Hello again! I hope you enjoy today's fun spin, as it's not only a spin on the That's So Raven episode Teach Your Children Well (episode and show, I do not own btw), but it's also a spin on one of the chapter in my buddy's Trollstopia Season 1 story: Loving Essence. So, sit back, relax, and prepare to read and have fun! Disclaimer- I do not own Trolls to Trollstopia in any way or form. Melody Song, Mal Shredder, Evie, Stereo, Twilight Tidepool, McJagger, and Buckaroo are my O.C.s and belong to me. Aggie belongs to I.M. Rally. I also do not own the song and the lyrics that I use for this chapter today. Now, let's get to it!
Poppy and Branch: You can do it solo!
Aggie and Trollex: But then you'd be all by yourself.
Stereo and Synth: (Synth: Yo!) So, it'd be more fun to share this one with someone else! (Tiny Diamond: Hit it, daddy!)
Rhythm, Blues, Quincy, Essence: Together, we will soar across the sky and beyond! (Prince D: To the great beyond!)
Holly Darling, Buckaroo, Delta Dawn: So, tune-up your voice!
Val Thundershock, Barb, and Melody Song: Stand up and sing along!
All: All different voices (Tiny Diamond: Everybody now!), our melodies ringing. We're living in harmony! Yeah, we're living in harmony! Our song is much stronger will every troll singing. We're living in harmony!
Smothered by Mother
In Vibe Town, McJagger was was busy finishing up a new science experiment, pouring a liquid he made into a beaker, writing a name for it, and placing it on a shelf with the other liquid. Suddenly, behind him, the door opened with a peaceful *WHOOSH*, as the sound of wings fluttering greeted him, and a cheery voice he knew well, saying, "Hi, McJagger"! McJagger smiled and turned around, seeing Aggie in the lab, as he greeted her, saying, "Hey, Aggie, what's up"? Aggie replied, "Nothing much. I was just finishing up my music teachings this morning and thought I'd pop in to see if anyone was here." McJagger smiled and said, "Well, it's always awesome to see ya, Aggie. I'm just finishing up one of the little experiments R and B were working on earlier. They had to go help Low-Note with tune-ups on the Vibe City engine, so, I'm just watching things here for now." While Aggie and McJagger were talking, the door opened again as new footsteps were heard, as well what sounded like tired groaning. Aggie and McJagger turned their heads to see who it was and almost jumped in surprise to see that it was Laguna, but she looked a little different today. Her dark blue hair was frizzy, and she looked like she hadn't slept in days, yawning while tiredly rubbing her eyes. Just the sight of the tired Techno alone was enough to make McJagger walk towards her in concern, saying, "Hey, boo; you ok? You don't look too good." Laguna let out a yawn while saying, "Just a little tired is all; nothing much." Aggie then asked while flying up to her, "What's got you feeling so tired? Had another late-night study session," which made the MMT snicker from the joke. However, seeing the deadpanned glare Laguna gave afterward made Aggie clear her throat, straighten up, and reply, "Yeah, probably not the best time for jokes. Sorry" Laguna then groaned again, placing her right hand on her forehead, trying to soothe it, as McJagger asked, "What's wrong, Laguna? Is something making you feel unwell"? Laguna shook her head and answered, "No, it's just...*sighs* I don't want to talk about it. I've just been going through some stress, and it's making me tired, ok"? Laguna sat down in one of the chairs and let out a pent-up exhale, now using both hands to massage her forehead, as McJagger and Aggie stood by her, with the Funk Troll saying, "Hey, it's ok, boo. We understand if you don't feel like talking about it right now. For now, take all the time you need to unwind and destress." He then pressed a button on the chair Laguna was sitting in as it began to vibrate gently, making Laguna relax her body and unwind, sighing in content.
Suddenly, Aggie saw a small book drop out of Laguna's hair as the chair vibrated, prompting her to pick it up and see that the book had a purple cover, a light blue seashell drawing on it, and it said "Property of Laguna Tidepool" on it. Curiously, she asked, "Hey, what's this"? Laguna saw Aggie holding the book and nervously replied, "Oh, that's mine. Um, please don't look inside of it; there are some things inside I'd like to keep private for now." Aggie nodded and gave Laguna back the book, saying, "Hey, no worries, Laguna; I know what it's like to want to keep some things private. Though, just out of curiosity, what kind of book is that anyway"? Laguna looked at the book in her hands while saying, "It's actually my...thoughts diary." McJagger was now curious, asking, "Thoughts diary? What's that"? Laguna answered, "It's just a small book for me to write down my thoughts or emotions that I'm feeling when I don't want to talk out it, but still alow myself to express my feelings in a healthy manner. Prince D gave it to me a few days ago during one of my therapy sessions as a way to be able to express how I feel when I'm thinking about something or feeling something I don't want others to know about yet." McJagger and Aggie were both impressed, with Laguna then adding, "Truth be told, I've been writing in here a lot the past few days 'cause...well...," before she suddenly felt unsure about if she wanted to tell them what was wrong. But seeing Aggie and McJagger giving Laguna caring smiles reassured her as she took a deep breath in and out, saying, "Ok, well, I might as well tell you guys. Truth is...recently, I've been feeling a lot of stress because of my mom." Aggie was a bit confused, asking, "Your mom? Is everything going ok with you two," which prompted Laguna to answer, "Yeah, everything's been ok with the two of us so far. However...recently, she's been spending a lot of time with me." Now, McJagger was the one confused as he asked, "Well, isn't that a good thing? I know your mom has been wanting to catch up on time with you." Laguna nodded and commented, "Yeah, it is...for the most part. But see, what I mean is that she's been spending A LOT of time with me, like almost every second of the day with me! I mean, I love her and everything, and seeing her and I spend time together is nice, but it's all too much. i can't help but feel like I'm being smothered."
