The true wielder of the strings

by Bloodred739

Branch was different. No one had to tell him this. He had always known it. He didn't sing, he didn't dance, and he rarely smiled. But after an encounter with a group of trolls unlike an he'd ever seen, Branch discovers many things. Not just about other trolls, but also himself. He learned that beyond his village, there were things waiting for him. a home, a family, and a destiny.

10. chapter 10: The dust has settled

Poppy and her people fell deathly silent as King Peppy finished his confession. The truth of the six magical strings. The truth about the other five tribes, and their different music and cultures.

But worst of all, the things that her father had done to keep all of it a secret from them.

The princess looked over to Branch, who, thanks to Dr Moonbloom, had his foot painfully twisted back in place, and was glaring at her father. Suddenly, so many questions about him, questions that she never asked him or even herself, were answered. Branch had been working on that bunker since they were both trollings. In that time, not a single one of their elders tried to convince him to live at the orphanage, or at the very least, live at the village. It wasn't because no one wanted to take him in. It was because her father forbade anyone from doing so, out of fear or hatred of what Branch was. A "Poprock" troll.

But Poppy could have forgiven that. It wouldn't have been easy, and she would have needed a lot of time, but she could have done it.

What she couldn't forgive, what she could Never forgive, was what her father had apparently been doing to keep the other tribes a secret from them. Banishing their people from the village. Sending them away from their friends and family. Even doing this to Legsly, one of Poppy's closest friends.

Poppy felt a mix of sadness and rage boiling inside of her. How could her father do this? It went against everything he had ever taught her. She turned to face him, her voice quivering.

"How could you do this, dad?" Poppy said, unsure of what she could say to her father. "After everything you taught me about never abandoning our people. About always putting them first. No troll left behind! You taught me that!"

King Peppy took a deep breath, forcing himself to meet his daughter's eyes. "Poppy, it has always warmed my heart that you've kept that sentiment even after all of these years. It reminds me so much of your mother. But look at it realistically. When I told you the story of our escape, you were a child. Do you truly still believe I was able to save every single troll? That I was actually able to carry all of them on my back all at once? Being a leader is making the decisions that no one else will."

Poppy couldn't believe what she was hearing from her father. The stories he had always told her. The lessons of always putting their people above everything else. About never turning their backs to them, no matter how bad things got. She had taken all of those things to heart. She had lived her life by those lessons..

"But because I made these choices, our people have only ever known peace." King Peppy said as he stepped closer to his daughter. "Because I made these decisions, we are not plagued by things like war, violence, or conflict. The other tribes cannot say the same."

"You've taken people away from their families!" Moonbloom yelled. Soon after, she turned to Smidge. "Granite was your father, Smidge. He was one of the few of us that actively left and explored the forest outside of our village. One day, he left, and didn't come back for almost a year. We thought he died. But then he came back with you. A freshly hatched baby."

As Smidge stood next to her friends and her husband-to-be, the stunned look on her face was replaced with disbelief. She had always known that she was adopted. Her adoptive mother never kept that a secret from her. But the dwarf troll had always been under the impression that her parents met their fate at the hands of the bergens.

"The moment Peppy saw you, and he knew that your mother had to have been a Classical troll, he ordered Granite to follow him." Dr Moonbloom said sadly. "And that was the last time we ever saw him.."

Smidge started to look around. Her eyes jumped from Dr Moonbloom, Poppy, to her friends, and finally to King Peppy as she tried to make sense of all of this. "You… Killed my dad?"

"No! Goodness, no!" King Peppy said. "I would never."

"YES YOU DID, PEPPY!" Dr Moonbloom yelled. "What do you think happens to those people you send away to the forest? To the dark forest filled with dangerous, carnivorous monsters? Their blood is on YOUR hands!"

"We've seen some of the messed up animals that live outside of your village, King Peppy!" Kelley said. "Carnivorous birds, sentient fauna! Some of the flowers even breathe fucking fire! If Legsly hadn't found us, she'd be dead right now!"

"Yeah, man!" Val Thundershock spoke up next to Kelley. "What kinda fucking king does that to one of his own people?"

"One that values peace over all else." King Peppy said to Val, his tone darkening a little as he faced her. "I made these decisions for the greater good of my people. But I don't expect your kind to understand."

"OUR kind!?" Queen Barb said angrily.

"Let's look at the evidence." King Peppy said before pointing over to the motionless body of Chef, and the pile of dark red ash that was once King Gristle. "You all wield that horrible noise that you people call music as a weapon. Something music should never be made into. Not only this, but you take pleasure in the destruction that you all cause. That is not the way trolls are meant to live. Your kind don't even deserve to call yourselves trolls. You're monsters."

That being the last straw, Queen Barb started to pace over to the king, guitar raised like a warhammer, Sid Fret and Riff had to hold her back to stop her from smashing the Pop king's head in. "You've got alotta fucking nerve, you old fucker! We just saved your sorry ass!"

Not finished with his verbal attack, King Peppy turned to Branch's mother, who was standing with her sister, and Thrash. "And don't think I have forgotten what you did, Artina."

Immediately, Artina's eyes shot up and locked onto the Pop king, ready to hear what he had to say.

