John Dory knew he was more than a little possessive of his brothers. It had been an issue in the past, which he thought was at least part of the reason why they had a falling out. When he'd been living on his own he'd redirected the possessive nature to be directed towards their memories instead of them as individuals. They got to live their lives, and he didn't have to confront a part of him that he would rather ignore.
He told himself that if he was ever part of his brothers' lives again then he would do better. He would work on his possessiveness and need for perfection. Now that the impossible was actually happening and they were getting back together again, he was throwing those plans out the window. He took his eyes off of Floyd for a few minutes, and he almost drowns. Later, he stepped away to give his baby brothers some privacy, and then he turns around and Floyd was gone again.
When John Dory found Floyd again he was going to never let him out of his sight. Ever. He didn't care if he was letting his possessive nature win. If Floyd couldn't take care of himself, then John Dory would have to do it for him, whether he liked it or not.
John Dory would travel to the other side of the world to find Floyd. Now that he knew his brother didn't hate him, and that he needed help, John Dory would stop at nothing to be there for him. He would do the same for any of his brothers, but he knew that Spruce and Clay probably hated him, and even after this short time with Branch it was clear that he felt the same.
It hurt so much that his brothers hated him, and John Dory didn't know what he could do to fix things. That was why he needed to do anything he could to help Floyd. He was his only brother that wanted him around anymore, who was going to give him a chance.
It was ironic. John Dory knew his brothers hated his need for perfection. They never got it. But despite this, they had always expected more from John Dory than he knew how to give. They hated him for the very thing that, in a way, they did to him.
Not that he blamed them. They probably did deserve a lot better than he could give them. But he didn't know how to be better than he was. He'd tried. He'd tried so hard, and it just made everything fall apart. He thought it was a wonder that Branch was even tolerating his presence right now, even if they were all needed to pull off the Perfect Family Harmony. He'd half expected his baby brother to storm off without him as soon as Floyd wasn't there to act as a buffer between them. But Branch stayed, and John Dory appreciated it as much as he was confused by it.
Branch's tracking skills were impressive. John Dory was a pretty good tracker himself, and he had noticed everything that Branch had. They followed the tracks to a massive mini-golf course. When John Dory glanced to the side he could see more tracks leaving, but Branch was busy following these tracks right in front of his face.
John Dory wanted to point out the other tracks, but Branch had gotten so tense during their hike up to this point when he tried to point out something that his brother hadn't seen. Branch knew what he was doing. John Dory did too, but he could let Branch have this. There was no point in undermining his brother's skills when he'd find the additional tracks in just a few more minutes.
For the sake of keeping the peace and not scaring his brother away, John Dory kept his mouth shut and followed Branch into the golf course. They immediately saw a number of trolls with tangled hair. They were gathering closely, an air of anxiety and tension surrounded them. Branch immediately found the troll who seemed to be in charge and he walked up to her. She seemed busy and preoccupied about something, but Branch didn't wait for her to be available. He demanded her attention now.
John Dory couldn't help but feel a small warmth in his chest at the sight. It was kinda nice to know that one of his brothers had something in common with him. John Dory would also ignore social convention if it meant getting what he wanted. It was nice to know that he wasn't nearly as much of a freak in his own family as he sometimes felt like he was.
"Hey, sorry to interrupt, but I need some information." Branch said. "We're looking for our brother."
The troll in charge, who looked really familiar to John Dory in a way that he couldn't quite put his finger on ,eyed them. She was tense, and her eyes were guarded, but when she smiled at them the enthusiasm was genuine.
"Wow, I guess there really were trolls coming." She said She gestured out dramatically. "Our haven is open to any trolls."
John Dory looked around. The golf course itself didn't seem like much of a haven, but looking at all of the trolls, who looked even more cautious and guarded than their leader, he could actually see this being a sanctuary. Trolls didn't look that scared unless there was something to be scared of, but John Dory hadn't seen any signs of anything dangerous in the area. What they were hiding from wasn't a continuous threat, but one that haunted their memories. John Dory could understand that.
