#ds;kfhsd;lkjfs;kldjf;l

[missblissy]

Request: @vanderlinderideordie  Fandom: Red Dead Redemption Genre: fanfiction, one shot. AU, ask request Characters: Original Character, Lenny Summers, Van der Linde Gang

((This was a request for some OC x Father!Lenny interactions!! Sorry this took a bit of a wait, I’ve been busy with school!!!! I hope you enjoy it!!))

It was all a bit strange. Well, honestly it was more than that. It was odd because Lenny never thought of himself as a father. He was still just a kid himself in some ways. He was still very young, but here he was. Standing before him was one of many new people to cluttered the camp. Dadi was his name. Lenny had found himself sitting by a river that flushed through camp with the person that called him Father. His own son. 

It was quiet, and a little tense. There was so much information that broke the fabrics of time. Lenny had a hard time wrapping his head around it. Honestly thinking about it gave him a bit of a headache. He shook his head slightly to usher the thoughts away.

He focused on Dadi, who was rather very quiet. He didn’t seem like someone much for words. Lenny took this moment of silence as a chance to look over the other. Dadi was tall, that was for sure, and very well built. Much more than Lenny’s own skinny arms and legs.

“I’m sorry,” The words tore Lenny from his thoughts. Dadi was sitting there with his hands folded together in his lap. He seemed troubled. He kept ringing his finger in his hands, “I feel we have made a mistake,”

Lenny raised a brow slowly, slightly confused, “A mistake?” 

“I don’t think...” Dadi paused and then clenched his hands tightly, “I don’t think it was wise to come here,” Lenny stayed quiet, waiting to hear what else he had to say, “Everyone seems upset.”

They both looked over their shoulders to the camp behind them. He wasn’t wrong. The camp was definitely crowded and confused. Lenny shook his head though. He didn’t understand much how the fabric of reality worked, but he knew what a sad and tortured kid looked like. 

“You said you had your reasons,” Lenny brought himself to gaze at the rivers slow flow of water. The sunlight reflected off it clumsy waves and Lenny had a moment were he remembered something from his childhood. He always wished his life was better, that he had a loving parent, a home, “Dutch understands. So does everyone else,” He finally said after a moment or two.

Dadi let out a huff, almost like he was a moody teen even though he was far older, “We’re from another dimension,” Whatever that meant, “We aren’t even really related,” Dadi sighed and Lenny could see pain flash across his face, “My real father is dead. The one that I knew? He’s gone, killed before I could even do anything,”

There was so much more laced in his words. Lenny could feel that Dadi wanted to talk some more, but he chooses silence instead. They both shared a deep breath. This was a lot harder then either of them expected. How does one talk to a kid from another universe from the future?

How do you say, Hi dad! I’m 25 years old and I’m from a whole other place from the future that doesn’t even happen! Let’s be friends!

Dadi’s thoughts kept swarming back and forth like a tidal wave. He was torn right down the middle. He was beyond elated to see his father again... But this wasn’t his father. This Lenny knew nothing about him, his mother, his friends or his life. This Lenny was barely 20 years old. He was older than his own fucking father!

He thought this would be an amazing adventure! He thought he’d have fun! Truth me be told, however, this wasn’t fun. It hurt. It hurt a lot. And it showed all over Dadi’s face. He kept biting at the inside of his cheek, trying to find a way to say, I’m sorry I wasted your time. I’ll leave.

Something happened at the moment that he’d never expect. Lenny put his hand on his shoulder, gave it a light squeeze and said, “I might not be the person you’ve been looking for, but just cause of that, it don’t mean we can’t still be friends,”

Maybe it was the fact that it was still Lenny, this was still his father. Maybe not the same one, but he looked and sounded the same. He even did the same thing as his own father. With a smile and a pat on his back, Lenny changed the subject, “What did you say you use to do? You said something about.. a different universe?”

“An alternatie universe,” Dadi corrcted.

“Yeah! That! Tell me more about that! And your friends!” He waved his hand over to the others. Dadi looked at them, he saw Quinn and Farah off in the distance. They looked like they were enjoying themselves more than him. Though a small part of his heart grew as he watched them laugh.

He turned back to Lenny and slowly started talking. He talked about his life, his childhood, his adventures, and sorrows. Dadi opened up much more than he thought he would. He felt a single blissful wisp of nostalgia. He felt like he was a kid fishing with his father again, minus the fishing. He missed his father so much, his mother too. He missed everyone and he wasn’t sure if he’d ever see them again.

Maybe this was the closest he’d get. There was no such power to reverse the times of the universe, there was no way to change fate without terrible consequences. That’s why they traveled time dimensions, not time itself. 

The two of them shared a handful of laughs. Dadi chuckled quietly as he listened to Lenny bost about how great Arthur and Hosea were, “I remember this one time, Arthur pulled this nasty prank on me. Just as I was about to sit down in my chair he threw actual horse shit under me! I sat right in it! That bastard laughed his ass off and ran for the hills,”

“You’re lucky!” Dadi laughed, throwing a hand slightly as he waved off their chuckles, “I can’t die!” He joked, “I get shot for fun sometimes!” He supposed having superpowers were amazing and all, just not when your friends took advantage of that.

“Really?” Lenny took on this look of amazement, “What about them?” He jabbed a fun back towards camp, “Can any of them do anything cool?”

With a nod of his head, Dadi talked about the rest of the group, “Some of them yeah, depends on who’s asking, haha,” 

“And what about me? Did I do anything special? Did I become a superhero too?”

The question wasn’t meant to hurt, but it did, “No,” Dadi remembered those days, he shook his head, “Not really. Everything was normal for a bit, we all were,” 

The mood had quickly gone from pleasant to depressing. Lenny didn’t want to sit in sorrows so he stood up and looked to his son, “We should go for a ride,” He said with a smile, “I’d like to catch up with you some more,” Catch up. This was the first day they met and Lenny was treating him as if they’ve known each other their whole lives.

Dadi felt a wave of excitement rush over him. Maybe this wasn’t so bad after all, “Sure,” He stood up from the log, “I’d love to.” 

Before the two of them could leave their spot by the river, Lenny paused and grabbed Dadi by the arm for a second, “Hey. I know I’m not your real father, and these words might not mean as much, but I think he’d be really proud of you. I’m proud of you.”

Those words meant more than the world to him. Dadi could hear a distant voice calling from his memories. Something sparked in him and he acted without thinking. He hugged Lenny, muttering a humble but quiet, “Thank you,” All of the troubled thoughts he had before washed away in one fell swoop. He felt like he had gotten a second chance like he could start over again and this time he wouldn’t make any mistakes.

As he walked off with his father, leaving camp to enjoy a ride around the county, Dadi felt as though he had finally finished a long long journey.