A/N: New chapter for all of you to enjoy! We don't own Trolls.

While the others started off, Poppy walked over to Branch, concern showing on her face. She wasn't happy about his latest declaration. "Branch, you can't keep—"

"I'm not letting anything eat you, so you might as well save your breath," he cut her off. "If you don't want me fighting, then stay out of trouble, alright?"

"But, Branch, I don't want to see you getting hurt! Why can't you see that?" she asked, her desperate concern showing in her eyes.

She loved him too much. She didn't want anything bad happening to him. And they were so close to getting him home now. All they had to do was find the rest of the village and make a few announcements, and they could finally be together. But that wouldn't happen if he got himself killed first by being his usual stubborn self. Couldn't he see how badly she wanted him around? Why was he always so difficult?

Branch started, "Poppy—"

"Hey, who left the lights on?" Cooper cut him off.

"Huh!?" Poppy asked, turning toward the village.

Everyone looked. Sure enough, they could see lights coming from the direction of Troll Village. They even saw some smoke, as if someone was cooking.

Smidge rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm... If I had to guess, I'd say someone's moved in."

"You're right, Smidge. The question, though, is who?" Guy asked, his body language exactly the same as hers.

"Only one way to find out! Come on!" Smidge said eagerly, and she ran for the village.

The rest of the Snack Pack started to follow, running after her excitedly. In fact, only Branch seemed reluctant to charge off that way.

He knew better than to approach that village when it was inhabited.

"Hey, hold on!" Branch said.

Poppy stopped, although she was the only one. She looked back curiously. "Why?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

"I don't think we should be charging in there blindly, that's what! If the trolls left, then who's living here now? What if they're hostile?"

"Aw, you worry too much. I'm sure it's perfectly safe," she said with a reassuring smile as she walked back toward him.

Branch glanced at the village, feeling uneasy. "...And what if the trolls came back?"

He could go there if the village was empty. He could go there if the village had new inhabitants. But he couldn't go there if the trolls had come home. He needed to know who was here before he took another step.

Given how eager her dad had been to take off, Poppy doubted that one. She didn't think he'd turn around and come back unless he'd noticed she wasn't with them. But it had been almost two weeks since then, and he would have noticed something that serious right away. There was no way it was them.

Before she could reassure Branch of this, Biggie came running back to answer their questions. He looked excited as he called, "Poppy, Poppy! The rest of Troll Village is here! They seem to be having a funeral, though I'm not quite sure why."

Oh, sure, Biggie could understand the need for a funeral. His question was more relating to why they came back to Troll Village for it.

Poppy's face lit up at this news. "REALLY!?"

Apparently she was wrong, but she certainly wasn't complaining. This would make things so much easier, all things considered. Branch was too hurt to fight if anything else attacked, he needed rest so he could recover, she didn't relish the thought of spending weeks searching for people they may never find, she really needed to bring Branch home safely, and she had to redeem herself as princess so Branch could stay and be with her. And that was only the short list of reasons she was glad for this turn of events.

"Yes! They're all here! Dr. Moonbloom, Sky Toronto, Harper... Everyone is here!"

Branch took a step back. It figures. I was starting to hope we wouldn't find them, too. Should've known better. Nothing good lasts for long.

Why wouldn't it be King Peppy and his people? It couldn't have been a band of cannibals or a swarm of violent beasts. No, it had to be the trolls. It was typical for his life, after all. Everything good was always snatched away.

Days ago, Branch would have been glad to find the other trolls easily. He'd hated Poppy's friends. They were showing themselves to be just as bad as everyone else. But today...Biggie had shown genuine concern for him. Satin and Chenille had been gentle with him. Creek had given him an ointment to relieve the pain from his wounds. Cooper had apologized in a disturbing yet sincere manner. And the day before, Fuzzbert had helped him set up camp. DJ had tried to calm him down and taken over the fire so he could bathe. Now all of them, including Guy and Smidge, the most stubborn of the bunch, wanted to celebrate him—actually wanted to, not because Poppy was forcing it. And they were trying to do it in a way that he would approve of.

He didn't want to leave. They'd seen the worst he had to offer—seen him kill—and hadn't rejected him completely. They weren't acting like he was some kind of monster. They weren't eager to be rid of him.

He was starting to like them. And now he had to leave them. This really was typical for his life.

Poppy gasped in excitement and started leaping around. "YYEEEESS! I don't believe it! Come on, you guys! Let's—" She started running off excitedly once again, but she only made it about three steps.

