A/N: Hi! Again, I'd love to extend my gratitude to all of you for supporting this story. Anyway, here's a reply to some of your reviews.
BornOnTheBreakOfDawn - I heard about that news as well, and it downright disappointed me. Reflection and I'll Make A Man Out Of You are the two songs that distinguished Mulan from the other Disney Princess films. And about the sidekick thing...I just watched Moana the other day, and I laughed out loud when Maui said that. Poppy will definitely have a sidekick in this story.
AnimalGirl1507 and Shiego627 - thank you for your support. It really helps and inspires me to continue writing...and to update ASAP
SkySorrow - you are labeled as a guest, but I would still reply to answer your questions. This story is a fusion of Mulan and Trolls, so who knows...probably (I don't like to spoil the plot LOL)
So much for that, here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Callisto Altair owns nothing, he just wanders around the galaxy...he's not even an astronaut.
The Troll soldiers who were left behind to guard the Wall gathered and formed platoons to properly disseminate the orders passed down by their superior. "Keep your eyes open! Secure the gates at all cost! If the enemies attack or if you see anything suspicious, light the beacons of the towers! Understood!?"
"Yes, Sir!" The soldiers dispersed immediately and went to the posts that they were assigned to. Despite his absence, the Troll General wanted to make sure that the Kingdom's security shall not be compromised. The night before he left for the Capital of the Troll Kingdom, Branch strictly laid down assignments to the lieutenants that he placed in charge while he's away. Assignments that shall ensure the Kingdom's safety from the enemies, from the Horns.
Soldiers were assigned on each of the many watchtowers of the Great Wall; their primary task is to light up the beacons in case of any attack. When one of the beacons are lit, the nearby beacons must be ignited as well to signal the whole Army where the enemies are attacking. In case all the signals were set alight, the soldiers at the base of the Wall shall take off and warn every town and village under the Troll Tree Kingdom of the invasion. Soldiers were also assigned to patrol on the crest and on the base of the Wall to increase their visibility.
All of them were on heightened alert after what took place in Hornwood, they never idled and would only rest once their shifts are over. They endured the snow and the freezing winds from the northern reaches of the land. For three days, they saw no sign of the enemies, not even the sound of snow crunching under their feet. The only thing they heard were the howls of the northern winds and the sound that the branches of the dead trees of the Dark Forest would make. Everything seems to be at peace, that was until the fourth day…
"You, patrol over the Eastern Passage." The soldier did as he was told and took off. He walked along the span of the Wall between the two watchtowers closest to the Eastern Passage. He didn't hear any sign of movement, that was until a very fast creature swooped down and knocked his helmet off. The Troll looked up and saw an antlion flying overhead before it perched on top of the watchtower. He wondered what is that insect doing on such a cold environment, as antlions were known to thrive in warmer places. He never got his question answered though, as grappling hooks shot upward to the crest of the Wall and grasped the concrete surface. The soldier looked down over the parapet and saw grey Trolls climbing upward from the base at the other side of the Wall. He tried cutting the lines, but more hooks would emerge and replace the ones he cut. He ran to the nearest watchtower to get the beacon ignited.
"Light the signals, we're under attack!" The Trolls at the watchtowers looked over from their posts and saw the enemies emerge from the parapets. They saw the soldier running and shouting for them to light the signal. They moved as fast as they could and grabbed the nearest torch they could see. The Troll holding the torch was about to light the signal when a hooded Troll emerged in front of them. The antlion perched on the Troll's shoulder and made a faint buzzing sound.
The Troll removed his hood and showed his face. His skin is dark grey, almost like black, the darkest shade that the soldiers have ever seen. His hair, his eyebrows and his moustache are black like the night sky. His eyes are sable with white irises that glowed in the dark. He has a scar on his left cheek that ran from his jaw up to his left eye. The Troll gave them a sly sneer that struck fear to the Troll soldiers on the tower. The Troll holding the torch gathered all of his courage and tossed the fire to the beacon, which was immediately set ablaze.
"Now, all of the Kingdom will know you're here" the soldier said. The other soldiers ignited the other beacons as well, one after the other, until all the beacons of the Great Wall were lit. The alarms were set off and the Trolls prepared for the battle that is about to transpire. The soldiers assigned to warn the Kingdom left as soon as the last beacon was set alight.
