Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Branch walked along the forest path to his bunker, his thoughts going a thousand miles a minute. There had been so much happening in the past few days. First, his oldest brother crashed his girlfriend’s (that felt so good to say finally) best friend's wedding. Then having to rescue Floyd from the clutches of two angsty teenagers, with his three other brothers whom he hasn't seen since they left him 20 years ago. It was..a lot to say the least. This is why Branch is finally ready to go back to his bunker, even though he has a few tagalongs.

After saving Floyd it was decided to go back to the Troll Village for him to rest and recover. And of course the others had to come as well. Floyd was beside him, Clay on the second youngest side to help support him. Bruce was on Branch’s other side, telling the story to the group about how he met Brandy. Poppy and Viva had decided to go see King Peppy, likely to show the king that his eldest daughter was indeed alive. Behind himself and most of his brothers was JD, for once being oddly quiet.

Come to think of it JD had been quiet ever since they left Mount Ragous. A glance back at his oldest brother showed JD was still trailing behind followed closely by Rhonda. The large armadillo bus was giving small croons at the teal-colored troll, JD patting her cheek with a smile. Branch frowned slightly but shook it off. He had more to worry about than his oldest brother being in a funk.

They soon arrived at his bunker, Branch gently pressing the button on the rock above his ‘Go Away’. Clay’s eyes widened, his tail wagging slightly as the mat slid away. “Whoah Bitty B…this is where you live..?” Branch smiled slightly, flushing at the praise. “Ah yeah…I built it myself when we first left the Troll Tree.” He led them all onto the elevator lift, JD being the last one as he rubbed Rhondas’ head before stepping onto the elevator. Branch took a deep breath before he pulled the lever to take them down to his bunker.

Clay immediately began to ramble about the safety mechanisms he spotted on the elevator, commenting on the integrity of the elevator shaft as they moved down to the main portion of his bunker. Bruce gave a nod of appreciation as he too looked around the elevator shaft as it weaved down to the main floor. “Nice pad Bitty B…and you’re sure you’re ok if we stay here for a few days?” Branch gave a smile and nodded. “Yeah..you..guys can stay longer if you want to.” Floyd gave a small smile and nodded, leaning heavily against Bruce as they came to a halt, finally on the base floor of his bunker.

Branch shifted and cleared his throat. “Uh..I’ll show you guys your rooms.” Floyd smiled and looked up at his baby brother. “That would be great Branch..thanks.” Bruce grinned and looked at Branch as well. “Lead the way Bitty B!” Branch grumbled softly as he led his older brothers through his bunker into one of his spare rooms. “My name isn’t Bitty B..” Branch then led Bruce and Floyd into the spare room. The room was filled with dim lights, the bed a larger side, enough to fit at least 4 other trolls. The bed was made with several pillows by the head of the bed, and a thick comforter laid over the sheets. Bruce helped lower Floyd onto the bed, carefully helping the pink-haired troll under the covers.

Floyd sighed and seemed to melt into the bed immediately, his eyes slipping closed. “Thanks, Bruce..” Bruce smiled and patted his shoulder gently. “Of course little bro..get some rest ok?” Floyd smiled slightly as he relaxed further into the bed, having not laid in something this comfortable in months. Bruce stood and turned off the dimmed lights, quietly slipping into the hallway to join the rest of his brothers.

Clay and Branch stood at the end of the hallway, talking quietly. Bruce frowned as he didn’t see his older brother, glancing around as he made his way over to the two. “Hey, you guys see John anywhere?” Clay glanced over and huffed slightly, his tail twitching in irritation. “Hell no..why would I...I’m not his keeper.” Bruce sighed and shook his head. It was obvious his middle brother was still angry at John Dory, not that he could blame him. Hell, he still wasn’t over John Dory’s whole ‘perfection’ stunt that separated them all. “Come on Clay..just asking a question here.” Clay grumbled slightly and looked up at his older brother. “I dunno…I think I saw him in the living room.” Bruce chuckled and patted his lime brother's hair. “See? That wasn’t so bad was it?”

Clay grumbled slightly as his tail flicked again before settling around his ankle. Branch frowned slightly and looked over at Bruce. “Why are you trying to find John? What did he do?” Bruce sighed as his tail twitched slightly against the ground, causing some dirt to stir off the dusty ground. “Come on guys... I know we’re all pissed at him but he is trying.” Branch snorted as he led his two older brothers to his living room, pausing as he saw his oldest brother already sitting on the couch.

John Dory glanced over as his three younger brothers came into the room, his tail curling around his ankle nervously. He knew that his brothers still weren't very pleased with him, despite their falling out occurring over 20 years ago. He knew that he couldn’t blame his brothers for still being cross with him. It was all his fault, he knew this. He had been thinking about the fight with his brothers for the past 20 years and he had tried to come back.
John had come back to the troll tree in the center of Burgen Town just a year after their fight. When he arrived in Burgen Town the tree had been dark and dead, pods were broken and scattered around the ground. He remembers feeling the life drain out of him, his fur greying and turning dark. His teal blue hair had turned a shade of black, his fur color turning to a dark blue. At the time he hadn’t even processed his loss of color, too focused on the horror in front of him. He rushed to the location of his grandmother's pod, hoping to find his brothers there, hoping that this was all just a nightmare.

His grandmother's pod had been ripped off the tree, sitting against the trunk of the dead tree. He rushed into the pod, the furniture broken and scattered around the living room. “Grandma? Bitty B?” He had rushed through the pod, checking every room twice over looking for any sign of his family.

But there had been none.

John had taken what he could, put it all in a backpack, and left the tree. He had spent almost 10 years after that grey. Only when he finally found his Rhonda did he have a reason to be happy again. Without his Rhonda..who knows what would have happened. He knew that Branch had also been grey since Grandma got eaten, and he didn’t think it was necessary to bring it up at all. He had his colors back. He was fine. John Dory was snapped out of his thoughts as he heard someone calling his name.

Bruce frowned as he looked at his eldest brother, who was sitting on the couch with a frown covering his usual charismatic grin. “Hey John..you ok man?” As if a flip had been switched John Dory immediately grinned, quickly straightening from his spot on the couch. “Bruce! Yeah of course I’m fine. Never better. How’s Floyd?” Branch then took over the conversation as he moved into the kitchen, grabbing four mugs from his cupboard. “He’s sleeping now. He already has an appointment tomorrow with Dr. Moonbloom.”

John gave a small sigh of relief and nodded. “Good..” Clay grumbled slightly as he walked over to where John stood, sitting the further spot away from him that he could on the couch. Bruce rolled his eyes at his brother's blatant jab and sat between the two, but also sitting right next to Clay instead. Branch walked in with a tray of mugs, steam spilling out over the top. “Hope you guys like hot chocolate..”

Clay smiled at his youngest brother as he took one of the mugs from him, grabbing another and handing it to Bruce. “Thanks, B. Hot chocolate sounds good.” Branch gave a slightly nervous smile as he set the remaining two mugs on the coffee table, sitting in his chair across from his older brothers. It was quiet for several minutes before it was broken by none other than John Dory. “So..what’s the plan now?” Clay snorted as he glanced over at his eldest brother, scowling in his direction. “What? Aren’t you just going to leave again?”

