Domesticated

Author's note: This is a strange concept and I don't know how it's gonna work out, it could even turn up to be a mess. But it's the kind of idea that won't leave me alone until I write it, and I couldn't continue with my other story until this was done.

…..

Judy stared pensively at the ocean from her favorite spot in a large rock, overlooking one of the several cliffs in the Exmoor coast, the most beautiful place in Devonshire. The moon shone full and bright on the night sky, illuminating the sea waves that clashed over the beach below. For every night, for over a year, she had patiently waited for the rescue party that would storm out of the sky and take her home but every night ended with her going back alone, since the party never came. Sometimes she cried as the night ended and her hopes were crushed once again, some other nights she merely fantasized about what would happen once she got back home, but no matter what every night ended the same, with a sad bunny sitting alone staring at the sea.

-"Hey Hopps, moon bathing again?"- She heard the distinctive sound of a canide's gruff voice.

-"Hey Wolford, how are you?"- Judy responded without bothering to look back, in this world there was only another mammal that was sapient enough to talk to her in her native language and wasn't locked up in a zoo or dead. He had chosen a different path from her, while she clinged to her civilization he merely chose to go back to his savage ways, his unclothed fur shone bright in the moonlight.

-"Same old same old, a few tasty hares over here, the occasional elk over there."- He shrugged –"It's a good life"-

A year ago she would have panicked at the easy nonchalance in which the wolf spoke about eating other pray animals. But maybe it was because of the overexposure to the new cruelties of this world, or since his victims weren't sentient they didn't need more pity than the fish and bugs he would have eaten back in their world, but for whatever reason she was no longer fazed about it. At least he had made the conscious choice to not maul her given her sentience and their previous history as members of the same force, and instead he had been the closest thing she had to a friend for a long time now.

-"I'm glad"- She managed to laugh sincerely

The wolf took a deep breath and steeled himself for a conversation he should have had with her a long time ago -"Hopps you do know they are never coming right? I mean, we barely know how we got here I don't think they could figure it out even if it took them several lifetimes. Besides, we don't want to go back, we adapted to this world this is our home now."- He told her softly, for an entire year he had seen her trying to fight her way back, as if her sheer determination was able to bend the rules of space and time. That force of spirit had been incredibly useful in their previous life, but in here it could prove a huge hindrance.

-"How did they do it Wolford? How did they manage to break us down?"- She said sadly looking at the stunning landscape.

He noticed her phrasing, she had said us not you, maybe she had finally come to her senses -"It is what humans do I guess, they own things. Whenever they see something that calls their attention they just grab it and they are so powerful the only mammal capable of stopping them is another one of their kind. They hunt us, breed us, eat us and own us. It is the way of this world and we cannot change that back."- He spoke with such cold acceptance it made her shiver with dread.

-"Except you buddy, they never owned you"- She said proud of the way he embraced his wild heritage instead of becoming another prisoner like the rest of her companions, or herself.

-"And who says I don't have an owner"- He said cocking his head.

-"Wait… are you telling me you have a master or mistress?"- Her jaw dropped, this was the last she ever expected to hear from the stubborn wolf.

-"Of course I have, wolves had been extinct in this area for centuries now. The only reason I survived and wasn't hunted down or locked in the zoo is because my master took me in within days or our arrival, he wants our kind to repopulate England."- He gave her a sly wink –"He is even trying to smuggle a mate for me, I trust that the guy has good taste, I'm sure I'll like her"-

-"I can't believe it Wolford! All the times you talked about being wild and free and hunting for a living! And you have been a pampered pet all the time"- She crossed her arms and scoffed, her face the cutest mask of outrage. When a mammal, sapient or not, chooses a human as their master they are bound for life. The mammal basically surrenders itself to the human's mercy and willingly gives their unconditional love to them, depending on the human's kindness for their subsistence.

-"Oh bunny there is no pet more pampered than you, because of them; you have more dresses in your drawer than you ever did back home."- He said eyeing her lovely mauve colored knit dress –"That fluffy fur of yours wouldn't be so soft if they didn't give you the best rabbit food available and gave you a few extra brushings on daily basis. I've seen you with them girl, they love you and you love them.

Because that is how they break you down, if they cannot own you by force they will use the big guns, and that is love. They will sit patiently around you giving you food and treats, then they start with a few pats on the head and before you know it Boom! You have a collar on your neck and made the decision to make them your masters."- He sat besides her staring at the ocean, his tail wagged at the mere thought of his master.

Judy ran her paws through her own collar; they made her wear it within days of stumbling into her life. "Be honest Judy, you stumbled into them. They were living their usual alien lives until you practically barged into their home"

–"Is that why the others gave up? They found their masters?"- She said with resignation realizing that for the first time she wasn't sad that the rescue never came.

-"Well duh! Fangmeyer has not one but two caretakers that spoil her rotten, not counting the myriad of little children just fighting for the privilege to pet her. Trunkaby has almost three but she says the one in the nightshift is her favorite and don't get me started with Delgato, that guy has so many followers he has developed some sort of megalomaniac god complex. The zoo is not their prison anymore, it's their home. After all, the humans working there went through a whole lot of trouble to fit mammals as big as them; they gave them their own personal habitats!"- Wolford was aware that Judy had tried her best to keep up with the rest in an effort to set them free, so they never confided her on how they truly felt, even when they had subtly tried to breach the subject with the stubborn bunny several times.

