Hood

They stood before the door of Judy's parents' home. Quite unlike his usual self, Nick was fidgety and jumpy, constantly adjusting his collar and making short quips about the rising temperature.

"This isn't like you, Nick. What's the matter, scared of a few bunnies?" Judy teased, tugging at his tie to get it into a more presentable position.

Nick frowned and wanted to snap back with a biting retort, but just as he opened his mouth, the door swung open and there stood Judy's parents. As would be expected, Judy rushed forth and embraced them tightly.

It was a touching sight made slightly awkward with Nick sanding at the doorway, glancing about furtively.

After the customary greetings were made and the dinner plated and served, the Hopps finally turned their attention to Nick.

"Well, don't just stand there, Nick, come one in! Dinner's ready!" Bonnie smiled as she brought out a tub of carrot casserole. Nick gulped and smiled as he ducked a little to clear the low doorway. Sitting on the slightly-too-small chair, he managed to crack a smile.

"Don't mess this up Nick." He muttered to himself under his breath. Was it hot in here or what?

"Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Hopps! I'm Nick, your daughter's new boyfr-"

He caught himself just as the word rolled off his tongue.

"I-I mean, your daughter's new partner. Yeah, partner." He shot a sidelong glance at Judy who gave him a reassuring nod.

"Oh, don't worry, we know. Top of the class, huh? Well, our little Judes sure picked a great partner!" Stu beamed at her daughter who smiled back as she picked up a steaming carrot from the plate, placing it daintily in her mouth.

"Oh, for sure!" Bonnie responded as she stepped out with the last dish; an after-dinner snack of chilled fruits and vegetables drizzled with syrup, "You know, our little girl really opened up our eyes to predators such as yourself. We used to think you were monsters and all, but really you're just like us!"

Nick flinched a little at the term, but he regained his composure and smiled, thanking them for the compliment. Judy noticed his little twitch and smiled worriedly at her parents, then at Nick. They seemed oblivious to her gesture and chuckled.

"Yeah, we used to be absolutely terrified of your kind," Nick flinched again, his ears drooping down ever so slightly, "But when we saw how Gideon changed, well, we had a change of heart."

Bonnie reached out and held Nick's paw, startling him a bit.

"Nick, take care of our little Judy, okay? Zootopia's still a dangerous place for bunnies like her!"

Relieved, Nick smiled.

"Don't worry, ma'am, I'm sure Carrots over there can handle herself just fine..." He smirked at Judy who looked a little concerned. Nick turned to look at her parents who seemed a little taken aback by his term of endearment.

"Well, you blew it. Great job, Nick, just great." He reprimanded himself internally and stammered an apology.

The rest of the meal was finished in relative silence, with the occasional questions about Nick's family and life before he met Judy. As Judy and Nick left, they heard her parents whispering.

Back in the car, Nick was slumped over in the passenger seat, looking utterly dejected.

"What's the matter, Nick?" Judy asked as she started the squad car. Its engine roared to life, but Nick didn't react in the slightest.

"I blew it, didn't I?" He whispered, curling up in the back on the seat, "You saw how they looked at me."

He chuckled sadly as he rolled over to face the backrest.

"The one time I slip up, and its in front of your parents. Heh, guess I'm not all that I say I am, huh? I'm such a dumb fox..."

Judy sat for a moment before unbuckling her seatbelt and climbing to the back through the window in the partition, sitting next to the fox. She gave him a few reassuring pats on the shoulder.

"Oh, you're thinking too much. My parents're nice people; a little protective," She glanced at the homemade pepper spray on the dashboard, a gift from her father, "But I'm sure they loved you."

Nick didn't respond, instead choosing to plug in his earbuds and listen to some sad music.

Judy sighed as she clambered back to the driver's seat. The wheels kicked up a cloud of dust as it sped off to their lodgings for the week. It was a nice little home, rustic yet well-furnished, lent to them courtesy of one of Judy's brothers. It sat on the outskirts of Burrowtown; close enough to see the numerous burrows, but far enough away that the stars lit up above them. A dirt road led to the doorstep with various tall crops growing as far as the eyes could see.

