A/N: Here's the next chapter! Enjoy! We don't own Trolls.
When the party was over, King Gristle gave the trolls permission to go home. There was no reason they needed to stay, after all. Bergens could actually be happy without eating them. The trolls asked if they could pack up some of the supplies that Bridget had given them, so she took them back to the tank, where Satin and Chenille made some backpacks for everyone but the two rescuers. The trolls all packed some supplies they thought would be useful. For his part, Branch thought they were packing the wrong things, but he didn't comment. Bridget retrieved Branch's confiscated supplies and gave them back to him, as well.
Once everyone was packed and ready, Bridget took the trolls back upstairs, where Gristle was waiting for them. The two bergens headed out to the Troll Tree to release the trolls. He and Bridget held hands, smiled, and waved as the trolls headed into the Troll Tree.
"Goodbye! Thanks for everything, guys! Come again!" Gristle called.
"Stay safe!" Bridget added.
"Well, we've got Branch with us," Biggie said with a smile. "Hard to be in danger with him around, isn't it?"
Branch looked at Biggie in surprise. Since when did any of them feel safe with him around? Besides Poppy, of course.
"Bye, Bridge!" Poppy waved from the top of the tree, smiling. "See ya soon!"
This was too good to be true. At long last, the trolls could live in peace without fear of being eaten by the bergens! And it was all thanks to her and her friends. She couldn't wait to find the others and tell them. Now they wouldn't have to move and start over! They could go back to Troll Village and live peacefully forevermore. All she and her friends had to do now was find everyone and tell them.
And the best part about it is that Branch himself had a hand in it, too! Poppy thought, eager to see the looks on everyone's faces when she revealed this fact. Oh, I can totally use that to my advantage! And, now that he actually wants to come back, all I gotta do is do this right, and everything will be back to normal again! I can't wait! Whoo-hoo!
After all these years, Branch was finally going home, and there was nothing that could spoil this now. The law was clear on what Branch's fate should be after something as big as this, after all. Soon life would be all cupcakes and rainbows again.
As the bergens turned and made their way back to the castle, Guy cornered Biggie, looking somewhat concerned. "So when do you plan on telling them their love life is for not?" he whispered, indicating Poppy and Branch.
"I was thinking of waiting until we were away from Bergen Town," Biggie answered quietly.
As Creek pulled the twins and DJ aside to speak with them, Smidge came over to Guy and Biggie and added, "Uh, guys, about that, I've been thinking... What if—"
"WHAT!?" the twins exclaimed.
"What do you mean by that!?" Chenille asked, irritated.
"How is that possible!?" Satin asked.
The Snack Pack looked. Even Branch glanced over with mild concern.
"Uh... How's what possible?" Cooper asked.
"Huh?" Poppy headed over to the three, curious and concerned. "Is everything cool, guys?"
Smidge, Fuzzbert, and Guy headed over as well. Branch stayed where he was, closer to the tunnel entrance. It wasn't like he was welcome with the others, anyway.
"Creek just said that only Satin and I should be pregnant!" Chenille answered.
"What!?" exclaimed Poppy, Smidge, and Guy.
"Yeah! He said he lied about our pregnancy auras being in place so he could protect us from the bergens!" DJ added.
"Really?" Smidge asked. So this meant she wasn't going to be a mother? Why did that give her a bad feeling?
"Well, except for us!" Satin amended. "We actually were on time!"
She wasn't happy about that. Why couldn't he have claimed they weren't ready to conceive if he knew they were? He'd pretended everyone else was ready, so it wouldn't have been too hard to believe that two girls weren't, would it?
Once again, Poppy, Smidge, and Guy looked shocked and cried, "WHAT!?"
"So does that mean that Smidge isn't carrying Biggie's kid after all!?" Guy asked with a hopeful smile. His eyes brightened.
Smidge sweat, realization sinking in. That was why she had a bad feeling. "Aw, no."
Guy, grinning with evident excitement, got up in Biggie's face, pointing a smug finger at him. "HAH! In your face, you big, blue balloon! She's still up for grabs!"