"I'm Viva." She greeted Branch with a hug that happened so fast that neither of them had time to prepare for it. She then did the same to John Dory before he even had the time to process it. It was a little dizzying.
"Sorry for the less than warm welcome." Viva said. John Dory stared at her, a memory nudging from the back of his mind. "We're having some issues." She clasped her hands together and rocked on her heels a bit, and John Dory suddenly remembered an energetic little girl that used to do the same thing.
"Viva!" John Dory snapped his fingers and pointed at her, grinning. He knew it would come to him. Branch looked at him like he was crazy, but Viva just smiled.
"That's me." She said.
"No, you're Princess Viva." John Dory said. Viva's smile fell ever so slightly, but he barely noticed.
"I mean, I'm not really a 'princess' here." Viva said. "I'm just Viva."
"What are you two talking about?" Branch was now looking at them both like they'd lost their minds.
"Viva was the princess back at the troll tree." John Dory explained. Branch had probably been too young to remember. "I used to babysit her." He'd needed some way to make a living and take care of his brothers, and most trolls hadn't wanted to hire a teenager. King Peppy had given him a chance, and he'd even allowed John Dory to bring his brothers along when he watched over Viva, turning it into a playdate. Clay used to love playing with her.
Viva's eyes widened. "Wait a second. Johnny!" She practically screamed as she squealed in excitement and gave John Dory another hug. "I haven't seen you in forever!"
John Dory laughed and returned her hug this time. "Hey, Veevee."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Branch came between them. "Back it up a bit." Branch waited until they were both looking at him, and he didn't look impressed. "What do you mean she's the princess? Poppy was the only princess. She would have told me if there was another, because she tells me everything."
John Dory had no idea who Poppy was. He looked at Viva to see if the confusion was shared. She had her hands to her mouth as she silently cried. She looked hopeful and happy in a way that John Dory could understand painfully well.
"Poppy's alive?" Viva's voice cracked. Branch frowned slightly, though it was less angry than before. He just seemed confused and a little concerned.
"What?" Branch frowned. "Of course she is."
Viva ran up to Branch, clasping his hands tightly and leaning in close to him. Branch looked uncomfortable, but Viva didn't back off. "Is she okay? How is she?"
"Why do you care?" Branch asked cautiously.
"She's my baby sister!" Viva said. "We got accidentally separated, and I…I didn't even know if she or my dad were still alive." John Dory could relate to those feelings far more than he would ever want to. Believing your family was dead wasn't fun.
"What? No." Branch pulled away from Viva's grip. "Poppy doesn't have a sister. She would have told me!"
"Maybe she doesn't know." John Dory suggested. He didn't know Viva had a sister, which meant that she had to have been born after John Dory had left. She was even younger than Branch. If Viva had been gone for so long that Branch didn't remember her as a princess, then it would make sense that Poppy didn't remember her.
"How could she not know something like this!?" Branch gestured to Viva. "Even if Poppy forgot about you, your dad would have told her." The second the words came out of his mouth a dark look came to Branch's eyes. John Dory really didn't like seeing his brother look so upset and angry.
"What am I talking about? Of course he wouldn't have." Branch started pacing. "Because that troll would never hesitate to do things that are quick and convenient for him. He lied about there being other clans of trolls. Why wouldn't he lie about his own kid."
"Branch, calm down." John Dory put his hands on his brother's arms to hold him still. "I get you're upset, but getting mad isn't going to fix anything." John Dory didn't really understand what was going on right now, but he didn't want to stress about that right now. Floyd was his concern.
"We need to find Floyd." John Dory said. "Can we deal with the royal family after we deal with ours?"
Branch took a deep breath and John Dory could feel the tension ease out of his shoulders. "Are you sure she's the princess? Like, the daughter of Peppy?"