It took Nick a while to come into the house after Judy. She wanted to ask him why, but she felt it'd be better to let it go for now.

That night, Nick was particularly distant, turning away from her under the covers.

"Oh, Nick..." She whispered to herself, looking over at his back before turning to face the window. The stars were particularly splendid tonight and the burrows in the distance gave her a sense of comfort.

She was just about to fall asleep when her phone rang.

------

"Oh! Chief Bogo! Pardon my words, sir, but its..." She glanced at the carrot-themed cuckoo clock hanging from the wall, "Just about 11."

"We have an urgent case going on in Burrowtown right this moment, Hopps! But if its too late for you, I could jut-"

"Oh, no sir! It's alright! What's the problem?"

"Well... Is Wilde there with you?"

She glanced at Nick who seemed fast asleep.

"Yes sir, but he's sleeping."

"Well this concerns him too."

Judy tapped Nick's shoulder and he sprang awake. Judy lowered her eyelids. Nick smirked smugly, mouthing "what?".

She set her phone to speaker mode and placed it on the bed.

"Wilde. Hopps. I understand its late-"

"Well, thanks for reminding us, sir. Wouldn't have known it without you!"

"Shut your trap, Wilde."

Judy couldn't help but snicker at his comment, mostly because she was relieved that he seemed back to normal.

Chief Bogo went on to explain the details of the string of robberies plaguing Burrowtown. Numerous small-time farmers had been reporting that their coffers had been robbed clean. Nobody knew what was going on; the thief left absolutely no trace of ever entering or leaving the affected homes. The closest evidence they had of the thief was a fleeting silhouette caught by one of the security cameras at a store.

"Well, no disrespect sir, but couldn't you have waited till tomorrow to tell us about this?"

"Normally, yes, I'd wait till you came back from vacation, but this thief is an escaped convict. Just broke out of jail a few days ago, took us a whole day to find out how he escaped. Turns out, he got out through the toilet. Anyway, he's priority number one right now and we have teams on the lookout in Zootopia. However, you're the only ones out in Burrowtown and we don't have any more men. I'll have to cut your vacation short, Hopps."

Judy didn't mind, but Nick looked absolutely devastated. He wanted to protest, but Judy shushed him. there was a fierce determination in her eyes, the same one he always saw whenever they got a case. He knew he;d never talk her out of accepting the case, so he just threw his paws into the air and crossed them, glowering and muttering under his breath.

"We'll take the case, sir!"

"Excellent. I'll send over the videos now to your laptop. Good luck, officer Hopps." Then, almost as an afterthought, "And officer Wilde."

Her laptop made a little beeping noise as she scrambled over. Nick didn't appreciate the enthusiasm.

"Wasn't this supposed to be a vacation?" Nick yawned, grumpy once again.

"A cop's duty is never over, Nick! Now get over here and help me!" She flipped open her laptop and entered several layers of passwords to get to the encrypted file.

The footage was grainy and in back-and-white. but there was a very distinct shadow scurrying off into the distance before the footage cut out.

As much as Nick wasn't pleased with the whole situation, he was studying the video intently. It took a while, but his eyes eventually widened and he paused the video just as the suspect rounded the corner.

"Hey Carrots, can you see what's on his tail?"

Judy squinted and barely made out the shape of a ring fastened around the tail, causing it to have a little dip in the fluff.

"It's a ring..." She looked at Nick, who seemed rather concerned.

"Nick, do you know this guy?"

"... I know everyone in Zootopia, Carrots. We've established that." He couldn't help but smirk, but there was no snark in the smile. Instead, it was a quietly angry, pursed smile.

"Everyone... Except him." He jabbed the monitor, causing it to rock a little. There was clear anger in his voice, though it remained level and calm.

"My dad, Robin Wilde. I'd never forget that ring on his tail. Never."

Judy was a little frightened of Nick's seething rage. He kept it well hidden, but she could hear his heart thumping away.

