Hello my fellow Trolls fans!
Here is another chapter! I loved writing this one, one of my favorite ones to write so far. The next one will be interesting too! Thanks to WildKat25 for helping with the story!
I hope you all enjoy reading this chapter! I don't own Trolls, but Rose is my OC!
—————————————-
Poppy groaned slightly when she felt something tap her leg in her sleep. She slowly opened her eyes as she looked around. She could tell it was early morning, but couldn't hear Rose like she normally would when she wakes up. Poppy turned her head towards Branch, feeling his foot tap her leg. "Branch, you're tapping my leg." She mumbled lazily. She snuggled back into her pillow, her arm draping over Branch. Her eyes shot open when she felt him shake. She propped herself up with one arm and leaned over him slightly. Branch laid on his back with his eyes shut tight, a frown on his slightly parted lips as he breathed heavily. Her eyes widened when she realized he was having a nightmare. Her ears dropped when she heard him whimpering in his sleep. "Branch, Branch. Wake up." She spoke softly. When he didn't wake up, she placed a hand on his shoulder to gently shake him. "Branch, honey, it's a nightmare." She whispered a bit louder.
Branch jolted up, breathing heavily as he looked around. His wide eyes settled on Poppy, relaxing slightly when he realized they were in his room. "Poppy?" He went quiet when he realized how raspy his voice was. Branch looked away when he realized what she saw. "I'm thirsty, I'll be right back." He quickly got out of bed and was out the door before Poppy could say anything.
Poppy watched as he left, frowning slightly as slowly getting up. When she got to the hallway she noticed Roses door was open. She glanced inside to see Rose still asleep, but was sure she closed it when they were last up with Rose. She looked towards the kitchen to see a faint light from a Mushroom. Poppy peered around the corner, seeing Branch's silhouette leaning over the sink with his eyes closed. "Branch?" She spoke quietly to keep from startling him.
"Rose is okay, she's still asleep." He said, glancing at her before grabbing a glass to get a drink.
"Is that what your nightmare was about? Something happening to Rose?" Poppy asked, seeing Branch stop in his tracks.
"That was a bit of it." He muttered, leaning against the counter. He looked up at her. "We should probably go back to bed, Rose will most likely be up soon and we need sleep for tomorrow." Poppy stared at him for a moment before walking towards him.
She wrapped her arms around his chest, resting her head on his shoulder. She felt his arms travel around her, smiling as she felt him relax into her. After a few minutes she gave him a quick squeeze before letting go. "Now that we have that out of the way, we are going to talk." She took his hand and started dragging him back to the bed before he could say anything. Once they got into the room she let go of his hand and sat on his bed. "This is our safe space. In our safe space we can talk about whatever we want, without fear of any of it leaving this room. You can tell me anything and I will listen." She said as she crossed her legs, waiting for him to join her.
Branch stood at the entrance staring at her. After a minute he slowly went to the bed and sat next to her, crossing his legs as well. Poppy shifted slightly so she was in front of him with their knees touching. Branch kept his head slightly lowered as he glanced at her, letting out a soft chuckle. "You're amazing, you know that?"
"I do." She grinned cheekily, taking his hands in hers. "Now talk. What was your nightmare about? I'm guessing it's about the events of today, but I won't know unless you tell me." She said as she watched him take a deep breath.
It took Branch a minute to gather his thoughts before speaking. "Today was a...rough day. It brought back old memories I wish I didn't remember." His voice was low as he spoke, not used to speaking about his nightmares. "I always have them. Today was just a bad day that made them worse, that's all."
"That's all? What do you mean that all?" She frowned slightly. "I've stayed overnight every night past week and you haven't woken me up because of a nightmare."
Branch glanced away slightly. "I've had a few, and would stay up if I thought I may have one. I didn't want to wake you, and with Rose always waking up you need the sleep."
Her eyes softened as he spoke. "Branch, you don't have to hide the nightmares from me. You can wake me up no matter what happens."
Branch sighed and gave her a smile. "I know I can. I'll wake you up next time." He gently rubbed his thumbs on the back of her hands.
"So, what was the dream about exactly?" She asked.
