Chapter 78
As Creek's tears calmed, he slowly became aware of his surroundings again. He remembered Brainy sitting beside him but he didn't recall turning and curling against the Smurf to cry against his chest. The warmth of Brainy's arms wrapped around him, also did nothing to stave off Creek's growing exhaustion.
Lifting his hand, Brainy cautiously wiped some of the tear streaks from Creek's face, relieved when more tears did not renew them. He was going to ask Creek how he was feeling when he was interrupted by a knock at the door.
Ear twitching slightly, Creek sat up a little to look at the door they were leaning against but did not answer; waiting.
Another knock followed.
"Maybe he's not home," A female voice unfamiliar to Brainy suggested.
"He's back in the village, not with Poppy or the Snack Pack, he's probably home," said a secondary female voice, which caused Creek to frown.
When there was another knock, Creek reached up to lock the door knob and tapped his finger to his lips when Brainy met his eye.
Though Brainy was curious, he nodded, remaining silent.
"We could leave him a note?" the first female suggested.
"He never answers my letters," the second one sighed.
"What do you want to do?" asked the first.
"Stay here until he admits he's home and talks to me," the second one knocked on the door again.
"You'd have better luck if you went home and left Karma here to talk to him, Cybil," came Cinnamon's voice.
Creek and Brainy looked at each other, then back to the door, both curious to Cinnamon's presence.
"Cinnamon, come up here, he'll answer the door for you," said the second female voice, which, Brainy assumed, was Creek's cousin Cybil.
"I'm pretty sure that we've established that I don't have the power to make him talk to you," commented Cinnamon. "Why don't you give me the message and I promise I'll have him send a response to Karma since-"
The rest of Cinnamon's words were cut off by Cinnamon shouting.
This time when Creek and Brainy looked at each other, they wordlessly stood and Creek unlocked the door to open it.
Right outside the door were two female Trolls, Brainy wouldn't have immediately associated with being related to Creek but considering the color variety of Trolls, Brainy knew it wasn't impossible.
One Troll was light orange with mossy green hair that had plants sticking out of it. Her eyes were blue, a shade darker than her nose, and she wore a yellow two-piece dress and matching hug time bracelet.
Beside her, the other Troll was light green with wavy, turquoise hair which was a lighter shade than Creek's own hair. She had a purple gem on her forehead and three golden looped earrings, two in on ear and on in the other. Her nose was pink, matching her hug time bracelet and dress that only covered one shoulder. Her eyes were the same purple as Creek's though, making Brainy deduce that this was Cybil.
On a lower platform Cinnamon was trying to untangle Poppy's hands from around him while Poppy had wrapped both her arms and legs around Cinnamon, hugging his back and clinging to him like spider. Smurfette was watching them slightly off to decide so not to get accidentally hit as Cinnamon tried to get Poppy off of him.
The green female Troll, Cybil, smiled at Creek, opening her arms to embrace him, "Creek-"
Stepping around her, Creek all but slid down his ladder to the lower platform, "Cinnamon, I hate to tell you this, but you seemed to have developed an adorable, pink growth on your back."
"Yes, very adorable," Cinnamon continued to pull at Poppy's hands and huffed, "A very strong growth." He half turned his head trying to look at her, "What brought this on, Princess?"
Keeping her arms and legs around him, Poppy looked up and smiled at him, "Can't a cousin hug their cousin, Prince-"
"Nope, nope, nope," Cinnamon cut her off, reaching down to tickle her feet, "Off."
Laughing, Poppy only held on tighter, "You can't get rid of me that easily!"
Coughing at the tight grip, Cinnamon stopped tickling her and turned to Creek with a frown, "You told her?"
"I told her nothing," said Creek, "As promised."
"You knew," Poppy frowned over Cinnamon's shoulder at his friend.
"Cinnamon and I dated for two years," stated Creek, "Of course I knew."
"And you didn't tell me?" Poppy frowned more.
"He said he promised he wouldn't," Smurfette pointed out.
"And I figured if you didn't know, King Peppy must have kept it from you for a reason," said Creek, "Now I believe Cinnamon wants you off of him."
"Not happening," said Poppy, "I'm hugging Cinnamon until he loves and accepts me as his family."
"You are my family, Princess, that is a fact. But you cannot force anyone, including family, to love you," said Cinnamon, pausing as he looked up, "Isn't that right, Cybil?"
Turning, Creek caught Cybil about to hug him and quickly stepped away.
Clearing her throat, Cybil put her hands together and gave a little nod in way of an apology, "It never hurts to try."
As all of this as happening below, Brainy turned to the orange female Troll. Part of him wondered if it was genetic for both Cybil and Creek to be attracted to orange Trolls but forced the thought aside and spoke to her, "So if that's Cybil, then I am taking an educated guess that you are Karma?"
Nodding, Karma smiled, "That's right, nice to meet you," she trailed off, uncertain.
