"Um, Branch."
"What?"
"I gotta tinkle."
"Do NOT say tinkle in my presences." All that brought back was the creepy green troll in his hair ready to pee on him not an hour ago.
"Oh…" she looked down at the ground, letting him walk ahead of her. Deciding to have some fun with him, she ran up to him repeating "tinkle" about a million times.
"Poppy!"
"Sorry...tinkle!" Saying the word only made her need to go more.
"Would you stop it?!"
Poppy sighed. "But I'm so bored!"
"Then find a way to entertain yourself!"
"But I-"
"Keep in mind that this was your idea."
"I never asked you to come!"
"Yes you did, you begged me."
Poppy opened her mouth to answer but failed to say anything. He was right, she did want him to come along. It only made sense for him to come with her. Not because she needed saving but because she needed someone who knew a lot about Bergen's. Why would be refused when he knew about them more than anyone? What was he afraid of? Everyone was afraid of something- whether or not he wanted to admit it. He had afraid of something.
"That's what I thought," he mumbled.
"And I'm glad you decided to come. Well, you were right on time," she smiled.
The grey troll just rolled his eyes at this. "Like you knew I was coming!"
"Yep! After the third hug time I figured getting eaten by a Bergen wouldn't be so bad." Poppy smirked at him, and he stopped.
"And I figured that there was no way you could do this by yourself. Guess we were both right." He crossed his arms and smiled that smile
"Makes sense. Although, let me ask you one thing."
"No."
"What made you change your mind so quickly?" she asked anyway, of course, against his wishes.
"I just told you. There was no way you can do this on your own…" He tried to keep his cool. He did not want to tell Poppy that the annoying villagers had found his stash of invitations and notebooks he kept over the years. He didn't want to tell her that he actually cared about her, it was that stupid pride of his. He did care, he just didn't know how to tell her and often argued with himself about it.
"Is that all?" she pressed.
"That's all."
"Can I ask you another question?"
"Let me think about it...no."
Poppy frowned but once again asked anyway. "Do you, on a personal level, think there's a chance for my friends? And after we rescue them, what will happen then?" Her voice grew a bit more serious for this question.
The first question was easy. He couldn't help but feel that Poppy's friends were goners and we're probably being made in a taco or a piece of cake depending on what the bergens felt like. The second question, however, he didn't have a valid answer for that one. He answered to the best of his ability, although it wasn't the best answer. "Things will go back to normal, I guess."
Poppy nodded, although she didn't understand. This was an adventure! Usually a hero changes after an adventure. He changes his ways for the good of everyone else. If he dpes not then who is he to call himself a hero? Who is he to say he learned something from the journey? She didn't want Branch to be his grumpy self. She wanted him to be the same Branch, but...different. If that made sense. A warmer Branch, if you may. Okay, he could still be grumpy, but not afraid to show some emotion. A Branch that didn't push everyone away. The Branch that only she had seen. It was rare when she saw his soft side, and when he let it show it gave her the most incredible feeling ever.
Before Poppy could bump into the tree trunk that was right in front of them Branch tugged her back. They had approached a fallen tree that leaned just above a pond."Watch it," he grumbled, looking to see of there was a way around the tree but the only way was to go straight across. Unless they wanted to swim but there was no way Branch was going to do that!
"Oohh, a pond!" Poppy said excitedly, running down the slope and into the water and splashing around the water without a care in the word.
He really wanted to be annoyed with her, but she just looked so gosh darn cute splashing around in the pond. She was like a child. She spent enough time with the kids in the village, which Branch had no idea how she handled because they were all just so annoying. How come Madison didnt bite her finger or almost pee in her hair? Well, for one thing, Poppy has patience which was something Branch lacked and was something needed when one was taking care of children. Point was, although Poppy did hang out with the children she never fully grew up. She was like a huge child that didn't know the cruel reality of what the world truly was.
He didn't want to ruin her moment that he hoped wouldn't last long, half because this was wasting time and the other half because he didn't know how much longer he could take this adorableness.
As the pink troll played in the water Branch leaned against the tree trunk, smiling a little in amusement. He hadn't moved from this spot but he had the perfect view right here.
Branch's smile faded when he realized Poppy's expression changed. She got out from the water, screaming, "LEACH! LEACH!" She ran around as the leaches sucked her body until Branch got ahold of her. She struggled against his grip but he remained firm.
"Calm down! I…" won't let anything happen to you. He wished he had to courage to say those words aloud, but he grew silent, managing to rip off the leaches and throw them back in the pond. "We definately aren't swimming across," he said, climbing back up the slope and back to the tree stump, extending his hair and getting a good grip on one of the branchs before jumping. He came to a safe landing, with Poppy following, not as gracefully.
