Trolls: Band Together (AU Version)

by MasterClass60

When Branch discovers that his brother, Floyd, has been trapped by Velvet and Veneer, he and Poppy go on a journey to find the rest of Branch's brothers, reunite BroZone, and rescue Floyd before it's too late! Meanwhile, Laguna Tidepool leads some friends on her own expedition to find someone whom was said to be long forgotten: her mother, Twilight Tidepool!

21. Tide of the Mother Part 2

I do not own Trolls or Trolls World Tour or Trolls Band Together or any of the characters in the franchise or the songs! And I especially don't own any of the songs I use from the movie or any other song I pick out in general! I also don't own the characters of Trollstopia! The only thing I do own are my O.C.s Melody Song, McJagger, Buckaroo, Stereo, and Twilight Tidepool; I.M. Rally owns her O.C. Aggie Galido, and Cheah owns his O.C. Finn Okazaki Tidepool. Now, strap in, ladies and gentlemen, and let's get on with the show!

---

Outside, the Trolls all walked down the pathway in the forest that led up to the clearing where the cave dubbed the "Catacombs" was set up ahead.

As the Trolls made it to the clearing, their eyes met gaze to the presence of the cave with the hand-made pillars and roof to give off a temple-like appearance.

"That's the cave that Ramon made his trap with? It looks NOTHING like an actual temple," Val pointed out bluntly, which to the group could easily find agreement with.

"Yeah, those pillars ain't authentic, ayn this is comin' from someone who's known good buildings when they see it," Delta added on.

"It looks like it's been worn down over the years so it might be possible that it had more structure built around it back then when Senor Ramon first built it," Essence pointed out.

"But it's still a steaming pile of phony, and Laguna is stuck inside of it," Synth added worryingly.

"Though we also don't know what we might be facing inside too," Dante stated in concern, adding, "For all we know, there might be a trap just at the entrance set to harm us or worse."

"Ayn' nawht ta mention Ramon maheet do somethin ta us if he sees us tryin' ta rescue hurr," Holly stated while shivering slightly in fear.

McJagger stepped forward, saying to the others, trying to remain optimistic, while he too was also worried, "We're all worried, but we can do this, guys! Plus, remember what Laguna told us: when the going gets tough..."

"A Tidepool gets going," everyone declared confidently in unison.

"Then, let's go in there and rescue our friend," Aggie hollered.

united and ready, the group all began to enter the cave, sticking close together as they walked.

Inside the cave, the Trolls all lit their hair up so they could shed some light inside the dark cave, while the Techno Trolls also lit their skin up. Aggie, since she couldn't illuminate her hair, had a flashlight handy, using it to shed her own light around the area.

"Woah, it's pretty well set-up in here; Senor Ramon must've done a lot fo research into planning a temple appearance," Trollex commented while pointing to the torches on the wall and the set up of the stalactites up on the ceiling with the embedded crystals.

"Yeah, baby; if this weren't an elaborate trap, Low-Note Jones suggests that this would make a great hangout spot for us to all come together in for special occasions," Low-Note Jones mentioned with a chuckle.

Barb wasn't so interested in how it looked, shrugging, "Eh, I've seen better stalactites in Volcano Rock City than in here."

Soon, the Trolls found themselves entering the main platform area, looking at the 5 tunnel entrance that greeted them, with Trollzart commenting, "We've appeared to have reached a bit of an impasse in the cave."

"How on Earth are we gonna be able to figure out which tunnel is Laguna or that Senor Ramon in? They could be in either one of these," Val asked in frustration.

The answer to that question came in the form of a loud voice that shouted, "Ay yai yai, who is making all that ruckus"?!

That made the Trolls all freeze, with Aggie saying while letting out a small squeak, "Well, I think it's safe to say that we can tell whom that voice belongs to VERY well."

On cue, from the tunnel on the far right, Senor Ramon came walking out, muttering to himself bitterly, "Me estoy cansando de escuchar alboroto que está afectando mi recuento de existencias."

However, when he caught a glimpse of the large Trolls that now stood in front of him, he thought that they were potential customers and greeted them, saying, "Hola, how are you folks doing today? Have you come to make a purchase"?

But no one could answer that question because Ramon instantly got a sea of glares from all the Trolls, especially one from McJagger, who stated bluntly while staring the Reggaeton Troll down, "Senor Ramon."

---

Back in the underground cavern of the cave, Twilight and Laguna were still locked in their familial embrace, feeling nothing but utter joy and relief to see each other again after many years of separation between them.

Amidst the hug, Twilight muttered softly, her voice wavering in the still-high emotions she felt, "Oh kelpcake; my beautiful baby girl."

She then took a step back, saying, "Let me look at ya," and cupped her daughter's face gently, saying with feelings of pride and joy as she gazed at how much her daughter has grown up since her days as a little guppy, "Oh, you've grown up so beautifully."

Laguna's eyes glistened in awe/happiness as she said while hugging her mom again, "I've missed you so much, mom," as Twilight smiled and replied while hugging Laguna close to her, "I've missed you so much too, kelpcake."

"I was so scared that I'd never see you again," Laguna commented, feeling some tears bubble around her eyes as she added, "I thought that you'd be...gone forever, either dead or lost somewhere that I'd never find you."

Twilight responded, "I almost didn't last in here, kelpcake; I would've been dead within days from today if ya hadn't come in here and found me. I was so ready to lose hope...but I didn't want to give up on being able to return to my family. It was the only thing that kept me motivated, that kept me strong enough."

The middle-aged Techno then let out a small chuckle, saying, "And thank Troll it worked because who knew that I'd end up being found by my own flesh and blood"?

She then slowly broke the hug, placing her hands on her daughter's shoulders while saying, "And look at ya, ya lil' whippersnapper; you've gotten so big! You were but only a guppy the last time I saw ya, and crikey now, you're a strong, confident, brave woman standing before me."

Laguna's tears fell as the anTrollpologist's smile grew wide, saying in response, "Note: I had a great role model to look up to as a child...who became my inspiration to follow in her footsteps as I got older."

Twilight's smile grew before she asked, "How did ya even know where to find me? I thought no one would've come in here to look for me after I got captured."

Laguna replied, "My friends encouraged me to try and look for you, and when we went to Techno Reef to look for clues, my brother showed us your old logs and we found out that you were heading here to explore, and we used the map that you kept in the journal to follow your tracks and track you down. We went through all the places that you went through, following each landmark, to find our way here. I would've never stopped looking until I got to see you again."

Then, Laguna's facial expression seemed to drop slowly, her smile becoming more of a semi-frown as she said, "We didn't know that this was all a nasty set-up by Senor Ramon...I didn't know that this was secretly a trap he planned to catch you and keep you captive. My friends had talked about it, and wanted to approach this safely..." before her frown grew more prominent as she added, "And I didn't listen. I snuck away without them knowing...and didn't even bother to hear them out."

Laguna stepped away, clutching her hands into fists as she whispered, "Note: I'm an idiot...I'm such an idiot. My friends were only trying to help...and just like before...I pushed it away...letting my emotions cloud my morals and...influencing me to act like I knew what I was doing was right...when in return...I end up getting myself trapped the same way you did. Too blinded by my emotions to...think clearly...or act clearly."

The anTrollpologists' knees quivered slightly as she unclenched her hands, still feeling them ache from the electrified cage bars earlier, before she looked down at the ground sadly, saying, "Note: they probably hate me for doing what I did...and I wouldn't blame them. Why would they still want to show support to me when all I've done was act so poorly"?

Twilight stayed silent as she listened to her daughter's small vent, trying to process what her daughter was feeling based on everything that she must've experienced/done during her journey. While she couldn't really speak for what Laguna may or may not have done, what she could speak of was the apparent guilt her daughter was feeling and of Laguna's apparent reasoning for what influenced the way she may or may not have acted around her friends.

The middle-aged Techno approached her daughter, placing a hand on her back while saying, "Your friends, kelpcake, these mates that you're talking about, are they people who care"?

Laguna looked up at her mother, nodding while saying, "Of course they are."

"And would you say that they'd risk life and limb if it meant helping you," Twilight then asked.

"Note: most definitely," Laguna replied, adding, "They've done so much to help me on this journey overall. I don't think I would've even made it as far as we did together if not for them."

"And your friends, are they understanding," Twilight then asked.

Laguna nodded again, saying, "Oh, very understanding; they've understood why I've felt so strongly about wanting to find you, even when I felt frustrated or angry."

"Have they been there for you, even when you felt at your worst? Or at your lowest," Twilight then asked.

"Through hell and back as far as I can admit," Laguna replied.

Then, Twilight smiled, saying, "Then, that's more than enough to know that your friends would never hate you for what's happened and everything in between."

Laguna was confused, asking, "But how can you be so sure"?

Twilight answered, explaining reassuringly, "Because if your friends are willing to listen to your troubles, step in to help you even if it means giving a little tough love, and still offer their support and encouragement even in the face of emotional instability, then it shows that they truly care a lot about you."

"Acting rashly based on emotions is something that is more common than you think, and to be honest, if things were turned around, i would've reacted the same way that you have kelpcake, feeling so emotionally driven to find you and getting frustrated/angry that I wasn't getting any closer to you by the minute, and at the same time, scared I'd never find you again."

"I know this, and I know that your friend know this too; they'd be feeling the same thing if their family members were missing or hurt, so not only is it something they can relate to, but it's something that they understand, and it's why they'd keep doing their best to offer comfort and support, and be of assistance if help was needed. Because they know how much family means to you, just as you know how much family means to them, and family is always there for each other, through blood ties, and friendship ties too."

Twilight then added, "I'm sure that your friends are out there right now, trying to look for you because just as I'm family to you, you are family to them; and the same way you risked death to find me, they'd probably defy odds if it meant finding you."

Laguna processed what her mother had told her, saying in realization, "I guess you're right, mom," before she added, giving a slight giggle, "Troll Lousie, I've only just gotten to see you for 5 minutes, and already, you're giving me mom wisdom."

Twilight chuckled in response, saying, "Well, that's what parents do: we offer advice, even if we've been apart for many years."

---

Laguna then took note of her mom's condition, eyeing mostly her mom's thin composure and her faded skin that looked almost flaky, commenting with concern, "Mom, when was the last time you've eaten? Or more importantly, rehydrated"?

Twilight bit her lip in worry before saying, "Well, to be honest kelpcake, the last time I ate something was about...2 weeks ago"?

