A/N: Okay, it's the last chapter and it's short, so here it is for you!

I have to point something out: once more, I have reached 100 reviews on a story. This seems to be a consistent thing that happens with my recent stories. I don't point it out to brag. I am truly honored that my writing captures your attention so much that I see readers reviewing consistently, on every chapter. Without fail, I see the funniest and most honest reviews, and they're always positive. Thank you, guys. Really, thank you for reading my stuff and motivating me to continue with my fanfic writing.

Chapter Fourteen - Grazie

Branch and Rosiepuff ran to the rubble of the archway, digging through the debris for the little dragon. "Symphony!" Branch called. "Symphony! Where are you?"

"Symphony?" Rosiepuff called. She lifted up some wood and jumped back when she saw Creek's hand underneath.

Suddenly, Symphony burst up from under the wood. She shook herself to get rid of the splinters. "I'm right here!"

Branch ran over and hugged the little dragon. "Don't ever scare me like that again." He sighed in relief.

"I won't." Symphony nodded, snuggling close to Branch. Rosiepuff enveloped both of them in a hug.

"Now that was pretty impressive." Rosiepuff said, handing Branch the Dragon Blade and its scabbard. Branch sheathed the blade, smiling proudly. He was sore, bleeding, and exhausted. But he did it. He defeated Creek and fulfilled his destiny.

There came the sound of cheering. When the dust settled, Rosiepuff, Branch, and Symphony saw the village had returned in time to see the ending of the battle. The villagers cheered loudly for Branch. Biggie, Fuzzbert, Satin, and Chenille broke from the crowd and tackled Branch in a big group hug. Biggie hoisted Branch up onto his shoulders, and Branch held the Dragon Blade high in victory. Satin, Chenille, and Fuzzbert hugged Rosiepuff and Symphony, relieved they were all right.

"Branch!"

Branch looked up as Poppy weaved her way through the crowd, followed closely by the rest of the Five. Biggie let Branch down, and Branch caught Poppy in a tight hug. Cooper, Suki, Guy Diamond, and Smidge joined in the embrace. When they broke apart, Poppy still stayed close to Branch. So overwhelmed with relief and joy, she practically grabbed him by the face and pulled him into a kiss. Her friends' jaws dropped, but Branch just accepted the kiss and held Poppy close.

When Poppy pulled away, she still smiled. "Not bad." She stepped back and bowed to Branch respectfully. "Not bad at all, Master."

"Master Branch." Cooper, Suki, Guy Diamond, and Smidge bowed.

"And Master Symphony." Suki added with a smile.

Symphony puffed up her chest in pride, perching herself on Branch's shoulder. Branch stared out to the villagers, who also bowed to him in respect. "Master?" Branch chuckled in disbelief. His eyes widened. "Oh gods. Master Peppy!"

Poppy gasped. "Dad!"

Branch turned and sprinted towards the Troll Tree, leaving his family in the dust. Rosiepuff, Symphony, and the Five rushed after him. The villagers watched with worried expressions, some of them venturing into the village to evaluate the damage.

Branch didn't stop running until he reached the Hall of Warriors. When he got to the doors and his eyes fell upon Peppy, he was horrified to see the old master hadn't move an inch since Branch came to challenge Creek. The Dragon Blade slipped from Branch's hands as he rushed to Peppy's side.

"Peppy!" Branch pushed him over to his back. Blood oozed viscously from his wounds. "Peppy? No, no, please don't do this to me. Come on, wake up!"

The others finally caught up. The Five and Symphony stayed back and stared in horror while Rosiepuff knelt next to Branch. She put a hand over Peppy's heart and put her ear near his mouth. She desperately searched for a heartbeat or even a soft breath. To her sorrow, she heard nothing. She sat back on her ankles and slowly shook her head. Poppy gasped sharply, leaning on Suki for support. The warriors bowed their heads in mourning.

"I thought we would make it." Symphony murmured sadly.

Branch shook his head, his hands clenching into fists. "This can't be happening."

"I'm sorry, Branch." Rosiepuff said. "There's nothing we can do now."