Aggie and McJagger both nodded to show that they were understanding the problem now, as Aggie mentioned, "Well, in a way, you can't really blame your mom for acting this way. She was gone for a while, and from what I remember when you told Prince D about your childhood, with the lack of attention you got, I can tell Twilight would definitely want to make up for all that lost time." McJagger added, "Yeah, I've seen this reaction with parents who've been away from their kids for a long time. They always want to spend some extra time with them to make up for the time lost; so it's a normal reaction." Aggie even added, "I know Cooper likes to visit Vibe City often and spend time with his family so they get to make up for all those years being separated from them. So, in a way, your mom's just trying to make up for the time she's been "away" from you too." Laguna seemed to understand and replied, "I guess I can understand that, but I just wish she could tone it down with some of the things she's been doing. It's nice, but it's also become a bit embarrassing too. I just want to have a little space to just branch out as myself, like well...you know...before. And as much as I want to tell my mom how I feel, I don't want her to feel guilty or make her feel like she's not doing a good job. For now, the best thing for me to do is just try to not lose my cool and hope that soon the "smothering" will stop." McJagger then remembered something, saying, "Hey, I know something that might help you feel better: Poppy's TrollTalk about pop artifact history; it starts today, and I know you've been looking forward to that." Hearing the news made Laguna smile as she said, "It does sound like it'll be very informative, and I can't pass on any opportunity to learn about the history of artifacts from other trolls." Aggie then said, "That's the spirit, Laguna. Come on; if we head to it now, we can find good seats"! With that, the trio exited the laboratory and headed down to Pop Village.
Near the ice cream stand, where the TrollTalk was taking place, there were rows of desks already lined up as Trolls were beginning to take their seats. McJagger and Aggie sat up in the front while Laguna sat right behind her boyfriend, and across from her, skipping a desk, was Stereo, with Melody right behind her, and Riff was sitting next to Laguna in the desk on her left side. Meanwhile, Poppy was prepping her papers and getting ready to start the discussion, before she started to look around, wondering where someone in particular was. Branch saw the Pop Queen looking around and asked, "Hey, Poppy; everything ok"? Poppy answered, "Yeah, I'm just wondering where the historian is, we're about to start." Branch then realized what Poppy was talking about and said, "Oh yeah, about that; I was passing Jared earlier and he said that something came up at home so...he couldn't make it today, and will be out this week." Poppy frowned while saying, "Uh oh, but without the historian, how are we gonna do the TrollTalk? I don't know much about artifacts." Branch then said, "Um, you inform the Trolls about the situation; I'll go look for someone to substitute." Branch ran off to find a troll that could act as the substitute instructor while Poppy stepped out in front of the crowd, saying, "Good morning, every Troll. Welcome to our first week of TrollTalk, our brand new Troll discussion session where Trolls volunteer to spend the week teaching others about a variety of topics." Val, who was sitting at her seat, groaned while resting her feet on the desk, asking, "Uh, why do we have to be here again"? Melody rolled her eyes and said, "Come on, Val, a little weekly discussion session can do you some good; you might learn something cool." Poppy then commented, "Ok, so, on an unrelated note, um...there is some upsetting news: this week's speaker: Pop historian Jared, won't be able to be speaking to you this week." Everyone seemed to frown sadly, feeling sad that there wasn't going to be a speaker this week. However, Poppy quickly cheered them up, saying, "But not to worry, every Troll, for Branch is out right now, looking for a substitute speaker to take his place this week."
Laguna leaned forward to whisper to Aggie, asking, "Who do you think the new substitute speaker"? She answered, "I don't know; maybe Peppy, but he's a little old and probably won't talk about everything." McJagger then said, "What about Branch himself? If he can't find a substitute, he could be one he's pretty smart himself." Suddenly, Aggie felt a vision coming, and in her mind, her vision played Twilight Tidepool, Laguna's mother, walking to the group with a wagon full of books while saying, "G'day mates, it's real ripper ta see ya! I'm your substitute speaker: Ms. Tidepool." When Aggie's vision came to an end, the MMT gasped, looking worried, as Laguna whispered, "Everything ok, Aggie"? Aggie looked around to see if anyone was listening in on their conversation as she whispered to McJagger and Laguna, "Well...I just figured out who it's gonna be: your mom, Laguna." Laguna gasped and wanted to scream, "WHAT," out loud, but knew that if she did, it would draw attention to the others, especially Trolls who didn't know about Aggie's visions yet, so, she whispered, "What, is it true," as Aggie whispered back, "Seems like it." McJagger then whispered, "Hold on, it might not come true; I mean, maybe something might happen and we get a different sub instead," as Laguna added, "Yeah, plus, true that as an explorer, she knows about artifacts than any other Troll, but she's never done a live discussion teaching session before; she's not a teacher"! Then, suddenly, while Poppy was looking down at her clipboard, Twilight Tidepool came walking towards the group, spotting Laguna at her desk, as she approached them while carrying what looked like something in a brown bag. When she was within the vicinity, she wanted to try and whisper out Laguna's name, but Poppy looked up and saw the elder Techno troll, asking, "Oh, hi, Mrs. Tidepool." Twilight turned to face Poppy and said while tipping her fedora," Oh, G-day, Queen Poppy. um...I'm not interrupting anything, am I"? Poppy shook her head and replied, "No, no, you're perfectly fine! Everything ok"? Twilight replied, "Oh, yeah, everything's great, Poppy; I just came to uh, drop off my kelpcake's lunch," while showing her the brown paper bag she had. Laguna did her best to not scream out in embarrassment as she covered her face with her hands and groaned while some of the trolls in the group snickered, including Val, which resulted in her getting a harsh elbow to the ribs by her younger cousin, who scolded Val for laughing.
Twilight then looked up and saw Laguna in the group, waving at her while saying, "Hi, my little kelpcake," as Laguna did her best to regain her composure and forced a nervous smile, approaching her mother while saying as she took the brown bag form her mother's hand, "Hi mom. Thank you for uh, bringing my lunch. But I'm sure you're busy, so, maybe you should come by again later," while trying to usher her mom to go. Then, suddenly, Poppy had a brilliant idea and said, "Hey, Ms. Tidepool, you know a lot about artifacts, right"? Laguna panicked as she watched her mom chuckle and answer, "You betcha, mates! I know about every kind of artifact there is, from every genre, every location, you name it, this ol' gal can tell ya about it"! Laguna tried to clear her throat while making the "Don't say anything," sign with her hand across her neck, trying to get her mother to stop talking about her vast knowledge of artifacts. Twilight then said, "Well, I should let ya continue your TrollTalk, Poppy, and-," and was about to leave when Poppy stopped her by saying, "Wait, Mrs. Tidepool, you know, since you know so much about artifacts, would you be interested in being this week's substitute TrollTalk speaker"? Laguna tried to motion her mother to say no, but Twilight didn't seem to notice as she said, "Really? Well, crikey, I'd be more than happy to, Poppy! Ooh, I'll be right back, I got some great books to share about Pop artifacts," and ran to go get them, leaving a distraught Laguna to go sit down in her seat, place her head down, and let out a muffled scream, much to Aggie and McJagger's concern.
