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"You know, you could have told me you were married to Angie when we met that second time. I wouldn't have had a problem with it! I don't!"
"That would have been too much for you at once! Poor timing! We were newlyweds, anyway." Doc shut the photo album and put it back up on the shelf. John Dory had only been in his kid's life for a year at this point, but he hadn't been invited into the house itself before. Angie and the kid were out tending to critters. Critter wrangler, a kind of job that absolutely made sense for someone like her. He'd never have expected her to settle down into a domestic, housewife sort of life.
"Well, you all looked great. No need to put the photos up on my account." He was trying hard not to be too comfortable here. He'd talked to Angie a handful of times, been allowed to stay on her property with Rhonda a few times, too. Even with all of that, John Dory wasn't going to put it past Angie to kick an ex out of her house. "That was an interesting outfit on the kiddo."
"Ja. Mäuschen threw a fit over the cute little dresses and skirts. Didn't think it was more than about the clothes."
John Dory half shrugged. "It's the same sort of thing that happened with one of my brothers."
That seemed to be one main reason for him being invited over. The kid was still young, younger than his brother was when he had everything figured out. But they understood they hated dresses and their girly name and being called a girl in any sense. John Dory was the one with experience with someone like that, and he was easier and cheaper to find then some child psychologist. But he wasn't an expert. The best he could do was try to imagine what his brother would have wanted as a kid.
An excited squeal sounded from outside. "Rhonda!" John Dory took that as his queue to get up and actually greet the kid. The kid was used to him being either inside of or nearby the armadillo bus. They probably weren't going to expect him in the house like this. John Dory stepped out on the porch. He saw his kid by Rhonda's face, the armadillo licking their face.
"Rhonda!" John Dory called out. The kid looked up and beamed when they saw him. "You're getting too big to greet people like that!"
Rhonda backed away as she was told. The kid almost instantly sprinted up to him. "Dad!"
"Woah! Careful!" John Dory bent down to catch them as they stumbled up the porch steps. But the kid quickly recovered and jumped at him. By now, the older troll was accustomed to a tackle hug being his kid's form of greeting. He laughed. "You're getting bigger! But I bet I could still pick you up!" He lifted the kid up under the arms and spun them around. The kid laughed.
"You're at the house!" The kid excitedly pointed out.
"I'm at the house!" John Dory confirmed as he put the kid back down.
"You're never at the house!"
"Well, I guess now is never!" John Dory paused for a moment. "You've got new overalls."
The kid bounced on their feet. They looked down at the overalls, a dark fabric with embroidered white flowers. "Yeah. Pa said the flowers are Elda... Elder..."
Doc poked his head out the door. "Edelweiss."
"Edelweiss," the kid repeated. "They're like daisies, but they grow on rocks in mountains."
"Sounds like an interesting flower."
The kid nodded with enthusiasm. They turned back to Angie. "Mama, can I show Dad the books I got?"
Angie held a crate under her arm, balancing it on her hip. It adds a bit of sass into her pose. "Have you tidied up in there yet?"
The kid stayed silent for a minute. "I'm gonna bring the books down!" And the kid ran around John Dory's and Doc's legs.
"Hey! Tidy up in there at least a bit!" Angie called up after them. Then she sighed. She turned her attention to John Dory. He flinched and went rigid.
"So... uh..."
"Here." Angie handed him the crate she was holding. He took it mostly on instinct and stepped to the side to let her walk past. She greeted Doc with a kiss on the cheek. "So, what'd you boys talk about?"
"Man stuff," John Dory immediately responded with.
"Ja, photographs and clothes. Man stuff," Doc responded with a smile.
"Hey, uh..." John Dory eyed the crate he was currently carrying. "What am I carrying right now?"
"Stuff for dinner."
He almost tripped on the doorway. "What... What kind of stuff?"
