-O-

Picturebook Romance

A Trolls fanfic

By Dreamsinger

Chapter Forty-Four

A Princess and Her Grump

In the deep, serene quiet of the cozy underground den known as Branch's bunker, two trolls in love cuddled together under the soft, warm blanket, their hearts and minds at peace.

Eventually Branch made a soft noise, as if he'd just remembered something. "Speaking of dreams, Poppy, I've been meaning to ask you something. What exactly did you dream about that made you want to, you know, be with me? Because it just seemed to come out of nowhere. The day before yesterday we were best buddies, and then bam! Not that I'm complaining," he added hastily, "It's everything I've ever wanted. But I can't help being curious."

"Well, actually…" Poppy moved off his chest to lay down next to him on the bed, still sharing the pillow, but far enough away that they could see each other's faces. Her hair remained comfortably linked with his as she told him, "It wasn't quite out of the blue. Remember how I told you I've always admired you, and thought you were cool?"

"Yeah."

"It was a little more than just admiration," she admitted.

There was a long pause, and then he surprised her by stating, "Then you really did have a crush on me."

"Yes, I – wait; how did you know that?"

He snorted, and his voice held a generous tinge of laughter. "Poppy, you've never exactly been the subtle type."

-O-

"Hi, Branch!"

"Oh, no."

A jet of glitter hit my face. I sighed and waited, somewhat patiently, for it to run out.

The last two years since I'd left the village to live in my bunker had been some of the best years of my life. Finally, I was free to do anything I wanted. Free from unnecessary, time-wasting socializing. Even free, if I timed it right, from unwanted hugs. Except from Poppy, of course, but I didn't mind them from her, usually.

In my bunker, I had the peace of mind of knowing I would stay safe and hidden when the bergens eventually discovered the village. After twelve years, I knew they must be getting close. Even if they found my bunker, I had multiple escape routes in place; they would never get me!

In the meantime, gardening, collecting supplies, and developing and maintaining the systems that kept my bunker running gave me real challenges to wrap my hair around, keeping my mind and my hands too occupied to do much worrying.

Best of all, for the first time since I lived with Jaunty and Courtley, I was seriously proud of myself. I wondered if they would be proud of me, too, the way they used to be. I remembered how I had loved being praised for taking care of Jaunty when he was sick, and creating the sugarfruit soup that Poppy liked so much; the soup even King Peppy had praised me for. I smiled nostalgically. I wish I could show everyone I care about everything I've accomplished here, but the moment I reveal its location, I lose the bunker's main form of defense.

No one was supposed to know where my bunker was. In fact, no one was even supposed to know it existed, yet many trolls seemed to know about it. I was still bothered by that. At first, I suspected Poppy had let it slip. What troll could resist the temptation to gossip about a super-secret bunker? But she'd gotten so indignant when I accused her that I'd had to assume someone else must have seen me at some point, or figured it out somehow. Or it could even have been the king.

A few weeks after I'd moved into my bunker, King Peppy had wanted to know why I wasn't living in Leafe's old pod anymore. I'd told him the bare minimum, that I was living alone in a secret place and didn't want visitors. He didn't seem happy about that, so I told him that, if for some reason someone in the village needed to contact me, Poppy knew where it was.

Maybe he'd followed her when she came to visit me, or had someone else follow me. Maybe even my foster dads. I could see them secretly tailing her, being spies, like they once had been during the bergen years. It gave me an odd sense of comfort to think that they might still be looking out for me. If so, maybe they were proud of me.

Still, I really shouldn't even let Poppy visit me. It's a security risk. But she's pretty much the only friend I have left. I smiled to myself. Besides, even when I tell her to go away, she doesn't listen. The little princess still found ways to slip past my defenses, both emotional and literal.

Knowing my tendency to refuse her whimsical invitations, these days she just popped them open herself. I'd gotten so used to unexpected streamers and bursts of glitter coming at me out of nowhere that it no longer fazed me.