"We took you in when you crashed into Bergen Town, and we nursed you back to health." Peppy began. "In the time you spent with us, you almost convinced me that you had shed the ways of these savages. But then you showed me your true colors when you attempted to spread that terrible lie about Timber. All because he refused to be mated with you."

Poppy was growing more confused as this went on. Who was Timber? And this woman in front of her father, she had lived in the troll tree before? And what was this lie that her father was talking about?

"You sick fucking piece of shit!" Cindy all but roared as she stomped over to King Peppy, her fists hungry for his face. Before she could get any closer, Artina and Thrash stepped in front of her, preventing her from getting any closer. "You know godsdamn well it wasn't a lie!"

"Those acts of cruelty don't happen among my people. They never have." King Peppy said. "Those things only happen among all of you other trolls!"

As Poppy stood next to Branch and her friends, she felt sick with helplessness. She did not want to believe this. She kept telling herself that this couldn't be true. She could not bring herself to believe that this was the loving and compassionate father that she had always known speaking right now.

Peppy himself looked at Poppy, who was now refusing to meet his eyes.

"Poppy… I…" the king started. "You have to know that I did this for you. For all of our people.."

Slowly, he walked to her, his arms open for a hug. But his daughter angrily turned away from him, and crossed her arms.

"Your Rockness, I think it's time for us to go." Artina said, trying very hard to keep her own anger in check. "We should get these Pop trolls back to their village."

Trying to follow her advisor's lead, Queen Barb took in as deep a breath as she could, and let it out. It had been a long day, but also one worth celebrating. She, the queen of the Rock trolls, had led the charge on Bergen Town, defeated their king, and saved the trolls that were captured. Even with how fucking ungrateful their king apparently was, today would still be a day for the history books. There was also the fact that the Country trolls were still waiting for them at Rock City. This was cause for the sickest rock concert of all time.

"Ready up, rockers." Barb said. "We're outta here."

With a light smile, Artina looked over to Maple Moonbloom. "Why don't you ride with me and my sister, Maple? Let's catch up a little."

"If that's what you want, Artina." Dr Moonbloom said, smiling back at her old friend.

Not even wanting to look at her father anymore, Poppy instead looked at the rest of her people, who were starting to board the anglerbuses. Her arms wrapped around Branch's arm, the princess helped him up, and her friends, led by Branch, made their way to Queen Barb's ship, only for Barb herself to step up in front of them.

"Whoa whoa, what do you think you're doing, Branch?" She asked him. "Those guys aren't riding in my bus."

Barb and Poppy's eyes locked together again, and invisible aura of negative energy swirling around the two. It wasn't hard for Poppy to deduce that by "Those guys", she meant her specifically. Slowly, the princess's arms gripped Branch's arm a little tighter. A silent response that told Barb that she was not going anywhere without Branch.

Queen Barb took this time to fully examine the Pop princess. Quite frankly, she wasn't impressed. Her outfit looked like she just fucked a rainbow. The childishly frilly green hairband, the pukey blue dress with a stupidly huge button on it. She was so… pink. Her fur, her hair, even her damn eyes were pink.

"Queen Barb…" Poppy began, before taking a really deep breath to help expel her negative thoughts. "I'm really thankful that you helped save me and my friends. But with all due respect, I've been really worried about Branch. My friends and I still have a lot of things we wanna ask him."

"I think I at least owe Poppy that, Barb." Branch agreed.

Barb crossed her arms, the tension between her and Poppy palpable. She glanced at Branch, then back at Poppy, contemplating her next move. Finally, she let out a sigh, relenting a little.

"Fine." Barb grumbled. "You're lucky I brought my travel bus for this, Princess Pink." She emphasized the last two words with a hint of mockery.

Poppy smiled, relieved that Barb had agreed, even if it was begrudgingly. She knew she had to make the most of this opportunity to find out more about Branch's journey and what he had been through.

"Thank you, Queen Barb. We won't take up too much space." Poppy replied, her voice filled with gratitude. She tightened her grip on Branch's arm, silently conveying her determination to stick by his side.

"Maybe we can lessen the numbers for you?" Someone said from a distance.

Poppy turned to Cooper, who was still talking to those three "Funk trolls". The two tall ones, and the one that looked just like him. They all approached her with happy smiles on their faces.

"I… I have a brother." Cooper said. "I have parents."

"I'm Prince Darnell. You can call me Prince D." Darnell said. "Prince of Vibe City. Cooper's twin brother."

"And I'm his father." The Funk troll with a beard said. "King Quincy, and this is my wife. Queen Essence."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Princess Poppy." Queen Essence said to the much shorter troll. "We'd like Cooper to come with us. We have so much to show him. So many things he should know about himself."

"I think I need to go too, Poppy." Suki said.

Poppy turned to Suki, who was still with the two "Techno trolls". Quickly, the blue one made his way over to Poppy, the purple female close behind him.

"I'm King Trollex, Princess Poppy." Trollex said to her. "Suki's told us a little bit about you. I'm glad to know my sister's been around so many kind people."

Poppy was uncertain of how to feel about this. She had just gotten all of her friends back. She didn't want them to be separated again. But at the same time, she also knew it would be wrong to attempt to stop them. Both Cooper and Suki had spent a good bit of their childhood in the orphanage, never knowing their blood family, or anything about them. Cooper himself was never actually adopted, and left the orphanage when he was eighteen. She could never attempt to stand in the way of this opportunity for them.