"TWO WEEKS," Laguna exclaimed in shock, adding, "You haven't eaten anything in two weeks"?!

"Well, I ran out of polkabull jerky, and when Ramon handcuffed my hands, I couldn't exactly grab anything from my bag, which unfortunately has been torn up, but that's another story in itself," Twilight admitted sheepishly before adding nervously, "And you'll probably flip if ya hear how long it's been since I've gotten water."

Laguna almost wanted to go into scolding mode and tell her mother off for not having taken proper care of herself, but given that her mom had been handcuffed and locked away in this chamber for such a long time, she couldn't argue over the fact that there were very very VERY limited resources, so it made sense she wouldn't have had the essentials needed to survive.

Laguna fished through her hair, looking for something that she could give her mom so she could rest a little easy knowing her mother would have gotten some sustenance after being freed from those handcuffs. All she could pull out was a medium-sized chocolate chip cookie; it wasn't too big that it'd keep a Troll full, but it looked well enough to give her mom at least some much-needed fuel. She offered her mom the cookie, saying, "Here, eat this; it'll give you some energy and fuel until we can get you something much better to eat."

Twilight looked at the cookie and she couldn't lie; it looked REALLY good, and she wanted just to take it and gobble it up in a millisecond, but her mother instincts also toyed with her mind, as she felt like Laguna needed the cookie a lot more than she did. this prompted her to say, "Oh kelpcake, I couldn't-you should eat it; I'll just eat something later and-,"

But Laguna was NOT having it, holding the cookie up while saying, her face stern and firm, "Mom, you were trapped in here for 16 years, handcuffed, restrained from any source of food and water; if anyone here needs to eat this cookie, it's YOU because I am NOT gonna let my mother drop dead from starvation after helping her out and getting her free! So take this cookie and eat it or so help me, I will shove it down your throat myself and make sure you get some nutrients so you don't continue to starve"!

Twilight was a little taken aback from her daughter's rash statement, not that she could blame her as her daughter had more than enough reason to be concerned for her well-being. Figuring that she wasn't gonna be able to talk Laguna out of it, the middle-aged Techno chuckled and said with a sheepish smile, "Okay, okay, I'll eat it," and took the cookie, biting into it, feeling her taste buds melt into the flavors of the dough and sugar.

Laguna sighed in relief and watched her mom eat the cookie, feeling a part of her become relieved to see her mother getting to eat again. While she knew her mother was gonna need more than just a cookie to get properly nourished again, for now, her mom eating the cookie was a good first step forward.

Once the cookie was gone, Laguna stated, "Now, let's find our way out of here so then we can get you some water to rehydrate your skin; I don't know how much longer you'll last without dry flakes falling off if we don't get you some water soon. And you WILL let my boyfriend examine you and give you a much-needed checkup to make sure you're not sick or have any preexisting conditions that you might;ve caught while in here."

Twilight started to respond with a question, asking, "Is he a doctor or som-," before she suddenly realized what Laguna said, asking while stunned, "Wait a sec, kelpcake...BOYFRIEND"?!

Laguna realized what she had just said; her face lit up with a bright pink blush before she hesitantly answered, feeling very shy about admitting it, "Uh...yeah, I..have a boyfriend."

Twilight was a little surprised at first before she grinned excitedly, saying, "Fair dinkum...my lil' kelpcake's really grown up, acting like an adult and dating a boy."

She then asked with a playful grin, "Is he a good guy"?

"Mom," Laguna shouted, feeling her blush increase due to feeling embarrassed, as she retorted, "Of course he's a good guy, otherwise, I wouldn't be dating him."

Twilight snickered before saying, "Well, I'll be seeing it myself once I meet this "boy" of yours; if he's as good as you say, we'll have plenty to talk about over family dinners."

"You just gobbled down a cookie, still malnourished, and you're ALREADY thinking about family dinners," Laguna asked incredulously, resisting the urge to facepalm.

"What can I say? I like to plan ahead; haven't even thought about decor for the wedding yet," Twilight teased playfully, her comment making Laguna's whole body glow an embarrassed pink as she took her hat off and screamed into it, her shout muffled, luckily.

Seeing her daughter's flustered state made Twilight smile and giggle, saying as she tousled her daughter's hair, "I'm just kidding, kelpcake; you're just like your brother, always taking the jokes so literally."

"You can say that Finn's rubbed off on me," Laguna playfully retorted with a smug grin, the pink blush and glow dying down back to her regular purple color while pushing herself away from her mother's hand.

Twilight chuckled again, saying as Laguna tried to brush her hair back into place, "Crikey, we're gonna have lots of fun like this once we get back home."

Suddenly, there was a strange growling sound that echoed through the cave, making both Techno Trolls look up and gaze around where they stood. Laguna thought that the growling sound came from her mother, asking her while she placed her fedora back on, "Mom, was that your stomach? I know you're probably still hungry, but if you're feeling that empty, i could grab you something else to eat in the meantime."

"Uh...kelpcake, that wasn't me," Twilight answered nervously, her response making her daughter become nervous as well.

The growling sound continued as both Techno Trolls looked around, trying to see where it was coming from.

Then, from behind a gigantic pile of rubies, a large weasel-like animal with strong front and hind legs, a silky coat of brown fur, a black mask pattern around its face and nose, sharp teeth that could pierce through bones, claws as deadly as a snake bite, a short yet bushy tail, who wore a silver collar around ts neck appeared. It looked at the Trolls threateningly, baring its teeth at them, its claws clenched, ready to swipe.

Twilight gulped in fright, saying, "Uh oh, Gerald's out and about again."

Laguna looked up at her mother, saying, "W-What is that thing?! And why did you name it Gerald"!?

Twilight replied, "That, kelpcake, is a wolverine, a fierce carnivorous critter who can slice and cut through any enemy it sees; it works for Ramon! He's used it as a way of threatening me that if I ever escaped, it'd hunt me down and tear me limb for limb, making me its next meal! And I named it Gerald because, well, to be honest, he looks like a Gerald. I mean, to be more precise, he does kind of give off more of a Sydney vibe rather than-,"

"Not the time, mom," Laguna retorted before looking back at the wolverine, who growled fiercely as it licked it slips, hungry for Troll flesh.

Twilight replied, "It must've sensed that we were free, and came by to kill us"!

"Kill," Laguna asked, feeling very frightened at the thought of an animal lunging at her and her mother, aiming to kill them.

The wolverine roared and began to charge at them, its teeth bared and all.

"Run, Laguna! Run," Twilight shouted as both Techno Trolls scrambled and ran for their lives, the wolverine in hot pursuit of them both.

The wolverine first took pursuit of Twilight, who did her best to keep it lured away from her daughter; she scrambled past the piles of gold coins and assorted gemstones, with the wolverine weaving easily passed them as it chased her.

Twilight then hopped over a large silver gauntlet, with the wolverine following so, except when it hopped over, Twilight held up a large gold platter and slammed it into its face, making the wolverine wince in pain and scramble back.

It gave Twilight a chance to dart back to where her daughter was: currently hiding behind a pile of purple amethysts.

The wolverine quickly recovered and chased after Twilight, heading towards the pile of amethysts. However, as Twilight turned the corner to go around the pile, the wolverine was suddenly ambushed by a raining assault of flying gemstones, which hit it in the face, head, and upper body, making the creature stumble back and hold it front leg up, trying to shield its face from the assault.

Behind the amethysts was Laguna, who had gathered whatever gemstones she could get her hands on and was throwing them at the wolverine, shouting, "Eat rare minerals, you hairy mongrel"!

The wolverine growled, trying to back away from the flying assault, but the shattered gems that littered the ground as they broke made it painful to step on, causing it to roar in agony.

Twilight took the opportunity that it was distracted to look for an exit and saw a small vent on the ceiling near the tunnel that the wolverine came from and smiled. She shouted, "Kelpcake, over here"!

Laguna paused her gemstone assault, saw that her mother had found a way out, and ran over to her, eyeing the vent, saying, "Note: it looks like the perfect size for us to fit through"!

Twilight grabbed a hold of her own ponytail and spun it around like a rope, launching it at the vent before it hooked on, pulling it down and opening the vent, saying, "Booyah"!

Suddenly, both Techno Trolls heard a roar and turned their heads, seeing that the wolverine had recovered and was now angrily barreling its way to them.

Twilight and Laguna quickly used their hair and pulled themselves up to the vent, just narrowly dodging the swipes of the wolverine's claws before Twilight shut the vent door, encasing them in the vent. This left the wolverine visibly frustrated as it growled angrily before disappearing into another of the chamber's tunnel cute.

Inside the vent, Twilight and Laguna took a minute to catch their breaths, with Laguna saying, "Note: that was some quick thinking, Mom, in finding this vent for us to escape through."

Twilight smiled, saying, "Well, I wouldn't have found this vent so quickly if ya hadn't kept that wolverine distracted for me, kelpcake. Right on ya for keeping it back."

Laguna smiled, saying in gratitude, "Thanks, mom."

Twilight then said, "Now, let's try and find our way out of here; these vents are like a maze, but it should lead us somewhere away from here at least."

Together, mother and daughter began to walk along the vent's metallic floor, looking for an escape route. They followed the vent's walls and listened closely for not only the wolverine, in case it was close by, but also for air ducts or signs of life outside that could lead them to a way out.

---

Back by the front, there was a very "enlightening" chat going on between Senor Ramon and his new "guests" in the cave.

Ramon was quickly tied up, bound by rope, courtesy of Holly, while pinned up against the wall by Barb and Val, while Holly shouted at his face, declaring angrily, "Where is she"?!

"Vaya, espera, espera, cálmense, Trolls locos," Ramon replied frantically, taken aback by the sudden ambush.

"You want loco?! We'll give you loco unless you start talking, bub," Barb addressed sternly.

Trolelx was next to come up toward Ramon, glaring him down while saying, "Now, tell us where Laguna is! Don't lie to me; I'm the king of the Techno Trolls, and when you harm one of my people, you mess with me too"!

"And all of us as we are Laguna's CLOSEST friends," Aggie added fiercely, "So tell us now, Senor Ramon"!

Ramon tried to fight against the restraints, refusing to acknowledge the stone cold glares he got from the Trolls, all while trying to act adamant, stating, "I do not know what you Trolls are talking about! I know not of any Laguna that you are referring to. Now, release me you insane people"!

"Oh no, no, you are not getting away with this," Essence sternly addressed, saying, "We know Laguna came into this cave, and we can tell she must've interacted with you. So, unless you want to prolong this any longer, you tell us where you have her right now."

