The small tiger cub gazed up at Eli with his big brown eyes. Eli said nothing, very nervous at the attention he was receiving from this small child. Without warning, the cub reached up and set something down on the table next to Eli's plate.

"Get well soon mistew," the cub said before sticking a thumb in his mouth. Eli, confused, looked down at what the cub had set on the table.

It was a small purple plush gorilla. It was small enough that it could easily sit in the palm of his hand.

"Th-th-thanks little guy," Eli stammered, still very nervous. "Are you sure you still don't want him though?"

The cub smiled around his thumb, and shook his head while giggling. "Nowp! Mr. Purples was givewn tow me when I was weally siwk in the howspitawl... but I'm awl bettew now." The cub giggled at Eli some more before running off to a group of small children near a colorful ball pit. Eli looked at "Mr. Purples", who had a big goofy grin stitched onto his face. The doll looked really well loved, with a few areas where it had been stitched back together from some minor tears.

"Awwwwww! That was so cute!" Judy cooed after the exchange, a wide grin on her face. Nick had his sly smile as usual.

"That was... not what I was expecting to happen," Eli said while picking the toy up, smiling a little himself.

"Yeah I know, because he totally looked like he was going to rip off your bandages, takes some pictures, and then sell them to the highest bidding news station," Nick said in mock seriousness, receiving a punch in the arm from Judy.

"Ow! Okay okay, geeze! Seriously carrots, you should look into some anger management counseling," he said while rubbing his arm.

"Are you alright Eli? Would you like to go back to the hospital now?" she asked Eli, her ears drooping a little.

"I'm fine Judy... really..." Eli said, deep in thought as he held the tiny gorilla.

"Something on your mind?" Nick asked, being serious.

Eli took a while before he answered.

"... Yeah... I was just thinking about when I was a little kid like that..." Eli trailed off, still looking at the toy. Nick and Judy shared a look. Judy silently pointed to Nick, and then to Eli; to which Nick responded by pointing to Judy. She responded to that by quickly kicking him under the table, and emphatically pointing to Eli, who was completely unaware of this silent exchange. Rubbing his sore shin, the fox nodded in defeat, and turned to Eli.

"You know... if you wanted to talk about anything... we're here for you..."

Judy nodded at this. "Both of us," she said.

Eli looked up, and smiled a little more. "Thanks... I..." Eli looked up, and trailed off again. Judy smiled at him and took his hand in her paws.

"I know that this isn't going to be easy to talk about, and that it may bring up some pretty painful memories... but I promise you, you are safe here. And Nick and I aren't going anywhere, okay sweetie?" Judy asked, her eyes full of sincerity and kindness. That look put a serious crack in the shell Eli kept around his heart.

He looked down, and a small tear fell from his eye, to be absorbed by the bandages on his face.

"When I was little... really little... I was in a foster home... well... I was in a lot of foster homes actually... that and orphanages. Anyway, I was once in a really bad foster home when I was like... four... I think."

Judy's ears drooped while hearing this, but she still gently held his hand as he started to speak of something he had tried desperately not to think about for so many years.

"You're doing great sweetie," she said. Nick was also listening, his sly and carefree attitude visibly subsiding. He was really starting to feel for the boy.

"Anyway, it was a really bad foster home. They were a couple who looked after a lot of kids... the man was a drunk... and he hit us... even when we were good. His wife... she just didn't care... they just wanted the stipend checks..."

Nick's ears were flat on the top of his head. He looked more than a little agitated at hearing this. Judy kept holding Eli's hand and gently reassuring him, but she too was agitated by what she was hearing.

"Anyway... one day... the man... he got really drunk... REALLY drunk... and he started hitting us... hard... one little girl... I found out later that because of how she was hit, she ended up having a permanent limp. I got off lucky... I had been used to it... but this was a lot different... he had a crazy look in his eyes... then he went after his wife... and... well, the cops came shortly after and arrested him. A neighbor woman had heard the violence and called them... and when she saw us, she broke down crying... she actually took me in after that... it was really nice staying with her..."

Judy had a small smile thinking that this terrible story had a silver lining.

"I actually lived with her for a few weeks... she treated me really nicely... she bought me a bunch of new clothes... made me up a room... made me eat healthy meals... played with me... read to me... I think... she even loved me... her name was Mary..."

Nick could hear in the tone of Eli's voice that this story did not have a happy ending, and from the way Judy's smile started to disappear, she had detected the same thing.

"When she applied to adopt me... something about how she was single... I couldn't stay with her... I was sent to another foster home... I had what felt like an actual home for the first time in my life... and because of some stupid rule... I went to another foster home... far away from her... and then another... and another... and then to the orphanages..." Eli looked down, his misty eyes growing hot with tears. He blinked them away as usual, and felt Judy hug him tightly.

