Nothing to fear

Chapter 21

The day had come with a pink sunrise heralding beautiful weather and comfortable temperatures accompanied by a breeze that was just strong enough to riffle fur and stir the scent of the flowers that sat in vases around the wedding venue. As mammals dressed in suits and dresses mingled with those in ZPD dress blue uniforms Nick scanned those gathered, a bemused expression on his vulpine face. If someone had told the fox just over a year ago that he would be getting married he'd have laughed at them. If they'd said that he would not only be married but that the ceremony would be taking place atop the ZPD headquarters building in Precinct One he'd have run away from such a dangerously unstable individual.

That, however, was precisely where he was and what was happening.

Swallowing down the flutter of his nervous stomach, Nicholas Piberius Wilde prayed that he wouldn't mess today up, wanting the moments that would come to be as perfect as possible for his beloved bunny. Granted, he and Judy were already married by a Justice of the Peace, but this was so much...more. Friends and colleagues, family members, friends that were as close as kin would all be witnessing their formal declaration to each other in a formal gathering. And ready to show the rest of the city were reporters, some with small recorders describing the event, several with digital cameras, and a couple with video recorders. That alone was enough to give the fox a terrible case of nerves.

Past the brim of his uniform hat, Nick looked up into the rich blue sky with puffy cotton clouds and hoped that his parents, wherever they might be, were happy. It had taken a while, and most of it had been with his wife's help, but he'd forgiven his father for leaving him at such a young age. And he forgave his mother, surprised that there had been a little kernel of resentment deep in his heart.

In the end, though, all of the things that had happened in his life, the good, the bad, the joy and failures, had blended together to bring him to this moment.

He just hoped all of the hard work paid off and that he didn't do something incredibly stupid.

"Nervous?" a deep voice asked from behind the fox, causing him to jump in a visible start.

"Yup!" Nick yelped, his eyes a little wide and wild looking as he turned to find Chief Bogo looming over him.

"Wilde," the cape buffalo began before putting his hoofed fingers on the fox's shoulder, "Nick...you'll do fine. This?" he said and gestured to the crowd, "This is nothing. Unlike in the morning when you put on that uniform and come in for briefing before hitting the streets, all of these mammals want to see you and Hopps succeed. They're rooting for you. I don't know if you've noticed, but you and your wife have given a lot of others hope where it wasn't before." He smiled, perhaps the warmest expression he'd ever had on his face as far as the officers under his command were concerned. "You've given me hope."

Nick sighed, finding the words both comforting and calming. "I...I just wonder if my parents would be proud...if they'd be okay with this. There's still a long way to go between prey and preds. I never really got to know them well enough to know where they were on this."

"I think they'd be proud of you, Wilde," Bogo said with a nod. "I know I am, son."

Before Nick could react to the compliment, the Chief's words striking deep and hard enough to cause a surge of pride and pain, the musicians began the music that he and Judy had agreed upon. While the traditional wedding march was just that...traditional, they'd agreed on Bullthoven's Five Secrets. It was played by officers that also enjoyed music, and the mix of cello, violin, synthesizer, electric guitar and bagpipes was strangely beautiful. Unorthodox, but beautiful nonetheless.

To Nick it seemed that it was a written law somewhere that all police departments had to have at least one decent bagpiper.

As the band filled the immediate area with song the guests took the seats that were arranged on the grassy roof of the precinct building. Nick had thought it was just part of the ecological reclamation system that was part of almost every building in Zootopia, he didn't know that the roof was also a small park that was there for the officers of the ZPD to use for blowing off steam or just the simple need for a moment's relaxation. There was even a track and exercise stations built out of wood for cops that preferred being outside to the gym that was part of the building's layout. For Nick and Judy it was the perfect place for a small public ceremony to celebrate their union.