John Dory repressed a flinch at his brother's words, knowing they were deserved. He gave a shaky laugh and kept his grin firmly on his face. “Wha-? Of course not Clay. I was serious before...I’m..trying to be better for you guys.” Clay's eyes narrowed as he gave a small growl. “Oh, you mean you're trying to be ‘perfect’ right?” Bruce sighed and put a paw on his brother's shoulder. “Come on Clay…not in front of Bitty B.” Branch paused at the nickname and grumbled slightly. “My name is not Bitty B..and Clay’s right anyway.”

John Dory swallowed hard, trying desperately to ignore the tightness of his chest and the rock forming in his stomach. He gave a strained laugh and stood carefully, stuffing his paws in his pockets to hide their shaking. “I should uh..go check on Rhonda..make sure she didn’t wander you know?” Branch rolled his eyes and gave a heavy sigh. “It’s fine John…you don’t need to make up excuses to leave.” John gave a stiff now, the smile still never slipping off his face despite the sick feeling forming in his gut. “R-right..thanks for the hot cocoa Bit-I mean..Branch.” He quickly rushed to the elevator, stepping onto the platform, and pulling the lever, watching as his younger brothers slowly faded out of his sight.

Safe to say John didn’t come back that night.

Chapter Text

John Dory loved his brothers. No matter what anyone said including his brothers themselves. He loved them, he did. It was the reason he wanted them to achieve the perfect family harmony in the first place. If they achieved the harmony it would have broken the glass around the Troll Tree and they would have been free. No more Trollstice. No more Burgens.

But John had messed it up. He had changed the carefully crafted choreography done by Clay, just because he was so confident that they could achieve it. He was so very wrong. If he could go back to that day he would have beaten some sense into his former self. He had been such a selfish big brother. And his brothers all knew it.

It’s why he’s where he is now, sitting quietly outside of Rhonda and holding a family photo of him and his brothers before BroZone. John gently stroked his thumb over each of his brother's faces, wiping the tears that slid down his cheeks with his other paw. Tomorrow he would go back to Branch’s bunker and apologize to all of them again. He would apologize 100 times to get his brothers back.

He missed how they were before BroZone, when he would take Clay and Floyd to school, and spend the day with Branch in their pod. He missed how close he and Sp-Bruce used to be. They would do everything together, Bruce was like his little shadow.

But he ruined it all. That’s all John Dory could do was ruin everything. Every relationship he ever had he ruined without even trying. Maybe he was broken. Broken and destined to be alone for the rest of his life.

A small chuff came from beside him, reminding him that Rhonda was still there. “Hey girl..you won’t get sick of me will you?” Rhonda gave a croon as she pressed her large face into his lap, curling her body around him. John laughed softly as he gently rubbed her face.

Rhonda was probably one of the best things he had done in his life. He had found her abandoned, trembling in a storm all alone. An adult, dead armadillo bus lay several feet away from her, seeming to have died protecting the pup from a predator. So, John had taken her in and raised her on his own. It was different from when he raised his brothers but not by much honestly.

Rhonda needed care almost constantly and was extremely clingy to him when she was younger. Once she had hit her growth spurt at around 2 years old and started to develop her doors and windows did she finally started to relax. She would still herd him towards her door when he was upset, or she could feel a storm coming.

John Dory cooed softly at her as he continued to rub her face gently. “I don’t know what else to do girl..everything I do to try to make it up to them ends in ruin...I just want us to go back to being brothers..” He sighed as he leaned back against her shelled plating, looking up as the stars shone brightly above him. His mind picked out several constellations immediately. It was something he had always enjoyed doing with his little brothers, showing them stars and constellations through the glass surrounding the Troll Tree. He wondered if they remembered any of them.

The snap of a branch snapped him out of his reminiscing. John Dory quickly stood up, Rhonda standing as well at her owner's sudden tenseness. “Hello..? Is someone there?” Silence answered him but John knew better. One of the many things his brother didn’t know about him was that he had made quite a few enemies while out on the trail. While there weren’t many actual trolls out on the trail there were plenty in the small towns he and Rhonda often stopped at to pick up supplies.

John Dory frowned as he glanced around the forest clearing, seeing nothing as it went quiet again. He was about a mile out of Pop Village. It wouldn’t be impossible for another troll to be out here but it would be unlikely. John slowly walked further towards where he heard the snapping of the branch come from, Rhonda padding behind him as quietly as she could. He slowly stepped into the beginnings of the woods, glancing around before stepping back. “Must have just been a critter then..” He shook his head and turned back to Rhonda. “Let’s call it a day then shall we girl?” Rhonda let out a happy croon, her tongue lolling out in agreement. John laughed softly and went to step forward towards her, a sharp pain hitting him in the back of the head. John stumbled forward as he heard Rhonda let out a cry, turning to face his attacker before he was hit again in the side of the head. As John Dory slipped into unconsciousness he could only hope that Rhonda would protect his brothers.

…

The next morning in the bunker Bruce decided they all needed to talk about what had happened the night before. He had been trying his best to keep the arguments between all of his brothers at bay but it seemed to have failed. Tensions had still been high even after rescuing Floyd. He had expected them to be but he was really hoping that after all of this time, their relationship wouldn’t be as bad as the day they all left.

But it wasn’t.

In fact, it almost seemed worse than it did 20 years ago, which Bruce honestly didn’t think would be possible. Clay and John had never really gotten along since Clay was a teenager, they constantly clashed over everything. It seemed that Clay still had a lot of built-up frustrations and anger towards John Dory, and Bruce understood it he did. But arguing and pushing John’s buttons wasn’t how to fix their relationship.

Bruce doesn’t hate his older brother. Not by a long shot. He does love John, but what happened over 20 years ago still haunts him sometimes. He always pushed them all to be perfect, forcing them to practice for hours at a time. He remembers seeing John stay up way past when everyone else had gone to bed to work on song lyrics and melodies. He knows why John put his heart and soul into the band..he just never knew why other than his urging for them to be ‘perfect’.

He remembers more than his younger brothers do about before the band before the perfection took over John’s life. He remembered how his brother would help them all with their homework, cooking all of their meals for them. Their parents had never been around, only dropping off eggs on the stoop of their pod before leaving again. It wasn’t until after Bruce had kids that he realized how hard it must have been for John to do all of that on his own. Sure Grandma was around, but she wasn’t around as much as she should have been. Leaving a child to take care of other children like they were a parent was wrong no matter how you tried to spin it.

Bruce sighed as he looked at Clay. “Come on man..did you really need to bring that up? John is trying here.” Clay growled softly and looked towards the older troll, his tail thrashing behind him. “Of course I did! We all know it’s the truth. It’s only a matter of time before John goes back on his whole ‘being perfect’ streak again.” Bruce frowned and crossed his arms over his chest, looking his younger brother dead in the eye. “At least he’s trying. And no I don't mean trying to be perfect. I mean he’s just trying. Have you noticed that most of the trip back John Dory was pretty much silent? Do you think the old John would have stayed quiet for that long?”