A few minutes later, Twilight Tidepool came back with a wagon full of books while saying, "G'day mates, it's real ripper ta see ya! I'm your substitute speaker: Ms. Tidepool." Every Troll in their desk immediately turned to look at Laguna, who shrunk in her seat in embarrassment. McJagger tried to reassure her by saying, "It'll be ok boo, I'm sure it won't be as bad as you think." Twilight started to pick up some of the books she had and gave it to each row of Trolls, saying, "We are gonna have such a fun time learning so much about the history behind some of the most well-known Pop artifacts. These textbooks will be very useful as we read about what each artifact is about." Once every student had a textbook, Twilight then asked, "Now, can anyone tell me what was the first-ever Pop troll artifact to be discovered in Troll history? Anyone"? No one in the group seemed to know as they all shied away, either not knowing the answer, or in Laguna's case, as she distracted herself by reading the textbook in front of her, didn't want to answer the question. That didn't seem to deter Twilight, who grinned and said, "I know someone here that does," as Laguna prayed silently that she wouldn't get picked on. McJagger saw this and quickly raised his paw up, saying, "Um, Mrs. Tidepool, would it be the first hug watch ever built"? Twilight nodded and said, "Correct, McJagger! Such a smart whippersnapper, you are; and that's why you're my favorite son-in-law." Most of the Trolls in the group broke into laughter as McJagger blushed while Laguna exclaimed out of embarrassment, "Mom! He's not your son-in-law," which made the elder Techno Troll chuckle and reply, "Not yet, of course, but once you both marry, he will be, Laguna," as Laguna's face flushed pink while she covered her eyes in embarrassment. Twilight then cleared her throat and said, "Now, would anyone like to tell us how the first hug watch was built? How about you, kelpcake"? Laguna sighed as she got up and spoke in a very fast tone of voice, saying, "The first hug catch was constructed out of marble and pyrite, and made in the shape of a sundial as clocks were yet to be invented, so trolls got their time with the use of the sun; the end," and sat back down just as quickly.
Twilight praised her and said, "Good, a little fast, but good, my little kelpcake." Some of the trolls started to snicker again when they heard Twilight calling Laguna by her mother's nickname again, which prompted Twilight to respond by saying, "I mean, Laguna. I called her "kelpcake" because..." but once she saw all the smiles the students had, Twilight said, "Oh, you all know the story by now," and was ready to continue with her discussion. Laguna was massaging her forehead again while saying to herself, "4 more days, just four more days." Two days later, at lunchtime, a lot of the Trolls were sitting at tables and talking to one another while eating her lunch. Laguna was sitting with McJagger, Aggie, Stereo, Val, and Melody, as Melody said after biting into her sandwich, "So, you're feeling like you're being smothered by your mom"? Laguna nodded and said while poking at her crabcake, "Yes, and it's stressing me out! I am this close to just calling Aggie by her full name just so she can strangle me and end this nightmare! No offense, Aggie." Aggie replied, "One, none taken," as Val added while shuddering, "Second, yikes," before McJagger added, "And third, don't worry, boo. It's just two more days and then you'll get to unwind and have some space for yourself." Laguna sighed and said, "I just want them to go by fast. The sooner they do, the sooner I'll get to have a break from my "smother." The next day, at the TrollTalk session, every Troll was reading from their textbook as Twilight was reading a passage, saying, "And when the hot metal set, it allowed the disco ball to be set and firm without so much a dent to be carved as they applied the thin layer of gravel plaster to hold every piece in place. By the time of its completion, the disco ball had finally been finished, and parties were taken to a whole new level of fun." Laguna was following along with the article but felt too tired to even think about it. Riff decided to try and cheer her up while saying, "Hey, Laguna, I know you're that your mom's here and all, but if it makes you feel any better," before sighing in content and saying, "She's a babe." Laguna's jaw dropped in disgust from hearing what Riff had just said and groaned, trying to soothe her forehead with her right hand as Twilight then stated, "So, we can consider that the disco ball was one of the main forerunners of Pop influences that transferred to other music cultures later on, like in Disco."
Twilight then closed the book she had in her hand and said, "Now, who's up for a TrollTalk rave," as almost everyone in the group cheered in excitement when they saw the elder female Techno Troll toss glowsticks, which they caught, prompting Stereo to say, "Wow, Mrs. T; I didn't know you enjoyed raving so much"! Twilight smiled and said, "Well, I was one cool glo-mato back in the day, always loved to rave every free chance I got when I wasn't doing my studies. In fact, I remember when I took Laguna to her first rave." Laguna gasped, knowing what story she was gonna talk about as she quietly pleaded, "Please no," but groaned when Twilight started to tell the story. Twilight explained, "It was about 19 years ago, and my kelpcake was just a little guppy at the time, the cutest she ever was, I have to bring some baby pictures to show you guys when I get the chance." As Twilight continued to tell the story, Laguna looked up at the sky, pleading to herself, "Two more hours, just two more hours"! Two hours later, after the TrollTalk session was over, everyone was leaving and heading into Pop Village as Laguna was walking with Aggie, McJagger, Stereo, Val, and Melody, and exclaimed, "I'M FREE"! She started to do a fun dance while saying her friends watched, "No mom! No more mom! No more mom! No more mom! No more mom! No more-," before she turned around and saw her mom standing behind her, to which while Twilight didn't hear what she was saying and only thought that her daughter was dancing for fun, which made her say, "Hey, kelpcake! Nice moves," as Laguna sheepishly laughed before saying, "You know what, mom? These last few days with you as the substitute TrollTalk speaker, it was really amazing and went by so fast. Like *POOF* gone, where did they go? Did any of you guys see them"? Aggie replied, "I didn't see them. Did you, McJagger"? "McJagger answered, "I mean, I didn't see 'em. Did you, Stereo"? Stereo chuckled and said, "No, I didn't see 'em. what about you, Mel"? Melody replied, "Nope, I didn't see 'em. Val, did-," as Val groaned and replied, "No, I didn't see them either."
