Branch does his best not to wake her when he wakes up. He really does. After all, Poppy's been working overtime for the last few days, she's got to be dead on her feet and the best thing for her is to sleep until she wakes on her own.

He does his best, but he's not a small guy and even when he's trying to engage in stealth mode, it's not enough. Not when Poppy has ears that would hear the grass grow and an unerring ability to know when he's near, an even more unerring ability to discern when he's left their bed.

Branch usually likes that.

Not so much when he hears her padding barefoot towards him, twists around on the couch to see her rubbing bleary eyes, her hair tossed and tangled, wearing an old t-shirt of his that swamps her tiny frame and, as far as Branch can tell, damn all else.

He usually likes that too.

But this isn't about him.

"Where'd you go?" The Pop Queen mumbles and if she looks sleepy, she sounds even more so. Branch would be smiling if he didn't find it so exasperating - the woman is way too stubborn for her own good.

"I thought I'd let you sleep," the teal troll says mildly. "You need it." Poppy scrunches up her nose, which only sends the shadows under her eyes into even sharper relief. "Seriously," he says, "go back to sleep."

Branch already knows what she's going to say before she even says it, so the, "Nope," is not a surprise. Neither is the way she pads over to him, drops down onto the couch beside him and proceeds to snuggle up against him, nestling into his side. His arm goes around her shoulders automatically and he pulls her closer still as she swings her legs up, letting them drape over his knees. Poppy's cheek rubs against the material of his t-shirt and he swears he hears her purr.

"That's better," Poppy mumbles and, seconds later, despite her earlier protest, her breathing is deep and even and she's sound asleep again.

Branch lifts one eyebrow. "Maybe for you," he mutters, although he knows she can't hear him. Shaking his head, Branch reaches with his free arm for the remote control, turns on the television and turns the volume almost all the way down, making himself comfortable for the next couple of hours.

He doesn't mind though. There are worse ways to spend a morning.