Ironically, Poppy had seemed disappointed by that. She seemed to find startling me hilarious no matter how often it happened, and had actually taken to sneaking up on me, trying to take me off-guard. She would yell my name, pop a balloon, or even clang cymbals next to my ear to try to get a reaction out of me.

Part of me hated it when she did that, but another part secretly liked it. It was one of the private little games that had grown between us over the years. I considered it a challenge to detect her approach and not yelp or jump three feet into the air when she did her thing. I told myself it was good practice for not panicking when the bergens or other predators appeared, but really, I just loved the challenge.

Or maybe I just loved the challenger. Poppy was an endearing and loyal friend, who never seemed to find my gruffness intimidating, or let it keep her from coming back. If anyone could get me to loosen up a little, to take a break from my self-imposed rut of work, eat, and sleep, she could. The truth was, after two years of solid work, there were times when I was grateful for the excuse to take a break. Not that I would ever admit it.

As the last spurt of glitter sprinkled to the ground, I said pre-emptively, "Sorry, Poppy, but I've got work to do."

"Aww, Branch! No," she protested.

"Aww, Poppy, yes," I mimicked.

"You're always working these days. I never see you anymore."

She seemed so genuinely disheartened that I softened my tone a little as I answered, "I can't help it, Poppy. I've got a lot of work to do. A lot of things I want to accomplish. Besides, there's nothing wrong with being a hard worker."

"But you're so uptight all the time. Don't you want to just chill out and relax once in a while?"

We'd had the same conversation dozens of times in the eight years since we'd become friends. I sighed and gave my standard reply. "There's more important things in life than partying all the time, Poppy."

"Maybe, but…you don't party at all. You never have any fun." Her tone softened. "I wanna see you be happy, you know?"

What could I say to that? "Yeah, thanks, but no, thanks."

"You spend so much time away from the village, Branch. Too much time. Besides…" she said craftily, "When you're not around, don't you ever feel like you might miss something important?"

"What do you mean, 'important'?"

"I mean, if you never come to the village, how can you spot potential issues that need to be taken care of before they become real problems?"

Oh, she's good. Her argument plucked at my need to keep on top of everything. I shook my head, a smile tugging at the corners of my mouth. I've gotta hair it to her. She knows exactly what makes me tick.

Of course Poppy spotted my involuntary smile of admiration, and upped her game. "Like, what if we run out of punch and someone gets dehydrated?" she challenged me.

I felt myself weakening. "Well…"

"Just kidding, I always make sure we have plenty of punch. But you get the idea." The pink trolling patted my arm. "There's nothing wrong with being a hard worker, but all work and no play makes Branch a dull troll, right?"

She beamed up at me, that same sunny smile I always found so hard to resist, for some reason. Why it was that the sight of Poppy's smiling face made my day brighter even when her shenanigans often got us into a mess and made me fall behind on my chores, I didn't know, but it did.

"Come on," she said warmly. "Are your chores so important that they can't wait a little while? I really need your help with something."

So that's it. Against my better judgement, I started mentally rearranging my workload. "Fine, I guess I can spare a few minutes. What do you need?"

"I've been experimenting with a new cupcake recipe, and I need a taste-tester."

I perked up. I didn't mind helping with something like that. Poppy's delicious cupcakes were her specialty - the best in the village. "You had me at 'experimenting'."

-O-

"I'm glad you finally stopped trying to startle me, by the way," I said as I gazed fondly across the pillow at my sweet girlfriend. "I mean, fun's fun, but it was getting old."

Poppy giggled. "Aww, and here I was thinking how long it's been since I had the chance to hear that funny old warble of yours, when something spooks you. Maybe I should try it again, for old time's sake," she said playfully.

"Poppy…"

"Ooo! No, wait! I just had an even better idea!"

"Poppy."

"You'll like it, Branch. Really."

I sighed, knowing that whatever was coming, I couldn't stop it, any more than I could stop the sunshine. "Fine," I grumbled. "It's just, you know how much I hate surprises."

She chuckled and leaned over to kiss me on the nose, reminding me that we were in love now. "I'll take that challenge; to find surprises you will like."

