A/N: Based on idea suggested by burningmmusicfunnygiant on Tumblr :)

"AAAHHHHHHH!"

The scream startled Branch and Poppy, the pair of them taken aback by the sight of their friend, Biggie, frantically scurrying through the crowd of Trolls in the Village's clearing. The cause of his fear was made apparent when the Trolls noticed a fuzzy, bat-like creature zipping along right behind him, flapping its leathery, black wings persistently, her bugged red eyes fixed unwaveringly on him.

"Help!" Biggie cried out in desperation. "I'm being harangued by a monster!"

Giving up trying to outrun it, the big blue Troll crouched down and put his hands over his head, hoping it would perhaps go away. But, it didn't. The creature beat its wings against him and made angry hissing sounds.

"Someone stop it!" he whimpered helplessly.

Luckily, as he'd wished, it was right at that moment that a shock of magenta hair whipped out and snatched the creature from the air. Relief passed through the Trolls, until they realized that it was not the Pop Queen who had grabbed the critter. In fact, it was nobody that the village knew.

But - standing there in the clearing donning black shorts with a large belt buckle, and a simple, black, pearl earring - the Troll seemed to know exactly what he was doing.

"Gotcha! Okay, shhh, shh… Now calm down,... who's a good girl? You're a good girl…"

The batty creature struggled in the newcomer's grasp for a second, not appreciating being held steadfast, but quickly was soothed as the Troll rubbed its furry little belly and spoke hushedly. Pretty soon, its flapping had stopped entirely and purred, the vibration rumbling against his teal hand.

Once the others could sense no more imminent danger, they began to gather a little closer, whispering among themselves.

"Who is that?" Legsly asked, pointing at the new Troll. "And what is that thing he's holding?" she added, referring to the critter.

"It's creepy!" Cooper shuddered, shielding his eyes from the creature.

"It's scary!" Satin and Chenille chimed at the same time.

"And… naAaAAasty," Guy Diamond yelped in his techno-like voice.

"Hold me, Daddy!" Tiny Diamond whimpered in his deep voice, letting his father clutch him close for protection.

Suddenly realizing that all the attention had gone to him, the newcomer shrunk under everybody's gaze, bashfully tucking his head down between his shoulders and allowing his magenta bangs to fall over his face, so that it shielded his left eye.

Branch's eyes narrowed at him, though he could feel that his gaze was not as intense as he would've liked for it to be. Reason being, there was something strangely familiar about this Troll. What it was, though, he couldn't pinpoint right away. That hair, that voice… he could've sworn he'd seen and heard it, if long ago in his memory.

As it turned out, it wasn't a much different situation for the new Troll, either. He looked at him curiously, mirroring Branch by slightly tilting his head and narrowing his eyes, as if there too was something he was trying to figure out. It was only when he shifted his gaze down to the leafy green vest Branch was wearing that things clicked. Recognition seemed to flash across his face in an instant, the magenta-haired Troll lifting his eyes to meet Branch's and looking as though he were about to say something. But before he could…

"'To Queen Poppy'?" Poppy read aloud from a scroll that the creature had dropped on the ground. She was confused to see her name written on it, and continued to read. "'Barb, Queen of Rock, announces her One Nation of Trolls Under Rock World Tour. Bring your string to the biggest party in the world has ever seen.'" Poppy beamed. "Oh, don't worry everyone. It's an invitation!"

The Trolls chattered excitedly. A party? With games and presents and glitter galore? That sounded like fun!

"But why does she need our string?" Cooper questioned.

"And what does 'Queen of Rock' mean? Who is she?" Poppy asked aloud.

"You don't wanna know."

Poppy whirled around to face the newcomer, his silence having her almost forget entirely that he was even there. "Trust me," he said again, "you don't."

The Pop Queen was startled to hear such a thing. "But… it's a party!" she exclaimed.

"Not the kind you wanna go to," the Troll replied without hesitation. "Not with what the Hard Rockers have planned…"

Poppy shook her head. "But who are they?"

"Nobody!" King Peppy shouted, hurrying into the crowd of Trolls, sidling up to his daughter's side and tearing the invitation from her hand. He proceeded to crumble it in a frenzy, all while crying out hysterically. "Nobody saw anything! Nothing to see here!" He then turned to the magenta-haired Troll and began to shove him away. "Young man, go back to where you came from! Now, please!"

"Whoa, whoa, Dad!" Poppy called, touching her father on the shoulder. He yelped, jolting and looking at her wildly. Popy was baffled. Her Dad was kicking out a Troll? What in the world for? She took his hands in hers in and spoke soothingly to calm him. "Dad, what's going on?"

King Peppy gazed deeply into her eyes for a moment, peering between her and the new Troll, and then sighed.

"Oh, Poppy," he moaned, "I've long feared this day would come. I was hoping to protect you from this."

