Chapter Text
"Are you ready for our toughest mission yet?" Judy grinned at Nick.
"Pretty much born ready," he responded confidently. She, of course, wouldn't understand the bizarre sense of deja vu he felt saying that phrase. His life had changed quite considerably and he had come a long way from those traumatizing childhood days. Judy halted her current progress towards packing and fixed him with a stern look. "Seriously, I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation. We have no idea what to expect there. You're going to be dodging curveballs left and right."
"We've been through worse, right?" He scoffed at her irrationality. Had she forgotten about their recent escapades to save the reptiles that had almost cost them both of their lives several times so quickly? Although he appreciated that she was making an effort to ensure his comfort, she was going about it to the extreme, as usual for the overzealous bunny.
"It's not too late to back out." She looked at her watch. "We still have about 15 minutes before we need to leave."
He rolled his eyes. And she called him dramatic? "Please, I think I can handle a few rabbits."
"A few hundred?" Judy corrected. She didn't mean to be so pushy. In fact, she wanted him to come visit BunnyBurrow. Very very much so. That was why she had invited him after all. She also knew facing her impossibly large, loud, emotional, chaotic family who had no sense of privacy (or shame) would be quite an ordeal for the solitary fox. And to be completely honest, she was worried this would be the final straw for him -that this time he would be the one to express they were too different.
"It's not like I haven't met them before," he reasoned in an attempt to reassure her.
"This time it will be on their turf. And…it will be with everyone." Judy looked away nervously. Everyone meant all the younger kits, some older ones with kits of their own, her grandma, possibly some cousins… She loved her substantial family, but after spending most of her time in Zootopia, even she was a little reluctant at being suffocated once again by the domineering fluffle.
"Easy. Like I said, we just lay low." He emphasized his point with a flattening of his paws. Right. That was his one condition on coming to see her family for the holidays. And it was a big one.
"You know-" Judy paused to shove another random souvenir into her massive suitcase. "We could just tell them the truth. My parents will be understanding and my siblings won't care." Probably. She was reasonably sure that was true, knowing her parents would eventually accept their relationship, even if they had their reservations. At the end of the day, they wanted to see Judy happy. And she was. Unbelievably happy having fell in love and found another home in the unlikeliest of places.
"The same parents who gifted you fox repellent?"
Judy grimaced. There it was. The reason he was so uncomfortable with the idea of telling them the truth. She couldn't deny it happened -she couldn't lie to him and keep the fact that her father had once been so distrusting of all foxes that he pressed her to take fox specific weaponry with her to Zootopia.
"Well…that was the past. They're partners with Gideon now. I know for a fact they are going to love you. Because I do." While Nick had initially narrowed his eyes at the mention of the other fox, she spoke with such conviction, that in the end, Nick could only shake his head fondly. He wasn't all too assured that the bully fox from Judy's childhood had completely changed for good. She had some kind of track record with trusting animals who then tried to kill her and quite literally stab her in the neck.
"Yeah, well, let's work our way up to it. We can start with them getting to know me as your partner and then later…when I'm a safe distance away from your loving home and family you can sprinkle in the fact that we're a little bit more than friends."
"A little? " She smirked. His heart pounded as it always did when Judy decided to flirt with him. She was surprisingly good at it.
"Okay, a lot." Nick admitted, stepping closer.
She looked up at him through her eyelashes and pulled his shirt until there was no remaining distance between them, tilting her head up to meet his lips. He squeezed her even closer, with paws on her back and neck kissing her slow but urgently. She still got butterflies everytime they kissed. Having never been in a serious relationship before, she fully expected that these feelings would stop soon or at the very least tamper down some. However, the so called honeymoon phase had shown no signs of slowing down.
Just when Nick was contemplating hoisting her up, pushing her back against the wall, and progressing the kiss into something a little more indecent, a loud cacophony of what could only be amateur singing of Christmas music bellowed below the apartment, startling them both apart. Judy bounced to the open window and peered down.
