The First Time Branch Took Care of Poppy Part 1

Poppy knew when she woke up that morning something didn't feel right. She didn't have her usual energy. She felt very fatigued. It took her awhile to get out of bed, but eventually she mustered as much strength as she could. She showered and dressed herself. The warm steam helped a little, but she still did not feel 100%. She convinced herself that she probably just didn't sleep well the night before and would feel better once she got going. Trying to put on a confident front for her fellow trolls, she opened her pod door and led the morning song.

"Good Morning

Good Morning

We've talked the whole night through

Good Morning

Good Morning to you

Good Morning

Good Morning

It's great to stay up late

Good Morning

Good Morning to you

When the band began to play the stars were shining bright

Now the milkman's on his way

and it's too late to say good night

So, Good Morning

Good Morning

Sun beams will soon smile through

Good Morning

Good Morning to you and you and you and you"

Poppy was trying hard to keep up, but it was starting to get difficult. She felt her voice getting softer by the verse. Every dance move started to take a toll on her body. She needed to stop, but the song was almost over. She could push through! From afar, Floyd was noticing this too. He looked around, but didn't see Branch. He decided to keep a close eye on Poppy until the song was over. As they were hitting the last verse, the Queen felt a sudden dizziness. Her body started feeling warm and she was having a hard time seeing straight. No words were coming out now. No other trolls realized except for Floyd. He rushed to get to her side, but it was too late. Before he could even move a step, Poppy fell backwards from the tree she was standing on. She wasn't screaming or anything, just free falling. He only had a second to react, using his hair he swung from different branches and caught her before she hit the ground.

By then the other trolls realized what was happening and started crowding. Floyd set her down gently on the grass. She was still breathing, but she was unconscious. His adrenaline started to pump, they needed to move fast.

"Someone go find Branch, Dr. Plum, and Peppy! Now!" He shouted.

Every troll scrambled to find them, while Floyd focused on keeping other trolls from getting too close. He was fanning Poppy to give her some air and someone had provided a pillow to support her head. When some trolls started to panic, Floyd got irritated.

"Guys please! We need to be quiet!"

He looked up and saw Branch. He was rushing over, he didn't know what was going on. Only that he needed to come right away. Branch could tell in Floyd's eyes that something was seriously wrong. It was confirmed when he saw his girlfriend lying on the ground. He immediately rushed to her side, he was surprisingly calm despite this sight. Floyd tried to explain what happened, but Branch couldn't hear him over the sound of his own heartbeat. He was too focused on assessing Poppy. She was breathing thankfully, she had a pulse, she had most of her color with the exception of looking pale. When the former king had arrived, he was not as calm. Floyd held him back from getting too close.

"We need to wait for Dr. Plum, she should be the only one getting close."

"Back up! Give Poppy some space!" shouted Dr. Plum.

Dr. Plum took out her stethoscope and listened to Poppy. She also took her vitals. While this was going on, there was still some murmuring amongst the trolls. Branch and Floyd were hugging each other and Peppy was still trying to get to Poppy, but no one would allow it. Dr. Plum wrapped her in a blanket and put a cool compress on Poppy's head and it made her grunt a little. The first response since she fell. Some trolls started to gasp hearing this sound.

"Poppy sweetie, can you hear me?" Dr. Plum spoke softly.

There was another grunt from her. After another assessment, Dr. Plum made an announcement.

"Queen Poppy is going to be ok. Right now, I need to take her to the medical. So everyone please go about your day, it's important we provide some quiet so Poppy can recover properly. Can I have some help transferring her?"

With no hesitation at all, Branch, Floyd, and Peppy rushed in and assisted with carrying her. All three of them tried so hard to keep it together as they carried Poppy. They avoided looking directly at her or they would have lost it. When they made it to the medical pod, they set her down gently on the bed. Dr. Plum started to take over. Starting an IV with fluids and replacing the old blanket with a warm one.

"I've got it from here, I'd like her to rest a little bit before I allow visitors." Dr. Plum explained.

"Is Poppy going to be ok?" Peppy asked. His voice was shaking.

"She will be. I'll give you an update once she is stable."

The three of them nodded and left the pod. They were relieved they were not flooded with other trolls outside. It gave them some time to process everything.

"I-I'm so glad I noticed her." Floyd said.

