paper get her excited... much. Still, things were definitely looking up. It's better than a dream, she thought to herself.

Nick's fortune was less direct: Your loyalties are clear when it comes to friends. Suddenly the mild, sweet flavor of fortune cookie turned flat and devoid of savor in his mouth. Were his loyalties so clear? He had left Judy treading water on her case – even if she seemed more than okay with his reason – and now here he was lying to Taelia. What kind of loyalty was that?

For a moment, he actually entertained the thought of telling Taelia the truth. Not the whole truth, maybe, but that he had once let the pressure drive him to, as she put it, 'settle' for being what the world expected a fox to be.

Then he shrugged it off. Nah, he thought. It's over now anyway, and what she doesn't know won't hurt me.

So there you have it. Not the kind of mess you thought Nick was getting himself into? (shrug) Well surprise, surprise. What's he going to do now that his big mouth has backed him into a corner? What's going to happen if Taelia finds out the truth?

By the way, this chapter is another Easter Egg Hunt! (actually I use Easter Eggs just about all the time, but this one's official). Here are the clues:

Taelia's closet

Taelia's assessment of Nick as they walked to practice (there are two here)

A remark from the inner extrovert

Xavier and Isabelle's mailbox (you'll want to know your American history for this one)

The bands hinted at in this chapter

Nick's fortune cookie

Taelia, just before Nick's fortune cookie

On advice from a friend, I've decided to go ahead and upload my Christmas fic, Christmas in Bunnyburrow, before I finish this story (no chance on finishing this by December). It will be a four-part fic, mostly Family/Friendship/Comedy in nature, and not necessarily contiguous with this story. I also intend to post a Christmas chapter of my anthro-verse Balto story, What's Love Anyway? Stay tuned!

Incidentally, I've been rounding up books on Zootopia to get some ideas and inspiration for this fic; hopefully the later chapters will show improvement accordingly.

Musical credits to follow (after I see how many of them people nail on their own)

As always, please review, fave, and follow!