"Aw look, carolers! How fun!" Judy pointed out the obvious to Nick.
"Fun." Nick responded warily, disappointed at the interruption. He supposed he was going to have to get used to that, as part of hiding their relationship meant pausing the affection or at least being creative about where it happened. So, he reasoned, better to make the most of it now. He pulled her in for another kiss knowing they were definitely going to need to sprint to the station afterwards to make it on time. It would be worth it.
The train away from Zootopia was notably less exciting that the journey into the city. In an attempt to avoid the boredom and perhaps learn something new in the process, Nick asked questions about her family, but gave up when she got to the 31st sibling's name. The soothing cadence of Judy's voice was pleasing to his ears, and he found his head resting on hers lulled into a comfortable nap. Judy, on the other paw, was full of both nervous and excited energy, desperately hoping the exchange between her two fluffles would go well, and pondering on how exactly she was going to keep their relationship a secret when her whole affect was more or less an open book. Especially to her parents.
Judy had done her best to hype Nick up in their eyes. She told them all about their adventures - well mostly. She left out just how close death she had been, not wanting to cause them unnecessary stress. She emphasized how much Nick had helped her in the end and that he had saved her life multiple times. She even shared some aspects of their confession and that he cared about her. The only thing she hadn't told them was how they had finally decided to make their romantic feelings clear and start a relationship, or how they were seriously considering moving in together once her lease was up for renewal. And, although she would never admit it to Nick, hiding such a huge part of her life from them was slowly eating her up inside. She tried to bury those negative feelings by snuggling into Nick as the train took them back to where she used to call home.
When they arrived to BunnyBurrow, the light of the day was almost gone and a steady flurry of snow had just begun, appropriate for the holiday season. Judy shook Nick awake and they set out to her family home. At the door, she gave Nick one last look asking him again how he could possibly be okay with this whole thing, to which he just gave her a disappointed face. He wasn't leaving her.
"Mom? Dad? We're he-"
A whirl of movement and noise ran full force into them almost knocking her down in the process and causing Nick to stumble back a step. Rabbits of all sizes surrounded them with curious stares. Then came the barrage of questions and comments. She could only decode a few of them from the excited chatter. "Judy!!!" "Hi Nick!" "Is he really staying here!?" "come look at the pictures we made" "can we touch his tail?" "is the snake coming too?" "Can we see your badges?"
"Alright kids, give them some breathing room, would ya?!" Stu shouted as he walked closer, parting the sea of bunnies to meet them in the middle. Bonnie was by his side with a nervous expression. She pulled Judy in for a hug. "Hi Bun Bun! And Nick! - sorry for the noisy welcome party. The kits are all excited to see you." Nick appeared calm and unbothered by the excessive attention, but Judy knew he was an expert at hiding his true emotional state from others. She would have to corner him later to find out how he really felt.
Nick turned on the charm with a relaxed grin. "No need to apologize, Mrs. Hopps."
"Call me Bonnie, please."
Her father stepped up and extended his paw to him "And you can call me Stu. Just don't call me late for dinner!" He laughed heartily.
"Daaaad," Judy rolled her eyes. Nick however didn't miss a beat, grabbing his paw in a firm shake. "ah, I love telling Dad jokes. Sometimes he laughs."
They both chuckled as Judy groaned. Maybe this was a terrible idea after all. The thought of her Dad and Nick making atrocious puns all night made her want to reconsider. Judy and Nick spent the evening on an extended tour as her siblings showed off everything they had made or new tricks they had learned. Judy was sure the fox must have been bored senseless but he gave no indication as such. hanging onto their every word, admiring their creations, and cracking jokes. Dinner was always a complicated affair, and Judy wanted to help her mom get everything in order. She expressed this to Nick reluctantly who shooed her away, assuring her that he would be fine.
"Is Nick overwhelmed yet?" Judy's mom joked as she added some more spices to the comically large pot on the stove.
"I don't know," Judy admitted "he's not the easiest to read."
