for us, as Nick said. Everyone in this room has been a huge part of our lives and we appreciate you all so much for that. It's pretty hard to top Nick's speech, but I sure will try," Judy gibed. "Now, don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the story of how Nick and I met, and every story from then on, but I'd rather talk about something that happened rather recently. For those of you who keep up with our family in a regular fashion, you'll recall that I was absent from my life for about a month, and then was still absent in some ways in the months after," Judy paused and took a deep breath that slightly rattled her lungs.

"I appreciate Nick for his kind words when he said I took on the world and won, but I have to admit that this last year has been the hardest year of my life – been the hardest year of our lives, actually. I owe my life to Nick for more than one occasion. Nick has always been at my side, even when I shot him on purpose," Judy smiled as she heard Nick laugh behind her. "For that, I am extremely grateful. In all honesty, Nick and I have been married for a very long time. I married Nick when I asked him to join the ZPD and become my partner. I married him when we first started dating and I slept on his really ugly couch every night. I married him when my wedding ring fell out of his shirt pocket in front of me in our kitchen one night. I married him when he proposed… twice. Technically speaking, I've married Nick more than once, but I truly married Nick in a hospital room just before we welcomed our four children."

Judy glanced at her four kids, who were watching curiously as they sat with their grandmother. The bunny smiled at each of them lovingly.

"I used to think that coming to Zootopia, that becoming a cop was the greatest thing to happen to me, but I was wrong. Nick held me as I cried in a hospital room months ago because I thought that I had officially broken, and since then, he's convinced me that I am far from broken. These scars," Judy ran her paws over her cheek and down her neck, where several scars from Valerie and Culpeo's crimes stood out clearly in her fur. "They are a reminder of a horrible experience that has changed me forever… but, they are also a reminder of my strength, of Nick's strength, of my family's strength, of the ZPD's strength. They are a reminder that Nick will always be there for me, will always be there to make me laugh even when I want to cry."

Judy briefly turned and faced Nick, nodding thankfully at him, before turning back to the crowd.

"A toast to my husband, who I know will always be there to hold me," Judy raised her glass with a smile on her face.

The crowd drank, though Judy did not.

"Is he crying?" she asked the guests, who began laughing.

Judy turned and saw the fox fighting back tears, trying to laugh it off and wipe the evidence away. Nick stood and hugged her, the two of them laughing as the crowd cheered once more.

With the official ceremony completed and the toasts concluded, the wedding moved on to the more entertaining part of the night. Nick and Judy cut their wedding cake (Judy got a massive piece of cake to the face thanks to Nick), and the couple took part in multiple games with the guests. Judy danced with her father, Nick danced with his mother, and the couple danced with their children. Almost two hours after they had said "I do," the couple found themselves alone on the dance floor, all eyes on them as the DJ began playing "The Carrots Mix." Nick pulled Judy in close, their paws interlocked, their faces centimeters apart. They gently swayed and spun to the music, laughing quietly with each other.

"It took almost eight years to get here," Judy sighed so only Nick could hear. "But every minute was worth it."

"It feels like just yesterday I was shaking your hand outside of that ice cream parlor," Nick smirked.

"…Officer...?"

"Hopps! Mr…?"

"Wilde, Nick Wilde."

"Oh, you mean right before you scammed me?"

"I don't recall," Nick chuckled.

"Oh, I'm sure," Judy laughed with him, leaning her head against his chest as they continued to sway to the music.

"Nick?" she asked quietly after some time.

"Yes, Carrots?"

"Words really can't express how much you mean to me. You've been my partner and my best friend for years, and there's not a moment with you that I don't absolutely cherish."

"Judy," Nick smiled as she looked up, her eyes widened at the use of her first name – the typical reaction when Nick didn't refer to her using a nickname. "You turned my life into something truly wonderful. I honestly can't tell you where I would be today if I hadn't met you all those years ago. I certainly wouldn't have such an amazing job, good friends, truly special children, and a beautiful wife."

Nick smiled as he spun his wife around slowly, her dress filling out as she turned.

"I wouldn't have a family if it weren't for you," he continued. "And I know we've only been married for a couple of hours, but I took you for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health years ago."

Judy felt tears stinging her eyes.

"Don't make me cry," she breathed.

"Too late, Darling," Nick smiled as he pulled the bunny back in, leaned down, and firmly planted a kiss on her forehead.

The two continued to dance, now closer than before, enjoying one another's company.

"Nick."

"Hmm?"

"I'm pregnant."

Nick immediately stopped dead in his tracks.

"Carrots…"

Nick moved back so that he could Judy's face. The bunny covered her mouth to keep from laughing loudly.

"Tell me you're joking."

"Surprise!" she whispered with a smile. "I was going to wait and tell you later tonight, but this felt like a good time."

"How long have you known?"

"I went to the doctor's the other day when you took the kids to the park. I'm seven weeks along."

"Oh, Rabbit," Nick groaned as he pulled her back in, continuing the dance and smiling to himself. "You're something else."

Another story complete! The next story will detail Nick and Judy's honeymoon trip, so I urge you to read that when you get the chance. I hope you all enjoyed this story, and that you continue reading my stories as I post and update them!

Much love,

TatorTotTottish