Noticing Poppy's slight inner turmoil, Cooper walked up to her, and raised his upper hand, and extended his pinky for the Pop princess to see. Noticing this as well, Suki did the same as the two waited now on her.

"Pinky promise, Poppy." Cooper started. "We'll always be best friends, no matter how far we go, or what we do."

"I pinky promise too, Poppy." Suki said. "No matter what, we'll see each other again."

Poppy looked at her two friends, touched by their words. They were right to choose this path for themselves, and she understood why they had to do it. Finally freeing Branch's arm from her grip, she extended her own pinky fingers, and intertwined hers with theirs, and made her own promise.

"I pinky promise too, you guys." Poppy replied to her dear friends. "I promise that we'll always be connected, no matter how far away we are from each other. Take this chance to learn about your families and more about yourselves. We'll be home, waiting to throw you guys the biggest party ever."

"Let it be so.." Suki said softly, not wanting to put pressure on the moment by crying.

"Let it be so…" Cooper repeated, looking to be in the same boat as Suki.

With that, the two trolls made their way back to their families, ready to leave with them. As Cooper stepped onto the giant disc board, and Suki stepped onto the anglerbus, Poppy's heart couldn't help but feel a little heavy seeing them prepare to leave.

"You're gonna love Vibe City, bro." Prince Darnell said to his brother. Even with all the pessimism he had over the years, all the doubt that he had that his brother was alive, he was now very much excited by the idea of having him around. "When we get you situated, I'mma bring you to the club with me tonight! Can you sing? Or rap?"

"Now slow down, Darnell." Queen Essence said. "Let's get him to the castle first."

"I have many questions, Princess Suki." Laguna Tidepool said to the DJ with her notebook in hand. The scientist half of her momentarily eclipsing the advisor half of her. "Do you by chance have gills? What is your swimming speed compared to your movement on dry land? What does your diet consist of?"

As the Techno troll continued spewing her long list of questions to the slightly disturbed Suki, Branch led Poppy, Satin, Chenille, Smidge, Biggie, Guy Diamond, Fuzzbert, Milton, and Creek to Barb's anglerbus. As they all started to board, Poppy looked at her father one more time as he boarded a separate bus with the rest of their people. Even now, the rest of their people were giving him dark glares. An aura of unfriendliness that Poppy would usually never condone. But in this instance, she did nothing to stop it. Her father deserved this.

"Branch!" Poppy heard Artina call from the other anglerbus next to there's. "Stay off of your leg. When we get back to Rock City, I'm taking you to the hospital. Just don't put any pressure on it right now, and let Barb and her friends take care of things for you."

Branch looked away as he heard a few snickers from some of the other Rock trolls. As slightly embarrassing as it was, he could not deny that his mother caring so much about his well-being made him smile. It reminded him of how much time they still had to make up for. "I'll be fine, mom."

Poppy's eyes shot wide open. "That's your MOM?"

"Awww, don't worry, Artina." Barb said with a laugh. "We'll take good care of your little baby."

With preparations completely set, all of the ships sealed shut, and began to rise to the air. One by one, the anglerbuses started to fly out of the open window, and into the sky's setting sun, both the Rock, and the Pop trolls ready and eager to leave this dreaded town of monsters behind.

When the last of their ships left, one of Chef's eyes shot open, and quickly darted around the room, making sure that all of the trolls were completely gone. As quickly as her burned and physically devastated body would allow her to, she started to pick herself off of the floor. Her eyes still on the remaining ashes of what was once the king, Chef would be furious if she wasn't in so much pain. All of her years of planning, the time and patience of finding the trolls, the gamble of coming back to Bergen Town. All of it destroyed by those damn Rock trolls.

Knowing full well what any other surviving bergens would do to her if they found her like this, Chef knew that she had to leave town now. Maybe go back to the forest she was living in prior to this.

Before she could mentally plan further, her thoughts were paused by the sound of very familiar growling.

Slowly Chef looked up, freezing in place when she was greeted with the very unwelcoming sight of a little bergen girl with pigtails. The young slave that she was meant to train and control. The muzzle that Chef had placed on her was gone, and there were cut marks on her face from where she presumably cut it off. Her left hand was poorly bandaged with some torn cloth, and In her right hand, there was a bloody, and very sharp-looking kitchen knife. And the look in her eyes told Chef that she did not have friendly intentions in mind.

"Now, now, servant girl…" Chef said, her hands slightly raised. "Now I understand that you may be a little upset, but let's not do anything rash here. That tooth you lost will grow back, and it will be all bette-"

Chef was interrupted by the girl grabbing her raised right hand. Then in one swift movement, she bit off three of her fingers. Chef screamed in agony as she held the open wound, her blood splattering all over herself, and onto the girl, who seemed unphased about what she had just done. Still too weak to get up, the slave grabbed her by her hair, and pulled her close to her face.

"My name is Bridget." Bridget growled at her.

She then raised her knife, and brought it down hard into Chef's chest. And then she stabbed her again, and again, and again, and again.

--

"...A spear? In case he had to.. Kill you?"