"I didn't slaughter any critters when the kiddo was with me! Give me some credit!" John Dory thought for a split second that he'd offended her, but she flashed him a coy smile. "They're not old enough to be around the slaughtering part. It's eggs and milk."
"Ah, okay." He carried the crate all the way to the kitchen. Having all three adults in there almost made it feel crowded. John Dory did not fit here. He was never sure exactly how to start conversations with Angie. The times he'd talked with her in the past year were just exchanging pleasantries and a few words about what was up with their kid. Doc was much better at guiding the conversation.
Doc had already started talking about one thing or another, asking John Dory for stuff from the crate and helping Angie get started on cooking. "The embroidery took a while, but Mutti taught me well."
"It looked like good work."
"Thank you!"
John Dory sat down at nearby table after the crate was emptied. There was a saying about too many cooks in the kitchen, and he was more accustomed to cooking with campfires anyway. He'd just wait here for the kid to come back from their room. They'd be too excited to have their dad over to leave him alone, so now wouldn't be a good time for the grown-ups to have the talk they needed to.
"It was a good thing, too. I only know how to sew on patches, and the kiddo really wanted something like Doc has."
"Yeah, the, uhh... leather hosin'?"
"Lederhosen," Doc kindly corrected.
"Right." John Dory nodded in thanks.
"Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad!" The kid called out, thumping through the house. They slid into the room, holding up some books in triumph. "I got the books!"
"Awesome!"
"I wanna show you the fish book!"
"How about you show the books in the living room, so you have more room?" Angie suggested.
John Dory could take the hint. He got up from the table. "Yep, sounds like a good idea to me."
The kid was excited about showing off what was in the books. They were nature and astronomy books, borrowed from the local library. John Dory was sitting on the couch, book in his hands, next to his kid. The kid would occasionally get up and stand while excitedly explaining stuff from the book. "And I'm getting good at reading, and I can almost read all on my own!"
"Woah! Really?"
"Yeah! Yeah, I—" The kid climbed back on the couch. They crawled under one of John Dory's arms. "Imma show you."
"Okay." John Dory let the kid get settled, with a good view of the book. It'd been a long time since he had young kids crawling in his lap to show off how good they were getting at reading. "Do you want to start from the beginning of the book?"
"Uh-uh. I'll staaaaaaaart..." The kid drew out the word as their finger scanned across the page. They stopped at one heading with something about the moon. "Here!"
They read slowly, carefully sounding out some of the words. John Dory didn't read out the word for them unless they looked up at them and asked. He wasn't exactly sure this was the kind of book meant for six-year-olds to practice their reading with. But hey, the kid was enjoying it. He was also gonna have to think of something better to call them than just "the Kid."
"So, you like learning about the moon?"
"Uh-huh. The moon is in my name, you know."
"Yeah, Moonshine." John Dory saw a perfect opportunity to turn the conversation. "I hear you don't like your first name anymore."
The kid is quiet for a moment. "I don't think I ever liked it..." They whispered. "But don't tell Mama. She came up with it."
"Hey, I don't think your mom would want to call you something you don't like to be called."
"I know! She's been calling me a lotta nicknames." The kid hummed and started swinging their legs. "But I don't think she's gonna come up with a new one." They sounded sad at that. That wouldn't do.
"I think she's waiting for you to tell us what name you wanna go by."
The kid stopped. They whipped their head up to stare at John Dory with big eyes. "I get to name myself?"
John Dory couldn't stop a single laugh from leaving him. "Well, yeah! That's what usually happens in a situation like this."
"Like what?"
"Like... well..." John Dory tried to remember how his brother first described it, all those years ago. And the way they described it to the younger bros. "You'd know best what kind of name fits you. So you get to come up with one."
"But I'm not good at coming up with names!" The kid threw their arms and slid down to the floor. John Dory lifted the book up and out of the way. He stared down at his kid ridiculously melting into the floor.
"What are you doing, you goofball?"