Branch's eyebrows lowered, and he glared in a sort of defiant determination kind of way. "No. I don't believe that. If Creek can stop his heart, maybe I can start it again."

"How?" Rosiepuff asked, scooting aside as Branch knelt closer to Peppy's chest.

"Any way I can." Branch thought back to what he studied about that chi healing technique. He was still new to using chi, but he was desperate to save his teacher. Branch focused on his energy within, willing it to come forward in a way he could use. Electricity crackled to life in his palms, to the shock of the Five.

It's just like Master Ryu's. Poppy realized.

Branch pressed his fingers to Peppy's chest and pushed to send a jolt of electricity through him. It didn't seem to work, so Branch summoned more lightning. "Come on, Peppy, please. I know you hated me when we first met because of what happened with my dad. But when you learned the truth—when you started seeing me as just me and not the son of a guy you didn't like—you never gave up on me. I'm not giving up on you." He pushed another jolt of lightning into Peppy's heart. "You trained me with ridiculous lessons until I was bruised and broken." Another jolt. "You kept pushing me to do better and wouldn't stop hitting me with that dumb cane when I screwed up. You always kicked my butt during spars with that stupid smirk on your face." He sent another jolt of electricity. Sweat began to form on Branch's brow, and blood trickled from his nose. "Come on!" Branch pushed in another round of volts. "Come on!" Another jolt, this one bigger than the others, and Branch nearly collapsed. "Come on….."

"Branch, stop. You're going to kill yourself." Rosiepuff pulled him in close before he could fall over. Branch let out a shuddering sigh, burying his face in her shoulder. Rosiepuff shushed him soothingly. "It's okay. It's okay." The Five could hardy keep their eyes dry. Symphony sank down onto Cooper's back, staring at the floor.

"I had a funny dream, Branch."

Everyone looked up with happy surprise when Peppy spoke. The old master cracked an eye open and stared at Branch. "You were insulting me. Repeatedly."

Branch forced a scoff, his smile stretching from ear to ear. "What? That's weird."

"No, that actually makes sense." Peppy winced painfully as he sat up. "Well, I'm alive, sort of. You're alive. Is it safe to assume you beat Creek and we're all safe?"

"Yep!" Branch nodded proudly.

Peppy chuckled. "I guess I was half-wrong. You're Larch and Stella's son and more. You are the Dragon Warrior. Well done, Branch."

Branch's smile grew, if it were even possible in that moment. He suddenly wrapped his arms around Peppy in a hug. Peppy growled and groaned in pain, and Branch jumped back. "Oh, sorry! Sorry!"

"No, no, it's okay." Peppy said through gritted teeth. "It's fine. It's good pain. Yeah, I like it…..ow…" He jumped a little when Poppy knelt beside him and hugged him next. Peppy pulled her close.

"I love you." Poppy whispered.

Peppy sighed. "I love you too."

"Group hug!" Cooper cheered.

"No, no, no!" Peppy yelped. He growled again in pain when everyone gathered around him for a hug, which pressed painfully and uncomfortably against his broken ribs. He soon sighed, shrugged, and returned the loving gesture.

In two weeks, it was like the battle against Creek never happened. The archway was rebuilt, buildings fixed, and the Hall of Warriors repaired. Peppy's only regret was that Larch's and Stella's weapons couldn't be salvaged. But Branch insisted on donating the remains to Satin and Chenille, who turned the materials into a new cane/sword for Peppy. Apart from irritation at being forced to take it easy, Peppy was well and would make a full recovery. Rosiepuff reopened her restaurant. Branch and Symphony officially moved into the Troll Tree. All in all, things were good.

Rosiepuff would come up to the Troll Tree Palace to visit whenever she could. She became a mother figure for the Five, and they loved to have her over. However, they still didn't know about her water-bending, and she opted to keep that a secret for now. On one of her visits, she found the warriors in the courtyard of the training hall sparring with each other. Branch trained with his friends, using the Dragon Blade as he and Poppy sparred. Branch waved to his grandmother as she ventured over to stand by Peppy. The old master still had bandages around his chest, and his arm was in a sling. He watched his students spar, pausing only to nod to Rosiepuff in greeting.