"No, she's not!" Biggie protested. "She's already made her choice, regardless of whether she's with child or not!"
Guy glared at him. "Oh, yeah!? Well, that doesn't mean she can't change her mind if someone better were to happen to come along!" He put a hand to his heart, closing his eyes with a proud smile, and continued, "Someone dashing and magniiiiiiiificent, such as myself." He opened his eyes, his smile turning to a smug grin. "Why, everyone here already knows I'm the better match for her." Once more, he glared at Biggie in annoyance. "I mean, the two of you have absolutely nothing in common," he said, waving his hand through the air dramatically, "so why don't you just back off and leave her to me!?"
"But she already decided between the two of us that I'm better!" Biggie countered furiously, glaring at Guy.
Smidge sighed, putting a hand in her forehead in defeat. It might have been better if she'd been the one who was pregnant. At least then she wouldn't have to put up with this nonsense again. Why was she suddenly so popular, anyway?
Poppy, confused and uncomfortable, raised a finger to intervene. "Uuh...guys—"
She didn't get where all this intense jealousy was coming from all of a sudden. The last time she checked, those three were nothing more than friends. When did Guy and Biggie start harboring secret feelings for Smidge? Was it during the week before she and Branch found them? Or had they always felt this way and just never said anything?
"Oh, yeah!?" Guy pressed his forehead against Biggie's, glaring rather fiercely.
"Yeah!" Biggie answered, reciprocating Guy's actions.
Well, this was entertaining, but...Branch had business to deal with. If these guys were going to get back to their village, then they needed to get moving. The other trolls were probably a long way away, given how long they'd all been here, and he'd need to see if there was any trace of a trail left. He wasn't sure when he'd decided to help them get home instead of just get them out of Bergen Town, but he'd finally realized that he wasn't about to leave Poppy alone in the wilderness. He still cared about her, after all. Leaving her to die with her friends seemed a lot harder now, especially after everything she'd done for him the last few days.
He took a step forward and said, "Okay, I think it's time to get you guys back where you belong."
"Yeah, guys..." Poppy agreed, now a bit disturbed in addition to totally lost. "That...might be a good idea. Especially since I have no clue what's going on, anyhow."
Seriously. Biggie harboring hidden feelings made some sense, given his reserved nature, but Guy? He was confident and outgoing, so you'd think he'd have the guts to speak up. It wasn't like him to hide his feelings about anything, yet here he was in a total uproar over supposedly losing a girl he apparently had a huge crush on! What was the deal? If he'd felt this way in Troll Village, why hadn't he spoken up, or did he just start feeling that way recently? If he'd "fallen" for her because he needed a "mate" to survive, that was sick. Disgusting as the idea was, Poppy wasn't even sure a romance created under such circumstances counted as real. Unless either really did have a huge crush on Smidge before or Smidge actually loved Biggie, she wasn't sure prolonging this so-called "romance" was a good idea.
"I'll tell you, Poppy!" both Guy and Biggie answered simultaneously. "He's been trying to steal Smidge from me!" They both pointed at each other accusingly, still glaring, although they were looking at Poppy as they said that. "What!?" They turned their glares on each other and clenched their fists. "No, I haven't!" They pointed at each other, saying, "That's you!" Seemingly frustrated with their unintentional mimicry, both of their fists started shaking at their sides as they slammed their eyes shut. "Stop saying everything I say! I said stop it!" they finished, opening their eyes and each stomping a foot. They both pressed their foreheads together again and growled, still glaring at each other, in frustration now.
Poppy just gaped at them. Seriously, when did this happen? And was it real or not?
"They were doing this long before you showed up, Poppy," Cooper told her.
She just stood there, stunned silent. She slumped forward a bit, arms dangling in front of her and mouth agape.
Branch gave the two fighting fools a lame look and said, "Seriously, you two, put it aside. Now."
