Zootopia: More Than Partners, More Than Friends - Part 5

Story by Magna Vulpes on SoFurry

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#7 of Zootopia


AUTHOR'S NOTE: When Nick and Judy wake up in the morning to their clock radio playing a song on the radio, they are listening to the song "Lucky Man", by Emerson, Lake & Palmer. I decided to add this as a tribute to Keith Emerson, who tragically appears to have taken his own life yesterday. I was so devastated to hear that news. If any of you out there are suffering from some kind of problem, please, get help.

Yet another day had dawned in the sprawling metropolis of Zootopia. The usual sights of cars going from here to there was met with the sounds of horns honking, creatures walking from here to there. The city that never slept was welcoming another day of life, but in the apartment of Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps, all was silent.

Nick, who never seemed to awaken from the usual sounds of an alarm, had opted to switch the alarm to the radio setting; claiming that the sound of music was far more likely to wake him up. Judy, knowing that it could be a chore to wake her fiance up, didn't object. Anything that could help with waking Nick up was a blessing in her eyes, especially after she agreed never to stab him in the butt. The two lovers were deep in sleep when their alarm clock went off . . .

"He had white horses, and ladies by the score. All dressed in satin, and waiting by the door."

Judy rolled over, turning the alarm off, but quickly found that Nick was on top of her. She smiled as her loving fox gazed into her eyes.

"Oooooooooooooooh, what a lucky man he was!" sung Nick before planting a kiss on his lady's lips. Judy couldn't help being amused by Nick.

"You'd better not have ladies waiting by the door or I'll kick your tail!"

Nick kissed her again. "Don't worry, honey bunny, you're all the lady I need!"

Judy giggled as Nick nuzzled her. "I suppose you want to have some fun this morning, right?"

"Ah, you know me better than I know myself!"

Judy, naked just as Nick was, didn't object in the least when Nick moved his already hard member inside of her. Tilting her head back, she closed her eyes as her loving fox went to work. Judy knew that Nick absolutely loved getting some action in the morning and decided that she would let him have a go at it. The horny fox didn't have long to wait until he had climaxed, filling her with his seed.

"Ah," said Nick. "That was nice."

"Sure," said Judy before lowering her voice. "One pump chump."

"I heard that!" said an indignant Nick.

"Don't worry," said Judy, planting a kiss on her fox's cheek. "You have to get going anyway."

Grumbling, Nick got out of bed and went into the large walk in the closet. A minute later, he reappeared, dressed in his blue police uniform. Seeing her lover dressed, Judy got out of bed and dressed herself as well. Running out to the kitchen, the female rabbit poured beans in the coffee maker before adding cold water. With the sound of the coffee maker grinding the beans and then brewing, Judy smiled at her fiance. "You ready to meet my parents today, handsome fox?"

"You bet," said Nick, putting some bread in the toaster. "Are you sure they're going to like me?"

"Of course!" said Judy, trying to reassure the love of her life. "I've told them how loving, caring, and wonderful you are to me."

"Ah," said Nick, hearing the now toasted bread pop up. The fox pulled out the two pieces of toast, throwing them on a plate before spreading butter and jelly over them. "So, they're okay with your choice of a husband?"

"Nick," said Judy, walking over to the fox and hugging him. "Don't be so nervous. Mom and Dad are going to love you!"

Nick sighed. "I hope so. I'm just sorry that I couldn't get the day off to meet them when they arrive."

Nick and Judy had both applied for vacation days, unfortunately for the couple, they learned the downside to working in the same precinct. Benjamin Clawhauser, receptionist, dispatcher and record keeper informed them that there were already too many officers who had requested the same day they had. Nick offered to work that day, saying that Judy should definitely have the day off to be present at her parents arrival in Zootopia.

"It's okay, Nick. I'm going to take Mom and Dad on a tour of the city. You know, it's their first time coming to Zootopia."

"Really?" said Nick before taking a bite of his toast. "I guess they don't get out much, do they?"

"How can they?" said Judy as she poured a cup of coffee to go for Nick. "I have 275 brothers and sisters . . . kind of hard to get away."