Poppy raised an eyebrow. "Protect me?" she asked. "I'm not a little kid anymore, Dad. I'm the queen now."

"You're right," King Peppy agreed, nodding slowly. "The truth is… we are not alone in this world…"

Mr. Dinkles made a spooky sound to accompany King Peppy's explanation. Biggie stuck a finger in his pet form's round mouth.

"Shhh!" Biggie said to his little friend.

"You see, there are other kinds of Trolls," King Peppy told everyone. The Trolls around him were silent for a moment, taking this in. Other Trolls? What did King Peppy mean?"

"Wow, really?" Poppy said enthusiastically. "Dad, that's great! The more Trolls, the merrier!"

The newcomer scoffed. "If only it were that easy," he mumbled.

King Peppy cut his eyes to him, frowning. "Young man, this conversation does not involve you. I've asked you to leave once… don't make me have to call security!" He jerked a thumb over to where Smidge was standing, the little Troll cracking her knuckles in anticipation of a potential scuffle.

The Troll gulped at the sight, and quickly stammered an explanation. "N-no! Please, I'm not here to cause trouble. I came here to help you guys."

But when Peppy did not relax, and Poppy began to show signs of discomfort at the confrontation, Branch stepped in to enforce the matter.

"You heard him," he stated simply, but with a hardness to his voice that spoke more volumes alongside the clenched fists at his side.

"I know," he replied. "But I can't just leave you guys in danger, Branch."

"We're more than capable of taking care of our - Wait, what?" Branch blinked, surprised to hear this stranger call him by name. How did he know who he was?

The Troll offered a gentle smile. "It's been a while, bro."

The blue Troll gasped, realizing exactly who this was and being unable to believe it. All the years he waited and waited, until he couldn't anymore, and now he was back? He could almost feel tears pooling in his eyes as a mix of conflicting emotions assaulted him.

Poppy saw the strong reaction coming from her friend, and cautiously spoke to the newcomer.

"I'm sorry... Who did you say you were, again?"

The newcomer let out a breath he was holding, tucked the bat creature under one arm and extended his other to Poppy to properly introduce himself.

"Forgive me for not doing this sooner. My name is Floyd," he said, "and I'm Branch's brother."

With the manner in which the Trolls in the clearing had erupted into a cacophony of noise - a mix of questions about the Troll-turned-sibling, panic-stricken worries over the idea of the existence of other strange Trolls, and even outright screaming - it came as no surprise that Peppy had ordered for them to break into a smaller group, to allow for a little more privacy.

It was here in the beautiful secluded grotto in the company of just Floyd, Poppy, Branch, and the Snack Pack that King Peppy wove a tale unlike any other that had been heard. A story of six Tribes of Trolls, each uniquely defined by their special taste in music - Techno, Funk, Classical, Country, Rock, and Pop - and how harmony had been created as a result of it. The harmony, however, was not meant to last. Intolerance sprouted like weeds, leading to discord, leading to the ultimate separation of each tribe. But perhaps the most striking part of the tale was the revelation of their own string - the Pop string, a gorgeous pink in color and producing an equally gorgeous sound, housing the very lifeforce that made them them - the toe-tapping, finger-snapping, rump-shaking Trolls they were.

"Ohh, I get it," Poppy murmured, "Queen Barb wants to reunite the strings so that the Trolls Kingdom can be one big party again!" The Pop Queen grinned a little. She liked the sound of that!

But Floyd shook his head. "Um, no," he disagreed gently. "Barb has no interest whatsoever in uniting the world. She wants to destroy it. And she's going to do it one tribe at a time until there's none left!" He picked up the invite from where it lay (a little wrinkled, but still legible) next to the ancient scroll that King Peppy had used to depict the tale. "These invitations were just the first step. A deception. And anyone who doesn't give up their string is going to have it taken by force." He looked at the bat critter in his hands and sighed. "I tried to stop the invite from even reaching you guys, but I guess I wasn't fast enough to keep up with Debbie here…"

Poppy was stunned. "B-but… why would another queen use her power for evil? Didn't anyone try to stop her?"

"The Hard Rockers are all on board," Floyd explained. "She managed to convince everyone that this was the best thing to do for her people. They all believed her. Well, um… except for me. But then again, I was never a true Rock Troll from the start…"

Poppy snapped her fingers. "That's riiiight… and that's something else I'm not understanding…" She turned on her friend. "Branch! How come you never told me you have a secret brother?!"

The blue Troll frowned. "What's there to tell? I have no brothers."

Floyd was confused. "Branch, what are you talking about? Just take a look at us…"

It was true. Even by sight, there was a very distinct similarity between the two of them, from their teal skin, purple noses, round face shapes, and even slight downward curve of their ears.