The soldiers watched the black Troll snap the flag of the Kingdom and set it on fire. He gave them the same evil grin and looked at each one of them. "Perfect" the black Troll muttered. His voice was raspy, but it was still able to send shivers down the Troll guards' spines.
"Princess Poppy? Here's your breakfast!" Suki entered the room and pulled the drapes of Poppy's room to let some light in. "Poppy, it's been three days. Your father must've forgiven you already." Suki placed the tray on the table and sat on Poppy's bed. "Please don't punish yourself. You still have a lot of commitments to fulfill in the palace. You'll have your lessons today about the history of the Kingdom. After that, you'll be training how to mount a fox. You love animals, right? They'll let you pick your fox!" Suki sighed when she still got no response from the Princess. "At least try to lift your spirits up. Your history lessons, I know it would be boring, but they are quite important, and General Branch won't like it if you'll be late for your training."
"Pfft. What's the point? I'll never be the 'perfect queen' that they expect me to be." Poppy turned to her side and hugged one of her pillows tight. "Dad's disappointed at me, Branch is probably mad at me for prying on his soldiers, Creek is probably punished by now, and the Council, the King's infallible Council are probably laughing their hearts out by now."
Suki sighed. She no longer knows what to do with her anymore. She's been sulking inside her room for days. She'll only leave her bed when she wants to eat. "I'll just leave your food on the table, okay? If you need something, please don't hesitate to call me or Satin and Chenille." Suki stood and left the room. She took a final glance of the Princess as she closed the door. She walked away, still thinking of how to get her to leave her chambers.
"Suki?" an elderly voice called. Suki looked up and saw a yellow Troll with lilac hair. She wears clothes that are quite similar to the servants of the palace, the only difference is that her uniform is purple, embellished with golden threads. A common palace servant wears blue, adorned with silver threads like hers and the twin's.
"Lady Rue!" Suki ran and threw her arms around the elderly Troll and hugged her tight.
"How have you been? Is the Princess giving you too much problem?" she asked. The red Troll replied her with a sigh and a forced smile. "Fine, tell me what the problem is."
Poppy heard three sharp knocks on her door before it swung open. "Princess Poppy, you get off of that bed this instant!" Poppy bolted up and saw a familiar Troll standing at her door. She quickly stood and ran to her and threw her arms around her.
"Lady Rue! When did you arrive?" Poppy asked excitedly.
"Just a few hours ago." The elder Troll ruffled the Princess's hair and examined her. "And why are you still in bed?" Poppy just giggled. "How about we go for a walk at the gardens after you eat your breakfast?" she said, to which Poppy replied with a nod. Lady Rue glanced at the door and smiled at Suki, who sighed in relief.
"So, I've heard that you were having a hard time with your training as Queen?" Poppy froze in the middle of the bridge. She started to feel embarrassed about what happened that night when her father got so mad at her and said that she dishonored him. Who wouldn't get mad for what she did? All of the Town leaders were there to witness the proclamation, but she chose to sneak out and go to a different party instead.
"It's a long story…" Poppy said.
"Then I'd be more than willing to listen." Lady Rue looked at her with deep compassion, which made Poppy feel a bit more eased. "Go on tell me."
"So, I kinda sneaked out of the palace to join the village party a few days ago. I only did that because this place, everything in it, the duties, the Council…all of it is making me feel that I no longer own my life. Don't get me wrong, I love the Kingdom, but why can't I at least…be myself again?" Poppy took a breath, a very deep breath. She was starting to feel less fidgety and depressed, being able to vent all her problems out to someone, who she knows would understand, is probably the best thing that has ever happened to her. "Dad wants me to be the 'perfect queen', the council doesn't believe that I can lead the Kingdom, and the General thinks that I should be waiting for some Troll to sweep me off of my feet and take me to a land far, far away and live happily ever after. I want to be a Queen who will leave a great mark in history, just like my ancestors, but I guess…I am far from being that leader because I don't have the same traits that they had. I am a woman and not everyone in this Kingdom believes that a woman can lead a Kingdom."
"Oh Poppy, being a woman has nothing to do with your capabilities as a leader. You can be anything you want to if you'll just believe in yourself. Do what makes you happy…do the things you love to do. Show the Kingdom that you can, and maybe someday, their views might change. Show them what a woman is and the things that she can do." Lady Rue cupped her cheeks and looked straight into her eyes. "Like those Kings, do what you love the most. The palace doesn't confine you, it never did. You felt confined because you listened to what the others were saying to you. You make your own destiny, not them. You mess up, then don't stop trying again because only you have the power over your life. I'm sure your father would understand once you explain everything to him."