Clay glanced away and grumbled softly, crossing his arms as well as he looked away. “I guess not..” Branch frowned slightly as he looked towards his older brothers. “Bruce is right..he has been trying…he even offered to go help me get supplies for the bunker.. one’s done that before..” Bruce nodded and smiled. “See? He is trying to change for the better. For us. Remember the John Dory before the band? The one who would help you with your homework Clay. Or the one who let you hide in his hair.” Branch paused and looked over. “Wait I hid in John’s hair..?”

Bruce snorted and grabbed his hot chocolate, giving it a slow sip as he leaned back before answering. “Well yeah. We all did except for me I think. Even if I didn't hide in his hair I still...I always went to him. He was John Dory. He was basically indestructible to me you know?” Clay then spoke up as he sat forward, rating his elbows on his knees. “But how do we know that he’s not going to go back to that John Dory, and go back to being ‘Mr.Perfect’ again?” Bruce smiled and laughed slightly. “That’s just it..we don’t know for sure..but John did a lot for us before the band broke up. The least we can do is give him a little grace with this right?” Clay sighed and gave a small nod as he looked away fiddling with his wristbands. “I guess so..”

Just then a loud thumping sound came from above the bunker, sounding like something hitting the ground repeatedly. Branch quickly stood up, steadying himself as the thumping continued and shook the ground around them. Bruce cursed as he scrambled to set his hot chocolate down, some of it sloshing out and onto his paw as he stood. “What the hell is that?!” Branch quickly stumbled towards the elevator, Bruce right behind him. Clay stood and hesitated before turning towards Floyd/s room. “I’ll check on Floyd! You guys find out what’s going on up there.”

Branch and Bruce quickly ascended to the surface, the thumping getting louder as they got closer to the surface. Once the elevator reached the surface Branch quickly stepped off the lift and looked around. On the other side of the large rock above his bunker stood none other than Rhonda. The large armadillo bus was stomping on the ground, giving off loud croons as she paced.

Bruce stilted as he looked at the large creature. He had never seen Rhonda act like this before. Even during the chase in Mount Rageous the armadillo bus had always been happy and calm. And where was John at? John would never let her act like this right?

Once Rhonda locked her eyes on the two trolls she immediately rushed over to them. The two braced themselves to get run over by the large creature, only for her to stop right in front of them. Rhonda sniffed at them carefully, crooning in a way they had only heard her do at John Dory. Bruce frowned as he looked at Rhonda. “Easy girl..where’s John? Did he put you up to this?” At his name, Rhonda let out a sad-sounding croon, her face pinched in worry.

Branch frowned as he straightened and moved to Rhonda’s door on her side, knocking on it. “John Dory? Are you in there?” He glanced through the window on the door and frowned deeply. He didn’t see his eldest brother inside at all. He turned back to Bruce and shook his head. “John isn’t inside...I don’t see him in there anywhere.” Rhonda gave a low croon, gently trying to push Branch in the opposite direction where she had been parked. Branch gleaned to Bruce, worry across his face as he frowned. “You don’t think John’s hurt…why else would Rhonda be freaking out like this?”

Bruce frowned and nodded, his tail beginning to twitch with worry for his elder brother. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. He could have just sent Rhonda to mess with us.” Branch gave him a disbelieving look and gestured to Rhonda who was still trying to nudge the two towards where she had come from. “Look at her Bruce. I don’t think this is John’s doing.” Bruce sighed but nodded in agreement. He couldn’t see his brother sending Rhonda to do this for no good reason. “Alright let’s follow her.”

Rhonda gave a happy croon as she began to herd the two trolls into the woods, keeping close to them at all times. She knew that her troll wanted her to protect them, and that's exactly what she planned to do. She led the trolls towards the clearing, nudging them carefully when they began to slow down. They couldn’t be slow or waste time. Her troll was hurt when he was taken and who knows what else might happen to him.

Bruce and Branch both allowed themselves to be guided by the large armadillo bus, confused about why she was practically hovering over them as they walked. Bruce reached the clearing first, looking around and seeing a fire that had been put out long ago. A red and white checkered blank lay on the ground as well, slightly dirty and in disarray. But what really caught Bruces’s attention was the dark red stain of blood on the edge of the clearing a few feet away.

He quickly rushed over to it, looking around rapidly for his older brother. The amount of blood on the ground wasn’t all that much, but it was enough for Bruce or be worried. “John?! John come out!” He quickly turned to look back at his youngest brother, Branch staring at the blood stain with growing horror. Branch turned to Rhonda and swallowed hard, dread pooling in his gut like lead. “Rhonda..where’s John Dory?” Rhonda gave a wine and looked out into the forest, cooing in worry. Bruce took a deep breath and looked back to Branch, trying to keep his voice calm and level.

“Branch..go get Queen Poppy.”

Chapter Text

John Dory was not a happy troll.

He woke up feeling like his head was about to explode. Don’t get him wrong he had his fair share of hangovers when he was younger (and a few more recently) but nothing as painful as this. His head was in blinding agony, the pain coming constantly pounding at his temple. He groaned softly as he slowly peeled his eyes open, his vision blurry and dark. He felt something sticky covering the side of his head where the pain was coming from and could only guess it was his own blood.

John’s eyes slipped closed as he took a deep breath. This was fine. It wasn’t the first time he had gotten kidnapped, though he really hoped this would be the last. He opened his eyes again, trying to gauge his surroundings and find a way out. He was in what seemed to be a cave, the ground made of a variety of different rocks. There was a small bit of light coming from a spot to the right of him, leading to what looked like the opening of the cave, but it was mostly covered by a large boulder.

He was tied to a chair, what felt like rope binding tying his legs to each of the chair legs and tying his arms to the arms of the chair. The rope was tight against his limbs, the rope rubbing against his skin beginning to burn. He tugged his arms up against the rope, but he was securely tied down. There was no getting out of these ropes without his machete or some kind fo sharp object.

The boulder by the cave entrance moved a bit, more light spilling into the cave before it was moved back. A familiar face appeared, walking towards him and John had to resist the urge to growl. “Chaz..long time no see.” Chaz just smiled back as he stalked closer, gripping John’s chin in a vise grip. “It has been quite a while hasn’t it Johnny…about 10 years if I remember right.” John simply smirked up at the bounty hunter as he spoke. “That’s right…when I took my rightful bounty back from you.” Chaz snarled as he let go of the older troll's chin, backhanding him across the face instead.

John groaned as his head was knocked to the side, his jaw beginning to ache from the hit. “That bounty was rightfully mine! And I don’t appreciate trolls taking things that are mine.” Chaz snarled, stepping away from John and instead going to the side where he grabbed a small vial out of a sack. The liquid in the vial glowed a dark green, fizzing slightly in its glass confine as Chaz slowly unscrewed the top. John’s eyes widened slightly at the mysterious liquid, jerking slightly against the rope as Chaz walked closer. “Chaz..what the fuck is that? Come on man it was just one bounty! I didn’t know it was yours!”

That was one of the secrets he had sworn to keep from his brothers. A year or so after he left the tree he had become a bounty hunter. He didn’t do kill jobs, just informing other trolls where the said targets were and sometimes bringing said targets to those trolls. He quit after 15 years, having trolls be afraid of him wasn’t a good feeling. Besides, at that time he had found Rhonda, and he didn’t want to put her in any danger if he could help it.

