Middle Darling.

    ╰ · ❀ ›  JOHN WAS RIGHT, aurora had already spent too much money trying to win herself the stupid teddy bear that she clearly wasn’t going to win on her own but she had never really been good at accepting defeat of any kind. “ yeah, i guess so. “ she placed the game darts down and looked back at the bear, weighing her options. did she really need it, or should she just move onto a new game? “ oh, well my father always says there is nothing money can’t by. i don’t really agree with that, but things like this .. i think you can pay your way to victory. “ she concluded, looking over at the kid running the game. she could easily slide him some cash for the bear, but decided against it. “ you know what game i’m really good at?? the one where you shoot water into a clown’s mouth. “ 

Ferris forced himself to laugh a bit at John’s last comment, if anything to relieve some of the tension he held inside. They both stayed so tightly wound usually, although Ferris’ winding made him a mess and John’s only made him more focused, “I-I think you could get anything done if you se-set your mind to it. I don’t know if I want to pla-plan anything though, I’d rather leave that up to other pe-people in Suh-Sunnyside. Pri-Pride can’t happen as a one per-person thing,” Ferris would dread it as a one person thing, he meant, though there was also some truth behind the statement. Anyone can say they’re prideful, but no one person could make change happen. Or if they could, Ferris was certainly not that person, “I guess a com-commu-community thing would be fun though.”

“I like that mindset, Ferris.” John noted, a hint of surprise on his words. Not condescendingly, though. A delighted kind of surprise. The young man was about to retort again, to try and bolster Ferris’ confidence again when his phone vibrated against his hand. Stopping to check in, a small smile rose to his lips, slowly growing into an ironic chuckle. “You know that saying, ask and you shall receive? Or this relatively modern idea of manifesting? I do believe we have just manifested, ourselves.” John explained by showing his phone to Ferris, a bright news notification lighting up the screen announcing Sunnyside’s town festival and pride parade. “It appears as though we it will be more of a community thing. And therefore, it will be fun. And more importantly, you won’t have to worry or fret about planning anything.” He concluded triumphantly with a calming smile. The last thing he wanted to do was push Ferris too far out of his comfort zone. John knew there was a point where it was better to stop pushing. “So? You’ll be going, right?”

“Is that so? Well, I guess we’re just going to have to start our own superhero cinematic universe in order to figure it out. No other way, really.” Hiccup had no idea how such a thing would be started, and he didn’t really care- he just knew it was the sort of joke that someone like John would understand. Admittedly, Hiccup was ready for John to deny his request to go on the rest of Toothless’s walk with him, as he knew that it wasn’t every day that a stranger asked you to come along with their hungry dog to an undisclosed location. But then, it wasn’t every day that Hiccup was able to instantly get along with someone like he did with John. What would be the harm in it, so long as John didn’t turn out to be a dangerous criminal? So when John said yes, Hiccup tried to hide his surprise. “I know better than that, believe me. People hang out with Toothless and Hiccup tags along, not the other way around.” Hiccup had never being liked called Hadley, but he decided that he would let John get away with it. “Off we go, John Darling! Come on, Toothless!” 

“Well, that’s not entirely fair. The villains never win in the end of the movies. I haven’t seen a single one of those comic book movies that have been blowing up all over the place, but I know how they end.” John couldn’t help but pout. Normally, he wasn’t a sore loser. Hell, he barely played enough to know if he was, but the long-going joke ad kept him invested in this silly little fantasy of his. “I’m glad that we have an understanding, then. Not that you aren’t perfectly lovely, but Toothless is the real star of the show. Let’s not fool ourselves, here.” John jested, gesturing to the dog with both his hands like some kind of circus ringmaster. “How long have you had him, then?” John immediately asked as they took a leisurely jaunt through the park. The middle Darling really had no clue where their final destination was or how long the walk was supposed to be. But, he figured he would try and let his mind rest for a change. To just walk with a friend and a dog was fun enough. “Actually, scratch that. Not that I don’t care about how long you’ve had him. But, that’s probably the most predictable question you’ve been asked, hm?” John was bad at small-talk, he knew it. But, if he was to be successful at this whole ‘friendship’ thing, he had to get creative. “What’s the worst mess or accident Toothless has caused or gotten you in? No doubt he’s just as much a rebel at home as he is on the streets.”