"Thank you" Poppy muttered as they continued their walk around the garden.
"Oh careful!" Poppy felt a sudden tug on her arm. "You won't want to get your feet on those elderberries. Trolls who got their feet and hands soaked in its juice, took weeks to completely wash it off." Lady Rue pulled Poppy to a safe distance away from the clumps of berries that fell on the ground.
Poppy felt more relieved after her conversation with Lady Rue. She's one of the few Trolls that she trusts completely aside from Suki, Satin and Chenille. Being able to talk to someone wiser really helped her in her problems; although, she can't really say that it's completely solved, but at least, she no longer has the urge to sulk inside her room.
The day passed and Poppy did everything on her schedule, the first thing on the list was her class about the History of the Troll Tree Kingdom with one of the maesters of the palace, Maester Hawthorne. The class was mostly about the former Kings of the Troll Kingdom, which her father has already told her every time they'd go to the Hall of Kings. Poppy felt bored…really bored, she wished that time would just pass by faster, so she could get to the next thing on her schedule.
"And that is why King Perry was called 'the Unlikely'" Poppy looked up to the Maester and hoped that he's already done because she heard the story many times. She grumbled when the Maester opened a new book and started flipping its pages. "As for now, I am going to teach you the history of the Troll Tree." The Princess rested her head on the desk and listened unexcitedly to the old Troll.
"Aside from the former Troll Kings, the four guardians of the Kingdom are also believed to reside within the Tree" the Maester said. The subject piqued Poppy's interest that it made her sit up straight and look intently to the Troll.
"Four guardians?" Poppy asked. The Maester looked up from the book and fixed his gaze on her. He was quite surprised that the Princess is not aware of the story of the guardians that watches over the Kingdom.
"Perhaps King Peppy hasn't told you the story of the protectors of the Kingdom, Your Highness?" Poppy nodded without looking away from Maester Hawthorne. "The Troll Kingdom has four guardians. Each of them represents the gifts—namely passion, wisdom, compassion and courage—that the Tree has showered to all of the Trolls in every town and villages that has pledged their allegiance to the Kingdom. When the Tree was still a young sapling, King Pebble placed four stones around it. Each stone embodied one of the four gifts, but legends say that those stones were no ordinary, as the guardians are said to reside inside them."
"And the stones are still there up to this day?" Poppy felt excited, she just wanted to run to the Troll Tree and search for the four stones that the Maester was talking about. She wondered why her father and Lady Rue never mentioned that story to her before.
"I fear that there are only three that was left inside the cavern of the Troll Tree, Your Highness. As one of the stones was stolen many years ago" the Troll said. Poppy's face dropped, her excitement went away and was replaced with distress.
"Stolen? How can the Kingdom receive all of the four gifts if one of the stones got stolen?" Princess Poppy stood and approached the Maester.
"As much as I wanted to tell you more, but our class for today is finished, Your Highness. Perhaps I could tell you more on our next meeting." Maester Hawthorne tapped her shoulder before leaving. Poppy frowned and looked outside of the window and saw the Troll Tree swaying to the direction of the wind. She sighed before checking her schedule again.
"Looks like I'll get to pick my fox today!" Poppy said excitedly. She left the room and went back to her chambers to get changed into a more appropriate attire. She can't wear a dress while trying to mount a fox, she needed lighter clothes. Foxes are known to be sneaky creatures, riding them may be the hardest thing to do for first-timers like her.
"You look excited…looking forward to meet your General?" Satin asked as she combed the Princess's hair. Poppy nudged her and glared at her.
"I'm not looking forward to meet Branch. I'm excited because I'll get to meet my first fox, and besides I had a great time in my History class earlier." Poppy tied her hair into a ponytail before carefully placing her tiara back. She glanced at the girls who looked a bit astonished. They can't believe that she actually enjoyed her History Class. "What?" Poppy frowned.
"Are you sure you're really okay?" Suki asked, to which the pink Troll replied with a shrug. The girls knew her so well that they know how short her attention span is, she gets bored too easily if she's not interested in the topic. Saying that she enjoyed her class completely baffled them. "Forget it, your training starts in a few minutes, you better hurry."