The bounty in question that he had stolen from Chaz was purely an accident. He had been walking along a trail minding his own business when a troll ran out of the bushes, begging him for help, and of course, he did. He ended up helping the troll hide from Chaz for several hours, then figured out that said troll had a bounty on his head. Of course, he needed all of the money he could get, so he turned the troll in and claimed the reward. It was only then that he realized it was Chaz’s original bounty. When Chaz rolled into town the next day he had attacked John, the older troll winning in the end and managing to sneak away. It seemed like Chaz was still pissed off even after nearly 10 years.

Chaz slowly shook his helm as he growled slowly, stopping in front of the teal-haired troll. “Just one bounty? That one bounty was mine! Only mine!” John grimaced as Chaz yelled in his face, leaning his head away as best as he could. “I didn’t know man! Besides, I cashed the bounty fair and square. There’s nothing to do about it now. It was 10 years ago Chaz..just..let me go. I’ll leave and we can go our separate ways.” Chaz chuckled darkly and smirked, swirling the green liquid in the vial. “That won’t work for me I’m afraid Johnny..see..after that bounty I became the laughing stock to all of the other hunters. And I don’t take well to being laughed at..”

John Dory swallowed hard. He knew the repercussions of having someone else take your bounty. It had never happened to him personally but he had heard stories. “Look, Chaz..I’m sorry that I took your bounty. If I had known I wouldn’t have taken it. I don’t have the cash anymore just…let me go.” Despite John’s pleading Chaz just smiled slowly, shaking his head as he gripped John’s chin again.

“No, John..I’m going to make sure that you’ll never take anything from me again..say ‘ah’.” John's eyes widened as he realized that whatever was in that vial Chaz was tring to get him to drink it. He thrashed in the restraints, trying to yank his head away to the best of his ability but to no avail. He kept his mouth firmly shut as Chaz used one hand to try to pry his mouth open.

Chaz snarled as John kept his mouth firmly shut, struggling to get the older troll to open his mouth. John Dory may not have been the smartest of his brothers but he wasn’t stupid. Who knows what was in that vial? And John sure as hell wasn’t trusting it. He hoped his brothers were ok. Were they worried about him? Did they even know he had been taken? If they did, would they even care? The last thought makes John stop his struggling, remembering back to the fight he had with his brothers the night before. None of his brothers seemed to be able to stand him. He couldn’t exactly blame them though. Hell, he hated himself too. He had tried so hard for his brothers, to keep them safe. A lot of good that did.

John Dory was snapped out of his thoughts by a sudden pain in his left side. He curled forward with a cry of pain, his mouth open long enough for Chaz to dump the liquid in the vial directly in his mouth. Chaz had hit him in the ribs with a rock on the ground, large enough to possibly break one of his ribs. That’s what it felt like anyway.

John tried to spit out the disgusting liquid immediately to no avail. Chaz had his paw firmly over John's mouth, practically sitting in his lap as the older troll thrashed. The liquid tasted like nothing he had ever experienced, tasting worse than any dead critter he had consumed raw. It went down his throat like sludge, having no choice but to swallow.

The liquid burned as it went down his throat, like a straight shot of whiskey but worse. This burn didn’t subside once it got to his stomach, in fact, the pain just got even worse. It was worse than any pain John had ever experienced in all his years. It was like someone lit a fire in his stomach, the burning feeling spreading to his chest. John Dory gave a cry of pain, thrashing in the restraints as Chaz stepped back to admire his work.

“You see Johnny..this is called ‘Liquid Fire’, not very legal. But that’s never been a problem for me. It will slowly make its way through your body. That pain you're feeling right now? Soon that will be all over your whole body. Only time will tell what happened after that. Some trolls have died within hours, but some have lasted days...I can’t wait to see what happens to you..goodbye John.’ With a laugh, Chaz walks to the cave exit moving the boulder with his hair before closing it again and leaving John alone.

John Dory had never been in this much pain at one time before. The fire sensation that had started in his stomach was slowly spreading up to his chest and making its way down to his hips. It felt like he was being burned alive from the inside out. He knew he couldn’t last long like this. There was no way. John gave another cry of pain as the pain steadily got worse, still attempting to wiggle his way out of his restraints.

But he knew it was all in vain.

He was stuck here and he doubted his brothers would come for him. At least they would take care of Rhonda. Branch seemed to really like her. He never had the chance to give his brothers a proper apology. Maybe they would find his notes in Rhonda, maybe they would know he was sorry he could never be good enough for them. Maybe if he had never found out about the family harmony his family wouldn’t be broken. Maybe then his brothers wouldn’t hate him. Maybe he wouldn’t be here, dying alone. Maybe then he could have a chance to be the big brother. No..to be the father they all deserved.

It wasn’t long before John succumbed to unconsciousness.

Chapter Text

Safe to say Clay and Floyd both lost their minds when Bruce told them John Dory was missing. The brothers had met Bruce at the entrance of the bunker, Floyd looking exhausted but still dragging the middle child.

Bruce had explained what they found, how Rhonda was acting, and the fact that their eldest brother was nowhere to be seen. Rhonda had followed them back, her head lowered as she gave sad croons every so often.

Branch had bolted for Troll Villiage as soon as Bruce told him to get Poppy. Hopefully, the queen of Pop would be able to help them find their brother. At the very least she could be another troll to help join the search for John Dory.

Floyd was currently trying to soothe Rhonda, rubbing her face gently as she nuzzled into him. The large armadillo bus was very gentle with him, crooning softly at him as she lay on the ground.

Just then Branch rushed into the clearing followed by Poppy and Viva. Clay perked up at seeing his friend, smiling happily. “Viva! Hey girl! Poppy bring you along?” Viva smiled and bounced over to her friend. “Kinda. I was with Poppy when Branch told her that John Dory was hurt?”

Bruce winced slightly.”Kinda..when we went to his normal spot Rhonda was freaking out. When we looked around John was gone and..there was a puddle of blood.” Viva and Poppy’s eyes widened at the explanation.

“So we need to find him. As quickly as possible. Do you guys think Rhonda would be able to track him?” Branch spoke up at Poppy's suggestion, making his way over to the Amidillo bus in question. “I think so. I mean she was able to track Clay from his old funder-drawers.”

Clay stilted and gave him a disgusted look. “John kept those things?” Branch snorted slightly and made his way to Rhonda’s side door. “He kept a lot of BroZone stuff..pretty much everything actually.”

Rhonda perked up as she noticed Branch by her door, opening it for the youngest brother happily. Branch patted her side in appreciation as he stepped inside, the rest of his brothers, Poppy and Viva not far behind.

Bruce headed straight towards the steering center, determined to get going as soon as he could to rescue his older brother from whatever trouble he seemed to have gotten himself into. Branch moved beside him, frowning slightly in thought.

“I say we head to the clearing we round the..blood in. Rhonda will be able to get a better scent from there.” Bruce nodded in agreement and grimaced at the mention of the blood. He could only hope that John would be ok by the time they got wherever he was. The purple-haired troll started Rhondas' engine, guiding the armadillo bus towards the clearing they had come from minutes prior.

Rhonda crooned as she entered the clearing a minute later, sniffing at the puddle of now-dried blood carefully. She gave a sad croon as she did so, looking around as she sniffed again before chirping and heading East.