Apparently she'd forgotten something important.

"That's great, Biggie," Branch cut her off, his voice a bit strained. "Guess you guys don't need my help anymore."

Poppy froze with one foot in the air, a startled expression on her face. She turned to Branch in concern as she put her foot down and asked, "What?"

Was he seriously planning on leaving right now? But they were almost there!

As if in answer to her unspoken question, he took a couple of steps back, saying, "Take care, alright?"

He didn't look any better than he sounded. Poppy could tell he was trying not to go to pieces, but the pain in his eyes told how desperately he wanted to stay.

"Branch, are you...leaving?" Biggie asked worriedly. Given Branch's condition, he didn't think the gray troll should be alone right now, especially if the swamp was really as dangerous as his story implied. Besides that, it wasn't fair that he had to spend the rest of his life alone, anyway.

"But you can't go!" Poppy put her hands over her chest, leaning toward Branch with desperation in her eyes. "I just got you back after all those—"

"I'm banished, Poppy," Branch cut her off sadly as he shook his head. "I'm not even supposed to be this close. I can't stay."

Poppy threw her head back and danced around a bit, whining unhappily, "But, Braaanch!" She stopped throwing fits and looked him in the eye, serious, desperate, and hurt.

He couldn't leave her after everything they'd been through. She needed him to stay!

"We couldn't have done this without you! I mean, think about it! It was you who saved me from those horrible growlbeasts. You got us to Bergen Town safely! You saved me from Chef when she tried feeding me to King Gristle! And—"

"And I'm not going back to that village! I don't belong here, Poppy, and you know it!" he snapped.

This hurt. It was like being banished all over again. Branch was seriously starting to wish he hadn't come. If they hadn't found the other trolls, this would have been a much happier ending, in his opinion.

Poppy ran up and grabbed his hand reassuringly. She'd just reminded herself of the many reasons Branch had for redemption rights, even beyond saving all of troll-kind from the bergens. There was no way he was leaving now. He'd done too much to earn a second chance.

"Yes. You do..." she said gently, looking at him with love, confidence, and hope.

She knew she could bring him home. There were so many good reasons that it wasn't even funny. No way that anyone could stop her now, no matter how much they whined and complained.

Branch looked back at her with fear in his eyes—fear of rejection, fear of the isolation he was sure he'd soon have to return to. "Poppy..."

She squeezed his hand tighter and said, "Come on... I've got a plan."

Sure, she could've just told him about his newfound rights to redemption. Yes, he'd be more inclined to believe her now, given recent events. But, at this point, it would be so much easier to just show him than to waste time talking about it. As long as she could get him to stick around, he'd know the truth soon enough.

Branch swallowed nervously but didn't pull away. It was a mark of how desperate he was that he actually planned to go along with this.

Poppy pulled Branch along and hid him in a bush close to the village and the other trolls. From here, they could hear the sounds of celebration as the village hailed Poppy and her friends' safe return. Biggie followed the two of them, looking concerned.

"Stay here for a sec. I'll be right back," she said, heading toward the village's celebration. She gave Branch a reassuring smile over her shoulder as she headed for the crowd.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Branch asked nervously. If she planned to leave him here, he needed to know what was going on.

"Is there anything I can do?" Biggie asked.

Still walking, Poppy turned to him with a smile and answered, "Yeah. Go find the others and tell them to come find me ASAP. We've got some serious work to do!"

"Right!" Biggie said as he ran off to fetch the rest of the Snack Pack.

"Poppy?" Branch tried again.

She didn't answer him. Instead she took off, leaving him hiding in that bush. Terrified of what would happen if he was found there, Branch froze, his eyes wide.

While Branch worried about that situation, Poppy approached the crowd, earning an excited reaction from everyone. As she arrived in the village, she discovered that the smoke wasn't from cooking. It was from the burning of ten wooden boxes about the size of her and her friends—coffins.

Poppy's eyes widened in shock and embarrassment. A funeral pyre! Nice. Real nice.

And Branch thought her Branch Appreciation ceremony was bad.

"Poppy! She really is alive!" cheered Harper, her paint-coated face lighting up with joy. She turned to the crowd and added, "Someone go get King Peppy! He needs to see this!"

"I'm on it!" said Maddy as she took off into the crowd.