Twilight smiled and said, "Ripper, mates! Well then, I got great news! I was just talking to Poppy, and she offered me to become a regular TrollTalk speaker! So, I'll get to do more discussions with you guys more often! Isn't that fun"? Everyone, especially Laguna, seemed to share a look of disbelief and shock, before they all quickly forced a smile and nodded, muttering in agreement. Twilight then knelt down towards Laguna, saying as she placed a hand on her shoulder, "Isn't this exciting, kelpcake? We'll get to spend more time together. You're ok with that"? Laguna bit her tongue, unsure to answer, as she started to say, "Well, actually, mom-," before suddenly, Aggie had another vision, and this time, it played a scene where Twilight and Laguna were in a boat together, and Twilight was holding her daughter's hands while saying, "Kelpcake, I love this job." When the vision came to an end, Aggie saw Laguna about to continue and quickly made a "Don't say it," motion with her Classical hand, which Laguna caught notice of and changed her response, saying, "Yeah, I'm perfectly ok with it, mom; I couldn't be any happier." Twilight smiled and said, "Aw, thank you, kelpcake," and brought her daughter into a hug. Before they separated, Twilight saw Laguna look a little dazed as she said while moving her hand from Laguna's shoulder to her cheek and said, "Hey, sweetie, look me in the eye. You know I love you, right? Always have, always will." Laguna looked at her mother and showed a small smile, saying, "I love you too, mom." Twilight chuckled and said while gently tousling her daughter's hair, "That's my little whippersnapper."
Later on, by the library, while Val and Stereo were looking for books on the shelves, Melody was asking, "I don't get it, Laguna. Your mom asked if you were ok with her doing the TrollTalks more often, what happened? I thought you were gonna tell her how you felt." Aggie then answered, "Yeah, but then, I had a vision about Twilight and Laguna together, and Twilight said, "I love this job," which means that she's enjoying it." Laguna then added, "Yeah, and look at how well she's done so far this week. She loves getting to do it, and everyone loves her too. and I just can't take that away from her, no matter how smothered I feel. Plus, you guys didn't see how genuinely happy she looked when she said that this meant I would get to spend more time with her. It made her feel so elated like she's succeeding at rekindling our mother/daughter bond, and well, if it means that much to her, who am I to put a stop to it?" McJagger patted Laguna on the back, saying, "You're a good daughter, Laguna; this really means a lot to her." Laguna blushed as she and McJagger shared a quick kiss, before Laguna then thought of something, asking, "Would it be possible to make her want to quit"? Aggie and Melody ended up giving disapproving glares, making the Techno quickly replies, "I'm just kidding; can I kid," but seeing the glares unchanged, Laguna sighed and said, "Sorry, this week has been extra stressful on me." She then pulled out her thoughts diary and started to write in it, with McJagger saying, "Hey, hopefully, everything will start to get better boo. you'll see, things will be fine before you know it." Laguna then decided to ask McJagger something, starting to state, "Oh, McJagger, I, uh, wanted to know if you maybe wanted to-," but before she could finish, she heard some voices laughing and saw some of the Trolls from the TrollTalk group at the library entrance, laughing, as the Rock Troll in the trio said, "Look, it's Little Mama's girl"! Laguna burrowed her face into her thoughts diary and let out a muffled scream while Aggie and Melody approached them, with Aggie saying, "Hey, cut it out," while Melody added, "It's not nice"! The Rock Troll chuckled and said, "It's not my fault that guppy needs her mommy everywhere she goes," and was about to add onto that when he felt someone shout, "Hey," and grab him and pin him against the wall of the library entrance.
It turned out be Twilight, who did not look too pleased to see someone teasing her daughter. The commotion brought McJagger, Val, Stereo, and Laguna outside to see what was going on, as Laguna gasped when she saw what her mother was doing while putting her thoughts diary away. Twilight then declared, "That's my daughter you're talking to! My flesh, my blood, my family, and when you mess with my family, you mess with me, and you certainly don't want to mess with me! and if I catch you talking bad about her again, then we are gonna have another talk, but it'll be a lot more intense than this! Understand"?! The Rock Troll nodded and quickly scurried away, with his friends following him, as Val, jaw dropped, said, "Woah, that was...awesome"! McJagger was shaking at the knees, as he stated, "Woah, Mrs. t can be scary when angry," as Twilight turned to face Laguna and her friends, saying, "Sorry for almost blowing my top there, mates. You ok, kelpcake"? Laguna didn't say anything and just replied with a nod, as Twilight said, "Good. As long as I'm around, no one will mess with you, kelpcake," and hugged her daughter again, with Laguna feeling uncomfortable. Laguna then saw the Rock Troll quickly mouth, "Mama's girl," before he ran off as Laguna felt so embarrassed, separating from the hug and saying, "Uh..I gotta go, mom," and walked off, hiding her face while talking to herself, "I just wanted to ask my boyfriend out on a date! i almost did it! i almost did it! Why, Mama, why," as she went to go try and calm down. The next day, during the TrollTalk discussion, Laguna was writing in her thoughts diary angrily, writing Having my mother here has totally my game, and it's been driving me nuts! As much as I don't want to admit this, I have to: I hate it! I hate it so much! While she kept writing, Twilight announced, "Ok, mates, now, before we go into the next part of our discussion, I have gnarly news, but not to worry, it's good gnarly. I'm gonna officially be a regular TrollTalk speaker, so, we'll get to see one another more often"! Everyone in the group, except for LAguna and her friends, started to cheer, as Laguna kept writing in her thoughts diary I just don't want her here! I just wanted some time away from her, but now, it's like she's everywhere I go, I feel so smothered, it's like I can't even breathe on my own! At first, spending time with her is all I ever wanted, but now, it's too much! She's not funny, she's embarrassing, I feel utterly humiliated! It's like I don't even want to be with her anymore! I hate this! I HATE THIS! I REALLY REALLY REALLY HATE THIS SO MUCH!