She landed right on her face but smiled sheepishly and got back up again. "Thanks for saving my life," she said softly, yet it made him jump. "Again."
He grunted in response.
"Burrr!" she shook herself free from water and now she looked like a pink puff ball. It didn't last long when she flattered herself out and skipped around, singing a silly little toon.
"Do you HAVE to sing?" he sighed. "For a troll that almost got killed twice in one day I would think you would be a tad bit more aware of things. If something out here heard you they would gobble up both of us. So I suggest you don't draw so much attention to yourself!" He snapped, glaring at her over her shoulder and continuing to walk.
Poppy frowned, waiting for him to get a further distance because she thought he may kill her. "But Branch!" she protested. "I always sing when I'm in a good mood!" she said cheerfully.
How could be possibly be in a good mood? He wondered. Here they were- off in the wilderness where only the strong would survive. How could she be happy right now? If anything could describe the she should have been feeling, it was fear. "Do you HAVE to be in a good mood?" he asked flatly.
"Why wouldn't I be? By this time tomorrow, I'll be with all my friends! And Creek," she giggled.
Branch rolled his eyes. "Oh, that's fantastic."
"We are just friends," she said, giggling once more like a little girl.
"Mhm."
"Ooo what do you think they are doing right now?"
"Probably being digested," he muttered, biting into some berries he got out of his backpack.
He must have been a little too quiet because the pink princess was way more interested I the berries than continuing their conversation. "Berries!" she exclaimed. "Thank goodness, real berries, not the kind that make my skin puff out. That was a nightmare, I'll tell ya. It was actually kind of fun, though, rolling down those hills."
Branch raised an eyebrow. He had no idea what she was talking about so he decided not to ask.
She had eaten half of the berries in a matter of a few minutes. "Do you just want to take a lunch break?"
"You don't have to ask me twice!" she chirped. "What do you got?"
"Sandwiches," he answered, taking them out of his lunchbox and giving her her half, deciding that would be the best way to save on food. But like he said, he got most of the food for Poppy.
"Oh, you have my cowbell!" she said, reaching for it. He made the dumb mistake of leaving his backpack opened, and now she was going to ring on it which would get a hungry critters attention that would eat them for lunch before they even got to finish theirs.
To his surprise, she stashed it in her hair and finished her sandwich.
"I can't wait to see my friends," she babbled. "They are alive, Branch! I can feel it!" When she tapped her toes he knew what was coming. "I got this feeling, inside my bones-"
"Please no!" he begged.
"It goes electric wavy when I'm in the zone!"
"Stop…"
"And if you want it, inside your soul, just open up your heart let music take control!" She attempted to fist pump him but he stayed still. "Cause I got that sunshine in my pocket, got that good song in my feet!"
"Wait, wait! You can't have sunshine in your pocket- you'll explode!"
Poppy stopped dancing. "Why do you have to suck the fun out of everything? It's just a song."
"A very annoying song!"
"Oh you know you love it," she smiled.
"No. I don't," he said, folding his arms.
"No. I don't." She copied his actions, looking even more grumpy than him with her pink face scrunched up as she crossed her arms.
"Are you mocking me?!"
"Are you mocking me?!"
"Psh, whatever!"
"Psh, whatever," she mimicked as he walked ahead of her. She let herself smile now, then she caught up with him, copying him once again. He rolled his eyes and looked away, then she trolled his eyes and looked away.
"You're so annoying," he said, his voice low in deep. Poppy was about to copy him but he cut her off. "You have to stop living a fantasy, Poppy. And I cant wait tk see the look on your face when you realize the world isn't al cupcakes and rainbows, cause it isn't. Sometimes bad things happen- and there's nothing you can do about it."
Poppy frowned once again, taking in his words. She took a breath. "Hey I know life isn't all cupcakes and rainbows, but I'd rather go through life thinking it mostly is instead of being like you. You don't sing, you don't dance...so...grey all the time, what happened to you-"
"Sh." He cut her off by putting his finger on her lips.
"What is it?" she asked nervously. "A...A bergen?"
"Maybe," he whispered, taking his finger off her lips and tugging the straps of his backpack and looking around.
Poppy looked around as well, still a little nervous. It took a moment to realize he was just messing with her. She narrowed her eyes. "There's no Bergen is there? You just said that so I would stop talking!" She put her hands on her hips.
"Maybe," he whispered again.
Poppy rolled her eyes and hurried after him.
I know it's a but short but I hope you like the chapter and the overall story in general so far :) Thanks for your support
Also, follow me on Instagram: the_amazing_hammy_ I post a whole ton of Broppy stuff go go check it out!