"Hey, you guys!" Poppy said, beaming, as the villagers swarmed around her. She tried not to be weirded out by the unnecessarily odd funeral ceremony for the time being. "I'm glad to see you, too! And I've got some great news! We don't have to fear the bergens anymore!" Excitedly, she jumped around a bit, her arms over her head in celebration.

"Really, Princess Poppy? Why is that?" asked a green troll with orange hair. She wore a red and yellow tie dyed dress.

Poppy opened her mouth to answer, but a familiar voice rang out, stopping her. "Poppy!? Is that really you!?"

Turning, Poppy saw her dad running toward her, overjoyed.

"DAD!" Poppy ran to her father, and the two were soon locked in a warm hug.

A collective awe rose up from the village at the sight.

As the hug broke up, father and daughter held each other at arms' length as Peppy said, "Oh, my princess. I thought I'd never see you again. I mean, when I first noticed you were missing, I hurried back to find you, but—" He cut off, not wanting to think about the funeral they had just been holding moments before.

Poppy blinked, realizing something. She pulled back to look at her dad in confusion. "Wait a sec. 'As soon as you—' Dad, I've been gone for almost two weeks now. What are you still doing here?"

Peppy blushed, sweating a bit and looking sheepish. "Ah, well... You see, the thing is..."

This was going to be an embarrassing tale, but he launched into it, regardless.

It had been five days since the bergen attack. Peppy had kept the trolls moving away from Bergen Town this entire time, stopping to rest when needed but otherwise continuing on their way. Finally, though, he decided it was safe enough to stop and do a head count to make sure nobody had been left behind. Well, nobody besides the unfortunate nine who had been taken, that is.

Relieved to be far away from that village and the bergens, Peppy sighed. "Alright, everyone! This should be a good spot for a quick break! Sky, why don't you, Darius, Cybil, and Dr. Plum all go around and do a head count? Oh! But leave Biggie, Cooper, Smidge, Satin, Chenille, Fuzzbert, Creek, DJ Suki, and Guy Diamond out of it. The bergen got them all, I'm afraid," he said.

It wasn't like everyone knew who had been taken. That had been a rather hectic and panic-inducing evening.

The trolls who were asked to help nodded and started checking to see that they had everyone else. Awhile later, they reported back to the king that everyone alive was present...everyone but Poppy.

The king's eyes widened in horror. "What did you say...?" he asked in a tiny voice. Surely his only child, his pride and joy, wasn't really unaccounted for.

Cybil threw an arm across her face dramatically and said, "Oh, I knew someone was missing! Someone...important, too..."

Dr. Plum turned to her with a glare, although panic was in her eyes, as well. "Then why didn't you say anything sooner!?" she demanded.

Peppy looked around the crowd, feeling out of sorts. Everything seemed to be in a fog. Poppy was missing. His precious angel, who he'd worked so hard to protect over the years. He'd even hidden important truths about troll-kind from her and banished a dangerous criminal just to keep her safe. But now, all of a sudden, she was gone. When had that even happened!? He thought she'd been trailing behind them, upset with him, this entire time!

As he looked around, he suddenly realized that she hadn't even stopped to sleep with them or participated in any recent Hug Times. How could he have been so careless?

W-where could she have— He paused as it hit him like a ton of bricks. His eyes widened in horror. ...No. It couldn't be...

The last time he'd seen her had been the night they left Troll Village. She'd said, "Then I'll go. I'll go and...save them." She'd been adamant about it: "I have to at least try!"

Horrified by this realization, Peppy said, "No... Sh-she wouldn't..."

He knew she could be reckless and stubborn. She'd run away from home when she was 15, refusing to return unless she got her way. When Peppy had tried canceling her favorite holiday, believing it to be an outrageous joke to force the trolls to celebrate a traitor as a hero, he'd paid dearly for it. Poppy had gone to live with some sunflowers several towns away, and Peppy had been left with no choice but to make Branch Appreciation Day an official troll holiday to get her to come home.

But to run off to Bergen Town? That was absolutely crazy!

Darius looked at the pale king with concern and asked, "What's wrong, your majesty? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Everyone! Hurry!" Peppy commanded urgently. "We need to head back toward Troll Village to look for Poppy! Hopefully she only fell behind somewhere and is out looking for the rest of us!"

Everyone cried out in agreement, and the village made their way back, slowly searching every possible place they could along the way. About six days later, they had finally returned to Troll Village, having found no traces of Poppy anywhere.