I felt better. If I truly didn't like whatever it was, Poppy would stop. Even back then, she'd only pushed me so far. I'd always known that she cared about me and wanted me to be happy.

Poppy settled back down. "Okay, now where were we?"

"Your crush on me, and how it led to your dream," I prompted.

"Oh, right."

-O-

As a youngster, Poppy Rainbow had been as mischievous as any other trolling. She had always loved harmless pranks, such as sneaking up on other trolls and startling them. She would burst into peals of delighted laughter as they jumped and squawked.

She especially loved to mess with her gray friend, Branch, with his snarky attitude and his 'always be alert' lecture, blah blah blah. It tickled her that she still managed to get the jump on him once in a while, even after he'd decided to move to his 'secret' bunker, two years ago.

Many trolls knew where it was. It wasn't hard to find if you were sneaky about following him, and good at camouflaging yourself – and for that he had only himself to blame. He was the one who'd insisted that everyone learn to do it, after all. The Bergen Attack game he'd created was still a favorite.

Still, even though he no longer lived in the village, Branch was her friend. As time passed, between her increasing duties as princess and moving up to the highest grade in school, which ran from ages 13-15, she didn't get to see much of him. One day, a few days after the annual Trollstice anniversary celebration, she had some unexpected free time. Poppy decided to pay Branch a visit, and give him a good spooking while she was at it. He always had the funniest reactions, often literally leaping into the air and barking out a yell. His hair would flare; sometimes his feet would even be churning the air, as if he could run on the wind! He was so silly!

Maybe he'd even argue with her. It was un-trolly, but by now, Poppy was used to arguing with Branch. He always wanted to be right, to be able to say, "I told you so!" He claimed that people would make fewer mistakes if they would only try to be more logical, and less sappy and emotional.

And Poppy enjoyed using logic to prove him wrong. It was so funny to see him jump through mental hoops to try to avoid admitting it! He would say bossily, "You should always…" or "You should never…"

She would cleverly counter with, "Branch, you can't just make a blanket statement like that. What about this situation…?"

The gray troll's smug, superior expression would freeze. He would scramble to refute her statement, stammering and getting all flustered. It was highly entertaining. He made her laugh a lot!

Sometimes he would say dryly, "Well, I'm glad you find me so amusing."

Poppy was never quite sure if he meant that, or if it was just that weird sarcasm of his, but just in case he was being sincere, she would agree, and praise him. "Yeah, you're so funny, Branch! Absolutely hilarious!"

For some reason, he didn't seem to understand that that was a compliment.

But the times she liked best were when he'd go quiet to think about what she'd said, and then give her a look of respect. "True," he'd praise her. "Good point."

It made her happy to feel like there were times she actually got through to him. It made her want to keep trying.

It took a while for the lively fourteen-year-old to track him down, but eventually she spotted the gray troll sitting on a high grassy hill. His back was to the village, on guard as always, but today something about him seemed…different. His posture was relaxed as he gazed off into the distance, as if listening to something pleasant only he could hear. Then his head bent as he looked down, writing or drawing something in a small journal she noticed then in his lap. As she crept closer, deciding the best spot from which to leap out at him, a wide, gentle smile spread across his face.

It was such an unBranchlike expression that she forgot about surprising him. Curious, she lay down, making sure her hair blended perfectly with the grass around her, resting her chin on her interlaced fingers. Branch continued to write, occasionally glancing up to look with farseeing eyes at the distant blue sky, his black hair riffling in the breeze.

He looked almost…happy. Like he was actually enjoying whatever it was, and from the looks of it, it wasn't an escape plan or a mechanical blueprint. What could he possibly be doing? After a while, she began to creep closer, freezing whenever he looked her way, maintaining her careful disguise.

-O-

Poppy broke off her storytelling as her curiosity got the better of her. "Oh, that reminds me, Branch- what were you writing in your journal?"

His eyes unfocused as if he were trying to think back, and Poppy realized, "Oh, wait; that was a long time ago. It's okay. I'm sure you don't remember."