Poppy lunged with her sword, and she and Branch locked blades. "You need to focus more." Poppy said.

Branch surprised her by kissing her quickly. When her guard was down, he knocked the sword from her hand and tapped the flat of the Dragon Blade to her head. "So do you." He teased.

Poppy gave him an exasperated look. "If my dad catches us kissing like that, he'll flip. You're not that daring to risk it."

"Maybe, but are you?" Branch asked, raising an eyebrow.

Poppy smirked, stepping closer. Their lips were so close together they could feel each other's breaths on their skin. "Maybe."

"Poppy? Branch?" Peppy called. He had a strange, almost suspicious, look on his face. "What are you two doing?"

Poppy quickly kissed Branch and then pulled him along as they ran off into the training hall. "I guess you are that daring." Branch laughed.

"Hey!" Peppy snapped. Of course, since he was still healing, he couldn't run after them. "I may be incapacitated, but we are so having a talk about that later!"

Rosiepuff laughed. "Oh, let kids be kids."

"Not with my daughter." Peppy grumbled. "That boy's going to run laps for a month."

"Lighten up." Rosiepuff giggled. "I think it's cute."

Peppy rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever." He caught his students laughing madly, and they quickly went back to their training. Peppy smiled a little. "Thank you, Rosiepuff."

"What for?" Rosiepuff asked.

"For making us a family again." Peppy said. "I forgot how much I missed this. Of course, you are always welcome here. We have you to thank for all of this. If there's anything we can do for you, to make you feel more welcome, you only need to say so."

"That is very kind. Thank you." Rosiepuff looked out to the warriors. She got a thoughtful look on her face. "You know, there is one thing we could change around here."

When the Troll Tree warriors finished their training, they stood before their teacher and bowed respectfully. Peppy returned the gesture.

"Well done today. You are dismissed." Peppy turned and opened the door to the training hall. "First one to the kitchen decides what we make for dinner with Rosiepuff."

Just as he expected, Branch, Symphony, and the Five charged past him like a stampede of rhinos. He rolled his eyes and casually followed them. By the time he got there, Rosiepuff prepared the stove while everyone else waited anxiously for Poppy to pick a recipe.

"Ooh, this one!" Poppy pulled out a veggie lasagna recipe. "I loved this last time we made it!"

"Very good choice." Rosiepuff said, glancing over the recipe. "Cooper, Guy Diamond, make the garlic bread. Poppy and Symphony, get started on the noodles. The rest of you start cutting the vegetables. Peppy, come help me with the sauce."

Peppy could tell this new tradition would be treasured and enjoyed for years to come. On his way to the stove, he saw Branch standing next to Poppy to get a vegetable from the counter. Branch stood next to the pink troll a bit longer than Peppy liked, so he took his cane and guided/pushed Branch back to the table. Branch and Poppy shared a look and a snicker. It would take some time before Peppy approved of their relationship, but at least he wasn't ready to kill Branch (yet).

Everyone worked together to cook the food and set it out on the dining room table. After taking their seats, everyone folded their hands and prepared for their evening blessing.

"Poppy, why don't you say our blessing this evening?" Rosiepuff suggested.

"Well, I don't think I know yours." Poppy said.

"Just make one up!" Symphony encouraged cheerily.

Poppy laughed. She thought for a moment. "We are thankful for our blessings: the food on our table, the good times we shared, and the love we share as a family. As we eat, let us all give thanks for our family."

"Grazie." Everyone said in unison.

A/N: Hmm, I kind of like that ending, but I feel like it could've used more. Or maybe I'm just thinking too much about it.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed! The scene where Branch revived Peppy was inspired by the scene from Sorcerer's Apprentice when Dave revives Balthazar. Did you catch that?

Also, I have one more adaptation in mind, which I am claiming now so no one else takes it. :D My next adaptation will be titled Finding Poppy. Can you guess what movie I'm drawing inspiration from?

Keep an eye out for my next update of The Flame of Happiness!