Shadgirl2: Sorry this took so long to get up. We've had some issues lately.

Midna Azusa: Nothing serious, just a very uncommon infestation caused by a faulty chimney cap.

Shadgirl2: Anyway, we're back now. Also, forgot to mention this earlier, but someone said they like how we're using "70s black-people lingo" with the Funk Trolls.

Midna: Glad you like that! I figured since funk music is an African American music genre, it made sense to use that lingo with that tribe.

Shadgirl2: Okay, we've held you up long enough. Enjoy the chapter!

Edit: For anyone concerned about the way Branch behaved last chapter, please bear with us. He'll figure out his own problems in the future. Beyond that, the kind of behavior he displayed wasn't viewed as toxic in the old days. Trolls seems to take place in the 80s or 90s, so their definition of "abuse" or "toxic" wasn't the same. The Country Trolls just see a lovers' quarrel that, to them, looks like a married couple that's fighting with each other. This may not be the norm for some, but my grandparents on both sides acted that way toward each other much of the time and both loved each other deeply. Besides that, Branch and Poppy tend to do these things to each other (leaving Branch at the mercy of the entire village during Hug Time in his bunker in the first movie, Prank Day in TTBGO, Switcher Ruby episode where Branch enjoyed Poppy's torment in needing to fix DJ's plumbing, etc.). Just because we might consider it toxic doesn't mean that everyone interprets it the same way. These two seem to have thicker skins than some. This isn't Branch asserting his dominance or anything. It's just how the two of them seem to treat each other. They don't take it that badly, especially since they're both more mischievous to begin with. When frustrated with each other, they generally tease each other. Besides, Poppy technically started it by yelling at Branch about the song he was singing. Branch just responded with sort of a "you started it" attitude. Regardless, Branch will realize that he took things too far. Just give him time. We try to keep the characters in character, which sometimes means they do things that offend people.

Disclaimer: We don't own Trolls. Harmony, Funshine, Joy, and Happy Fun Town all belong to Shadgirl2. Baroque belongs to Midna Azusa.

In Happy Fun Town, Creek worked hard to rebuild the party zones, bringing Joy and Funshine along with him. Using the supplies he'd brought, they redecorated each with streamers, balloons, and disco balls. They then took some paper plates, cups, and silverware to each location and left them stored for future use. With the decorations and utensils taken care of, they hung pinatas, made fireworks, and baked some treats, with others joining in to help.

Soon the trolls of Happy Fun Town were all deeply engrossed in the efforts to restore their town to its proper glory, their hope slowly returning with each positive change that was made. They repaired damaged homes and rebuild destroyed facilities, such as the daycare and critter farms.

But that wasn't even all Creek did for them.

"As you can see, if you set the nets up properly, they won't be in a place where they'll catch any trolls, and your perimeters will be safe from invaders or predators," Creek, smiling gently, told a troll in a hard hat. (He figured keeping a smile on his face as much as possible would help cheer them up since smiling was supposed to be contagious. It seemed to be working so far, at least, since some of the others were smiling slightly.)

Yes, that's right—Creek was also teaching them protection. By orders of Poppy, he had been taking Branch's safety classes. She hoped they would help him overcome his cowardly weakness. As far as the success of that plan...he was still pretty timid, but at least he knew how to protect himself and others safely now, so maybe he could overcome his fears in time. Given how many classes he'd taken, he could survive almost anything. Hair, he'd even learned the safe way to rescue someone from a raging river. (He only wished he'd known that one when Branch staged a fall into one. It would have saved him, Branch, and Poppy all a lot of trouble.)

Still, Creek had learned from these classes that he had a long way to go before reaching enlightenment, and he figured helping these trolls with their problems was a good place to start.

"Wow, where did you learn this?" Joy asked, curious. She'd never met a troll who could make actual traps...or one who wanted this knowledge, really.

Creek gave her a gentle smile and answered, "Well, there's this troll back in my village who teaches regular classes on safety and security, and I've been in them practically since day one, so I've learned a lot about it. If you'd like, I can share some of what I've learned about self-defense with you all as well. I mean, I'm not much of a fighter myself, but I can show you what I learned from him at least."