Astrid knew that John was right. He was always right, the kid was brilliant, but she had never been one to admit such defeat. She had to remain strong. A strong woman was a right woman. That’s the way she believed it to be at least. Who was she if not a strong woman? Astrid’s jaw actually went slack for a moment. It wasn’t that she didn’t want John’s trust but rather that she didn’t think she’d ever had anyone else’s trust before. Except, she had and she’d broken it and she beat herself up every single day over it. Astrid didn’t know what to do or say with people who trusted her. She didn’t think she was a bad person but she did make mistakes. Tightening her ponytail again, Astrid tried to seem nonchalant. “Uh thank you….” She wasn’t sure how else to respond. “I trust you too.” She said softly. It was hard for her to trust people after all she’d been through but once someone earned her trust then they had it forever. “As for the movies, no one ever likes the movies they used to like as a kid. The great part is, you’re just remembering how fucking shitty the movie was. I mean, you think High School Musical was a masterpiece? No! But seven year old me was ready to fucking break free when I saw that film. It’s awful but that’s part of it’s charm.” Astrid noted with a knowing grin. “I guess it wasn’t too bad. Anymore questions for me?” 

“Cooties do suck. It’s almost as if gendering cooties and making it seem gross for certain girls to be deemed attractive was meant as a way to demean the younger generation of females so that they would believe they were inferior to their male counterparts.” alice tossed out before giving a shrug, “but then again maybe it was just because of the germs. we all were pretty gross as children. at least, i was. so much so, i had to change stockings sometimes three times before bedtime.” alice nodded in understanding. she, too, didn’t have any children. “i suppose we won’t know what works best until someone makes a study about it but i find it difficult to believe they would teach children real anatomy due to the fact that most people don’t want their precious babies being touched or influenced.” the blonde found it silly but she also was one of those babies who didn’t know everything she should about sex and sexual reproduction because of the lack of education. “that sounds just fine. you can come to the pre-slumber part of the slumber party. i will happily accept that.”

Berlioz grinned and nodded. “Sounds about right. I hope she’s got someone to get her out of the clouds.” He joked before he raised his shoulders in a sort of half shrug. “I was at summer ROTC, getting in my training and beating the system so that when I am actually sent off I can just go to OCS and skip the niceties of Basic Training.” He explained before he looked back at John. “Lou is probably off painting up a storm and eating his way through america, while Marie is Marie, going to conquer the world with all her wiles and smarts. She’s absolutely terrifying.”

“𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚔𝚜𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚋𝚕𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚢𝚎𝚊𝚛? no. strike that. it definitely is the best day of the year.” that and christmas and every other holiday that rejoiced in good food and lots of it! you know, ron hyped himself up a lot with food     –     he did like to make and eat it after all!     –     but he really wasn’t that bad… or was he. “awh man, talking and eating is the best. ‘cause you got good company and you got good food and no one cares if you mess up or not as long as you don’t! take this cheese stain, for example –” and he pointed to the sickly yellow spot on his “white” t-shirt “you probably wouldn’t have noticed it before i told you ‘bout it, huh? well, that’s all you gotta do!” not the greatest piece of advice ron had ever given but hey, if you didn’t care about it, why should anyone else! at the question of his name, the longer version of it at least, ron shrugged and popped a few more chips into his open mouth. “yep. you’re definitely about that! but no one besides my mom when she’s pissed calls me that – what about you? john short for something? jonathan? anyone call you johnny?” you know what, ron appreciated the bad joke. hell, he was the king at them. so at that whole ‘frosted flakes’ ordeal, he couldn’t help but let lose the biggest snort of his life as he had to hold back the cheese that threatened to fall from between his lips     ( only to add to the other stain on his shirt ) – “you know what, johnny? i like the way that you roll! normally i do eat all of this but if you wanna pop up a chair and join me, i’d be more than happy to hear your wise cracks if you’ve got anymore!” 