"It was almost like I was reliving what happened today, but I was a kid. Almost like I was in Roses place. I was small, and I couldn't speak. I was being blamed for something, but had no idea what I did." As Branch spoke his words quickened. "Everyone just watched, no one said or did anything. No one believed me. I was alone and terrified. Then to make everything worse, I felt the ground shaking. I went to go hide here, but it had collapsed with...everyone I know inside." His ears lowered as he took a breath.. He took a moment to catch his breath as he glanced at Poppy. "The shaking came from that chef Bergen. She always shows up. She grabs me, or you, or someone. She always…" he stopped for a second.
"Chef is gone, she isn't coming back." Poppy said softly. "The Bergen's are our friends."
"You don't understand Poppy, it's something no one will understand. I've had that fear of Bergens all my life, it won't fully go away now that we're friends with some of them. I know they won't hurt us, but it's still something that won't leave me alone when I sleep. Because of that, there are times that I don't sleep for days. I feel better staying awake then sleeping. I can't just close my eyes and sleep those days. I go to bed every night hoping that I don't feel the texture of Grisel's tight underneath me, or the tight squeezing of Chefs hand around me. I always get those dreams after we visit them. They just feel so real, sometimes I can't take it. All those times I've run into town screaming Bergen were part of my nightmares."
Poppy sat quietly as he spoke, seeing the fear in his eyes as he continued. Her heart broke as she realized he never had anyone to talk to about this before. "I see the bullies faces when I close my eyes, and they laugh at every mistake I make. I hear the words from others talking behind my back when I realize the Bergen's weren't there. I still get nightmares of Creeks smirk when he took your bell, and the way you looked when you lost your colours that day. My worst ones are if I miscalculated the jump and you got hit instead, or if I hurt you when I was a rock zombie. There are ones that Chef came back, and took you from me and I couldn't…" His voice cracked as he shook slightly.
"Branch." Poppy spoke, breaking his train of thought as she brought her hands to his cheeks. When Branch looked back up at her, she placed her forehead against his gently. "Branch, love, even when you were under Barbs control you were gentle. I know you would never hurt me, honey." She looked into his eyes, seeing fear in his eyes slowly fade. "You sang with that beautiful voice of yours, and brought my colours back. You didn't miscalculate that jump and saved me like you always do." She kissed his nose.
Branch couldn't help but smile slightly. "Sometimes I wake up and I still feel like I'm back. Back to being alone, that all of it was just a dream and I'm grey again. I…" He reached over to his side table drawer and pulled out a photo. "When you aren't here at night, I keep this on my side table to remind me that...I'm not alone. That I have someone who cares about me. That everything is in the past, and I can look forward to something a little more towards the cupcakes and rainbow side of things." He chuckled slightly as he looked down at it. He handed her the photo of the two of them on the tree limp, seeing her shocked face made him laugh.
Poppy stared down at the photo, smiling as she remembered when it was taken. "I love your smile in this one. You look so adorable!" She glanced up at him to see him frown, causing her to giggle. "Have you ever talked about this stuff with anyone before? It may be a good thing to talk to a doctor or something. It sounds like more than just nightmares Branch."
"When I first got my colours I thought they would leave, but when they didn't I did go talk to Dr Moon. She gave me some pills, but the effects of them seemed to be worse in other ways. I had no dreams but I felt so tired, like I didn't sleep for days. Remember when I said I was sick during the flower festival? I didn't want anyone to know that I was extremely tired, so I went off the pills and went back to the building. Making stuff, planning things made everything manageable."
"It helped distract you." She glanced around the room. "You needed a lot of distractions." She whispered, seeing him nod in return. "Oh Honey, I never realized how much it all affected you."
"I didn't want anyone to see, I just wanted to be...normal." He muttered, looking away slightly.
Poppy gently placed her hand on his cheek, causing him to look back at her. "Branch, you will never be 'normal' as you say. You're so much more than an ordinary troll. You're extraordinary! You are so brave and strong. You have gone through so much that it haunts your dreams, but you get out there and smile!" She grinned when she saw him smile at her words. "Nothing is going to happen to me, and I know you are going to do your best to make sure nothing happens to Rose as well. Chef is gone, she won't hurt anyone anymore. We're safe." She said softly.