"I'm not good at names, Dad!" They rolled over away from the couch and kicked their legs up in the air. They swing their feet over their head, lying there folded up. "I'm thinking!"
"Well, you know, my brother had a hard time thinking of a new name, too."
The kid rolled over and popped back up on their feet. "How'd he pick a name?"
"Well, our mom picked out nature names for all of us, so that's where he started off."
"That's why you're named after a fish!"
"Yeah."
The kid hummed and patted their belly, then they hopped and ran off to the other room. "I'm getting a different book!" They shouted as an explanation. "The fish book!"
Angie poked her head out of the kitchen. "Haven't you made us read you that book a thousand times by now?"
"I'M GONNA NAME MYSELF AFTER A FISH!"
Angie gave John Dory a questioning look. John Dory just shrugged. Honestly, it was cute that the kid wanted to be named after a fish like their dad. It was really sweet, even if he didn't think there'd be a good fish name the kid could use. Mom had seriously lucked out with the John Dory fish thing. "I guess you already had a talk with them, then?" Angie asked.
Now that the kid had left the room, John Dory was back to trying not to be comfortable here. He'd moved further forward on the couch, at the edge of his seat. "Sort of? Mostly just had the chance to bring up names. I don't think they realized they could pick out a new one for themself."
"I thought it would've been a given."
John Dory shrugged. "Kids sometimes have weird logic."
"Hm."
The kid barreled back in and held their beloved fish book up triumphantly. "I GOT THE BOOK!!"
"Good. Now you can go wash your hands for dinner."
The kid lowered the book with a bit of a pout. They ran over to the couch to put the book down on a side table. "Dad, you'll have to wash your hands in the kitchen, because that's the sink with no steppy stool."
"Alrighty!" John Dory gave a salute and a smile before getting up.
He hadn't realized how long since he'd actually sat at a table and eaten a home-cooked meal. Probably not since before the band split. Even on the very rare occasions someone was kind enough to give him their home-cooked food, he'd never really been invited into anyone's home to eat. Or maybe he was, and he just didn't remember. Would Rhonda be okay outside while he ate? She didn't exactly fit in the house, so no way to have her come inside for dinner. And there wasn't a table outside, so no way to have dinner outside.
She'd be fine for one night, right?
"Do I get to camp out in Rhonda tonight?" The kid asked. Their mouth was still full of food, but they were covering it with their hands.
"Oi! Mäuschen, swallow some of that food before speaking!" Doc lightly scolded. "You'll choke like that."
"Mm." The kid kept chewing at their food for a few minutes.
"I'd rather wait until both you and your dad can fit in her comfortably." Angie gestured with her spoon before using it to scoop up some mashed potatoes. "With the rate she's growing, it won't be much longer."
That was true. The armadillo bus had hit a growth spurt. In maybe just a couple more months, John Dory would be able to sleep inside with a lot less worry about predators. If what he'd read was right. "You've got a bed inside, right?" John Dory spoke up, feeling like he should as the one parent in the room who hadn't commented yet.
The kid swallowed the food they were chewing and pouted. "It's not the same as camping..."
John Dory could think of a ton of different ways to make sleeping inside feel like camping. Camping wasn't exactly something you could do much back in the Troll Tree. However, he wasn't sure now would be a good time to suggest blanket forts or tents set up in the living room. Honestly, John Dory isn't sure how much longer he should be in this house. He was just here to talk about the whole gender thing and how to move forward with it.
"So, Mäuschen," Doc started, "you want to name yourself after a fish."
"Yeah..." The kid got a bit shyer. "Cuz Dad's named after a fish..."
"Clever!" Doc was as cheery as ever. The kid sat quietly again.
John Dory figured it was time to probe a bit. "What's on your mind, bud?"
"Mmmm..." The kid hummed. "I don't wanna wear dresses anymore."
"And you don't have to," Angie pointed out. "You didn't wear them very often, anyway. It's not too big of a change."
