A/N: Wow! What a milestone for me! This story reached over 100 reviews! And it almost reached a thousand views in one day! Wow. I'm both proud and humbled by such a response. Thank you all so much!
Again, pulled at the heartstrings, didn't I? It may sound evil, but I really love seeing your reactions in your reviews.
The painted lady of the leaf - I could imagine your eye twitch, and it made me laugh.
Guest - imagining you flailing with anticipation for this chapter also made me laugh.
Jpbake - yes, I did cast Creek as Gaston, only with some changes to make Creek more canon. Also, I kind of like Creek, so I wanted to include moments where he didn't seem so evil. I thought about including the mob song, but I couldn't imagine the trolls singing it. I wanted them to act out of concern for their princess, not solely out of hatred for an enemy. So maybe it would be considered an act of treason to attack the royal family, but people do crazy things when their scared or mad.
Chapter Fourteen – Castle Battle
"Are you sure this will work?" Suki whispered.
"It's our best shot." Peppy nodded.
"Okay, Dad." Poppy breathed. "On your mark."
The royal family all moved to one end of the carriage, crouching on the cushioned seat. Peppy counted silently, mouthing out "Go!" at the end of the countdown. He and his daughters lunged forward and collectively slammed into the other side of the carriage. The force of the impact caused the carriage to move, and the weight on one side made it continue rolling until it went down the slope of the hill leading to the village square. The guards watching the carriage yelped in surprise and ran after it.
"Hang on!" Peppy shouted, pulling his daughters in close and extending his hair to surround them. Hopefully this would cushion their stop. Sure enough, the carriage slammed into a fountain in the village square and sent it flipping through the air, crashing to the ground. A few trolls yanked the broken door open and helped the royals out. Thanks to Peppy's quick thinking and his hair, they were all unharmed.
"Are you all right?" a troll named Harper asked worriedly.
"We're fine." Poppy climbed up on top of the broken carriage and raised her voice for every troll to hear. "Listen to me! We have to stop that mob from hurting Hunt—uh, the Grey Troll! He's not dangerous."
"But he locked you in his castle and held you prisoner." Harper pointed out.
"I know." Poppy said. She made sure she had everyone's attention. "For the longest time, I thought the Grey Troll was just a mean and nasty troll. But there is so much more to him than that. If you had to live the way he did—and suffer the way he did—then you would understand that he's not cruel. He's just…lonely….."
"Do any of you know what it's like to be grey?" Suki demanded, standing with her sister. "I'm not surprised that the Grey Troll has a sour attitude. I would too if I were in his situation!"
Peppy joined the girls. "My daughters speak the truth. Though I did not believe it myself, I must admit that there is more to the Grey Troll than the legends we know. Poppy would not be here now if he was truly as terrible as we believe."
The trolls murmured to each other. Though doubtful, they could understand what the royals meant. None of them really knew what it was like to be grey. Several of them shuddered at the thought of losing your colors and, ergo, your happiness.
Harper stepped forward. "How do we stop them?"
"I need volunteers to come with me and my daughters to stop that mob!" Peppy urged. "Bring the horses! Quickly!"
Cooper sighed pitifully for the thousandth time. "I knew we shouldn't have gotten our hopes up."
"Did you expect us to do anything less when she arrived?" Biggie sighed. The staff sat in the drawing room, circled around the fire while a storm brewed in the middle of the night. Nobody could really sleep when they missed Poppy so much. Hunter's dreary mood didn't help, either.
"I hate to say it, but maybe it would've been better if she never came at all." Satin said.
"Yeah." Chenille agreed. "I miss her too much."
"No, I think it's good that she came." Guy Diamond disagreed. "We haven't been so happy in years. King Hunter let us sing for the first time in forever. If we can just hold on to that happiness—"
"No offense, GD, but some of that happiness left with Poppy." Smidge interrupted.
Rosiepuff sat in the easy chair behind them, staring at the ground. "I think it's safe to say that Poppy left an impact on us. We certainly will never forget her. Whether or not that's a good thing…."
Everyone slouched in sadness. Fuzzbert whined, the werewolf curling up closer to Guy Diamond. They loved that Poppy brought more light into their lives. Now, they only wished she could've stayed with them. Then again, would she be truly happy being separated from her father and sister?
Rosiepuff tensed up with a gasp. "Someone's coming."
"Is it Poppy?" Cooper asked excitedly.
Rosiepuff's eyebrows furrowed in worry and confusion. "No…" She and the staff took off down the hallway and out to a balcony over the front doors, where they got the perfect view of a mob coming right towards the front gates.
"Oh my gah!" Smidge gasped.
"Invaders!" Cooper yelped.
"Marauders!" Biggie growled.
"And they've got the mirror!" Satin and Chenille spoke at once.
"All of you, barricade the doors!" Rosiepuff ordered. "I'll go warn Hunter!"