"That's right, pals!" Creek agreed. He pushed the two apart as he got between them and looked gently between the two as he continued, "Branch does, in fact, have a point. Smidge made her decision, and you should respect that. I mean, it can't be much worse for her than hooking up with a treacherous elf, now, can it?" He turned away, crossing his arms, and spared Branch a jealous glare to go with the insult.
Branch rolled his eyes. Was Creek forgetting something? Poppy could "love" him all she wanted, but it didn't change the fact that he could never return to troll society.
Poppy didn't take this as lightly as Branch did. After all, he'd been given enough abuse from everyone here. She ran up to Creek, glaring at him, and said, "That was uncalled for, Creek! What is wrong with you!?"
He'd been on Branch's side earlier, but, ever since the breakup, he'd been a total jerk to the guy! It wasn't like it was Branch's fault. She'd been harboring hidden feelings for Branch this whole time and hadn't even realized it herself. If Creek had to be mad at someone, it should have been her.
"What's wrong with me?" he asked, turning to glare at her, hurt. "You should know that by now! You've fallen madly in love with this sorry excuse for a troll!" He gestured to Branch as he spoke. "Everybody knows it! Even the bergens!"
That made Poppy feel really uncomfortable. She'd suspected Bridget was onto her, and she did tell Chef that Branch was her husband. She hoped nobody noticed what happened at the party.
Distracted from his argument with Guy, Biggie added, "We saw you two dancing, Poppy! And Branch doesn't dance!"
Well, apparently they had noticed. Poppy wasn't sure how to explain that one.
"You do remember he's banished, don't you?" Chenille asked.
Poppy was going to counter that by pointing out that Branch could easily be redeemed now. He'd saved her life many times and helped bring peace between trolls and bergens, thus meeting the requirements for redemption. But she never got the chance.
That simple question caused quite an intense reaction. "It doesn't matter if she remembers, I do!" Branch snapped, storming over to the Snack Pack.
The twins gave a start. Their eyes widened as they noticed that the little bit of color Branch had regained during the party had faded again. He was back to full-on gray.
Oh, no... Satin thought. Just when Branch had been starting to feel something good, reality would ruin it for him, wouldn't it? It seemed Smidge's theory that only Poppy could make Branch happy might have been accurate.
I didn't mean to upset him, but it's true! Chenille thought, feeling guilty about being the one to ruin what little happiness Branch had ever felt, to her knowledge. They can't be together!
Branch struggled to get a handle on himself. He wanted to hit Chenille for the reminder, even if it had been in the back of his mind this whole time. Couldn't they stop slapping him in the face with reality for one day? He knew he was banished. They didn't have to keep rubbing it in. "Look, the sooner we all stop going at each other, the sooner you can all be rid of me, like you want. Let's get you on the right track to finding the other rainbow trolls, then I'll be out of your hair."
He'd help them get back to the abandoned village. He'd find out which way the others had gone. He'd even escort them until they were close to the others. But he wasn't staying—he legally couldn't. When they were near enough to the others that they could find their own way, Branch would leave these guys. He'd head back to the swamp, where he knew full well the other trolls would never live, thus sparing himself the risk of being uprooted again, and go back to his life of solitude...of isolation... He'd never see Poppy again. With her lousy sense of direction, he doubted very much that she could find the swamp from a new village.
Poppy stared at him sadly. She didn't want him to leave. She'd only recently admitted to herself that she was crushing on Branch, and she knew he didn't want to be completely alone, either. "Branch..."
Everyone else stayed silent. The way Branch looked, they didn't want to mess with him right now. Besides, he was right—they had to get going, and most of them still didn't want him around at all. Satin, DJ, Fuzzbert, and Biggie were close, but they just didn't want him alone and miserable.
