Chapter Text
“Yeah that’s right! Bro Bro going solo! Yolo….” John Dory glared at his younger brothers. “Goodbye Forever!!”
….
That was probably the dumbest thing he has ever done on impulse.
2 months in the wild, alone and starving, John Dory wondered if he actually made the right decision leaving home. It had always been his dream to get away from all his overwhelming responsibilities, the pressure to become the best of the best, the stress from countless sleepless nights worrying about the band’s future and most of all, to run away. Far far away from the cage these sick and greedy monsters trap them in. The opportunity to attain all those things presented itself after their abomination of a performance. If he went away now, he wouldn’t have to deal with maintaining BroZone’s reputation, meaning no more sleepless nights, and no more pressure. Though whether he decided to quit or not, John Dory knew that their career was probably over due to just how badly their last show went, but aside from that, there was freedom. The very thing he dreamed of having for so long, now so close to achieving. So John did it.
After a while however, he didn’t know if this was the type of freedom he really longed to have. The Bergens wanted to eat them sure, but at least the weren’t as viscous as the animals living in the Neverglades. 6 months in the wild, John Dory was no longer starving because by that point, he was forced to learn the most efficient way to collect food, otherwise he’d grow weak, hungry, and even more susceptible to predators. Using his proudly self taught skills, John Dory also managed to find Rhonda. She was scary at first, but after seeing the lonely look in her eyes, John could tell that she was also alone, probably separated from her family. So he tried feeding her, then naming her, and they’ve been together ever since.
A whole year in the wild, and John Dory climbed all the way to the the very top of the mountains with Rhonda. The terrain was steep, the snow was easy to slip on, and most of all, John was freezing. What did he expect travelling to places this high up an altitude with only his BroZone vest and shorts? Caught up in the heat of the moment, JD forgot to pack or even change his clothes before leaving, so now he’s stuck with the possibility of freezing to death in these mountains. But at least the view was beautiful, way more stunning than he ever imagined, so maybe it was worth going here all along. John Dory immediately regretted that thought as a massive snowstorm came the following day leaving his limbs feeling numb. Now not even freezing to death was an exaggeration. Rhonda seemed to be immune to the cold to his relief, so he only has himself to worry about.
At first he thought of just leaving the mountains all together then maybe try coming back when the weather was slightly more favorable. But that was too dangerous, the winds were strong, the path was extremely hard to travel downward and Rhonda might not be able to make it through without tumbling down the mountain considering the weather. It was way too dangerous. Having no choice John Dory did his best to keep warm as he waited for the storm to pass by. He did not have materials to start a fire, and even if he did, it would probably be a bad idea to start one inside Rhonda. So with a thin sheet of blanket and a will to live, JD wrapped himself up and hoped it would be enough to get through the storm.
John Dory didn’t know how much time passed, he didn’t even know when he started drifting away from consciousness, but man did his limbs feel numb like hell as soon as he woke up to the frantic knocking just outside Rhonda’s door. Fearfully, John Dory got up. “W-Who’s t-t-there” his teeth chattered as he spoke. John Dory was only a few inches away from the door, staring wearily into the round window. “AAAAHHH!!” he screamed when the snow blocking the glass was wiped off from the outside, revealing another set of eyes staring back at him. “W-W-Who are you!??” John Dory was still shivering from the cold.
“Huh? You’re not from here are you?” The troll from the window chuckled, but stopped as he saw the state JD was in. “Oh you poor thing, I can help you? There’s a small village not too far from here”
Quickly, John Dory learned that his name was Hickory, and that he was a very….. different kind of troll, but very kind. If not for him, John Dory was sure he would’ve actually died to the cold seeing as the snowstorm went on for 4 more days. Hickory got him a new set of much warmer clothes, and also invited him inside his house. Rhonda seemed content outside, so John let himself get comfortable beside the fireplace in the house. JD also tried to pay him for giving him clothes and letting him stay, but Hickory just laughed it off and said it was fine and that he didn’t need to when he saw him pull out pop troll currency. “Okay well, Thanks, you know? For all of this.”
“It’s my pleasure” Hickory replied as he threw more firewood into the flames.
“So, don’t you feel cold here?” John Dory couldn’t help but ask him. “If you don’t mind me asking?”