"Actually, I do," he replied unexpectedly. "It was a poem about flowers. Poppy flowers, to be precise."

"Ooo." She perked up. This is going to be interesting.

"I'd finished my work early that day, so I decided-" he stopped, and lifted an eyebrow, correctly interpreting her surprised blink. "Yes, Poppy, that's what happens when certain people aren't constantly interrupting my work. I actually finish according to schedule, and then I can enjoy some guilt-free leisure time."

"Oh." Guilt again. Poppy was no stranger to work - or to busy schedules - but like most trolls, she lived a life that combined work and fun. Maybe that's why Branch has always taken his work so seriously, because he knew he'd be tormented by guilt if he didn't. I've never seen anyone with such a strong sense of duty. That's not exactly a bad thing, but I'm sure glad he's learning to relax and enjoy himself without guilt now.

"Sorry about that," she said belatedly, "I must have caused you a lot of pain over the years."

"No, don't be sorry. Even though I never would have admitted it, I needed you around to lighten things up, Sunshine." He reached out to pat the back of her hand where it lay on the bed between them, and she responded by gently squeezing his hair with her own.

"So anyway, to reward myself, I decided to go sit on the big hill overlooking the meadow. It's such a beautiful view, you know? Especially because that year there were more poppies than usual. Big, beautiful, bright red poppies, dancing in the breeze," he said warmly. "Gently touching their heads together, as if they were giggling with one another. Like another little Poppy I could mention." He patted her hand again and she giggled at the smile she could hear in his voice. "In fact," he went on, "they were so cute I decided to sketch them. Later on, I even did a painting of them."

"Really? I'd love to see it sometime."

"Oh." The pleasure faded from his tone. "I…don't have it anymore. I got rid of it. When I gave up on you ever falling for me, I got rid of a lot of things that reminded me of you."

"Oh, Branch." Melancholy shadows haunted the darkened room. "I wish you would have said something to me. I wish I could go back and change things for you. I hate to think of you down here, all alone in the dark for ten years, feeling so sad."

He sighed. "Yeah. Maybe I should have said something..." He was silent for a few moments. "But even so, the bergens hadn't been dealt with yet. Maybe you might have saved me from being gray, only to see the village destroyed and all our people eaten when they finally found us. We'll never know for sure. I'd rather have things turn out the way they did than go back and change things, if we could. I got my happy ending. So please, Poppy. Try not to be sad for me. Yes, I felt bad sometimes, but not always. I've had a lot of good things in my life, too. I've accomplished so much. I've loved being creative, building my bunker, and inventing all kinds of cool stuff. And I've always had your friendship."

"That's true. I'm glad for that." Her heart lightened. "Hey, Branch? Why do you remember that particular poem?"

His tone was light and airy, all melancholy forgotten. "Oh, my journal entry for that day has the poppy-flower poem. It also describes the start of a pattern of peculiar behavior of a certain pink princess." His thumb stroked across her palm, and she curled her fingers around his.

"Branch?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you read your poem to me?"

"Only if you finish your story. I'm dying to know what made you fall for me so suddenly."

"Can do, Brancheroo!"

"Ugh. I think I like 'Branchifer' better."

-O-

Poppy was almost close enough to see what Branch was drawing in his journal when he spoke, startling her so much she squeaked and flailed and lost control of her hair, its bright magenta stalk popping up through the grass like her namesake. "You know, if you really want to sneak up on someone, you should only move when the wind is moving the grass."

Sheepishly she crawled forward and sat down next to him as he closed the book and slid it into his hair. "Hi, Branch. Whatcha dooin'?" she asked as she sat down next to him. "What are you drawing?"

"Never you mind," he replied as usual, but his tone was surprisingly mild. She sensed that he was in a rare mellow mood as he added, "What are you doing out here?"

She recognized his attempt to subvert her attention. "Come on, show me, pleeease?"

"No can do, princess. It's top secret, need-to-know intelligence, and you don't need to know." Again, his placid tone lacked the bite it normally would have had by now, even as she recognized that he was going to stand firm no matter what she did.