Bruce sat back and nodded slightly, turning the chair to face the rest of the trolls in the bus. “She’s got the scent. Now we just need to see where she takes us..” He stood and made his way into the main area of the camper, cursing softly as he knocked over a box from its perch on the dashboard.

He bent down and picked up the papers that had spilled out of the box, putting them all back but stilting as he saw his old name sprawled at the top of one of the papers in John’s messy handwriting. He frowned and picked up the box, slowly walking over to his other brothers, everyone looking at him curiously.

Floyd blinked as Bruce sat next to him on the couch, the paper still clasped in his large paws. “What’s that Bruce..? Wait..that’s John’s handwriting isn’t it?” Bruce nodded in affirmative, slowly reading the note aloud.

“Spruce, Clay, Floyd, Branch
I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for everything. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to be a good big brother to you all. You all deserved so much better than me. I just wanted to protect you all. I wanted to be a perfect big brother for you all. I didn’t listen when you all so obviously tried to tell me you were unhappy. I just wanted to protect you all. I thought if we hit the perfect family harmony then we would finally be able to escape the burgens. We would be safe as a family.
But I pushed too far.
I’m sorry I made you become the heartthrob Spruce. I’m sorry I made you wear those funder drawers Clay. I’m sorry I made you become the sensitive one to try and stop our arguments, Floyd. And Bitty B. I’m so sorry that you paid the price fo my mistakes. I’m sorry you were left behind. I came back. I came back and you are all gone.
If I had just been a better brother you would all be alive.
I hope you can all forgive me.
I love you, bros.”

By the time Bruce finished reading the letter Floyd was in tears, covering his face in horror. Branch frowned as pieces started to fall into place. “Wait...John said..he came back..but I never saw him.” Poppy gasped softly from beside him as realization fell into place. “The troll tree..it died when we all left it. If John came back and saw the dead tree he might have thought that..”

All of the brother's eyes widened and Floyd broke into sobs, Bruce pulling his younger brother into a gentle hug. Clay spoke up after a few minutes of near silence, the only thing audible being Floyds' quiet cries. “John thought we were all dead…” Viva hesitated before grabbing the note from Bruces’ limp paw. “It..also sounds like he heard Dad..”

Clay turned to Viva and frowned. “Heard your Dad? What do you mean?” Viva sighed and shifted as she scanned the note before setting it aside. “Well…before the tunnel Dad found the perfect family harmony. It would have been able to break the glass around the troll tree. We would have been able to escape. They tried it for a week but no troll was able to achieve it…so Dad just gave it up.”

Bruce nodded slowly. “John started talking about it after he went out shopping..he was really distracted that night. He even burned himself cooking.” Poppy frowned and looked at the purple-haired troll. “John cooked for you guys?”

Floyd sniffed and wiped his eyes as he answered. “John always cooked for us…he helped us with homework…John did everything.” Bruce sighed as he continued. “He really did..he dropped out of school along the time Bitty Be came around. Someone had to take care of everything. Grandma didn’t really help much either..but then again John never asked. He also really didn’t like to talk about our real parents much...I know they would drop off eggs when they had them..”

Floyd quietly took the note from Viva, reading it over before he looked at his other brothers. “John..he was…like our dad honestly. Before he got too wrapped up in the whole ‘perfect’ thing..he would cook, clean the pod, help us with school..he worked in the shops in the village to provide for us. God Branch..you were in love with him. You always had to be in his hair when you were a baby. You wouldn’t let anyone else hold you some days.”

Branch frowned as he looked at his older brothers. “I don’t remember that..” Clay shrugged as he looked away, fiddling with his wristbands. “Not surprised…you were still pretty young when the band broke up. Would be surprised if you remembered before then.”

The youngest brother shook his head. “I mean...I kind of remember feeling safe in someone's hair. I always assumed it was one of our parents..” Floyd gave a small laugh and smiled, leaning back into the couch. “It kind of way B.”

Bruce and Clay were both quiet as their younger brother spoke, both thinking the same thing. Before John’s obsession with perfection, he really had been like a dad. He made sure their homework was done but also took them out for their favorite treats on special occasions. Clay had sensory issues and couldn’t eat certain textures, and John always made sure to avoid serving him anything like that. Bruce had trouble with eating, and Joh would sit with him at the table for hours until he ate at least something.

The two current eldest locked eyes and gave each other a small nod. They would get their dad back no matter what the cost.

And when they found who did it, there would be hell to pay.

Chapter Text

Bruce wasn’t super surprised when Rhonda let them to a dead-end mountain. There wasn’t much of a trail and who knows when John was taken. He could have been taken right after their argument in Branch's bunker, in which case the trail was probably almost cold.

Rhonda wined as she pawed at the side of the mountain, sniffing at the side unhappily. She could smell him, her troll was so close. She could almost see him, but she knew the other trolls thought she was lost. But she wasn't lost. She knew he was in this mountain, she was so close.

Branch sighed as he watched Bruce and Clay argue about what to do next. It seemed as though Rhonda had led them to a large mountain face. His older brothers were arguing about whether to go around the mountain or try to climb it. The mountain itself was taller than Branch had ever seen and was almost the same wide.

Floyd walked over to his youngest brother, gently gripping his shoulder. “We’ll find him…Rhonda seems to know what she’s doing. I don’t think she’s lost either. Seems like she really wants to get..inside the mountain..?”

Branch blinked and looked back to the large armadillo bus, taking notice at how she was clawing directly at the mountain face, not trying to go around it. “You’re right Floyd..she is trying to go inside the mountain. You don’t think..he could be… inside the mountain?” Floyd frowned as he looked around the base of the mountain briefly. “I don’t see an entrance though.”

Branch frowned and moved over to Bruce and Clay, who were still arguing. “Guys, Floyd had a good point. Watch Rhonda.” Bruce paused in his argument, glancing over to Branch before looking back to Rhonda. Rhonda was still pawing at the mountain, sniffing at the base with vigor. The purple-haired troll blinked and frowned, finally watching the large armadillo bus for more then just a second. “Is she..trying to dig inside?”

Clay paused, turning his attention towards the armadillo bus along with the rest of his brothers. “Wait..she is! John must be inside then!” The lime-haired brother quickly moved next to Rhonda, not questioning for a second what the bus was doing. Branch moved next to his middle brother, beginning to feel around the base of the mountain.

The brothers all looked around the base of the mountain for the next hour, Floyd being forced to sit down once his legs began to shake. They were all on the verge of giving up when suddenly Bruce shouted. “I found something guys! Over here!” The brothers quickly rushed towards the current eldest brother, Rhonda padding over at the yell.

There seemed to be a large boulder pressed flush against the base of the mountain, barely noticeable accept for the fact that it was a few shades lighter than the mountain itself. It was around the size of Bruce, a bit wider in size. Bruce, Clay, and Branch began to try to pull the boulder aside, Floyd being forced to sit back down by Branch.

Rhonda gave an impatient sound, padding over and gently nudging the trolls aside. She took the large boulder into her mouth and slowly moved the boulder aside. The entrance led into a rather large cave, small cries coming from inside.

Bruce stilted at the sound, his fatherly instincts quickly kicking in as he rushed into the cave with his brothers right behind him. Rhonda’s wines were heard from inside the cave, unable to fit through the entrance. Deeper inside the cave was a sight that would haunt the brothers forever. It would haunt their dreams for months to come.