Losing the will to keep defying, Ramon scoffed and answered harshly, "Or what? What are you Trolls gonna do to me"?

McJagger was usually not one for doing anything violent as he was a 100% genuine pacifist, but his concerns for where Laguna was and his fear that Ramon had done something bad to her were rocking sky-high, and seeing that Ramon was not going to be talking willingly...the red Funk Troll had to hone into a different side of himself to get answers.

He let out a small exhale, saying to Holly, "Let him out of the rope."

That comment made him get some confused head turns, followed by a series of "Huh"?

"What? But he-," Buckaroo started to tell him.

But McJagger, with a visibly angry facial expression that looked almost terrifying, stated bluntly, "Let him out of that rope NOW"!

His angered tone of voice startled everyone present, and Holly, now intimidated herself, undid the rope and let Ramon loose from it, stepping back with Barb and Val following her; both Rock Trolls were also intimidated as McJagger began to approach the Reaggeton Troll.

"Oh my troll," Dante muttered in surprise under his breath.

"Is it weird that I'm actually scared of McJagger seeing him this angry?" Melody asked Low-Note Jones, who shrugged while giving a shy nod, while her knees shook.

Ramon didn't seem worried at all by him, scoffing while saying as a mocking taunt, "Well, well, look who's acting like a hombre valiente que cree que da miedo. What are you gonna do"?

McJagger didn't do anything in response, his eyes shut as he talked to Ramon, saying, "I'm usually a very nice guy. I don't like getting physical on conflict, and i'ma firm believer of being able to talk thing sout calmly over a cup of tea, where we can discuss things like regular Trolls. But.."

He then opened his eyes, glaring coldly at Senor Ramon, telling him bluntly, "But unfortunately, in this case, we can't talk things out. Because you made this very personal for all of us, but even more personal for me. See, you messed with my girlfriend, and that is something I cannot simply let you just get away with."

In the blink of an eye, McJagger's front paws shot up, slamming Ramon tightly up against the back wall, as he stared him down face to face, saying, "I don't know what on Earth you did to her, but mark my words, if you even dared to have harm a hair on her head, I will know, and when I do find out, I will tear your throat out so that you can't even SCREAM in agony, the same agony you may or my not have put my girlfriend through, and definitely put her mother through! I will yank every fiber of your being out of the heartless soul you dawn until you are but only a shell of a man! And just when you think it's all over, I will personally, and surgically, make sure you never walk this Earth doing the same scammy shit you've been doing for so many years to so many innocent lives"!

He then took a deep breath and coldly asked Ramon, who looked super traumatized and was about to pee his pants in absolute terror, "So, I'm going to aks this one more time on behalf of everyone here,a dn how you answer will determine if you walk out of this cave with or without your marbles, left or right, your choice: WHERE?! IS?! LAGUNA?! TIDEPOOL"?!

Ramon trembled in fright, his body shaking profusely, his eyes dilated in fear, whilst all he could stutter was whimpers that were unintelligible nonsense. But he did give a response in one form: he weakly raised his right hand up and pointed to the tunnel passage that was in the middle, the third one.

Seeing that he got a solid answer, McJagger smiled and stepped back, letting Ramon go and giving the Reggaeton Troll time to breathe as he dropped to his knees. McJager brushed his paws free of any dust while saying, sounding like his regular friendly self again, "Pleasure discussing business with you, good sir; let's never do that again."

He then faced the other Trolls, saying to them, "Come on, guys; Laguna's this way"!

As he led the walk over to the third tunnel, everyone in the group was jaw-dropped at the display of toughness and threatening intimidation that McJagger, who was the friendliest Funk Troll they knew who never seemed to have a bad bone in his body, acting so...tough on someone! Especially with the way that he scared Ramon like that! Though what the Trolls didn't see was that Senor Ramon, scared to his wits, turned around and left the cave, walking out to the entrance/exit.

Meanwhile, as the Trolls were walking down the hallway in the tunnel they entered, Synth, who was the first one to gain the courage and recover from shock enough to say something, smiled and asked, "Yo! What was that about, McJ"?!

"Dude, you straight up made scaredy-Ramon your b-," Val shouted eagerly, though her comment got interrupted when Barb covered Val's mouth, but shared an eager smile, saying, "I think you know what Val was gonna say, but yeah, man! you totally rocked his world"!

"Hot dang! Where on Earth was that initmidatin' energy from," Holly asked as well.

McJagger let out a slow exhale while saying to them, "I didn't want to snap so angrily like that, but Laguna's possibly in danger, and I had to do something to get him to talk, even if meant acting a little nasty."

"Nasty? No, you were downright scary," Dante exclaimed before adding, "In a good way for that matter."

"Plus, you can't blame yourself entirely for feeling like that, McJagger since you were just looking out for Laguna and wanted to know where she was so we could find her," Quincy added reassuringly.

McJagger scratched the back of his neck while commenting, "Yeah, that is true."

Aggie added playfully with a chuckle, "I thought I was scary when it came to protecting others, but you just took the cake"!

"Yeah; remind me not to get you angry like that, McJagger," Trollex added with a chuckle.

Just then, the tunnel began to make a loud growling sound, which made everyone freeze in their tracks, looking around, while Stereo asked frantically, "Yo, what was that"?!

Everyone listened to the growling sound closely, with Low-Note Jones stating, "Trolls, sounds like we ain't alone in this cave."

"Something's up ahead, and it doesn't sound friendly," Melody commented as the growling sound was heard again, leaving everyone on edge.

"What are we gonna do? We gotta get ahead ta fannd Laguna, but what's up there maheet stop us," Buckaroo commented, pointing out the new obstacle in the way.

McJagger analyzed the situation before an idea came to mind, making him grin and saying, "There is one thing we can do, but... it's a risky idea, and I don't know if you guys would be up for it."

Everyone looked at one another before they all smiled and nodded together, with Essence telling him, "Whatever you have in mind, McJagger, we're in."

"Yeah, we ken handle whateveuurr ya got if it means we'll successfully be able ta faand Laguna ayn' rescue hurr," Delta added.

Seeing that everyone was willing to take the risk, McJagger nodded in response, saying as he got everyone huddled up to explain the plan, telling them, "Ok, here's what we are gonna do."

---

With Laguna and her mom, they climbed up a tall vent wall, which lead them to the upper floor of the cave, the level where the entrance/exit would be, before walking through the broad maze of vent pathways, locating the safest one.

While walking through one of the vent pathways, in one of the vents that led outside, both Tidepools heard the wolverine sniffing around, and each hid on opposite sides of the vents, trying to keep themselves from getting sniffed out by the wolverine's nose. Outside, the wolverine paused in front of the vent, thinking that it smelled something off, but then went back to walking away, sniffing the ground as it did, allowing both Tidepools to sigh in relief after it was gone.

A while later, in a cavern hallway, Twilight opened the vent door that was in the hallway, and peeked her head out, looking for any warning signs of danger. When the hallway looked clear, she whispered, "All clear," and climbed out of the vent before helping her daughter climb out, Laguna closing the vent door behind them.

"Note: do you think this might lead us to the cave exit," Laguna asked her mother curiously.

"It's gotta lead us somewhere; let's get looking," Twilight replied as they both began to walk down the hallway, cautiously looking around and listening.

As they made their way down the hallway, there was a SNAP, which made them both stop and freeze, looking around for any sign of what could've made that sound. It seemed to be nothing, and there wasn't any other sound that came about afterward, which made them both think that it was still safe...for now.

Suddenly, in a blur, something clamped onto Laguna's right arm, pulling her away with such force that Twilight could only process Laguan's scream of terror when she turned around and saw that the wolverine had ambushed from behind and had grabbed her daughter, running off with her. making Twilight gasp and shout, "Laguna"!

Laguna got helplessly shaken by the wolverine's jaw before it tossed her aside, throwing her into the cavern wall, which Laguna hit hard before falling back onto the ground. She held her arm, whimpering in pain as she saw blood leak from the bite mark; while it luckily didn't shatter any bone, the bitemark hurt really bad. Laguna held her arm tenderly, wincing from the pain that shot up as she touched it, before her eyes gazed up at what was coming, making her gasp in fear.

The wolverine wasn't done with her yet; he ran at her, charging at her, ready to tear Laguna into shreds. Terrified, Laguan curled up into a ball-like sitting position, closed her eyes, and brought her arms up, bracing for painful impact, before suddenly, a new sound erupted the cavern, making her open her eyes to see what was happening.

To her relief/shock, Twilight was using her hair to snag the wolverine, catching it by its snout, which the wolverine did not like, and struggled to fight back. But Twilight didn't relent; she was downright pissed! No creature was gonna hurt her daughter like this!

She pulled back, making the wolverine stagger, before shouting, "Get your greasy paws away from my daughter," and tossed the wolverine away, throwing it a good distance away from where they were, watching as it crashed to the ground, growling in pain.

Twilight then ran over to Laguna, saying in concern while helping her daughter up, "Kelpcake! Are you ok"?

"I-I'm ok, mom," Laguna replied as her mom helped her back onto her feet.

Twilight saw the bite mark on Laguna's arm and hissed slightly, saying, "Yikes, that is a nasty wound."

Laguna grimaced as she held her arm in pain, "It's not broken or anything, but it hurts pretty bad."

Suddenly, both Techno Trolls heard the wolverine growl again and turned their heads, spotting that it had recovered and was back on its feet, staring them down with vengeance and hunger in its eyes. Twilight immediately stepped foot in front of Laguna, bringing her arms up, acting like a protective shield for Laguna, who asked, "Mom, what are you doing"?!

"If that dingus critter thinks he can hurt my daughter, he's gonna have ta go through me first, mate," Twilight replied, deadset on protecting her daughter if it meant she might get mauled in the process.

The wolverine stared them down as it let out a hungry growl, ready to charge at them again, while Twilight awaited the creature to come at her, with Laguna watching and feeling slightly in awe that her mother was gonna risk her own life to protect her while also scared about her mother getting hurt or killed.

But before the animal could attack, the cave floor began to rumble, the ground vibrating, and he walls shook amongst the sensation, which made both Trolls and the wolverine look around, wondering where it was coming from.

"What's going on, mate? Is the cave collapsing," Twilight asked out loud while looking around.

"Note: I don't think so; no rocks or dirt are falling around," Laguna replied, pointing out that a cave collapse wasn't causing it.