On that note, attitudes about Branch were changing among the whole group—DJ didn't think Branch was as bad as everyone always said, but he did have a tendency to be mean and scary, especially when angry. Guy and Smidge felt sorry for him after hearing about his grandma, but they still didn't want him anywhere near Poppy. Smidge feared he'd hurt her friend again, and Guy didn't quite trust him with her safety in the event of another bird attack. Chenille was having a hard time choosing between hating Branch and pitying him at this point, but she still didn't like him, no matter what Satin said about his supposedly good traits. Satin could see the good in him and felt he deserved better than what he'd gotten, but she was still wary of him. Cooper was terrified of him but now realized that maybe Branch wasn't the villain he'd made him out to be. Biggie was afraid of Branch but, after Poppy's time in isolation, wondered if Branch's mental health was suffering from the banishment. Fuzzbert had been in full agreement about Branch being a hero since hearing about the growlbeast incident, but he still feared the guy's temper.
Still, the fact remained that none of them viewed him as a friend. Some felt sorry for him and wanted him to have someone in his life. But none of them wanted to be that someone. Only Poppy really liked Branch.
"So? Are we leaving? Or would you rather move in?" Branch asked with heavy sarcasm as he gestured to the hole in the tree that led out of town.
Some of the Snack Pack sweat, knowing what that meant. They'd done all that they could to stay on more than one occasion, after all. Properly chastised, they all started hopping into the hole one by one, still silent.
Only Poppy didn't react. She just kept staring at Branch with that sad look. It didn't have to be this way, but no one seemed to care. Finally she started, "Branch, I—"
"Just go, Poppy," he cut her off.
There was no point deluding himself. Yes, he hated the banishment and isolation. Yes, he wanted to go home, and he didn't mean the swamp. He missed Troll Village, even if everyone there was an idiot. He missed his old bunker, which had more comforts in it than the swamp one. Most of all, strange as it seemed, he missed Poppy and her ridiculous invitations to stupid parties. But he couldn't go back. King Peppy had made himself clear—Branch wasn't welcome there. If Poppy were queen, then maybe things would be different. But she wasn't queen, just princess. Besides, nobody but her would accept his return with any sort of grace. He was on his own, and that wasn't going to change in this lifetime.
Poppy stared at him for a moment before she sighed, looking down, and walked over to the hole. Everything had been going so well. Her friends had seemed willing to accept Branch for what he really was, and Branch had seemed like he just might be willing to come back with them, but now...
She stopped at the edge of the tunnel entrance and looked back at Branch. He just raised an eyebrow and nodded toward the hole. Looking down, Poppy jumped into the hole, and Branch followed after.
This was all her family's fault. That stupid banishment law was untrolly, unjust, and cruel. Now, because of it, one of her dearest friends was suffering severely and greatly hated by everyone, and there was nothing she could do about it. She couldn't undo the years of torment, insanity, and emotional damage inflicted upon him. She couldn't get the others to understand. And, because of that, she couldn't even convince everyone to return with her so that evil law could be done away with. Her family wasn't fit to rule.
These thoughts of hers kept going as they traveled through the tunnels, bringing her down more and more.
The trolls headed through the escape tunnels, most of them singing, dancing, and playing music loudly as they went. Cooper had his harmonica out, and Fuzzbert was on the kazoo. Guy even had a microphone. Branch was simply frustrated that these guys were doing such a great job making noise.
"You know, sound carries in tunnels," Branch pointed out. "Living underground means I ought to know. If you want to advertise that a free meal is on the way to every beast out there that wants to eat you, go ahead. Keep singing."
Guy grinned happily and said, "Aw, come on, party pooper. No one's gonna attack us just 'cause we're siiiiiingiiiiiiing!" He gave Branch a look that was both amused and smug.
"Yeah, you're just too used to quiet, so you're being paranoid!" Cooper added.
"Uh-huh. Gee, I wonder why I'd be used to quiet," Branch said sarcastically. "Also..." He whipped Cooper with his hair for daring to speak to him. The reminder from earlier had Branch in an even fouler mood than normal, and his patience was at its end.
Cooper yelped and ran on ahead so he could put some distance between himself and Branch. He started walking along beside Biggie, who gave him a look that said he shouldn't talk to or about Branch. Cooper laughed nervously.
