Find Me…I'm Lost

Okay. This is a unique take on Trolls. I wouldn't exactly call this an alternate universe, but it is a little different. Bear with me, but also tell me what you think…good or bad. This is a look into what could possibly be.

I own nothing. Nothing.

Chapter Two

Creek glanced over his shoulder and cursed aloud when he saw Branch's eyes closed again.

"No, Branch. Stay awake," Creek growled as he strode over before drawing up short as a sharp blade was held to his throat from behind him, "What?"

"Who are you?" a voice said as Creek was spun around to see a fur clad person with nothing showing, but blue eyes, "You!"

Creek gulped as one of the leaders of the ice trolls ripped her fur wrapping from her face. Ice trolls were in all shades of blues, silvers, and pure white. They could control the ice within them too, but their hair did not have the ability that the warmer climate trolls had to defend themselves. Plus, ice trolls were much taller and built sturdier for the cold weather they endured. There were true differences between the two clans.

"I've returned. Just as I said I would, Queen Crystal," Creek offered the taller and certainly beautiful ice lass as the blade was pressed to his throat more while other ice trolls converged on the scene from all directions, "I brought the one I spoke to you about. He's there, but…"

"He looks half dead from here. Move," an even larger troll interrupted with a snarl as he strode forward to turn Branch's face towards him and froze in place as he slowly stooped next to the still troll, "This can't be."

"Brother?" Crystal questioned as the other troll remained still in what seemed stunned shock, "Is it as we thought? A traitorous, runaway from our tribe."

"No. Something else," the other troll answered, reaching quickly to untie the ropes around Branch's wrists, "Sister, come!"

Crystal pushed Creek towards two trolls with spears and stepped up beside the other troll. Creek now knew who the large troll was. This was Crystal's twin brother, King Frost. The two ruled the surly tribe of trolls that had settled in the ice lands as a team.

"By the great ice wall," Crystal breathed, removing her hood to show a long, intricately braided mane of hair as she bent to examine the unconscious troll, "Something else, indeed. Brother, how is this possible?"

"Unknown," Frost stated as he turned Branch's face towards him more while Crystal hunched to pull the blankets back as she leaned to listen to Branch's heart, "Quite a mystery, this little one."

"Brother, this isn't good," Crystal said as she leaned back up while Frost frowned darkly, "His heart is slowing from the cold."

"Do you see what I do?" Frost demanded as Crystal nodded while the older brother pulled off his furred cloak and wrapped it quickly over Branch before working at the ropes that bond Branch's ankles, "Kiv, get the sled. Time is running out for this little one."

Creek watched as Frost pushed back his own hood to show his matching mane to his sister's as he seemed to be deep in thought while he tried to help Branch. Ice troll hair did not stand up, but hung long down these trolls' backs in elaborate patterns of braids and knots. Murmurs broke out among the other trolls as the twins examined Branch closer while Creek finally noticed that the twins' manes were the exact color of the unconscious troll. How odd, but the worrying thing was, that Branch himself hadn't stirred once at all the touching and prodding.

"You were asked to bring this one to us alive," Crystal hissed, turning to Creek as the troll looked over at Branch in horror, "He lives, but is near frozen to death and his heartrate is slowing. Why is he not in proper clothing for the ice? Where are his boots? You will answer for this if our tribemate dies from whatever you have done to him."

"Um…tribemate?" Creek questioned in confusion as Crystal glared at him, "Branch is from my old tribe, your majesty."

"He is of ours," Frost denied as he stood from lifting Branch into his arms which made the fully grown Branch look like a young child in a parent's arms, "I don't know how, but you have returned what I believe might actually be a family member to us. Only the royals have this color of mane in all troll-dom. The hair color is one clue, the other is that the one you call Branch is a spitting image of our mother who disappeared when my twin and I were just in our teens. Guards bring this Creek to the palace and guard the slippery eel well. Crystal and I need to get this little one to the royal healer, but I want that troll questioned once you arrive home. Sister."

Creek's mouth dropped open as a silver sled, pulled by a white fox, appeared and the twins settled Branch within a nest of thick furs before Frost took the reins from another troll and the sled pulled off with great speed with Crystal watching over the smaller troll.

"What just happened?" Creek said before grunting as he was shoved to start walking by his guard, "Not quite the welcome I was expecting. Ow! Stop shoving. I'm moving."