"Nick, calm down. Tell me everything you know about him."

Nick glared at the screen for a few moments more before flopping onto the bed with a loud sigh, crossing his arms and hugging the comfy pillow.

"My dad... Boy, was he a character." Nick was staring at nothing in the ceiling, seemingly lost in his own world as he recounted his tale to Judy.

-----

"Nick! Get down from there!"

Robin's eyes widened in horror when he saw his son perching dangerously atop a tree. The rambunctious 6-year old was a real handful for him and Mary, especially when he was this hopped up on sugar from the ice cream they had for lunch.

In a few quick hops, Robin made his way up the tree next to his son, plucking him off the branch and hopping off, landing smoothly onto the grass next to Mary who gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Gah, can we just stop giving him sugar, honey?" Robin asked with a resigned sigh as he struggled to keep Nick in his arms.

"Well, you wanted ice cream." She replied with a smirk as she shifted herself a little on the bench, getting comfortable.

"CanIhavesomemoreicecreampleasepleasepleasepleaseplease-"

The happy couple chuckled and shared a little nuzzle as Robin physically held Nick's mouth shut gently. The boy shook his head, trying to get his father's fingers off, giggling.

"Maybe some other day kiddo."

Robin handed Nick over to Mary and stretched. He picked up a pebble from the ground and felt its weight in his hands.

"Hey, Nick, wanna watch dad knock that bottle off the window?" He pointed to the minute bottle atop a 4-storey building. It took Nick a moment on account of the sugar, but he did eventually see it and nod enthusiastically.

Robin wound up and took aim before letting the pebble fly. A second later, the bottle shattered and an angry wildebeest slammed the window open. He looked around to see who shattered his bottle of Savannah beer, but the family was already long gone.

"That wasn't very nice, dad..." Nick pouted as he held his father's hand. Their part of Zootopia was, admittedly, on the less savoury side of town, but Robin always made sure his family was safe.

"Oh, I knew that guy. Wasn't a very nice fellow, believe me. They used to call him "Sharp-horns" but, when push came to shove, those horns of his weren't quite sharp enough." Robin laughed and shook his head, "Aah, memories..."

Mary sighed and shook her head with a little smile.

"Robin..."

Suddenly, Robin pulled his family into an alleyway and glanced around the corner before heaving a sigh of relief and stepping back out into the daylight.

"What happened, Dad?" Nick asked timidly, a little shaken as he grabbed his father's tail. The ring he always wore on his tail was a source of comfort for him. It told him that daddy was there to protect him.

"Nothing, Nick. Come on, let's go."

They got home in a rather hurried fashion, taking the various alleys and the occasional rooftop to get back home. When they got hom, Robin locked the door and heaved another sigh of relief.

"Nick, go to your room. Your father and I have something very important to discuss." Mary knelt down and smiled at Nick warmly.

Nick stood there adamantly, but after a bit of coaxing, he obliged and headed upstairs.

When they heard the door close, Mary frowned at Robin and crossed her arms.

"Robin! Who in the world did you steal from this time?" She whispered angrily.

"It was nothing, I swear! I just took a few diamonds..."

"Diamonds?! Robin, I know you miss the old days, but you have a son now! You can't go around stealing things from others anymore!"

"What, and watch as that little rat builds his criminal empire while the rest of us suffer? Mary, I understand your concern, but someone has to do something!"

"Well, stealing from them isn't going to change anything! You promised me that you wouldn't go around dispensing your vigilante justice anymore!"

"This time it's different! Honey, listen, I can fix this. Just give me some-"

He froze when he looked up the stairs and saw little nick sitting on the top step. Mary turned to look and saw him too.

"D-Dad's a... thief?"

"Nick..."

He could see the tears building beneath his beloved son's eyes. Before they fell, Nick ran to his room and slammed the door. Robin's shoulders dropped in defeat as he stood there, staring at the door.

Seeing her husband like that dissipated Mary's anger almost instantly. She walked over and placed a comforting paw onto his shoulder, giving him a tight hug before heading upstairs to comfort Nick.