Judy sighed, she felt like she had been holding her breath for an entire year and only now could breathe again.

-"And they got you too didn't they? You really didn't come here expecting a rescue team to come down from the sky and take you away"- Wolford smiled knowingly.

She stared at the full bright moon still toying with the little brass plaque on her pet collar; there was no point in denying it anymore. It wasn't that she gave up on the idea of getting rescued so she could go back to her world, it just dawned on her that even if they did came, she wouldn't want to go with them if that meant she had to leave the family she made in here -"No you are right; I came here to say goodbye. To the life I used to have there and the mammals that stayed on the other side, to my family in Bunnyburrow and…"- Se didn't dare say his name.

-"Nick?"- The wolf finished her sentence with a resigned frown.

-"Yeah, wherever he is I hope he is happy"- Her ears didn't even droop at the thought of her lost partner, without realizing it she had gotten over the mourning of their failed relationship. Judy guessed that the only reason she had waited for their rescuers for so long was the thought of seeing her sly fox again. Even when her other partners had found happiness and adapted to this new world, she had stoically sat in the exact place she landed when they were dragged here, waiting from dusk till dawn and dreaming with a squad of rescuers led by Nick, as if he were the knight in shining blue armor she had fantasized with since she was a kit. But in the meantime she had been taken in by a nice family, and as Wolford said, sooner or later the humans manage to own you. She found their kindness as insidious and devastating as a brutal attack, by the time she understood what was happening she belonged in heart and soul to one of them. –"Her name is Eliza you know? That's the name of my mistress"- At the mere mention of her the bunny couldn't help a sweet smile to form on her muzzle.

-"That cute little girl I saw you play with by the beach? She seems like a really special person, I'm glad for you"-

The light of pre dawn was bleaching the horizon of the blackness of night. Soon it would turn pink and then golden as the solar disk rose into the sky.

-"I should go now; it's been great talking to you"- Judy stood up from her spot in the cold stone, soon Eliza would wake up and she wanted to be there to welcome the girl into a bright new day, she just loved to see the way her dream filled eyes squinted in the sunlight.

-"It's all right Hopps, I'll take you"- Wolford said slouching so she could sit over his back, using him like a mount.

Mounting another mammal was something only humans did, in her world mammals had fought in wars and tried on several occasions to overpower one another but they never did a gesture of such blatant dominance as using another mammal as means of transportation, as if they were mere objects. In here that practice was still very common, horses being the most regular victims, it had been so ingrained in their nature Judy once heard that a horse would obey a human even if it meant they would carry their masters and run until they died from exhaustion. The fact that a wolf had allowed her to use him as a mount showed how humble he had become ever since he got here, and the way she obliged showed how much she had adapted to the human culture, in a twisted way she almost identified more with the humans than the mammals she left behind.

Only a few steps into their short journey they saw a wild fox running past them, her ears were not as sensitive as they used to be, they had turned numb living in the loud world of the humans but she had no difficulty hearing the barking of hounds coming towards them.

-"Hunters"- Wolford said growling.

The bunny quickly hopped out of the wolf's back, the last thing he needed right now was to carry an extra weight on his back as he ran away from them.

-"Go! Run to your master! I'll stall them"- She said heading in the direction the fox had run to.

-"Are you insane? If they catch me there's a bigger chance they'll just send me to the zoo but there is no ban or season in hunting rabbits they'll shoot you on sight."- The wolf ran by her side.

-"Don't worry about me, I know they won't hurt me you'll see"- She said smugly

-"And what makes you think that?"- Wolford said shocked.

-"I am one of them"- her purple eyes were determined.

Shaking his head the wolf assumed that poor bunny had lost her mind "oh well I did try" he thought as he ran towards his master's house, he howled loudly knowing that as the only free wolf the sound was bound to call the attention of his owner and he would quickly come to his rescue as soon as he woke up. The only thing that can stop a human with a gun was another human with a gun and his master, William, had a very big rifle her used for duck hunting.

-"I'm calling for backup bunny, try to stay alive!"- He said as they ran in different directions.

She quickly spotted the wild fox as it ran himself to the edge of a cliff, Judy shook her head. How is it that foxes got the reputation of being sly? Most of them are pretty dumb.

She jumped high over the pack and stood between the terrified fox and the hounds, she was glad these hunters at least followed the new regulations. A few years ago fox hunting was done through the hounds themselves, they were trained to kill and tear apart the fox and bring its torn corpse to their human masters as they merely followed them by horse. The brutality of the practice caused its ban in 2005, now the hounds were merely trained in spotting and cornering the fox until the human masters arrived so they could capture it or shoot it in the head, giving the poor creature a more "humane" death. So now the several dogs merely barked aggressively in their direction, a look in confusion in their faces. She knew they would not attack her, if only because she didn't smell like a bunny anymore, without realizing it her human family had marked her and now she reeked of human musk and even stronger human perfume, which had in turn numbed her nose as well. In reality the human scent wasn't as pungent as any other mammal's but it had an insidious quality that allowed their scent to remain for much longer than any other.