Branch let out a sigh, confirming to Poppy that he had finally relaxed. "You're the extraordinary one Poppy. You're my reason to get out of this bunker. You're the reason why I smile."
Poppy couldn't help but grin more at the soft expression on his face as he smiled at her. She quickly leaped forward and wrapped her arms around him. Poppy heard him laugh as he wrapped his arms around her in return, pulling her closer to him. "I love you Branch."
His smile softened. "And I love you Poppy." He immediately felt her lips on his.
After a moment Poppy pulled back with a grin. "I know!" She bounced over to her middle of the bed and laid down. "Come here!" She reached towards him. Branch looked at her confused, but went to lay next to her. "No, you're going to lay on my chest."
Her words caused him to freeze. "I don't think I heard you right."
"You heard me right. Now lay down." She wrapped her arms around him and brought him down next to her. "It's the same thing we do with Rose when she's upset. Listening to a heartbeat helps calm her and lets her sleep, maybe it will do the same for you!" She grinned at him. "Now come here!"
Branch stared at her, feeling his cheeks heat up. "You're not going to stop until I lay down. I know you won't." He muttered to himself, hearing Poppy him in agreement. Branch laid his head on her chest, feeling slightly awkward as he started listening to her heartbeat.
Poppy gently moved her arms around him, urging him to move closer to her. "I'm not going to bite. Here." She gently moved one of his arms so it rested on her stomach. "Just relax. She said softly, burying her face in his hair happily.
Branch took a deep breath in and slowly relaxed as he felt her rub his arm gently. He closed his eyes as he listened to her heartbeat, feeling a wave of security crash over him. He quickly fell asleep as he snuggled into her side, feeling her running other hand through his hair.
Poppy glanced down at Branch when she heard his breathing even out. "Branch?" She whispered but didn't get a response. "I guess it worked." She grinned as she felt him nuzzle into her. She kept running her fingers through his hair as she thought to herself. She took her other hand and reached into the side table next to her and pulled out a journal Branch had let her read. She lit a small mushroom next to her and started reading, making sure the light didn't wake Branch. Poppy barely got three pages into the book and couldn't believe how the other trolls treated him. How could she not have noticed? She knew others called him names, but the words she read broke her heart. Grey Cretin. Waste of air. Worthless. Nothing. They always called him nothing. As she continued to read, she knew she had to make sure Branch knew he's not nothing. Not long after she started reading she heard the door slowly crack open. Poppy put the book down as she saw a little grey hand grab the door. "Rose? What are you doing up?" She asked, seeing Rose peek into the room. "Come here sweetheart." Poppy reached her hand over the edge of the bed to show Rose where she was.
Rose took a few steps in, going on her top toes to peer over the bed. She looked over at the opposite side of the bed Poppy was on and slowly headed there. Poppy giggled slightly. "Rose, Branch is over here Sweetie." She said softly, seeing the top of Roses hair turn towards her and walk to her side of the bed. "Did you have a nightmare? If that why you're up?" Poppy asked, reaching her hand towards Rose.
Rose nodded as she walked towards Poppys hand. She gently grabbed Poppys hand, looking up at her.
Poppy gave her a soft smile. "Do you wanna come up here with us? Branch has just fallen asleep, he's had a rough night tonight." She felt Rose nod and gently picked her up, placing her next to him.
Rose kept a hold of her hand, looking over at Branch who was still asleep on Poppys chest. Rose looked back over at Poppy.
"Branch had a bad nightmare." Poppy told her, seeing her frown. "He is okay now, we talked through some things. Branch will be okay." She gently brought her hand to Roses cheek, feeling her rub against her hand gently. "Listening to a heartbeat always works to help sooth others to sleep." She smiled. "I also think hugs work too. They help others relax."
Rose opened her book and started writing, turning it to Poppy when she finished. 'Heard not normal' she wrote, looking over at Branch.
Poppy took a minute to realize what she meant. "Branch isn't normal, not the normal he wants to be. He is different, but what makes him different is what I love about him." Poppy glanced over at him, smiling. "Why don't you sleep here with us? Maybe it will help with your nightmares, it seems to be helping Branch so far." She smiled.