"True," said Nick. "I certainly hope we're not going to have that many kids!"

Judy snorted. "As much as you like sex, I'm surprised we don't have that many already!"

Nick took the last bite of his toast. "Oh, haha!" he said sarcastically. "I don't see you objecting when I'm in the mood! Anyway, I've got to get going."

Nick rose to his feet, brushing the bread crumbs from his uniform. Judy walked him to the door, giving him a good-bye kiss.

"Bye, handsome fox."

"Bye, honey bunny."

Judy smiled as she opened the door for Nick, watching him walk down the hall to the elevator before she closed the door. Rolling her eyes, she placed her back on the door.

"Oh," she said, angry at herself. "I still haven't told them that I'm marrying a fox!"

Zootopia's Grand Central Station was a beehive of activity. Animals of all species were coming and going to and from a myriad of destinations. Judy Hopps looked at her cell phone, seeing the text her parents had sent her.

"Eleven o'clock at platform D16," she muttered to herself over and over again. "Wonderful," she said, grumbling to herself as she found the spot where here parents' train would soon be arriving. "That gives me ten whole minutes to think up of an explanation that won't give them a heart attack."

Judy sat down on a bench near the platform. With her cell phone still in her paws, she browsed through the various pictures she'd taken. She smiled as she watched one photo after another depicted her and Nick hugging, kissing, or out on the town having a good time. Once she'd gone back far enough in her photo library, she found pictures of her numerous brothers and sisters as well as her parents. She sighed as she stared at the photo of her parents standing together, smiling at her as she left to go to Zootopia for the first time. Judy couldn't help but wonder if Stu and Bonnie would be smiling when she told him that she was engaged, not only to a predator, but to a fox of all things. She recalled vividly the time her father gave her all the items to keep from being attacked by a fox; the taser, fox repellant . . . it all seemed too much, but then she met Nick. Nick, who had at first conned her out of money by pretending to not have his wallet to buy a gigantic pop sickle for Finnick, who turned out not to be his son, but an adult fennec fox. Her mind flashed through all the adventures she and Nick had trying to solve the mystery of why animals were going savage. Her relationship with Nick had been one of distrust and suspicion at first, but quickly turned into a trusting friendship, and finally, lovers. She shook her head, wondering how in the world she ever fell in love with a fox. She would have never in a million years believed that such a day would come, but it did. Perhaps, she thought, you can't help who you fall in love with.

"Elven o'clock from Bunny Burrow to Zootopia now arriving!" yelled a voice from a loud, very distorted speaker. The sudden noise made Judy yelp as she jumped to her feet. She could feel her heart pounding away at such a rate she thought that it just might pop out of her chest. The sound of the long, silvery gray train grounding to a halt was making things even worse for a creature who was well known for having sensitive hearing. With her eyes closed, teeth gritting, and paws firmly against her ears, she waited for the train to finally come to a complete stop.

After what felt like hours, Judy opened her eyes and uncovered her ears just in time to see the doors of the numerous train cars opening. Animals of all sizes begun to pour out of them, leaving Judy to wade through a crowd as she searched for her parents. Careful not to get trampled by much larger animals, Judy darted about, then caught sight of a very familiar green hat.

"Dad!" shouted Judy as she flailed her arms. "Over here!"

Stu heard his daughter's voice, making his eyes grow bright. Stu, with Bonnie right behind him, ran over and hugged his daughter.

"Judy," said Stu. "It's so good to see you again, honey!"

"This certainly is a busy place!" observed Bonnie, who was of course wearing her usual sleeveless pink dress, just as Stu was dressed in his farming attire; bib overalls, plaid shirt and baseball cap. There was no mistaking them for anything but rural animals.

"Mom, Dad, you're going to really stick out in Zootopia wearing that stuff," warned Judy.

"Oh," said Stu, giving his daughter a fake punch to the shoulder. "Is my city-slicker daughter embarrassed of her parents now?"

"Of course not, Dad!" said Judy. "I just thought you might want to blend in with the crowd when you're here."