The rumbling continued as the vibrating got stronger before there was suddenly a brand new sound that echoed the cavern hallway. One that sounded like...screaming?

"What in the world," Laguna asked as she, her mother, and the wolverine, turned their heads and looked down the other end of the hallway, trying to see what, or who was making that screaming noise.

Coming at them was what looked like a gigantic boulder...but it wasn't a boulder; it was actually a ginormous hairball made out of a lot of different colored Troll hair, and the screaming noise could be heard from INSIDE the hairball as it came barreling down.

"McJagger, you better hope we don't die doing this," Dante's voice, muffled, could be heard amongst the hairball.

"Ay feel spin-sick, y'all," Delta's voice, muffled, could be heard afterward.

"Woah-ho-ho, baby; we moving so fast, like a supersonic jet stream," Low-Note Jones' voice, muffled, could be heard.

"Who agreed to let Aggie push us?! She's got the strength of 1000 Trolls," Val's voice, muffled, followed afterward.

"Are we getting any closer," Trollex's voice, muffled, asked following.

"I'm gonna hurl if we don't stop spinning soon," Melody's voice, muffled, was heard after that.

Behind the gigantic hairball, Aggie, who was flapping her wings as fast as she could, was seen pushing the hairball with every ounce of strength she had, and when she saw what was coming up, she shouted, "Fire in the hole, guys," before she gave a mighty shove, letting the hairball roll free.

The voices of Trolls screaming inside the hairball could be heard as it rolled down the cavern hallway at a fast pace, set to crash into whatever came in its path.

Twilight and Laguna gasped in shock before they both quickly stood against the wall, barely dodging the force of the hairball, while the wolverine, who was in its way, was not as fortunate. The hairball hit it with blunt force, sending it flying toward the far end of the hallway, the wolverine roaring in pain as it got hit.

Upon collision, and the wolverine getting hit away, the hairball collapsed, and all of the Trolls inside of it; the Normal Troll leaders, ambassadors, and associates, all came loose, falling onto the ground and groaning in pain or dizziness, or a mix of both. Many of them were holding their heads while they lay down, while others either clutched their stomachs or felt like jelly and could barely move a muscle.

McJagger, who was laying on his stomach, dizzily lifted his head up, a dizzy smile on his face as he said, "See, guys?! I told you it'd work," before he let his head drop back down onto the ground, groaning in dizziness.

"Hoowee, it feels like ayy rodeo is playin' in my head," Buckaroo commented while holding their head tiredly.

"Yo, my stomach's doing loop-de-loops, yo," Synth commented as he sat up, clutching his stomach before he felt something come up and turned his head away, puking off-screen while some of the others watched in disgust.

Barb tried to stand up, but her legs wobbled, making her say, "Whoops, jelly legs, going down," and she fell backward, feeling too dizzy to stand upright.

Aggie flew over to the dizzy Trolls, landing beside them while asking, "Are you guys ok"?

"Dizzy, but alive," Quincy replied while lifting his head up.

"At least we successfully chased away that menacing critter," Trollzart commented as he started to sit back up, some of the Trolls beginning to recover from feeling so dizzy while others were still taking their time about it.

Laguna, in the meanwhile, was watching all of this and was shocked that not only were her friends here, but that they literally came barreling down to save her and her mother! She was shocked, happy, surprised, concerned, and relieved, all at the same time, but didn't know exactly what to say; what could she even say to her friends after the way she left them without them knowing?

She cautiously approached McJagger first, who was one of the dizzier Trolls who took a little longer to recover, and when he looked up, his vision caught sight of Laguna, but he thought that he was still dizzy, as he said, "Woah, lookie; I see lots of Lagunas in front of me."

Laguna smiled and chuckled, saying while gently stroking the back of his neck, "Well, there is only one in front of you; you ok"?

McJagger didn't say anything at first, still feeling the trance of his dizzy state, before suddenly, he shook his head, regaining his sense of composure. When he felt someone's hand on his neck, he looked up and saw that Laguna was in person, in front of him! His mind clear, not in a dizzy state; this was real! And with that in mind, he became surprised, his mouth agape in shock.

Laguna was a bit startled by this, taking her hand off of McJagger's neck in response, but at the same time, also felt a little nervous to say something to her boyfriend; all that she could nervously muster was a hesitant smile and a small wave, saying a meek, "Hey."

McJagger remained frozen for a few seconds before he launched himself back up to his feet, bringing his girlfriend into a tight hug with his left front leg while saying eagerly, "Laguna, you're ok"! All while Laguna, who was surprised by the sudden hug, happily reciprocated it, hugging the red Funk Troll back.

McJagger's shouts alerted the others, who noticed Laguna by him, and they were all surprised but also relieved to see their friend alright.

"Hey, look! It's Laguna," Stereo cheered as she stood back up onto her fins.

"Hot dang; she's alraheet," Holly cheered while galloping over to her.

"She's alive," Melody declared happily as she and the other Trolls came over to where she was.

One by one, everyone joined in on the hug, turning it into one big group reunion hug, with feelings of warmth, relief, and joy emitted by everyone.

Laguna, feeling a little squished by the massive embrace but happy to see her friends, commented, "Note: I'm really grateful to see you all, but...kind of getting smushed here."

That was the cue for everyone to take a step back, separating the hug, which gave Laguna some space.

But that didn't stop them from reuniting with her, with Aggie saying as she swung her arm around Laguna and shook her gently, smiling, "Don't you DARE pull another stunt like that again; you've left us worried sick"!

"We all were scared for you when you disappeared back in Mixed City without a trace," Dante pointed out with a worried shudder.

"Ay was about a pull out the ol' magnifyin' glass ta try ayn' track ya down," Buckaroo added.

"We figured you had went to go find the cave and were worried that Ramon had you trapped or tortured or worse," Essence added on while patting Laguna on the back.

"McJagger was about to cry when he was scared that he'd never see you again," Barb mentioned, which made the red Funk Troll blush and reply, "Not gonna lie, I did almost cry."

Laguna looked up at her friends and, feeling remorseful for her abrupt exit, she told them, "Everyone, I'm really sorry I left you all like that. I didn't want to, but when I heard about you guys wanting to go back to the Troll Kingdom to try "alternative methods", I...I jumped to conclusions and let my emotions take over. When you all were talking about the Catacombs of Music being fake, being just a trap, I felt too angry to listen and thought you all stopped wanting to help and..thought I'd be better off on my own."

"Laguna, we would never stop wanting to help you; you're our friend, and we love to help others," Quincy stated reassuringly.

"Yeah; we just wanted ta try ayn' take ayy safuurr approach ta facin' Senor Ramon's scheme, but it didn't mean that we wanted ta quit ayn' go back home," Delta mentioned.

"When Lizzy told us about this place being a trap set by Senor Ramon, we were worried that if we went in there unprepared, we might lose you to the same trap that your mom got caught it, and we didn't want you to suffer through that," Melody explained.

"We were scared that we'd lose you the same manner in how you lost your mother," Trollzart clarified.

Laguna replied, "I know, and I really appreciate that you all were looking out for me; I should've let you guys help me instead of just storming off bitterly, thinking I knew what I was doing. In the end, I fell for Ramon's stupid trap 'cause I was too blinded by my emotions and desire to see my mom again, and it left me caged, literally, away from you guys. It was selfish, and it was wrong; I'm sorry."

Synth swung his arm around Laguna while saying happily, "Hey, it's a'ight, 'Guna; we totally forgive you, yo."

"Nothing but love and friendship, baby, " Low-Note Jones added on with a sincere wink.

Val crossed her arms and said with a genuine smile, "We get it; family means a lot to you, and we could've reacted the same way if any of our family members were in trouble. I know I would've."

"But no matter what, nothing's gonna stop us from being there for our friends, and that includes you," Aggie added on.

"Yeah, yo; it's like we've been sayin', we're all one big happy family," Stereo declared energetically.

"And family looks out for one another, through thick and thin," McJagger stated while kissing Laguna on the cheek, making her blush a light shade of pink.

Laguna looked up at her friends and smiled, saying, "You guys..." before the Trolls all gathered into another group hug, though it was a little shorter this time because Holly noticed Laguna's wound and gasped, asking worryingly, "Laguna, what happened to your arm"?!

As the group stepped back, Laguna looked down at the bite mark, replying, "Oh, uh, that wolverine that attacked bit me. It's not broken, but my arm does hurt a bit."

Trollex looked at the bite, saying as he saw the dried blood around it, "Ouch; I'm surprised that it didn't do more damage; you sure got lucky that it didn't rip your arm off."

"Although it would be cool to imagine you with a cyborg arm," Barb commented jokingly, though her joke earned her a harsh elbow to the ribs by Trollex, who glared at Barb and muttered a stern, "Be nice."

Laguna smirked, saying, "Hey, I'm a tough Tidepool, your majesties. And you know what we say: when the going gets tough.."

"A Tidepool gets going," everyone declared in unison, breaking into laughter together.

---

Then, the laughter got cut off when they heard someone clear their throat, making them all turn their heads and see an unfamiliar face (though it was familiar to Laguna since it was her mom) comment with a friendly grin, "Not to interrupt this touching moment, mates, but perhaps maybe you whippersnappers would like to see where Laguna's learned that phrase from"?

Aside from Laguna, everyone's jaws immediately dropped in stunned silence, eyes widened in disbelief, shock overcoming them as they gazed at the stranger in front of them, whom was but no true stranger, but someone who they did not expect to be face-to-face with.

"Oh..." Val stated softly yet surprised, trying so hard yet failing to resist the urge to want to scream like a fangirl.

"My..." Dante added on in shock, trying to resist the urge to faint.

"Troll," Buckaroo and Holly both declared in unison, shocked to their very core.

"Golly, is that..." Aggie asked in surprise, her hands covering her heart.

Laguna smiled before she walked over to Twilight and stood beside her, saying, "Trolls, allow me to introduce to you my mother: Twilight Tidepool."

Twilight let Laguna hug her side before she faced the Trolls, saying to them, "G'day there, mates, a pleasure ta meet ya."

No one dared to speak a word, too shocked to even react appropriately, until...

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH," Val screamed at the top of her lungs, giddily grinning as her reaction was that of a fangirl cheering when they get to meet their hero, her feet stomping really fast at the same time.

That opened the floodgates for the others to smile excitedly that Twilight Tidepool was in front of them, in person, alive after all this time, with "Oohs" of wonder and eager cheers!

Twilight couldn't help but chuckle, saying to Laguna, "Is this how they normally react to new friends"?