Not being able to go outside due to the storm, John Dory spent most of his time with Hickory. In those 4 days, Hickory told him all about the different genres and sub genres of trolls. He showed him where they live and what they looked like through an old map, and to John it was all mind blowing. He had to go to those places soon. During that time, John Dory also got to hear some yodeling from Hickory. John may not be a yodeler, or if that’s what you really call Hickory’s genre, but Hickory sounded awesome, he’s never heard anything more bizarre yet beautiful. And surprisingly Hickory was also curious about his own music, so he sang a few BroZone hits for him. It’s been more than a year since he last sang for anyone excluding Rhonda and thought he went a bit rusty, but he was glad and a bit proud that Hickory had the same look of awe on his face. Hickory begged for him to sing more, and who was he to say no?
The two of them grew more and more comfortable with each other as the days passed, and soon as the storm lifted, Hickory offered to show him around the place. First they went to a very unstable looking cave of ice, but Hickory assured him it was fine, and damn was it was breathtaking. The ice inside the cave were as clear as mirrors, and the the orange light emitting from the flames of their torch reflected everywhere. It felt like something out of this world, though the sharp icicles made him a bit paranoid. They walked around for a few minutes, and Hickory advised him not to talk much or else the vibrations could cause a problem. John Dory wasn’t sure if he was being truthful or if he was just saying that to mess with him, nevertheless he kept his mouth shut. Once they were out of the cave, it was a cliff side. A very scary yet extremely mesmerizing cliff side. JD looked down the edge, and from there he was sure he could see the very base of the mountain if it weren’t for the clouds. They sat there for hours just taking everything in, John looked at Hickory and saw how content his face was.
“You know, we never really have too much visitors around here” Hickory randomly blurted out.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. You’re a fun guy John Dory, thank you for some reason deciding to explore here. It gets a little boring sometimes”
JD chuckled, “Hey I know I said I’ll be leaving tomorrow, but it doesn’t mean I can’t come back you know?” he smiled as Hickory’s eyes widened with hope. “This place is beautiful” he added
“Yeah but compared to other places this place really isn’t anything too special” Hickory smiled too. but at least it’s better than living in a giant cage.
“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t even be here to see this right now. I’m sure I can visit this place from time to time”
There was a moment of silence before Hickory sighed. “Thanks John, I appreciate it. Just don’t be too trusting of strangers you meet, not everyone wants to be friends like me you know?”
“Yeah yeah, I know”
“I’m serious. Some trolls pretend to be nice to strangers so that they can catch them off guard and then sell their organs or something” Hickory had a more serious expression on his face.
“Pfft, and how do I know you’re not one of them” John Dory joked, but his heart dropped when Hickory grinned widely instead of saying anything. “Hey now, what the hell man” he got ready to stand and run, but then Hickory busted out laughing.
“DO NOT SCARE ME LIKE THAT!”
Hickory was the bestest friend he’s had In a while, and so he kept his word and visited the mountains quite often after taking a look at some of the other tribes. Lonesome Flatts was quite a friendly place as long as you don’t provoke the trolls living there, it was also where he first tried drinking, they had a lot of alcohol, a strange but not too bad experience. The second time he went up the cold mountains was after spending almost a month on country troll territory, and this time, he came prepared with all the essentials he needed for surviving the harsh temperatures. But apparently what he was not prepared for is the troll pointing a gun at his face when he knocked on Hickory’s door.
Soon enough, he learned that the tiny troll’s name was Dickory. Hickory’s older brother who had been away on a BOUNTY HUNTING mission the first time he was here. Things were a bit messy after that because of how Dickory had never heard of John before, and John Dory never knowing that Hickory had a whole ass bounty hunter as a brother this whole time, but it worked out……… somehow. JD stayed with them for almost another 2 weeks with him and Hickory hanging out at almost all times. The cycle went on for about another year between John Dory exploring the other tribe’s territories, and coming back to the mountains to visit Hickory, and surprisingly Dickory too who had somewhat warmed up to him being Hickory’s friend.
At that point, John Dory started to develop feelings, very heavy feelings towards Hickory. They were really close friends yes, but he was no idiot. He knew the way his stomach twisted when Hickory would touch, or even smile at him wasn’t something you feel towards someone you consider as just a close friend. And oh the way Hickory would run up and hug him whenever he came to visit after travelling was enough to make his heart soar out of his chest. But the scary thing was that his feelings might have been a little too obvious for Dickory to be giving the two of them really sharp glares whenever he thought that they weren’t looking. Though he wasn’t saying anything, so JD just ignores him.
After a while, both Hickory and Dickory happily announced that the younger of the two brothers was now qualified to become an official bounty hunter. JD was a bit skeptical at first, but Hickory assured him that they mostly only took jobs involving bad people, and that he had no problem doing that. Though John wasn’t really concerned about their targets, but rather Hickory’s ability to capture bounties, he didn’t make any further comments. John offered to take both Hickory and DIckory rides whenever they needed and Hickory obliged. It was Hickory’s first time going to any other place other than the mountains, and Dickory was a bit peeved by the fact that JD and him spent most of the time sightseeing and goofing around rather than focusing on the mission. John Dory knew that, but he couldn’t help it, Hickory becomes way too adorable whenever he sees something new.
