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PICTUREBOOK ROMANCE

A Trolls fanfic

By Dreamsinger

Poppy's Tale

Poppy let out a breath of relief. "Thank you."

He swallowed hard, his eyes darting around the room as if unable to look at her. She'd seen him act similarly right before he had a panic attack, and her heart went out to him. "Branch, calm down," she said soothingly, quelling the strong impulse to wrap her arms around him. "It'll be okay. Really," she said instead.

To her surprise, he let out a short laugh that was more from his nose than his mouth. "You would say that. Ever the optimist." She recognized the note of amusement in his sarcasm and relaxed a little.

"All right, Branch, so what was all that about back there?" She tried to sound matter-of-fact, not wanting to set him off again, but she was dying to know what he was thinking.

He set the bundle of clothing on the floor near the door, then crossed his arms and shifted his weight to one hip. "What do you mean?"

She let out a huff of irritation and pushed her fists down near her knees as she leaned forward momentarily, rolling her eyes at him. "Braanch! You know what I mean! One minute we were having a normal conversation and the next you go all weird on me, and then I start thinking weird things about you and then you freak out, and that makes me freak out and-"

"Whoa, whoa, Poppy, cool it," he ordered, holding up his hands with his palms facing her as he suddenly shifted back to the steady, rational Branch she was used to. "What weird things?"

Poppy realized fleetingly that if she was wrong about him, this was going to be an exceedingly embarrassing conversation. "Um, well, I thought - wait, you started it. You should go first."

"Me?" He put a hand behind his head, attempting a weak laugh. "I don't know what you're talk…ing…" he trailed off as she crossed her arms and glared at him. He was silent for a few moments before he said quietly, "Poppy, you already know."

She took a step closer, his eyes locked on his as she asked, "Is it…that you're in love with me?"

He opened his mouth, closed it, and nodded. He looked away. "I know you don't feel the same way." Then he straightened his shoulders and stepped toward her, his gaze firm and steady. "But I still want to be friends with you. I promise I won't make things awkward for you. You just caught me by surprise earlier, that's all. We can still have a lot of fun together."

She looked at him as she thought back over the last few months, realizing that they'd spent part of nearly every day together. At first she had waited for some sign of infatuation; after all, he'd sung that he loved her in front of the whole village, and she couldn't help but respond in kind. She'd watched him emerge from his safe little nest like a butterfly from its cocoon, bravely facing everything life (and Poppy) could throw at him, keeping his promise to support her, no matter what. He made her feel special, not because she was queen, but because she was Poppy.

It was always Branch she thought of first now, when she needed help or wanted to ask someone for advice. He had a logical, organized mind, even if his way of looking at things was sometimes, well, eccentric. She realized then just how quickly she had gotten used to relying on him, even after she'd decided that he only saw her as a friend.

Now, she planned activities with him in mind. She looked for him during dances and tried to be nearby when Hug Time came around. She told herself it was because he still wouldn't wear one of the bracelets and she didn't want him to miss out on any more hugs, but the truth was, she loved holding him close. Maybe it was because he seemed to enjoy hugging her, even though sometimes he still acted as if hugging other trolls was a nuisance. Or maybe it was just because she enjoyed touching him, breathing in his scent and feeling an excited tingle go through her when he squeezed her back.

"Who says I don't feel the same way?" The words were out of her mouth before she realized she was going to speak.

His mouth dropped open, an adorably astonished look crossing his face. "What? I mean, you do?" He spread his hands out to the sides, one eyebrow raised. "Really?"

Honestly, she admitted, "It's true that you haven't always been the nicest person, and that even now sometimes you still do things that frustrate me – like, really frustrate me - but I've also seen how hard you've worked to face your fears and fit in to troll society. You've made so much progress, and I'm really, really proud of you."

His smile of embarrassed pride was beyond cute.

"It's not just that. You're important to me, Branch." Her voice grew a little husky, as it always did when she got emotional. "You're my best friend – my best troll-friend, I mean. I rely on you so much, and I know that you'll always be there for me. I think about you a lot when we're not together, and when we are, I feel so close to you."

He swallowed. "I feel the same way about you. You know the worst things about me, but you still like me anyway. You can't imagine how much that means to me."

"Well, I'm the queen, and you don't care about that. That means a lot to me."

His face reflected mild surprise, and then he gave her the warm smile that always made her feel good.

Encouraged, she placed a hand over her heart. "I love you, Branch. And it's not the same as the love I feel for Dad, or Biggie or Cooper or Smidge, or any of my other friends. I don't really even know how to describe it; I just know that what I feel for you is special."

He closed the distance between them to take her hands in his, looking deeply into her eyes. "It's always been you, Poppy. You've always been special to me. You reached out to me, no matter how much I tried to push everyone away. You cared about me." He gave her a crooked grin. "Even though you drive me crazy with your elaborate, zany schemes, it's worth it to have you in my life. I love you."

"Aww, Branch." A silly smile spread over her face and her heart began to pound as the impulse to fling herself into his arms and kiss him with wild abandon threatened to overwhelm her, but the memory of his arm, thrust between them like a barrier, kept intruding. He obviously still had a problem with physical affection. They would have to work on that.

