Collect Food And Clean Water: Part Two (Fake It Till You Make It)

John Dory stopped by Branch's bunker first, knocking a few times, but to no avail. It didn't seem like Branch was home. He considered for half a second popping down to check, but the thought of stepping foot in that deep underground bunker made his chest feel tight. Branch was most likely in the village with Poppy, so that's where he would go.

He followed the path towards Pop Village, plastering on a confident smile as more and more trolls appeared around him. However, he couldn't help but become increasingly more alert as their numbers grew, feeling his shoulders tense up a bit as he squeezed past them. He tried to force himself to relax, keeping his stride slow and deliberate. It was still weird sometimes, being around all these trolls. He'd been on his own for so long that it just felt… overwhelming. He knew this was the village he grew up in, the community he was a part of, but sometimes, it really just didn't feel like it anymore. He felt more like an outsider than anything, like he was trespassing somewhere he wasn't supposed to be.

And it definitely didn't help now that he knew he was going gray. The change was still subtle, and to most trolls, he probably wouldn't look any different. But he still felt almost ashamed, as if he didn't belong here amongst the color and brightness of the village. Maybe, he never really did… He shook his head, trying to clear the thought from his mind. He had to stay positive. No more stupid, depressing, gray-causing thoughts. He set his jaw in determination, marching forward with a forced bounce in his step. He was just looking for Branch. He just had to find Branch, and then he could leave. It was fine.

Within a few minutes, he found himself in a clearing, with tons of little pop up stands encircling the edge. He slowly weaved his way through the colorful trolls chatting happily to one another and the vendors calling out their products. He felt his eyes drift curiously towards the many different stands, but he quickly drew them away. He had important things to do. He was following his routine. He couldn't afford any distractions. He looked around for Branch's dark, indigo hair, but couldn't see it amongst the large crowd. He let out a huff, just about to leave when suddenly, when a troll practically appeared right in front of him, a wide grin splitting their face.

"Hey there!" The troll said excitedly, holding up some kind of cupcake in front of JD's face. "Want a free sample? They're amazing!"

John Dory immediately took a step back, the troll way too close to him for comfort. He forced a smile on his face, holding up his hands. "Heh, I'm sure they are, thanks, but I–" He felt himself bump up against another troll, who spun around with an almost identical smile on her face.

"Troll-berry muffin?" she asked, holding a platter out. "They're free!"

"No no, I'm uh…" John Dory stammered, shaking his head. He could feel his ears twitching at the rolling tide of voices echoing through the clearing, but he tried to keep the smile on his face. "Thank you, but I'm looking for Branch. Have you seen him around–"

"Meadow-fruit smoothie?" Another troll said, popping up next to him. "Last ones of the season!"

"No, man, but thanks anyways," John Dory replied, starting to feel slightly irritated. He was too tired for this. He spun around, trying to make his way towards the edge of the clearing. But as he did, another vendor appeared in front of him, causing him to jump.

"Cotton candy? Freshy spun!" he said cheerfully, and John Dory had to bite his tongue so he didn't yell.

"No, thank you, I'm busy, so just back off, alright?" he said through gritted teeth, pushing his way past the troll.

"Geez, when'd we get a new village grump?"

John Dory's eyes widened at this, and he spun around with a snarl, eyes blazing. Branch had mentioned that when he was gray, the Pop Trolls would often refer to him as "the village grump." The thought of it made his blood boil, and now here he was, being called the same thing, just because he wanted a little space? John Dory could feel his hands curling into fists as he looked around for the perpetrator, but all the trolls seemed to be going about their business as usual. He slowly felt his anger fade, being replaced with an odd numbness as his hands dropped to his side. He peeked down at his skin, the subtle grayness hanging there like a chill.

It doesn't matter what they think about me, he told himself, his shoulders slumping down. It's not like I was ever going to truly fit in here anyways.

But isn't this supposed to be our home? a small voice seemed to ask. He grimaced, shaking his head as he made his way to the edge of the clearing. He didn't know how to answer that.

Suddenly, John Dory perked up, his ears locking in on a familiar voice. Branch. He immediately felt his shoulders relax a bit, a genuine smile spreading across his face as he spun around, taking off after the sound. He turned the corner around a large tree root, and spotted a group of trolls chatting excitedly. Branch and Queen Poppy and…

"Clay?!" John Dory exclaimed, recognizing his brother's wild lime-green hair. His heart leapt with joyful surprise to see his two little brothers, Poppy, and Viva by their sides. The four trolls turned in surprise at his shout, Clay's face breaking into a grin.