"Sometimes, yes," Laguna replied, chuckling quietly before she grabbed her mother's hand, saying, "Come on, mom' let me introduce you to my friends."

She first brought her mother up to the Troll leaders, saying, "These are the current leaders of the Troll tribes back home; the Pop leader is currently out on a "important" matter. First off, someone whom you may or may not know: King Trollex of the Techno Trolls."

King Trollex shook hands with Twilight, saying, "It's an honor to meet you, Ms. Tidepool; I've heard a lot about you from my parents when I was a kid."

Twilight responded happily, "The honor is all mine, your majesty; you've grown up to be a great king, just like your father was back in the day," which her comment made Trollex very honored.

The next Troll that she shook hands with was Trollzart, while Laguna said, "This is Wolfgang Amadeus Trollzart, the lead conductuor/ruler of the Classical Trolls."

"Greetings, Madam Tidepool," Trollzart replied as he shook hands with Twilight.

Twilight bowed towards the Classical leader, saying, "Enchante, Conductor Trollzart, a pleasure to be acquainted," to which Trollzart responded with a bow in reply.

Laguna then introduced her mom to Delta, saying, "And this is the leader of the Country Trolls/mayor of Lonesome Flats: Delta Dawn."

"Howdy, Ms. Tidepool, naace ta meet ya," Delta stated happily while shaking hands with the middle-aged Techno Troll, surprised to feel the Techno's grip, commenting curiously, "Woah, y'all gotta ayy strong grip on ya."

"Thank ya, mate; ayn' I can say the same for you, you got good strength on ya," Twilight responded, asking playfully, "Ya wanna arm-wrestle later"?

Delta chuckled, saying, "Challenge accepted."

Up next was Barb, who Laguna introduced her mom to, "This is Queen Barb of the Hard Rock Trolls."

Twilight looked over at Queen Barb, saying, "I know you're probably not a fan of handshakes," before she offered a fistbump, saying, "So, how about an ol' pound"?

Barb giggled, responding to the fistbump while saying to Laguna, "I like her; she's got good taste."

Quincy and Essence were next to be introduced, with Laguna saying as Twilight shook hands/paws with both Funk leaders, "This is King Quincy and Queen Essence, the leaders of the Funk tribe."

Twilight bowed towards the Funk leaders, saying, "A pleasure to meet ya, your Funkiness...es," before muttering shyly, "Apologies, I...I don't know how ta address you both. Do you prefer Funkiness or Majesties"?

"No worries, Ms. Tidepool; whatever floats your boat," Quincy replied, chuckling softly.

"We're very honored to be meeting you; Laguna has told us a lot about you," Essence added on.

Twilight replied, "Oh, the honor is as mine to be meeting my kelpcake's dear friends."

The sound of Twilight's nickname for her daughter made some of the Trolls snicker, with Melody asking, "I'm sorry..kelpcake? That is such a cute nickname"!

Laguna felt her face heat up in embarrassment as Twilight swung her arm around her daughter while saying to the other Trolls, "Aww, well, there's a funny story behind it, but long story short, it's special nickname I came up with for my special lil' cute kelpcake here."

Laguna felt very flustered, shouting "Mom! Don't embarrass me in front of everyone," which only made the group's giggles increase and become loud laughs.

McJagger was laughing pretty hard before he commented playfully, "Well, she's right that you ARE a cute kelpcake."

Laguna's cheeks glowed pink as the anTrollpologist regained herself and introduced her mom to the others: "Continuing, so, over here, mom, are the Troll ambassadors for Trollstopia, which is a brand new city that started up a few weeks ago. Val Thundershock, Prince Synth, Low-Note Jones, Dante Crescendo, and Holly Darlin'."

"Salutations, Ms. Tidepool," Dante greeted her with a bow.

"Hey there, Mrs. T," Low-Note Jones went next, greeting her with a wink.

"Howdy, Ms. Tidepool," Holly followed afterwards with her greeting.

"Nice to meh-meh-meh-meh meet ya again, Mrs. Tidepool," Synth added on, mimicking airhorn noises in his greeting.

Val eagerly shook hands with Twilight, saying in a really fast paced, her eyes lit up in awe, "HIIT'SREALLYNICETOMEETYOUINPERSON!COULDIPLEASEGETANAUTOGRAPH"?!

Twilght giggled at the sight of the Rock ambassador's excited facial expression, saying, "Nice to meet ya, you eager whippersnapper. I'll write up somethin' for ya later, k'ay"?

Val squealed excitedly before her eyes caught the confused/surprised looks of the other ambassadors, prompting Val to point out, "What? It's not everyday that I get to meet a badass explorer who's defied death; give me a break."

Laguna chuckled while playfully rolling her eyes before she introduced her mom to Aggie, saying, "And this is Aggie, the Troll Kingdom's Master of All Music."

Aggie smiled while shaking hands with Twilight, saying, "It's an honor to meet you, Ms. Tidepool."

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well," Twilight replied, adding, "I never thought I'd get to shake hands with another Magic Musical Troll."

Aggie was surprised to hear that Twilight knew about the MMTs, asking curiously, "You know about the Magic Musical Trolls"?

"Know them? I've practically studied up on them while learning about the other Troll tribes during my early days as an explorer," Twilight answered, adding, "Plus, during my travels, I actually met some MMTs who happened to be explorers too; haven't seen them in a long time. Their names were Bernadette and Galileo; we became very good friends and kept in touch before I got captured."

Aggie's jaw dropped in shock, the stunned MMT asking, "Wait, you know my parents"?!

Twilight was now the surprised one, saying, "Wait, your Galileo and Bernadette's child"?

"Yeah," Aggie replied with an excited nod, saying, "My parents are explorers who often travel to the most dangerous regions outside of Harmonious Land looking for unknown plants and creatures, studying them for inspiration for making music and new songs. I didn't know that they met you during their trips"!

Twiligjt grinned, saying, "Well crikey, ain't this even more exciting that one of my kelpcake's mates is also the youngin' of my ol' exploring buds! I can see it firsthand that you have your father's gutsy grace and your mother's beauty; you're a lucky child, you know"?

Agge felt touched by Twilight's kind words, saying, "Awwww, thank you. I'll have to let my parents know that I got to meet you when I write to them again."

Laguna then introduced her mom to the associates, starting to say, "And over here are-,"

However, Stereo quickly interrupted, declaring, "Hi, I'm Stereo, and it is so *imitates airhorn noises* to meet ya, Mrs. T"!

Buckaroo went next, saying, "Howdy, Ms. Tidepool; name's Buckaroo Ringer, Lonesome Flat's and Trollstopia's finest detective."

Melody followed up, saying, "Hiya, I'm Melody Song, nice to meet you"!

Twilight shook hands with each girl, saying, "G'day ya whippersnappers, nice to meet ya"!

The last Troll that was left to be introduced to was McJagger, who was right now feeling excited as he was nervous; his knees shook slightly as he approached her, doing his best to keep a steady composure. He offered a paw out, saying, "Hello, Ms. Tidepool; it's a pleasure to be meeting you face-to-face; Laguna has told me a lot about you."

Twilight smiled and shook hands with the red Funk Troll, saying, "Well, it's a pleasure to be meeting you as well," before she asked Laguna, "Kelpcake, who may this fine gentleman be"?

Laguna took a deep breath and walked over to McJagger, saying as she held hands/paws with him, "Mom, this is McJagger, he's one of my closest friends and...," before adding with a blush, "He's my boyfriend; he was the Troll I was telling you about back in the chamber."

Twilight looked at McJagger, who did his best to show a smile, though it ws nervous than it was natural, before he looked at Laguna, who was a little worried about how her mother might react to the news. To their surprise, Twilight grinned, saying, "Ah, so he's the Troll who's won ya over."

She approached McJagger, saying, "You know, studies have shown that you can tell a lot about a Troll just by the look in their eyes, and the way that they interact with others. And ya know what I see in you"?

"Uh..." McJagger replied unsurely, saying, "What do you see"?

Twilight replied, "I see...a kind-hearted soul, a caring heart who would do anything to help a friend or loved one out, regardless of what may be."

She then looked back at her daughter before asking McJagger, "You treat her well"?

"Only like the princess that she is, ma'am," McJagger answered while nodding.

"And you love her," Twilight asked.

"With my heart and soul; I'd die for her if I had to," McJagger responded while patting his chest.

The answer seemed to make Twilight smile more, the middle-aged Techno stating, "Then, that's all the proof I need to see firsthand; welcome to the family, son."

Laguna's face heated up in embarrassment, shouting, "Mom, he's not your son"!

"Well, he'll be my son-in-law soon once ya both hitch up and marry," Twilight answered back jokingly, which only made Laguna groan in embarrassment while McJagger stood there, cheeks flushing pink, both nervous as he was relieved that Twilight approved of him.

"Oh, Twilight is gonna have SO much fun messing with them both," Barb commented with a chuckle.

"Welcome to the club, Laguna; it only gets crazier from here," Aggie told Laguna with a chuckle, knowing from experience how embarrassing parents can sometimes be when they fawn over how sweet their child's dating relationship can be.

Trollex came over and patted McJagger's side, saying to him, "Don't worry; it gets easier the more you know about your future in-laws."

"Why does that somehow not make me feel any less flustered about it," McJagger questioned the Techo king, who gave an unsure shrug with a sheepish smile.

Twilight then interrupted the moment, saying, "Well, mates, as much as I wanna continue this, I think that it'll be a lot better to continue our talk OUTSIDE rather than in here."

"Yeah, note: let's get out of here before that wolverine comes back to try and finish us off," Laguna added on.

"Follow us; we'll show y'all where we came from," Delta suggested as the Trolls all began to walk down the hallway in the same direction that the group had come barreling down during the hairball roll tactic.

---

Together, they made their way through the cave hallways, working their way back towards the cave entrance so they could get out and leave this place.

As they walked, Laguna couldn't help but ask, "Oh, what happened to Senor Ramon? Did you guys run into him while looking for us?"

"Oh, we sure did," Low-Note Jones replied with a chuckle, while Dante said, "And despite his nefarious cocky attitude.."

"He didn't even stand a chance against us," Synth stated proudly.

"McJagger straight up traumatized him, and Ramon almost peed his pants in fright," Val commented while pointing at McJagger.

McJagger blushed in embarrassment, retorting, "I didn't scare him that bad."

"Ya threatened ta tear his throat out ayn' yank ever' fiber ov his bein' out his soul if he dared ta harm ayy hair off Laguna's head," Holly pointed out.