In this world marking had no social significance among humans, but their underdeveloped sense of smell and lack of fur caused their musk to be so overpowering that the mere innocent contact of their hands or the regular hugs they gave her was enough to imprint their scent all over her. The frequent bathing and shampooing they subjected themselves and the bunny as well was loaded with strong perfume that had killed whatever trace she had of her own natural scent.

The hunters soon arrived, several men on foot with white pants and red jackets were behind the master of foxhounds who proudly mounted a black horse. She stood defiant looking at the man, taking a protective stance in front of the terrified fox, knowing the creature was too preoccupied with its own survival to consider using her as a snack, assuming her human scent didn't dissuade him already.

The master of foxhounds looked at her and cocked his head in confusion –"Am I crazy or is this bunny wearing a dress and standing on two legs?"- His companions shrugged dumfounded as well.

She had soon learned that the best defense against hunters were bright pretty dresses and her shiny collar, they gave a clear message she was domesticated and belonged to another human, that made the hunters think twice before shooting her. They didn't want to be the murderers of a clearly spoiled pet; they had enough problems maintaining their hunting lifestyle without the outrage of a British citizen screaming at the media they killed a pet bunny.

The hunter standing at the right of the black horse aimed his rifle at the fox –"Don't worry little lady, that mean bad fox is not going to hurt you"- The man named John said sweetly, he thought that little bunny was just adorable. With her soft coat, pink dress and bipedal stance she looked like a fluffy little doll. As soon as the fox was killed he would take that pretty thing home and give her away to his beloved wife as a pet, he knew Sheila would love her, it could be an early anniversary gift from his part.

-"May I ask dear gentlemen what in god's name are you doing?"- A grave gruff voice sounded behind them, all of them turned to see a tall muscular man with ruffled white hair and long beard casually holding a large rifle next to his hip, the muzzle of the gun aiming at the ground.

-"Oh hello Mr. Alderan, we are just doing a little fox hunting. May I ask dear sir; is that a wolf behind you?"- One of the hunters responded, this day was getting stranger and stranger

-"This?"- William Alderan said looking at his pet –"Nah that would be illegal, this is just a very large ugly dog"- No member of the hunting party believed him but they weren't dumb enough to piss off a hardened bloke as William, the former soldier looked at the weird bunny standing defensively between the helpless fox and the hounds –"Is that Eliza's pet? I just saw her mom Elaine calling for her, I am glad you found it, that little girl would be so sad if something happened to her favorite bunny."- The older man wasted no time in shushing the hounds away and picking her in his arms, he made such a ruckus clearing the hounds far from the bunny that a wedge was formed between the dogs so the fox found an exit and ran away.

The trained dogs were about to give chase when Wolford gave a big howl and the dogs responded with a howl of their own, by the time the animals regained their senses the fox had escaped into a copse of trees.

William wasted no time in heading towards Judy's home; he had in fact heard Elaine frantically screaming the bunny's name on his way to the hunters, beside him his pet wolf walked shyly with his fluffy tail between his legs.

-"So now you are making me save foxes too? Or only this weird bunny?"- The human told his pet in mock annoyance, the wolf merely ducked his head and whimpered. Now William had no choice but to ruffle the fur between his ears with his free hand –"You are such a softie!"- He said chuckling.

A dog ran towards them barking, this one was a golden retriever. Judy jumped from William's arms and into the ground so she could hug the large animal, its name was Jimmy and he was the other pet in her house, it was one of the nicest mammals she had ever met. She guessed the canine had managed to track her strongly humanized scent.

Dogs were also a human creation, generation after generation of artificial breeding created creatures made specifically to serve them in different areas as they saw fit. From hounds that turned foxes to shreds or rottweilers that provided them with security to tiny yapping balls of fur like poodles made solely to give them company. It was another way of deviousness humanity came across that her world would have never thought about, they took large wolves and with enough patience and genetic manipulation they turned them into a wide arrange of creatures designed for their every whims or purposes. It was just one of the thousand ways the human race had exercised control over every other creature in nature. In the case of these poor dogs being a pet was not a choice, they had been bred for years so they would crave for a master to give them purpose, which made the abandoned dogs roaming the street a much more jarring and unjust reality.

Behind the dog a stunning woman in her early forties was running towards them in her pajamas, her skin was of a dark brown, her hair curly and jet black and her eyes a dark hazel.

She was out of breath as she lifted the bunny in her arms –"Are you okay Judy? What happened to you?"- the woman said not really expecting an answer, then removed her pet's dress in a swift motion so she could check her tiny body looking for any wound, she even made Judy open her mouth to see if her teeth had been broken.

-"I think your bunny is fine Elaine, she just had an exciting morning that's all"- William said bemused.

Judy eyed Elaine with angry annoyance as she snatched the dress from the human's hands and quickly put it on, she still had trouble accepting the idea of how her modesty was useless in this world, why did these humans had to be so oblivious to boundaries? Wolford giggled behind her, he stopped wearing clothes over a year ago.

