Branch was hungry.
All he'd eaten for days was berries he'd collected in the forest, and, while delicious, they hadn't really been that filling of a meal.
He knew he was supposed to go to the king if something like this started happening.
Since no one wanted to take in a grey, sad Trolling, Branch had lived on his own since his Grandma died. He knew that if he couldn't find enough food, he was supposed to go to the king and ask for help.
But he really didn't want to do that.
It's not that he particularly disliked King Peppy, he just couldn't help but feel some resentment towards the man.
The King had never given much effort into finding a home for Branch, and just left him to his own devices after a few sorry attempts at finding him a family.
It was his job as king to protect and help his people, especially orphaned little kids with nowhere to go, but the King had never given much thought to Branch.
So, he would honestly prefer to stay clear of the man. But, as his stomach rumbled again and he made eye contact with the tiny pile of berries on his kitchen counter, he resigned himself to his fate and got up from bed.
He didn't bother combing through his unruly black hair, having long since given up on looking presentable.
People judged and belittled him wherever he went anyway, so there really wasn't any point. He left his pod and started down the street avoiding eye contact with the other trolls.
He hated his pod, so colorful and out in the open.
He could be so easily spotted if a Bergen ever came for them. He never felt safe in it.
He wanted to build a bunker, that hideout that Floyd had promised him, but he had yet to gather enough materials to even start it.
So, for now, he just settled for the stupid bright green pod.
Eventually, Branch made it to the King's pod and knocked. It only took a few seconds for the door to open, revealing a brightly smiling king Peppy.
The King's smile faltered a little once he caught sight of the small, grey Trolling, but he quickly regained his composure.
"Branch! How good to see you, it's not often you venture out of your pod. What brings you here?"
The King asked, gesturing for Branch to come inside. Once Branch was seated on the King's annoyingly soft couch, he began to speak in a hesitant voice.
"I'm sorry to bother you, King Peppy, it's just that I haven't been able to find much food in the forest lately. I wasn't gonna bother you with it, honest, but I remember you said I should tell you if that ever happened. I'm sorry."
The Trolling spoke in a nervous, small voice, avoiding eye contact with the king. The King sighed at the child.
"That's alright, Branch. What have you eaten lately?" He asked the child, wondering how bad it had gotten.
"I, uh, I had a handful of berries a few hours ago. But I couldn't even find anything yesterday, and I only found a bit of food the day before that."
Branch answered, still not making eye contact.
If he had been looking at Peppy, he would have seen the shocked and guilty look on the King's face. King Peppy couldn't help but feel guilty.
He knew he had failed Branch a long time ago, but he was only now truly seeing how bad it was.
A small, quiet, nervous Trolling. Afraid to even look him in the eye, and starving almost every day.
Peppy felt the weight of how badly he had truly failed the child. He was only 9 years old, and he had no one.
Maybe, if Peppy had tried harder to find him a family, he wouldn't still be grey and lonely. Not that he could really blame all those families that turned Branch away.
After all, no one could be expected to raise such a sad, miserable troll. But still, Peppy supposed this was all his fault.
And now, looking at this lonely little Trolling, he couldn't help but think that it might be time to tell him the truth about who he is.
He had hid Branch's true history from him because he thought that the small Troll would be happier among the excitable Pop Trolls.
Living with the gracious grandma Rosiepuff who'd so kindly offered to take him in and raise him with her other boys.
He thought, surely, any troll would be happier here than with those scary Rock trolls, but looking at him now, he saw that that wasn't the case for Branch.
Branch seemed absolutely miserable among the Pop trolls, so Peppy made the decision that it was no longer, and probably never had been, the best decision to keep Branch's heritage a secret from him.
He sighed, kneeling down in front of the child. Branch looked up, confused by the solemn and guilty look on the King's face.
"Branch, there is something that I've hidden from you all these years. Something we've all hidden."
"I truly thought it was best to keep you in the dark, that you'd be happier that way, but I see now that I was wrong."
The King began talking, and Branch was confused. What secret? What was the king hiding?
"Branch, you..you are not a Pop troll. Not by blood, at least." The king gently explained.
Branch's face went blank with shock. "What!?" He yelled, unable to believe what he'd just heard.
How was that possible? He'd grown up with Pop trolls, his Grandma and Brothers were all Pop Trolls, so how, why, wasn't he one?
"I know this must be a shock to you, but it's the truth. 9 years ago, I was exploring the river, when I came across an egg floating in it."
"I hurried to fish it out, only to see that it was dark blue and grey, and had the markings of a Rock Troll egg." He explained.
"A Rock Troll? That's what I am?" Branch asked, to which Peppy nodded.