"Actually," said Stu, pulling on the straps of his bib overalls. "I was thinking of doing some clothes shopping while I'm here. No doubt your mother will want to as well."

"I could use a new dress," said Bonnie.

"Say," said Stu. "Any chance we could see all the districts of Zootopia while we're here? What about meeting the mayor? Oh, and I'd like to meet that Chief of Police. What's his name? Pogo?

"It's Bogo, dear," corrected Bonnie.

"Yeah! Chief Bogo! He seems like an interesting fella! Could we go see where you work too? Oh yeah, I want to see . . ."

"Stu!" snapped Bonnie. "We're here to see our daughter and her fiance! By the way, I thought Nick was going to be with you today when we arrived."

"He couldn't get today off, Mom. There were already too many officers off work. Crime doesn't stop when we go on vacation, you know."

"I'd say not," said Stu as he looked around the train station. "I don't think anything stops in this city, does it?"

"Not for very long," remarked Judy. "Come on, let's go get some lunch. My treat."

"Aren't we going to see your apartment?" asked Stu.

"Later," said Judy, feeling her blood pressure spike at the mention of the apartment. There were several pictures on the wall as well as on bookcases and tables that had her and Nick together. She could just see her parents passing out when they saw those photos of Nick kissing her and hugging her. She decided right then that she would take her parents wherever they wanted to go, attempting to keep them away from the apartment for as long as possible.

At lunch, Judy tried to steer the conversation in any direction that didn't involve the mention of Nick, living together, and foxes. Bonnie and Stu, who were delighted to spend time with their daughter in her new place of residence, couldn't help but notice her odd behavior.

"Judy," said Bonnie. "Is something a matter?"

"No," said Judy quickly, but unconvincingly. "Why do you ask?"

"You keep playing with your phone and tapping your foot," said Stu before thanking their waitress for refilling his glass of water. "You're lookin' mighty distracted."

Judy rolled her eyes. "Dad, I'm fine, really."

"Is something wrong at work?" asked Bonnie.

"No," said Judy, shaking her head.

"Is it about the wedding?" asked Stu.

"No!" snapped Judy. Instantly the rabbit felt awful about the disrespectful tone of voice she had used with her father. "I'm sorry, Daddy. Everything's fine, trust me."

"Okay," said Stu as he patted his daughter's paw understandingly. "Your mother and I are just worried about you."

Judy giggled. "Dad, I'm an adult now. You don't have to treat me like I'm a little bunny anymore."

"We're always going to worry about you, honey," said Bonnie. "You'll understand one day when you and Nick have kids."

There it was. The mention of "Nick" triggered Judy's already fragile psyche into near panic, not just because of her fox fiance, but because of the word kids. She had wondered if she and Nick would even be able to have children, and if so, would they be able to have kids? Her mind was abuzz with a hundred different questions. She felt herself growing light headed.

"Judy, you don't look so good," said Stu. "You wanna go outside and get some fresh air?"

Judy put her paws on the table in an attempt to stabilize herself as she got up. With her legs feeling like rubber, Stu and Bonnie quickly reached over, holding her up.

"Here," said Stu. "You go outside with your mother while I pay. I know, I know, you said it was your treat, but I insist."

Judy didn't utter a single word of protest at her father's insisting on paying. Instead, she was escorted out of the restaurant by Bonnie, whose gentle voice reassured her that everything was going to be okay. Outside, Judy and Bonnie went over to a bench. The mother and daughter sat down, all the while Bonnie stroked Judy's ears.

"It's alright, honey. Your father and I were both nervous before we got married too. I remember he told me he passed out before he even got to the church on our wedding day!"

Judy emitted a nervous laugh. "I didn't know that."

"Oh, yes! Believe me, he wanted to marry me more than anything, but he understood what a life changing event it would be."

"I understand that too, Mom. It's just . . ." she paused, wanting to tell her mother now more than ever about who Nick really was.

"Yes?" said Bonnie, awaiting and answer.

"Nothing," said Judy, ashamed at her own cowardice. "I'm sure it's the same thing as what Daddy went through."

"I'm sure it is, sweetie," said Bonnie. She gently held her daughter's paws. "You know we love you, and we're very proud of you."