"Oh Eli..." Judy said, tears in her eyes.

That's not going to happen here! she resolutely thought to herself. Whatever happens, Eli is going to have a REAL home!

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"It's okay... I'm over it... it's just that this little gorilla looks a lot like the one I lost when I was taken away from Mary...would it be alright if I... kept it?" he asked after Judy let him go.

"Of course buddy," Nick said, deciding to act positive in front of Eli.

Poor kid... he thought while absentmindedly munching on another slice of his pizza.

Eli looked at his little gorilla for another few moments.

"I know that it's a little childish to keep a stuffed animal though..." he said, sounding a little insecure.

"So what! If it reminds you of a time when you were happy, or you think it gives you closure of some kind, then a stuffed animal is no big deal!" Judy said seriously.

"Yeah, I've seen her stuffed animal collection, and judging by how massive it is, she's definitely an expert." Nick chimed in. Judy shot him a look that shut him up, but his statement had already done its job; Eli was smiling while holding back a laugh. When Judy saw this, she looked to Nick, who winked at her. She started to giggle, which in turn made Eli start to laugh, followed by Judy who was laughing in earnest, and even Nick joined in. They laughed for a while, until they all finally started to calm down.

Judy looked to Eli, who was still giggling a little.

"So, was this a nice outing?" she asked, her ears now back to pointing straight up.

"Yes... thank you both for being nice to me...." Eli said, feeling much better. He still felt a little splinter of worry in the back of his mind, but he ignored it for now.

"Well get used to it Eli! I said that things are going to be different, and I meant it. I'm going to make sure that whatever happens to you, you will find a safe and stable home! That's a promise!" she said while holding out a paw, a pinky extended. Eli smiled, and slowly wrapped his own pinky around hers. Judy smiled wider and squeezed her pinky around his.

"I'd take that kind of promise from her serious kid, she is the very first rabbit to become an officer after all," Nick said as he signaled to a waiter.

"Really?" Eli asked after he and her let each others' pinkies go.

"Yup!" she said happily, a note of pride in her voice.

A grizzly waiter came over, and Nick asked him for some to-go boxes for their unfinished slices. As he quickly went to go get the to-go boxes, a cheetah from a nearby table looked up.

"Are you the Officer Judy Hopps?" he asked while leaning over, looking excited.

"Ummm... yes?" she answered.

"Oh wow! You're the cop who busted the whole Night Howler case wide open! Not to mention you found that weird hairless creature! Wow!" he said a little loudly, causing other animals in the restaurant looked over curiously.

"Did he say Hopps? Hey! That is her!" other animals started to get closer, trying to get a better look.

"And that's Officer Wilde! Hey, who's that with them? Is it the creature? Let's get a picture!" A few flashes took place as the waiter brought over the to go boxes, which Nick quickly filled with their food while Judy jumped behind Eli and started to push him through the throngs of animals. A few more flashes went off before they got Eli and his chair loaded in the car. Judy was just getting behind the wheel, turning the ignition, when she spotted several news vans rounding the corner.

"Yeah... I think that it's time we get back to the hospital right about now..." Nick said as he buckled up, knowing what Judy was about to do. He looked behind him at Eli.

"I would put that seatbelt on if I were you." Eli quickly obliged, right before Judy peeled out. The vans were following them as they zigged and zagged through traffic. Judy quickly started turning corner after corner, at a rate of speed which had Nick and Eli both being pushed back into their seats. Soon they were pulling up to the back entrance of the hospital. The drive back, even with their detour, actually took less time than the drive to the pizza place did.

"Alright! Well, that was fun and all, but we really need to get you back to bed Eli, okay?" she asked while looking in the back seat. Eli didn't respond, still clinging to the back seat and his purple gorilla toy, his eyes wide in terror.

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad, right Nick... Nick?" she turned to her fox partner, but he had the exact same expression as Eli, also clinging to his seat, his aviators askew. Judy rolled her eyes as she got out.

"Come on you two!" she called as she popped the trunk to get the wheelchair out.

A few moments later...

Judy was pushing Eli through the halls of the hospital, while he was still holding his plush toy as well as his leftover pizza. He and Nick had both calmed down considerably after getting out. As they were heading towards Eli's room, he thought about what had been said. Although he had been feeling great at the time, now he felt a wave of conflicting emotion. He felt hope that maybe things really would be different, but he also felt skeptical. He was still somewhat scared about this new world, and was still dreading about the idea of going into this new world's system.