"Sounds like a good idea. Better to know something, right, Funshine?" Joy answered, looking at her friend with a slight bit of hope.

Funshine nodded slightly; she'd just been watching this whole thing in awe.

"Alright. Then that's what I'll do," Creek said. "But not right now, love. Now, I've got some more work to do on these here party favors. They still aren't firing right, so I'll have to get another look at them, I'm afraid. Now let's see..." He walked off, a hand to his chin, as he tried to solve this mystery.

Several trolls got to work, building the safety equipment he'd told them about. They looked more confident and hopeful than they had in a long time.

Funshine looked around, taking in all the hopeful smiles on the faces of the surrounding trolls. She approached Joy for a private discussion and quietly said, "Seriously. Who is this guy?" She threw her arms out to the sides. "It's as if the sun follows him everywhere he goes, obeying his commands to shine on everything he touches!" She looked a bit anxious.

How could anyone be that happy in a world as messed up as this? Was he crazy, an alien, some kind of angel? What was he?

Joy smiled slightly and said, "Whoever he is, I'm glad he came."

For the first time in a while, Funshine gave her friend a slight smile in return. "...Yeah... I am, too."

Regardless of what Creek was, his ideas were working to cheer everyone up, and he was making sure they were all safe. Crazy or not, he was a godsend.

She watched Creek as he fiddled with the party favors, helping her people finish them. One popped open in someone's face, shooting confetti at him and making him jump. Creek sat there, laughing and pointing at the troll in question, which made him laugh and smile slightly as well...after he recovered from the shock of having confetti sprayed in his face, anyway.

Funshine's smile widened slightly, a small giggle escaping her mouth and a slightly affectionate look forming in her eyes. Creek was super cool. He was nice and playful, and everyone seemed to like him. Who had sent an angel like this to her village, anyway? She owed them a huge thanks.

Joy saw that look, and she knew what it meant. She looked at her friend shrewdly and gave a teasing grin, moving closer. "He might be worth taking the time to get to know...alone, if you catch my drift," she said.

Funshine blinked, looking confused, then turned to look at Joy, still looking lost. "Excuse me?"

Joy giggled a bit and said, "Oh, come on! Don't tell me you're not thinking it!"

Funshine blinked a bit, her eyes widening, then turned away, rubbing an arm. What was Joy thinking? She wasn't interested in Creek! Besides, he was too good for her. "Don't be silly! That would never happen. And...besides..." She looked at her gray hands sadly. "What would a joyous guy like that ever want with a moody downer like me...?"

Joy looked away, hands behind her back, as she resolutely tried not to let herself be brought down by that comment. (She was feeling a little happy for a change, and she was not letting that go so easily.) "Hmm... I dunno. He acts like he's got experience with gray trolls..."

After all, who else would know how to help a gray troll? Had Creek been gray before? Did he have a friend who had once turned gray? Either way, it was good for them.

Funshine looked at Joy hopefully. "You really think so?" she asked, managing a tiny smile.

"Yeah, I do," Joy answered, looking back at Funshine. "And I think he's just what you need, Funshine. I mean, look how much help he's been already! If anybody can help you get back to normal, it's him."

Funshine looked away uncertainly, her now-usual glum frown returning. "I doubt that one, Joy. But I'll take your word for it at least." Nervous, she walked over to Creek, who had just started up a sock puppet show for the children, and said, "U-um... Creek? M-may I have a w-word with you, p-please?" She rubbed her arm, looking off to the side, as she spoke.

There was no way he'd agree to this. Why was she even bothering?

Creek looked up from his show, curious, and offered a gentle smile as he answered, "Sure, Queen Funshine. What is it?"

Funshine looked away, shuffling a foot nervously. "F-Funshine works. Say, listen, a-about what you've d-done here so far...thanks. I-I was starting to think no one w-would be happy here again, but—e-ever since you showed up, I, uh... Well..." She looked away, blushing from embarrassment. How could this be so hard? All she was doing was saying thank you. She hadn't said anything crazy yet!

Creek stared at her curiously. He took a moment to try reading her aura, and his eyes widened, seeing an uneven mix of reds, grays, blues, and pinks. Alright. The gray and blue make sense as they represent sadness and despair. But the red and pink are signs of... He let the thought trail off, then said, "Funshine, would you care to join me for a walk in the woods later? It might help you get your mind off everything that's happened here."