She rolled her eyes and grinned, accepting this as just another of his many quirks. "The princess of the trolls doesn't have a need to know?"

"Nope." Was that actually amusement in his tone?

Just then the breeze picked up, blowing a lock of hair across his eyes. Branch turned to the side, sliding his fingers through the fine dark strands, his eyes closed and his face upturned toward the sun. He pulled in a deep breath, clearly enjoying the refreshingly crisp air. "Ahhh…" A smile of pure pleasure spread over his lips.

Poppy noticed, quite suddenly, that he was handsome. With hanging jaw, she gazed in awe at the sublime vision in front of her. Had he suddenly turned into a glitter troll? Why did the air around him seem to sparkle so?

Has Branch always been this good-looking?

It was hard to tell, since his usual expression was a frown. But yes, her grumpy friend was actually just as handsome as any troll in her class, if not more so. How did I not notice that?

She spoke before she thought. "Branch, you look good. I mean, really good."

He opened his eyes, looking away and back at her a few times before he said in puzzlement, "Um, thank you?"

She gave him a quick once-over, liking most of what she saw. Except… "Hey, Branch, would you mind some constructive criticism?"

"Yes, I would mind."

Undeterred, she rushed on, "You know, Branch, your clothes really don't do anything for you. Have you ever thought about getting a makeover?" She reached out and ran her fingers through his night-black hair, enjoying its unexpected softness. "Maddy knows some really cute hairstyles, and the twins could make you-"

He brushed her hand away, and held up his hands. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold it! I don't need a makeover."

"Oh, but you'd love it!"

"No thanks."

"Come on, Branch-"

"No! Poppy, what is with you today?"

They argued for a while longer, but he was adamant, and finally she left in a huff. "I was only trying to help!"

-O-

"So basically, you thought I was hot."

"Mmm, yeah, I did," she murmured dreamily. She ran her fingers through his hair just because she could now, loving the way his eyes closed in bliss.

After a moment, he replied contentedly, "Can't object to that… Glad it got you interested in me."

"More like intrigued, actually…"

-O-

From that point on, the gray troll was a constant presence in the back of her mind, taking up more space than he had in years. He'd changed a lot in the two years since he'd moved into his bunker, gotten taller and broader and more mature- What is he now, seventeen and… She did the math in her head. Seventeen and three-quarters. Somehow he'd grown up without her noticing.

She was growing up, too. She observed things now about other trolls that had once escaped her notice, the kinds of things that made her stop and admire someone. And she knew that, isolated as he was, no one would admire Branch.

Well, as much as it surprised her, she did.

She took to spending more time with the survivalist when she could, complimenting him, giving him special invitations to events, and trying to appreciate his presence, which wasn't easy. Most of the time he was his usual no-nonsense self, unwilling to spend more than a few minutes chatting, but once in a while she would catch him in a more sociable mood and he would talk her ear off about things that annoyed him or problems he was having with his bunker.

Taking care of his bunker didn't sound like much fun, from the sound of it. Still, Poppy couldn't help but admire him for his dedication, even though she still couldn't see any reason to spend every single minute of every day not having fun. Then she would remember him sitting in the grass, drawing in his journal and smiling, and it never failed to make her smile, too. So he can have fun, if he feels like it.

She had more success when she began to bring along snacks from the best bakers and candy makers in the village. At first he'd complain about having to brush his teeth more often, but he did accept the treats. When he thanked her for them he even smiled sometimes, real smiles that revealed what he wouldn't; that he liked her company and was glad to see her.

As they ate, he would talk with her almost cheerfully, asking her about herself and their friends and her duties as princess. When she shared her own problems, he was surprisingly insightful in offering solutions, maybe because he was a lot more observant than she'd ever realized.

"Thank you, Branch! You're so smart!"

She loved the way his face lit up at her praise, even though he tried to act casual. "S-sure. No prob."

He was seriously cute.

As the weeks passed, Poppy still tried to sneak up on Branch sometimes, not to scare him anymore but because she was hoping to see him completely unguarded and serene again, if only for a moment. The rare times when she was successful were like a hug to her heart, filling it with warmth and pleasure.