Damn can that face fool you though. After just a few more missions, Hickory and Dickory were able to make a name for themselves in the bounty hunting world, and John is beyond astonished but also extremely proud for Hickory and his spontaneous success.
Hickory yawned as he sat next to John facing the campfire. The two of them camped out for the night after Hickory just got done with a big solo mission and earned a lot of money from it. Without thinking twice, he bought drinks to celebrate a little before going back to the mountains. JD knew he shouldn’t have drank so much.
“Damn it Hickory I love you” He mumbled quite loudly without thinking, too drunk to even comprehend what just came out of his mouth. “D-Do you mean it?” Hickory asked in return, unsure if JD was serious or just drunk.
“I’m serious, Hickory, I love you-” As fast as he said that, a pair of lips touched his own causing him to get cut off.
Hickory didn’t even care if John meant it at that point, he couldn’t resist anymore. John Dory groaned as he cupped Hickory’s face wanting more, and they stayed like that for a while until Hickory pulled away. “I love you too John, so much, and for so long too” He laughed “But you seriously need to stop drinking now and go to bed already, we could talk more in the morning”
The morning after that night, they headed back to the mountains with Rhonda, and told Dickory about their newly formed relationship against John Dory’s will. John thought that he would probably get killed if he found out, and Hickory said he was silly, which he was right about. John Dory was silly for thinking that.
Dickory snorted, “Took you guys long enough.” was all he said leaving not only John but also Hickory shocked. “What? I could only take so much of the way you two look at each other, it’s disgusting, and if you didn’t say anything to each other soon then I would have.”
Their relationship continued for roughly 2 more years, and John Dory was possibly at the happiest point of his life, except that something was missing, he could feel it deeply in his heart, and he’s felt it for a while now. This happiness reminded John of the the time he was still with his brothers, before the band, before he became insufferable, and before he tore everything a part. Growing a bit older now, thinking back to his old self just about 5 years ago, he felt extremely disappointed, except this time it wasn’t about the perfect family harmony, but rather how he handled the situation.
He’s been having these feelings for a long time now, even before he and Hickory got together, but now that he’s in a really happy place in life, John couldn’t help to think if he really deserved all of this when he abandoned his brothers on impulse. John Dory had to make it right, he knew he had to even if his brothers all still hate him.
John’s talked about his brothers to Hickory before, and just like the saint he is, he listened to his stories. And now that John Dory wants to actually go back and fix things, he’s been nothing but supportive.
Unfortunately, Hickory and Dickory had a mission on the exact day John was going back to the troll tree, so they came to an agreement that they would all meet up in the mountain as soon as they got done with their own businesses. Dickory and Hickory hopped out of Rhonda as they said their goodbyes to each other, John gave Dickory a small hug, and Hickory gave John a big kiss.
“Good luck with your mission, I’ll see you guys soon” John Dory said as they parted their lips.
“And Good luck with your brothers, not that you really need it, I’m sure you’ll all come to an understanding” Hickory chuckled.
“Yeah, and if things go well enough I might even bring all of them, Including Grandma Rosiepuff up to the mountains with me” They deserved a life outside the cage.
“Great news to me, Can’t wait to meet them” Hickory smiled warmly “Love you John”
“Love you too Hickory”
Hickory and Dickory finished their hunt, way longer than they expected much to Hickory’s frustration, and walked back to the mountains after more than 3 weeks of being away. He knew that John and possibly his entire family might be up there right now, especially since they had Rhonda, and he felt bad that he had to make them wait for so long, but he was still really excited, and he could tell Dickory was as well.
But when they got there, there was nobody. No John, No brothers, No Grandma, No Rhonda, No nothing. They tried asking the neighbors if they’ve seen anyone, but to their fear and disappointment, still nothing.
Dark thoughts enveloped Hickory’s brain that night, he tried to keep positive, and even his cold, and usually stoic older brother provided him some comfort. Although nothing helped much knowing the fact that John used to say that they lived in a cage with giant monsters called bergens wanting to eat them……… Hickory knew he should’ve went with him.
Hickory held out hope that John would come back. He said it 4 years ago when they met that he’d come back and visit and John did, so Hickory tried not to doubt him now.
And so he waited…….. and kept on waiting
But this time, John Dory Never came back.