It couldn't hurt to give it a whirl. It wasn't like he'd ever get Poppy back—she and Branch were bound together by fate.

Funshine blinked, looking unsure. Was he serious? "Uh...sure. That sounds nice to me."

Creek smiled back gently, saying, "Then that's what we'll do. Just as soon as I finish up with a few more things, I'll come find you. Alright, love?"

Funshine nodded nervously. "Y-yeah... S-sounds good to me..."

Creek smiled and got up. "Fair enough. Then I'll see you later. For now, I think I'll go see how setting up that alarm system is going." He headed off, looking happy as he waved, and called back, "See you in a few, love! Looking forward to it!"

Funshine shyly waved back. "Yeah... Me, too."

She couldn't believe it. Had a super awesome, happy troll really just asked her on a date? Granted, it was probably a pity date, just an attempt to cheer her up, but...

Joy dragged her from her thoughts then. She slipped up behind Funshine, looking sly, and said, "I think he likes you."

Funshine laughed shortly. A pity date didn't happen because someone likes you. Joy couldn't be serious.

"Yeah. And the Party Crashers are best friends with every troll colony they've ever destroyed. Why would you think he's interested in someone like me? He's probably just trying to cheer me up, like he's doing for everyone else. That's all. I mean, what else could it be?" She rubbed her arms, looking away sadly.

There was just no way a happy troll would fall for a moody one like that. It was impossible, and she knew it!

Joy sighed. Funshine could really be depressed, couldn't she? She didn't do anything halfway! "Have it your way, Funshine. Just...try to have fun, please? For me?"

Funshine looked at Joy, then sighed again. "Yeah, sure. I'll try."

Joy nodded, smiling slightly. Then she started walking off as she said, "I'm going to see about helping out. You know, wherever I'm needed. It's whatever."

"Yeah... You do that..." Funshine stared after Creek uncertainly.

Could he be dumb enough to consider dating someone like her?

As Creek was busy following in Poppy's footsteps, the Funk Trolls came floating over Symphonyville, startling only two trolls below—the Pop Trolls. The Classical Trolls had seen Vibe City overhead on a few occasions, but it could be a bit of a shock to anyone who wasn't expecting it.

"What is that!?" Satin cried, looking up in a panic as she tried to hide behind the harp.

"Are we in danger!?" Chenille asked.

"Calm down, it's just the Funk Trolls," Baroque answered. He looked up curiously and said, "They don't come here often."

"Hmm... No kidding," Harmony agreed as she cast a curious look skyward as well. "I wonder what the occasion is?"

The Funky family and Guy Diamond came down in a bubble, Guy still holding a broom he hadn't bothered putting down.

Conductor Trollzart happily flew up to greet them, hands clasped in front of him. "Oh, my! King Quincy, Queen Essence, and Prince D! It's always so good to see you! But, wait! Is that a Pop Troll with a broom you've got there?" He eyed Guy with uncertainty. The last Pop Trolls he'd seen weren't all that friendly, especially the bluish one, and now there was one cleaning in Vibe City? What in Heaven's name was going on here?

King Quincy laughed, amused. "He sure is! This is Guy Diamond, and he got sent out with all his fellow Pop Trolls to try and help us all deal with a ground troll issue. Something about some goons going around using up everyone's party supplies?"

Trollzart stared at him, his eyes wide in surprise. "...He told you that story, too?" he asked, pointing at Guy. Then he threw his hands up to his head in a panic, fluttering around anxiously. "Oh, dear me! I may have just made a horrible mistake here!" He stopped and clasped his hands, leaning his head against the side of them. "I, too, had some Pop Trolls drop by, claiming the same thing! But I didn't believe them, however, so I made them stay with us to prove to me they could be trusted!"

Talk about a good way to establish hostile relations with a foreign leader...again. Why did this keep happening? First the misunderstanding with Mayor Delta, and now it was a misunderstanding with some Pop Trolls! Would he ever learn to watch his step? He was going to lead his people into a war if he kept this up!