DJ ran over to Branch, smiling reassuringly. "Hey, hey, hey. Chill out, dude! You need to learn to lighten up! Let it go, Branch," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "It's over."
She meant that he needed to let go of the past and forgive them for being so mean to him. She, at least, was genuinely sorry for the way she'd been acting and was hoping he'd be able to put the past behind him. She knew Poppy could figure out a way to get him out of this in time, and DJ planned to help this time. Branch didn't have to be alone forever—not anymore. They'd make sure of that, even if it was just the two of them trying.
Nobody thought touching Branch was a good idea—he hated them. It was one thing to talk to him or stand near him, but touching him seemed like a recipe for disaster.
"No, DJ, be careful!" Satin cried.
"You know Branch only lets Poppy touch him!" Chenille chastised anxiously.
Branch rolled his eyes, but that was it. He didn't even try to dodge DJ's touch or pull away from her.
"Yeah! That's right!" Smidge said. "So why don't we all forget that all ever happened and party like there's no tomorrow!?" She threw her arms up, excited for a wild and crazy—and, apparently, mobile—party.
The others all cried out, "YEAH!" or "OKAY!" or "ALRIGHT!" and resumed their loud, obnoxious singing.
"Ugh," Branch groaned. Why was it that trolls couldn't be quiet for even five minutes?
As the walking party made its way to the exit, Branch moved to the front and signaled for them to be quiet and wait while he checked things out. Surprisingly, they actually listened for once. He poked out of the tunnel and looked around. Seeing no threats, he decided they were okay...for now.
"...Hope that cloud isn't around..." he muttered. He turned to the trolls behind him and said, "Alright, come on!"
And the party eagerly resumed and danced past him. Branch did a hair count to make sure he still had everybody. While counting, though, he noticed a problem with the pink princess—she wasn't singing or dancing, just walking along with the partying trolls, seemingly lost in thought. None of her friends appeared to notice, either. Branch found that typical. Trolls were very good at being oblivious to the less-than-happy few they ever encountered.
Regardless, he headed over to check on her. "Poppy?"
She blinked and stopped walking to look at him. "Yeah, Branch?" she asked, looking confused and far too calm for Poppy.
The others kept going, leaving Poppy and Branch alone in the tunnel.
"Are you okay? You're not..." He gestured after the others as he trailed off, letting their behavior finish his sentence.
Poppy gave Branch an awkward smile and waved a hand through the air dismissively, saying, "Oh, I'm fine, Branch. Don't worry about it."
"Poppy—"
He was cut off when she grabbed him suddenly, crying, "Oh, Branch! I am so sorry! I had no idea it was—" She cut herself off, letting go of him to grab her head in guilt and fear. "Oh, the horror! How could we have ever been so cruel!?" She threw her head back in agony at the last word, then leaned forward, wrapping her arms tightly around Branch as she rested her head on his shoulder.
The only thing Branch could tell for sure was that she was in serious emotional distress. There were way too many emotions thrown into that reaction.
"Wh—Poppy, what are you talking about?" he asked, startled by the outburst.
She pulled back and grabbed him by the shoulders, saying, "The banishment, Branch! The banishment!" She started shaking him as she continued, "Total isolation is pure torture!" She let go of him and threw her hands onto her head, looking panic-stricken again. "And my family thought it was a great way to punish someone!?" She threw her arms up and tossed her head back as she cried, "Oh, the in-troll-manity!" Then she covered her face with her hands in apparent shame as she finished, "I wonder what else we do that's just plain wrong!?"
She then started mumbling incoherently, sounding seconds away from tears. She couldn't stop imagining all the other vile things her family might do. The unthinkable crime of scarring and possibly killing trolls through the endless torment of boring, lonely banishment couldn't be the only thing, could it? She wondered if there were laws that allowed child abuse or assault under the "right" circumstances, or if execution was sometimes okay. Even cannibalism didn't seem out of the question to her right then. If her people were secretly okay with torture, she was sure they'd be fine with anything.
Branch now had his answer.