There in the center of the cave, tied to a chair sat John Dory. His arms and legs were tied to the chair with rope, seeming to be digging into his skin. The eldest Bro Zone brother looked awful. His face was pale, turning his fur an extremely light blue instead of his normal turquoise with sweat also soaking a majority of his fur as well. A puddle of sick was by his feet, almost completely blood. It was hard to tell if John was awake or not, his body shivering but his eyes completely closed. His tail lay limply on the ground behind him, kinked in the middle in a way that made it look to be broken. There was a footprint in the center of his tail as well, making this obvious that this was done on purpose.

Branch didn’t know how to feel seeing his brother like this. He had been young when the band had split and thus didn’t have too many memories of any of his brothers, including John Dory. From what he did remember about John though was that he was never one to show weakness of any kind, he never saw his brother cry or show any sign of pain matter it be physical or emotional. Seeing John like this..it made him understand why his brothers are so protective over him.

Floyd covered his mouth in horror, giving a choked sob at the state of his eldest brother. In his eyes, John Dory was the strongest brother. He was like a mountain, unable to be moved no matter what happened, and to see him like this broke a part of him If this is how his brothers felt when they rescued him from the crystal bottle he understood why they were so protective of him.

Clay felt like he was going to vomit looking at John. John Dory had always been there, when he stepped into a room you knew it. He was as large as life wherever he went, always with a grin and a story to tell about his adventures in the Neverglades. Seeing him hurt.. especially this badly. It made Clay want to make whoever did this pay in the worst way possible.

Bruce felt sick. Working in a kitchen meant he saw his fair share of injuries, from cuts to burns, from bruises to a broken bone courtesy of one of his kids. But he had never seen anything like this. To see his oldest his strongest brother like this made him feel like he was going to be sick at any second. Just like when one of his kids broke their arm, the urge to wrap John up and hide him from the world was at the forefront of his mind. Not only that..but making whoever did this to John pay.

Bruce ended up being the first one to snap out of his horror, bolting over to his older brother. “John! John Dory can you hear me?!” The rest of the brothers were close to follow, Branch pulling a small knife from his hair to cut off the rope.

Bruce cursed under his breath, realizing that his brother was indeed unconscious. As soon as Branch cut the rope trapping John Dory was cut Bruce immediately picked up his older brother. John didn’t seem to be physically injured but there was obviously something wrong with him given how he looked and acted.

Clay shuffled nervously from where he stood behind Bruce. “Bruce is he..? Is he alive?” Bruce swallowed as he pressed his fingers against the side of John’s neck, holding his breath as he waited to hopefully feel the pulse of his brother's heart race under his fingers. He let out the breath he had been holding, feeling the pulse beat sluggishly under his fingertips.

“He’s alive…but his heart rate is slow. We need to get him to a doctor, like now.” Without missing a beat Bruce charged back out of the cave, holding John closely in his arms and trying to ignore how small he looked. Clay and Floyd followed right behind, with Clay supporting his pink-haired brother to Rhonda. This had been a long day for him, and it hadn’t been that long ago since Floyd’s essence had been sucked him his body.

Branch was last, having scanned the room for any hints on who had done this. He frowned and knelt down close to the cave entrance, picking up a small strand of magenta-colored hair, and storing it to check out when his eldest brother wasn’t..when John was better. He had to get better. A flash of light bouncing off something caught his eye and he walked back towards the chair, seeing there, just a few feet away a glass vial with a small drop of something at the bottom. Maybe this could give them some answers on what was wrong with his eldest brother.

Rhonda let out a worried croon as she saw the purple-haired troll bring her troll from the cave. She immediately turned to her side, opening her side door for her troll friends. She wined softly as all five trolls rushed into the camper bus. As soon as the door shut no one needed to give Rhonda any directions, she was off like a rocket back towards Pop Villiage.

Bruce laid John Dory down on the couch in the back of the camper bus, cursing softly as he saw John’s breathing beginning to slow. He turned to Clay, keeping his voice low as Floyd and Branch stayed in front of Rhonda, trying not to hover. “Clay..do you know CPR?” Clay stilted at the question, feeling like someone poured ice water over his head. “Wha..? I-I mean yeah..do you think he’ll need..?”

Bruce sighed and looked down at John, carefully taking off his older brother's fur-lined jacket and revealing the white shirt beneath. “I-I don’t know Clay..but if we do...I need you to do it while I try to figure out what’s going on with him..it seems to be internal but..we need a doctor.” Clay gave a nervous nod, shifting closer to his older brothers as he fidgeted with his wristbands anxiously with his tail wrapped around his ankle.

Bruce began to carefully assess John, using his limited medical knowledge to try and get an idea of what was happening. John seemed to be trembling uncontrollably but was sweating through his shirt. His heartbeat was..extremely slow and he was breathing erratically like he was having trouble breathing at all. Besides the seemingly broken tail, John seemed physically fine. This had to be something internal. This just made Bruce feel even worse, something physical he could try to stabilize until they reached the village, but something that was inside his body he couldn’t stabilize, especially if he didn’t know what was wrong in the first place.

It was at that moment that Bruce’s worst fear came true, he felt his blood roar in his ears as he watched John’s chest rise…and not fall again. He numbly watched as Clay immediately jumped in to start CPR, quickly standing to grab Branch in his arms as the youngest Bro Zone brother tried to rush over. His heart hammered in his chest as he vaguely heard the sound of one of John’s ribs breaking, Floyd crying, and Branch trying to plead with him to move.

Throughout all of the chaos, John’s heart stopped.

Chapter Text

John Dory didn’t think much of death. Despite being in the forests and in the wild for 20 years on his own, he rarely came upon animals that wanted to eat him. Every so often a sparkle-hound or a giant spider would try to make him lunch but he was always good at getting himself out of those situations without harm..most of the time anyway.

Sitting in that cave all alone, tied to that chair, all John could think about was how sorry he was. He wished he could apologize to his brothers again. And of course, he thought about death. Chaz had said this ‘liquid fire’ would kill him in a matter of hours to days. He remembers vaguely waking up several times in the throws of pain to vomit or cry.

He was normally a proud troll, but the amount of pain he felt was unbearable. Which is why when John Dory woke up he thought he was dead. He felt light and floaty like he was lying on his back in the water. He felt weightless, none of his joints or his stomach ached anymore.

Then just like that, the weightless feeling was gone, leaving John Dory feeling absolutely awful. His head felt like it had been slammed against a rock multiple times (which wasn’t too far from the truth), and his chest hurt like he’d never experienced before. Every breath he took was filled with pain, sharp against his ribs. All of his joints ached and throbbed in time with his heartbeat. His wrists and ankles felt like they were bruised, but given how he was tied up that didn’t surprise him.

But the pain that was the worst of all was located in his stomach. He felt like he was going to be ill, the nausea hitting him like a ton of bricks. Unlike with his joints, this pain stayed in his stomach. He felt like throwing up despite knowing there was nothing left in his stomach to throw up.