The Princess went down to the palace grounds with her guards and saw the soldiers marching around. She felt tense and her heart began to pound inside her chest, she's about to see the Troll General again after days of sulking inside her room. She glanced at the barracks of the soldiers and noticed a familiar purple Troll sitting on one of the benches. She noticed something different on him, so she immediately ran to his direction.
"Creek!" she called. The purple troll turned and looked at her direction. The Troll gave her a slight smile before looking down again. "Creek, what happened to you?"
"Nothing, Your Highness…" the purple Troll said. Poppy examined him to see if Branch did something that would physically hurt Creek. When she found no sign of wounds or bruises on the Troll, she sighed in relief; however, she noticed that the Troll is wearing a different armor. It's not the same armor that he was wearing the other day, as it looked similar to the armor worn by the other soldiers. Creek noticed what the Princess was doing and sighed. "I got demoted. I'm no longer a Captain…"
"What? But why? You've done nothing wrong!" Poppy said. She stood in front of him and tried to meet his gaze.
"Everything I did was wrong. I got demoted for disobeying the King's orders..." Creek turned around, so he won't meet Poppy's eyes.
"But those orders are for the Troll guards, not for soldiers!" Poppy sat next to her friend and placed a hand over his shoulder.
"Guards or soldiers, there's no difference. All of us have sworn our loyalty to the King, and we must obey his orders at all cost. Besides, the General charged me of insubordination for not following his orders." Creek took a deep breath and tried to control the tears forming in his eyes.
Poppy felt his body tremble. It was all her fault that he got the punishment. Creek worked hard to attain that position, but he lost it in an instant because of her. She wanted to do something, anything to get the punishment lifted and get Creek back to his position. "I'll talk to Branch. I—I'll tell him to give your position back because none of it was your fault. It was my fault and you shouldn't get punished for that."
"I appreciate the gesture, Your Highness, but please…just let me face my punishment on my own. It's the least I can do to keep my pride as a soldier." Creek said before he stood and entered his quarters. Poppy felt really bad for him, he's not supposed to endure such pain. Poppy cursed herself, many times for being so foolish.
"Your Highness?" a voice called. She looked up and saw the General standing just a few steps from her. Poppy bowed her head slightly to return his regards. She looked back to the quarters, which Creek entered and exhaled deeply. She swallowed a huge lump in her throat and gathered all of her courage. Despite what Creek said, she's going to talk to the grey Troll to get her friend back to his former position.
"You demoted Creek." Poppy's heart raced inside her chest, but she tried to calm herself and think of the best words to say to Branch.
"Yes, I did, Your Highness." Branch knew that the Princess will definitely ask him for reasons and beg him to lift the punishment. He knew Poppy way too much. "If you're going to ask why I demoted him, then I must give you my deepest apologies…I don't have to explain myself to you. If you're going to beg me to lift the punishment, I must apologize once again. Now, we better hurry and get your training started." Branch turned and started to walk to the direction of the pen where the foxes are being kept.
Poppy felt irritated all of a sudden. He ended the discussion without even letting her speak. "How could you be so cruel? Creek did nothing wrong, I was the one who disobeyed my father, not him…I should be the one punished! You charged him for disobedience and insubordination without even letting him explain, without letting me explain! What kind of General are you?" Branch clenched his fist and his jaw became tense. He tried to stay calm, he should because he's in the presence of the King's daughter.
"Your Highness, I've sworn my sword to your father, and like what I've said to the council the other day…your words have no bearing to me. My soldiers are none of your concern, unless I pledge my life and loyalty to you…when you become Queen. Until then, please, don't tell me how to run my Army." Poppy has never heard him speak that cold before. His words made her realize how powerless she is even if she is the heiress to the throne. The Princess dared not to bring up the topic again, the way he spoke is enough to tell her that she should stop meddling with his decisions as the highest-ranking Troll soldier in all of the land.
"We're here" Branch said in a cold tone. He held the gates open for the princess to enter before he did. The pink Troll felt tenser with him around, she shouldn't have angered him. She thought of apologizing to him, but she remembered what he said the other day that deeply offended her. She shrugged the thought and gathered all the anger she has for the General…though she really can't stay mad at him for long. "Pick your fox and we'll get started."
Poppy was led inside the shelter where the foxes without owners are being kept. She looked back and saw Branch mounting a white fox, a very majestic white fox. "Is that the General's fox?" Poppy asked.
"Yes, Your Highness. He'd only ride on Glade's back and Glade would allow no one to ride on her back unless it's the General." Poppy was awestruck at how much they trusted each other. She hoped that she and her fox would be the same…and that her fox would be as majestic as Glade.