Harper pointed ahead as they approached their former home. "King Peppy, look! It's Troll Village, but..." She looked around with concern.

Aspen looked around, feeling the same. "No sign of Princess Poppy anywhere, dude..."

"Quickly! Search the surrounding area and inside of every pod! She has to be out here somewhere!" Silently Peppy added, I hope...

Everyone agreed eagerly and took off to search. Peppy just waited, growing really worried now.

Oh, my princess, where could you be?

If that girl had run off to Bergen Town because he hadn't kept a close enough eye on her, he'd never forgive himself. She was bound to be dead by now if that were the case.

It wasn't long before everyone returned to the edge of the village. The glum looks on their faces were answer enough.

"No sign of her down by the old puffalo farm, King Peppy," Rufus said.

"She wasn't crashin' at our old hang-out down at the rap house, neither," Master Control added, putting his hands in the pockets of his hoodie.

"I didn't see her at the stadium anywhere," Aspen said.

"Well, then, where could she be!?" Harper demanded, looking around worriedly.

"I think we know..." Ginger said.

Everyone turned to her and Milton, both of whom looked sad. Ginger had a scrap of fabric in her hands, held to her chest.

"Milton just got back from checking the flyer bug stables, and I went to Princess Poppy's pod..." She looked down sadly.

"I...just remembered that we'd accidentally left the bugs behind, too, so I went to check on them, and..." Milton trailed off.

"He found this, King Peppy..." Ginger finished, holding out some cupcake wrappers and a torn piece of fabric.

The trolls gasped, eyes widening in horror.

"One of the bugs had some serious flying strain and had those things stuck to its saddle. I thought it was kind of unusual, so I asked Ginger about it."

"And, while he was doing that, I searched all over the princess's pod and found some evidence she'd been by to pack, like a low supply of baked goods and a couple empty clothes hangers. But that's about all that was missing, sir."

"Then, when Ginger told me what she found, we realized the things I found at the stables were from the missing clothes and cupcake supply," Milton said. He looked down sadly.

"I'm sorry, King Peppy, but...it looks like Princess Poppy's gone..." Ginger trailed off, closing her eyes and lowering her head. From the look on her face, she was in mourning.

Horrified at this news, the trolls gasped before they started talking frantically about it.

Peppy, on the other hand, was in shock.

It couldn't be. It just couldn't! He'd already lost the love of his life to those wretched bergens. Why did he have to lose his only child to them now as well?

Poppy's words ran through his head, "I have to at least try...try...try...try..."

It hit him hard then. Poppy was his daughter. She had his heroic and brave blood flowing through her veins. It was inevitable that she'd act that way at a time like this. He should have paid more attention to her. If he had, maybe...

Noticing the king's distress, Darius looked at him with concern. "Y-your majesty?"

Peppy shook his head, looking down sadly. He covered his eyes with his hands. "Poppy...no..."

As he started crying, Darius patted his back to comfort him.

"So, once we all realized you were probably gone too, I decided to hold a funeral right here for you and all your friends," Peppy finished recounting his tale. "I never even imagined you'd made it to Bergen Town alive! I'm so glad to see you. All of you." He hugged his daughter again as the stunned princess took that all in.

N-no way! It took my dad how long to figure out I wasn't there?

There were just so many things wrong with that, but she decided to worry about that later. She had more important things to deal with at the time. She hugged her dad tightly again and said, "I'm sorry, Dad. I didn't mean to worry you. But look!" She pulled back, gesturing to her friends, who were currently mingling with the crowd. "I managed to save everyone from Bergen Town. And the bergens no longer want to eat us, either."

Peppy smiled proudly at her. "So I've heard. But why is that, my dear? What happened to you all?"

And so she began to tell the tale. For now, however, she was careful to leave Branch out of it completely. This wasn't the time to tell everyone about his role in this whole thing. Her dad wasn't known for being reasonable when it came to Branch. It would be better, she thought, if he heard about the harrowing adventure before learning that a so-called "traitor" had been along for the ride. She'd never get to the heroic parts of the story if she dropped his name too soon.

While Poppy spoke, Biggie returned to her side, bringing along everyone else. The Snack Pack all added their own parts to the story, jumping in whenever they had anything to say. All of them took cue from Poppy and didn't mention Branch just yet. They figured it was better to be safe than sorry.

Shortly Peppy took Poppy onto the stage, with her friends gathered up front and center, for an important announcement.