"Which was just as intriguing to watch as it was surprising to see you so..." Trollzart replied, trying to ponder, "What would be the correct word to use"?

"Intense," Barb offered as a possible word choice.

"Driven," Stereo suggested.

"Passionate," Dante brought up.

"Intimidatin'," Buckaroo suggested.

"Scary," Melody offered.

"How about all the above, because that is about the best way we can describe how McJagger looked when he straight-up confronted Senor Ramon," Aggie commented.

McJagger replied back, "Well, could you blame me, guys? I may be a pacifist and a well-known gentle giant, but when it comes to the safety of those I love, I can be tough when I need to."

Twilight snickered, saying, "Right on ya for puttin' him in his place; I wish I could've seen the scared look on that dingo's face; good karma ayn' payback faw what he did ta my daughter and me."

Laguna added, "Imagine how surprised Finn would be to see you act like that; looks like he's rubbed of on you, McJagger."

"Hehehe, you could say it like that," McJagger admitted while scratching the back of his head.

Soon, the Trolls made it to the area where the cave entrance was but were in for a shock when they saw that the cave entrance was blocked, covered by lots of rocks that covered the entrance up.

"Oh no; we're caved in, yo," Synth shouted in distress.

When Quincy saw how the rocks were planted, he theorized, "Ramon must've blocked off the entrance after we chased him out."

"Dangnabbit, we're gonna die in here," Buckaoro shouted in panic, feeling their fear of caves kicking in.

Delta quickly snapped the detective out of it, telling them, "Naw, naw one is gonna die. We just gotta get these rocks out ov the way."

Suddenly, there was a loud THUMP that could be heard from outside the cave, and the Trolls saw the rocks shake as a result of it. Then, there was another THUMP, causing the rocks to shake again.

"Uh...w-w-what is making that THUMP noise," Dante asked nervously.

"Please tell me that is not the wolverine doing this," Laguna commented in concern as Twilight carefully placed her arm protectively around her daughter, set to defend if necessary.

The THUMP noise kept going, and the rocks jumbled and jostled with each THUMP.

Then, in a matter of seconds, the rocks all came falling down, landing on the ground, which caused the Trolls to all quickly jump back to avoid getting hurt by the falling rocks, yet also giving some space in case something was coming into the cave to attack them or worse.

To their surprise, a silhouette was seen standing in the cave entrance, not recognizable at first. But once the figure entered the cave, the light from outside shined down on it, and it revealed to be none other than...

"Lizzy," Melody exclaimed in surprise, seeing her older sister standing there by the cave entrance.

Lizzy, who was brushing dust off her hands, commented as she ran over to them, relieved to see her little sister and the other Trolls safe and sound, "Sorella! Are you and your friends ok"?

"Y-Ye-Yeah, we 're ok," Melody replied as she walked over and intercepted Lizzy, hugging her, as she felt the Pop/Techno Mixed Troll hug back before they both separated, with Melody asking, "What are you doing here? I thought you didn't want to come into the cave 'cause you were scared of facing Ramon and putting yourself in a dangerous situation."

"I couldn't stay away," Lizzy admitted, explaining, "After I left, I couldn't stop thinking about what could happen if you guys got into any danger, and I got worried about you getting hurt. So, I came back, but I stayed hidden, watching the cave entrance and waiting for you guys to come out. Then, I saw Ramon come out and he kicked the side of the cave, causing the rocks to fall down and block the entrance."

"That explains why those rocks were blocking the way in and out," Trollex commented, piecing everything together.

"That purple Spanish trollstard wanted to bury all his secrets here, including us," Twilight bitterly spat out, saying, "He realized that if he couldn't stop us, then he'd make sure no one ever came back to tell of his deeds."

"Where is he now," Aggie asked Lizzy, who replied, "Sadly, he got away before I could get my hands on him, but I couldn't bear to see you guys trapped in there, so, I started moving the rocks, using my tailfins to push some of them away."

"That explains that THUMP sound we heard; it was ya pushin' the rocks out," Delta pieced together.

Lizzy nodded, saying, "I was scared of putting myself in danger, but...I was even more scared about losing my little sister again...and losing you guys, too, to the same trap. I didn't want anyone else to suffer from me acting as a coward and not doing anything about it. So...I decided that I wanted to try...starting with getting you guys out."

Melody smiled in appreciation, hugging Lizzy again while saying, "Thanks so much, sorella; we can't ever thank you enough for your help."

Lizzy felt her emotions kicking in and smiled, hugging Melody close to her.

After both Mixed Trolls then separated from the hug, Laguna came forward, saying, "Thank you, Lizzy, for your aid, and...I owe you an apology for not taking your warning seriously when you were telling my friends about-"

"Hey, hey, it's cool," Lizzy interrupted, saying reassuringly, "I know you really wanted to find your mom, and you'd do anything to see if you could find her, even if it meant putting yourself at risk. You're a lot braver than I am, so I have a lot of respect for that, although you were very...naive for not listening, but given how you were feeling, I can't fully blame you for it."

She then took notice of the middle-aged female Techno Troll standing her behind and gasped, asking, "Is that her.."?

Twilight came forward, saying, "G'day, mate; name's Twilight Tidepool. Nice too meet ya."

Lizzy shook hands with Twilight, looking up at her in surprise before she looked back at Laguna, saying to the anTrollpologist, "Woah, I can see where you got your sense of adventure from. You look so much like her."

"Awww, I appreciate the compliment, mate," Twilight replied, tipping her fedora while saying, "Us Tidepools are known for our sense of adventures; exploring's in our blood."

Laguna then commented, "Now, why don't we all step out of the cave because I know that my mom is really dying for-,"

"FREEDOM," Twilight exclaimed as she ran out of the cave, with everyone else eagerly following her outside.

---

Outside the cave, Twilight embraced the first taste of freedom in 16 years, cheering at the top of her lungs, running around, letting her fins feel the softness of the grass, breathing in the scent of fresh air.

"I'M FREE! FREE! FREE," Twilight declared happily, giggling as carefree as a 6-year-old, embracing the feel of being outside again, enjoying every second of her returned freedom.

She rolled around in the grass, enjoying how it felt as it tickled her skin despite it being dry, cheering, "Oh, how I missed feeling the grass!"!

She scaled up a tree, hanging on one of the branches, saying, "Ahhhh, the scent of fresh air and nature! Beats the grimy scent of cave dirt any day of the week"!

She looked up at the sky, gazing at its endless shades of blue, with puffy white clouds, shouting at the sun, "Hello, you gorgeous sun! We meet again"!

The sun looked down at Twilight and grinned, waving at her.

Twilight took a deep breath in, holding it as long as she could, before breathing back out, letting out a slow exhale, as she declared, "Ahhh, oh crikey, this feels so good"!

As Twilight was embracing her newfound freedom, everyone else was watching her prance and run about, with Essence saying, "Look at that; she looks so happy."

"Who wouldn't be after being freed from 16 years of harsh captivity," Quincy added on.

"Not to mention that she's now reunited with Laguna, so there's the rekindled connection between mother and daughter," Trollzart pointed out.

Laguna watched in awe, feeling nothing but relief and pure joy to see her mother free and back out in the open reins of society, no longer captured and trapped. That smile on her mother's face was all the emotional sincerity and closure that she could ask for, finally able to put her fears and worries to rest.

She walked up to her mother, asking her, "So mom, how does it feel to be back out in the open"?

"Oh kelpcake, it feels so wondrous," Twilight replied happily, letting out a giggle before she brought her daughter into another tight-knit hug while saying, "I never thought I'd ever get to experience the outside world again. And it makes me all the more happier that i get to now be free and be back with my family again."

Laguna smiled and reciprocated the hug, replying, "I feel the same way, mom."

"Awww," everyone commented in awe/joy, feeling the heartwarming vibe of the emotional family reunion scene.

Then, Laguna remembered that her mother still needed to get rehydrated before her skin dried out any more than it already was, commenting as she stepped back, "Note: Mom, now that we're free, you need to get some water to rehydrate before your skin flakes up and falls."

McJagger got an idea for it, saying, "Luckily, I know the perfect solution for instant rehydration," and pulled out a small gadget, sliding it towards where Twilight currently stood.

The gadget didn't do anything at first until it opened up and unfurled, revealing a gigantic sprinkler system with about 14 nozzles that extended like palm tree leaves and were set to spray water. The base of the sprinkler began to grow, making the sprinkler head reach over the top like a tall tree, and then, the head started to spin, making the nozzles move as water began to run, spraying water with a powerful stream out of each nozzle's hose.

"Ooh," everyone said in wonder/curiosity, with Twilight commenting, "Fair dinkum, that is quite a contraption ya have there"!

"It's just my automatic sprinkler shower," McJagger commented, saying, "Great for hot days and use for hydration purposes. Just go right under the nozzles, and they'll get you wet in plenty of intervals that should have you rehydrated in no time."

Twilight walked over to the sprinklers, putting her hand under the water first to get a feel of it. Feeling a douse of water splash her hand and the relieving sensation that came with the skin on her hand becoming rehydrated and feeling much more comfortable convinced Twilight enough to step right under the sprinklers, letting it soak her. While the water showered her, the middle-aged Techno chuckled, running under each nozzle while saying, "Uce, that feels really good"!

"Look at that; Twilight's enjoying running about under the sprinklers," Dante commented intriguingly.

"Ayn' it's doin' ayy good job helpin' huurr rehydrate her skin," Holly pointed out.

Trollex suddenly got a great idea, commenting, "Say, that sprinkler shower looks big enough to let a large crowd of Trolls run through it, right"?

That got the group to look at the sprinklers curiously, with Low-Note Jones saying, "Seems about right, your majesty, though Low-Note Jones fails to see what you are trying to refer to."

Val was the first Troll to seem to catch onto the idea, saying with a playful grin, "Oh wait, I know what he means," before she used her pigtails to pick up Barb, who shouted, "Woah, hey! Thundershock, what are- Ahhhhhhh," as Val brought the Rock queen and herself over to the sprinklers.

Holly followed suit, grabbing Buckaroo by the hand while declaring, "Come on, Bucky," and dragged Buckaroo along with her to the sprinklers, with Buckaroo laughing while shouting, "Wait up, Holls"!

Synth eagerly picked up Dante, holding him up while shouting, "Last one under the sprinklers is a rotten egg, yo," and mimcked airhorn noises while Dante screamed as he got helplessly carried off by the Techno prince towards the sprinklers.

