Branch pulled a blanket out of his hair, neatly unfolded it, brushed rocks and shells aside, and dropped the blanket on the sand. "Ah...finally. Peace and quiet."

Branch checked for any stray rocks under the blanket before he sat on it. He inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of the sea. Branch had traveled quite the distance to get to the sea. Pop Village is nowhere NEAR water, so he had started from four in the morning, his usual time he gets up in the morning, to travel to the beach at five, and, with no interruptions, arrive at the beach at six forty.

Branch had been planning this day for a while now, and he finally got the chance to do it. Every time he tried to go, either Poppy, or other members of the Snack Pack, wanted him to do something. 'Fix this,' and 'fix that,' was all Branch heard most days, at least followed with a please and thank you. They are Trolls after all. Literally the nicest creatures anyone can come by.

Branch lied down on his blanket and closed his eyes. He planned on staying here for at least two hours, just taking in the scent of the salt water and enjoying the sounds, smells, and wind of the beach. After all, he picked a spot most Trolls wouldn't even BOTHER going to. Travelling through the 'scary woods,' as they'd call it, just to get the good spot of sand. This spot has been untouched for decades. The only other Troll he knows who touched it was Grandma Rosiepuff, or one of his brothers, but he can't exactly remember which one. Maybe it was Bruce? Bruce likes surfing, however, Branch was too young to remember if he ever did it before he became a father.

Branch closed his eyes. He silently listened to the drifting water, the whistling of the wind, the little scurries of the Finders-Keepers, and the sound of small hermit crabs clinking their shells. Branch smiled and closed his eyes. This will definitely be the best me day he's ever had, as long as he gets no interruptions.

Branch woke sometime later, unsure what time it was, to something cold touching his foot. He flinched awake and sat up quickly, prepared to strike if necessary. Branch scanned the area, and didn't see anything, so he relaxed a little and put his hands down.

One of the Finders-Keepers crabs started poking at something, which clinked on his claw. He picked it up and started walking away with it over his head. "Hey!" Branch said, reaching for the crab. "Give me that!" Branch snatched the bottle from the Finders-Keepers crab and shot the crab a look. The crab made an angry gesture at him with its claw, then scurried off.

Branch watched it leave, then turned the bottle in his hand. "A bottle?" he asked. He spotted something inside, topped off and sealed with a cork. "Oh, what's this?" he asked. He struggled to pull off the cork, but did manage to pull it off, nearly falling backwards when it popped off. He regained his balance, then tilted the bottle upside down, catching the message that popped out.

"Who the heck would be sending messages in bottles?" Branch asked himself. "It's like a movie!" He ignored the question anyway, and unrolled the message.

'Whoever finds this message, I hope it suits you well,' it read. 'Mysteries are fun, but I can't tell. To start it off, I will give you your first clue. All in all, I really like blue.'

Branch turned the paper over, stared at the blank face, then back around again and read the words over once more. "Who sent me this?" Branch asked. "Is it for me?"

Another bottle drifted into the shore, which he picked up before any Finders-Keepers noticed. He popped the cork off, much quicker the second time, and read the next note.

'This message is from a friend you know well. Hopefully not just a friend, but you can tell.'

"The same rhyme twice," Branch said, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "Wonderful."

'For the blue Troll with purple hair, one that treats me fair.'

"Okay, now what am I looking at?" he asked himself. He hesitated. Blue Troll with purple hair. Okay, that's creepy. The sender knows him well enough to know he likes mysteries and his hair color. Really spooky. Although, it's kind of enthralling. A mystery bottle. Something with blue.

Okay, he might as well try. After all, it is a me day, and nothing better to do on a me day than solve a mystery, right?

"Okay, message, what have you got for me?" Branch asked, pocketing the second message and rereading the first one. "'I really like blue...'" Branch read aloud. "What does that have to do with anything? He paused. He is blue, but the sender already made that clear. It was obviously for him. But what else could they be mentioning. What else could be blue?

The sky. The sky is blue. And so is the water. Water will destroy the message though. Paper doesn't hold together well in water. The sky might be something else though.