"We are gathered here today to celebrate our newfound freedom from the bergens!" He threw his arms up in celebration, a wide smile on his face. Then he gestured to his daughter with one arm and added, "Thanks to the immeasurable courage of our brave, young princess, bergens and trolls can now live in peace with each other!" He threw his arms up again.

The crowd cheered as King Peppy walked over to his daughter and placed a crown upon her head. He took her hand and raised it over her head, saying, "Let's hear it for our new queen!"

The cheers grew louder as everyone jumped for joy. Not a single member of the audience thought this was undeserved. Even Branch, hiding close enough to this scene to hear what was going on, thought this was well-earned.

"She's my friend!" Biggie called, pointing at Poppy. "I know her!"

"Aw...you guys," Poppy said. She then turned to her dad, looking both serious and a bit nervous. "But, you know, I can't take all the credit for this."

In a bush nearby, Branch watched anxiously. He wasn't sure why he was still here. Really, he should have just left. He knew this wasn't going to go well. The moment his name came up, it would be over.

No, Poppy, don't... he thought desperately.

Peppy raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Dad, remember when you warned me about going to Bergen Town alone?" Poppy asked with a grin.

"Yes, I do. Why?"

"Well, truth is, I didn't."

"What? But...who did you go with?" one troll asked.

"Did somebody else stay behind?"

As Poppy looked around the crowd, Branch grew increasingly nervous. I should leave. This isn't going to end well.

"Well, no. No one did," Poppy answered. "Truth is, I went out to find someone I knew could help! And, boy, am I glad I did, too. That guy saved me from two growlbeasts, a bergen who tried to force King Gristle to eat me, and a few birds along the way. He even defeated a kitty critter who kidnapped Guy Diamond and Smidge! And you don't even want to know how banged up he is now!"

Peppy beamed with excitement. Someone had helped his daughter on this dangerous adventure? No wonder she'd made it home alive. From the sound of it, this troll was strong and extremely clever. One would have to be to overcome all those obstacles, after all. "Really? Well! That sounds like the kind of troll we should honor!"

Poppy clenched her fists in front of her chest, bouncing slightly. She had a huge smile on her face."I know, right!? And that's not even the half of it! He also fought two bergens trying to save us all, created a beautiful escape plan, and kept trying to sacrifice himself to keep me out of harm's way!" She spread her arms out excitedly then as she went on, "In fact, one of the bergens wanted to lock us both up in..." she grew nervous, twiddling her thumbs, "very creepy...funless...tiny chambers..." she shook her head to clear it and got back on track, "and he volunteered to go through it alone so that I wouldn't have to!" And Poppy threw her arms out to the sides again, beaming in truth now. The reminder of all Branch had done or would have done for her was enough to cheer her up. He was such a great guy to have around.

"Wow! So brave!"

"Where is he!?"

"Well, don't keep us in suspense, then! Tell us the name of this great hero! Come on! The suspense is killing me!" her dad said, practically bursting from excitement and bouncing a bit.

Poppy grinned mischievously. She couldn't wait to say "I told you so." The audience, meanwhile, grew restless.

Poppy, no, wipe that grin off your face, Branch thought.

Peppy started wringing his hands together as Poppy held her silence, trying to build the suspense. They'd all been asking for this for years.

Finally, a smug smile on her face, she said, "Branch."

"Branch!?" the villagers exclaimed in disbelief.

"What do you mean 'Branch!?'" one asked, seeming shocked and horror-struck. "Isn't he a traitor!?"

"He almost killed you, Queen Poppy! Why would he save you!?" demanded another in disbelief.

"Is there another Branch somewhere?" a third asked nervously.

"No, everyone!" Creek cut in, stepping up onto the stage. He held his hands out in a calming gesture, sounding urgent. "Please! Hear her out! For, if it wasn't for Branch, none of us would have ever made it back!"

Peppy's eyes widened, and the villagers gasped.

"R-r-really!?" Harper asked, stunned, nervous, and unsure, as she thought back to an incident between her and Branch years ago. She'd gone to ask him for a cup of sugar and been threatened with fireworks, razor wire, and an assortment of other traps. It was hard to believe that he would help anyone in a life or death situation if he got that bent out of shape over a cup of sugar. "But I thought—"

"It was amazing!" Satin added as she and Chenille joined Poppy and Creek on the stage. "There we were, trapped in a glass tank deep within Bergen Town, and Branch knew exactly how to not only get us out of the tank, but out of Bergen Town, too!"