"Yo, JD?!" he called out excitedly as John Dory walked over to him. They quickly did a little handshake that Clay had taught him, ending it with a big hug. John Dory held his brother close, feeling his entire body relax into his touch. "What's up, man? Bitty B said you were off visiting Bruce and Floyd!"

"He was." John Dory pulled back from the hug, looking towards his youngest brother. Branch's face looked slightly surprised, but also troubled, his piercing eyes scanning JD up and down. Suddenly, John Dory felt very self conscious. Did Branch know? Could he see that JD looked just a little bit duller than he was supposed to? The change was so small, he couldn't possibly… could he? No no, Branch couldn't know about this. If he found out John Dory was going gray for no apparent reason… John Dory quickly cleared his throat, forcing himself to speak in the hopes he could distract his intuitive little brother.

"What, you're not happy to see me?" he said obnoxiously. He adjusted his coat, trying to put on the most "John Dory" grin he possibly could. "I couldn't deprive you all of my presence for too long. You might start to miss me or something."

"You were only gone for like, a day," Poppy laughed, but she too had a slightly worried glint in her eyes, something that was uncommon on the constantly cheery troll. That probably wasn't a good sign.

"I just didn't expect you back so soon," Branch replied, his eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Did something happen?"

"What? No, I…" John Dory said, fumbling for a moment before he was able to bring back his bravado. "What can I say? I was just homesick." John Dory shrugged, turning his attention towards Poppy and Viva. "Viva! How's it going? How are things going in the golf course?"

"Eee! They're fantastamazing!" she squealed, hopping up and down on her feet. She rushed forward, grabbing John Dory's hands with a surprisingly strong grip as she gazed excitedly into his eyes. "We just created a new type of minigolf where you play the game on Flyer Bugs! Isn't that cool?!"

"And I wrote up an entire comprehensive rulebook for it," Clay added, his chest puffing up with pride.

"Whoa ho ho! That sounds like fun!" John Dory replied enthusiastically, trying to imagine what that would look like.

Clay's smile fell, and he shook his head. "No no, not fun. It involves a series of rules and interconnecting safety mechanisms–"

"Clay…" Viva groaned, setting her hands on her hips. But she still smiled endearingly at her boyfriend, her eyes shimmering with amusement.

"What?" Clay replied, arms crossing over his chest with a huff. "It does!"

John Dory felt fondness warm his chest as he stared at the two trolls. They really fit together perfectly, like they were made for each other. He was really happy his brother had found someone who brought him so much joy. He deserved it.

"So, what brings you to Pop Village?" JD asked, trying to keep these good vibes going. He winked at Clay, grinning. "Did you miss me too?"

"Pft, you wish," Clay scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Branch and Poppy invited us to come visit. Said you finally got yourself a pod, so I had to come see for myself!"

John Dory felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up a bit, and he snuck a look back at Branch, who's eyes were still locked on him. He could practically see the cogs spinning around in his little brother's head. Uh oh…

"I'm so happy for you, JD!" Clay continued, his eyes sparkling. "I can't wait to see it! Make sure it's up to code and all that. Have you ever heard of pod insurance? I can tell you about it on the way over!"

Double uh oh…

What was he going to do? He couldn't show Clay his ruined pod. But if he didn't, if he refused, Branch would for sure know something was up. And on top of the fact that Branch already looked upset with him, or at the very least worried about him, that was not a good idea. This wasn't how things were supposed to go.

In a brief moment of panic, John Dory reached up into his hair, grabbing the box of food Brandy had given to him earlier. He spun around, shoving it into Branch's arms, his brother's eyes widening in surprise.

"Here!" he said, a little too loudly. "Straight from Brandy's kitchen! She and Bruce say hi, by the way. And Floyd! They all say hi!"

"Uh, thanks?" Branch replied, looking confused.

"Also, I would love to show you the pod, Clay," John Dory continued, hoping his voice didn't sound as tight as he felt. "But I'm afraid I'm about to be very busy." He reached out a hand to Branch, who still looked like he was reeling. "Bitty B, where's your list?"

Branch blinked, bewildered. "My… my what?" he asked, looking even more confused.

"Your list!" John Dory repeated. "Of things you need for the bunker! I know you have one; don't pretend like you don't."