Branch felt a pang of guilt in his heart. He wasn't there. What would have happened if Floyd hadn't noticed her? He should have been there. There was no point in beating himself up right now, he was grateful she wasn't badly injured.

"I know, she would've been seriously hurt if you didn't catch her. Thank you for looking out for her, Floyd."

"Of course, Branch."

They stayed in silence for a long time. No one knew what to say. They tried to go on with the rest of their day, but it was very difficult. Branch was having a hard time especially. He remembered Poppy being motionless once, when she was wrapped up in spider webs and about to be eaten by tarantulas. This time though, she did not spring back up and he wasn't there to save her. He didn't know what this would mean for her. He spent most of the day in Floyd's pod to distract himself. Floyd tried his best to lighten the mood, but he knew his brother's heart was troubled.

"You and Poppy have been through a lot together huh?"

Branch only nodded.

"She's going to be ok Branch, you heard Dr. Plum."

"It's all my fault." Branch finally said.

"How could it possibly be your fault? You didn't push her out of the tree!"

"No, but I wasn't there. If I had seen how she looked before she went out, maybe I could've talked her into not going and she wouldn't be…" Branch couldn't finish his thought.

"We can't change that now, Branch." Floyd paused. "It feels like there's something else bothering you."

"No there isn't." Branch insisted.

Floyd didn't push anymore. Instead he just made the two of them some coffee. He tried to change the subject about his days as a solo artist. Branch wasn't paying attention though. He was so lost in thought that he accidentally spilled the hot coffee on himself. It burned. Floyd jumped up and scrambled to find some burn cream. Now Branch felt very close to losing his temper. Anger, fear, and guilt was welling up in his heart. Floyd saw this different side of Branch from across the room, but he stayed where he was. It almost looked like Branch was about to have a panic attack. What was he to do? He felt helpless at this moment. Slowly Floyd approached him, it made sense now. Branch had acted calm and collected when he saw Poppy because of the shock. Now it was starting to wear off. Floyd braced himself for any physical response from his brother when he took Branch's arms and helped lower him down to the floor.

"Branch, look at me. Breathe. You have to breathe."

Branch could hear his brother this time. One look in his eyes was all it took. He allowed himself to cry as Floyd took him in for a hug. Floyd held him as long as he needed. His own heart felt like it would break to see Branch upset. Floyd was breathing with Branch to help him calm down. Branch slowly started feeling like himself again and let go of Floyd. His voice was a little shaky, but he finally admitted something else.

"I had a dream about this once."

"About Poppy being hurt?"

"Yes. I wasn't there in the dream just like I wasn't there today."

"Think of all the other times you were Branch. This was bound to happen whether you were there or not. At the end of the day, you showed up for her."

"Thank you for saving her again."

"I'll save her a million times if I have to."

After a while Branch got himself up again and applied the burn cream to his thigh. He groaned in annoyance at the thought it might leave a bit of a scar. Floyd apologized relentlessly about the coffee being hot, but Branch reminded him it was supposed to be. They both jumped at the sound of a knock. It was Peppy.

"She's awake."

Branch sighed so happily and without even thinking hugged Peppy. He realized what he did and backed off at first, but Peppy pulled him right back. Both of them felt the same thing, their girl was going to be ok. They were about to set off for the medical pod, when Branch turned back to Floyd.

"Do you want to come with us?"

"Maybe in a little while. I'll give you guys some privacy. Send her my love though."

There was some silence between the former King and Branch on their walk at first. The two hadn't spent much time together one on one since the Brozone reunion concert.

"How are you holding up Branch?" Peppy asked.

"Um…I'm doing ok. I was a little upset at Floyd's, but once I see her everything will be alright."

"I understand, it was a fright this morning. I lost my cool too."

"She keeps us on our toes doesn't she?"

"Ever since she was a little girl. You know Branch, I know I probably don't say this often, but it really does give me great comfort knowing my daughter is in good hands."

"Oh um…Thank you sir, I get why you don't say it though. You're my girlfriend's father. I'm supposed to be afraid of you."

Peppy gave a hearty laugh at that. "You don't have to be afraid of me. I've liked you for a long time. I see how happy Poppy is when she's with you."

"I'm glad you have that perspective of me."

"Do you ever think of the future Branch?"

"Uh…"

"Sorry I know that's a little forward. I-at the Reunion concert, when you told Poppy you had a small proposal…I thought-"

"Well to be fair sir, I mean Peppy. I didn't ask for your blessing."