When Laguna finished writing in her thoughts diary, she placed her pen down and left the book open, as Val thought that it was a textbook, asking, "Can I see the book a minute," and took it before Laguna could even protest. Laguna whispered, "Val, give it back," as Val then started to read it, and saw Laguna's message, widening her eyes in shock while whispering, "Man, Laguna, this is cold." Laguna groaned and said, "I know, but can I-," but then, Melody, peered her head to see what she wrote and was shocked, saying, "Ouch, sounds like a lot of pent-up anger." Even Stereo could help but turn and peer her head over to take a peek, saying, "Let me see," and picked up the diary, reading it while saying quietly, "Laguna, that's your mom"! Laguna groaned and replied, "I know! Can I please have my diary back"? Stereo passed it to Aggie, who saw the message and cringed, saying, "Yikes, that's harsh," and then passed it to McJagger, who saw the message inside and his eyes widened in shock, making him turn his head to look at Laguna in concern, saying, "Oh, boo," which prompted Laguna to show him her look of worry and concern. McJagger offered her a reassuring smile and was about to get up to pass the diary to her, but then, Twilight was coming near his desk, and the Funk Troll quickly closed it and hid it next to his textbook. Twilight then declared, "Ok, mates, so now, for this next part, since we won't be needing our textbooks, i want you all to pass them up to me so I can put them in my wagon." Everyone started to pass their textbooks forward, but what McJagger didn't realize till the last minute was that while grabbing his textbook, he grabbed the thoughts diary too, and by the time Twilight came to collect his book, he realized his mistake and his jaw dropped, as well as Melody's, Aggie's, Val's, Stereo's, and especially Laguna's, as the now terrified Techno Troll quietly exclaimed, "My thoughts diary," as she saw her mother place all the textbooks and her diary in a box that was in the wagon.
After the discussion was over, as everyone was getting up to leave, Laguna and her friends eyed the box while they walked to make sure Twilight didn't pick up the diary by mistake and read the venting message inside. Then, they all approached the elder Techno Troll in hopes of getting the book back without being suspicious. Stereo was the first to speak up, saying, "Uh, Mrs. Tidepool, or Mrs. T, whichever you prefer, can I say how much I enjoyed getting to read the textbooks you brought us, but I forgot that I left a dog-ear bent bookmark on one of the pages in the book, and I want to fix it. Can I look for McJagger's textbook"? Twilight confused, asked, "Oh? But why his textbook when you can use any of the others"? Val then said, "That's not what she meant," which then prompted Twilight to ask, "What did he mean then, mate," as Val, now confused and running out of ideas, replied, "I don't know," while Melody facepalmed from how her cousin replied. To avoid her mother from getting suspicious, Laguna quickly exclaimed, "Gotcha, mom, it was just a joke! It's just this fun little trick we like to do with all of the grown-ups that you didn't get," while reaching her hand into the box to find her diary, and ended up pulling out McJagger's textbook, replying with, "And there it goes," before she saw the diary wasn't with it, and still in the box. However, before she could even respond, Twilight chuckled and took the textbook from her daughter, saying while placing it next to her diary inside the box, which Twilight didn't see still, "Thank you, kelpcake, and you know I'd love to let you guys read these again, but I got to bring these back to the library; it's policy." Melody then said, "As it should be, Mrs. Tidepool," while Stereo added, "Spoken like a true one of books," while Laguna added, "We're proud of you, mom," and as Twilight walked away with the wagon, Laguna dropped to her knees and balled her hand into a fist, saying, "I was so close! It was RIGHT THERE, just sitting there," as Aggie helped her back onto her fins while McJagger said, "Then, we're just gonna have to get it back." Laguna nodded and declared, "Right; Operation: Diary Rescue, we attack at dawn," and the group marched away to plan their rescue mission.
Early the next morning, as the sun was still asleep, but just beginning to crack in the sky, the six Trolls were all hiding behind a bush and sneaking up to the library quietly, like spies. Laguna was looking at the building through her binoculars before she gave the signal, which caused them to all quickly tiptoe to the building. McJagger and Melody both gave the look around to see if anyone was around, before giving the signal for "all clear." Everyone gathered by the doors as Laguna asked, "Ready," with her friends replied, "Ready," and saluted her like a military captain. Laguna then said, "We're going in," and tried to open the doors, but couldn't because the doors were locked, prompting her to say, "No, we're not; the doors are locked." Val groaned and said, "How did not take that into account," while Stereo said, "Oh no, the doors are locked." Laguna shook her head, facepalming while saying, "I just said that, Stereo," as she replied, "i know," while Melody said, "Looks like we're gonna need a new way in. Spread out, and let's look." Everyone worked together to try and find a new way in, until McJagger looked up and saw that there was an open window above the door, prompting him to say, "Guys, I found a way in. If one of us can get through that window, they can unlock the doors on the other side, and we can open them." Aggie then said, "I can fly, but that window's too small, i can't fit in there," while Melody added, "It's too narrow for me, I can't go through it." Laguna looked up, saying, "I'll do it; I should be small enough and skinny enough to fit. Give me a boost," while Val said, "Troll totem pole"! McJagger bent down, with his tummy touching the ground, as Val and Melody climbed up first, standing on his back before Stereo and Aggie joined. they both stood on top of Val and Melody's shoulders, until Laguna climbed up, standing on top of Aggie and Stereo's shoulders, saying, "We're ready"! McJagger then proceeded to stand up and hold everyone steady on his back while Laguna climbed through the open window. However, she was only able to get in halfway, when Peppy ended up coming around the perimeters and saw the group of Trolls, saying, "Good morning, kiddos." That prompted McJagger, Aggie, Stereo, Val, and Melody to look up and see the former Pop King standing there, and they quickly panicked, leaving Laguna not only halfway in but hanging on for dear life while she was hanging like a bat. Meanwhile, McJagger lost his balance while Stereo, Val, and Melody fell on top of him, prompting the four to crash, while Aggie flew in the air, saying, "Hello there, Peppy," while McJagger cried out, nervously smiling, "We're doing nothing wrong"! Stereo, Val, and Melody groaned in pain as they stood up, while Peppy chuckled and said, "Ah, seeing Trolls arriving to the library bright and early to read many of our wonderful scrapbooks; what a wonderful sight."