After a while, she noticed that he no longer rolled his eyes when he saw her coming. Once, he even lifted a casual hand in greeting, which gave her heart more than a little thrill. It was wonderful to see him opening up to her, accepting her presence and maybe even secretly looking forward to seeing her, the way she looked forward to seeing him.

In fact, the more time Poppy spent with the gray troll, the more she began to suspect that he was lonely. How could he not be, living in that dark little cavern all by himself? Maybe he's secretly longing to have someone come along and make him happy…

"Hey, Branch, are you ever lonely?" she asked him during an impromptu picnic she'd surprised him with one day. He'd only put up a token resistance before hungrily tucking in to the food.

He looked startled. "What?" Hurriedly he finished chewing and gulped his mouthful. "Why would you say that?"

"You're all alone in your bunker."

"I go to the village once in a while for supplies. You know that."

"But…you must be lonely, Branch. Why, you don't even have anybody to hug you at Hug Time!" Unless she happened to be there, or he happened to be in the village at the right time, but most days he got no hugs at all, did he?

He stared at her for a long time before he looked away and muttered, "Hugs are overrated."

"But-"

"I'm not lonely," he denied. "And I don't need hugs. I get along just fine without them."

She blinked. "Really?" She had never really thought about it, but she supposed it was possible. "Um, okay, well then, what about kisses?"

A spray of pink lemonade hit the grass and he coughed and spluttered, "Kisses! Poppy, what are you talking about?"

She waved her hands in the air frantically, breaking out into a hot sweat. "N-nothing! I – I was just kidding around." Blushing fiercely, she tried to laugh convincingly, and after a few moments his alarmed posture relaxed a little.

"Poppy…" Branch hesitated, studying her carefully now.

She went even hotter and heart began to throb.

"You're acting weird. Is there something you want to tell me?"

She threw a frantic look at the sun and jumped to her feet. "Oh, look at the time! Sorry, Branch, but I've gotta run. I'm late!" she babbled and fled, leaving him staring after her with a thoughtful frown on his face.

Branch never mentioned that conversation again, but from then on he was less open with her than before, making excuses about being too busy to chat, when she could find him at all.

Finally she managed to corner him. "Branch, are you avoiding me?"

He looked uncomfortable, rubbing the back of his neck and not meeting her eyes. "No, of - of course not. Why would you think that?" he asked, his voice suspiciously high-pitched.

"I haven't seen you for three days. You're my friend, Branch. I miss you," she said in a small voice, surprising herself by how much it hurt to think that he didn't want her company.

Branch sighed. She gave him a sad, puppy-dog-eyed stare and he winced, protesting weakly, "Poppy…"

He only held out for a few seconds before dropping his arms to his sides and sighing even louder. "Okay, fine. I miss you, too," he admitted.

She rewarded him with a brilliant, sunny smile, and his expression softened. "Listen, Poppy, I need to, uh, pick some strawberries from my garden. If you want to come help me, I'll give you some."

"Sure!" She beamed at him again and enjoyed watching his handsome face relax into a smile of his own. What a difference it made, to see him looking happy. To see the friendly welcome in his sky-blue eyes as he gazed affectionately down at her, the way he used to when they were little, before his Incident.

From that point on, as long as she offered to help him with some of the truly phenomenal number of chores he seemed to feel the need to accomplish every single day, the village eccentric seemed more or less content to have her around. Thoroughly enjoying herself, Poppy found excuses to spend even more time with him. She learned new things about him and his work every day, and tried hard to be helpful to him.

She loved it when he praised her efforts. Every time he complimented her, it felt like a big deal. She found herself blushing and stammering, hugely pleased by his approval, since Branch didn't give praise easily.