Branch glanced over at Poppy, handing her the box of food before reaching up in his hair, pulling out a small notebook. "Well, of course I do," he replied, sounding unsure. "But I don't see why you would need it."

"Because I am going to go get the stuff for you!" John Dory exclaimed, gesturing to himself dramatically.

"What?" Branch asked, looking completely taken aback before his eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"To thank you for the pod, of course!" John Dory lied easily, trying to ignore the guilt that came with it. It wasn't completely a lie. His brother had spent a lot of time and effort helping him with that pod; the pod John Dory was wasting now due to his own stupid issues. He owed his brother a lot more than just some measly thank you, but for the moment, this would just have to do. He did have ulterior motives for this, but Branch didn't need to know that part. He tried to keep up his cheery demeanor as he continued. "Foraging for this stuff takes up a lot of your day, so let me do it for you! That way you can spend more time with your friends and Queen Poppy here!"

Branch looked worried again, his eyebrows creasing together. "John, I don't want… You don't have to do this. The pod was a gift. And I like foraging; it's actually kind of relaxing sometimes."

"No no, I insist," John Dory answered, trying to keep the desperation out of his voice. "I can help, I want to help, I need…" He felt his resolve wavering. He needed this to work. "Just… let me do this for you, Branch?" He said with a smile, having to bite his tongue to keep from saying 'please.'

Branch scanned his face, his expression conflicted. Poppy stepped forward, brushing her fingertips against his own, and finally, he let out a sigh, holding out the list. "Right... alright," he said softly as John Dory took the list. "But when you get back…" His voice took on a bit of an edge. "I think we should… talk about this."

John Dory felt his stomach sink at those words, but he also felt the smallest sense of relief. He looked down at the list, a smile growing on his face. He had his distraction. If this worked, if he was able to get his colors before coming back, then Branch wouldn't have to be worried about him anymore. It was fine.

Clay looked between the two of them, appearing utterly confused. Then, his eyes widened, and he spun towards Branch, his hair bristling. "Wait, you're just going to let him go gather food for you? He knows nothing about proper food storage, or how you record and catalog things in your bunker!"

"Um, I'm a survivalist, Clay?" John Dory replied defensively. "I think I know how to gather food."

"Oh yeah?" Clay countered, crossing his arms over his chest. "And I bet you know all about how to prepare it for long term storage too, huh? Have you ever even heard of botulism?"

"That's not a real word," John Dory replied with narrowed eyes, tucking the list in his hair. "You just made that up."

"You see?!" Clay exclaimed, motioning in exasperation towards the older troll. He brought his hand to his chest, shooting a smug look over at John Dory before turning back to Branch. "At least let me go with him so he doesn't kill us all."

John Dory let out an offended scoff, and Branch just shook his head, massaging his forehead as Poppy and Viva giggled. "For the record, I don't need either of you to do this for me," Branch said with a huff. "We could just go do something fun."

"Bup bup, Bitty B. I don't do 'fun'," Clay replied, setting a hand on his hip. He wrapped his other arm around John Dory's shoulders. "Now run along. JD and I have got serious work to do."

John Dory felt excitement start to flutter to life in his chest. Clay… wanted to hang out with him? Like, actually hang out with him? His face broke into a grin. A perfect distraction, and he got to hang out with his little brother? It was even more perfect now! This could be just what he needed, even if Clay did drive him up the wall sometimes. He quickly swung his arm up, pulling the taller troll down to his level so he could ruffle his already messy hair. This caused his brother to duck away, mumbling complaints as he brushed it back into place. John Dory turned back to Branch with a smirk.

"Don't you worry, Bitty B. This'll be a breeze. Be back soon, alright?" he assured him, giving his youngest brother a thumbs up.

Branch's face was still creased with concern, but he nodded. "Yeah, sure. I'll see you in a bit then, I guess," he replied, looking hesitant. He let out a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck before turning to talk in a hushed voice to Poppy. John Dory didn't like seeing the look of worry on his brother's face, but it would all be ok. John Dory could fix this. He was going to fix this, and then Branch wouldn't have to worry about him anymore. He shook his head, trying to chase away the tiredness from his mind. He was fine. It'd be fine.

"You coming or what?" He heard Clay call, and John Dory forced himself to take a deep breath before walking after his younger brother. And together, they both walked off into the surrounding forest.