When Willow woke up in the morning, it smelled of bacon and eggs. She yawned and left the bedroom to see Delta setting the table. Delta grinned at the Pop Troll. "Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," Willow shrugged. She hadn't slept much. She was too worried about her brother and friends to sleep for more than a few hours. "Thanks again for letting me stay here for the night."

"Of course," Delta nodded. She put a plate of bacon and eggs in front of Willow. "Now, why don't you tell me about the whole 'getting eaten' thing you mentioned yesterday?"

Willow sighed and picked at the plate of food. "I guess so. I'm not sure where to start, though."

"How about the beginning?" Delta suggested, sitting down with her plate of food. "Nobody's heard from Pop Trolls in a long time. We thought they went extinct."

"That does explain why we never got any help," Willow muttered thoughtfully. She took a bite of eggs. "So, from what I understand, it was after the Tribes separated. The Pop Tribe was having a party that attracted these giant creatures called the Bergens. For the longest time, it was believed Bergens couldn't ever be happy. They were miserable every day. Eventually, one of the Bergens had the idea to eat a Troll." Delta gasped in concern.

Willow nodded. "Eating the Troll made the Bergen so happy, it told the other Bergens. They started eating Pop Trolls to feel any form of joy." She crossed her arms and leaned against her chair, her eyes facing the floor. "They cut our population down to where everyone could fit in the main Troll Tree before they decided to slow down. They started a new Holiday called Trollstice. It was the only day Trolls were allowed to be eaten. They built Bergen Town around it and put a cage up to keep us in. My people were trapped in the Troll Tree for generations until about twenty-one years ago when we finally escaped the Troll Tree and Trollstice was finally canceled." Willow smiled at Delta. "And as of last year, we no longer have to worry about the Bergens eating us. Queen Poppy made friends with the Bergens and they made it illegal to eat a Troll. We're good friends with them now."

Delta Dawn stared at Willow, her brows furrowed. "So you mean to tell me, the whole Pop Tribe was being used as livestock?"

Willow nodded. "My grandma once told us that even her grandmother grew up in the tree."

"And you all became friends with the things that used to eat you?" Delta asked, incredulous. She chuckled. "You Pop Trolls are crazier than I thought. I don't think I could befriend a giant species that used to eat our people."

Willow laughed. "Yeah, Poppy's pretty special like that." She frowned in concern and crossed her arms. "And now Poppy's dragging my brother on a dangerous, life-threatening mission to stop or befriend Queen Barb. They left me behind to unite the other Troll tribes with no real knowledge of what they were getting into or what the other tribes were like." She nervously grabbed at her hair. "I may never see my brother again."

Delta placed a hand on Willow's shoulder. "Try not to worry about it, hon. Your friends will be back soon." She sighed when Willow didn't acknowledge her words. "I should apologize. I had no idea the Pop Trolls went through so much. I want you to know that despite what Pop Trolls did in the past, we never would have let them be driven to extinction if we had known. Why wouldn't your leaders ask for help?"

"After what Pop did?" Willow asked. "What do you mean? We were told the Tribes separated because they stopped tolerating each other's music."

"You're joking, right?" When Willow tilted her head in response to the question, Delta shook her head and sighed. "Of course not. Sugar, we all got along fine. It was Pop that caused our separation when they stole our strings. When the other Tribes saw what Pop was doing, they grabbed their strings and left. They agreed the best way to keep our music safe was to separate."

"What are you talking about?" Willow furrowed her brows and shook her head. "Pop stole the strings?" She thought back to the harp she saw the string on. "That does explain the harp I saw the string on." She looked up at Delta. "We had no idea. And I don't think anyone alive in Pop Village knows that version of history."

Delta nodded. "That makes sense." She sighed. "All that aside, if we knew you were in danger, we would have been there to help. No Troll deserves to be used for food."

Willow nodded. "Thank you," she said, smiling. It's nice to know we could have had help if one of our leaders had asked." She looked up. For what it's worth, I am sorry it was Pop who caused the big separation to happen in the first place."

Willow narrowed her eyes and flicked an ear at a rumbling sound in the distance. "Someone's coming." Delta and Willow stepped out of Delta's home to see a bunch of beetle bikes and angler buses riding up in the distance.

"Stay back," Delta Dawn told Willow as the vehicles pulled to a stop. She stepped forward when the lead angler bus opened up.

A Troll with faded purple skin and a red mohawk stepped forward. "Mayor Delta of the Country Trolls," the Troll said, grinning. "'Sup? I'm here for your string." She narrowed her eyes towards Willow. "Is that a Pop Troll behind you?" She laughed. "So this is where you were hiding! Queen Poppy, yeah? Guess I didn't need the bounty hunters after all." Willow's eyes narrowed. Bounty hunters? What was this Troll talking about? "Yeah, I'm going to need your string too."