"But Pa likes the sew cute dresses. So someone has to wear them, right?"
"Ah!" Doc exclaimed in realization. "Oh, you don't worry about the kleider. No one needs to wear them!"
"But you worked so hard on them!"
"I'll wear them." John Dory took a sip of his drink to punctuate the statement. Angie just about choked on her food.
"No, Dad! You're too big!"
Ouch, kid.
"No, no! If I make them, I can wear them!"
"You're too big, too!" The kid pounded on the table. "You guys aren't little enough!"
"Don't pound on the table, please," Angie struggle to keep laughter in.
"I could sew them into something bigger." Doc rubbed his chin and hummed thoughtfully. "Ja, I could make something very lovely."
"And I'll wear it," John Dory declared. He spun his fork around in his hand. "I bet I could rock a dress."
"You have no occasion for a dress like that!"
"Gentlemen! Gentlemen." Angie held a hand up to both men. "You're both pretty. You can both wear dresses."
John Dory's face flushed only a little bit at being called pretty. "Fffffff heck yeah. I can't wait. I'm gonna look ravishing. "
"But I don't like radishes..." The kid pushed some of the greens around on their plate. "What about carrots? Or cucumbers?"
"As long as you can finish the veggies on your plate now," John Dory playfully nudged his kid and they giggled, "then I can be any vegetable there is for you."
"Okay!" The kid went to finish their veggies. "When are you and Pa gonna wear dresses?"
"I have to finish them first, Mäuschen!" Doc said with a bit of a laugh. So, now John Dory was actually gonna wear a dress. That was exciting.
Dinner wrapped up pretty uneventfully. John Dory offered to help with dishes, so he could feel useful here. Doc took the kid into the living room to help the kid with their book. That meant it was just Angie and John Dory alone in a room together. Super. Just super.
John Dory took on the actual washing of dishes, and left drying and putting them away to the person who actually lived here. "So," Angie spoke up after a minute of silence, "What are your thoughts? On the stuff with the kid?"
"I think..." He trailed off, trying to think of words to say that wouldn't sound like he just tossed them together. "I think letting them explore and figure out all the gender stuff is a good idea. I think we'll have to remind them that they're taking the lead on it, though. They were thinking you were supposed to come up with a new one for them."
"Pft! Me?" Angie scoffed. "God, I'm not sure I even remember the back-up names I'd come up with. But you have a good point about reminding them. As we were walking back to the house from the barn, I had to remind them you'd recognize them even if they weren't a girl."
"What?" John Dory dropped a dish back into the sink. "That's— they've never dressed girly, anyway! The only thing that looked different about them was the new overalls!"
"I know! You being at the house couldn't have been better timed." Angie sighed and stared into a spoon. "I just hope they at least come up with a placeholder name before school starts up again. I don't want to people calling them the old name when they go back the school."
"I'm sure it'll work out."
"Hm." Angie put the last of the dishes away. "So, where are you and Rhonda sleeping tonight?"
"I'll probably just take her out in the woods. Near the edge." It'd been best this past year to be very clear on where he planned on going. It made him easier to find, so Doc or some poor mail critter wasn't sent on some wild chase to find him. "Still trying to decide when to get back to the trail, but I don't want to impose."
"I've got an old barn you and Rhonda can use if you want to tuck the kid in tonight."
John Dory paused at that. "I..." Yes. Yes, he wanted to tuck his kid into sleep. He wanted to read them bedtime stories and kiss their forehead and sing old lullabies as they drifted off to sleep. "Yeah. Okay. As long as it's not a problem."
"I wasn't using it right now, anyway." Angie waved a hand dismissively. "This land has more barns than I know how to do with. Doc uses a smaller one for all of his sewing stuff. Just try not to knock it down."
John Dory laughed. "I promise to try my best." Honestly, sometimes, your best is all you can do, and that's gotta be enough.