But Branch crossed his arms defiantly. "I have no brothers," he said again, emphasizing each syllable, "because the day you walked out on me, you lost the chance to ever call me that again."

"Branch, please, believe me, I was going to come back, it's just - "

"Just what?" Branch cut in, scoffing. "You're a liar. You never followed through with your promise."

Floyd fiddled with his fingers. "Well, um, I mean, I'm here now, aren't I?"

"Uh-huh… twenty years TOO LATE!" Branch turned to the others in the grotto. "Why should we believe someone like this? For all we know, he could be a spy for these 'Hard Rock' Trolls!" He searched his friends' faces. Silently taking it all in, Biggie, Smidge, Cooper, Guy Diamond, and Legsly were a mixture of uncertainty and concern, not sure what to make of it.

King Peppy spoke up for them. "Branch," he said gently, "I certainly see where you're coming from. But… are you willing to put our tribe in danger because of it?" He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but it's a risk I'm not willing to take." He then waved to the Trolls. "Hurry now! We must prepare before Barb arrives! We've got no time to lose!"

"Dad, wait!" Poppy cried, trying to stop her him and her friends as they shuffled off. "Guys, come on! Just because they're different doesn't mean that the solution is fighting! Branch, help me out here, say something!"

Branch marched right by her. "Wait for me!" he called out. But as he scurried by, he was grabbed by the arm.

"Branch, wait," Floyd pleaded. Then he turned to Poppy. "Could you, uh… give us a minute?" he asked politely.

Branch wanted to protest, but he groaned, and did not put up a fight. "I'll meet you in a second, Poppy," he said with a roll of his eyes.

"Oh! Um, okay…" She trudged off, sparing one last glance at them before heading off in the direction her father had gone. The two boys were left there in an awkward, tense silence.

Floyd broke it first, clearing his throat. "Wow… you've really grown into that vest of mine. You're… a man now."

Branch kept his back turned to him as he answered tersely. "Just goes to show how long it's been."

Floyd sighed. "Look, Branch, I know that nothing I can say is a valid enough excuse for what happened. I guess I just got so caught up with my solo career once the Rock Trolls took me in. But I swear that there wasn't a day that went by that I didn't think about you." He chuckled for a second. "Remember how we used to make up songs and dances? It was a lot of fun."

It was, Branch recalled, almost wanting to smile, but he composed himself. "That's all in the past," he said coldly, turning to look him right in the eye. "And besides, actions speak louder than words. And the fact is that you never came back."

Branch felt a tug at his heart when Floyd winced, hurt by his words. But then again, they were words of truth.

"You're right," Floyd said, "Actions do speak louder than words. And here I am now, trying to save my little brother from something that I know for sure is going to harm him. Because I want him to be safe. It was a mistake to leave him the first time. And I don't want to lose him again."

Branch felt himself loosening. He wanted to keep up the wall of ice he built around himself should any of his brothers try to come back into his life. But not even those walls were immune to the warmth of Floyd's kindness. "I really want to believe you, Floyd," he whispered, "I just don't know if I can…"

"Then let's just take things one step at a time, okay?" And when Branch nodded, Floyd took the opportunity to extend his arms out, allowing Branch to decide whether he wanted to make a move or not.

It didn't take long to come to that decision, though. Branch embraced Floyd in a replica of that very same night that he had left him. He squeezed tightly, wanting to confirm his physical presence, and afraid to let go should he have been a mirage this entire time.

"Awww…"

The pair broke apart, finding Poppy cooing at the scene. She grinned sheepishly upon realizing she'd intruded on the private moment.

"Oh! I'm sorry…"

"It's all right, Poppy," Branch assured. "We're just about done here."

"Oh, good," she breathed in relief. "Well, I mean, because, I wanted to talk to you guys about Barb. We've gotta stop her!"

"Can't say I disagree with the endgoal here, but the trouble comes in the 'how,'" Floyd pointed out.

"Well, we can think about it as we get everyone safely hidden away in the bunker," Branch said, waving them to follow.

"Bunker?" Floyd asked, coming up alongside his brother.

"Oh, it's the coolest thing ever!" Poppy gushed. "It's underground, and it's got all these tunnels and rooms, and trapdoors, and… and so much cool stuff!"

Floyd beamed. "Wow, so you built the hideout, huh? I'm proud of you, Branch."

"Hideout?" The Pop Queen echoed, curious.

There was a hint of a bashful blush in the blue Troll's cheeks as he shrugged in reply. "Heh, well, it's not that big of a deal…"

"Of course it is," Floyd countered, bumping his elbow against his. "Did you even add the ten-story waterslide?"

Poppy gasped. "A waterslide in the bunker? That sounds amazing!"

But Branch shook his head. "Nah."

"But then, how do you shower?"

Branch answered his brother's teasing question with a little smirk. "I bathe."