It felt just like it did after Chaz made him swallow that fire stuff. Was it liquid fire? Was he dead? No, he couldn’t be dead. Dead trolls don’t feel pain. John didn’t know whether or not this was a blessing or a cure though. The pain almost made him wish he was dead. But things felt different. There wasn’t the rope digging into his wrists anymore, nor was he sitting up in a chair.

Now he was laid back on a comfortable surface, he felt a small prick in his left inner elbow he hadn’t noticed until now. It made his arm feel cold whatever it was. His head was wrapped in something. Possibly bandages. There was a thick, warm blanket covering most of his body with his arms resting on the top of said blanket. Ugh, all of this thinking was going to make him vomit again. But then again the thought of opening his eyes made him want to vomit too. But he had to know where he was.

John Dory slowly peeled his eyes open, grimacing at the sharp throb his head gave as he carefully glanced around the darkened room. It looked like he was in a room in Branches bunker, all around him covered in dirt. The room was dark with the lights off, fairy lights strung across the walls to give the room a small bit of light.

He willed himself to slowly sit up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He gave a small groan as he hunched over, his arms wrapping around his mid-drift. He saw a waste basket beside the bed and quickly grabbed it. He wretched as he threw up, nothing but bile coming up. Well, almost just bile. Was that blood? Fuck that was blood. The sight panicked John even more and he threw up again.

John lost track of the many times he threw up, shakily setting the waste basket aside as he tried to breathe. The room felt too small all of a sudden, and all he wanted to do now was be out with his Rhonda girl. A glass of water sat on the nightstand beside him, and he shakily reached for it. His paw was trembling, nearly dropping the glass as he slowly took a sip.

Just as he set the glass back down the door opened and Bruce walked in.
….
Bruce froze as he looked at his older brother sitting up in the bed. The same older brother that he watched die twice in the time it took to make it back to troll village. When they got back to Troll Villiage Branch had directed them to Dr.MoonBloom, who had used the vial the youngest brother brought to find what was wrong with John. It was a poison called ‘Liquid Fire’, it destroyed the troll from the inside out, damaging their stomachs and other internal organs.

Bruce had been terrified that this meant his brother was going to die. After Clay bringing him back to life twice he would die anyway.

Dr.MoonBloom had said she had never heard of anyone surviving after ingesting the poison, but that they had found him in time. She had quickly gotten him hooked up to an IV treatment, putting the antidote in the IV. She said that there was a chance that it wouldn’t work. That John would die anyway. At that Poppy had started to cry, empathetic to the brothers. Floyd had joined in as well, comforted by Viva as the elder sister held him and Poppy. Bruce had held all of them in a hug, roping in Brach and Clay.

After Dr.MoonBloom had left and everyone had gotten their tears out it had been decided that someone would watch over John Dory full-time until he woke up. (Because he had to wake up). It had been Bruces’ turn when he had stepped out to make himself a quick lunch, having not eaten all day. When he had come back into the room to see John Dory up and awake..he had never felt happier. Not when Brandy said yes. Not even when his first child was born.

“John Dory..holy shit dude.” Bruce rushed over to his older brother, pulling him into a gentle but firm hug. John Dory laughed slightly but relaxed in his brother's arms. “Bruce, I’m fine..you make it seem like I almost died or something.” The teal-colored troll put on his best grin, trying to act like he didn’t feel like he was dying. “Johnny you almost did..your heart stopped twice.” John’s grin wavered slightly before falling. “W-what..” Bruce hesitated as he gently rubbed his older brother's back, unused to comforting his older brother instead of it being the other way around.

“Yeah bro…we thought we lost you. The doctor said that she wasn’t sure if you would even wake up.” John gave a shaky laugh, going limp against his younger brother's warmth. “That..that’s not good, but hey! I’m awake now aren’t I?” Bruce sighed and gave a small nod. “Yeah but..John, you almost weren’t..look, we can talk about everything else later. Right now I’m focused on you now. How are you feeling? And don’t lie. I know you have a tell.”

John’s mouth closed from where he was going to lie, his mouth shut with a soft ‘click’. “I..don’t feel the greatest..my..chest and stomach hurt..”He trailed off, looking away like he was ashamed to admit his pains to his brother. Bruce nodded and rubbed his back gently. “The doc said that was to be expected…your body went through hell Johnny..it’ll probably take you a while to recover. And don’t you even think about trying to duck out on us taking care of you? It won’t work. For any of us.”

John Dory sighed and gave a small nod. Based on how serious Bruce was taking this conversation he assumed this would be the case, and right now he was too exhausted to care. “Yeah..don’t think I’ll be able to stay awake much longer Brucie..” He grimaced and turned his head, subconsciously burying his head into Bruce’s wide chest to try and avoid the pain racking his body.

Bruce frowned as he held his eldest brother closer, pulling the blanket around him as he felt John begin to tremble. Dr.MoonBloom had said that nausea, chills, and a fever would likely occur if John woke up and that he would be lucky if those were the only symptoms he had. He could imagine John’s stomach didn’t feel too great either. He knew he wouldn’t after drinking literal poison that basically melted him from his insides out.

“Get some rest, Johnny..we’ll be here when you get up. I promise.” John gave a small nod against Bruce’s chest before succumbing to his pain and exhaustion, passing out almost as soon as his eyes closed. Bruce sighed softly as he held his brother close against his chest, unable to look away from John in worry that he would disappear.

Everything else could wait until tomorrow. They would find out who did this to John and make whoever it was pay. They would protect their brother, just like he protected them as kids. John would never be allowed to leave the bunker as long as Clay had a say in it, that was for sure. But for now…for now, John Dory was awake, and that was enough for him.

Chapter Text

The next time John Dory woke up he wasn’t in complete agony thankfully. Granted his head was throbbing and his stomach felt like he swallowed a rock, but he didn’t feel like he was going to fall over dead at any point. He would call that some form of improvement from the last time he was awake.

He also wasn’t alone this time. He was still cuddled against Bruces’ side, with a blanket pulled over them. The former heartthrob was snoring, his head tilted back and his mouth slightly open. John gave a small laugh as he carefully pushed the blanket off of him, burning up despite knowing his body was shivering.

It was then John realized that he wasn’t wearing his signature coat and goggles. He was in a plain white shirt and shorts he didn’t recognize. They must belong to one of his brothers. Likely Branch, as the two were the closest in size. Whoever clothes they were it felt nice to be in clean clothes again. He only would really wear his fur-lined coat everywhere, not having anywhere to truly wash it anywhere out on the Neverglade Trail.

There was a glass of water on the bedside table, which John gratefully took and sipped at. He groaned softly at the feeling of the cold water sliding down his throat, soothing how dry it was. How long had he been asleep for? Where were the rest of his brothers? Were they safe? Did Chaz get them too? He felt his heartbeat quicken in worry at the thought of his little brothers going through what he did. He needed to find them.

Bruce was with him, so that was one brother down and three to go. He carefully climbed out of the bed, shivering slightly as he slowly made his way to the door. He opened the door, quietly slipping out of the room. He made his way down the hall, hearing voices coming from the living room.

John Dory stepped into the living room, rubbing his eyes slowly. Clay and Floyd were sitting on the couch, with Branch sitting across from them and all three brothers talking to one another quietly. He smiled slightly, putting on a happy mask despite feeling dizzy being up for so long. “Hey, bros. Whatcha talking about? Is it how loud Brcue snores? Because he’s always been a snorer.”