The purple troll grumbled under his breath the entire way to the ice palace, not even realizing the clenching of his fists. With sled, the trip took very little time as he knew from his previous visit to these lands. On foot, the trip took most of the day. He was hoping to find that Branch was doing better and some warmth of his own finally in the palace. Instead, Creek grunted when he found himself shoved up against a wall once he'd been led into the icy haven.

"You will tell me everything about the troll called Branch," Frost snarled into Creek's face with eyes of livid ice, "First, what in all of the iced fields did you give to him? He's been drugged to the gills. What is this poison you've given my baby brother?"

"Brother?!" Creek gasped before hissing as his hair was twisted in Frost's fist so he couldn't defend himself, "W-woolen head brew. It just leaves a troll confused and weak. I have it here."

Frost grabbed the bottle offered to him and popped the cork to sniff the liquid before frowning darkly. Creek hissed as Frost dragged him down a hallway by the hair and into a warm room to hand a wizened troll the bottle.

"Ah. This has hazel root in it," the elder troll said after having sniffed the container, looking to a large, canopied bed, "We ice trolls are allergic to this root and it can kill quickly. Since he is only a half it didn't kill him, but it is no wonder the lad is so sick. He's been having a reaction to the elixir since he's been given this stuff and being starved and dehydrated hasn't been helping."

"You starved him?!" Frost roared, making Creek wince as the larger troll shook him by the hair.

"I did not! Branch is smart," Creek denied quickly, fearing for his life as Frost glared down at him, "Wouldn't eat or drink anything I tried to give him. I got some water and the elixir down his throat, but he spit all food back in my face. It was disgusting."

"Ha!" Crystal sniffed from beside the bed, "He's got some spunk, Frost. You can see that in his stubbornness to not go down without a fight. He fought the ropes too. You saw the rope burns he acquired from trying to get his hands free. Boy's a warrior through and through."

"Only thing that's kept the boy alive," Frost grumbled, turning to his sister as he calmed.

Creek looked and saw Branch lying pale and still within the bed as Crystal sat beside the troll, wiping a wet cloth over the still one's cheeks and forehead. Creek felt guilt prick him when he noticed the fresh bandages around Branch's wrists. He'd not meant to really hurt Branch. It was then that Creek also noticed the fever blush that stained Branch's cheeks.

"He wasn't feverish earlier, but I was trying to start a fire to warm him up. I swear I wasn't trying to do Branch harm," Creek spoke up as Crystal and Frost turned to glare at him, "And how is Branch your brother? He's not an ice troll. I was small, but I was there when Branch was presented as a newborn to the rest of our tribe."

"This child is half ice troll. I don't know how that is possible, but I sense his ice. That is the same ice that his older siblings possess. Only family members can share the same type of ice," the obvious healer snapped as he moved towards the bed with a small bowl of liquid, "My queen, the lad needs to drink this so I can counteract the effects of the hazel root. Be gentle. The boy's been through enough and is very ill."

"Ow," Creek whimpered as Frost knotted his hair more in seething rage, judging by the fire in the large troll's eyes, "I don't understand. Branch was born into my old tribe and woolen head brew doesn't do any real harm. I'd never have used anything on him to actually hurt him. I swear it!"

"Hmph," Frost scoffed as he threw Creek into a nearby chair while ice grew to hold the other troll firmly, "Shut up and sit there. Remember what Father's old plan was, Sister?"

"I do," Crystal snorted as she settled Branch back against a pillow and handed the empty bowl to the healer, 'I guess Mother set out and tried the plan on her own. Father was livid when she never returned."

"Please. What is going on?" Creek begged as the twins turned to him, "How is it that a warm climate troll is your sibling?"

"Our father was an eccentric troll. He was always trying to come up with new ideas to increase our tribe's strength so we'd survive. We have our ice, but you warmer trolls can control your hair. Father always said that if an ice troll could also possess the weapon of hair manipulation, then that troll would be unstoppable," Frost began as Creek listened, "Would rant on and on about what he could accomplish with a warrior like that. Imagine an ice troll being able to control ice and his or her hair, Sister."

"This one just might do that if the fool hasn't killed him," Crystal spat, eyeing Creek angrily as she returned to dabbing Branch's face with the cool cloth, "Mother left to create the troll Father always wanted to breed."

"Wait," Creek gasped, glancing up sharply, "You mean your mother left to…have a baby with a warm climate troll?"

"Resulting in Branch," Frost answered as Creek gaped at him.

"Impossible," Creek huffed as the twins growled at him, "Branch's mother was too short to be an ice troll. I've seen her with my own eyes. You ice trolls are big."