"Oh? I thought you two were better at communicating now?" Bonnie asked, referencing their heart to heart.
"We are! We're really great at communicating! Amazing actually!" Judy rushed to explain, then seeing her mother's quirked eyebrow realized she had overdone it. She dialed it back.
"We're the best partners." Okay, that was worse. "And friends." She forced herself to smile in a way she hoped came across as nonchalant. Bonnie noted the strange behavior but simply responded with "I…see."
Her mom stirred the pot which was boiling, and turned down the heat. "So are you two working on any new cases lately?"
"Not really." There were still a few remaining escapees of those released by Nick and Nibbles, but their crimes were petty infractions at best and as such no urgency was given to them by the Chief. In fact, Bogo had pushed her to take it easy reminding Judy of how close she had been to death's door. That didn't usually do much to deter the bunny hero, but she had been…distracted lately to say the least.
"Really? We haven't heard from you much these last couple months. I was almost worried you wouldn't make it down for the holidays." Bonnie teased, but there was an undercurrent of seeking more information.
"I've been busy…" Judy responded absentmindedly, then winced at her mistake.
"Doing what?" She had just told her mom that they weren't on a case. She tried to come up with an explanation.
"I've been…you know…exploring the big city. Sightseeing."
"Sightseeing?" Her mom repeated quizzically. Judy had been living in the city for years now.
"Yeah, I never got much of a chance to do it before. Always on a case." Judy laughed nervously. It was a reasonable lie. But of course Judy was not a reasonable liar. It was clear the older rabbit didn't buy any of it, but she just nodded, accepting that Judy was not going to share any more details. Judy frantically searched for a distraction to appease the guilt she felt. "Oh, I think the flatbread is done!" She exclaimed opening the oven door.
"Judy! Mitts!" Bonnie reminded her. Right. Judy grabbed the mitts and pulled out the large sheets to set them on the counter. They shifted the conversation to safer topics about her siblings' achievements and struggles, her grandma's latest annoyances, and her father's ongoing battle with the overgrown weeds until Bonnie said "I can take it from here. How about you check on your fox and make sure the kits haven't smothered him to death yet?"
Judy nodded and ran out, only half registering that she had called him her fox. When she entered the living room she was horrified to find a dozen or so of her younger siblings crowded around him including more than a few playing with Nick's tail as he sat on the couch. She rushed over and began pulling them off.
"Heeeyy guys, maybe you can give Nick some space?"
"It's fine, Carrots. I don't mind." It was true he looked relaxed, but…
"Why do you call Judy, Carrots?" one of them laughed.
"Well…" Nick started not sure where to begin with the story and how much Judy had already told them about the interesting circumstances surrounding their first meeting. Thankfully they were interrupted.
"Suppers on!"
Approximately 42 pairs of rabbit feet and one pair of fox feet shuffled in single file. Nick stared at the assembly line like display of the kits taking their seats until Judy pulled him to their own near the head of the table. Her mother walked by them as she was distributing salads.
"Sorry Nick, we weren't really sure what you eat. We don't prepare bugs or fish here…" Bonnie said struggling to be accommodating without being stereotypical.
"No no, I'm good on bugs, cooked or otherwise, thank you" he shared a wink to Judy who grimaced at him. "Maybe for the rest of my life…" he trailed off. The whole exchange was picked up on by Bonnie.
"Otherwise? Is there a story there?"
"Uh…nope there's not." Judy quickly answered. At least nothing she should know about. Judy was all too eager to brush it aside, not especially keen on telling them how she and Nick had each been tricked into eating live worms. The tale would undoubtedly ruin dinner, worry her parents to death, and cause a flurry of uncomfortable questions from her siblings.
Nick saved her from Bonnie's interrogation. "I'll eat whatever you made. I'm sure it will be delicious. It smells that way." He ended with a dashing grin and it worked wonders, delighting Bonnie instantly. Judy was glad he was making an effort, only slightly bothered that she couldn't tell if he was being sincere. She had gotten better at reading him now that they were dating and spending so much time together, but he still threw her for a loop sometimes and she had to remind herself that he had been doing the whole lying and manipulating thing for far longer than he knew her.