Branch held the message to the sky. He shifted to different positions until it lined up with the sun. Branch squinted at the paper, noticing small indents on it. "A hidden message!" he cheered. "Ooh, clever!"

Now Branch was entertained. He could get by the same rhyming if the clues had hidden messages in it. After all, it is a clever trick, something he uses all the time in his diaries.

He shifted the paper around until he could see the message clearly. 'Well done, I give you congrats, applause, cheers. But that's not all, because you need to be near. Follow the clues to find the prize, something you'll like, invested in...uh...something you'll like.'

Okay, well, obviously this Troll isn't good at rhyming outside of songs, but that's beside the point. He needs another clue to lead him to...well...'something he'll like.' Whatever that is. Branch isn't a big fan of many things, but he does enjoy a few. Puzzles, mysteries, escape rooms, being over prepared for everything, protecting his friends, singing, dancing, and well...his family. Maybe it's one of those things. But that would be kind of difficult. Unless the Troll knows him REALLY well, and knows he'll want something he never considered. That could be an option. But who?

Branch continued reading the paper. 'This hidden message is one of a kind. Follow the line, and you will find. Seeking isn't fun, but it always starts with the sun.'

"The sun...?" Branch asked. "The sun..." He put the paper down, to rest his arms, then stared at it. What could the sun possibly mean? The sun couldn't be in on this mystery. That's impossible. Well, after a little more consideration, it couldn't be that hard. After all, he did fist bump the sun. He even broke through the sky and found these weird, baby looking like aliens, that shared a resemblance in appearance to Pop Trolls, and perhaps even Rock Trolls...to a certain extent. Maybe the sun is in on it?

Branch shook off his thoughts and held the paper up again. When he found nothing on the paper, he put it down, then stared at the sun. It smiled, waved, then pointed to the right. Branch cocked his head, looked right, then back at the sun. It pointed down, then right.

Branch looked down, at his feet, then looked right, where he found a line of seashell lining the beach, leading him to the next clue. "Oh, the line! Of course!" Branch said, facepalming himself. "This is so easy, it's annoying," Branch laughed silently.

Branch waved at the sun, then followed the shell line. He stopped where the line ended, then looked at the large rock in front of him. Slid underneath it, enough it's nearly impossible to see, but not enough he could see if he looked hard enough, is another paper. "Interesting," Branch said, reaching for the paper. He tugged at it, the paper unmoving, so he lifted the rock with his hands, struggling to lift it high enough for this hair to grab the paper. He did manage, thankfully, then dropped the rock after. "Someone wants me to work for it!" Branch huffed. He took a few to catch his breath, then read the paper.

"Lovely, wonderful, extraordinary! This puzzle is nothing, for you, short of ordinary! I never doubted your smarts, but perhaps that'll all change in the marts?'

"Oh, great, a shopping trip," Branch sighed. He pocketed the paper and walked towards the open stand shops Pop Village had set up. Every month, Poppy hosts an event where the Pop Trolls set up shopping stands for a open Farmer's Market, as she liked to call it, where the villagers can come in and explore, without worrying about window shopping, and buy things that catch their eye.

Basically, it's just a normal shopping trip with no worry about window shopping. Trolls seem to have a thing against window shopping, like it's against the law or something. Biggie just complains about it being uncivil, but he thinks there's a larger reason behind it. After all, Trolls find it VERY offensive if you regift something.

Branch entered the markets and started scanning for suspicious papers or behavior. If the sun was in on this mystery, why not someone else? The Trolls like helping, even if they don't know what it's for.

Branch came to a stop when he spotted a pink paper, hanging out of the fridge of someone's stand. "Uh, excuse me, do you mind?" Branch asked, motioning towards the fridge. "That's my...paper."

"Oh, right, of course!" the Troll replied. She walked towards he fridge and pulled out the paper, closing the fridge door behind her, and handing it to Branch. "Sorry!" she said.