Trollzart put a hand to his head, looking pained. "Oh... Oh, my heavens... This...this is..."

"Can you tell us where they are now?" Essence asked with concern. "Maybe we can still work this all out!"

Trollzart nervously twiddled his thumbs as he looked down, uncomfortable. He could only hope the Funky Family could straighten this out. They were the ones who resolved things with Mayor Delta, so they were his only hope. Odd how they seemed to be the only ones who could get along with the other tribes these days, but Trollzart wasn't complaining.

"Y-yes... I sent them on a tour of Symphonyville today. So they should still be busy with that."

"Alright! Then let's split up and look for them!" Quincy said with determination. He looked at his son and added, "D, you go with Guy and search around the lower grounds! I'll go with Trollzart and search the higher ones! And Essence can search inside all the historical sites!"

"I'm terribly sorry about all of this..." Trollzart said as he bowed his head.

"Aw, it's cool, man," Quincy told him, giving a reassuring smile. "You didn't know. Now come on. Let's go find these girls so we can smooth things over with them." He started walking off to look for the two Pop Trolls.

"Y-yes... That sounds like the best option to me..." Trollzart flew after him, feeling mildly relieved. King Quincy wouldn't be smiling if he thought these Pop Trolls would look for revenge.

D looked at Guy and asked, "Ready to move, Guy?" He eyed the broom and smiled. "Uh, you can just leave that here."

Guy blushed, grinning sheepishly, and dropped the broom. (He'd completely forgotten he was still holding it.) "R-right, right...my bad."

"It's cool. Come on," D said as he started off, "let's see if we can find two grounded trolls in a winged land."

"Right!" Guy said as he followed, looking determined but relatively calm. Satin and Chenille, from the sound of things, should be doing okay. It was everyone else he needed to worry about.

Meanwhile, Harmony and Baroque managed to convince the twins to focus on their practice. Because of this, the twins didn't even see anyone come down from the UFO above. Being quick learners, they were finished with scales and had moved onto simple songs.

"That's it, Chenille!" Baroque said, proud of his student. "You're a natural!"

Chenille had moved beyond the basic and was playing a very small section of "Waltz of the Flowers" (on loop—it was practice, after all).

"I am, aren't I?" she said, rather proud of herself.

Satin rolled her eyes slightly. Of course Chenille was the natural. Meanwhile, Satin was still playing "London Bridge is Falling Down" over and over again, missing notes here and there. After playing the guitar for ages, you'd think the harp would be easy! At least, Satin had thought so. Turned out, she was wrong.

"Aw, don't mind that, Satin," Harmony said with a reassuring smile. She was still using her finger as a baton. "You're doing alright, too."

"Thanks, Harmony."

Chenille teased, "But you're not a natural, are you?"

"Oh, be quiet!" Satin retorted.

Hearing lovely, albeit amateur, music, D headed over, curious. The way he figured it, there were two possibilities here, and that made this worth looking into.

"Ugh... It's so boring around here!" Guy complained. "Don't these trolls know anything better than 'London Bridge is Falling Down' mixed with who knows what on repeat? I mean, really. You'd think they'd be better at this than that." Silently, as his ears threatened to start bleeding from the cacophony those two songs combined to create, he added, And do they really think those two songs actually go together? Because I sure don't!

"That's either a class for the kids or a couple of Pop Trolls learning classical music if I've ever heard it," D said as he kept heading toward the music. Either way, it only sounded that weird when students were playing the tunes.

"Really?" Guy asked as he followed, curious now.

"Bet. These guys are better than that. Last time we were here, we were treated to an orchestra performance of Beetrollven's 7th. For about 40 minutes." He grinned, amused at the memory.

They had just prevented a war between the Country Trolls and Classical Trolls over that ridiculous misunderstanding Delta had, so the conductor put on a special performance for them. The family had been welcome in Symphonyville ever since (meaning D no longer had to sneak into town in the middle of the night and avoid the conductor like the plague).

Guy's eyes bugged out. "Reeeeaaally?" he asked, stunned.

"The Classical Music Trolls have a thing for lengthy musical numbers. Break that one down, you get segments that are around 7 or 8 minutes long. Then there's a shift in the music, and you're in another segment. It's very different from other genres. Also, there's no singing with most of their songs."