Nick was being sincere. Dinner, a vegetable curry that included carrots, naturally, potatoes onions and garlic was seasoned to perfection and Nick was pleasantly impressed with how they had managed to deliver decent sized proportions to each and every kit, including an extra one for him which he appreciated.
After a long dinner, and another round of questions from excited rabbits, Judy took in the slightly exhausted look on Nick's face and made a executive decision that it was time for the solitary fox to recover from the barrage of socialization. After asking her mom where his room was, they stood outside to say their goodbyes.
"It's been a blast," Nick drawled and then gave her a genuine smile, "Goodnight, Carrots."
"Goodnight, Nick"
Judy almost instinctively leaned in for a kiss and then realized at the last second they had an audience of curious bunnies including her parents. She tried to recall how they had said goodbye in the past before they had both declared their feelings and entered a new stage of their relationship. They stared at each other. Why was this so awkward? She finally decided on a hug, fiercely grasping his midsection with her arms and squeezing him tight. "Oof" he huffed before gently hugging her back. Hugs could be platonic right?
"I'm glad you're here" she whispered. And then she jumped off him quicker than lightning, and before he could even attempt to say anything in response.
Nick for his part wanted to call the whole secrecy thing off and pull her into his room immediately. But, since it would likely ruin the stellar impression on her family he had been attempting to achieve since coming here, he decided against the temptation and closed the door to his room.
Nick sighed in relief finally having some alone time. He couldn't understand how Judy was able to handle the constant overstimulation or how none of the bunnies appeared even remotely tired. He took a look around his room. Small, but cozy and very very cute. He smiled at the various artwork lining the walls, wondering if any of it was Judy's. Even with a moment of respite, he couldn't stop his thoughts from returning to her. It was pathetic.
A few doors down, the night was still young and some of the older kits ( 16 of them) swarmed into Judy's room to listen to her talk about life in the big city. Judy didn't mind as she sat down and told her siblings various adventures, hoping to impart advice and wisdom, and just maybe brag a little about her heroism.
That was until they had asked her to retell one of their favorites. It was Judy's least favorite because it reminded her of both the flaws of her one track mind when it came to cases and the fight that happened afterwards threatening to break Nick and her up for good. She told it anyways intentionally leaving the negative parts out.
"How did you get out?" One of her siblings -Barry - interrupted midway, having heard it for the first time.
"Nick got us out. He opened an escape hatch." She explained nonchalantly.
"Woah, he saved your life!?" Barry answered matching the excited faces of his open mouthed siblings.
"Yeah…he did." Judy said solemnly, reliving the memory. After the case was over, she learned just how far the red line went-they had barely made it half way and there was no possible reality where she could have held her breath for that long. Nick had saved her from becoming a drowned bunny and in return she had thanked him by demanding an apology and arguing about the case. Of course, everything had worked out in the end. Nick was finally honest about how much he cared and Judy was finally honest about her need for validation. They made it through, but that experience in particular always made her feel a bit guilty. She wondered sometimes why he still wanted to be with her after she had shown him that she prioritized the cases more than either of their safety. She shook her head to dispel the insecure thoughts from taking shape.
"And that's why you should never go down the red line," she spoke firmly, knowing full well that her siblings were very unlikely to ever be presented with such a choice. Still, she hoped someone could learn from her mistakes.
"Okay, I think that's enough for tonight" Judy was speaking to the kits, but also to herself. She didn't like drowning in misery reminiscing about her shortcomings.
She bid goodnight to them all with head kisses, hugs and pats, and they filed out of her room oblivious to the complicated emotions in her they had unintentionally stirred up. She distracted herself by getting ready for bed, taking special care to floss between each and every tooth and fell unceremoniously into the sheets fully prepared to pass out. Unfortunately her body had other plans.