Okay she's clearly not okay... I didn't think that would be her issue with isolation. I thought she'd just lose it.
He lifted a hand—he was about to offer her some kind of comfort, try to calm her down, when Biggie poked his head back into the tunnel, saying, "Poppy? Branch? Are you—Oh, my! Not again!" He turned back to the others and called out with worry, "Poppy's upset again!"
"Again?" Branch wondered. What had she been doing the last couple of days? He put his hands on her shoulders and gently said, "Poppy, look at me."
Too busy drowning in her own misery, Poppy didn't hear him. She was certain that anyone could do better as leaders than her family, even Smidge. Sure, she was a little violent and strict, but she'd never resort to torture or murder. She, Poppy, had allowed it to go on for ten years.
Eyes closed, Poppy was crying now, and rather loudly. "Waaaaah! I'm so sorrrrry, Braaaanch! I don't deserve to become queeeeeen!"
Branch certainly didn't think that was true in the least and was about to tell her so, but Smidge leaped in then with a cup of hot tea and all the others behind her. "Everyone! Back away from the princess!" she commanded, a very serious look on her face. "This is a full-blown Poppy 911!"
Everyone had something they'd brought from Bergen Town that they hoped would help calm Poppy down. DJ had a head set and a mix titled "Why I Love my Family and ME." Cooper had a plate of strawberry cupcakes. Fuzzbert had a beanbag chair. Guy had scrapbooking supplies. Biggie pulled a fluffy pillow out of his hair. Satin and Chenille were holding beauty supplies. Creek was rubbing his fingers together, a bottle of some soothing scented oil held in his hair.
Branch removed his hands from Poppy's shoulders, holding them up as he backed away. He figured that these guys knew her better and would do better at calming her down, and he also figured that Smidge would make him move if he didn't do it himself.
Unfortunately he didn't move fast enough—Smidge shoved him aside quickly while Fuzzbert shoved the beanbag chair up under Poppy, tossing her into the air for a second and startling her back to her senses. Then everyone immediately went to work on their chosen calming techniques, ambushing Poppy as they did.
Creek started massaging her shoulders, saying, "It's okay, love! Deep breaths. You're not a bad princess. You're doing a fine job."
Smidge shoved the cup into Poppy's hands as she said, "Here. Take this tea! It'll calm you down! Just like it did the last 40 times this week!" She had a reassuring smile on her face.
Poppy stared, eyes wide in shock, at the tea in her hands.
Biggie put the pillow behind Poppy's head and started fluffing it. "It's alright, Poppy. Everyone's together."
Satin and Chenille started painting her toenails with nail polish.
"Here, Poppy, it's strawberry!" Cooper said, shoving a cupcake into her mouth. "Your favorite!"
Branch just stared, awed that anyone could be so rough with their friend and actually expect her to calm down. What? Is he trying to choke her?
DJ slammed the headphones onto Poppy's head a bit anxiously, causing her to flinch. "Here! I composed this mix especially for you so you can remember all the reasons your family isn't bad!" She lowered her voice and gave Poppy a reassuring grin as she added, "I threw in a little self motivation for extra support, too.
"Don't forget, Poppy, you can always change the law," Satin said as she gave Poppy's right foot a pedicure.
"That's right, just as soon as you're queen," Chenille added sympathetically, working on Poppy's left foot. "And then you can invite Branch back into the village."
This was pure insanity. Branch wasn't sure why he'd let these guys try to calm Poppy down. Although, admittedly, she did look more uneasy than upset, so it was kind of an improvement. But, on the other hand, how bad had she been while he'd been gone?
Is she going to be okay? he wondered. Why would she hate herself for what her dad did?
Guy dropped a scrapbook in Poppy's lap, also smiling reassuringly, and said, "And just remember. You can always scrap it out."
Everyone nodded in agreement, sharing Guy's smile.
"Yeah!" Smidge said with a gentle smile, tapping the book with one hand. "Just let the book absorb all the pain..."