Robin collapsed onto the couch, staring at nothing in particular. He'd spent the last few years since Nick's birth going on the occasional theft spree, but only from criminal moguls and corrupt businessmen. It was liberating, in a way, to fight for the poor. Every heist he made, he made sure to have enough to give his family a comfortable life before donating the rest of it away under an alias: "Hood". He;'d even set aside a goodly sum of it for Nick when he grew up and was ready to inherit the small fortune to kickstart his own life.

Now all of it was for nothing. Nick...

There was a loud rap on the door as he sat on the couch. He saw Mary step out of Nick's room, but he motioned her to stay hidden.

Tidying himself up, he went to answer the door with his businessman's smile plastered on his face.

"How can i help you fine gentlemen today? Care to come in for some biscuits? Fresh from the oven!"

The three cops that stood before him didn't buy it.

"Mr. Wilde, you're under arrest for breaking and entering as well as for the theft of personal property."

Robin acted bewildered.

"Huh? What makes you think I'd steal anything?"

The buffalo reached forwards and grabbed Robin's arm.

"Because you're a fox."

Robin looked at the burly hand and sighed.

"Officer, I think you're making a huge mistake."

"We also found some fox fur at the scene of the crime. DNA never lies, fox."

Robin's eyes widened for a moment, then he settled back to his smug smile.

"Well, I guess you caught me red-handed, but I'm sure you remember another important trait of foxes..."

In a quick twisting motion, he broke free of the buffalo's grip and leapfrogged over his horns.

"We're real slippery too!" He shouted as he ran off.

Mary watched the entire scene with over hand over her mouth. She wanted to call out to them, but she knew Robin would've wanted her to stay safe with Nick.

Quietly, she stepped through the door and into Nick's room. Much like any child, his room was plastered with toys and books. Nick, however, was curled up in his bed. Mary took a few tentative steps towards Nick and tried to comfort her son, but he violently shook her hand off his shoulder, sulking quietly.

Mary sighed and got up, heading downstairs to clean up the mess. As she swept up the dust, she got a text message from Robin.

"Mary, I'm sorry for everything. I shouldn't have done that. You were right. They're right on my tail. I'll destroy this phone soon. I'm so sorry. Tell Nick I love him."

That was it.

Mary clutched her phone in her hands and held back her tears.

"Robin..."

Then, another message, this time with a bank account number and a password.

"Use this. It won't last long, but it'll help. I won't be needing it where I'm going..."

There were no more messages after that. Silence fell upon the house, punctuated by Mary's heavy, sobbing breaths. He was gone.

------

"I never saw him again after that. Well, I kind of did. He was on the news." Nick frowned and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before sighing.

Judy was listening intently to Nick, at the same time taking down notes. Nick noticed her scribbling down key details about Robin.

"Hey, I'm over here baring my soul to you and you're taking down notes? That's cold, Carrots." He acted wounded, but there was that smile on his face that told Judy it was alright.

"Well, he is a key suspect. And you're directly related to him so..."

Nick chuckled and flopped back onto the bes. Judy lay beside him and they stared at the ceiling for a bit, admiring the wood patterns.

"That probably felt pretty good, didn't it?"

Nick turned his head a little and looked at Judt.

"What felt pretty good?"

"Telling me about your dad."

Nick thought for a moment before shrugging.

"... No, not really."

Judy turned to face him.

"Well, either way, I'm here for you, okay? Now come one, let's get some shuteye. Tomorrow's gonna be a busy day!" She bounded to her pillow and drew the covers over herself, falling asleep within seconds.

Nick sat there and watched her for a bit. It'd been a few momths since he became her partner and he was still getting used to how genuine she was. He had to admit, after all those years living as a lowly crook, it felt good to have someone he could depend on. A partner. A friend.

Nick yawned and glanced outside the window. His gaze was greeted by a pair of sharp emerald eyes.

They stared at each other for a moment, mimicking each other's head bobs and tilts. Those eyes were familiar...