Staring up at the ceiling of the guest bedrooms, aka one of the shared kits bedrooms they had cleared out for her, Judy wondered why it was that after such an exhausting and eventful day, she couldn't sleep. Sure, she had the energy of a rabbit with a bunny hero complex and could work on cases over multiple nights with no rest in between, but when there was no urgency or time limit pushing her to do more, sleep was always a dear friend. In fact, she was the first one to fall asleep during a movie, usually right before an important scene or the climax, much to Nick's feigned annoyance.
Judy didn't have to wonder for long about the true reason for her wakefulness. It had nothing to do with the soft sounds of snores, rustling, and hushed giggles emitting from her family just beyond the thin shared walls. And although her room was rather small, the bed wasn't uncomfortable, the sheets soft and pillows fluffed to her liking. She felt a sense of warmth and nostalgia being back home, smelling the familiar mix of laundry detergent, earth, and carrot juice.
No, the real reason she found herself completely unable to drift off into a peaceful slumber was because for the last two months and change she had been sleeping cuddled up to a certain warm and fluffy fox she had the pleasure of calling her boyfriend.
She scolded herself, trying to see reason. Really? She couldn't even go one night without him? It was pathetic if she was being honest. She had always prided herself on her independence. She was, after all, the only one in her family who had left BunnyBurrow. The only one who became a police officer. The only one who constantly risked life and limb for the good of animalkind.
Still, glancing at the clock -8:23pm (very early by Nick's standards), she wondered what he was doing. Probably watching dumb videos on his phone or maybe reading a book. Definitely the former.
She sighed. There was no way she was getting to sleep like this. Even though it was irrational and possibly bordering on co dependency, she didn't care. She wanted to see him. And Judy was never very good at controlling her impulses when she wanted something. So, with a undignified huff, she hopped out of the bed and shuffled to the door. She paused, suddenly aware of the fact that she had almost forgotten their relationship was not to be revealed just yet. She would have to sneak to his room, which was a few doors down.
No problem. All her siblings should be asleep or at least otherwise distracted sharing gossip and laughing about…whatever it was the young kits were interested in these days. With a air of assurance, Judy made her trek slowly and quietly to Nick's room. She was halfway there when her foot stepped onto an old floor board, causing a resounding creak to fill the hallway. Judy stopped, looking around and listening. There was nothing save for the soft familiar sounds of sleeping bunnies. She continued on her way.
"Judy?" A small groggy voice whispered into the darkness and Judy felt as if an ice bucket had been dumped over her. Cheese and crackers. She turned slowly and could barely make out the figure of a young 8-10 year old boy standing down the hall. Benji? Vinny?
"Heyyy buddy. What are you doing up?" Judy tried to keep the panic out of her voice as she whispered, not wanting to alert any other siblings to the scene.
"Lenny showed me a scary movie and I can't sleep. Then I heard you step on the floorboard just now." Judy winced. Darn bunnies and their supernormal hearing. "where are you going?"
"Me? I'm just…going to the bathroom!" Judy finished the only logical reason that one would be up and wandering the halls.
At this, Benji? Or Vinny (Judy was usually better at distinguishing her many siblings but it was very dark) gave her a puzzled look and said,
"But the bathroom's that way." He pointed down the hall, clearly opposite f rom Judy's current trajectory.
Judy thought fast. "Ha, you know what? I guess I've been gone for so long I forgot where it was! Thank you for telling me." She walked towards him giving his head a ruffle between the ears as she passed.
Remembering what he said, she turned back and added, "And don't you worry. Nothing bad is gonna get you when I'm around. I'm a cop, remember. And so is Nick! We won't let anything happen to you guys, I promise."
He beamed at her in response. "Thank you Judy! Goodnight!" He whispered.
"Goodnight!" Judy said back a bit too cheerful for this late hour. Then she groaned internally as she made her way to the bathroom.