"Your time alone is over," Creek assured her. "Now open your soul up and let all that anxiety flow out...like leaves out of a creek..."
Poppy, this entire time, looked a bit uncomfortable as everyone fawned over her and got in her face. Branch knew that look—it was how he always felt when people got in his space and wouldn't leave him alone.
Fuzzbert then pulled out his kazoo and started playing "Lean on Me," which led everyone else to sing, "Lean on me when you're not strong. I'll be your friend. I'll help you carry on."
Poppy just looked more and more uncomfortable, sweating. The cupcake in her mouth and tea in her hands prevented her from saying anything, though.
Branch watched for another moment before deciding it was time to end this nonsense. He lashed out with his hair, wrapping it around Poppy's waist, and pulled her away from the mob that was her friends. Poppy's eyes widened as the headphones flew off and the cupcake fell out of her mouth. She barely maintained her grip on the teacup, although the tea spilled everywhere. She looked at Branch in surprise, her toenails now fully purple.
Branch put himself between Poppy and the others, trying to be diplomatic as he said, "Okay, I can see you guys mean well, but I'm pretty sure that's not what she needs right now."
"Oh? And how would you know, Mister 'I know nothing about anyone 'cause I live alone'?" Guy asked, putting his hands on his hips. "Why, you couldn't care less about us when you still lived with us!"
Now Guy definitely didn't think Branch was any good for Poppy. He'd just interrupted them while they were trying to calm her down. Couldn't he see that she needed it, or did he just not care?
That was uncalled for, and Branch glared at Guy because of it. "At least I'm not blind to other people's emotions."
"I beg your pardon?" Biggie said indignantly. "Aren't you the one who didn't notice she was upset?"
Typical of rainbow trolls. They just couldn't help themselves, could they? He was an easy target.
"No, but at least I'm not the one who didn't notice that being mobbed like that was making her uncomfortable, and I can't blame her. Who wants all of their friends in their face, shoving cupcakes in their mouths, knocking them off their feet, and talking all at the same time? Especially when they're already having a nervous breakdown!"
"Uh...Branch?" Poppy said, looking around at the others. She felt rather awkward now. "I'm good now." She gave a laugh that was as awkward as she was feeling. Had she really been that bad lately?
Creek humphed, crossing his arms and glaring at Branch. "Well, I can see why they banished you. Clearly you know nothing about how to treat our princess. That was the only thing that worked for her two days ago."
Branch just stared at him for a moment. Was he saying that not mobbing Poppy was grounds for banishment itself now? Jealous or not, that was definitely uncalled for. Even worse, this was coming from the only guy who hadn't hated him at the start of this nonsense. Apparently he was just that easy to hate. Even his allies could turn on him easily.
Poppy, on the other hand, couldn't believe her ears. Forget the fact that she apparently was that bad the last couple of days, Creek's words to Branch were way too much. The guy had been taking care of all of them and tried to get them out of that situation, and Creek was saying there was a good reason he was banished? Maybe it was a good thing they'd broken up. If that was how he felt, she didn't need that kind of guy ruling by her side—her family had enough of that attitude in their blood to begin with.
Branch turned and headed out of the tunnel, leaving the ten Snack Pack members behind. At the moment, he didn't care if they followed or not—he wasn't staying here.
"Why are we still hanging around with him again?" Cooper asked.
Branch flinched and picked up the pace. He didn't want to hear the rest of this. He was better off shot of them, and he'd known it this whole time. It was stupid to think their attitudes would ever change. These trolls in particular had been friendly toward him before the banishment, too, but that was just because Poppy was—they'd never really cared, and he knew they never would.
Poppy, meanwhile, now joined the ranks of those who wanted to hit Cooper. Branch was already upset, and her friends were talking trash about him again. Why couldn't they see the good in him? He'd done everything he could to show it to them since getting to Bergen Town, but they didn't seem to care.
"Wasn't it because of Poppy's doomed love life or something of the sort?" Guy asked, concerned.
"Really? I thought it was because we all felt sorry for him because of what happened to his grandma," Smidge commented.