Melody giggled while grabbing Lizzy by the hand and pulling her with her as both Mixed Trolls ran to the sprinklers.

One by one, everyone else followed through, with Trollex taking Aggie with him, Essence and Quincy running together, Stereo riding on Delta's back as the mayor galloped over, and Trollzart riding on Low-Note Jones' back as he ran in shouting, "Coming in hot, babies," and they all joined in with Twilight under the sprinklers, letting the water soak them to the skin, everyone laughing and having fun together.

As Twilight and the other Trolls were getting doused by the sprinklers, McJagger, meanwhile, was carefully wrapping white gauze on Laguna's arm, where the wolverine had bitten her, saying, "This should help keep that wound protected until it can heal up. Your arm is gonna be feeling sore for a few days, but you should be all better in no time."

Laguna inspected the bandage while saying, "Thanks, McJagger," before asking, "And it won't fall off if it gets wet, right"?

"Nope," McJagger responded, explaining, "I used specially-made waterproof gauze; perfect for Techno Trolls and water-dwelling critters."

Laguna smiled, saying, "That's good," before she placed her hands behind her back and said while shuffling her foot, "Again, I'm really sorry about earlier. I know that the way I've acted this entire trip was far from my normal behavior, and I can't excuse myself for acting harsh with everyone, especially you. This has been a nonstop emotional rollercoaster and i shouldn't have let it deter me from acting normally with you guys since you all were doing your best to help me and look out for me, even when I trued pushing you guys away."

McJagger smiled and replied reassuringly, "Hey, it's all good, boo; like we said before, we know that this meant so much to you, and regardless of everything, we still all care a lot about you. you're our friend, and together, we're all family, and nothing's gonna ever stop us from looking out for one another, especially me. I love you, Laguna."

"I love you too, McJagger," Laguna replied, feeling touched by her boyfriend's words as the two came together for a hug, the pair sharing a romantic kiss while doing so.

Then, as McJagger then stepped back from the hug, he stated, "There is one more matter that I do need to address with you," before he reached into the first-aid kit that he had open and lying out on the ground and took out what looked like an immunization booster shot.

Laguna looked at the booster shot and bit her lip nervously, feeling a little antsy, saying, "Oh no, is that really necessary"?

McJagger nodded, saying, "It unfortunately is; you got bit by a wolverine, and it could have probably been carrying something that might make you sick if left untreated. As your boyfriend, and resident medical expert, it's better to be safe than sorry."

Laguna sighed in resignation, knowing McJagger made a very solid point when it came to medicine, and as much as she wasn't a fan of receiving vaccines, she wasn't a fan of getting sick either. So, she lifted up her other arm, the one that didn't get injured, and commented while shutting her eyes and turning her head away, not wanting to see it, "Just please get it over with as fast as possible."

McJagger chuckled softly before saying, as he held her lifted-up arm gently, using a cotton ball to put a small dose of rubbing alcohol on where he was gonna deliver the shot, and gave her a reassuring smile, "While I can't really promise speed, I'll try to be as efficient with it as possible."

After placing the cotton ball in a small empty corner of his first-aid kit so it could be properly disposed of later, he used his other paw to hold onto the booster shot and opened the cap, exposing the average-length needle. He then slowly brought it near Laguna's arm and administered the needle, earning a small whimper from Laguna, who felt it poke through her skin.

Once McJagger pushed the nozzle down to deliver the medicine, he took it out, placed the cap back on the booster shot, and placed it in a small metallic container labeled "Hazardous Waste" so he could properly dispose of it later, adding the cotton ball he used earlier along with it.

Once the vaccination was taken care of, he took out a neon green band-aid and placed it onto Laguna's arm, where he had administered the shot, saying, "There we go; that wasn't so bad now, was it"?

Laguna looked at the band-aid on her arm before backing up at McJagger, responding with a smug grin, "Easy for you to say when you're the one delivering it and not receiving it."

Both Trolls chuckled for a bit before McJagger caught eye of Laguna's scrunchy, which was still on her wrist, and he commented while gently running his paw through her hair, "You know, you should wear your hair down more often, it looks really pretty like this."

Laguna blushed in response but leaned into his touch, letting the red Funk Troll gently rake his paw through her hair, combing it down as the pair locked lips again, nuzzling noses during their kiss.

However, the moment got interrupted when they heard Barb shouting, "Get a room, you two"!

"Barb, that is so inappropriate to say," Melody's voice shouted back in response, prompting the couple to turn and see that everyone had stepped out of the sprinklers and were currently in different stages of drying off, either slightly wet or dripping to the bone, watching them in awe.

McJagger and Laguna both flushed pink, but they didn't seem to mind as they both chuckled together, with McJagger replying back, "It's still too early for that yet, Barb."

Laguna then saw her mom coming out, and while she was soaked to the skin and dripping like crazy, the sprinklers had done a marvelous job in helping her rehydrate; her skin no longer faded or looked white as it now looked clear, vibrant, and was brimming with its light purple color tone. She asked her, "How are you feeling, mom? Did you get plenty of water"?

Twilight responded while wringing her hair out of excess water, "I feel real ripper, kelpcake; that sprinkler did wonders in helping me rehydrate. I feel re-energeized, ready to take on the world again"!

Suddenly, Twilight felt her stomach rumble, which prompted her to hold her stomach and comment, "I also feel quite hungry; that cookie didn't last too long in keeping me full."

"You should eat something, Mrs. Tidepool," McJagger suggested, saying while quickly giving her a short medicinal examination, "While you look to be almost fully recovered, you are still malnourished and slightly underweight. You need some food to get properly nourished, or else you might faint or get sick."

Lizzy pulled out a plump red cheery from her hair, saying, "I got an extra Cherry Flavor Berry if you want it."

Holly fished out a fresh blueberry pie from her hair, saying, "Ay got ayy pie if ya want it too, Mrs. Tidepool."

"How about some cupcake a la splode," Val offered while pulling out a cupcake a la splode from behind her back.

"Here, yo, take my seaweed and quinoa salad; it'll give ya energy," Synth offered while pulling out a container that had a delicious quinoa and seaweed salad with grilled salmon and kelp-flavored croutons inside.

Twilight looked at the different food options, feeling a little unsure, saying, "Wow, mates; everything looks so good, I don't know what to pick."

"Eat as much as you need to, Mrs. Tidepool; what matters most is that you regain your strength and that you get well," Trollzart reassured everyone, everyone nodding in agreement to the statement.

Twilight couldn't help but feel deeply appreciative for everything that Laguna's friends were doing to help her; it warmed her heart seeing such kindness and generosity that still resided in Troll society today. She decided first to eat Holly's pie, accepting the pie tin with the blueberry pie inside it as Holly gave her a fork, and the middle-aged Techno began to eat the pie.

---

Laguna, while she retired her hair back up into its signature lower ponytail, watched her mother eat as she felt relief knowing her mother was gonna be alright. However, that realization also gave way to a new question coming into her mind: now that her mother was freed...what was she gonna do next? Would her mother return home, or would she continue her career as an explorer? With that thought came now new concerns and worries about what her mother would decide to do and what might come from it depending on which choice she makes. It left the anTrollpologist pondering about what the future would be like if her mother either returned home or if she returned back to her adventuring roots and continued to explore.

She remained in her thinking trance for a while until she heard a voice call to her, saying, "..guna? Laguna? Hey, Earth to Laguna, hello"!

Laguna snapped out of it, shaking her head to regain her senses before she noticed Aggie standing beside her, asking, "What's up? Things ok"?

"Oh, uh, yeah, I'm ok," Laguna replied, saying, "Just...thinking about things is all."

"You must be feeling all sorts of wonder after getting to be with your mother again," Aggie commented, saying, "Think she's gonna be going back to Trollstopia with you or would she might want to go the reef first"?

"I'm not sure," Laguna answered, saying while she looked at her mother, who had finished the pie and the bag of jellybeans, and was now trying Val's cupcake a la splode, which blew up in her mouth as she ate it, "It depends on what my mom will want to do mostly."

Aggie then noticed Laguna's eyes drop slowly into a sort of sad-like gaze, which prompted the MMT to ask, "Hey, you feeling alright? Wanna talk about it"?

Laguna sighed before she answered, turning her head to look at Aggie, "I'm really happy that my mom's back, but...I'm now worried about what she's gonna do next once we go back. Will she want to stay at Trollstopia or will she want to go back to the reef? Will she want to be with us or will she choose to go back to her explorations? I'm worried about what she's gonna choose and how it's gonna affect us."

"She doesn't even know about what happened with my father yet, so there's that concern to worry about if she goes back to Techno Reef. But if she decides to continue exploring, she might end up getting captured again and I might never find her again. Am I stupid or too paranoid to be thinking about this"?

"You're not," Aggie replied, explaining reassuringly, "Look, I can't speak for what choice your mom might make, but what I can say is that if your mother is as you've told us about, is that whatever choice she does make, I know that she's gonna choose whatever she feels is best for her family because that's what she loves the most. All the rare artifacts and treasures in the world can't hold a candle to how much she cares about her family and her children, and that includes your brother Finn and you."

Aggie then said, "You have a right to be worried about your mom, but she also has a right to choose what she wants to do next based on what she feels would be best for her and for you. So, you can be worried, but also trust your mom and see what she decides. After all, your mom seems like the kind of Troll who would support you endlessly with whatever you want to do; wouldn't it be as encouraging to support whatever she decides too"?

Laguna nodded in agreement, saying, "You do raise a valid point."

Aggie added, "If it helps, talk with your mom. Ask her yourself what she wants to do, and you'll see firsthand that the choice she makes will be one that she knows will be best for her future, her family's future, and yours."

Laguna processed Aggie's advice in her mind and began to feel a little better, saying, "I'll talk to her. Thanks, Aggie."

"You're welcome, Laguna, happy to help," Aggie replied, gently punching Laguna's bandaged arm while saying, "You got this," though when she saw Laguna wince and hold her hurt arm, Aggie sheepishly grinned while apologizing, saying, "Oops, sorry."

Meanwhile, Twilight had just finished eating Synth's seaweed salad, placing the container into Synth's hands while saying, "Crikey, I feel full and my stomach feels like a gas tank full to the top."

"How are ya feelin' now that ya gotten ta properly eat something'," Delta asked the middle-aged Techno.

"A lot better now; I feel full of energy and ready to take on whatever comes my way," Twilight replied while doing some air punches.