She recalibrated her plan. She could go back to her room and forget the whole thing - perhaps it was a sign that she needed to be more independent and suck it up. Or…she could try again. So what if her siblings caught her? This whole secrecy plan was Nick's dumb idea anyways. Feeling determined and a touch angry, Judy decided.
She repeated the journey to his room, making sure to avoid the creaky floorboard and was pleasantly surprised to make it there without any further noise or interruptions from her family. At his door, she paused. Nick was definitely going to make fun of her. She braced herself and opened the door slowly, slipping inside and closing as quietly as she possibly could.
The room was dark save for a blue glow of light fraom a tiny screen illuminating the foxes face. He usually had a lamp on at night and Judy now realized with a xx that it was purely for her benefit not his. He could see perfectly well in the dark.
"Geez what took you so long? Get over here, Carrots."
Nick had tried to make himself comfortable but found it impossible. The bed was wide enough for him, but too short, so he had squished himself into an odd position with his legs propped on the floorboard. It wasn't so bad, he had slept under much worse conditions after all, but he realized almost immediately something important was missing. His beloved comfort animal. He knew she would come or rather hoped she would, so he had spent the last hour scrolling through comedy videos on his xx app, saving the ones he wanted to show Judy later.
Judy wasted no time, hopping into the bed under the covers and close to her familiar cozy fox, nuzzling her head into his chest and wrapping her arms around him tight.
"Sorry, I got caught the first time by one of my little brothers and had to make a detour." He chuckled. "Of course you did."
She decided to ask what she had been wondering all night. Which was just how comfortable he actually was with her family.
"Was today too much?" Not exactly how she wanted to ask but it got the point across.
"Nah. Am I completely comfortable with all the excessive questions and the touching? No, but I'm just not used to it." Nick decided to shift the topic away from him. "Your siblings are cute-i mean cuddly-i mean-"
"Nick" she reprimanded but found she didn't have the usual energy to fight back. The sleep she had found so hard to come by was now the easiest state in the world to slip into. She smiled content and serene, lulled into unconsciousness by the soft rumbling of his chest.
"Judy!"
Judy's eyes snapped open as she took in her surroundings. There was a glow of early morning light filtering in the window. So she wasn't at Nick's then. She sat up rubbing her eyes, hearing the soft snores of Nick beside her, still deep in sleep. Waking up next to him was normal. What wasn't normal was a bunch of frantic voices calling her name, trying to find out why she wasn't in her room. And that was because she was cuddled up next to a fox who was supposed to be her friend and nothing more.
Judy's panicked shuffle stirred Nick awake, and he grumbled "so all of you wake up this early, huh?"
She ignored him as she thought up a plan. She couldn't sneak out through the door. There were too many siblings in the hallway. And it was only a matter of time before one of them worked up the courage to knock. There was only one choice. She made her way to the window and looked down. There were no rabbits in the yard that she could see. It was possible to jump down and come around the back of the house and no one would be the wiser. Nicks room was on the second floor. It wasn't a terrible jump down, she had done much more extreme hops obviously, and although they were usually backed up with adrenaline and not first thing in the morning, she was confident all would be well. She opened the window and readied herself as she heard Nick scramble out of the bed "what do you think you're doing?"
"Making an exit." She shrugged. Nick was being overdramatic again. Without another word she hopped down to the sound of "Judy! Wait!"
She landed hard on her feet, but remained standing. She grinned up at Nick, contrasting his unamused stare. "Okay. If you're done playing darebunny, can I go back to sleep?"
Now it was Judy's turn to give a unimpressed look. Yet, she reasoned that he would be most amiable to Christmas festivities of he was well rested. "Fine. But don't sleep in all day! We have a lot of activities planned!" Nick groaned and shut the window, presumably returning to his bed and back into a deep slumber.
Judy entered the front of the house shouting "I'm here! I'm here!" All at once, a cluster of bunnies came running at her "Judy!" "Where were you?" "Why weren't you in your room?"