"I'd had experiences with Rock Trolls in the past, and none of them were good. Rock Trolls, in my experience, have always been loud, violent, scary creatures."
"I thought, at that moment, that if I could save a baby from the fate of growing up with such beings, I would be doing a good thing."
"I truly believed that you would be happier here than there, and never made an effort to return you to your home." King Peppy explained.
"Wait, but then what about..what about my Grandma? And my Brothers?" Branch was confused, his mind a mess with the new information.
"RosiePuff, the kind woman she was, offered to take you in and raise you as her own after I explained the situation to her."
"She already had your brothers to take care of, but they all welcomed you with open arms." The King said solemnly.
Branch was a mess.
He couldn't believe it.
His Grandma wasn't his Grandma and his brothers weren't his brothers. His whole life was a lie!
He felt shocked, confused, and then all he felt was angry.
"How dare you!? What gave you the right to make that decision!? Just because you don't like Rock Trolls didn't give you the right to keep me from them, to keep me from my family, my home! You had no right to do that! You stupid, selfish meanie!" Branch yelled, standing on the couch and looking down at his King.
No, not his king. This man had never really been his king, this place had never been his home.
It was all just one big lie.
Peppy simply took the insults in stride, knowing he deserved them.
"I know now that I made the wrong decision, and I regret what I did."
"You're right, no matter what my opinions were, I had no right to keep you from your real family. And I see the happiness and joy that my mistake had cost you."
"For that, I am truly sorry." The King apologized, his words sincere.
Branch kinda wanted to forgive him, but he was also stubborn. Maybe that was the Rock Troll in him.
"Yeah, it really was. You should be sorry." He said, facing away from the king. His ears folded back on his head.
He was trying to act tough, but the 9 year old really wanted to cry. He was angry at the king, and he was sad for the family he never got to have, and he was just so frustrated that he'd been lied to his whole life.
Every time Branch thought the Pop trolls couldn't get any worse, he was proven wrong.
Peppy stood up, that same guilty look on his face.
"I know I've done wrong by you, Branch. Please, is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" The king practically begged, wishing for some way to ease his conscience of this guilt.
Branch's ears perked up a bit at this. Anything? Branch wasn't really sure there was anything that could make up for this.
The king was inadvertently responsible for all the bad stuff that happened in his life, one measly little gift or favor wouldn't even begin to make up for all that pain.
But then an idea struck his mind.
He wasn't happy here.
He'd lost everything. The people he thought were his family, the happiness he craved so dearly.
This place wasn't home to him, it wasn't happiness.
But he had a home. A family. Maybe, just maybe, they would be his happiness. Maybe they'd be his home.
He turned back to King Peppy, a plan forming in his mind.
"I..I want a map." he stated, causing the King to look up at him.
"A map?" He asked, confused.
"Yeah, I want a map of, well, everything. A map that shows me the way to the Rock Trolls. I wanna go home." He said, and the King looked at him in shock.
"What? Branch, no, I don't think you understand what that entails. Pop village is your home, you can't just leave. Besides, you'd never make it there on your own."
Peppy argued, not liking the idea of one of his own going anywhere near the Rock Trolls.
"The Pop Village isn't my home. It never was. Even if I wasn't a Rock Troll, even if you hadn't lied to me my whole life, this place still wouldn't be home."
"Everyone either ignores my existence or treats me like dirt. I want to go home. To my real family, where I should have been this whole time. If you care about me at all, even just a little bit, you'll let me."
Peppy was honestly surprised by the harsh tone and calculating words coming from such a young boy. But he couldn't argue.
He had failed Branch, taken him from his home, he had no right to deny him this. He sighed.
"Fine. You're right, Branch. You deserve to go home. But, don't say I didn't warn you. Whether it be the dangerous forest or the violent Rock Trolls, I don't see this adventure going well for you." He said, a warning clear in his words.
"Yeah, well, I think anything's better than staying in this place." Was Branch's answer.
"Go home and pack whatever you plan to take, when you get back, I'll give you the map." Peppy said, and all Branch did was nod before rushing back towards his pod.
His mind was racing as he grabbed his backpack and started shoving things into it. He'd had to process so much insane information in the past half hour that he honestly didn't know whether to cry, laugh,or scream.
Maybe he should do all three.
He just settled for pushing all of it to the back of his mind while he packed. He only packed the essentials.
A few pairs of clothes, his light blue comb, an old stuffed hedgehog that he's had since he was a baby, the pile of berries he'd picked earlier, his blanket, and his trusty survival kit.
Once everything was in his bag and he was ready to go, he did one last sweep around the room to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything.