The woman clutched her pet tightly to her chest at the sight of the wolf.

-"Oh don't worry about Kevin, he's the nicest wolf in the whole world. Right mate?"- William told Wolford, as on cue he rolled over on the grass exposing his belly as if inviting the woman to rub it. Being a dog person Elaine complied and was soon smiling. Judy shook her head, humans could be so easy to manipulate sometimes. –"Besides, he eats nothing but fish, and it has to be cooked! I even throw some vegetables in there and he loves them. Your bunny has nothing to worry about."- William laughed at the pickiness of his so called wolf. Judy on the other hand looked at Wolford with annoyance, first "the lone wolf" has a master and now he hasn't hunted anything that wasn't pre cooked.

-"Be careful with that bunny though, I just found her between a pack of hounds and a fox. I can tell a trouble maker when I see one and she is one hell of a handful"- William pointed an accusatory finger at Judy and gasped in surprise when the rabbit stuck her tongue at him cheekily, he shook his head he must have imagined it.

-"You have no idea Will"- Elaine said rolling her eyes in exasperation -"Sometimes I think this fluff ball and Eliza team up to see which one is going to give me a heart attack first. Anyway, thank you so much for getting her out of trouble, come over for some tea sometime I'll bake you those cookies you like"- the woman told the older man kindly.

-"Sure, I'll swing by someday"- William lied; he knew Elaine was only trying to be grateful and only meant that as a friendly invitation, he thought nothing to it. But he had no intention to step into the home of a recently divorced woman unless he was actually interested in courting her, Exmoor is still a small town and it thrives on gossip, at the smallest indication he was spending any time with her the whole town would say he was courting her. Elaine's ex husband was one of the Assistant Chief Constables on Devon's police and he still kept a very close eye on her, it was no secret he was hoping for reconciliation, so William thought it was best to stay away from all that drama.

Elaine waved her goodbyes to Mr Alderan and rushed to her house, Eliza would be waiting for her pets.

She entered her luxurious home by the sea, a fragrant smell of roses and lavender from the front garden greeted her and the ocean's waves sang loudly behind her, she took a moment to stare at the modern building in awe. A year ago she was a newly found spinster struggling to pay her bills and raise her child, in all fairness her ex had paid alimony but it was nowhere near enough. As a way to escape her troubled life she wrote a fantasy book on her laptop after coming home from her awful job and as a moment of recklessness she chose to publish it and sell it on Amazon. Apparently her escapism novel spoke to other persons as well because now she was a bestseller author with a very well paid contract for at least three more books, which reminded her of a deadline coming soon so she better get Eliza ready for school and get to work on her manuscript, her whole family (pets included) now depended on it.

A little tornado barged at her so hard and fast it almost knocked the wind out of her, her daughter was hugging her tight and looking at her with big happy eyes. Her six year old girl was a beauty with caramel colored skin, black curly hair and light green eyes that she took from her father.

-"You found her mommy! You found Judy!"- The girl quickly took the bunny from her mother's arms and gave her pet a big hug; the bunny responded hugging her tight while her fluffy tail shook wildly.

An hour later Eliza was at school and Judy was sprawled on Elaine's lap as the woman worked on her computer, the human's hands sometimes strayed to the bunny's soft fur with an absentminded caress while her bare feet sometimes bumped into the large dog sleeping below the desk. At first Judy had been terrified of the human hand, but soon she realized those long clawless fingers held a fantastic dexterity when it came to back rubs. As a bunny she was a creature that naturally craved contact and affection, as an independent bunny that lived on her own in Zootopia she often lacked that in her life. In here she was surprised of how every need; even affection could be taken for granted. If she wanted food they would give it to her or she could eat from the small farm her humans made on the backyard, if she got bored she could play with Eliza or Jimmy, and if she wanted love all she had to do was look cute in front of the nearest human and soon she would be in someone's lap being hugged or petted.

She could still remember a time when love and affection were things to be fought for and earned, you couldn't just walk into a random mammal and demand they hug you. Her thoughts soon drifted on to Nick and how hard had been to regain his trust after the failed press conference, sure he had forgiven her after she asked for his help but it took a long time of camaraderie for her fox to truly open up to her again. She remembered how every time he didn't shy away from her friendly contact or even placed his paw over hers she had felt a satisfying sense of victory, how every ounce of affection and friendship felt like an accomplishment heading to an ultimate goal, now that goal was gone in flames. A despondent trace of sadness inched into her heart, luckily for her a balm for said sadness was within fast reach. She nuzzled the elbow of the human holding her, like a spoiled child demanding her favorite toy and like any spoiled child her wish was quickly fulfilled, as the woman ran her fingers through her shoulder blades and the spot between her ears.

"Because that is how they break you down, if they cannot own you by force they will use the big guns, and that is love" Wolford's words rang in her head, was she locked in a golden cage? Was this some sort of Stockholm's syndrome? One of the woman's hands typed on the computer while the other one ran over her head and back, so what if she was? What is wrong with having everything you could possibly want? The memory of russet fur and a sly grin flashed on her mind, well everything except that. All that mattered is that she was warm, cuddled and had no worries in her life anymore. "If this is a golden cage then lock me up and toss the god dammed key". The pampered bunny thought as she fell asleep.