Judy managed a weak smile. "Thanks, Mom."

Bonnie hugged her daughter, still stroking her ears. Stu then walked out from the restaurant looking concerned.

"You okay, honey?" asked Stu.

"I'm better now," said Judy, feeling the strength return to her legs. "Are we good to go?"

"Yep! All paid up and ready to go!"

"Good," said Judy as she rose to her feet, though her head was still not completely right. "Where do you want to go next? Rain Forest District? Little Rodentia? Tundraland?"

"Actually," said Stu as he put his arm around his wife. "Your mother and I would really like to see your precinct. We've been telling everyone back home about all the crimes you've been solving. Why, you're the talk of the town!"

Judy now felt the beginnings of what was sure to be a migraine. Sighing, she nodded in agreement, though inside she was screaming "no".

"Okay, let's go the 1st Precinct," she said, hoping that there was some sort of incident to keep them from getting there. Even being involved in a major traffic accident would have been seen as salvation for the nerve shaken Judy Hopps.

The 1st Precinct was a beehive of activity just like any other day. Judy took a deep breath before setting foot inside. Stu and Bonnie were genuinely impressed at the sheer size of the building. Bunny Burrow's entire police force consisted of only a handful of cops in a small building; nothing like even a single precinct of Zootopia. Judy hoped more than anything that she wouldn't see Nick at the precinct house. With any luck, he and Officer Wolfard were on patrol.

"Would you look at this place!" said Stu. "Whew! I bet you must see a hundred criminals come through here everyday, don't you?"

"Something like that," said Judy as she felt her headache worsen. She saw the always friendly, always helpful Benjamin Clawhauser at his desk. Turning around, she tried to steer her parents away from him.

"Judy!" yelled the chubby cheetah. "Why, are those your parents with you?"

Judy felt her forehead burn with anger at Clawhauser having foiled her plan to get her parents in and out of the precinct as quick as possible. She turned around, managing to give a fake smile to her fellow officer.

"Hi, Ben," said Judy.

"Well, come on over, please!" said the cheetah, cheerful and as inviting as ever.

Judy brought her parents over to Clawhauser's receptionist desk. The cheetah reached down, shaking Stu and Bonnie's paws.

"Benjamin Clawhauser," he said. "Very nice to meet you! I see where Judy gets her cuteness from. Oh, oh, I'm sorry! I was warned, you're not suppose to call rabbits cute!"

"Stu and Bonnie Hopps," said Stu, finding the cheetah to be a likable guy. "So, you work with our Judy, eh?"

"Sure do!" exclaimed Clawhauser. "Judy and I had quite the fun when she was assigned to me. Why, I didn't think anybody could work faster than me, but I was wrong!"

Judy felt herself growing increasingly frustrated by the cheetah as he continued going on and on about her. She tried interrupting, but found that impossible with the verbose Clawhauser.

"Say," said Stu. "I don't suppose Chief Pogo is in, is he?"

"Bogo, dear," corrected Bonnie.

"Dad," said Judy, finding it increasingly difficult to hide her irritation. "The Chief has more important things to do than . . ."

Clawhauser interrupted her. "He sure is! Why don't I buzz him for you!"

"Oh, Ben, you don't have to . . ."

The cheetah paid her no mind. "Chief, Judy Hopps parents would like to know if they could meet you."

Judy closed her eyes, praying that he would refuse. He certainly had matters of business to take care of.

"Certainly," said the deep, gruff voice of the Cape Buffalo over the intercom. "Send them in."

Judy felt as though she was being imprisoned in here own precinct. Her heart beat rapidly, her head ached, and now she actually sweating. Sighing yet again, she escorted her parents over to the chief's office. If anyone were to ask here how she had felt, Judy would have said that she felt like a prisoner being walked to their execution.

"Chief," said Judy, poking her head inside the buffalo's office. "It's Jops."

"Ah," said the chief. "Come in."

Sheepishly, Judy walked into his office, with Stu and Bonnie following right behind her.