"I just went for a little morning walk"
Her father came around "Really? No one saw you leave. It must have been pretty early."
"Yeah it was" she tried to sound casual. How was Nick so good at this, and when would it start rubbing off on her? Lying didn't come natural to Judy at all, and she was constantly worried everyone would see right through her.
Thankfully Stu didn't press her anymore and she went to help her mother with breakfast. Afterwards, Nick still had not made an appearance, but there was always work to be done. Judy had just finished helping the younger kits get dressed when she heard a door open from the second floor. She waited in the kitchen. Nick strolled in around 10:30am with a large yawn. She felt she had lived a whole lifetime and he was just barely waking up.
"What, you didn't make me breakfast?" Nick teased. Judy shot him a glare. "No" then shifted her tone to a light "we're making it together!" She moved a massive pan out of the way and pulled out a smaller more reasonably sized one from under the counter.
Nick groaned "is this another one of your Christmas traditions?"
"Something like that " Judy shot back, taking the leftover batter from the fridge and placing it on the counter. She turned on the stove and gestured to the butter. Nick took the hint, taking a small knife of butter and putting it on the pan.
Judy's concentrated expression matched with her cute frilly apron was simply too adorable for him to resist any longer. Nick stepped up close behind her. Settling his snout between her ears and hugging her from behind.
"This is you helping?" Judy teased. But she wasn't mad at all about the closeness.
"Hey, you kind of took over. I'm just offering emotional support here"
Judy leaned into him. They were silent, basking in the comforting hold of one another, a perfect picture of domesticity.
"Ahem," someone behind them had entered the kitchen. Judy and Nick sprang apart reflexively as if they had both touched the hot stove. They tuned to face Judy's parents who were standing there looking confused. For one tortuous moment, no one said a word. Then, to Judy's great surprise, her parents burst out laughing. Now it was Judy's turn to be confused.
"Oh boy, you two look like a couple a kits with your hands caught in the cookie jar!" Stu barked out between laughs. Bonnie finished her giggling and followed up with "Relax! We know."
Judy's eyes widened. She needed to clarify what it was they thought that knew. "You know…?"
"That you two are dating? Yes, we know all about it." Bonnie finished matter-of-factly.
Stu added, "we knew from the moment you both walked in the front door." Judy grimaced. They had been that obvious? Nick still hadn't recovered from his look of shock, at a complete loss of how he should act.
"How do you know?" Judy decided to ask, curious about what gave them away. They were supposed to be good at going undercover, and yet they couldn't even fool her own parents?
"Oh bun bun, you're our daughter. Of course we can tell when you're in love. I thought it was going to happen much sooner. Heaven knows, you talk nonstop about him on Muzzletime with us."
Judy wanted to burrow into a hole. She resisted using her ears to cover her face in embarrassment. Beside her, Nick chuckled, relieved to have the upper hand in this awkward situation.
"And you," Bonnie turned her attention to him. Nick gulped, humored expression instantly gone. "You look at her every two seconds like she's hung the moon." Bonnie smiled at him and Nick, well he wanted to run away and get out of here as soon as possible. Judy shot him a smug look then turned back to her parents.
"So, you're not mad?"
"Mad? Why on earth would we be mad?" Bonnie exclaimed, voice filled with bemusement then thinking she added, "Oh for not telling us. Well, like I said honey, we figured it out pretty easily."
"What about the fact that I'm a fox?" Nick said abruptly wanting to get it out there, the biggest hurdle over with.
Bonnie and Stu shared matching nervous expressions. Bonnie nudged Stu and nodded to him, urging him to do something, Nick didn't know what.
"I, uh, think some apologies are in order." He finally said meeting Nick's eyes.
Nick winced. He had heard that line before. Or rather, Nick had said something very similar. He tried not to be thrown back to the painful memory of almost losing Judy, destroying the carrot pen, and their climatic separation. So Stu expected him to apologize for something. But for what? Falling in love with his daughter? Coming to visit their beloved home and intrude on their lives? Being a fox?
