An Important Talk

Poppy had noticed Branch didn't visit Demo or the Rock Trolls like he said he would. Since his foot healed, he dove into work to make it up for the lost time. She wished to see him socializing more, having as much fun as she was having and she had a suspicion that he hadn't even stepped close to the Classical Crest, yet. Surely, he had talked to Dante during the Cloud Guy annoyversary, but she hadn't seen him attending any events there.

Like an answer to her wonderings, Branch sprung out of a bush and desperately asked for her help to stop Dante from following him around. Well… the timing wasn't the best because Smidge still needed a lot of consolation, but being Dante's muse was just the perfect opportunity for them to engage in a real conversation and get to really know each other.

Her extroverted and positive side spoke louder, quickly answering for Branch even against his will.

"Not good enough. Dante, Branch would love to be your muse."

Poppy only realized that she had imposed her wishes on her boyfriend after half of the day had passed. She was quietly having a snack in the middle of an oddly quiet village when she spotted Cooper chatting animatedly with Lownote Jones. The memory of the previous week when the four-legged troll interrupted a private moment made her wonder about her actions.

It wasn't very supportive of her to make Branch do things he wasn't comfortable with… her boyfriend was supposed to grow to love the community in his own time…

A familiar guilt made her feel unwell and she walked towards the bunker, thinking of a way to fix her mistake. Perhaps she could offer some help to inspire Dante so he would leave the survivalist alone…

But… to her immense surprise, Poppy noticed more trolls walking towards the underground fortress. It was really odd because usually she was the only one to constantly visit Branch.

Flabbergasted, she watched as a mob of fascinated trolls jumped inside the bunker from different secret entrances, she thought only she knew about. Trolls from every tribe were there, holding papers and pens, looking like they were desperate to take notes.

Or… to get inspired.

Oh, cupcakes! Branch would freak out with that many trolls inside his home!

And Poppy was right, just as she got inside, she saw him revealing he had made Dante believe he had composed the symphony during his sleep. Her stomach tied in a knot when Branch explained how he had used Minuet and the familiarity of his plan struck home. Poppy had manipulated him exactly the same way, years before, to make him build the Graygon monster.

Perhaps they were becoming too much alike…

"I sort of messed this up, didn't I?" Branch asked her, dejected staring at the result of his own games in the form of classical music.

"Yep… but it's not too late to make it right." Poppy replied, realizing she should take her own advice and fix her mistakes.

As Branch walked away to talk to Dante, Poppy turned around, seeing her friends all standing there, looking confused and about to walk out without the inspiration they were searching for. It was her chance to talk to all of them at once, so Poppy put her hands on her hips and took a deep breath, straightening her back and projecting her voice out as a true Queen.

"Listen up, everyone. I have to go through some serious talk…" she announced, seeing everybody exchanging some nervous glances. "This is wrong," Poppy continued, walking around so she wouldn't focus on anyone in particular. "We can't come inside Branch's bunker unannounced like this. He values his privacy."

Biggie looked at Guy Diamond, finally understanding what Poppy meant;

"We grew up having our homes open all the time, but Branch grew up alone and he is making an effort to live like us. He needs his place to recharge, to collect his thoughts and… to have his moments with himself," at this, she glared at Cooper, who nervously laughed at her. "Come inside ONLY when you're invited."

By the end of the day, the queen's words had spread through Trollstopia. Poppy wasn't naive to think one single speech would cause everyone to suddenly forget their natural urges to just barge into the bunker, but she hoped that at least now, they would hold back and realize that Branch was different and they needed to respect that.

And perhaps Cooper wouldn't interrupt another private moment.

Review Replies!

DwaleBerry5 – I hope you're okay! I miss reading your stories! Thank you so much for all the compliments. This story is a little different from everything else I've written. I just write and post when inspiration strikes. Hope to read more from you soon! Xoxoxo

Delta – Si, ci riusciranno. Prima, ho bisogno di preparare una atmosfera cosi perfetta per loro. Ho la sensazionne che Branch farà il primo movimento, ma non ho deciso esattamente come ci sarà.

Ashlovesfanfiction – It's so fun to get in embarrassing situations!