Before he could react, the eyes ran off. He immediately leapt out of bed and sprinted out of the house, his eyes burning with determination. Judy was unperturbed by the commption and merely turned to her other side, still soundly asleep.

As he chased the figure, he wondered if it was a wise idea. If this was a trap, he'd probably regret his next decision.

With one final burst of energy, Nick leapt forwards and tackled the mysterious stranger. The two of them tumbled a short distance before coming to a halt in a clearing lit only by the stars.

Nick groaned and sat up, taking a good look at his quarry. It was a grizzled fox, probably pushing 60, who was dressed in pure black. Lean and muscled, Nick was surprised he'd been able to keep up with him, given his toned physique.

The other fox sat up as well, rubbing his head.

"Well, I'm getting old, aren't I, kiddo?"

Nick's jaw dropped when he heard that voice. The ring wrapped around his tail was the final piece of confirmation for him.

"Dad?!"

"Hey there, Nick. Long time no see. So, law enforcement huh? Can't say I've seen a fox try that out. Can't be going too well for you, hmm?"

Nick got up and kept his distance from his father. He looked so different. That once lustrous, well-groomed coat was grizzled and dishevelled. He had a terrible scar on his cheek that went all the way down his neck. Matching the scar, his left eye was perpetually half-closed as if it'd been paralysed.

Mirroring Nick, Robin got up and dusted himself off.

"So, why?"

Robin glanced at Nick who was standing there, glaring at him.

"Why what?"

"Why'd you run away?"

"Run away? I was protecting you and your mother!"

"Yeah, by being a thief! I looked up to you!"

"Well, how do you think I'm feeling right now? My only son, a police officer? Ha, a fox in the ZPD? Us foxes were never meant to be goody-two-shoes and you know it."

"Well, maybe us foxes were never meant to be the bad guys either! Ever thought about that? Have you even tried to be anything else to the other species? I still remember what you did to rhe wildebeast, dad. Turns out, he was a very nice fellow."

"Yeah, who'd be mean to a cop? Listen, Nick, I'm wasting precious time arguing with you right so if you'd be so kind and let me be on my way..."

Nick stood there, fuming mad. His eyes, however, betrayed a deep sadness that made Robin flinch slightly.

"You've changed, dad..."

"Yeah, twenty years being cooped up in a jail cell tends to do that to you. Still, it's better than spending my days being ordered around by the big guys..."

Nick watched as Robin ran off, too mentally drained to try to follow him.

"Nick?"

He turned and saw Judy standing there.

"What? Are you gonna ask why I let him go?"

"I wasn't..."

"Whatever, come on, let's get back."

Nick walked back towards the house, staring at the ground the whole way back as Judy followed beside him.

-------

Morning couldn't come soon enough and, much to Judy's relief, Nick seemed much better after an admittedly sleep-deprived night. He cracked a few dry jokes about their organic breakfast before riding shotgun in the police cruiser, nibbling on a strawberry.

"So, any leads today, Carrots?"

"You mean the one you let go last night?"

She flinched and held her tongue when she said that, but Nick already heard. He tried to smile and come up with a retort, but nothing came out and the smile was half-baked.

"I'm sorry, Nick." Judy muttered.

"Nah, it's fine. I should've restrained him or something."

The ride was mostly silent after that, but a timely quip by Nick lightened the mood considerably as they passed by a rather interestingly shaped tree.

"Anyway, there's the first shop."

It was a florist. The shopfront was quaint and exotice, befitting the wide assortment of colourful plants, nost of which weren't from Burrowtown.

"Good morning ma'am! Officer Judy Hopps here, we'd like to inquire about the theft thay happened two days ago."

The florist looked up and saw the pair and smiled.

"Oh, I don't think there's a need for that anymore. You see, last night, all the money was returned to our safe. Not a single dollar short! Terribly sorry for making you come all the way out here sweetie."

Back in the cruiser, feeling perplexed, the duo decided to visit several more homes that had been victims to Robin. All of them had their money returned last night.