As Branch, Poppy, her friends, Barb, and her crew all sat on the many leather couches in the anglerbus, Poppy sat next to Branch, and continued to bombard Branch with question after question, which Branch continued to answer. All the while, Poppy's friends talked with one another about everything they had heard, and all of the things they'd just discovered. The Pop princess's heart became heavier and heavier as she learned all of these dark things about her father.

Even now, it hurt so much for Poppy to hear all of these terrible things about her father. A part of her still wanted to believe that this could not be true. But she saw the anger on Branch's face, and the Rock trolls as her father made his confession. Especially Branch's mother.

"Branch, was this why you never came to my parties?" Poppy asked. "Or why you live so far away from the village? Was it my dad? Did he threaten you? Because I would have never let him hurt you, Branch! And I know that you'd never hurt me, or anyone else in the village!"

"That wasn't it, Poppy." Branch reassured her. "It was… something else."

"What was it, Branch?" Poppy asked again. "I really don't know if I can stand any more secrets today. Please tell me."

Branch looked Poppy in her eyes. If there was a time for him to tell her about his grandmother, now might be the time. Just to get it out of the way so they could focus on all the good that came out of this long day. Looking away from her, Branch started at the beginning. He hoped that this would be the last time he had to tell this story.

As Branch spoke of himself as a child, and Rosiepuff's untimely end, he seemed to grab the attention of all of Poppy's friends, as they all slowly ceased their personal conversations to listen to Branch speak. One by one, their expressions and attitudes shifted to empathetic. Creek and Guy Diamond holding each other as of the story would drag them into a pit of sadness if they didn't.

By the end of it, Poppy's hand was placed over her chest, gripping her dress in both even more pity for her friend, but also a stab of guilt. In all of the time she had known Branch, all she had ever done was try to make him happy. But never once in that time did she ever consider asking him why he wasn't happy. How could she have been so oblivious?

Not sure of what else to do in this moment, Poppy did what she did best. Not wanting Branch or herself to be sad anymore, Poppy wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

"Branch, I'm so sorry." Poppy started. "For everything. For not knowing. For not asking. For not being there for you when you needed me."

Branch shook his head. "Poppy, you don't have to apologize. You didn't know. And besides, you've always been there for me. In all the time I've known you, the only thing you ever did was try to be my friend. I was just too afraid to try to be yours."

Poppy smiled weakly. "I just wish I could have helped you more, Branch. That I could have been there for you in the way you needed me to be."

"It's alright, Poppy." Branch assured her again. "It wasn't your fault."

Poppy's heart warmed at Branch's words. She nuzzled her head into his shoulder.

Queen Barb and Riff were piled up on a leather couch a few feet away from Branch and the Pop runts, watching the pukey display of affection. When Branch was telling them about Pop troll culture and behavior yesterday, she figured that Branch had to have exaggerated at least a little when he talked about how lovey and affectionate they were.

Still watching them, Barb's brow raised as Poppy slowly got up, and pulled a ukulele out of her hair. The queen looked over to Branch, who looked to be just as confused as her.

"There's… one more thing I wanted to do, Branch." Poppy said, her face slightly blushing as she looked away.

After a deep breath, Poppy started to play her ukulele. The tune soft and gentle. The music got the attention of her friends, who again ceased their talking, and focused on the princess. They all recognized the song immediately, and instinctively knew what Poppy was doing. Smidge looked the most excited as she realized that this was the song that Poppy played when they were walking through the troll tunnels.

"Oh my Gah. She's gonna do it." Smidge whispered in the loudest way possible to Milton. "She's gonna do it."

"Oh my." Biggie quietly said as he snuggled Mr Dinkles. "I wasn't sure if we'd ever see it happen."

"Finally." Satin and Chenille Whispered in unison as they tried to hold their squeals in.

Warmed up and ready in mind, body, and soul, Poppy looked Branch in his still-confused eyes, and started to sing as gently and lovingly as she ever had in her life.

(It's All About Us by He Is We)

Take my-

(Crazy Train Solo by Ozzy Osbourne)

Poppy immediately stopped both her playing and singing as she looked over at Queen Barb, who was slamming her guitar as she walked up to her and Branch.

Poppy and her friends went silent as barb came up to her, and continued to play her guitar solo. With a smile, she circled Poppy like a vulture around a dying animal. Poppy hugged her ukulele as she kept turning back to Barb every time she walked behind her. As she expertly played her guitar, Poppy looked down at her fingers as they strummed. They were moving so fast and precisely, that it almost appeared as if Barb had three hands moving on her guitar.

After completing the first verse, Barb slid down over to Branch, smiling over at the very confused Poprock troll as she threw up her hand horns before getting back up, and slowly making her way towards Poppy again, her eyes closed, and her face aimed towards the floor. The moment she got within two feet of the Pop princess again, her eyes shot open as she quickly lifted her head back up, making Poppy jump in surprise when Barb bared her fangs at her.

Pleased with her reaction, Barb closed in on her, with the most intimidating smile that Poppy had ever seen. The moment their noses were almost close enough to touch was when Barb's solo finally came to an end, and she finished playing.

"Don't EVER try to play that sugary shit on my bus." Barb growled at her. " We don't do Pop music here."

Smidge's jaw dropped as she watched the interaction go down. That Barb girl, she had just completely disrupted one of the most sacred troll traditions that there was. You can't.. you can't just do that! And now she was talking down to Poppy, almost threatening her! The princess!