"You have it now."

"Wha-What?"

"You have my blessing. Whenever you feel the time is right, you have my blessing to take my daughter's hand in marriage. You have come such a long way and grown into a very mature troll. I know you would make a great King to the village and also make my daughter very happy for the rest of her life."

"Peppy…why are you telling me this now? Not that I'm not happy to hear this, I just didn't expect this talk to be so soon."

"Because Branch, as we witnessed today, life is too short. There's no better time like the present."

"You're not wrong about that."

They walked the rest of the day in silence again before they reached the medical pod. Dr. Plum showed them where Poppy's room was. When they reached the door, both trolls hesitated to go in.

"Do you want to go in first?" Branch asked.

"I think she'll want to see you. I can wait." Peppy said.

Branch nodded. He started to reach toward the door handle, but he couldn't stop thinking about what the situation was going to be behind the door. He wished he paid more attention when Floyd was telling him what happened. All he could gather was she didn't "look right" before she fell. Was she sick? Did she hurt herself before she fell? He reminded himself to breathe again as he turned the handle and entered the room. The first thing he heard was the beeping of monitors. Oh no, was it really this serious? He stepped in and saw indeed Poppy was connected to a monitor to track her vitals and was being provided fluids. Her eyes were closed. He started to worry a little seeing this, was she unconscious again? Should he get Dr. Plum? His feet were struggling to move over to her bedside, but he made it. He lightly touched her arm.

"Poppy?" He whispered.

A grunt came from the pink troll lying in the bed. She opened her eyes and looked around and saw Branch right next to her. He was holding her hand now. She gave a small smile and gave his hand a weak squeeze.

"Branch?" She responded groggily.

He sighed happily. "Yes Poppy it's me. I'm right here."

"Water…"

Branch was confused for a second and realized she was thirsty. He saw the pitcher of water at the bedside table and poured her a cup. He helped her drink by holding the cup for her and positioning the straw in her mouth. She gulped down a few sips until she released the straw from her mouth.

"Is that better?"

She nodded.

"Branch I-why am I here? All I can remember is singing in a tree "

He took a deep breath."You passed out, Poppy."

Her eyes widened. "I-I did?"

"Yes, you passed out and fell from the tree. Floyd caught you before you hit the ground."

The Queen looked mortified. Branch knew from the look on her face that she had no recollection of the event. It worried him a little because she possibly wouldn't remember the root cause for why she passed out. Suddenly her face went from confused to concerned.

Her voice was shaking now. "Can you please get Dr. Plum?"

"Yes of course! Your dad is here too, do you want to see him?"

"Yes…"

Branch got up and found Peppy who went in right away. Branch had to walk around to find Dr. Plum.

"Is everything alright?" Dr. Plum asked.

"I don't know. Poppy wants you right away."

"Ok, I'll be right there."

When Branch came back to Poppy's room she was starting to freak out. Peppy was trying to calm her, but to no avail.

"I've never passed out before! What if something is seriously wrong with me? Is this going to happen again?!" She continued to ramble at 90 miles per hour as she did when she felt anxious about something.

Branch rushed to her side and when he touched her cheek gently. She stopped.

"Poppy, it's ok we're going to figure this out."

At that moment, Dr Plum walked in. "He's right, but it's ok to feel scared. This was a scary thing that happened to you."

"Please Dr. Plum, tell me what happened? I passed out, but why?"

"Poppy, do you remember anything that happened before you blacked out?"

Poppy was on the verge of tears. "I don't know." She blubbered.

"It's ok. I ran some tests to see if I could figure out the cause. Troll flu and other known illnesses in the village were negative. Your bloodwork is normal. You were however showing signs of dehydration so I gave you some fluids. Your vitals have improved since receiving them. Do you feel lightheaded, dizzy, or have blurry vision right now?"

"I just feel tired and so weak. But…now I feel lightheaded again."

"Well your heart rhythm looks good, so no sign of a heart attack."

"A heart attack?!" Branch and Peppy exclaimed.

"I have to rule out all possible causes. Have you been feeling tired for a while Poppy?"

"Yes, come to think of it, I remember this morning I felt more tired than normal. I had a hard time getting out of bed."

"Did you eat breakfast?"

"No. There was no time. It took all my energy to just get out there."