After a while, Poppy began to realize just how many useful skills Branch had, many of which he'd developed himself over the course of building his bunker. Not that she'd ever seen anything more of it than quick glimpses of the dark, cave-like space through the trap door. She'd hinted a couple of times, hoping if she showed enough curiosity that he'd invite her inside, but he was stubbornly oblivious to her hints. It was too bad she'd promised him back when he'd first moved into his bunker that she wouldn't make him let her in, but she wasn't about to jeopardize their friendship just yet.

Poppy broke the rules of Hug Time, telling herself that he needed the extra hugs to help make up for all the ones he was missing out on. For Branch, Hug Time was all the time. She hugged him hello, she hugged him goodbye, she hugged him when he sneezed or said something that made her laugh or sometimes for no reason at all.

She even got the idea to change her hair to black to match his, liking the idea of being more like the boy she so admired. The teen princess had a lot of fun experimenting with color combinations and styles until she had one she thought looked awesome. She decided to show off her new 'do as soon as a good opportunity came along that would make a real splash in the village. Maybe black hair streaks will even become a new fad that'll make the other trolls see how cool Branch is.

To Poppy, the village maverick was dark and handsome and guarded and even a little mysterious at times, doing who knew what in that bunker of his. He fascinated her, to the point that some of her friends started to hint that she was just a teeny bit obsessed with the gray troll.

-O-

"Obsessed? What did they mean, obsessed?"

"Well…"

-O-

"Why do you keep going to see that grump?" Chenille asked one day.

"Yes, he's made it pretty clear that he's not interested in being part of troll society," Satin pointed out.

Poppy shrugged blithely. "I can't explain it, but I really like spending time with him. I don't know why I never saw it before, but Branch really isn't so bad when he's not being Mister Grumpy-Pants."

She ignored the way they exchange dubious glances and said persuasively, "Come on, guys, he's our friend. Yes, he has a bad attitude sometimes, but not always. He can be kind and helpful when he wants to be, right?"

"Well…yeah…" Cooper and Suki reluctantly agreed. Branch had indeed helped them out many times, complaining all the while, but he was a good troll to have around in a pinch.

"Well, love, the fact that he lives in a bunker is a pretty strong indication that he doesn't want friends," Creek pointed out. "Are you sure this sudden interest in him isn't because you feel responsible in some way for his exile? You may be the princess, but you didn't banish him from the village. He made that choice on his own. Perhaps the best thing we can do as his 'friends' is to respect his choice to be an outsider."

"'Outsider'?" Poppy repeated, surprised.

Biggie gasped. "Well, that's a rather strong term, isn't it? Sociable or not, Branch is still a friend. Why, just the other day, I happened to mention that the frame of one of my favorite pictures of Mister Dinkles kept going wonky, so he came over to my pod to fix it for me, and ended up adjusting all my frames to be perfectly level. I didn't even have to ask him."

Even as Poppy suspected that Branch's offer most likely came less from friendship than from his perfectionist nature, Creek looked around the group uneasily, reading the unsettled vibes in the air. He bent to the flow, as he always did, backtracking his earlier statement. "Easy, friends. Biggie, I apologize," Creek said. "You're right. Branch is our friend, even if his desire for isolation is something I can't quite understand. Just like I can't understand his obsession with the bergens."

"Yeah, he's always getting all uptight over them," Cooper agreed.

"Look, guys," Poppy protested, "I know Branch has always had a thing about the bergens, and safety issues…" she counted on her fingers, "…and now his bunker, but I just think of them as, well, hobbies. Everyone should have hobbies they feel passionate about, right?" Poppy spread her hands in the air. "Like me and scrapbooking, or you and weight-lifting - right, Smidge?"

"Well, uh, yeah…" said Smidge uncertainly. She was one of the most passionate trolls in the village. "But he's so grumpy!"

"Being grumpy doesn't mean he isn't a good person. He has lots of admirable traits."

"Really?" Guy Diamond looked astonished. "Like what?"

"He's really smart. And cool."

DJ scratched her head. "Cool? I thought we were talking about Branch."

"We are, DJ. Branch is cool."

"Uh huh," Smidge said, but it was easy to see that she didn't believe Poppy.

Desperately, Poppy blurted out, "He is! Branch is a lot more interesting than you think. I'm sure interested in him!"