Rose stared at her, her ears lowering slightly as she looked over at Branch. She slowly crawled under Branch's arm that was around Poppy, cuddling into the small space between them. Rose glanced up at Poppy, seeing Poppy smile down at her. She nuzzled into Branch's chest as she yawned, her hand gripping into Poppys shirt as she fell asleep. Poppy giggled slightly as she felt Branch's grip on her tighten. "Sweet dreams you two." She whispered as she rubbed Roses back, letting sleep take over.
~
Rose nuzzled her head into the warmth she felt as she woke up. She let out a small yawn as she rubbed her eye. She opened her eyes slightly and looked around, seeing Poppys head move to look down at her. "Good morning Rose, did you sleep well?" Rose looked around, realizing it was morning. Her ears perked up as she moved to sit up but saw Poppys hand move. She looked at Poppy confused as she heard her whisper. "Branch is still sleeping, let's let him sleep for a bit longer."
Rose nodded and glanced over at Branch. She gasped when she saw Branchs eyes open. "I've been up for a little bit now." He mumbled as he buried his head into Poppys shoulder.
"When did you wake up? Why didn't you say anything?" Poppy asked, looking down at Branch.
"I didn't want to wake anyone." He propped himself up with his elbow so he loomed over Poppy, smiling down at her. "Good Morning Sunshine." He lowered his head to give her a quick kiss. "I love you." He kissed her again. "Thank you, for last night." He kissed her once more.
Poppy placed a hand on the back of his head, keeping his lips on hers as she kissed him back. She pulled back a minute later, grinning. "I take it you had a good sleep after?"
Branch nodded before glancing down at Rose, seeing her slowly crawl up to Poppys chest. "So, when did a little twig sneak in here last night?"
Poppy giggled as she felt Rose snuggling into the spot Branch was previously laying. "She has a nightmare, so she came in here. I think being here helped with them." She gently rubbed Roses back.
Branch looked down at Rose, seeing her look up at him. "You feel okay now?" He saw her nod. "Are you hungry?"
Rose sat up on Poppys chest, nodding again as she rubbed her stomach. She looked at Poppy and pointed to her. Poppy looked at her confused. "Me? What about me?"
"I think she wants you to cook today." Branch chuckled, sitting up and picked Rose up. "What do you want to eat?"
Poppy handed Rose her binder, seeing her write out the word 'crep'. "Crepe? You want those again?" Poppy grinned when Rose nodded. "I'm glad you like them! I'll definitely go make them before we have to go." Poppy saw Branchs ears lower slightly at the mention of the meeting. "Hey, it will be okay." She whispered to him softly as she sat up. Poppy kissed his cheek and gave him a smile. "Come on, I'll go make us something to eat." She stood up and went to the kitchen to start making breakfast.
Branch stood up with Rose in his arms and made his way to the kitchen as well. "Do you need help?" He asked as he placed Rose down at the table.
"No, I'm good for now. Just sit and relax while I cook." She smiled as she washed the fruit.
Branch grabbed two cup of water for himself and Rose before getting a notebook from the bookshelf. He placed the cup next to her and sat down at the table next to Rose. He gave her a smile as they both took a drink from their cups. Branch placed the notebook in front of him and started writing. He glanced up every once in a while to see Rose colouring in her book as he wrote.
As Rose coloured in her book, she noticed Branchs ears drop every so often. She frowned slightly as she put her crayon down and stood up on her seat. She pushed her book out of the way and climbed into the table, causing Branch to look at her.
"What are you doing on the table?" Branch asked confused, seeing her walk over to him.
Rose looked down at his book then back at him. She reached her arm towards him, frowning slightly. She wrapped her arm around Branch neck as she rested her head on his shoulder. She felt Branchs hand on her back as she nuzzled into his shoulder.
Branch looked down at Rose, feeling her hand grip his shirt. "You okay Twig?" He whispered to her, feeling her nod. "Are you nervous for today?" He felt her nod again. "Yeah, me too. But it will be okay." He gently rubbed her back as he felt her grip tighten on him. "It will all be okay."