"So…you didn't feel well this morning, is that safe to say?"

Poppy nodded.

"It sounds like you were out there for the morning song. Do you remember singing?"

"Yes, I was in a tree." All of a sudden everything was coming back to her. "Then…everything felt like it was in slow motion. I felt a sudden dizziness, my ears started ringing, and my vision became blurry. Then…everything went black."

"Has there been any change to your routine? Were things a little more chaotic leading up to today?"

"I have been busier the last few days."

"Did you have a busy workload?"

"Yes, but it's nothing I haven't handled before."

"Have you been making sure you're eating and sleeping all right?"

"Yes. I mean, I think so."

"Poppy, I think you may have passed out because you've been overworking yourself."

"But..I'm not overworking myself. I'm not."

"Then can you tell me another possible reason for this morning's events?"

Poppy thought really hard. As much as she hated to admit it, Dr. Plum was right. Poppy had been very busy more than usual this week. She remembered she had skipped meals and she went to bed late almost every night when she was at her own home. When she stayed at Branch's the last few nights, she found herself lying awake. Unable to fall asleep because she couldn't stop thinking of the village. There was something going on everyday, so her mind was thinking of ideas left and right. She remembered feeling overwhelmed last night before falling into an uneasy sleep. Finally she hung her head, realizing there was no other explanation.

"No." She replied.

"It's important to take care of yourself, Poppy. I know being the Queen is a hard job, but you can't take care of others if you take care of yourself. If you don't control your stress then it can lead to more health consequences. You were very lucky this time."

Poppy's head was still hung. She felt very ashamed of herself. She knew she had scared the whole village, her dad, and her boyfriend. Feeling overwhelmed was something she mostly kept to herself, she didn't dare let anyone see it. But now it cost her. She led herself to exhaustion that almost took her life. Dr. Plum read Poppy's expression and left the room to check on another patient while Poppy processed this. Poppy braced herself for a lecture from her Dad and Branch, instead they offered her ever loving support. They hugged her gently, but Poppy felt she was being squeezed to death.

"We're just happy you're still here." Branch assured her.

She sighed. "I know you're trying to help, but I think I need to be alone right now. Can you please send Dr. Plum back in if you find her?"

They hesitated for a moment, but respected her wishes and left the room. To their surprise they were met with Branch's brothers and Viva in the waiting room. All the questions came flying.

"There you guys are! What happened?!"

"We hustled here as fast as we could when we heard!"

"No one will let us back there, can we see her?!"

"I'm so sorry, I tried to stop them."

The shouting continued until Branch put a stop to it. "Guys! Poppy is going to be ok. She has requested to be alone to rest right now."

"She's my sister! I need to see her!" Viva exclaimed.

"Not right now Viva." Branch said firmly.

Viva furrowed her eyebrows. "Says you!"

Peppy intervened. "Viva please listen to Branch, Poppy has requested to be alone."

"Can someone please tell us what in the hair happened?" JD said throwing his hands up.

"I would if everyone would listen!" Branch shouted.

"We came all the way here, and no one's gonna let us see her?!" Clay said.

"Guys, Guys…" Floyd said.

Everyone started talking over one another. There were many arguments going on, no one could keep up. A high pitched whistle pierced their ears. It was Dr. Plum. "I've dealt with family members before, but my god. I know you are all concerned, but let's take a breather. Poppy had a fainting spell this morning, Floyd was there to save her from what could have been a nasty fall. She was very dehydrated. She is awake now, but is frightened from this. What she needs right now is some tender loving care. So before I let anyone else go in, I need everyone to calm down. Understand?"

Everyone nodded.

"Good, I'm going to go talk to her and I'll see how she feels about more visitors. However, if this behavior is not under control. Then I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you all to leave."

Awkward silence filled the room. All of their heads hung when they all took a seat. Finally, Floyd was the first to speak.

"I'm sorry Branch and Peppy, I didn't mean to cause this. I told everyone because I thought-"

"It's ok." Branch reassured. "I think we all have emotions running high today."

"Does Dr. Plum know why Poppy fainted?" JD asked.

"From what we can gather, she's been stressed." Branch said.

"What? Poppy stressed? About what?" Bruce asked.

"Bruce…you have 13 kids and co-run a restaurant. You're telling me you don't get stressed sometimes?" Branch snapped.