The sight of the dark castle with the great storm overheard made the mob of trolls hesitant. But with Creek's urging, they continued forward. Half of them carried a battering ram to break down the doors.
"Take what you want from the castle!" Creek commanded. "But remember: the Grey Troll is mine!"
While the servants barred the doors, Rosiepuff spirited up towards Hunter's room and burst inside. "Hunter!" She panted a little. "Sire, the castle is under attack!"
Hunter wouldn't look towards her. "Leave me in peace."
"Did you not hear me?" Rosiepuff demanded, stomping up to the grey king. "There are invaders coming here to do who knows what kind of damage! What do we do?"
"Nothing matters anymore." Hunter said. "Just let them come."
"I'm not going to stand here and watch you die!" Rosiepuff shouted. Hunter still didn't tear his gaze from the enchanted rosebush. Frustrated, Rosiepuff marched out of the room and slammed the doors shut, locking them behind her. "I almost lost you once. Never again." She promised as she returned to the staff. They already barricaded the doors with the heaviest furniture they could find nearby, and everyone leaned against the door while the mob pounded on it with the battering ram.
"This isn't working!" Cooper groaned.
"There must be something we can do!" Guy Diamond whimpered.
Rosiepuff's mind raced. What could they do? Hunter wouldn't do anything, so it was up to them. She lit up with an idea. "If we can't keep them out, we'll drive them out!"
"What?" the staff yelped in chorus.
"Trust me." Rosiepuff assured. "Do exactly what I say."
Outside, Creek joined with the rest of the trolls to smash the battering ram into the doors. With a few more blows, the doors flew open and gave the mob a clear shot inside.
To their surprise, a single troll stood in the main hallway.
"Ghost!" a couple trolls shrieked, one leaping into the arms of another.
Rosiepuff glared at the intruders, her arms crossed and her foot tapping. "All right, I'm only going to say this once. Get. Out. Of my castle. Now."
Creek scoffed. "Or what?"
"Or I make you get out!" Rosiepuff growled.
"You and what army?" Aspen laughed mockingly, causing most of the other trolls to do the same. Their laughter trailed off when a group of creatures suddenly dropped down around Rosiepuff: a lizard man, a snake, an elf, a werewolf, a hippogriff, a pair of fairies, and a mouse.
Rosiepuff smirked. "This army."
Creek raised his bow. "Get them!"
The mob charged forward, ready to fight, while the enchanted staff darted forward with battle cries to intercept them. The mob of trolls quickly realized that they should've seriously considered the fact that the Grey Troll's castle was indeed enchanted. The staff weren't about to let their home be taken without a fight. Biggie, normally kind and gentle in nature, used an iron skillet, all four limbs and even his tail to fight while Mr. Dinkles slithered around nipping at trolls and smacking them with his tail. Satin and Chenille each used a pair of fabric shears to parry the knives of the trolls they fought. Guy Diamond combined a sort of martial art with his dancing, elegantly avoiding strikes while landing a few of his own. Smidge and Fuzzbert, being more like animals, fought wildly against the groups of trolls ganging up on them. Cooper would grab trolls and pull them into the air to kick them aside. Rosiepuff rarely acted so violently. Now, she didn't hesitate to disarm trolls and beat them into the ground.
Amidst the chaos, Creek managed to slip away and venture deeper into the castle. He loaded an arrow in his bow and held it ready as he searched for the Grey Troll.
Back at the fight, the mob of trolls did their best to fend off the enchanted castle staff. It didn't help that the staff consisted of magical creatures who used anything they could for weapons. Biggie covered a troll's head with a large pot and banged on the metal pot with a spoon, rattling the poor troll's hearing. Satin and Chenille tied up several trolls with sewing thread. Fuzzbert even caught a spear in his teeth and broke it.
Rosiepuff, Guy Diamond, and Cooper grabbed the edge of the rug that stretched down the hallway. With a mighty flick, a ripple in the carpet rolled forward and threw the trolls off it. Satin, Chenille, and Smidge opened the front doors, and the trolls flew outside. The ones who didn't quite make it started running, and the others quickly followed.
"We did it!" the staff cheered, shouting in celebration for successfully driving away the mob of trolls.
Poppy led the charge, astride Philippe, while Peppy and Suki flanked her on their own horses. A group of trolls, all on trollimals of their own, followed close behind. They galloped through the forest as fast as they could, braving the storm to reach the Grey Troll's castle.
Then Poppy noticed a stampede heading right for them, and she reined Philippe to a halt. The others followed suit. The stampede stopped before they could hit the royals, and it very soon became apparent that it was, in fact, the mob led by Creek. The mob looked disheveled and terrified out of their wits, their hair a mess and many of them shaking.
"What happened to you?" Poppy asked, trying as hard as she could to keep her laughs back.
"That castle is a house of horror!" one of the trolls sniveled.
"I don't know how you lived there!" another troll struggled to untangle thread from his wrists.
Poppy did a quick head count. "Wait a minute. Where's Creek?"