Melody then asked, "Um, hey, Peppy, would you mind uh...showing us how the lock on the library door works"? Val was now the Troll who did a facepalm, asking, "Really? You just had to ask that, Melly," as Peppy smiled, not minding the question at all, while he said, "Sure, I'd love to show you. These things can be tricky, but nothing my set of keys can't solve. Watch," and came up to the door, using one of his keys to unlock the doors and said, "See? Now, it can open and close with ease." He even decided to demonstrate by opening the door, but not only didn't see Laguna hanging there, but when he opened the door, he also accidentally hit her in the face with it, as he said, "Open," before closing the door and stating, "Close." He then opened the door again, hitting Laguna accidentally without noticing, saying, "Open," and closed it, saying, "Close. Well, glad I could help you, kiddos. Happy reading," and left, with the group of Trolls sighing in relief, while McJagger called out into the window so Laguna could hear him, "Uh, hey, boo, since you're hanging there, could you open the door, please"? Laguna could only groan in pain and give a mini glare that no one could see, replying in a stoic manner, "No problem, hon," and reached down to grab the doorknob and open the doors. The group got to enter the library while Laguna was left hanging by the window, as they looked around, with Aggie asking, "Ok, where would Twilight put the textbooks"? Val replied, "I don't know," while Laguna called out, "Guys," while trying to get their attention so they could help her get down. Stereo then said, "Maybe there's a closet or something here that she might've put them in," while Melody asked, "Ok, but where," as Laguna called out, "Guys," again to grab their attention, but it didn't work. McJagger then said, "There's a book storage room in the East Wing of the library," which prompted Stereo to say, "*imitates ai horn noises* That's perfect! Let's look there," and the group was about to leave before they stopped when they heard, "Guys, note: hanging like a bat over here"! McJagger quickly ran to his hanging girlfriend and said, "Jump Laguna, I'll catch you," as Laguna tried to push her body inward and ended up falling onto McJagger's back, as the Funk Troll smiled, saying, "So nice of you to drop him, boo." Laguna gave him a deadpanned look while saying, "Yeah, after missing my calls," which made McJagger sheepishly smile and scratch the back of his head. However, Laguna then smiled and gave him a kiss on the cheek, saying, "Thank you though for saving me though," as McJagger blushed and smiled.
Once they got to the East Wing, they saw a storage room door as Val tried to open it, but it too was locked, saying, "Dang it, it's locked! Now, what do we do"? Melody then snapped her fingers, getting an idea as she pulled out a bobby pin from her pocket and knelt down, picking the lock with the door as it opened with ease. Everyone was surprised as Aggie asked, "Since when did you learn how to pick locks, Mel"? Melody answered, "Since I was six. Fun fact: Don't leave the movie Break In playing with a six-year-old on the couch." Val then realized something and commented, "Wait, that means we could've been in here earlier if you had picked the lock outside"! Melody retorted, "Calm down, at least Peppy wasn't suspicious, and he opened the door for us. Besides, I didn't think of the idea at first, so don't blame me." Val rolled her eyes and replied, "Whatever. Let's just get in and look for the diary." Stereo smiled, saying, "Yeah, this should be a piece of crabcake-," before everyone saw hundreds of books in the storage room, prompting them to gulp in nervousness, as Aggie said, "Make that a piece of tough rubbery crabcake." Melody then asked, "so, what's the plan," as McJagger then said, "We'll split up, conquer every pile of books you see, and look through each one until one of us finds that diary." Stereo then said, "Yeah, but all of these books are Pop Village Library property," which led him to say, "Which is why we have to look very carefully." Laguna then said, "Then, we haven't a moment to lose. Let's look," and started to look in one of the piles of books. Meanwhile, McJagger as putting a desk against the open door, and Stereo, who saw him doing this, asked him, "Why are you putting a desk by the door"? McJagger answered, "It's because this door swings close, so if we let it close, it's gonna lock us in here, and we'll be trapped. so, this wooden desk should help keep it sturdy and open while we look." Once the desk was in place, everyone started to sift through the many books in the storage room. However, through more and more book piles they searched through, the diary didn't seem like it would be anywhere, making Val comment, "Uh, I don't mean to bug on anything, but can we come up with a better plan"? Aggie then said, "Let's just keep looking for now, and see if any clues turn up."
They kept looking and looking until Laguna saw under the pile of textbooks her mother dropped off, her diary laid there, making her smile and say, "My diary," and picked it up, hugging it. Everyone sighed a breath of relief as Aggie said, "Great, we found it"! Laguna placed the diary in her hair while saying, "Thanks, you guys. Now, let's get out of here before someone sees us." Val was ready to leave, but accidentally tripped on a book on the floor, making her fall and crash into a tall pile of books that fell, with one book sent flying and it hit the desk, making it roll away from the door, which swung shut and locked everyone in the storage room. All of the Trolls inside gasped as Stereo jiggled the doorknob and exclaimed, "Oh no, we're locked in"! Aggie then said, "There's got to be a way out of here! Anything"! Melody looked out of the window of the door and saw that the desk had rolled under a vent, and that made her look up near the ceiling on the right wall of the storage room and saw a vent there. Pointing at it and using her finger to try and make a possible path that could connect both vents, Melody smiled and said, "I think I know how we can get out." Soon, outside of the storage room, Stereo and Melody stood on the floor near the desk while McJagger was trying to squeeze his way out since he was stuck while Aggie was pulling on his front paws, trying to pull him out, making him say, "Next time, maybe we should just wait until some comes to let us out." Inside the vent, Val and Laguna were trying to push him out, with Val saying, "Or next time, don't try crawling into a vent you're too small to fit in"! Soon, Aggie was able to pull McJagger out safely, allowing Val and Laguna to crawl out free too. However, when Laguna was trying to jump down from the vent, her aim was off and she ended up landing on the desk, which hurt, making her say, "Ow! Oh man, that hurt," while the desk started to roll away. Laguna felt the desk rolling and commented, "Note: this can't be good," and screamed as the desk rolled out of the library while her friends chased after her, trying to help rescue her. When the desk rolled down the hill, it began to move faster and faster, especially when it started to go through the flat fields.