Smidge left Milton's arms and got up from the leather couch, ready to defend Poppy if she had to. However, she stopped in her tracks when she noticed that Poppy was staring down Barb with almost the same amount of intensity. The hostile energy between the two royals making Smidge second guess getting involved. The tension was not going unnoticed by Branch either.

"That wasn't very nice, Queen Barb." Poppy said to her, again trying her best to not look angry. "And bad language makes for bad feelings, y'know?"

"And shitty music makes for shitty rides, runt." Barb said back. "So keep it to yourself."

"Don't call me a runt, please." Poppy just about growled at Barb.

"Hey, let's not fight, guys." Branch said as he slowly got up from the couch. "Barb, Poppy didn't know that- Ahh!"

The aura of anger and negativity disappeared almost completely from both Barb and Poppy as they both watched Branch fall back onto the couch in pain. Immediately, Poppy ran back to him. "Branch! Don't try to get up! Your leg's still hurt!"

Barb huffed as she watched Poppy cater to Branch like he was a little baby. Gods, did the stupid Pop runt have no dignity at all? She was a princess, for fucks sake. You wouldn't catch Barb doing that. No matter how much she might have.. wanted to.

On the other side of the room, Chenille sat beside her sister, in complete and utter disbelief that another troll would ever interrupt a love song. That was so wrong! If Branch was half Rock troll, Chenille could now see where he got his rudeness from.

Satin on the other hand now had her attention on something else. Or more specifically, someone else.

Another couch away, Satin quietly observed the Rock troll with the bandana as he lifted and put away some crates with the other male troll in the beanie. Though it seemed that despite her not-so-great efforts, the troll noticed her looking, and sent a grin her way as he put down the last crate. Quickly, Satin turned away, attempting to make it seem like she had not been looking.

About a moment after, the large troll made his way over, and dropped down onto the couch next to Satin. His arm was lying on the top of the couch, daring itself to fall over the pink one's shoulders.

"Hey there, gorgeous." Sid Fret said with a smile. "The name's Sid Fret."

Slowly, Satin looked up, and met eyes with the Rock troll stranger. A troll almost twice her size with dark gray fur, and wild and messy hair. He wore a black leather vest with metal designs on it, a zebra bandana, and spiked bracelets. But what had Satin's attention the most were his eyes and teeth. As Sid Fret smiled at her, he exposed his fangs for her to see, his dark red pupils seemed to mentally pierce her as they went up and down her body.

"I like your outfit." Sid said. "It hugs that sexy little body of yours in all the right places."

"Oh! I um.. uhh.." Satin tried to put words together as her cheeks flushed. "T-thank you. I.. made it myself."

"Matches up real good with that pink fur of yours." Sid Fret said. "I wonder if you taste as pink as you look."

Satin's eyes almost jumped out of her head as her blush grew redder and redder. Feeling nervous, intimidated, and very confused all at once as Sid Fret smiled at her.

Chenille, who was watching this happen, was looking just as confused as her sister. What was this? Was it some sort of offer of companionship? Was this something that Rock trolls did? Her sister didn't even know this troll!

Getting a cute little gasp out of her, Sid placed his hand on Satin's thigh, and slowly slid his hand up. "How about we go to the back, and find out?"

Satin's heart was beating like a drum as she looked at Sid Fret. As casual as his words were, the look in his eyes told Satin that he was serious. It made her feel trapped. Caught like a troll in a bergen cage. She should feel afraid. Terrified even.

But.. but for some reason, she wasn't. In fact, she felt like she… liked it?

The Pop troll felt so confused. As Satin processed Sid Fret's suggestive words and actions, she found herself experiencing a mix of conflicting emotions. On one hand, she felt nervous, intimidated, and confused by his forwardness and the sudden attention. On the other hand, she felt a strange attraction, a spark of excitement that she couldn't quite understand.

Before Satin could even try to say anything, Chenille grabbed her sister's hand and quickly pulled her away from Sid Fret, surprising both him and Satin.

"Sorry, she's not interested! Buh-bye!" Chenille quickly said before pulling Satin back to their group of friends, who hadn't seen to notice all of that go down.

Laughing a little, Sid Fret extended his hand horns. "Well, maybe next time. See you later, beautiful."

"Um.. bye.. Sid Fret." Satin nervously said.

Back with Smidge and Milton, Smidge, who had calmed down, was again thinking about everything she had learned today. About the deceased father that she never knew. But more, about the possible living mother she still had among the "Classical" trolls.

"Hey, Milton." Smidge said to her boyfriend. "You know that I didn't know about my mom, right? I swear to Gah, I didn't. If I had, I would've told you."

"Smidge, I don't care what you are." Milton said as he took her hand. "I love you for Who you are. It doesn't matter to me who your parents are, or what blood you have. You're still the same strong, brave, and beautiful troll I fell in love with a year ago. And I can't wait to get home, and make you my wife."

Smidge's head shot up. Oh Gah, that was right! In all of the confusion and fighting, she had almost forgotten that Milton proposed to her. that feeling reassured by Milton's words. "Oh my Gah, we're engaged." She said.

Not skipping a beat, Smidge jumped up, grabbed Milton by his shirt, and pulled him into a kiss. Afterwards she turned to her friends with the widest smile she could muster on her face. "Me and Milton are ENGAGED! I'M GETTING MARRIED!" She yelled.