They got to his room, and helped him remove the bandages. Once that was done, they gave him some privacy to change back into the hospital scrubs that he had asked for instead of the gown. Nick and Judy came back in once he was back under the covers. Nick went to put Eli's leftover pizza in the small mini-fridge in the corner of the room, while Judy sat down in a chair right next to his bed. She handed him the plush toy, which he took with a blush, making Judy giggle.

"I'm glad you got to have a good time sweetie. We'll definitely be doing something like this again, only when that happens, you won't have to hide your face or your wonderful smile," she said. He blushed at that.

Judy smiled before leaning over and kissing Eli on his forehead. Eli looked surprised at that, and blushed some more, making Judy smile warmly at him before hugging him again. Just as she was about to let him go... Eli hugged her back.

Judy's ears perked in surprise at that, but she just smiled and said nothing.

"Uhh... sorry to break this moment up, but I just got a text from Clawhauser..." Nick said, making Judy and Eli end their hug.

"Who's Clawhauser?" Eli asked them.

"He's another officer, and a friend. I'll introduce you to him someday," Judy said before turning to look at Nick.

"He says that the Chief got wind of our little... excursion, and wants to see us... immediately."

"... Oh boy..." Judy said before turning back to Eli. "We've got to go tonight, but we'll be back tomorrow." she said, giving him yet another hug.

"Are you guys in trouble... because of me?" he asked, a little nervously.

Judy looked surprised at that. "Absolutely not! The Chief is just... a little tightly wound," Judy said, taking a moment to find the right words.

"That's not how I would've put it but okay," Nick said, earning a look from Judy.

"Okay..." Eli said, not sounding convinced.

Judy squeezed his hand in her paws, and Nick once more put a companionable paw on his shoulder.

"Like carrots said, we'll see ya tomorrow kiddo," Nick said, ruffling Eli's hair before exiting the room. Judy sighed, but smiled as she looked up at him, and took a moment to fix his hair.

"That's better... now be sure to get some rest Eli, and I will see you later."

"... Okay Judy... thanks again... and tell Nick I said thanks again too... please..."

Judy smiled as Eli laid back, suddenly feeling exhausted from today, and from having many sleepless nights prior to stumbling into this world finally catching up with him. He started to snore gently as she shut the door, the little plush gorilla still in his arms.

Back at the station...

"I give you one simple assignment, and what happens?" Chief Bogo asked menacingly down at the two officers.

"You decide to give us a raise?" Nick asked while taking a sip of water from his paper cup.

"Wilde..." the Chief growled before continuing.

"I get calls from various news agencies, asking if there is some sort of protocol where ZPD officers are supposed to take newly discovered alien species to get pizza!"

"Chief, I can explain!" Judy said.

"Well then, do so!" Bogo looked at her, his face showing furious bemusement.

"Wow, I never expected you to get that far," Nick said to Judy, earning a threatening snort from the Chief.

"The boy, and he is just a boy, who's had a very bad life so far, was sitting up in a hospital bed, scared out of his mind that he might be treated like some sort of freak to be studied and dissected at worst, and at best just be shipped off to some terrible foster home or orphanage... he needed to see that this world isn't as bleak as the one he came from."

The Chief continued to stare at the rabbit, but Judy, to her credit, stared back, resolute.

"I suppose that at the very least, you did manage to avoid getting yourselves and the... boy... plastered all over the evening news... none of the amateur pictures that have surfaced were any good, which certainly helps," he said, his shoulders relaxing. Judy and Nick both smiled at that.

"However!" he snapped back at the two. "Under, absolutely no circumstances is he to leave that hospital again until the doctors have all released their findings! Am I understood?!" the Chief shouted.

The two officers nodded.

"Good! Now, get out!" he said, sitting heavily in his chair, starting in on some paperwork. Nick and Judy headed out into the hall, each breathing a sigh of relief. Before they could say anything, Judy saw Clawhauser waving them over excitedly.

"Hey guys! So... what's he like?" he asked, completely ignoring the shouting everyone here and several floors up had heard.

"Who? The Chief? A regular ray of sunshine, like always," Nick said sarcastically before finishing off his water, and tossing his paper cup into a recycle bin next to Clawhauser's desk.

"No! The cre-uh... the kid?" he asked excitedly, even after that almost slip up.

Judy smiled, Clawhauser always tried to be polite.

"He's a very sweet and caring boy... who hasn't had a very fair life..." she said, her ears drooping a little. Clawhauser's ears fell flat to his head as he heard that.

"Really? Oh wow..." he didn't know what to say to that.

"But, we're going to change that!" she said, proudly.