Val, Stereo, Aggie, Melody, and McJagger ran as fast as they could to try and save Laguna, as McJagger shouted, "We're coming, boo"! Then, not too far away from where the desk was rolling too a caterbus came to a stop as Cloud Guy, wearing his driver's hat, came stepping out, saying, "Ah, what a perfect morning for a drive. It was-," when he suddenly heard screaming. He turned his head and saw Laguna, riding on a desk that was rolling right towards him, holding on and screaming for dear life, as Cloud Guy quickly stepped out of the way to avoid the crash. The desk and Laguna ran into the caterbus and while Laguna ended up falling down onto the ground after hitting the caterbus face-first, the caterbus felt the hit and was startled, running off, prompting Cloud Guy to chase after it, shouting, "Wait, come back"! Laguna sat up, holding her head and groaning, while McJagger rushed to her side, asking while making sure she wasn't hurt, "Laguna, are you ok? Does anything hurt? Sting? Throb"? Laguna replied, "Note: I think I'm ok," as Melody then commented, "Phew, good. And on the plus side, that was awesome the way you almost ran into Cloud Guy like that! It made great payback for after all he's done to annoy us." Laguna realized Melody made a good point and let out a giggle before she said while getting up, "Come on, let's get this desk back to the library before someone sees us." They started to push the desk towards the library, as Peppy, who came back, said, "Hey, kiddos, where did that desk come from"? No one knew how to reply as Val answered, "Uh...you see Mr. Peppy, this desk uh...came from a tree! You know, where Troll-kind cut it down with no regards to the natural environment and all of its won-," before Melody covered her older cousin's mouth, saying, "What my cousin was trying to say is that...we found this desk in the forest...and we're just bringing it back." Peppy then said, "Oh, it's one of the old library desks, haven't seen this one being used in a long while. It always had these tricky drawers that drove me nuts. When I wanted one open, two would open at the same time, and then close right away, like this."
He banged his fist on the desk as two drawers opened up at once. the first drawer on top hit Laguna in the stomach, prompting her to hold her stomach, as her diary fell out of her hair and into the bottom drawer that was open before both drawers closed at the same time. Laguna once again panicked as he wanted to grab her diary, but it was now locked in the drawer. Then, Peppy said, "But I found that the best trick to only open one drawer is to kick the side," and kicked the side, making the bottom drawer open and revealing the diary. Peppy saw the book inside and asked, "Huh, what's that," but Laguna didn't want the former Pop king to see her diary. So, she quickly distracted him by saying, "Wait, stop"! It made Peppy stop and turn around as Laguna quickly grabbed the diary and hid it in her hair again, as Peppy asked, "Um, who are you talking to"? Laguna was at a loss for words as Aggie covered for her, saying, "Um...um...see, she was...just singing that cool new song! You know...how that go..." as McJagger decided to start frantically beatboxing, despite not knowing how, but just remembering how his best friend, Prince D, has done it, and all of the Trolls started to dance, while Laguna rapped.
Laguna: Wait, stop! Where you goin'? Stop, wait! I'mma comin'!
McJagger: Yeah!
Laguna, Aggie, Stereo, Val: Yeah!
Melody: Boi!
Peppy applauded them for a great show, saying, "Bravo, I like that. Got to remember that song. Now, come on, kiddos. Let's get this desk back to the library," and helped them push the desk back up to the library. Later on, after successfully retrieving the diary, Laguna was looking at the entries she wrote and decided to share one of them with her friends, reading softly so only they could hear, but no one else, "Every single second of my mom smothering me, my life feels more and more cramped, and it's almost unbearable. I know she means well, but I feel like if I see her face one more time, I'm gonna scream." Everyone felt bad for Laguna, who said while closing her diary, "And that's why I didn't want her to read my diary." McJagger hugged Laguna while saying, "Hey, Laguna, I know it's hard to handle with your mom's sweet smothering, but it'll get better." Laguna then said, "Maybe it will but maybe it won't either. I mean, I love being with her, I love to spend time with her, but I don't want to always be with her all the time. When I'm alone and with you guys, I'm Laguna, but with my mom, I'm just Mrs. Tidepool's daughter, or, her sweet little kelpcake, despite how adorable the nickname is." Aggie then said, "Yeah, but your mom is like really cool and sweet, she'll understand if you just talk to her." Melody then said, "Yeah, she's so happy to finally get to be catching up on all the lost time, it's just something you probably need to get used to." With that, the group decided to leave and head somewhere, but what no one knew was that Twilight was sitting on the branch of a tree...and had overheard everything, from Laguna's entry in her thoughts diary to her confession, and she sighed sadly, feeling so guilty.
Later on, around sunset, Laguna was writing something in her thoughts diary when she saw a delivery bug drop a letter off for her. Laguna placed her pen and diary away and opened the letter, reading, "Dear Laguna, meet me by the docks if you can. Signed, your mom." Laguna was unsure of what her mother wanted and decided to go see anyways, walking over to the docks. There, she saw her mom sitting on a rowboat, and out of curiosity, came up to her and asked, "Mom, what's going on"? Twilight answered, "Hey, kelpcake. I was wondering if, if you wanted to, you..wanted to come on a little boat ride with me"? Laguna thought about it before answering, "Well...sure, I'll join you, mom," and hopped into the boat. Twilight untied the boat and started to use the oars to paddle the boat onto a slow-moving current, that took the boat and made it move for them. While they rode, Twilight looked up at the sky and said, "You know, being here in Trollstopia reminded me of when I was about your age, kelpcake. I did a lot of crazy things, especially when I started going out on adventures. I did everything that seemed like a lot of fun: rock climbing, swam the rapids, and I even wrestled a Mama Growlbeast just for fun." Laguna was a little surprised, asking, "Really," as Twilight pointed to her right arm at a white scar that was near her elbow, saying, "Got the scar to prove it." Laguna looked at it before Twilight, "But, you know, I wasn't always about adventures; I still hung out with friends, I went to raves and parties. I used to be the party clown and tell the most hilarious jokes that always got the crowd roaring in laughter. In fact, one of my most popular jokes was doing an impression of a dolphin juggling sea urchins while trying out for the circus." she then picked up a few rocks that were by the ground near them and juggled them while doing a dolphin sound impression to the melody of circus music. Laguna was giggling in laughter, asking, "Wow, mom, you really got to do that"?