But then he opened his arms wide, and gave her a smile with raised eyebrows and she threw her arms around his waist and squeezed tighter than she'd ever dared before. He pressed his cheek against hers, and it was all she could do to keep from moving just that last little bit to meet his lips with her own, but for his sake, she could take it slow. As long as he let her hold him, that was enough. For now.

She breathed him in, a mix of clean hair, warm skin and vanilla bubble bath, and snuggled deeper into the hug. It was soothing, as if the one nagging issue in her life had finally been smoothed out, healed, restored. "I'm so happy," she murmured.

Branch shifted his hands slightly, pulling her a little closer. "Me, too. I can honestly say that I have never been as happy in my life as I am right now."

She closed her eyes, letting the tension drain out of her and was pleased to feel him relax against her. It felt so good to be in his arms, so warm, so comforting. Her thoughts began to drift. "I'm so glad you're here," she murmured. "If you hadn't come over just now, I was going to head out after dinner to look for you and help you find the flashbugs and give you-oh!"

She pulled away so she could reach up into her hair and bring out an extra-fancy, bejeweled invitation to the next day's festival with Branch's name on it. "Here, Branch. Sorry I didn't give it to you earlier. You…you are coming, right?"

Although he was much more social than he had ever been, there were still certain holidays he disliked and tried to avoid attending, sometimes making a token appearance and then leaving as early as possible.

The aquamarine troll smiled and took the card from her. "Sure. I like the Festival of Beads. They're decorative and they don't make any noise. I also distributed pamphlets about the beads being a slipping or choking hazard and trained a group of trolls in the Heimlich Maneuver, so I think we're ready."

"Good safety protocols. Thanks, Branch." Poppy always took care to praise him whenever he reached out to others. There was something so sweet about seeing him lavish so much caring attention on everyone. Of course, it would be nice if he could just relax and have fun; but then again, every once in a while he brought up a good point and a little bit of extra safety precaution couldn't hurt, as long as he didn't go overboard.

She also knew that it was important for her, as queen, to publicly support him so that everyone would be more likely to take him seriously. He'd spent too many years as the village outsider; everyone was used to excluding him, not out of animosity, but just as a matter of course. But if he cared enough to go to all this trouble, how could she not support him?

Just then he opened the card, his eyes half-closed against the expected spray of glitter, but this time she'd chosen to have a pop-up troll-tree instead, decorated with tiny beads of all types.

"Hey, nice card," Branch commented, his smile of pleasure making her thrill inwardly. He opened and closed it a few times, watching as the tree rotated so that a new side was facing him each time he opened it, admiring the way the bright beads shone or sparkled or simply looked cute. "I like the design."

She beamed as she looked down modestly, his rare praise music to her ears. "Thank you."

He set the card next to his clothes-pile and just as he stood up, his stomach growled rather audibly. Their eyes met, and they both began laughing.

The new couple had dinner together, with Poppy demonstrating how to cook her favorite omelet and Branch picking up the skill quickly, with his usual grace and excellent timing. He even showed off a little, throwing the omelets across the room to land precisely on the plates laid out on the table. He laughed more than she could ever remember hearing before, and each time sent a surge of joy through her, making her giddy. Or maybe that was just because she was in love.

When they were done eating and the kitchen cleaned up (of course; there was no way Branch would be happy in a home where there were dirty dishes) her new boyfriend looked around and some of his usual discomfort seemed to return.

Ever sensitive to his moods, Poppy asked, "What's wrong, Branch?"

"So what's the standard procedure here?"

Puzzled at the technical language, she asked, "What do you mean?"

He sighed and elaborated, "Normally at this point I'd head home, but it's still raining and you did invite me to stay over. Even that wouldn't be a big deal, since we have, after all, been friends for quite a while now, but there has been a pretty major change in the status of our relationship in the last hour."

He crossed his arms, his expression a mix of anxiety and expectation. "You're the social one. What happens next? What are the rules?"

"Rules?" She opened her mouth and then closed it, a momentary thought of how differently they each approached life passing through her mind. Branch wasn't comfortable with spontaneity. Rules made him feel secure, even when there was no real need for them.

"Well, um, of course you're welcome to spend the night, Branch. But you know," she walked up to him and gently touched his hand, "every couple is different. There's no one set of rules; we can make up our own rules as we go. We can even change them if we feel like it."

At her touch her new boyfriend seemed to relax somewhat, although he still looked a little lost. Gamely, he curled his hand around hers as she asked him, "What do you normally do after dinner?"

"I take a bath and then read a good book or do some writing, or tinker with a project. Lately I've been doing a little painting, too."

"Those sound like fun hobbies. Maybe I can do something like that with you sometime."

His eyes brightened. "Sure. You can even join me on the final perimeter check of the day and make sure none of my traps have been tripped."

Her smile became a grimace. "Uhh, yeah. Sure. Hey, I know what we can do!"

He rolled his eyes. "Let me guess. Scrapbooking?"

She smiled at the look of fond tolerance on his face and suppressed the urge to kiss him on the nose. "You know me so well."

He sighed. "Fine, but I'm not using glitter."