Guy stared, his eyes wide in shock. Who knew that any genre was like that? It sounded fascinating to him, really. How could you make an entire show out of just one song? He wanted to check it out a bit more, but that would have to wait. Saving the others came first.

Across the pond ahead, D saw exactly what he was looking for—two Pop Troll girls learning how to play from a couple of Classical Trolls.

"Excellent, ladies!" Baroque encouraged. He looked up and gave a start as he caught sight of Prince D. "Uh, Harmony, we have a royal guest."

Harmony turned, startled, then waved politely. "Prince D! Welcome! Always a pleasure to see you!" She clapped her hands and held them to her chest, beaming as usual.

The twins looked, and both had separate reactions, based on the two trolls they saw.

"Guy! Oh, thank goodness, you're alright!" Satin said, relieved.

"Cooper!?" Chenille asked, confused. "Where's Biggie?"

D laughed. "Looks like we've got another round of Pop Trolls with the wrong idea."

Guy moved toward the twins, smiling with relief. They really were alright. "Satin! Chenille! Oh, thank gliiiiitter you're both alright! I mean," he gestured at the Funk prince as he said, "when Prince D of the Funk Trolls said pop was a hated genre, I was sort of expecting you to be in serious trooouuubleee!"

The twins stared for a second, stunned. Finally, Chenille said, "Prince D?"

Satin blinked and said, "He looks like Cooper!"

"Yeah, I've heard that before," D said, smiling.

The twins blinked again. Were these two saying Cooper was some sort of foreign royalty? They shook their heads, recovering, and put that thought aside for now.

"Uh, right, well..." Satin said. "We were in trouble, but..." She looked at Chenille, unsure how to finish that.

Chenille shrugged. "Eh. It's not so bad here. Baroque and Harmony here were just teaching us how to play classical music."

"Really?" Guy asked, smiling. He was impressed, and, after what Prince D had told him, learning to play classical music sounded like fun.

Harmony laughed happily. "That's right!" She flew over between the two twins, gesturing at them with a proud smile. "These fine young ladies here have shown quite the interest in learning all our ways!" She flew to Chenille's left, adding, "And Chenille's a natural, too!" Her eyes widened for a moment as she realized what she had just said. She flew over to Satin's side, waving her hands, and looked awkward as she continued, "Uh, no offense, Satin. You're doing good, too, though!" She threw her arms out, smiling reassuringly (albeit a bit awkwardly). She didn't think it was polite to praise the naturally-gifted musician so gushingly while her amateur sibling was standing right there.

Satin sighed, and Chenille smirked at her sister.

"Figured you'd be able to get along," D said. "Guy's not so bad. Got himself in a bit of trouble, but it doesn't seem like all the Pop Trolls know the history...any of it."

Harmony gave a knowing nod, saying, "Yes. The conductor came to that conclusion as well."

"And, speaking of, ladies," Guy started, his eyes widening in horrified displeasure, "did you know Pop Trolls once tried destroying all the music in the world by stealing some—"

"We know," they cut him off.

"We read it in a scrapbook last night," Satin said. She put her hands to her face, looking appalled, and added, "I can't believe our ancestors were so horrible!"

"Just because something's different doesn't make it bad," Chenille added. "I mean, look at Branch! He's as different as they come, but we still love him!"

Guy threw his hands downward, glaring. "I know, right!? I mean, what were they thinking, butting in and telling everyone how to sing like that? Talk about rude!" He crossed his arms and looked disgusted, sticking his nose in the air. That was no way for a bunch of fun-loving, caring creatures to behave.

The twins nodded in agreement and continued talking while Prince D moved to the Classical Trolls. "Nice to know Pop's changed, huh?" he asked.

Harmony smiled, cupping her hands over her stomach. "Yes. It's wonderful to see them so accepting of each other's genres! I'm very grateful they came!" As she spoke, she spun once, delighted.

Satin and Chenille were both so charming and sweet, it was hard to imagine them ever being like their ancestors. They had a sort of refined, classical-like air to them, too, and Guy seemed to be fairly similar. Maybe Pop Trolls had changed.