"Chief, these are my parents, Stu and Bonnie Hops. They're visiting Zootopia for a week. Mom, Dad, this is Chief Bogo, my boss and Chief of the Zootopia Police Department."

The massive Cape Buffalo bent down, shaking the much smaller rabbits' paws. "A pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Hopps."

Judy tried softly tugging at her parents shirts to get them out of the office, but Stu wanted to stay and chat.

"Judy's told us so much about you, Chief."

Chief Bogo looked over at Judy, giving her a suspicious look. "I trust it's all been glowing?"

"Of course," said Stu. "Although, she said that her first impression of you wasn't that great; kind of thought you were a bully to her."

Chief Bogo's eyes narrowed menacingly at Judy, who now hoped the Grim Reaper might show up and put her out of her misery. "Oh, did she?"

"Yes, but I told her the best thing to do is stand up to a bully. They'll eventually get your respect."

"Hmmm," grumbled the chief as he folded his arms.

"Say, how about Judy's fiance? I heard he's quite the police officer too!" said Stu.

Judy was at her breaking point. She felt her knees wobble as the risk of the word "fox" being uttered was almost inevitable.

"Yes. Officer Wilde's proven to be quite the asset to our department," said the chief in a marginally more pleasant tone. "I had my doubts about him when he first joined, but so far he's behaved himself."

"Well, that's certainly nice to know," said the sweet, gentle Bonnie. "Judy, honey, you're looking ill again."

"I . . . um . . . I," babbled the paranoid rabbit.

"Okay," said Stu. "Chief Pogo . . ."

"Bogo, Stu," corrected Bonnie once again.

"Chief Bogo, it's been a pleasure, but I think we need to get Judy back home. Hope she's able to come to work tomorrow."

"Good-bye," said the chief. As Judy was lead out of the office by her parents, she turned around, seeing a scowling Chief Bogo glaring at her. Now, thanks to her father's tactless words, she would have to get back on the Chief's good side . . . not an easy task for sure.

Stu informed Judy that he would be driving her car back to the apartment. Judy tried arguing, but her mother seconded the motion, saying she was in no condition to be driving anywhere. Judy tried to stall the inevitable for as long as possible by having her father go to the pharmacy for medicine. While there, Judy made every effort to take as long as possible. Her strange behavior didn't go unnoticed, as one of the pharmacy employees apprached her and asked if she needed any help. Judy took offense, knowing that the manner in which the employee had spoken to her indicated that he suspected she might be casing the store, attempting to rob it. Judy purchased something for her headache and upset stomach, but not before giving the employee an incredibly nasty look. With her medicine now purchased, Stu demanded that she go back home and get some rest. So, here it was. Zero Hour. There would be no more opportunities to hide from the truth. Already she could hear her parents' outrage. They'd probably say that what she was doing would make them the laughing stock Bunny Burrow. It was then that Judy resigned herself to the fact that she couldn't hide from reality anymore.

At the apartment, Judy and her parents walked inside the building and went over to the elevator to reach Judy's floor. It was then that Judy decided to start preparing her mother and father for the shocking truth.

"Mom, Dad," said Judy as she watched the elevator button lights move up. "You two are proud of me, right?"

Stu and Bonnie looked at each other in confusion, then back at their daughter. "Of course, sweetie," said Stu. "Why do you ask?"

"It's just that . . . I don't want you to be mad at me for who I'm chosing to marry."

"Oh," said Bonnie, stroking Judy's ears. "Why would we be mad at your choice of a husband?"

"It's just that . . ."

DING! The elevator reached it's destination. The heavy doors opened, and the three rabbits walked out, turning right towards her apartment. Judy counted the apartment numbers as though she was counting down to the time a bomb would explode. Finally, they were at her door. Rolling her eyes, she took the keys from her pocket and unlocked the door.

"Mom, Dad, I think you should know that there's something . . . different about Nick," she said, her paw still on the doorknob.

"Different how?" asked Stu.

"Well," said Judy as she turned the doorknob, slowly opening it. "Nick just happens to be a . . ."

"Bonnie! Stu! Glad to finally meet you!"