"Well, he has been taking very good care of Poppy," Biggie admitted, feeling slightly guilty about his harsh words. "Other than this one time, that is."
"He keeps risking his life to save her," Chenille added.
"And he has been trying to help us, too," Satin reminded everyone.
It seemed Poppy was wrong—they did care, at least a little. But Branch wasn't here to hear it as they finally said something nice about him. That seemed just typical.
While the others all talked about Branch in a somewhat more positive light—for once—Poppy ran after Branch. Hopefully she could get him to see that the others had changed their tune a little, at least. She grabbed his shoulder to stop him, saying, "Branch, wait. I'm sure Creek didn't mean it. He's just..." she looked back awkwardly at him, then turned to face Branch again with the same look, saying, "a little jealous right now, is all. He'll cool down soon enough. So why don't we just forget this whole thing ever happened and go and find the others? What do you say, huh?" She gave him a reassuring smile.
She doubted Creek was as bad as her dad. After all, if the others, who never had anything nice to say about Branch, could see him in a better light, then surely Creek would get over his jealousy and stop being such a jerk. She could still convince everyone that Bringing Branch home was a good idea and get this banishment revoked. Things could still work out for him.
But there was one factor here she couldn't control, and his response wasn't reassuring. Branch didn't look at her while she was talking, and it took him a moment to respond to her at all. Finally he turned to her, his expression neutral, and said, "I'll help you find your people. But don't kid yourself into thinking that'll solve anything. After you're back where you belong, I'm going back where I belong."
Branch wasn't willing to cooperate. She couldn't believe that he couldn't see he didn't belong out there all alone.
Poppy wanted to remind him of how wrong that was, maybe assure him everything would be okay. She said, "Don't say that, Branch! You're a h—"
"Do any of them care!?" he snapped, gesturing at her friends.
The others were all coming back out of the tunnel now, laughing at something Cooper had said. The only ones who looked at all distressed were the twins—Creek was still after Poppy, even though he'd just confessed that they were probably the only ones about to become mothers. He may also have tried to get Poppy with child, as the twins had witnessed him tucking himself and her into his hair during one of her bouts of insanity the last couple of days. (Of course, Creek would never take advantage of someone that way—he'd simply been pretending so that Poppy would stay safe.) He could only marry one of the three. While Satin and Chenille were fine with that if it was the two of them he had to choose from, throwing a third girl, detached from the others, into the mix complicated matters even more.
Poppy put a finger in the air, looking clueless. "Uuh..."
She wanted to tell him that they cared a little, but she doubted he'd believe her. The way they acted when he was around, why would he believe her? She wasn't even sure herself what everyone really thought of Branch. They were all over the place these days.
That was answer enough. "You call me a hero all you want, but nobody agrees with you, and nothing you say, nothing I do, will change their minds!"
He'd put his life on the line to save them. He came here, knowing how they'd treat him, to get them out. He helped them out of trouble on Bridget's first date. He shielded them from possible danger, saved Poppy once, and drew everyone's attention to a threat on Poppy's life the second time. Yet, after all of that, they still thought he didn't care about anyone but himself.
He shouldn't care. He knew it.
Poppy stared at him sadly. Everything was falling apart again, and she didn't know what to do about it.
"Alright, let's get this party on the road!" Branch called to the partying trolls. In a mutter, he added, "So I can ditch it as soon as possible." He started walking off again, heading back to Troll Village.
Poppy was the only one close enough to hear that. As her friends followed him happily, they were back to singing and dancing. She, however, hung back a moment. They were back to Branch wanting to leave again. Why were they always back to that point? Why couldn't she convince him that things could be better? Why couldn't everyone just lay off him for a day? And why did they only say nice things about him when he wasn't around to hear it?
She sighed and followed after. She knew that she could get Branch welcomed back in Troll Village, but only if he was willing to accept it. The way he was feeling about everyone, she doubted whether he would come back, open invitation or not.
It wouldn't be the first time he ignored one of her invitations.