"Oh, speaking of..." D cleared his throat, then turned his attention to the Pop Trolls. "Yo, Satin, Chenille?"

The twins stopped talking with Guy and looked at the Funk prince.

"Conductor Trollzart wants to see you. My folks talked to him. Seems your story and Guy's match up, so he wants to apologize."

"Oh," Satin said.

"Does that mean we don't get to stay?" Chenille asked, seemingly worried.

Guy started, his eyes widening. "I'm sorry, what?"

"So is that why you dropped by? To take these Pop Trolls home?" Harmony asked, looking mildly disappointed. She wanted her new friends to stay a bit longer so they could bond some more.

"Yeah, something like that. Guy told us his friends visited all the other tribes and, with what he learned, he was worried. We're just going around, checking in on everybody. You know, making sure everybody's cool I figured these two would be fine, but it's better to be safe than sorry, ya dig?"

Harmony's eyes lit up with understanding. "Oh! I see." She gave a dismissive wave, smiling. "Well, you don't need to worry!" She gestured toward the twins and continued, "Everything's just fine here!" Harmony looked at them cheerily and asked, "Right, ladies?"

"Uh-huh!" Satin said with a smile and a nod.

"Sure, we weren't too thrilled at first, but Symphonyville's great! Even if we were 'invited' to stay rather forcefully," Chenille added.

Guy stared at them for a bit before saying, "Huh."

So they were in trouble at first but managed to smooth things out. If they could do that, maybe some of their other friends could as well...but Guy still thought they should check on Poppy, Branch, Fuzzbert, and Aspen Heights. They were the ones most likely to be in trouble, from what Prince D said.

"Oh! We're going to be part of the show in a few days!" Satin said suddenly, excited. "You should come!"

"If everyone else is okay, that is," Chenille added.

"Yeah, we should be able to get back in time for that," D said. "King Trollex is probably pretty chill with your friends, so the worst we'll have there is more like what we got here. It's Lonesome Flats and Volcano Rock you gotta worry about, but Mayor Delta's reasonable...if you catch her on a good day. And King Thrash isn't as bad as some Rock Trolls."

The twins looked concerned after hearing all of that. It just figured Poppy and Branch would be visiting a more hostile tribe—either Poppy would get them in trouble by trying to change them, or Branch would think they already were in trouble and cause what he feared.

"...Should we be worried?" Chenille asked.

D laughed a bit. "Nah, I don't think any of your friends are gonna get hurt. But the Rock Trolls might shake 'em up a bit."

"Oh," Satin said, feeling a bit relieved.

Chenille still looked unsure.

"Chill. My people are good at diffusing disputes between the other tribes," D assured her. "Especially with Country Trolls being our immediate neighbors." He rolled his eyes, remembering one incident with Delta.

Harmony shifted uncomfortably and looked down and away. Baroque rubbed the back of his head, looking up toward the sky.

The twins, however, nodded, both feeling better now.

"So now what, Prince D?" Guy asked, looking at him with concern. "Sounds to me like Poppy and Branch might be in the most trouble and that we should find the conductor and tell him what happened here. So we can hurry to Lonesome Flats right awaaaay!" He turned to the twins, looking concerned. "Uh, Country Trolls really hate pop music, if you catch my drift."

"Oh, no! Poppy!" Satin put her hands to her face, worried.

"I'm willing to bet our entire fashion line that Poppy's gotten them in trouble," Chenille said, repressing a sigh.

Harmony gasped and covered her mouth. "Oh, no! Really!?"

"Poppy...isn't exactly the most careful of us," Satin said, choosing her words carefully.

"She probably thought the Country Trolls needed cheered up, so she started singing happy pop songs. I'd bet Branch told her not to, but I'm equally certain Poppy would ignore him on this one since she ignored him when he said to leave him alone about being happy."

D looked mildly concerned. Nobody had told him that one of the Pop Trolls had emotional struggles. "Is that a problem for him?"

"Uh, not really now, but..." Guy looked at D seriously and continued, "That's a serious problem for Poppy, so, if we're going to help her, we'd better hurry. I don't even want to think about what kind of a mess she's gotten intooooooo!"