…

By the time Elaine stopped typing and turned off her computer the late afternoon sun was bathing the beautiful coastal landscape in a golden light, she dimly recalled her daughter coming home after school. A wave of guilt washed over her at the realization she had ignored her child completely through the whole day, she heard the distant laugh of her little girl as she played with the dog and the bunny on the beach, in a few minutes she was rushing towards them.

-"Sweetie did you called for takeout? I mean what did you had for lunch?"- She said knowing a six year old would consider a greasy pizza with double bacon a healthy meal. She hated the way her work drained all her time, to the point of ignoring the actual reason she did all of this, but soon the manuscript would be completed and she could go back to being a full time mom again. At least until the next deadline came.

-"Don't worry mom Judy cooked for me, she made eggplant lasagna."- Eliza said absentmindedly, the way her dog jumped to get the Frisbee was demanding her attention.

Elaine groaned, her daughter's behavior was beginning to become unnerving. The last year had been hard on the child with the divorce and both parents suddenly absent, the father because he moved away and the mother now burdened with the task of providing for her. So the little girl attached to her then newly acquired pet bunny and treated it like an imaginary friend. Eliza had begun to talk about Judy like she was another human being, she remembered hearing things like: "It's okay mom Judy is helping me with my homework" or "Those bullies won't bother me anymore, Judy taught me some fight moves!" it was cute at first, especially since the bunny had the habit of walking on two legs like a person.

They even talked to a vet about it; the stunned professional said Judy had a deformity in her spine that made it easier for her to walk in two legs instead of four. The only thing no one could ever explain is how did she learn to use the bathroom, cats had been trained to do it before but she seemed to be the first bunny to accomplish that.

Now she saw Judy running on the beach tossing the Frisbee at the dog, was that a smile on her face? Was she actually laughing? The tired woman shook her head and made a mental note to talk to a psychologist about her daughter's (kind of) imaginary friend before it developed into a larger issue.

That night Judy found herself in a melancholic mood, this would be the first night she would sleep inside instead of standing outside waiting for someone that, let's be honest here, would never come. As every other night Jimmy went to sleep at the foot of Elaine's bed since she was his mistress and Eliza went to her room after brushing her teeth. In the meantime Judy took her usual shower and even put on some extra perfume, as if the aggressive flowery smell could erase the memory of the mammal she used to be. Gingerly she crawled into the little girl's plush bed, she remembered growing up how her kind had the habit of snuggling next to their siblings or parents before going to sleep, and it had been too easy and natural for her to find a spot next to Eliza. The little girl placed her arms around her pet instinctively and a soft sleepy smile came to her lips.

"I am a dumb bunny" she thought "last night I risked my life and for what? A wild fox that would kill me if it had the chance, just because he reminded me of Nick. Eliza would have been left alone if I had died, or if I had left. This is my home now, not Bunnyburrow and not Zootopia, this is my life and it is a good one." Looking at the innocent girl beside her Judy made the act of marking her cheek like a bunny mother would mark her child, sealing a bond that had settled a long time ago without her noticing. And for the first time in thirteen months, the former cop slept through the whole night.

…

Eight months later:

Judy and her family were having dinner outside, Elaine was celebrating the success of her new book so they all indulged in a fancy dinner below the night sky, winter was on its way out and a fresh spring breeze blew lightly from the ocean.

From the corner of her eye she noticed that a stray fox wandered into her garden, Judy recognized him as the one she had saved many months ago. Ever since, the vulpine had roamed the area next to the house and Eliza couldn't help herself from feeding him treats. It was bizarre for the bunny to see the domestication process from the outside; first the canide ate the treats, mostly beef. The mere sight of red meat still brought an unpleasant memory to the former police officer of what had happened to the cow suspect they were chasing and landed next to the cops in this world. It wasn't long until the poor mammal ended up in a slaughter house, Judy still had nightmares about it. As time went by the vulpine became more accustomed to their presence and now he was letting both Eliza and Judy pet him as he ate.

The girl wiggled herself out of the dining table and ran to the fox's side, a piece of prime rib on her hands, he sniffed the treat and his narrow snout gently took the meat and ate it.

-"How should we call him?"- The girl asked her pet.

The bunny's paws moved in a rapid succession of signs.

"Why not Rusty?" For a moment she had considered calling him Nick, but the only thing this dumb wild fox had in common with her former partner was the species. If Nick had found himself between the hounds and the hunters he would have hussled all of them so hard he would've escaped from them with the human's wallets on his pocket without breaking a sweat.

Judy spoke to her mistress in sign language, when she first got here the human tongue was incomprehensible to her. As time went by with careful study and patience she managed to learn the language, the problem is that even when Judy was evolved and capable of complex phrasing, to the humans her language sounded like a bunch of eeks and grunts. Her mouth just wasn't capable of mimicking the phonetics of the human way of speaking so she made Eliza learn sign language, that way they could finally communicate, which meant only the little girl knew how sapient the bunny really was.