"Well-I-. I'm sorry that came out wrong. I just meant I haven't seen Poppy stressed before so I wouldn't have known." Bruce responded.

"I don't think any of us would. Sometimes people show it in different ways." Peppy said.

"In Poppy's case…not eating, not sleeping, and not taking care of herself. Always putting others' needs ahead of her own." said Branch.

"And…we never asked if there's anything she needs." Viva added.

"I know Poppy though, she's always wanted to do things on her own. She's always so determined. All that matters right now is that she's ok and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure she receives TLC." Branch said.

Dr. Plum came back out and was happy to see a change in the environment than earlier.

"Well that's much better, I thought before I let anyone in I would tell everyone what I discussed with Poppy, is that ok?" When everyone nodded she continued. "Poppy has agreed to take it easy for a week, as in complete rest. She is still not in good shape, she's very weak right now. I have agreed to let her leave the medical pod, but I want her in a nice quiet place and someone will need to look after her." She looked at Branch. "Your bunker would be a great place for minimal stimulation. Are you agreeable to that?"

"Yes, of course."

Dr Plum continued. "If you're going to be her caregiver, I need you to make sure she does as I told her. No singing, no dancing, no scrapbooking, no strenuous activities. Just some much needed rest."

"I won't let any of those things happen on my watch." Branch insisted.

"And we'll help too. Anything you need!" Floyd added.

Branch scoffed. "I can handle it guys."

"Another thing, You will have to help her with some things for the first few days like eating, drinking, and bathing. She feels ok now because of the fluids I gave her, but because she won't have them continuously it will flush out of her system. She's going to feel weaker after today." Dr Plum explained.

"Branch, think about this for a minute. Taking care of a significant other can be hard sometimes. You don't have to do this alone, a week is a long time." Bruce said.

"I'm her boyfriend. I can handle this on my own." He snapped. "I'm sorry…I-"

"You don't have to apologize. We get it, but please don't hesitate to tell us if you need help." Floyd assured.

"Yeah, me and Viva could stay in the village and help around there so Poppy doesn't have a million things on her plate when she gets back." Clay said.

"Absolutely!" Viva agreed.

"I can be your supply getter so you don't have to leave her alone to go out." Bruce suggested.

"But how will you know if I need something?" Branch asked.

"Because I'd be there with you." Bruce said.

Branch started to object. "That's ok, I'm good."

"Are you saying none of us would be a good support to Branch?" Floyd added.

"Yeah! Why does it have to be you?" JD argued.

Bruce spoke before anyone else could argue with him. "BECAUSE. I have been through this before. Branch is going to need someone who understands this situation. We can all argue about this all day, but I don't care. I know I'm the suitable choice for this. Branch, I won't step on your toes. I will just be there for emotional support, if you need a break, or if you need me to go out and get things. Once she starts getting some strength back, I promise I will leave you on your own. Ok?"

After a moment of consideration, Branch nodded. "Ok."

"I'll stay with Floyd and we can help in the village too. It's the least we can do." JD said.

"Thank you guys." Branch said with a small smile.

Dr. Plum smiled in approval. "It sounds like we have a plan in place. Are you guys ready to see her now?"

Branch raised his head with confidence. "We're ready."

Surprise! A cliffhanger! Don't be too mad at me, I didn't intend for this to be two parts, but this first part ended up being a lot longer than expected, and I didn't want you guys to wait too long! Lots to unpack here but first, thank you to Crystal Persianfor the idea of this! Her idea was for Poppy to overwork herself to the point of collapsing and Branch taking care of her. I thought it was a great idea given that's what their first fight was about, so it's connecting!

Branch being Branch of course doesn't really know what he's getting himself into, he's stubborn about being the main caregiver for Poppy since he still feels guilty he wasn't there so that's why I added Bruce to the dynamic of helping him since he has a wife. Having all the brothers and Viva in the bunker would be too much so I thought they could help out in other ways!

I am a nurse, so it was fun using my brain on this. Especially when it comes to dealing with family members. Anyone else looking forward to how Branch will bathe or help dress Poppy given they haven't been that intimate yet? That's gonna be fun to write! Also I believe in the troll world passing out is a big deal because their bodies are so tiny compared to us humans so I think it takes a huge toll on them. Anyways, I hope everyone enjoyed and stay tuned for part 2!

~Ash