The young couple spent the evening more or less contentedly scrapbooking various subjects according to themes: favorite foods, nature walks, cool dance moves. Each troll worked separately and displayed their work to the other when finished. Poppy always included the two of them somewhere on each page and was happy to see Branch do the same, despite his somewhat dismissive attitude toward her favorite hobby.

It wasn't that he was bad at it – he was a brilliant mechanical engineer and had deft fingers and good imagination – it was just that he preferred building things he considered more useful.

"But it is useful from a social angle," she pointed out. "This is how people bond with one another."

"Oh." He looked thoughtfully at the square of felt and pair of scissors in his hands, and his ears twitched a little as he absorbed the idea.

The last theme was, of course, romance. "I want to have something to remember today," she declared, and gratifyingly, he nodded.

"Me, too."

Each of them worked in silence, sitting on the rug across the low table from each other. Poppy enjoyed watching Branch work. He never did less than his best, and had the cute habit of sticking the tip of his tongue out of the corner of his mouth while he worked out particularly tricky details. Aww, he's smiling. I don't think he even realizes it.

When it came time to show their work, Branch insisted she go first. "Okay," she agreed, intensely curious but willing to make him happy since he was showing more enthusiasm than usual for her favorite hobby. She scooted around the low table until they were sitting on the floor facing each other and held the scrapbook up with its back toward her so he could see it.

"Once upon a time, there was a young troll princess who loved her people and wanted nothing more than to make them happy." The first page showed a tiny pink troll standing on top of a tower of colorful dancing trolls.

"But there was one troll who was never happy." A gray troll stood in the middle of a group of gleeful trolls, looking miserable and lonely. "The princess tried to make him happy by inviting him to parties, but he couldn't enjoy them." The pink princess held out an elaborate party invitation, while the gray troll stood with his arms crossed, a thought bubble over his head showing images of fearsome bergens in threatening poses.

Poppy tugged on a tab and the bergen popped off the page straight at Branch, who yelped and threw himself backward, rolling to his feet in a cool fighting pose a split second later. She blinked up at him, too impressed by his reflexes to want to laugh just then (she would later), and gave him a contrite look. "Sorry."

Embarrassed, he sat back down on the rug, a little further from her this time. She stared at him, then decided to pretend nothing had happened and turned the page. "But one day the princess was in danger, and the gray troll knew just what to do."

The page had a montage of images from their adventure. In one, the gray troll rode a huge roller skate, its rotating wheels sending four separate sprays of glitter all over Branch as his counterpart's black hair stayed firmly entwined with the magenta hair of the airborne pink troll's, never letting go. In another, he was standing up to a huge bergen, ready to fight her with only a spork while the princess and their friends ran to safety.

The last one was her favorite; a depiction of the soft smile and gentle eyes of the troll poet as he offered the pink troll a glimpse of his heart for the first time. Branch looked at the image for a long time while he brushed off the glitter, a matching smile relaxing his features and making her heart flutter in her chest.

"When the princess lost all hope, the gray troll did something he'd said he would never, never do, giving her back her hope and courage with a song. A beautiful song, an incredible song that made her feel loved at a time when she'd never felt less worthy, a song that gave her the strength to stand up and keep fighting when the light had left her heart."

The left page showed two gray trolls kneeling on the ground in the dark; the male crooning sweetly, the female looking at him plaintively. The page on the right showed the two of them dancing, both with their colors bright, and shining pinks hearts in their chests.

Again, Branch studied the pages, a faraway look in his eyes. "I couldn't bear to see you like that. I'd watched you overcome every challenge, coping with situations you'd never been prepared to handle and do it because you never gave up. As I would have. None of us would be here now if it had been up to me."

"Oh, really?" He looked up, puzzled at the sly look on her face as she teased, "Want to bet on that?"

She turned the page to show their bergen friend, Bridget, her ear pressed against an ugly yellow pot that had musical notes drifting from the air holes. Surprised, he met Poppy's eyes. "She heard me?"

Poppy beamed at him proudly. "She told me it was your song that made her decide to free us. She said," the pink troll's voice went a little husky, "no one who loved someone so much should have to die just so her people could be happy. She chose us over her own people, because of you."

He looked stunned, glancing down at the page and then back at her. She gave him a loving smile, and his expression softened. "Because of you, too," he responded warmly. "It never would have occurred to me to befriend a bergen, let alone figure out a different way for them to be happy that didn't involve eating trolls. You're amazing."

She bounced happily as she basked in his approval. "Thank you. So are you. And I couldn't have done it without you."

The next page had a typical happy-ending scene, with dancing trolls and bergens, bursts of glitter, and the now brightly-colored male troll holding hands with the pink female.

The page after that was another montage of more recent adventures. "No longer did the blue troll withdraw to his underground bunker; instead he chose to brave all the dangers of the world to stay by the side of the one he loved."

The last page had the two of them hugging and smiling happily. "And she was very glad to have him there."

He smiled, looking to the side as if he were a little embarrassed.

"So, what did you think?"

"Definitely one of my favorites. I may even want to read that one again," he joked. "That one character is just so heroic."

Poppy giggled. "Okay, your turn."