At that, Poppy and her friends all joined together in a big group hug, congratulating Smidge and Milton. The dwarf troll's excitement could not be put into words. To finally be married to this troll that she loved. The ceremony, all of her friends and family gathered to see it. It all made her shudder with joy.

Barb groaned as she watched. Did these trolls just hug about every little thing that happened?

One more time, Barb and Poppy locked eyes as the princess sat beside Branch. But Barb did not falter in the slightest. If a competition for Branch was what this little Pop brat wanted, then Barb would gladly give it to her.

"Poppy, Rock trolls don't really like pop music." Branch said to her. "It might be better if you don't play it here.

Poppy, trying with everything she had to calm herself down, focused herself on Branch again. "It's alright, Branch. We can try again when we get home."

At those words, Branch's expression saddened a little as his eyes fell away from hers.

Catching onto this, Poppy grabbed Branch's hand. "...You're coming back, right?" She asked.

--

Despite what he had led the trolls around him to believe all of his life, Cooper wasn't stupid.

As Cooper walked down the hallway of this grand castle that would now be his home with both his newfound brother and parents, he thought about the day he began this charade when he was a little trolling. He had already been considered to be one of the "different" trolls, which tended to get him enough odd looks. But his animalistic figure and features, the fact that he walked on four legs most of the time, it had made things even harder for him growing up. Some trolls in Pop village were never comfortable being around him when he was a child. Some were even afraid of him, wondering if he was even a troll at all.

So to try to show them that he wasn't a threat or a danger, Cooper played the role of the fool. An idiot that couldn't hurt a fly even if it tried. He'd even make his own voice sound goofy and annoying just to sell it even more. Oddly enough, it worked.

Every day of his life, Cooper kept the act up. Even when it became increasingly difficult over the years. Even when he Really didn't want to, like when he'd be asked a basic question, or given a very simple task. The Pop trolls had wanted him to be a dumb animal, so that's what he showed them..

But seeing this ship, all of the tech these people.. No.. that HIS people had, all of their advancements, it all told Cooper that he didn't have to pretend to be a brainless idiot. He wasn't meant to be, because he was a Funk troll. It was all still so much of a shock to Cooper. Him of all people, royalty.

"You're gonna love your room, sweetheart!" Queen Essence said to Cooper, before bringing her face to his, and nuzzling him as they walked. "We had our best designers renovate it, just for you."

King Quincy watched as this happened, a smile of pure joy on his face seeing the son he had almost given up on ever finding happily cuddling up with his mother.

Cooper happily returned Queen Essence's affection. Living in the Pop trolls orphanage until adulthood, he had never really known the comforts of a loving parent. And he couldn't deny that he enjoyed it.

"By all that is Funk, it's true!" Cooper heard someone say.

Bringing the attention of Cooper and his family, two female Funk trolls. One of them was purple with blue stripes and a yellow bandana. She had gold earrings, a necklace, bracelet, anklet, and even a toe ring. Beside her was a yellow troll with orange stripes and pink pufftails wearing very similar gold jewelry. Both of them seemed very surprised to see Cooper.

With a smile, Prince Darnell walked up to the purple one, kissed her, and then led the two of them up to Cooper. "Lemme introduce you." Prince D said. "This is my boo Rhythm. And this is her sister Blues."

"Oh you Darnell's twin, alright." Rhythm said with a smile. "Welcome home, Prince Cooper."

"Got his looks down right to a T!" Blues said.

Cooper could only blink in response, the reality of it all once again setting in. To be addressed as "Prince", to be looked at by others like he was someone of major importance, it all felt so alien to him. But he supposed it was just something that he'd have to get used to. So for the first time, Cooper let mental guards down, and chose to be himself in front of others.

"It's nice to meet you." Cooper said. Standing up on two legs, Cooper walked forward, front arms extended to bring Blues in for a hug. Immediately, Blues stepped away from the prince with a look of both disturbance and confusion.

"Hoho, slow down, boy. What's all this?" Blues said, arm pushed out to keep Cooper from trying again. "I like the boldness, but how about you buy a lady a drink first?"

King Quincy, watching this happen, was about as confused as Blues was. Wondering what was happening as well. Then he began to recall the little bit of knowledge that his people possessed about Pop trolls before they disappeared. By nature, Pop trolls were extremely affectionate and joyful creatures that made physical displays like this constant, and the norm. His son had been raised by the Pop trolls, and most likely adopted this.

"We don't just hug people we don't know here, son." King Quincy said to Cooper. "It's considered a bit more of an intimate gesture."

Cooper was taken aback, his face flushing with embarrassment. He had not anticipated such a reaction. He was simply trying to be friendly and welcoming, as he had always been used to doing. He quickly retracted his arms, a sheepish smile spreading across his face.

"Heheh, sorry." he stammered, his voice lacking the goofy intonation he'd often used to diffuse awkward situations in the past. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. It's just...hugs are common where I come from. I didn't realize it was different here."

Blues, seeing the sincerity in Cooper's apology and the embarrassment on his face, softened her expression. "No harm done, Prince Cooper." she said, her voice kind. "We'll just have to teach you our ways, won't we?"