Stu wrung his paws together. "I'm sorry, Nick. Growing up here in the country, we never ran into many other foxes, and the ones we did know were not the most savory characters if you catch my drift. Still, that doesn't excuse our prejudice."
Bonnie nodded beside him with a look of guilt. Stu continued, "Now I know what you've done looking out for our little girl and I can't thank you enough-" his voice started to shake and there were tears undeniably forming in his eyes.
-Dad, no." Judy tried to intervene to stop the dramatic waterworks from happening. It was a lost cause. Judy's abject horror remained as it shifted from a fear that her parents would reject Nick to a new fear that her Dad's emotional outburst would push Nick to the brink of what he could accept from her overemotional family. His discomfort was apparent as he stared with eyes wide at the emotional display.
"If you can find it in your heart to forgive us, we'd like to officially welcome you to the fluffle." Bonnie nodded in confirmation. And then, to Judy's continued astonishment, they both extended their arms.
Nick wasn't much better than Judy as he continued to stare, clearly not expecting this outcome either, completely thrown off his game. Judy waited for Nick to dismiss them, to come up with some sort of joke to get out of it and run off in search of well deserved and much needed privacy. When nothing came from the fox, she determined it was her responsibility to say something. Nick's not really a hugger was on the tip of her tongue when she was shocked once more as Nick stepped forward to embrace them both. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.
Nick didn't know why he had done it, but despite the awkwardness, he felt like a small part of his childhood was healing through the hug. Something to unpack later with a herd of therapy animals. Still, he wasn't quite used to all the physical contact and he released them quickly, stepping back. He decided he should probably say something in return, a rare moment of truth.
"To be honest, when I met your daughter, I had my own reservations about rabbits."
"Oh yeah? Like what" Stu asked, having recovered from his outburst and now immensely curious, having been shield from anything negative about his species.
"Uh…" Nick started hesitating, not wanting to disrupt the newfound harmony by insulting them. Judy finally helped him out.
"That we're all a bunch of dumb bunnies," she said plainly.
"Oh, well you might be on to something there," Stu joked.
"Dad!"
"I mean have you met your uncle Terry? Not the sharpest carrot in the patch, that's for sure."
"Stu!" Bonnie shook her head disapprovingly. "The point is," she added, "we've all had our biases, but now we can move past them. We're happy to have you, Nick, and you're always welcome here." Bonnie expressed used to mediation from years of handling conflicts between her kits.
As if to contrast the resolution, the sound of broken glass emanated from the living room. Stu's mood shifted in an instant, and he was thrown back into dad mode. "Rudy! What'd I tell ya about messing with that thing?" He ran out of the kitchen without another word, moving on to the next catastrophe. Bonnie gave them both a shy smile and began to leave as well. She turned to them as she was almost out of the door.
"Oh, Judy?"
"Yes, Mom?"
"Since you've been sleeping in Nick's, do you think we can give your room back to your siblings? Space is tight, as you know."
Judy flushed in embarrassment. So they hadn't even been able to hide her nightly visit.
"Yes, Mom." She squeaked out.
"Thanks, bun bun," Bonnie replied. As soon as she was out of the room, Judy collapsed into a chair and slammed her face onto the table on anguish. She groaned as Nick laughed, rubbing consoling circles into her back.
In an attempt to hide how her parent's speech had gotten to him and the misty eyes threatening to release tears, Nick did what he did best, joked about the whole thing.
"That was anticlimactic, huh? I was hoping you would have to defend my honor and talk about all my amazing qualities."
"What amazing qualities?" She perked up, jovial mood returning. He smirked at her, pleased at a job accomplished to bring her spirits back up, but then his snout picked up on something and he frowned.
"We do need to figure out breakfast though," Nick stated continuing to look at her, "because we definitely burned those pancakes"
Judy spun around to see what Nick's nose had already picked up and sure enough there was a small plummet of smoke rising from the pan.
"Oh sweet cheese and crackers."