The way she gushed about him, several trolls wondered if Satin wasn't in love. In truth, she just hoped it would help everyone realize just how much of a hero he really was.

"You should have seen him when the bergen came after Poppy!" Chenille added, sounding an awful lot like her sister. "He leaped in without a thought for his own safety!"

"And the battle with the birds—He was outnumbered, and Poppy was unconscious! He never left her, though, even though protecting her got him seriously injured!"

The trolls gasped at this news.

"H-he got hurt protecting Princess Poppy?"

Peppy's eyes widened further still, threatening to pop right out of his head. "Oh, my! I-is he alright!?"

Traitor or not, trolls never abandoned anyone who was hurt or sick and needed their help. And, from the sound of things, Branch needed emergency medical treatment and a safe place to stay until he recovered. Beyond that, Peppy had a lot of questions for the boy—like why he'd gone with Poppy to Bergen Town or put himself in harm's way in the first place. Peppy knew Branch was a big coward, after all.

"Well, Dad, why don't you ask him yourself?" Poppy asked with a mischievous grin. She slowly turned to face the bush where Branch was hiding, hands behind her back. The words she wanted to say were written all over her face. She was glad that her friends were all praising Branch as a hero. Now it was all the haters who looked like fools instead of her.

No, Poppy, no...

"Poppy," Peppy said, looking sympathetic. He could understand that Branch had done good on this adventure, but the law was the law. "I understand how you feel, but Branch was—"

Poppy turned back to her dad and said firmly, "Banished for unfair reasons, Dad." She threw her arms out to the side, looking a little disappointed. "That's no way to treat someone!" Crossing her arms, she looked away in disgust and added, "And, trust me. Total isolation like that's pure torture for a troll. It's just not a trolly thing to do at all." She closed her eyes and shook her head in disappointment.

Smidge crossed her arms, looking highly annoyed. "Oh, that's an understatement!" she said. "Poppy cracked up after only one day of it! And it wasn't even real, either!"

"It's true! And it took us two days to calm her down afterward!" Biggie added.

Wait, it took that whole time!? Branch thought, momentarily distracted from the matter at hand. While I was listening to the screams of the condemned, she was having a nervous breakdown? For two days!?

Suddenly he wished he'd pretended to break sooner. It seemed Poppy really had needed the kind of attention her friends tried to give her back in the root tunnels. Just...not right then.

"It was a full blown Poppy 911! Literally!" said Guy as he threw his arms up in anguish. "We had to use all that we had all at once!"

Looking somewhat bored, Creek started counting off on his fingers as he said, "Soothing aroma massage, cupcakes, scrapbooking, comfy chairs, makeovers, relaxing music, wild dance parties."

And that wasn't even the full list. He'd left out many details, including some things Bridget had tried. There was just too much to count right now. He didn't think he had enough fingers for all the attempts. Besides, they had more important matters to attend to.

The trolls gasped in horror.

"...It's really that bad?" Maddy asked. Her hands were on her cheeks, eyes wide with horror.

"Oh, it's that bad, alright!" Cooper said, nodding emphatically. "I mean, after just one day, Poppy was—"

"Okay, guys! Thanks!" Poppy snapped as she glared at them, blushing from embarrassment. Seriously, guys! What are you trying to do!? Cause a total freak out!? Besides, you're making me look bad.

Now the villagers all looked concerned for their new queen. But beyond that, there were murmurs spreading throughout the crowd about total isolation and whether banishment was really that bad.

"...The point is, you guys, total banishment's just not our thing," Poppy continued, waving her arms through the air in front of her. She closed her eyes with a frown of disapproval. Then she opened her eyes and cupped her hands together, smiling happily as she said, "And, if it's alright with everyone, I'd like to change that here and now!" Poppy looked out past the crowd. "Starting with this. Branch!? Come out here!" she called excitedly, waving a hand to signal him.

Peppy's eyes, which had only recently returned to a less startled state, widened once more as he let out a gasp. The idea that Branch was here was difficult to grasp. Branch wasn't known to intentionally break the law. He'd be far too afraid of the consequences.

Branch froze again for a second. He knew this was a bad idea, but he couldn't make himself leave. As nervous as he could be, he came out of the bushes and just stood there, watching the crowd. The last thing he wanted was to get too close to the very trolls that had once formed an angry mob and tossed him out on his ear. A babble of anxious chatter started up in the crowd, which didn't really make Branch anymore eager to approach.