Cooper looked at his new family, the embarrassment fading away to be replaced by a warm feeling of belonging. For the first time in his life, he felt like he was where he was supposed to be. And while he had a lot to learn about being a Funk troll, he was eager to start this new chapter in his life. He felt grateful for this chance to truly be himself, no charades or pretenses needed.

And with that, Cooper stepped into his new life, embracing the journey of self-discovery and the chance to be his authentic self. It was a new beginning for him, and he was ready to face it with all the courage and determination he had.

As they continued to walk, Rhythm lightly elbowed her sister with a smug look. "There's one for both of us now."

--

"It's too bad they don't sell alotta Country troll variants, huh momma?" Holly said. "Some of those dresses were so cute."

"Sure, if you like dark and broody." Delta said, rolling her eyes.

After being informed that Kelley and Val had returned to Rock City, Legsly and the four Country trolls that had been keeping her company decided that it was time to make their way back to the castle, and into the waiting room that they had been placed in when Queen Barb and her people left to Bergen Town. Now there again, Legsly was overjoyed to find out that the Rock trolls had succeeded, and won against the bergens. Her friends were saved.

But then it again started to weigh on her that these were the same friends that she would probably never get to see again. She was still banished, after all.

Legsly held her breath. She didn't want to cry anymore. She didn't want anyone feeling bad for her anymore. Ever since King Peppy had sent her into the forest, it felt like all she had done was cry, be afraid, or just feel bad for herself. She didn't want to be this way anymore. She wanted to be strong and brave. Like the Rock trolls. Like Kelley and Val.

Legsly remembered seeing how Val and Kelley reacted when Barb told them that they'd be fighting all of Bergen Town to save the Pop trolls. There wasn't a single hint of fear on Kelley's face, and Val looked downright excited at the thought of a fight. And if they could be that way in the face of danger, Legsly could too, right?

As if called by her thoughts, the guest room door opened, and Kelley walked in, a smile on her face. "There you are, Legsly." She said.

Happy to see her, Legsly got up off the couch she was sitting on, and closed up to Kelley with a hug. Kelley did not return it, but let the smaller troll finish before gently pushing her back arm's length.

Kelley looked down at the shorter troll, her smile softening a bit. "Have you been crying again, Legsly?" She asked, her voice as gentle as it was when they had first met. Legsly shook her head, not trusting herself to speak.

Instead of pushing her further, Kelley just sighed. "Well, c'mon, come with me." She said. "Me and Val wanna talk to you about something."

"Oh, ok." Legsly said. Before exiting through the door, Legsly turned to Holly Darlin and the rest of the Country trolls, and walked over to Holly, who happily gave her a hug goodbye. "Thank you for keeping me company, Holly."

"You stay safe now, Legsly." Holly said as the two cuddled for a moment. "It was really nice meeting you."

With that, Legsly left with Kelley, and the two made their way down the dark hallway. Legsly wondered what Kelley and Val could possibly want to talk to her about. She felt a mix of excitement and nervousness, but tried to keep her emotions in check.

As they walked, the corridor seemed to stretch out indefinitely. The castle was bigger than anything Legsly had ever seen. She glanced at Kelley, noticing the tall, strong figure striding alongside her. Kelley, with her cool and calm demeanor, inspired Legsly. She wanted to be like her, unafraid of the world.

As they walked, Kelley spoke up again. "Legsly, since me and Val both know that you can't go back to Pop village, I wanted to make you an offer."

"What is it?" Legsly asked.

"How about for the time being, you come and stay with us at our apartment?" Kelley asked. "You can work with us as another territorial observer."

Legsly stopped in her tracks, surprised at Kelley's offer. She looked up at the Rock troll, her eyes wide. "Really?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "You... you'd want me to stay with you?"

Kelley nodded, a small smile on her face. "I think with a little bit of time, you'd make a good addition to our team." she said. "And besides, you shouldn't be alone right now. You should at least have someone helping you out."

"I'd... I'd like that," Legsly said finally, her voice steady. "I want to help. I want to be strong, like you and Val."

"Well, good." Kelley said. "Now all you gotta do is convince Val to let you stay too."

"Oh." Legsly said. "That shouldn't be too hard, right?"

"Ehh, I'll be honest with you, Legsly." Kelley said as she scratched the back of her head. "Val wasn't too thrilled about the idea when I brought it up. It's gonna be up to you to convince her to let you stay with us."

Finally, they arrived at a large door at the end of the hallway. Kelley pushed it open, revealing a grand room filled with Rock trolls who had been permitted to immediately return to Rock City, since they were carrying no passengers. All of them celebrating their victory today. Some playing their guitars, some drinking, some eating the trays of food that were splayed out everywhere. Among them, Legsly spotted Val, who was busy talking to a group of trolls with a drink in her hand. Val's expression turned a little dark upon seeing Legsly.

"Ugh, great. You were serious about this." Val said, walking away from the group towards them. "I'm still against this bullshit, Kelley."

Val, we talked about this." Kelley said. "At least hear Legsly out."

Val sighed, taking a sip of her drink. Silently, she waited for the nervous-looking Pop troll to speak up.

Feeling a little deterred by Val's dark expression, Legsly looked away for a moment, but soon willed herself to re-meet the Rock troll's eyes. It was now or never for Legsly to show her that she could be brave. Or at the very least, she could learn to be.