The fox went away after finishing his meal and the little girl ran after him. –"Rusty wait!"- She said as she followed him into the forest, Judy running at her side –"Eliza where are you?"- Elaine shouted behind them.

As the girl and her pet went deeper into the forest a gunshot rang in the air and Judy heard the projectile zooming right past them, then a small cry of pain as Eliza placed her hand on her head and fell. Time slowed down in a haze of panic as Judy went to her mistress and found her crying on the floor, she forced the girl's hand away to look at the damage, and was relieved it was only a small scratch. There wasn't even any bleeding just a small burn, but the girl was still weeping terrified. Judy's long ears made out the distant chatter of men and an intense rage invaded her, no one hurts her mistress and gets away with it. She heard Elaine calling for her daughter not far away; she trusted the woman would look after her child while she would make sure those idiots didn't get away with what they've done.

Judy ran at the sounds of chatter with a speed even greater than expected from her species, she quickly spotted a fat man holding a rifle and a slender man holding a mallet. Her purple eyes turned into angry slits as she lunged with all her force at the larger one, her strong hind paws connected to the man's belly with sudden and brutal force knocking the man off his feet and forcing him to land over his smaller companion. As soon as the brutes connected to the ground the tiny bunny snatched the rifle away from his hands, within seconds the cartridges were removed and tossed away making the weapon useless, well at least for firing since she used the butt of the weapon to hit both men on the head. One paw held the rifle while the other took the mallet from the small man crushed below his accomplice.

-"Judy?!"- Elaine's voice rang behind her, her long ears drooped behind her back and with a sheepish expression the rabbit turned to see the frightened woman and the dog barking behind her. She had a shell shocked expression on her dark eyes, seeing the tiny bunny standing over two large men while holding not one but two weapons. Understanding she had been caught red handed Judy shuffled her furry feet, gave both weapons to the woman and hurried inside the house.

It was long past midnight and every member of the household was snuggled in Elaine's large bed, her child was sleeping beside her with a band aid in her right temple, their pet bunny comfortably cuddled between both of them and Jimmy was sprawled at the foot of the bed as always.

The writer didn't have the slightest hope of sleeping through the night, still too terrified of the night's previous events. Her ex had quickly come to her house as soon as she called him and he wasted no time taking the miscreants to prison, he promised to call her as soon as he had any news on why all of this had happened.

Her phone rang; she quickly took the call so she wouldn't wake up Eliza.

-"How's my baby?"- The tall blonde constable said concerned through the other end of the line.

-"Asleep, the doctor says she's perfectly fine, she didn't need any stitches or anything like that"- Elaine said relieved while gently stroking her daughter's forehead.

-"Good, thank god she's all right. Look I interviewed the suspects and it turns out they are not career criminals and they have no prior records, believe it or not they're actually members of the neighborhood watch"- If he were in a better mood, he would have found the idea of the usually respected and righteous members of the group being locked up in jail quite funny.

-"What on earth were those fuckers doing shooting near our home?"- She couldn't raise her voice so she settled with grinding each word with malice.

-"Hunting a wild fox, turns out Mr. Dubshire spotted the little vermin stealing the food from his restaurant. There had been similar cases in bakeries as well, they tried setting up traps all over the place but the furry thing dodged them, so these wankers chose to solve the problem by themselves and chased the fox into the woods with a rifle."- Like his ex wife and kid, he had a soft spot for animals and considered fox hunting an awful thing, he had not problem punishing those idiots.

Elaine breathed an exasperated sigh –"Please tell me you'll do something about this"-

-"I'm pressing charges for reckless endangerment; this is going to rattle all Devon so I don't think anymore pricks will ever try the same"- He considered no amount of stolen food could justify shooting his helpless little girl, even if it was clearly an accident.

-"Thank you Arthur"- Elaine said softly, somehow talking to him still brought a sense of ease in her soul. The gap between them could never be breached again, and after all the money she was making many could say she no longer needed him. But situations like this reminded her that sometimes that was not true, sometimes she still needed him to be by her side and make her feel safe once more.

-"Be safe and take care of our girl. Oh and keep your windows and doors shut, from what I hear that fox is a menace and it was near your house, you don't want it near your kitchen or that rabbit of yours"- He said kindly and then hung up.

Elaine looked at Judy sleeping peacefully, her tiny nose twitching and her ears limp over Eliza's face. The girl's arms wrapped around her as if she were a plush toy. For the eleventh time that night she reminded herself of how impossible was for that tiny bunny to disarm two large men, her mind must be playing tricks on her. After getting extra sure all doors and windows were indeed locked she was finally able to go back to bed surrounded by her family and fell asleep.

The next morning Eliza was pouting at her mom –"But why can't Judy come with us?"- The girl pleaded, her sad chubby face and her brand new yellow dress was a fatal combination of extreme cuteness. They were about to go out for breakfast to get their minds off the previous awful night.

