Red Dead Redemption II Preferences and Oneshots

Dutch Van der Linde: Fighter Part 2

So Dutch mounted his horse and rode into town, heading straight to where he remembered seeing you fight for the first time.

Dutch walked around the corner, trying to stay back from the crowd that was placing bets, while he looked around for you. A frown formed on his face when he realised that there was a fight in progress, since he couldn't see you anywhere he had a feeling that you were already fighting. So, he started to push his way through the crowd.

You grunted as you knocked your opponent to the ground, them groaning at they tapped out and surrendered. Most of the crowd cheered but a few mumbled to themselves as they mourned their loses. The referee grabbed your wrist and held your hand above your head, christening you as the winner of the fight.

You smiled to yourself as you lifted your gaze, glancing around the crowd. You heart dropped in your chest and the smile completely fell from your face when your gaze met a familiar pair of eyes. Every thing seemed to stop when you saw Dutch watching you from the edge of the ring. You could see the disappointment on his face but there was an emotion in his eyes that you couldn't explain, but you definitely didn't like it.

The referee dropped your hand and you were slowly brought back into reality. You quickly left the ring, hurrying over to grab your things so that you could try to explain this to Dutch. You pulled your jacket on and threw your satchel over your shoulder before running over to Dutch, who was already walking away from you.

"Dutch..." you called his name, your voice was shakier than you thought it would be. You just hoped that he wouldn't be mad at you for breaking your promise. "Dutch, I'm sorry" you told him as you grabbed his wrist, making him turn back to face you.

"Let's get you cleaned up" Dutch sighed, placing his hand on your back as he walked you towards the familiar saloon, where you rented the room last time.

You were speechless, was he not mad at you? What was he going to say?

You got the room key from the barkeep before locking yourselves away in the room. You were still silent as you dropped your satchel down on the dressing table but you could feel Dutch watching you.

"I know you're mad but...I don't need the lecture" you sighed as you held onto the edge of the dressing table, screwing your eyes closed as you hung your head. Still, you could feel Dutch's eyes on your back.

"...I'm not mad" Dutch sighed softly as he walked up behind you, his hands landing gently on your arms.

"You're not?" you asked as you opened your eyes, looking over your shoulder at him.

"No...I mean, I was. I was mad that you broke your promise and that you lied to me but I saw that shame in your eyes when you saw me at the ring. I know that you want to quit but that it isn't that easy" Dutch spoke softly as he soothingly ran his hands up and down your arms. He knew that you didn't need a lecture or somebody being mad at you, that would only push you to fight more. You needed someone to understand and to be there for you.

"It's like gambling, it literally is gambling. When I'm stressed out or frustrated, it's what I want to do. It helps me release that tension. It's not as easy to give up as I thought it would be" you confessed as you turned around to face him, your hands falling tiredly to your sides. "It makes me feel like shit. It causes me pain, it makes my muscles ache, it tires me out, it makes me feel guilty...but I still can't stop" you hung your head once again, shaking your head slightly.

"You can, and this time I'm going to help you" Dutch assured you as he cupped your face in his hands, making you lift your head and meet his gaze. You completely swooned when you saw the look of love and concern in his eyes. "I asked you to stop for your own good but I didn't help you. I thought that you would just be able to stop, I see that it isn't that simple now. This time I'm going to help you, I want you to be able to come to me when you need help" he explained, brushing his thumbs against your cheeks. He could see the guilt in your glossy eyes, he just wanted to help you now.

"Thank you..." you breathed, your body relaxing some more as Dutch rested his forehead against yours. You placed your hands over his, smiling softly as your eyes fluttered closed. You melted into Dutch's embrace as you felt his lips ghost over yours.

Dutch prepared you a bath before letting you bathe. Once you were washed, you changed into some clean clothes and braided your hair. Now, you were sitting on the edge of the bed while Dutch knelt on the ground between your legs, re-bandaging your hands.

"It pains me to see you like this" Dutch admitted, his voice quiet and honest.

"I know, that's what I hate the most about this. I don't ever want to hurt you" you told him, using the hand that he wasn't bandaging to stroke over his hair affectionately.

"Then that should give you motivation to stop for good" Dutch smiled up at you, making you smile back at him. "I'm going to be here for you properly this time, I promise" he promised you again as his tone fell more serious, he wanted you to know that he was going to be by your side through this.

"You're a wonderful man, Dutch" you spoke softly as you brushed your thumb against his cheek, he meant so much to you.

"It's what you deserve" Dutch assured you as he finished wrapping your hand and stood up. He cupped your face in his hands again as he lent down to share a loving kiss with you. He wasn't going to fail you and you weren't going to let him down.

-----

You were in the tent that you share with Dutch, letting down your hair as you got ready for bed. It had been about two weeks since you quit fighting for a second time and Dutch had been a lot more hands on about dealing with the situation. This time he didn't just pretend like everything was fixed and okay, he made sure to check on you and learnt to tell when you were needing to do something to replace that urge to fight.

"How are you feeling?" Dutch asked with a soft hum as he wrapped his arms around your waist from behind, resting his chin on your shoulder. You smiled as your back pressed against his chest, you hadn't even heard him enter the tent.

"I'm fine, not feeling the need to fight" you answered him with a chuckle, knowing what he was really asking. You turned around in his arms, wrapping your arms around his neck as you smiled at him.

"Good. You're far to beautiful to allow yourself to be beaten up like that" Dutch complimented, using one hand to push your hair out of your face.

"Shut up" you rolled your eyes in an attempt to hide the blush that stained your cheeks, Dutch sure was a sweet talker.

"Now, let's focus all of that fighting energy onto something more positive" Dutch smirked, making you raise an eyebrow at him.

"Wha-Dutch!" you gasped as Dutch swept you off of your feet, laughing to yourself as he held you bridal style. Dutch only laughed along as he walked over to your shared bed, you only sent him a playful glare as he dropped you down onto the layers of animal furs.

Dutch smiled down at you before discarding his jacket and connecting his lips to yours in a passionate kiss.

Of course, Dutch knew that it might not be an easy road to getting you to quit fighting. He understood that now, but he would be there for you every step of the way.

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