Red Dead Redemption II Preferences and Oneshots 3

Dutch Van der Linde: Like Father, Like Daughter

The Van der Linde Gang & Female Reader
Dutch Van der Linde & Daughter reader (16)

Summary: Having always been able to see the faults of your father, Dutch Van der Linde, you eventually decide to take matters into your own hands. All you want is to save your family from his madness.

Word Count: 5500

Everyone knew that your relationship with your father was strained, that you had never been on the best of terms. The gang always seemed to be his main priority, not you, no matter how much he claimed otherwise. To an extent you could understand but you still thought that he should pay his own child more attention.

Dutch often referred to Arthur and John as his sons, and you did see the two of them as your older brothers, but he never treated them like it. Not any more anyway. He was more interested in what they could do for him, he didn't even give you that privilege, like he thought there wasn't anything you could do for him anyway.

A part of you believed that Dutch never planned on being a real father, that you weren't exactly a part of his many plans. He never actually said that, you just figured.

He had never been mean or cruel to you, you just never really got a long. You didn't agree with him on how he saw the world and how he wanted to take the gang to the future he envisioned. You knew his plans were unrealistic and had told him so but that only ever made him mad, he told you to stay out of it, basically told you that the grown ups were talking.

Hosea though...Hosea had always been fatherly. To Arthur, to John and to you. He really had been your second father all your life since your mother wasn't in the picture. He taught you how to read and write, how to use a gun and knife, how to hunt, even gave you a few tips on running cons even if he didn't like the idea of you doing that. When Dutch didn't have the time for you, Hosea always did. Or he made time for you.

As you grew up, you grew even further apart from your father. You grew even closer to Arthur, having formed a true sibling bond with him and John, though you and Arthur talked more. Mostly because John always seemed to be off somewhere being angsty, if anyone could get him to open up though, it was you. And you couldn't deny that the two of you liked to annoy Arthur from time from time.

-----

Having been pacing the length of your tent for the last half hour, you finally walked over to Arthur's tent. The canvas was open so you just walked inside.

"Hey Arthur, I'm going to check out a lead. Interested?" you asked casually.

"Sure. You ready to head out now?" Arthur nodded. You knew that he didn't like you going out on jobs alone so you knew that he would come with you if he was free.

"If you don't mind" you nodded.

"C'mon then" Arthur grabbed his jacket before following you out of the tent.

You both headed to the horses, mounting up and riding out of the camp. Neither of you spoke until you were away from the camp, you too lost in thought but Arthur spoke up.

"So, what's this lead?" Arthur asked, wondering where you were going.

"...there isn't a lead" you confessed with a sigh.

"Oh?..." Arthur raised an eyebrow, looking at you curiously.

"I wanted to talk to you about something...something important" you told him a little nervously.

"...alright. Wanna stop off somewhere? Let the horses rest while we talk?" Arthur asked, able to tell by your tone that it really was important.

"Sure" you nodded.