"I'm sure." John Dory said. Branch didn't look happy, but he seemed satisfied enough. He nodded. John Dory squeezed his shoulders and turned back to Viva. "Look, we'd love to talk to you about Poppy and reunite you with your family, but we're trying to reunite with our family. Our brother, Floyd, came this way. Do you know where he is?"
Viva flinched slightly and John Dory really didn't like the look of guilt in her eyes. "Floyd. Baby Floyd? That cute little kid that followed Clay everywhere he went?" John Dory nodded. Viva looked pained, and he was feeling worse and worse about this. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. If I had known-"
"Where's Floyd?" Branch growled. Viva gave him an alarmed look.
"I thought that him being here was a danger to my people." Viva said quietly. "So I-I asked him to leave."
"You sent him away?" Branch's eyes flashed. John Dory instinctively stepped in and held his arm out to keep Branch from getting closer to Viva. "You're so worried about your trolls that you can't even be bothered to worry about anyone that isn't in your little circle." Branch laughed bitterly. "You know what, I think I do see the family resemblance."
"Branch." John Dory said warningly. He wasn't happy with Viva either, but he knew if he had to choose between his brothers and literally anybody else, he would choose his brothers every time. Who was he to judge?
"Just to be clear, I'm talking about you and Peppy." Branch growled. "Because Poppy is better than that. She actually lives by Peppy's words of no troll left behind. I know for a fact that Poppy wouldn't sacrifice someone else just because it was easy. If someone was in danger, she would be the one running to help them."
"Branch, this isn't helping." John Dory said. "I saw tracks leaving this place. Let's just go after Floyd." His words achieved his goal. Branch's anger was redirected from Viva to him.
"You saw tracks?" Branch asked. "Why didn't you say anything before?"
"Because you wouldn't have listened to me before." John Dory said. "Now, do you want to fight about it, or do you want to find Floyd?"
Branch growled and gave both him and Viva warning looks. "This isn't over." He said to both of them before he stormed off to try to find the tracks that John Dory had mentioned. He probably thought that John was lying about seeing the tracks in the first place and wanted to see them for himself. John Dory let him go.
"Johnny?" Viva's voice was shaky. He'd never heard her sound so uncertain. "I really am sorry. I didn't know that was Floyd. I wouldn't have done this if I'd have known it was him. C-can you tell Clay that when you find them?"
John Dory's ears twitched. "Hang on. Clay?"
She fiddled with her hands. "Yeah. H-he wasn't very happy when he found out Floyd left. He immediately went after him." She sounded hurt and concerned, and she seemed like she needed someone to talk to, but John Dory wasn't her babysitter right now. He was an older brother, and right now three of his four little brothers were out there. Two of them were upset, and one of them was hurt. They needed him right now.
"I'll tell him." John Dory said. He was trying to wrap his head around the fact that Clay was here. They were one step closer to reaching the Perfect Family Harmony and saving Floyd. And not only was Clay here, but he hadn't hesitated to run off after Floyd to help him. John Dory had thought that of all his brothers, Clay would be the first to renounce them as his brothers. And yet he was out there, taking on the role of a big bro. John Dory was so proud.
"And Johnny," Viva took his hands, a kind look in her eyes. "Clay isn't going to tell you, but I think you deserve to know. He doesn't hate you. He never did. He gets a little frustrated sometimes, but all he wanted was for you guys to be happy."
What she was saying was sweet, and John Dory couldn't help but feel hopeful about it, but he pushed those feelings down. She had to just be trying to make him feel better. She'd always been a really sweet girl. But there was no way that Clay didn't hate him. Not after everything John Dory had done
John Dory gave her a small, pained smile. He nodded at her and ran out to find Branch, Floyd, and Clay. He kept screwing up when it came to his baby brothers, and with each new brother that came along he felt like he was getting even worse. But he needed to keep trying, because if he couldn't help his brothers then he wasn't worth anything.