Everyone's eyes pinned her. The teen princess froze, then babbled lamely, "I…mean, he's great at building things."

Her friends exchanged glances and Poppy tried unsuccessfully not to squirm. She had a strange, irrational urge to wrap her hair around the nearest tree branch and get away from the group she was normally so tight with.

DJ looked confused. "You know, it almost sounds like you have a cr-"

"You're right, Poppy!" Biggie suddenly declared. "I've always admired Branch. He's a very strong, determined troll, a bold rebel who does things his own way instead of following along with the crowd."

Guy brightened. "Well, I can understand wanting to stand oOoOut from the crowd."

"So do we," the twins agreed, but Chenille added, "But even so, Poppy, he's so boring. All he ever wants to do is work."

Satin shook her head. "We just don't get why you want to hang out with him so much."

Affronted on Branch's behalf, she put her hands on her hips. "What's wrong with a little work? Hard work can be fun, you know."

Instantly there was a mass freak-out, her friends' hair flashing and flailing through the air, a swirling riot of colors. Guy Diamond's crystal-metallic tones fluxed rapidly in and out through her friends' cries of alarm and Smidge's horrified, "Oh my gad!"

"Guys, come on." Poppy crossed her arms and tilted her head to the side, rolling her eyes. "You're being so melodramatic."

All her friends gasped. Smidge clapped her hands over her mouth, staring at her with huge blue eyes. Cooper whimpered.

For the first time, Poppy felt as if she'd done something wrong, awkwardly standing there surrounded by hurt expressions. She uncrossed her arms and rubbed a contrite hand on the back of her neck. "Sorry. I didn't mean anything by that. It's just something Branch says." She was about to add that Branch could be just as melodramatic at times, but she never got the chance.

Smidge took a step forward and said firmly, "Poppy… I think I speak for everyone when we say that we're concerned about you. We think Branch is becoming a bad influence on you."

"What? A bad influence?" she said incredulously as all but Biggie vehemently nodded. "What are you talking about?"

"He's too serious, dude," said DJ.

Chenille complained, "Yeah, he's no fun. Mister Safety Nerd."

"A real party pooper," Cooper declared loudly.

"Are you sure you want him as a friend?" Satin touched her shoulder, giving her a concerned look.

At a loss, Poppy looked around at the solemn faces surrounding her. They seemed so sure. Maybe they were right and she was wrong?

Her shoulders slumped as the pink troll looked forlornly at the ground. "Maybe you're right, guys."

One by one, her friends hugged her and left. When only Biggie was left, she looked up at him wistfully. "Biggie, what should I do?"

He gave her a sympathetic look. "Maybe you should talk to your dad."

-O-

"Thanks for defending me. It's nice to know that Biggie, at least, was on my side." Her boyfriend chuckled. "Never thought I'd be considered a bad influence, but I guess now I can see why. I really wasn't much fun to be around back then, was I? And Creek wasn't completely wrong. On some level, I did want to be an outsider." He sighed. "I guess I can understand why you gave up on me."

"Oh, it wasn't just because of our friends. What really drove it home was the talk I had with my dad, later on that day..."

Author's Note:

'Whatcha dooin?' is a reference to Isabella's famous greeting to her crush Phineas on the awesome show Phineas and Ferb.

The whole 'young Poppy enjoys startling Branch' thing was inspired by the way Poppy totally ignored Branch dumping coffee on himself when she startled him in Trolls Holiday. Most people would be like, "Sorry," or "Hahaha!" or even "Are you okay? Did you burn yourself?" but she acted like it was something she'd seen many, many times before (say, because she'd been the cause of it and was used to seeing him flip out, lol), so this time, she just got straight to the point.

Where Biggie refers to Branch as a rebel, that's a reference to the Trolls short, Dress-Up. Interesting to see that some trolls saw Branch differently than others did.

Warble – that trembly-sounding yell that Branch gives in World Tour when the Country trolls start chasing him and he leaps into the air. For some reason I love the sound of it.