"No doubt! Come on! Let's go find my folks and the conductor!" D said. He looked at the others and added, "Always a pleasure, Harmony. Nice to meet you, Baroque, Satin, Chenille." With that, he ran out, with Guy following, looking both determined and anxious all at once.

The twins waved after him, calling, "Bye, Prince D!"

"Goodbye! Hope you can calm Delta down after that one!" Harmony said, waving and smiling. She tried her best to keep her worry off her face.

From the sound of things, the Pop Trolls might be the next ones in line to face Mayor Delta's wrath, and nobody deserved that!

"Good luck!" Baroque added. "It sounds like you'll need it! We all know how her temper is!"

"Bet!" D agreed before running out of earshot.

Satin and Chenille looked at each other, now even more worried. They didn't think they really wanted to know.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" Satin asked.

"Hopefully Branch has everything under control," Chenille answered.

Satin nodded in agreement, and they resumed their lessons. (Satin was jealous of Chenille within about 10 minutes as her sister started working on more complex music while she played "Mary had a Little Lamb.")

D and Guy hurried off to find Quincy and Trollzart. They found the two in the middle of a conversation that seemed to be about the Pop guests.

"It could help if you got to know them some," Quincy said calmly as the two boys arrived.

"I see what you mean, King Quincy," Trollzart said as he looked down in shame. "Perhaps I'll do that n—"

"Sorry to interrupt, but we found the twins!" D said. "Apparently they're cool with being here. Seemed a bit disappointed when I said they were cleared."

"For real?" Quincy asked, raising an eyebrow.

He'd expected them to be cool with the misunderstanding, but he hadn't expected they'd want to stay.

Trollzart sighed, putting a hand over his heart in relief. "Oh, thank heavens..."

It seemed he wasn't going to war with the Pop Trolls!

"Yeah, and they told me a little more about the Pop queen. She might be in more hot water than we thought. Seems her friend, Branch, would get along better with Mayor Delta, but the queen probably wouldn't listen to him and would start poppin', if you catch my drift."

"Ooh," Quincy cringed. "Yeah, I feel you. Uh, so, listen, sorry to cut and run like this, but—"

"Oh, heavens! No! Don't even worry about it!" Trollzart said, now looking frantic himself. What kind of troll would ever be foolish enough to rub Mayor Delta the wrong way like that? A misunderstanding over words was one thing, but music mixing in Lonesome Flats? "Just hurry over to Lonesome Flats before heads begin to roll!"

"WHAT!?" Guy asked, horrified, as his eyes bugged out of his head.

The Funk Trolls never said anything about that. Were Poppy and Branch even still alive? It sounded like they could be in mortal peril! Now Guy was wishing he'd gone there—he wouldn't do anything that reckless!

"Bet!" D said. Then, to Guy, he said, "Still cool. We can smooth this over!"

"Oh, I hope so!" Guy said, worried once again.

Why hadn't he gone instead? Poppy and Branch could be in real danger, and it was all his fault! Well, okay, the others shared some blame, too, since none volunteered to go to Lonesome Flats. But, still, he'd be blaming himself if this foreign mayor hurt his friends. What kind of a friend was he? Why, his cruel words had been one of the main reasons they'd almost lost Branch's friendship before, too! Why was he such an idiot?

"Right! Then there's no time to lose!" Quincy said before he started running off, looking determined. This Pop/Country thing was quickly turning into an emergency, and they needed to put the fire out fast. Nobody needed a Pop/Country war. "Let's go find Essence and ship out! Them Pop Trolls ain't gonna rescue themselves!"

When would people learn to just leave Mayor Delta alone?

"Well, they might," Guy said. "I mean, assuming Branch can manage to outsmart those guys, but..." He followed after the Funk king.

"Hey, if they rescue themselves, all the better, but we should still zip over there and make sure Mayor Delta doesn't decide to declare war on y'all next!" D answered as he followed.

"Oh, I certainly hope they manage to prevent that..." Trollzart said, feeling a bit worried. "Well! I best go off and locate those two lovely ladies before today's rehearsals can begin. With a little luck, I'll be able to smooth things over with them as well."

And so he flew off, feeling hopeful that he could make peace between his own people and the Pop Trolls, if nothing else.