"This doesn't make any sense..." Judy scratched her head with the back of her carrot pen.

"... No, I think it makes perfect sense." Nick chuckled, "My mom told me that he was a good fox, but naturally I didn't believe her. How could I? But, seeing what he did today... Carrots, I think he might be using these guys as practice."

Judy tilted her head, perplexed, "Practice?"

Nick shrugged.

"Hey, it's just a hunch. He's clearly not doing it for the money, is he? Why would someone go through all that trouble just to put the money back?"

Judy nodded.

"Okay, sounds good. Still, we have to arrest him. He's still a convict, after all. Orders are orders."

Nick frowned at the term, but didn't say much.

Just then, there was a loud crash as a black hooded fox with a ring around his tail leapt out of a window and landed smoothly onto the road. He caught one glimpse of the police cruiser and took off.

"Hey! Stop right there!"

Judy was surprised to hear Nick's assertives shout as he flipped the sirens on. They sped off after him in hot pursuit. However, no matter how fast they went, they could never seem to catch up.

"How in the world is he outrunning us?" Judy shouted over the sirens as they took another sharp corner.

"I don't know!" Nick clung on for his dear life, keeping his eyes trained on his father.

Then, he saluted them cheekily before hopping over a wall, leaving the cruiser stranded.

Nick jumped out of the cruiser and leapt over the wall with Judy close behind. The alleyways of Burrowtown were hardly conducive for travel, with various items always strewn across the narrow streets.

Robin was hopping from wall to wall, clinging and flipping from ledge to ledge, swiftly making his way past the obstacles. Nick and Judy didn't fare so well.

As they rounded the corner that exited the alleyways, Judy prepared her pepper spray. She knew this was a dead end, totally enclosed on three sides by tall apartments with no easy ledges to climb.

"Sir, you're under..." Judy lowered the spray. Nobody was there.

"Hs's pretty fast for an old geezer, huh." Nick noted, doubled over panting.

Judy frowned and scanned the walls. No claw marks or pawprints, nothing that would provide a plausible explanation for his sudden disappearance.

Just then, someone tapped their shoulders.

They spun to see Robin, masked and hooded, his green eyes glinting in the morning sun.

"You see, cops," He glared at Nick who returned the look, "We foxes are slippery. Sometimes, we have ways to get out even when it seems impossible. Observe."

Before they could react, Robin had grabbed hold of a loose clothesline and leapt backwards before jumping, sending him sailing to the roof behind them, away from the dead end. He made a little bow and waved goodbye before walking off, sack in hand, but not before disparaging the already furious Nick.

"I expected better of you, kid. Lay off the doughnuts, alright?"

With that, he was gone. Nick looked defeated and tired after the chase, but Judy's gentle touch made him smile a little as she lead him back to look for evidence.

Several minutes later...

"Hey, look what I found!"

Judy held up a beautifully carved platinum ring with the initials "RPW" carved in splendid cursive. It was lost amidst some gardening tools, sitting in a trowel.

Back on the cruiser, they dropped the ring into a ziploc bag and stashed it away for delivery back to Zootopia.

They sat in silence for a moment, letting the cool air wash over them.

"Nick, don't listen to what he says. You're a great cop, and there's nothing wrong with it. You were top of the class!"

"Yeah, I know. It's just that I haven't seen him since I was a kid. He's changed so much." Nick replied weakly, slimped in the seat again.

Judy placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and smiled warmly. Nick noticed and smiled back.

"You remind me of my mom a little, Carrots. She did the same thing when... Wait."

He brought up the police database on the cruiser's dashboard. A quick search later and her name popped up. Nick scrambled into the driver's seat much to Judy's annoyance.

"I'll drive this time."

"What? You haven't driven this thing before!"

'Well, better late than never, huh?"

A couple of awkward seconds later and they were in each others' seats.

"Okay, Nick, just make sure you don't-"

There was a loud thump and the cruiser took off in a massive cloud of smoke.

"-FLOOR IT!" Judy screamed as the car sped off towards Zootopia, barely staying on the road.