Twilight tipped her fedora and said, "Yep, I had a life. Raving, having fun, life was a dream. I loved every moment of it, but...you know...it probably wouldn't have been as much fun if my mother was around me so much." Laguna realized where her mom was going with this, as she said, "I don't know, maybe your mom would've just been looking out for you." Twilight then said, "Yeah, but all the time? I mean, I love her and everything, but even I need to have some space from her for a while. But no matter what, I'm always gonna love her, and she and I are always gonna be together forever because we're family." Twilight then said while she held her daughter's left hand, "You know, I love exploring and adventuring, but I love you, even more, Laguna. You're my daughter; you men the most to me, that I'd do anything to make sure that you're safe and happy. That's why I'm gonna turn down Poppy's offer as being a TrollTalk speaker." Laguna was a bit surprised, saying, "What? But mom, everyone thinks you're great and they love to learn from you." Twilight then ended up holding both of Laguna's hands, saying, "Kelpcake, I love this job." Laguna nodded and said, "I know: getting to share your knowledge about artifacts with others." Then, Twilight surprised her by shaking her head and saying, "No: being your mother. Teaching is nice, but being your mother is even better, and...I know I've been a bit of a "smotherer" these past few days, and I'm sorry if I've been overbearing or made you feel upset or embarrassed. I've just...been wanting to catch up on all the lost time with you, and, in a way, make up for the times before that I've ignored you or never got to spend time with you. I guess I went a little over my head with it." Laguna then said, "It's ok mom, i know you meant well. Sending time with you is all I could ever ask for, and I love getting to spend moments with you; I just...sometimes need a little space to be, you know, myself for a while. But it'll never change anything between us because-," before she got an idea and placed her hand on her mother's cheek and said, "Hey, look at me in the eye. You know I love you, right? Always have, always will." Twilight smiled and said, "I love you, kelpcake," and hugged her daughter, with Laguna hugging her mother back and saying, "I love you too, mom."
As they hugged, Twilight then said, "And I promise, Laguna, from now on, I'll only act motherly with you at home, or in certain public situations, or, if you ever want me to, just say the word. And I'll be right here to give you motherly advice if you ever need any wisdom or help along the way, promise." Laguna smiled and said, "I promise too. Thanks, mom," and shared a warm embrace with her mother again. Then, Laguna looked up and said, "Hey, mom, look"! They both looked up and saw the sunset sky, looking beautiful with a deep scarlet orange, like a painted picture. The clouds were looking like thin pieces of cotton candy, and the sun looked like it was dipping into the water. Both Technos saw the beautiful sky display as Twilight noticed they were approaching a rock and quickly tied the rope onto it so they wouldn't float away anymore. Laguna sat beside her mother as they kept looking at the sky, with Twilight saying, "I love watching the sunset over the water; it's a beautiful sight of nature." Laguna then said, "You know what could make this moment even more beautiful"? Laguna then dipped her fingers in the water as a few colorful fish peeked their heads and out and started to sing a tune that Laguna and her mother followed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~In the Blue by Michael J. Woodward and Vincent Rodriguez III~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fishes: In the blue with you!
Laguna: What could be better than to be in the blue? What could be better? Feel it! Wouldn't even matter if we got lost too; in the blue with you!
When I let, let, let, let it go; when I let, let, let, let, let it. Now I'm li-li-li-li-listening (The blue with you!), and I'm li-li-li-li-listening.
Telling stories (Twilight: Telling stories!) into the night like mother and daughter would normally do. We got (Twilight: Catching up!) catching up on life. Yeah, yeah, yeah!
Twilight: I can't forget I want it! I can't forge-get, I can't (Laguna: I need to know!)! I can't forget I want it! No, I can't forge-get (Laguna: All about you!)! I can't forget I want it! Now I can't forge-get, I can't (Laguna: I need to know-oh-oh-ooh!) I can't forget I want it! No, I can't forge-get (Laguna: All about! All about you!)!
What could be better than to be in the blue? What could be better? Feel it! Wouldn't even matter if we got lost too; in the blue with you!
(Instrumental) (Laguna: The blue with you!)
Laguna: Telling stories (Twilight: Telling stories!) into the night like mother and daughter would normally do. We got (Twilight: Catching up!) catching up on life. Yeah, yeah, yeah!
Twilight: I can't forget I want it! I can't forge-get, I can't (Laguna: I need to know!)! I can't forget I want it! No, I can't forge-get (Laguna: All about you!)! I can't forget I want it! Now I can't forge-get, I can't (Laguna: I need to know-oh-oh-ooh!) I can't forget I want it! No, I can't forge-get (Laguna: All about! All about you!)!
What could be better than to be in the blue? What could be better? Feel it! Wouldn't even matter if we got lost too; in the blue with you!
Laguna and Twilight: In the blue with you!
By nightfall, the duo returned to the docks as Twilight tied the boat back to the docks before helping her daughter out of the boat, while LAguna said, "Thanks for the trip, mom." Twilight smiled and said, "No problem, kelpcake, and I'm glad we got to talk. It's nice that we get to have these special mother-daughter conversations together." Laguna nodded in agreement before she let out an exhausted yawn, which made the elder Techno Troll smile and reply, "Awwww, looks like someone's more tuckered than a cheetah bug after a marathon. Let's go home and get some sleep." The pair walked all the way home back to Techno Lagoon and swam to Laguna's house. Laguna swam into her bedroom and dove right into her bed, getting comfy underneath her covers as Twilight came in, saying, "All cozy and tucked in, kelpcake"? Laguna nodded as she sleepily took off her glasses and placed them on her nightstand before she saw her mother come up to her and kneel down, saying, "Have pleasant dreams, kelpcake, and if you need anything, I'm here for you, promise." Laguna smiled and whispered, "Thanks mom," and soon closed her eyes, falling asleep. Twilight smiled and gave her daughter a gentle goodnight kiss on her cheek before she swam out of the bedroom, closing the door, but keeping it cracked open, in case her daughter needed to swim out of the bedroom for anything. but not before smiling when she saw her daughter smiling and having happy dreams fill her head.