She remembered her Dad's fox as well, the one that they'd ride on when they visit the towns and villages of the Kingdom. Rune, as her father had always called the creature, trusts the King and would often risk his own life protecting him. She has never seen him lately because she almost never leaves the palace, the last time she saw him was when King Peppy visited the southern villages. Poppy felt more excited to meet her own fox, she could barely wait. The guard led her to a stall where the foxes are waiting.
There were five of them, but Poppy felt no connection to any of them…and they don't look even half as majestic as Glade or even Rune. The guard instructed her to give the one she picked the berries they gave her, that way she could gain enough trust from the creature. "That's strange, I thought we have six foxes in this shed." Poppy glanced at the keeper and got a bit of hope to what he said. Hope that the missing one is a majestic one. Suddenly, they heard a ruckus inside one of the holes where the foxes hide, slowly a fox emerged from the hole. His coat was the deepest shade of red among all of them. The princess felt a connection to the creature, that has to be the connection that the guard told her. She approached the creature, but it backed away when she approached it too fast.
"Don't be scared, it's alright. I won't hurt you." Poppy made her steps slower and more careful, so she won't scare the creature. She stretched her hand and tried to give the berries, but the fox won't take it. She thought of a way to get him to trust her. "It's okay, these berries are good. Look, I'll have some." Poppy popped two berries in her mouth and munched on it. It was really good, she wanted to have another! But she controlled herself, she wanted to earn the fox's trust. "Here, try some." The creature went closer to her hand and sniffed the berries before taking a bite. It made a soft murmuring sound before eating the rest of the berries. Poppy reached for its snout and gently caressed it, the creature succumbed to her touch and went closer to her, so she could run her hand on its fur. "You're a funny one. What should I call you?" Poppy thought of a name before she snapped her fingers. "Kit! That's what I'll call you!" Poppy petted the fox one last time before walking out of the stall, the fox followed immediately.
"You've done an impressive work, Your Highness. Most fox never give their full trust to anyone on the first meeting!" The guards and the keeper clapped their hands to the Princess, that made her a bit shy. She placed a saddle on her fox's back and pulled it out of the stables.
"Where's General Branch?" she asked when she noticed that the grey Troll was no longer outside. She looked around and saw Glade inside one of the stables.
"He needed to tend to a soldier from the Wall. He left no further details, Your Highness" one of the guards said. The Princess felt a bit sad, she can't show her fox to Branch. Kit, however nuzzled his snout to the Princess, which cheered her up a bit. "The General sent him, to train you in his stead." Poppy turned to the Troll the guard was pertaining to.
"Creek!?" Poppy said, a bit surprised.
"Your Highness." The purple Troll bowed his head and smiled. Poppy noticed that he's happier compare to when she saw him earlier. "The General personally asked for me to teach you. He chose me since…I need to prove myself again, and gain a lot of merits to redeem my former position." Poppy smiled and was somehow relieved that Branch was giving Creek a chance. Maybe the General is not so cruel to his soldiers after all. She made a mental note to thank him, and apologize for causing him so much trouble.
"Your Highness? Shall we begin?" Poppy nodded and the two started the lesson. The first part of the lesson went fine, and Creek didn't have a hard time to teach Poppy the proper ways to mount her fox and how to make it move, since the Princess seems to have a great bond with Kit. The second part, which involves training her fox how to behave, is the more crucial part, since the creature didn't have an owner ever since it was born, but it's quite understandable not to succeed on the first day of training since no one really gets it on the first try…even the General.
"Your Highness, forgive us for interrupting your training, but the King wants you to be in the Council Hall immediately" a guard said while trying to catch his breath.
"What happened?" Poppy asked as she got off of her fox's back.
"He gave no further details. He just commanded us to bring you there as soon as possible." Poppy nodded and handed Kit to the keepers to bring him to his own stable. As much as she wanted to play with her new friend, she needed to tend to her father's call.
A/N: Yey! Poppy got her first sidekick! I named the fox Kit because Mulan's horse was named Khan. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter, I know it strayed a bit from the flow of the film, but I needed to, because of some reasons that would affect the plot LOL. I'm not sure when I'll be able to update again because I have an exam tomorrow, I'll attend a seminar the next day and I was signed in a writing competition, which will be on Thursday or Friday...I'm not really sure. Got something in mind? Don't hesitate, tell me!