Judy's eyes grew to the size of saucers as Nick, who wasn't suppose to be home, ran over to greet his future mother-in-law and father-in-law.

"Nick," said Stu, extending an inviting paw. "So nice to meet our future son-in-law!"

Stu and Nick gave each other a hardy handshake, while Bonnie hugged the fox, welcoming him to their already extremely large family. Judy stood completely motionless, trying to speak.

"Wait a minute . . . how did you . . . you mean . . . I don't"

"Uh," said Nick. "Are you having a stroke, honey bunny?"

Judy eventually gained control of her senses. "Mom, Dad, you mean to tell me that you knew this whole time that I was engaged to a fox?"

"Sure did," said Stu. "I guess this explains why you were actin' so weird all day, doesn't it?"

Judy shook her head. "But how did you find out?"

Bonnie explained. "After you told us you engaged to a guy named Nick Wilde, we went through your Facebook friends list and found him. You hadn't updated your relationship status, so we figured there was something strange going on. When we found Nick on there, his status said, 'in a relationship with Judy Hopps'. That kind of gave ti away."

Nick grinned. "I was going to change my status to 'living in sin', but I guess Facebook doesn't have that option yet."

Stu and Bonnie both laughed at Nick's joke, but Judy didn't see the humor in it. She turned around, scowling at Nick.

"So, this whole time you've been talking to my parents," she said, folding her arms.

"Wow, you really cracked the case, huh, Columbo?" joked Nick as he gently pinched her cheek. "You'll make detective yet."

"Why didn't you tell me?" said Judy, demanding to know an answer.

Nick shrugged. "You never asked."

Judy felt her temper flare up, "You . . . you dickhead!" she cursed, then elbowed Nick in the stomach, causing the fox to gasp for air.

"Judy Hopps!" snapped Bonnie. "You watch your language!"

"And don't hit your future husband either," warned Stu. "He could have you arrested for assaulting a police officer!"

Nick rubbed his injured stomach as Judy continued voicing her outrage. "He should have told me that he was talking to you! For weeks I've been worying myself sick thinking about how I was going to tell you, and he could have made thing so much easier for me!"

Bonnie took hold of her angry daughter. "Calm down, honey. Nick did a good thing. Perhaps he should have told you he was conversing with us, but he wanted to make sure that we approved of him."

"Wait . . ." said Judy. "You mean Nick wanted your blessing?"

"Yes he did," said Stu. "Nick's a great guy, and I'll be proud to have him in the family."

"I can't believe you're not upset," admitted Judy.

"Honey," said Stu as he, Judy and Bonnie sat down on the couch. "Think about it; your whole life you've always been different. From the time you said you wanted to go to Zootopia and be a police officer, we knew that you would always be a little unconventional. Sure, your mother and I were surprised to hear you were engaged to a fox, but we were never angry."

"Wow, I guess I had both of you figured wrong, didn't I?"

"You're parents are more accepting than you think," said Nick, standing in front of the three sitting rabbits. "They're not just a bunch of hicks from Bunny Burrow."

"Thank you, Nick," said Bonnie.

Judy's attitude changed to that of remorse. "I'm sorry I didn't give you more credit," said Judy to her parents.

"It's okay, honey," said Stu before the rabbits all embraced in a hug. Judy then stood to her feet and hugged her fox.

"I'm sorry I hit you, Nick," she said.

"It's okay, honey bunny. I should have told you that I was talking with your parents."

"Aw," said Bonnie. "They make a lovely couple, don't they, Stu?"

"Yep!" said Stu. "We need to make sure to get a good wedding photographer." Judy laughed. "I sure hope you behaved yourself when you introduced yourself to them," said Judy to Nick.

"Nick was a perfect gentle-fox," said Bonnie.

"Good," said Judy. "And to think, you wanted me to introduce you by saying you were boning me." Judy suddenly stopped, realizing what she had said. "Oh my God! Why did I just say that?!" yelled the rabbit, putting her paws to her face as she ran off to her bedroom, slamming the door shut. A completely flabbergasted Stu and Bonnie turned their attention to Nick. They were speechless.

"Well," said Nick, grinning. "That went better than I expected."