"Come on, Branch," Poppy called excitedly. "Get over here!"

Peppy gaped at the gray troll. He couldn't be seeing things correctly right now. Branch was the last person he expected to see today. He rubbed his eyes to clear them, then looked again.

Command from the queen or no, Branch had no intention of going any closer to the trolls he considered hostile. He scanned the crowd, watching for signs of trouble, but otherwise didn't move.

As she took in the situation, Poppy realized that she might need a little help bringing Branch the rest of the way home. He was just way too paranoid sometimes. She gave him a lame look before smiling gently at Biggie and Guy. "...Biggie? Guy?"

"With pleeeeaaaasure, my queen!" said Guy. He headed over to fetch Branch, a playfully nasty look on his face, and Biggie followed suit.

Biggie was mildly surprised to see the relief on Branch's face. He would have thought, given the other troll's dislike of Guy, that this would be a problem. However, it seemed Branch had more trust for the Snack Pack—Guy included—than for the rest of the village. Hopefully they could change that. Biggie now had no intention of letting Branch go off on his own again. At least, not if he was planning on moving far, far away from them all.

Guy grabbed one of Branch's arms and held on tight, and Peppy gaped once more. Clearly he wasn't seeing things if Guy was able to physically interact with the gray troll standing there. Now, if he could just figure out why, maybe things would start to make sense again. This was so out of character for Branch that Peppy didn't know what to make of any of it.

Biggie took hold of Branch's other arm and said, "Come on, Branch! Poppy's waiting."

Guy and Biggie started back through the crowd, bringing Branch along. The other trolls cleared the way, looking unsure. The whole way to the stage, Branch's eyes darted all over the crowd as he looked for any threats. When they reached the stage, Biggie and Guy tossed Branch up with Poppy.

Looking serious, the queen of the trolls pulled Branch over to stand beside her. She needed this to look as professional as possible to maintain a fair image as queen. She didn't want anyone accusing her of doing something just to benefit her friends, after all.

She said, "Branch. Ten years ago, you committed an unthinkable act by leaving me to the claws of some not-so-friendly birds." She looked at him with disappointment, although she certainly didn't agree with anything she was saying or doing right now. "At the time, you were seen as a traitor and banished from Troll Village because of it." She looked at him stoically, her hands on her hips.

Branch looked down. As if he needed the reminder. Several trolls in the audience started murmuring unintelligibly.

Poppy raised a fist to her mouth and cleared her throat to silence the crowd as she smiled and continued, "However. In the past week, you have shown exceptional courage in protecting me and my friends from harm. You showed extraordinary character by sacrificing yourself many times for the lives or sanity of others, and demonstrated great leadership by not letting your anger at us keep you from doing what you knew was right. These three actions are worthy of praise and should be greatly rewarded!"

Peppy's eyes watered as he listened to his daughter's points, watched her lead with mercy. Now he was finally coming to understand what she'd been trying to tell him the last ten years. Branch had made a mistake, yes. But abandoning those in need wasn't the norm for him, even when he was scared. There were good things about Branch, things that warranted giving him a second chance. In his rage at what Branch had almost allowed to happen to his daughter, Peppy had forgotten that. But he knew that she was right. He'd been the one who was in the wrong, not Poppy. She was more responsible and reasonable than he'd ever be. She'd make a fine queen, no doubt about that.

"Therefore!" she said, holding up a finger to make a declaration. "Now that I am queen, I hereby revoke your previous banishment and welcome you back to Troll Village as a hero!" Poppy placed a medal around his neck—a traditional troll hero medal. The image engraved on the medal showed a troll with his head held high, hands on his hips in a stereotypical hero pose. A large letter H stood out behind the troll.

The village, surprisingly, started cheering instead of revolting. Branch wasn't sure what to make of any of this. Everyone seemed happy to have him home. They seemed to actually believe him to be a hero now instead of a traitor. They thought he deserved to be honored. He'd just been given a real hero medal. Poppy just so happened to have one of those on hand? How long had she been carrying that thing around?

Branch gave a start, partially because of the medal and partially because of the applause. He looked at the medal, seeing an engraving on the back that read "Branch – Hero of Troll Village," then looked at Poppy as if to ask her about it.

She just smiled affectionately and kissed his cheek. "Welcome home, Branch."