"Ah," Crystal chuckled with a nod, "Mother was very tiny for an ice troll, but she packed a mighty punch and her ice was unstoppable. Earned her right to stand beside our King and gave him two children at one time. Young are rare and twins are rarer still. Our parents were so proud. You see, Ice trolls breed for strength. Only the strong survive our lands and Mother showed that she was one of the best warriors among us."

"But I saw Branch's mother when I was a tot. Her hair was not like an ice trolls," Creek stated before blinking as both twin's hair stood as if on their own before dropping back down to hang long again, "By the sacred Troll Tree! You two just looked so much like Branch just then. How?"

"My namesake," Frost admitted, "Using frost can help us stiffen our hair to resemble your tribe, Creek. Mother must have found a mate and had Branch, but she was supposed to have returned with him. She was one of the most loyal to our tribe. What happened?"

"Branch's mother and father were killed by a Bergen when Branch was only three days old," Creek blurted as the twins gasped, "He was raised by his paternal grandmother until…she was also taken by a Bergen."

"I told you that I knew she was gone," Crystal sighed, looking down, "Branch has lost as much as we have, Brother."

"No matter," Frost decided with a haunted look in his eyes as his twin looked at him sadly for but a moment before her fierce mask slid back into place, "We'll honor our mother's sacrifice and cleanse our baby brother's mind, Sister. He'll learn his birthright as the crowned prince and develop new memories as he is trained in the ways of his real tribe."

"Wait…what do you mean 'cleanse?'"

The twins turned to look at Creek as he watched them carefully.

"Ice trolls do not need the soft ways of your tribe within them," Crystal stated as Creek blinked at her, "Brother and I have a way to erase old memories so that Branch can start again and we can awaken the ice within him. You will be rewarded with a place among us for bringing him home…as long as our brother survives. Otherwise, you die."

Creek swallowed as the ice receded from around him as he sat up straighter in his chair.

"Help the healer and remain here," Frost ordered as Creek nodded, "Our baby brother's health better be your main priority as his life will mean the continuation of your own. Am I understood?"

"Yes, my king," Creek nodded out as the large troll stared down at him.

Creek watched the rulers leave before being handed a new cloth and bowl of water by the healer.

"The young prince needs rest more than anything," the healer began, "Try to keep down the fever and ring that bell there if the lad gets worse. I will check on you regularly, got it?"

The purple troll nodded and rose to sit beside his silent companion. Creek had been having visions of watching Branch suffer, knowing he was separated from Poppy, but now he'd be cleansed? That would mean that Branch wouldn't remember that Poppy ever existed. The Branch that Creek knew and wanted to hate would be gone forever.

"What have I done?" Creek asked himself as he reached to feel Branch's forehead and sighed at how high the fever really was before closing his hands in tight fists as his guilt built, "Mate, I think I've made a mistake here. A big one."

oOo

"Boots stink!"

Poppy hid a small smile as Cooper stumbled again, wearing mismatched snow boots. The giraffe-like troll sulked grumpily as the Snack Pack snorted around him.

"Now, now," Poppy soothed as Cooper scowled, "Coop, you can't walk in all this snow with bare feet. You'd freeze to death."

"I'm freezing from face-planting so much," Cooper whined, pouting down at his boots, "Plus, even Guy looks miserable."

"Hate these clothes," Guy huffed angrily, pulling irritably at his snowsuit, "It's messing with my glitter."

"Talk about freezing," Biggie pointed out, "Glitter isn't warm enough for these lands, Guy. You can reapply fresh glitter when we get home and you can take the boots off then, Cooper."

"Fine," Cooper grumbled as Guy nodded, "Hey, Poppy, do we even know where we are going? There are no tracks, thanks to freshly fallen snow."

"Yeah, Poppy," DJ Suki called from the back of the line, "Where are you taking us?"

Poppy stared out across the wide land of white, sprinkled with an occasional grouping of trees before glancing back at her friends.

"Father told me that the ice troll palace is at the base of that mountain there," Poppy finally explained as the group glanced to where she was pointing, "I know that Creek was headed there. I can feel it. Where Creek is at, is where Branch will be. First, I'm going to make sure that my Branch is okay and then I'm dealing with Creek."

"How so?" Biggie asked as Poppy began pushing through the snow in her blue and white snow clothes, weighed down by her travel pack like everyone else.

"Painfully," Poppy spat, making the twins chortle behind her, "Let's go."

To be continued…

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I will be out of country for the next few days. I'll update once I'm back.

Review and tell me what you think!

TTFN,

Turtle Babe