-"I told you sweetie, there is a very dangerous fox on the town, we have to keep her locked inside for her own safety until he is captured"- Elaine liked the bunny and thought of her like a member of the family, but the main reason to be so overprotective with it was that Eliza was very attached to her, she did not want to know what would happen to her child's mental health if a wild fox just came one day and ate her pet.

The thought of some animal attacking Judy filled the little girl's heart with fear –"Maybe I should stay with her then, I will protect her"- She said standing proudly and puffing her chest, her mom resisted the urge to "awww" at the sight.

-"All right, I'll go to the bakery and bring the pastries here; we'll have our breakfast in the living room."- The woman said kissing the girl's forehead and headed outside, Jimmy went with her eager for a morning walk, she made sure to lock the door.

When her mom left Eliza turned to the bunny and asked –"Do you think Rusty would hurt you?"-

"I don't think it's the same fox they are talking about, they say the one causing trouble is really smart and eluded his captors many times. We both know Rusty is very dumb, he would have been caught immediately"

-"You're right, but what if they confuse this fox for Rusty? What if they try to hurt him? He is a nice fox I don't want him to get hurt"- Eliza was different when she was with Judy, she didn't feel the need to be the perfect little girl around her, unlike her parents and classmates who only saw the perfect picture nuveau riche everyone expected her to be. The truth is that she was much smarter and stronger than they gave her credit for. –"We need to do something; we have to catch this mean fox before they hurt Rusty. Besides, I don't want the other fox to get caught by the hunters either. He's naughty but he shouldn't be killed just for that"-

"Back in my world we had tranq guns, they didn't hurt the mammal they only made them sleep. I still carry mine around but the solution in the darts is probably expired by now." Then Judy signaled with a sly grin "It's a good thing I have connections in the zoo, I'm pretty sure I could get some tranquilizers from there."

-"And when we catch him I'll take him to my dad! He likes foxes I'm sure he won't let him get killed and he will stop the hunters from chasing after him"- Even if her dad refused to help them at first, Eliza knew she could manipulate him into whatever she wanted. Her bright green eyes could be more effective than any other mean of brainwashing.

"You're right, we'll start tonight with our plan, the only thing we have to figure out is how to find him."

Eliza's face fell in terror as she looked up and behind her pet, Judy turned around to where her mistress was pointing and saw a large furry creature crouching over the fridge. Shadows draped over it so they didn't know what they were staring at, at least not at first, but then the animal jumped and landed on all fours over the wooden floor.

It was a fox, a rather big one. Judy had been right the culprit was very different from Rusty, its fur of a shiny vibrant red and its build was slender but also much more muscular. Eliza stood between her pet and the vulpine, she grabbed the first thing she could reach, a large metal spoon and begun to threaten the fox with it.

Judy wasn't afraid, she had fought against humans much larger than him, and a wild fox was no match for her. She was ready to pounce at him when the mammal did something that paralyzed her with dread; he stood up on his hind legs and walked standing up towards them.

Those eyes, they were so green and vibrant. How could she forget about them? How could she look at Nick's face and not being able to recognize him at first sight? It had been too long perhaps, the memory of him had slowly faded from her brain until only an idea of the partner she left behind survived in the darkest corners of her mind.

The sight she had hoped for, for thirteen months, and the one she had feared for the next eight was right in front of her.

She wanted to speak, but months of not using her usual tongue had made it difficult. Ever since she gave up on being rescued she barely talked to Wolford or the others, most of her communication was in human language now. But now it was more important than ever that she talked to him, she had to make him understand that there was no point for her to go back, she had adapted too much into this world and could never leave her mistress.

-"Nick, we need to talk."- It sounded wrong; she spoke slowly and had obvious difficulty pronouncing the words. "I sound so clunky" she thought bitterly. For eight months she hadn't uttered a single word, letting her front paws handle the talking.

-"Hey Carrots, did you miss me?"- His voice was exactly as she remembered, smooth and slick.

"You have no idea" She thought –"Yes, I missed you. But I have a family here now and I cannot leave them. This is my home."-

-"Stay back you mean fox!"- Eliza said swinging the spoon at him, as a reflex the canide bared his teeth and growled.

-"Nick no! Sh-she 's a child!"- Judy's rush to speak made her stutter, if she talked slowly and with control she could sound almost normal, but the moment she tried to say something fast her lips would jam.

A look of hurt and sympathy invaded his eyes; she understood that from his point of view she probably looked like a traumatized victim right now. Shaking the cogs away from her language functions she took a deep breath and told him.

-"This girl is my friend; she and her mother took me in. These two humans are good people, we love each other and they always took good care of me."-

The sly fox crossed his arms, she could see the sarcastic look in his eyes as he saw at the small girl -"Oh so you are part of their family now, remind me carrots how do they call you?"-

Judy braced herself to explain him, her new situation would sound bad for any evolved mammal but she wasn't ashamed of who she was -"I am their pet; the girl beside me is my mistress. I don't think you ever heard of it, it's not something that ever happened in Zootopia, but when a human makes a mammal their pet it forms a bond that can't be broken. I belong to her now, and it is my duty to take care of her"- She reminded herself to speak slowly, and think the words in her head before pronouncing them.