All three brothers' heads snapped in his direction and he withheld a wince. They had to have hurt. Clay rushed over to him, holding his arms out like he was going to fall at any moment. Which honestly he was getting close to doing.

“John Dory! What are you doing out of bed?! You need to be resting!” At Clay’s fretting, John gave a small laugh, touched by the worry. “I’m fine Clay..never better!” The middle child gave John a withering glare in disbelief, obviously not believing him one bit. “Sit down at least John.” Floyd had walked over, gently taking John’s paw in his and leading him to the couch.

As soon as John Dory sat on the couch he sagged, having not realized just how exhausted the short walk from the bedroom to the living room had made him. Clay and Branch began to talk a mile a minute, worry in their tone for their eldest brother.

“Guys, guys...I’m good! Like I said before, never better!” Before any of them had a chance to reply they were interrupted by a deep voice from the hallway. “Johnathan Leslie Dorian…” John froze and slowly over the back of the couch where Bruce stood, frowning deeply as he stalked over.

Oh shit.

John Dory gave a nervous laugh as Bruce walked over, sitting next to him and pulling him close like they were on the bed. “What are you doing up John? You’re meant to be resting..” John felt a blush creep onto his face at the embarrassment of being treated like a trolling but replied never the less. “It’s just..I needed to make sure everyone else was safe.”

Bruces’ eyes softened as his tail intertwined with his older brothers, seeing how worried he had been. “We’re alright Johnny. We’re all safe, and so are you. But you are on strict bed rest until further notice.” Branch pipes up, sitting next to Bruce on the couch as Floyd settles against his eldest brother's side. “Let us take care of you John…seeing you so hurt it..it was terrifying. None of us were sure you were going to make it.” Clay settled on Floyd's other side as he spoke. “Yeah John..you..you’ve taken care of us..let us repay the favor.”

John Dory could only stare at his middle brother, this having been the calmest conversation he’d had with him since they were young. Clay took notice of the stare and looked away, his tail swishing nervously. “I-I know before you got..taken...I was upset at you for..everything back then. But..I know you’ve been trying. Bruce..made a point earlier. That you were only doing what you thought was right when we were younger..that you were still a kid too..and I’m sorry.”

John Dory blinked before he reached over, pulling Clay and inadvertently Floyd, into a tight hug. “It’s ok Clay..you guys had every right to be upset with me..and I’m sorry too..” Clay smiled, his tail wagging happily as he settled against his brother's side.

Bruce smiled at seeing his brothers finally getting along, frowning as he noticed John was still shivering. He reached his large paw up to John’s forehead, grimacing as he felt his head burning through his fur. “John..how are you feeling? And don’t you think about lying..we talked about that.”

John’s smile slowly fell as he sighed, grimacing slightly as he wrapped an arm around his mid-drift. “I uh..better than before…head hurts still…I keep..going between being cold and hot. My uh, stomach still hurts too, keep feeling like I’m gonna throw up again.” He grimaced slightly at the thought of throwing up again.

Bruce nodded and held him closer. “Yeah, the doctor said that’s to be expected.” Branch then spoke up, sitting up and looking at his eldest brother. “John Dory…what happened? Who did this to you?” John froze at the question, looking down at his paws as his tail curled around Bruce’s tightly in anxiety. “I uh..I don’t remember.” The lie fell from his lips like a boulder from a cliff.

Bruce narrowed his eyes, grabbing John’s chin and gently tilting it up like he would do with his kids when they were lying. (Obviously, he would need to be standing on a counter to be able to have his kids look up at him. But the same principle applies.) “John Dory, you have a tell when you lie. We’ve been over this. You know who did it. Whoever it is they aren't worth protecting.”
John tried to avert his eyes before sighing heavily. His brothers would find out what happened one way or another. He may be stubborn but he knew his brothers were just as stubborn as him.

“It..was this guy named Chaz..” John explained the story of how he interrupted Chaz’s bounty, how Chaz kidnapped him after their fight, and how he wanted revenge. “...and then I woke up in the bunker.”

Branch’s eyes were dark with anger, he had half a mind to hunt down Chaz right now and teach him a lesson but he knew his eldest brother needed him right now. The hunting down would have to wait until later. Floyd just felt sad thinking about how his brother had gone through pain all alone. John had tried his best to downplay the pain he had gone through but based on what Dr.MoonBloom had said, John had gone through agony.

Clay was feeling an anger similar to Branch’s. He always had a bit of a temper, it was one of the reasons why he and John had butted heads so often. Now he had someone to take his anger out on. This Chaz guy was going to learn you don’t mess with the BroZone brothers. Bruce felt like he was going to explode. John tries to help someone and ends up getting poisoned and almost killed for it. When he finds his Chaz troll, he’s going to wish he had never laid a paw on his big brother.

John Dory gave a small smile at seeing how worried and angry his brothers were getting. It felt nice to know that they still cared despite his faults. It was a bit odd to have them look after him instead of the other way around. Growing up he had been the one to help with homework (the best he could despite dropping out of school and battling dyslexia), to bandage their hurts, and to take care of them when they were sick. He honestly couldn’t remember the last time he was taken care of, having to always push through any illness to take care of his younger brothers. It felt..nice. Maybe it was time to let himself be taken care of. Yeah, that sounds nice.

…
Several months (and some therapy sessions) later...

John Dory laughed as he leaned back against the couch, watching Clay attempt to act out being a cat. He was surprisingly good at it. The brothers were all playing a game of charades and it was going well. It had been several months since the ‘Chaz incident’, and John was doing well. Every so often he would start throwing up uncontrollably, and Dr.MoonBloom said he would likely have to deal with that for the rest of his life.

His brothers were still extremely protective of him, never letting him go out alone even if it was just for a few hours. He was living in Branch’s bunker now, his brothers having decided living in Rhonda wasn’t safe anymore. He had protested heavily at first, but seeing how much his brothers cared about keeping him safe..he had folded. That with Floyd’s puppy dog eyes, he had folded. He never went to any doctor's appointments alone either, normally Bruce was the one who went with him. He went with Floyd to all of his appointments as well after the whole Mount Rageous fiasco.

His bond with his brothers was much stronger now though, they rarely ever argued, and when they did they made sure to never go to bed angry. They all went to family therapy, and now they talk a lot more. It turns out that miscommunication was one of their biggest problems which honestly made sense.

Despite his pleading, his brothers had ended up tracking down Chaz. It hadn’t gone well for the smooth jazz troll that was for sure. He wasn’t sure exactly what happened, having been with Poppy and Viva that night for a ‘girl's night.’ The girls had found out that John was able to braid and had insisted he come and braid their hair. He had agreed happily, always ready to spend time with his honorary sisters.

His brothers had used this to go hunt down Chaz and had refused to spill what they had done to him but insisted that he would never bother John again. John had eventually let it go, just happy that Chaz hadn’t hurt his brothers and that they were safe.

As Clay and Branch began to bicker about how a meowing cat sounds John Dory smiled. He was finally happy with his brothers. No matter what storm, or disaster struck their family his brothers would be there. They all had flaws, and no matter what they were BroZone. They looked after each other..and they would be brothers forever.

The End