"You want those strings so badly," Delta growled holding her banjo tightly. "You're gonna have to take them from us." Willow nodded and pulled a flail out of her hair.

Delta looked at Willow surprised. "What?" Willow asked, grinning. "You didn't think I left the village without some way to defend myself, did you?" Delta smiled as the two Trolls faced off against the Rock Queen.

Willow learned some very important things about Rock music during their very short fight. Rock music could be used as a weapon. She realized this was likely how they caused the devastation at Symphonyville. It's also a long-range weapon. They couldn't get close to the angler buses to even begin to fight back.

One blast of Queen Barb's guitar and Willow was blown into the wall of the saloon. She grimaced, annoyed as one of the Hard Rock Trolls grabbed her. They brought her over to their queen, who grinned. "Now, where is the Pop string?"

Willow sneered at Queen Barb. "Like I'm going to tell you anything." This queen would never get the Pop string if Willow could help it.

Queen Barb smirked and had her brought into her angler bus. The country Trolls were loaded onto the other buses ready to be taken to Volcano Rock City. "You'll tell me where you hid that string soon enough. We know just what'll make you spill all your secrets." Willow smirked. She could do her worst. Poppy was long gone and the string with her. She couldn't tell her where the string was even if she wanted to.

"This is seriously your worst?" Willow asked incredulously as she sat in what seemed like an isolation room. In hindsight, it made sense. Isolation is a powerful tool amongst Pop Trolls. Especially since they are such social creatures. She supposed the other Troll Tribes were similar in that sense. Unfortunately for them, Willow was used to isolation. She had been living in an underground fear bunker for years. There were times she was alone for days while her brother gathered supplies. "This isn't even a proper isolation room," She grumbled. She could still hear everything going on outside. Branch had a much better one.

Willow sighed, bored. It had been hours since she was locked up. Queen Barb had been checking on her to see if Willow would tell her where the Pop string was. "This is boring!" Willow shouted. Her ears perked up when she heard a thumping on the door. "Hello?" A fuzzy bat eventually made it to the barred window.

Willow grinned, excited. She recognized the little bat. "Hey, little guy! You made it home did you?" She frowned at the glitter stuck in her hair. "Oh, you still have glitter in your hair, don't you?" She grinned and pulled the bat in. "Well, don't you worry. I have something specifically to clean glitter." She pulled a spray bottle out of her hair and sprayed it on the bat before grabbing a comb to get the rest of the glitter out.

"There you go," Willow petted the little bat. "Now you're all nice and clean for your friend." She sat down. "I'm surprised to see you here," she admitted, still petting the bat. Is your Troll nearby?"

"Has anyone seen Debbie?" a voice demanded."Debbie!" The bat in Willow's arms started moving at the voice, so Willow let her go. She watched the little bat fly out the door and hit the Troll that was calling for her. "Debbie!" The Troll said, relieved. "What were you doing with the prisoner? You're all clean?" The door opened to show Queen Barb holding the fuzzy bat. "What did you do to Debbie?" She asked, glaring at her.

"Her name is Debbie?" Willow asked, smiling. "That's adorable!" She pulled her glitter solution out of her hair. "I had my brother make this for me. It makes it easier to wash glitter out."

Queen Barb nodded thoughtfully and petted Debbie. "That's pretty cool." She raised her eyebrow. "So, brother huh? I didn't think you had siblings, Queen Poppy."

Willow froze. Sugar and cupcakes, she was right. Poppy didn't have any siblings. "You're not the Queen. Who are you really?" When Willow refused to answer, Queen Barb smirked. "Not talking? That's fine, I think I know." She pulled out a letter. "Dear Queen Barb, I'm sorry about your bat. I tried to get the glitter off, but Queen Poppy insisted you would like her new look. If your bat is still covered in glitter when we meet, I'll get her clean. Queen Poppy thinks we could all be friends. Hopefully, you won't disappoint her. I'd hate to have to fight you. Respectfully, Willow." The Queen looked up at Willow. "You're Willow, right?" She nodded and stepped out of the isolation room. "Follow me."

Willow narrowed her eyes. "What do you want?" She cautiously stepped out of the room. She followed the Rock Queen through her kingdom. "Where are you taking me?"

"We're about to attack the Funk Trolls," The Queen said grinning. "Soon, we'll have all the strings, except for Pop. And since you won't tell me where the Pop string is, you're no longer of any use." She shrugged. "I could put you in prison with the rest of the Pop Trolls, but that won't be as entertaining. So to thank you for cleaning Debbie, I'm giving you free rein of the castle."

"Why?" Willow asked. It didn't make sense for the Hard Rock Queen to let her free. "What do you gain from this?"

Queen Barb laughed. "I like you," she said. "And it's not like you can do anything. We confiscated all your weapons, remember?" Willow sighed and rolled her eyes. It was true. They had made her take all the weapons out of her hair before putting her in isolation. "You're free to go anywhere," Queen Barb continued. "Check on our prisoners, raid the fridge, anything you want."