A mixture of hurt, rage and disgust danced across the vulpine's face –"Are you even listening to yourself? Since when do you belong to anyone? Carrots wake up I have been observing you for two days! I left scent marks outside so you would know I was here but instead you stayed with these humans the whole time. I had to sneak in last night and hid in the corners watching all of you but you didn't even notice me! Have you lost your sense of smell or something?"-

Judy nodded sadly –"The smells in here can be too potent sometimes, it makes the animal scents seem very subtle, and as time went by I think I blocked them out. I never noticed your mark Nick, now that you mention it I haven't perceived an actual scent in a long time, my nose must have gone numb"-

The pity returned to his gaze –"Don't you see how wrong is that? Judy I saw you with them they treat you like a child, pamper you like a princess but in this world you have as many rights as a slave. They could grow tired of you, kill you, stuff your belly and throw you to the oven if they wanted to. And nothing would stop them. They eat bunnies for crying out loud!"- He said pointing at the innocent child beside her, still trying to shield her pet from the big fox that growled in a funny way.

-"It's not like that! Yes some humans eat bunnies but not everyone does it, and my humans would never do that! How can it be so hard for you to understand that not all members of the same species act the same way?"- Judy said angry but still in control, how dare he come into her home and judge their way of life? All of it based on a few days watching them from a safe distance. She was the one stuck in here for almost two years, she was the one who had to adapt or die, and did he even know what would have happened to her if her family hadn't taken her in? No he didn't.

Her former partner sounded placatory –"Judy they got into your head, they manipulated you. This isn't who you are. The carrots I know would never settle with this fancy prison, my bunny wouldn't give up just like that"-

Just like that… Just like that?! Was crying for nights on end, alone in a beach, not enough? Even when logic and reason told her to move on, even when everyone around her gave up and she wasted night after night looking at the ocean and dreaming of what she could no longer have. How dare he to judge her? –"She's g-gon-e! Sh-e got t'red of wai-ting"- Her rage made it difficult to speak properly again, but she didn't care anymore. He could talk all he wanted she would never come back.

The hurt and rage in his face was stronger now, seeing her struggling to say even a simple sentence hardened his resolve.-"You can't even talk carrots! Don't you see the damage they did?"-

Forcing herself to talk in a more normal way she took a deep breath and chose her words carefully –"I don't speak mammal anymore, only human. I love you Nick and I miss you but I can't go back with you. I can't leave her"- she said holding the little girl's hand.

His voice sounded colder now, she took it as a sign that he might be finally seeing things her way, maybe he could detach from her the same way she did from him. –"Don't you even care what would happen to you if they left you? If they no longer wanted you to be their pet?"- He spat the last word with disgust

-"I will take the risk"- The little bunny said bravely, she knew the faith of an abandoned pet was usually awful, all she could do about it was trust her mistress and pray she made the right choice.

Taking a deep breath and dropping his head the fox said with resignation –"I didn't want things to get this far, but you leave me no choice Judy. Maybe you gave up on me but I will never give up on you, if you really love that little human so much and want her to be happy I suggest you tell her the truth. Tell her that this fox is going to take you home to your real family, so you can have your life back in Zootopia and tell her you will be very happy once you get there. Because otherwise, sooner than later she will see this big bad predator snatch you away never to be seen again and she will think that I ate you. If this girl loves you as much as you say she does, believing you were killed would be very painful for her"-

-"You wouldn't dare"- She said menacing

-"Try me"- The fierce determination in his eyes told her he was one hundred percent serious about it. The Nick she remembered was an easy going, smooth talker sly fox, but in front of her was a predator that would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. –"Oh and by the way, last night we got the rest of the guys, I came to rescue you as a solo mission but I came with a big crew, and we managed to snatch three large and uncooperative mammals from a gated zoo, a small bunny in a big house won't be much of a problem. You and Wolford are the only ones left."-

She thought of how awful it would be for Eliza to see her in the jaws of a big scary canide, the little girl was afraid of Nick already. She also feared of what her partner would do the child if she got in his way, usually he was very good with kits in general but he obviously had very negative feelings towards the human race. If you multiplied all these variables with the probably large rescue team that came here things could get very dangerous for her newfound family.

She forced her violet eyes not to cry.

….

Elaine came home carrying the large bag filled with pastries, her dog following right behind her. Once inside she found her daughter sitting alone in the couch watching the tele, the sad look in her eyes and stoic pose made clear something was terribly wrong.

-"Baby what is it?"- The concerned mother sat by the child giving her a big hug.

-"The large naughty fox came for Judy, he was her friend. He grabbed her and took her away"- The girl seemed sad but not too distressed.

Elaine was crushed, how could that fox get inside? Oh that poor bunny, she was probably a puddle of fur by now.

-"Sweetie I'm so sorry"- The distressed woman said deepening the hug.

-"It okay mom she is in a better place now, I'm only sad because I'll miss her"- Eliza said hopeful

-"Of course, she is in heaven now"- Elaine was a little worried about her girl; she seemed to take all of this all too well.

-"No mom she is not in heaven. She's in Zootopia!"-