"That's perfect," McJagger replied, saying, "It's gonna take a little time for your body to regain the weight that you lost during your captivity, but you should be back to normal weight in about a week or so as long as you keep eating proper meals for the time being."

"Understood, doc," Twilight teased playfully before saying, "But in seriousness, I'll be following your advice."

Laguna approached her mother, asking her nervously, "Um, hey, mom? Can I...ask you something"?

Twilight turned her head to face her daughter, saying, "Oh, sure, kelpcake! What's up"?

Laguna bit her lower lip, trying to process the question she had in mind that she wanted to ask her mother, but before she could speak, Holly spoke up with a question, an off-topic question, of her own.

"Uh hey, y'all, what that there in the distance," Holly asked while squinting her eyes, trying to look at something that was in the distance that caught her eye.

Laguna pulled out her binoculars so she could take a closer look at what Holly was looking at.

Way across from where the Trolls were standing by the entrance of the cave was the tall, mighty, and bright Mount Rageous, with its flashy spotlights waving about, the vehicles all driving around in reckless abandon, and all the glimmer and gold one could ever dream of. It appeared to be right behind where the forest resided, about 15 minutes driving distance if one had a car or bus on them.

"Oh, that's Mount Rageous, where Poppy and Branch have gone to rescue Branch's brother: Floyd, though I did not expect we'd be anywhere close to it," Laguna replied while placing her binoculars down and readjusting her glasses.

Holly then replied, "Naw, naw, ay ken see that, but ay was talkin' 'bout THAT," Holly replied while pointing at something that she saw was moving on the mountain.

McJagger pulled out a telescope and took a closer look, eyeing that in the distance, what was moving was Rhonda, the armadillo critter bus, and it seemed to be in hot pursuit of one of the vehicles in the nearby mass of crazy traffic. He gasped, saying, "Hey, isn't that that armadillo bus Rhonda that belongs to John Dory"?

Aggie borrowed McJagger's telescope and took a look, seeing that Rhonda appeared to be chasing a gold floating hovercraft limo that had two green-haired Mount Rageons who were decked in glimmering shoulder pads that had Trolls captured inside of the jewels embedded in them, which only meant one thing.

"It is! It's chasing after Velvet and Veneer, and it looks like they got almost all of Branch's brothers," Aggie exclaimed while giving McJagger back the telescope.

Everyone gasped in shock/concern, with Trollex saying, "Oh no; they must be trying to go save their brothers before those two go out on stage to perform"!

"Well, what are we standing around here for, mates? Crikey, we gotta go help them," Twilight Tidepool exclaimed while readjusting her fedora.

Laguna looked at her mom with concern, asking her, "Are you sure you're up for it, mom? You did just get rescued and rehydrated; wouldn't you want to rest up a bit"?

Twilight looked at her daughter and said with a sincere smile, "I rested up plenty after you and your friends saved me, kelpcake, so now, it's my turn to return the favor and help ya friends out. Besides, you know I'm tough, and as we say, when the going gets tough.."

"A Tidepool gets going," Twilight and Laguna both stated in unison, prompting mother and daughter to break into a snicker.

Seeing Twilight willing to risk it to help, Melody looked over at Lizzy, who had her right arm behind her back, holding her left arm shyly, as she asked her older sister, "How about it, sis? You up for a rescue mission to help save our friends' family"?

Lizzy looked up at Melody, saying sadly, "I wasn't able to save my own family back when they needed me most, and I couldn't save you from disappearing, so how could I help save someone else's family? What if something goes wrong? What if something bad happens"?!

"Well, what if something good happens," Melody quickly pointed out, saying, "Yes, the risks are scary, but sometimes, when it's for someone you care about, taking those risks can be worth it. After all, we risked it as much coming out here to help Laguna save her mom, and you risked it coming out to move those rocks to get us out of the cave; what's to stop us from helping to save Branch's brothers too"?

Lizzy knew that Melody made a good point and stated to herself, "I can't keep running from danger in cowardliness and fear; I gotta face it head on and take those risks, especially to save someone in need," before looking up at Melody and with a determined grin, "If you're willing to risk it, then...I might as well too. Got..room for one more"?

"Of course, sis," Melody replied, happily pulling her older sister into a hug, Lizzy reciprocating it in return.

Lizzy then approached the other Trolls, saying, "I'm coming with you guys; let's go rescue a family."

"Yeah," everyone declared in determination.

"Let's show Velvet and Veneer the power of friendship and harmony," Essence shouted while stomping her left front foot on the ground.

"Yeah," everyone shouted louder, their determination brimming.

"Let's show them what happens when you mess with our big, happy family," Val declared while pounding her hands together.

"Yeah," everyone declared at the top of their lungs.

"Wait, there's only one predicament we have to consider: how are we gonna get over to Mount Rageous? Barb left the Angler Bus back out at bubble Swamp to dry out," Trollzart pointed out, adding, "and we can't proceed fast enough on foot to get there in time to help if they run into trouble."

Suddenly, the ground beneath them began to rumble, with Synth asking, "W-What's going on, yo"?

"Is this an earthquake or did that nasty wolverine learn how ta burrow underground," buckaroo asked as the ground shook vigorously.

Everyone braced for what would come of the sudden rumbling of the ground before Delta saw something coming from the forest brush, shouting, "Wait ayy sec, look there"!

Coming out of the forest was Barb's Angler bus, the vehicle running like its life depended on it before it stopped in front of the Trolls, who were surprised to see that it had found its way to them.

"Oh, my sweet heavy Rock baby," Barb exclaimed as she hugged the front of the bus, nuzzling her cheek into it while saying, "Oh, are we happy to see you"?!

"Uh...is that normal for Barb to do," Lizzy asked in confusion.

"Yeah, this is about a rare instance as it comes; we just roll with it," Melody replied with an unsure shrug.

"Woah-ho-ho, it tracked us down in time to give us a lift," Low-Note Jones declared, adding, "What a perfectly timed occurrence."

"How on Earth did the Angler bus know where we went? Or, more specifically, where we ended up, " McJagger asked in confusion.

Suddenly, Barb noticed the bus's zipper moving, starting to unzip the mouth, which prompted her to step back as everyone watched to see what, or who, was inside the bus. And to their surprise, inside the bus was...

"Hiya, Trolls," Paula greeted them while standing on the bus' tongue, waving her front right paw at them.

"Paula," the group, sans Lizzy, exclaimed in surprise.

Springer then walked up, standing beside his little sister while saying, "And Springer! Surprise," while both kids walked off the tongue of the Angler bus onto the ground.

"What are you two doing here," Quincy asked with a shocked chuckle.

"How did you energetic children find us all the way out here," Trollzart inquired.

Then, the Trolls looked up and saw Pop-Pop walking out of the Angler Bus, much to the group's surprise; the elderly Pop Troll answered, "Well, we found this guy wandering the swamp and figured it belonged ta ya, so we rode it down past the forest path by those statues and wound up finding y'all here."

"You rode the bus and helped bring it all the way to us," Trollex asked in stunned disbelief.

"Of course; figured it might do y'all some assistance on your trip," Pop-Pop added on, chuckling before he stated, "Of course, we would've gotten lost if it hadn't been for our pal in the sky guiding us."

"Your pal in the sky-," Synth asked in confusion before the Trolls heard a large MEOW rain down on them from above.

Everyone looked up and saw that it was none other than Empress Sandtrap, who was currently hovering above them, her wings flapping as she shouted, "You're welcome, by the way"!

"Empress Sandtrap," Melody declared in surprise.

"You helped the bus find its way here as well," Laguna asked in surprise.

Empress Sandtrap nodded, saying, "Yeah; Pop-Pop here ain't exactly the best in directions so when I saw this thing wandering about, I thought that I'd be a "clawsome" GPS system to help guide it."

"We appreciate you guys helping to bring Barb's bus to us," Essence told the PlanTrolls and the Catgruff empress.

"Hey, just helping out friends; it's what we do," Pop-Pop replied sincerely, with his grandkids and Sandtrap nodding in response.

"You mates are a real kind bunch of whippersnappers; we cant thank ya enough for ya help," Twilight spoke up in gratitude, tipping her fedora towards them.

Springer looked up at Twilight and gasped, saying, "Woah! Are you Laguna's mom that Laguna's told us about"?

Twilight nodded, saying, "Yep; I'm her mum alright, and the proudest mum of my lil' kelpcake."

Paula looked up at Twilight and said, "Woah, Laguna looks just like you! I can see where she gets her spark form"!

Laguna felt her cheeks flush in slight embarrassment but appreciated the compliment.

"The squirts are right, and we're happy that you got found safe and alive," Sandtrap mentioned, adding, "Laguna's told us a lot about you."

"Did she now," Twilight asked, shooting Laguna a playful eyebrow raise, which only made her daughter feel more flustered, as Pop-Pop added, "Yes, she's been wanting to make sure you were safe; she cares a lot about ya, ya know, as any good daughter would. You travel safely now, ya here"?

"I hear ya, and I will, mates," Twilight replied as Laguna then stepped forward and said as the Trolls began to board the Angler bus, "And thank you guys again for helping us on our journey; your aid on our trip is deeply appreciated, we hope that we get to see you guys again soon."

"Come visit the desert anytime; my Catgruff clan will greet you warmly," Empress Sandtrap replied.

"And y'all know you can swing by the PlanTroll farm any time ya want," Pop-Pop added on.

Laguna nodded in acknowledgment before she and her mother joined the rest of her friends in boarding onto the Angler bus.

Once everyone was on, the zipper mouth closed up, shutting tight, and the angler bus was on its way, running towards Mount Rageous, with Empress Sandtrap, Pop-Pop, Springer, and Paula waving the group off, wishing them safe travels.

"Oh golly, I hope we'll be able to get to Mount Rageous in time before something bad happens," Aggie commented nervously.

"I just hope that Branch's brothers will be okay trapped in those gem prisons," Dante added in concern, saying, "They do not look comfortable."

"I hope Floyd will be ok, given he must've been in that thing for so long and is probably feeling all sorts of achy," Stereo added worryingly.

"We'll make it in time, with the help of this guy," Barb declared before she kicked the side wall, shouting, "Step on it, big boy"!

The bus shook, and everyone in the bus got rocked around as the Angler bus ran with all its proud might, helping towards Mount Rageous as fast as its tiny legs could take it, with the Trolls hoping that Poppy and Branch would make it in time to rescue Branch's brothers, and they could arrive in time to help them.