"Brainy Smurf," Brainy shook her hand. "I have to be honest, until earlier today I didn't know Creek had any living family after his uncle died. Why is he so mad at her?"
"Well, Cybil is a few years older than Creek," Karma explained, watching the group bicker below, "She was seventeen when her father Sage, Creek's uncle, died. Not quite an adult but old enough to be on her own but she didn't feel like she could take care of Creek on top of that so she asked Fizzy to take him back in." She sighed, "Creek never forgave her."
"I can't say I fully understand," admitted Brainy, "Even though we're not blood related like Troll families, Smurf familiar ties are strong. I can't imagine any of us willingly separating."
"Smurfs families sound simpler," commented Karma, "Sounds nice." She turned to Brainy, "Should we join the drama?"
"I would prefer ending it but I can't be that lucky," commented Brainy, following her down the ladder to get to the lower platform. He really wanted everyone to leave before Creek got anymore upset like he had been before the knocking started. And, if he was honest, he wanted to be alone with Creek and maybe get the chance to hold him again.
Moving to stand beside Cybil, Karma smiled at Creek, "Hello Creek, we heard you were back and about," she managed to just glance at Creek's gray eyes instead of staring, "Your condition, and wanting to check in on you."
"And invite you to dinner," Cybil added quickly.
Creek turned to Karma, "Karma, as much as I'm sure dinner with you would be a pleasant evening, I don't care much for the company you keep." He gave Cybil a pointed look before turning back to Karma, "And I'm afraid I'm much too tired to do dinner tonight."
"How about tomorrow?" Cybil tried again.
"Tomorrow I'm having a family dinner with Miss Frizz," said Creek, "Family is very important to her, you know."
"The night after that?" asked Cybil.
"Even if I agreed I very highly doubt you'd remember," said Creek, "And I'm done giving you the opportunity." He turned to Karma, "Please take your wife home, I have other familiar issues to deal with. Preferably not my family's."
"Creek, please, I'm trying," Cybil reached towards Creek.
Creek pulled back from her with a glare, "Don't."
"And while we're talking about things we shouldn't go," Cinnamon quickly interjected, "Can you keep the fact I'm related to the princess to yourselves?"
"Hey," Poppy protested, "I thought you admitted that we were family?"
"We are but it doesn't mean I want everyone to know it," said Cinnamon. "I'm not any sort of prince and I don't want or need the attention that comes with the title."
"But being a prince doesn't change anything," insisted Poppy.
"You say that because you've been a princess your whole life," said Cinnamon, "You are looked up to and idealize solely for your station. People seek you out to win your praises whether you realize it or not. I'm just Cinnamon who runs the apothecary."
"Just Cinnamon?" Creek repeated, shaking his head, "How many times do have to say that you're more than 'just'?"
Cinnamon smiled softly, "Once more, as always."
Hanging back from the group, Brainy looked down at the ground, holding into his arm in a sort of half hug.
Slowly, Poppy climbed off Cinnamon's back and walked around to face Cinnamon, trying very hard not to cry but eyes still watering, "Is that why you never talked to me when you, when you needed help?"
Sighing, Cinnamon put his hand on Poppy's shoulder, "You were literally a child, Princess, I could not expect you to help me. And after King Peppy wouldn't even make the time to listen, I had pretty much given up hope anyone would help me." He looked up, noting that Cybil and Karma were still there, listening, then turned back to Poppy. "I don't hold any sort of hatred or grudge against you if that's your concern."
"I just, I just want to be a family," Poppy's eyes watered a little more, "Like we should have been from the start."
"No offense, Princess, but I doubt it will ever be like you want," said Cinnamon, "Even if, one day, you and I can have any sort of familiar bond, I have no warmth for your father."
"Uncle," said Poppy softly, tears starting to fall, "He's your uncle."
"And I was his nephew," said Cinnamon, "He couldn't take the time to listen to me when I needed help and he couldn't be bothered to even tell you that we were related. As far as I'm concerned, he made it quite clear that I don't matter to him." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, offering it to her.
Crying softly, Poppy stepped forward and hugged Cinnamon tightly, apologizing softly.
Slowly, Cinnamon hugged Poppy back, at a loss at what to say. He didn't want to make Poppy any empty promises but he hated seeing her so upset.
Moving closer, Creek put his hand between Poppy's shoulder blades and waited until he looked up, "I know this is upsetting but Cinnamon isn't objecting to being your family. You just need to take this one step at a time and see where it goes."
"But how can we be family without my Dad?" asked Poppy.
Creek lightly tapped her nose, "One step at a time."
"Creek," Cybil tried approaching the group.
"Leave Cybil," Creek didn't turn to her.
"But Creek," Cybil tried again, stopping when Creek turned to her, his gray eyes darkening towards her.
"You made it quite clear that I didn't matter to you then, you don't get to try to be family now," Creek stated, wishing he could take back all the time he had wasted loving her.