He was satisfied, before he caught sight of a picture sitting on his desk. It was an old picture, from when he was 3, of him and his family.
Well, the trolls who he thought were his family. Turns out they were really just strangers who thought he'd make a cute pet. He thought bitterly, a scowl on his little face.
But then it fell, and he walked over to pick up the photo. His grandma was in the middle of his three brothers, a calm smile on her face.
John Dory and Spruce were on the left, striking funny poses and laughing, while Clay and Floyd were on the right, smiling nicely at the camera, pure joy on their faces.
In the middle of it all, being held up by his grandma, was a baby Branch, the biggest smile on his tiny face. The photo just radiated happiness and love, and Branch felt all his resentment melt away.
They may not have been his blood, but they were his family. At least, they used to be.
Tears welled up in his eyes as he thought of his Grandma's last moments, and of the night his brother's left him.
Honestly, he wanted to believe that they'd keep their promise and come back one day, but it had been 6 years without so much as a letter, and Branch had lost hope.
He wiped his eyes and shoved the photo in his bag, and ran out the door. He ran through the village, ignoring the confused stares, and barged into Peppy's house.
The King jumped in fright, placing a hand on his chest. "Goodness, Branch, you startled me." He said.
"Sorry, do you have it?" Branch asked, not actually feeling sorry for the old liar. Peppy frowned, but nodded.
"It's a bit old, but everything should be where it says." He said as he handed Branch a rolled up piece of paper.
Branch opened it up, and it showed a drawing of different places. Right in the middle was Pop village, and as he scanned the page, he found a Volcano a good ways east labeled 'Volcano Rock City'.
Branch smiled a bit. Though the idea of living on an active volcano made him feel a bit anxious, he wasn't going to let that stop him from finding his family.
He closed the map and shoved it safely in his vest. "Thanks, King Peppy. For telling me the truth, though it was a bit too late. Goodbye." He said, and ran out the door.
King Peppy only nodded.
Branch was ready, but he still had one more thing to do before he left. One thing that was making him a bit hesitant to leave.
He made his way through the village, his legs beginning to feel a bit tired from all the running around, and eventually made his way to a familiar pod.
Cooper's pod.
Cooper's adoptive parents weren't usually home, so Branch spent a lot of days hanging around with Cooper at his pod.
Cooper was a year younger, but he and Branch had been best friends their whole lives.
He was the only one who understood that Branch didn't like sudden physical touch, or random singing, or loud noises.
He was the nicest person Branch had ever met, and he always knew how to make Branch laugh.
He didn't want to leave Cooper, but he couldn't stand being in thai village anymore. He just hopes that Cooper understands that.
He entered the pod. "Cooper!" He shouted, and the troll immediately popped out from the kitchen, a smile on his face.
"Branch! Hey! I didn't know you were coming by today." He walked over to Branch and waved at him, and Branch waved back.
"Hey, Cooper. Sorry, I just..I needed to talk to you." He said, already feeling guilty.
Cooper noticed the bag on his back.
"That's alright! But, what's with the bag? Oooh, are you going camping? Can I come too!?" Cooper said, excitement in his voice.
Branch wanted to cry.
"No, Cooper, I'm..I'm not going camping." He said, and only then did Cooper notice his sadness.
"Branch? What's wrong?" He asked, concern evident in his voice. "Cooper, I'm..I'm sorry but..I'm leaving Pop Village. For good." He said, and Cooper froze.
"What..?" He said, hurt in his voice.
"I'm so sorry, I just can't do it anymore. This whole village, everyone other than you, they're all so mean all the time. And I hate my pod and I never feel safe and as much as I'm gonna miss you I just can't stay here." Branch rapid fire explained, his eyes burning.
He really didn't want to leave his best friend. His only friend. But he needed to find his family.
"And, even more than that, I found my family. My real family, It turns out that I'm actually a Rock Troll, and King Peppy found my egg floating in a river and decided to keep me, and I have an actual family in Rock City. A home."
"And I just, I have to go back to them. I have to get away from here." He said, and a few tears slipped down his face.
Before he could explain anymore, Cooper enveloped him in a hug.
"It's okay, Branch. I..I don't want you to go, but, if you're really that unhappy here, and if you really do have a family somewhere else, then I won't stop you. You're my best friend, and I'll miss you so, so much, but I want you to be happy." He said, smiling at Branch.
Branch pulled him back into the hug.
"Just promise me one thing. Promise that we'll see eachother again some day?" He said, and Branch smiled.
"I promise, Cooper."
A few more teary hugs, and Branch was finally ready. He took one last look at the map, before heading out into the forest. He was going home.