“Totally understandable. That’s the good thing about dogs, after all- the total and complete loyalty, sometimes to the point of going overboard. I’ll try to keep Toothless well-behaved when he and Nana meet.” Hiccup wasn’t sure how he would do this exactly, since what excited Toothless most was meeting other dogs, but he would have to try. “In that case, you’ve just found yourself a mortal enemy, good sir! I’ll just have to out-supervillain you- not sure how, but I’ll try.” Very rarely was Hiccup able to find a natural banter with people he just met, so this instant chemistry was John was refreshing. Instead of a mortal enemy, he’d found himself a friend, which he had been needing for some time now. “I see you have, and in that case, wanna finish Toothless’s walk with us?” 

“A mortal enemy, you say? Well since you had so little faith in me, I just might have to bestow that same lack of faith upon you. I don’t think you’d be a match for me in any universe. So, take that! Ha!” The whole scenario and shtick was escalating by the second and becoming even more absurd. It was a rarity that John ever let go and be downright silly. But, there he was, one eloquent comment away from LARP-ing in the park with his new friend. The ever-organized part of him wanted to whip out his planner to see if he had any more plans for the day, but he denied it. Going along with this more ‘fun’ version of himself, he threw caution to the wind. “I would love to. Any opportunity I can get to spend more time with Toothless, I will gladly take. Don’t think that this is about you.” He disclaimed before letting out another laugh. John was actually sort of enjoying being a little more fun and carefree. “But, first just a couple of things,” And then John proceeded to pump some hand sanitizer in his hands as well as retrieve some complimentary doggy waste bags from a dispenser a few feet away. “Alright! Now we can go. Lead the way, Hadley Hiccup!” But, of course he still had to stay true to who he was. Naturally.

Vidia subconsciously puffed out her chest and slid her sunglasses back into her hair. “Hell yeah, we won’t!” She exclaimed before rubbing her hands together and trying to get a peek at the house he had decided was worthy of their time before nodding. “Lead the way, John!! You should be a real estate agent damn…you aren’t one right??”

John chortled and offered his raven-haired companion a comforting smile. He always did appreciate how outspoken and confident Vidia seemed to be. “Heavens no,” He replied, turning the block and tilting his head over his shoulder at Vidia. “I would never dream of being one. Too much social interaction for my taste. And demanding people. But, my over-analytical and meticulous skill set sort of lends me to it, don’t they? I might not want to be a real-estate agent, but I am always happy to help a friend out. And here we are!” John exclaimed, checking the listing off on his list. The house was extravagant and screamed polished opulence. Nothing too crazy, but just right. “Are you ready to tour?”

“Yeah, same here. But I, uh, I’m sure we’ll both be fine,” said Hiccup as he hoped he had not said anything that had offended his new friend. If this guy’s relationship with his father was anything like the one Hiccup had with his, then there was a good chance that the topic could lead to a few sensitive spots.  He was glad the topic was steered back to their dogs. “Toothless could probably put up a fight, even at this size, but I don’t think he would want to. He’s too sweet! And I bet Nana is the same way.” He would soon find out if this doggy play date actually took place. “That’s just the vibe I get, but hey, I could be wrong. Though I myself find that I have more a ‘villain’s bumbling minion’ vibe.” Hiccup shrugged in both agreement and defeat. “If being bad at choosing names is another thing we have in common, I guess that wouldn’t be so bad.” He then nodded as an official greeting. “Nice to meet you, John. Don’t worry about the connection- my parents just named me Hadley because it’s similar to Haddock, my last name. As for Hiccup, that’s anyone’s guess.” 

“Nana can be kind of feisty, be forewarned. While she is most definitely an older, house-dog, when it comes to us Darlings, she’d protect us like we were her own. And I guess, in a way, we are. But, other than that, she’s a complete sweetheart!” John concluded when he really thought about it. But, the last thing he needed screwing up a rare friendship was his dog going into mama-bear protection mode. So, he had to make sure he forewarned Hiccup prior to the dogs meeting. “Well, since you seemingly think so little of super-villain prowess, you most certainly won’t be at the top of my list of applicants for my henchmen. After all, every super-villain needs allegiance and loyalty.” John jested with a playful purse of his lips. Naturally, John Darling would be a horrendous antagonist, but the thought of it was enough to make him laugh. The mental image of him in a dark cape with a sinister laugh was so ridiculous in it’s own right. “Well, Hadley Hiccup,” The combination of names just sounded right to him. If his folks could name him Hadley Haddock, Hadley Hiccup wasn’t much of a stretch. “I have officially finished my lunch.” John announced, taking a final bite of the hot dog, before disposing in a nearby trash receptacle. “Were you walking Hiccup before I inadvertently distracted him? My apologies, again.” John knew the struggles of trying to keep a large dog on a leash focused. It could be nightmarish.

