OKAY I'm going to try and actually talk about my Hicklings AU on here with help from @sandflakedraws 's WONDERFUL fanart of it that they have let me use to share for this post. This whole AU started due to a "what if a dye in the shampoo bottle prank turned Hickory's leg fur a different color too" Hickory re-color montage, someone called the recolors "the hicklings" and then I said I was going to name them and it spiraled from there. So onto the actual AU (so far): It takes place a couple months post TBT, Hickory had heard about something going down at Mt. Rageous that involved Floyd, and went to go check on him at Pop Village, but JD, Clay, and Branch when they saw him (and Branch revealed he was a Bounty Hunter) in no uncertain terms told Hickory that Floyd needed to heal and be safe and recover from what happened and low-key told Hickory out of blind over-protectiveness that he was too dangerous to have around. Hickory, not wanting to come between Floyd and his brothers, decided to let himself be heartbroken and disappeared for several months, Dickory not even knowing where he went. But in those couple months, all the heartbreak and yearning resulted in Hickory having not just one, but FIVE eggs (due to hair hcs I have built off of Joey's). He also is having them Guy Diamond style, meaning he is their only parent. So Hickory ends up at a random inn on the outskirts of Country territory.
And meets Sam, the innkeeper. Everyone say hello to Sam we love you Sam, more on her later. The eggs are hatching early, and Hickory is totally cool as a cucumber and handling it great. The first three hatch without major issues, but they are clearly premature and don't even have their eyes open yet. But boy can they cry. The first one was all green and the second was all blue??? Sure doesn't help Hickory that the third one hatched with Floyd's colors...
But there's still two eggs left and they are not detaching right away like the first three. The next one actually starts to hatch without actually detaching its egg, and when that ones comes out with pink skin it only adds to the color mystery happening.
The final one is silent in the egg, but Hickory knows that the egg cracked, but turns out it cracked from the previous one breaking out of the egg beside it. So Hickory has to make the decision to detach and hatch open the egg himself, and the (very) lil guy needs a bit of a jump start to get going but he's okay and now all his boys are crying and.... what now? Sam time!
And Hank! Her Coyote Camper. Sam checks in on her patron and finds Hickory needing a bit of guidance, and unbeknownst to her at the time, is about to get very attached to this fella and his hatchlings. So they take Hank back home, where Dickory, and surprisingly, John Dory are. Yadda Yadda they need to get Hickory and the boys to a doctor because the youngest is coughing and Hickory is fighting to not fall over. Rhonda, with Hank tagging along, take them to Pop Village, Dickory getting to meet his nephews on the way.
As they get closer, Hank grabs a hostage
Hi Bruce you're such a good sport. So Bruce ends up carry Hickory to the hospital, the dude fully out by this point, and everyone is taken care of but John Dory brings up something important: Floyd, who has no idea this is happening. As John goes to grab Floyd (and Clay and Branch), the hatchlings get taken to get checked out, which leads to Hickory having the mother hen freakout ever when he wakes back up.
But once things calm down (slightly), Floyd enters the game
AND WE'RE ALL CAUGHT UP but also have some extras and deleted scenes and stuff I haven't written happening yet