"Uh, your Rockness?" one of the rockers said, cautiously. "Not to question you and your ideas, but are you sure it's a good idea to let a Pop Troll wander freely around the castle?"

"Chill out, Riff," The Queen scoffed. "We're taking the strings with us, so it's not like she can do anything with them. Besides, she's one Pop Troll. What's the worst she can do?" The two watched as Willow wandered down the halls of the castle. Riff stared at the Pop Troll, nervous. Queen Barb sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. If it'll make you feel better, we'll hang out for a couple of hours and see what she does. Will that make you feel better?" Riff nodded and the Queen huffed in annoyance. "Fine, whatever. We'll babysit the Pop Troll."

Willow rolled her eyes at her shadows. They weren't very subtle about following her, though she supposed they didn't feel the need to be secretive in their home. During her wanderings, she eventually made it down to the prisons. "Well, she did say I could check on the prisoners, she muttered. She looked around at the prison cells. "Delta?" She called. "Are you in here?'

"Willow?" Delta called walking to the door of her cell. She sighed in relief. "Thank goodness you're okay. I was so worried about you."

Willow smiled in relief. "I'm fine. Are you okay? You fell harder than I did when the music hit us." She looked at the Country Trolls. "Are you all okay?"

Delta nodded. "I'm fine. And don't worry about us, we'll be okay." She looked at another cell, concerned. "I'm not too sure about some of the other Trolls around here though." She looked at Willow. "What are you doing out there anyway? And how did you get out?"

Willow pointed behind her, annoyed. "Barb thinks I'm entertaining, so she's letting me have free rein of the castle." She grinned. "Which means I should be able to help you all!" She looked at Delta. "You said some of the other Trolls are having a hard time? Which ones?"

Delta Dawn pointed her hands to a cell in front of her. "Those little guys are having the hardest time right now. Go see if you can help them out."

Willow nodded and walked over to the cell Delta pointed out. "Hey, dude," Willow said, looking into the cell. "Are you guys doing okay in there?" She looked at the fish-like Trolls. They looked exhausted and dehydrated.

"You're not a Rock Troll. What are you doing out there? Who are you?"

"Never mind all that," Willow said, her eyes narrowed. "You're all dehydrated. Are they not taking care of you?"

"We're prisoners," The Troll snorted. "I don't think they're very concerned about our well-being."

"They should be," Willow raged. She looked at her shadows. "You two! Are you trying to kill them!" She waved her hands to the Troll beside her. "They're aquatic. You have to give them water or they'll die."

Queen Barb scoffed. "They'll be fine. Before long, they'll all be Rock Trolls anyway."

"But before that, they're still..." She looked at the Troll. "I'm sorry, what music are you?"

"We're the Techno Tribe," The Troll said. "I'm King Trollex."

Willow nodded. "They're still Techno Trolls. And even after you do whatever, they'll still be aquatic." she groaned in frustration. "Did you think any of this through?"

"It's not like we can give them water," Queen Barb pointed out. "They're Techno Trolls. That'd just be giving them a weapon."

"They need water!" Willow insisted. "Even if it's a little, they have to have some water to survive. You can't go around killing Trolls with your thoughtlessness. If you do that, you'll lose all these new subjects you're trying to get." She crossed her arms. "And then you can forget about your little, 'One Nation Under Rock' thing."

Queen Barb raised an eyebrow. "Alright." She waved a hand to a nearby guard Troll. "Hey, you go get the Techno Trolls some water. Make sure they stay fully hydrated." She looked at Willow. "Better?" Willow nodded. "Good. Now I have a proposition. You get to make sure the prisoners have what they need to stay comfortable until the 'One Nation Under Rock' Concert. In exchange, you learn everything about being a Rock Troll. And when the time comes, you'll be up front on the stage, with me. What do you think?" When Willow looked at her conflicted, she grinned. "Or, you could just leave all these Trolls to suffer. It's up to you."

Willow frowned. "Fine. I'll learn about being a Rock Troll in exchange for making sure all the Prisoners are safe and comfortable." She held out her hand. "Deal?"

"Deal," Queen Barb shook her hand. She looked at the guard she sent for water. "You do whatever she asks when it comes to keeping the guests comfortable." She faced Willow. "I'm sending one of my best Rockers down here later to teach you everything you need to know about being a Rock Troll. See you in a few hours."

Willow watched as the Rock Queen walked out of the prison with Riff. "Oh Willow," Delta said, worried about the young Pop Troll. "What did you just agree to?"

"What needs to be done to keep the Trolls down here comfortable," Willow said, determined. She could handle some Rock music to keep the Trolls safe, right?

One thing I love about Willow is how much she cares about the Trolls around her, whether she knows them or not. Hopefully this decision doesn't affect her too much. Thanks for reading everyone!