"I… I wanna stay with you guys, Val." Legsly said nervously. "I promise not to be a burden. I wanna help you guys like you helped me. And I wanna learn how to be tough and strong like you guys. Will you please let me stay?"

For a moment, Val said nothing. Instead, she walked closer to Legsly, shortening the distance between them before downing the rest of her drink in one go. Slowly, a smirk grew on her face. "Say "Fuck" for me." Val finally said.

Legsly's eyes widened. "Huh?"

"You heard me." Val said. "Say it, and you can stay with us."

At this, Legsly's eyes shot around the room. From Val, to Kelley, to the floor, to the ceiling. A mental panic followed her. Cursing of any kind in Pop Village was extremely frowned upon. So much so, that no Pop trolls Legsly ever knew cursed.

"Uhh.. uhh.." Legsly stammered. "Umm… "

"C'mon, say it." Val said, her smirk now a full smile. "You can do it. C'mon. Fu- Fu- Fu-..."

"Fuck?" Legsly finally squeaked out. The word felt dirty and unwelcoming on her tongue.

Val let out a deep laugh, finding so much amusement in the fact that Legsly had struggled so much to say a single curse word. Legsly blushed, embarrassment flooding as she noticed that even Kelley was snickering at her a little.

After finally calming down again, Val let out a satisfied sigh, and looked at Legsly. "Alright fine, you can stay with us."

Overjoyed, Legsly smiled widely, and went in on Barb for a hug, in which Val immediately pushed her off. "Don't push it." Val said.

--

"You're gonna come and visit, right?"

"I will. I promise."

Poppy stood with Branch, the rest of the Pop trolls behind her. Now back at their destroyed home, she took this moment to say her farewells to the survivalist. The princess tried her best to hold her emotions in. But she couldn't deny that at this moment, all she wanted to do was hold Branch. To beg him to stay here at the village. To stay with her. But she knew that it just wouldn't be fair to do that. It just wouldn't be right to make Branch feel guilty about wanting to be with his family, and spend time with the mother he never truly knew.

"Just so you know, Princess Poppy, I wouldn't worry about the bergens anymore." Artina said, she and her sister behind Branch. "They might be idiots, but they won't be stupid enough to try to attack you if they think we'll show up to their doorstep. I doubt you'll ever see them here again."

"Thank you, Ms Artina." Poppy said. "I hope we'll get to know each other better too."

"I should be thanking you, Poppy." Artina said with a smile. "I'm glad that at least someone was keeping my son company all this time."

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news here," Cindy suddenly spoke up. "But there's still the issue with the laws. As long as Peppy is still your king, he decides whether or not any of us can set foot in your village."

"I wouldn't worry about that."

Poppy looked behind her to see Cybil, and a few other of the older trolls walking up, all of them looking as angry as they were earlier today. Behind them, her father walked up, looking like he had just ran a marathon. Reluctantly, he met his daughter's eyes, but said nothing.

"We had all come to an agreement on our way here, Poppy." Cybil said, even her usually calm demeanor was showing hints of anger. "It is time for King Peppy to step down, and for you to take your place as queen."

As baffled as she was, before Poppy could say anything, Daima, one of the trolls next to Cybil, exploded in vocular anger.

"WE SHOULD SEND HIM AWAY!" Daima screamed with tears in her eyes. "We should send him out into the forest like he did to my brother!"

In immediate response, Cybil pulled her into a hug. Comforting her, and also keeping her far enough away from Peppy. "Please Daima, calm yourself."

Poppy felt overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events. She had of course always known that she would be queen one day. That she would succeed her father, and lead her people. But this was just never how she saw it happening. It should have been a fun and glorious day when this happened. Not after she had found out all of these things about her father. Not after finding out he had indirectly murdered who knows how many of their people.

"There will be a ceremony, Poppy.." King Peppy said, the usual enthusiasm in his voice all but gone. "A traditional passing of the torch. But right now, it seems I've no choice but to give leadership of our village to you now."

Poppy looked at her father. It seemed for right now, that was it. She was queen now. And as upset as she and the rest of her people were with him, she had one thing she needed to do before they decided what had to happen to Peppy.

"Then here's my first decree as Queen of the Pop trolls." Poppy said as she turned back to Branch, and all of the Rock trolls that stood behind. "From this point on, all trolls are welcome in our village. Whether they're Pop trolls or not. And no one is ever going to get sent away ever again."

Branch smiled, happy to see this settled so quickly. "It's settled then. I'll come see you again soon, Poppy."

Soon, the engines of all the anglerbuses started to fill up as the many Rock trolls started to get back onto their ships. Queen Barb and her crew included. "C'mon, Branch!" The queen called. "We're outta here! It's time to get back to Rock City, and celebrate!"

Seeing now that it was finally time for them to go, Poppy jumped into Branch's arms, and hugged him tightly one more time. "Just remember that you made me a promise, ok?" She said.

Prying herself away from her, Branch waddled over to Barb's bus, avoiding putting any pressure on his leg. All of the Pop trolls watched as the many ships started to lift up into the air. Poppy stood there, watching them leave into the night sky. As much as it hurt to see him leave, Poppy kept her smile up, knowing that she would see him again. Much like Cooper and Suki, Poppy knew that their bond was too strong to be broken by something as simple as distance.

And certainly never with the troll she loved.