“I-I didn’t say anything about a pride event! I d-don’t know the first thing about event planning.” Ferris almost choked on the water he was drinking. Not because of his fear of large evets for once, but because John’s bold statement hit him hard, ‘the world accommodates me’ resonating strongly with the both of them. Of course, Ferris didn’t quite believe it for himself, but John’s was undoubtedly one of the things Ferris had liked best about him. Though Ferris always wore his emotions on his sleeve, he also greatly admired whenever anyone just openly spoke their mind in such a way, “You-You’re not feeling pri-pride year round? I-I don’t have to remind you, honestly see-seems like you’ve got a better handle on it than I do.”

“That may be, but you certainly expressed interest in Sunnyside acknowledging and celebrating it’s queer citizens. What better way to do that than to put on a pride event?” John asked, brows raised. Of course he knew that the moment he suggested it, Ferris would be opposed to the idea. But, he figured something pertaining to pride would help him take the bait. Because John seemingly believed in Ferris more than he believed in himself. And if he had to be the one to make sure he bolstered the other, then he would happily do it. “I absolutely feel pride, no doubt. But, I’m not necessarily the best at remembering that pride is more than a June-specific event. After all, there isn’t much acknowledgement of it until the summer hits. Hence why I think a pride event outside of June would be a splendid idea. If anything, I would be happy to lend a hand and help you put it up. Someone as anal-retentive as me could throw their hat into the ring of event-planning.” Perhaps if they did it together, Ferris would be more up to the idea. Or so he hoped. All John could do was try.

“Well, that’s dads. What are you gonna do, right? I mean, I guess it’s not all dads. I hope not,” or else the two of us are screwed if we ever become fathers, Hiccup continued the thought in his head. But then, maybe not; Hiccup couldn’t imagine any situation in which he would become anything like his father, and this guy- whatever his name was- didn’t seem like he would either. “Toothless is one, too, though I guess you already figured that out for yourself.” He nodded in agreement. “And I will be sure not to mess with your evil plans, as I’m sure they’ll actually be for the better. Until then, I enthusiastically await an update.” Hiccup didn’t mine his conversational partner giving most of his attention to Toothless- after all, it’s not like he could blame him. Toothless was, as always, made for the spotlight. “Hey, I’m the one who named the dog with teeth ‘Toothless,’ so I’m not one to judge.” Hiccup’s eyes widened in surprise; he had mostly been joking about the meeting of Nana and Toothless. Was he seriously making a new friend right now? “Oh, yeah, definitely! That sounds great! Oh, and, uh, I’m Hadley. But people call me Hiccup.”

“I would certainly hope not. If that were the case, I would abstain from having any children.” And he left it at that. Usually, his lips weren’t so loose when talking about his father, but since his companion seemed to introduce the subject, it simply got his mind racing, meaning his mouth let things slip without even thinking. “There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that Toothless was a lover and not a fighter from the moment I laid eyes on him. Though to be fair, there was a lot of terror in my eyes, initially, thinking I was about to get pounced on, but I digress.” Even that wouldn’t detract from his love of the dog, already. “So, you actually don’t think I could be capable of super-villain levels of evil? I don’t know whether to be grateful or offended.” John jested. Though, in all fairness, he wasn’t the kind of person who really exuded any kind of ‘super’ energy, villainous or heroic. “So, I lacked creativity and you lacked logic? I don’t think I could tell which is more troublesome in the long haul. But, let’s just say we didn’t pick the best names and leave it at.” He laughed inwardly, that kind where one doesn’t really open their mouth; just a smile and a delighted huff of breath through the nose. “I just figured Nana needed more canine companions. After all, most of her time growing up was looking after humans who were growing up. So, she never really got the dog socialization she deserves. Hadley? Hiccup? I’m not sure if I see the connection between the two, but alright. Hadley-Hiccup, I’m John. People call me John. Pleasure.” With that, he outstretched his hand.