Branch awkwardly smiled at her, nodded somewhat and walked off with the paper. He unfolded it when he was sure he was safe. 'The paper you found, inside the fridge of a Troll. I give you a smile, you're on a roll! However, you're only halfway there! Just don't tangle your hair!'

Branch stared at the paper with utter confusion. 'Don't tangle your hair?' Troll hair isn't one to get tangled easily and when it does, you get it cut, either by Dr. Moonbloom, or yourself. At least, he cut his own hair by himself. Poppy never either, one, noticed his hair was short, or two, didn't care. Either way, knots in Troll hair is extremely unlikely.

Dr. Moonbloom's it is then.

It took Branch about five minutes to get to Dr. Moonbloom's office on foot, usually they take flying bugs or Caterbusses to get here. He walked into her office, and sighed, seeing her pulling off another one of her bad jokes on another patient. He waited patiently until she was done, then approached her, resisting in himself the urge to walk away and quit.

"Dr. Moonbloom?" Branch asked.

"Branch," she said, stoically.

"Uh...hmm..." Branch said, crossing his arms and resting one hand on his chin. "This might sound SUPER weird, but...I got this mystery bottle message, and it lead me to you. Do you...do you happen to have the next clue?"

"Uh..." Dr. Moonbloom said, looking up, then down at her clipboard, flipping a paper. "Oh, yes, I do," she replied. She pulled a small, folded paper out from her clipboard and handed it to Branch. "Here you go," she said, handing it to him. "Now, did you need a checkup?"

"Nope! I'm good!" Branch replied quickly, walking out of her office.

He sighed of relief and opened the paper. 'Dr. Moonbloom is a tough cookie, but you made it past. The next part calls for you to be fast. I set up a small race, on foot. Just be sure not to lose, or you'll get the boot.' He flipped the paper over to reveal a map leading him to the battle arena, where the Trolls host many competitions through the year. Currently, it's empty, but according to the information in the letter, it's not and is waiting for his arrival to start the race.

Branch dejectedly walked over to the battle arena. He's never been one for racing, but he couldn't just not show up. Besides the fact that his mysterious clues lead him here next, there is a group of Trolls patiently waiting for his arrival to participate in the race so they could go home, possible, or to the market. Either way, whatever the reason, his heart told him to go, even if he didn't like it.

Branch walked up to the Troll waiting at the front gate, showed him the clue, and the Troll let him inside. Branch walked in line with the others, then waited for the signal.

The Troll gave the signal for them to start. Even though Branch expected the race to be easy so he could win, these Trolls weren't going to let him win that way. They were doing it fair, so he had to push it to get further than them and actually win the next clue.

Branch sped up, running the fastest he's ever run in his life, just barely passing the Troll in first with his random boost of speed. Branch panted at the end, gladly accepting his clue, then walked a distance so they couldn't see his clue, or his panting.

'The race was easy, no doubt, but that's not all I have on the list, don't pout.' Branch chuckled silently, then continued on. 'Being big and popular is not all it's cut out to be, but at the rap battle, go and see.'

"Rap Battle now?" Branch cried. "How far do I have to go?" Branch dejectedly trudged to the Rap Battle Suite, where, ever since Poppy quit, Smidge became the new champion. Smidge welcomed him as he walked past, Branch quickly waving at him and walking inside.

Branch scanned around the arena, hoping to avoid eye contact with anyone, or he'll get pulled into the rap battle. Thankfully he did, but just barely long enough for him to find the next letter.

He left in a hurry, terrified that he would be called to rap next. Last time Branch was here, he belted his whole heart and soul to the crowd, and they didn't take it well, as they all just stared at him in complete utter and shock.

'The mystery is almost solved, and you've learned you've been loved. But that's not all, as you have to help DJ at the ball.'

"Help DJ? DJ Suki?" Branch asked. "Poppy's friend?" Well, technically, they're all her friend, but DJ is Poppy's FIRST friend, since birth pretty much. Branch shrugged it off and went to help DJ.

"DJ?" Branch asked, walking up to her, on her bug's back, testing the turntable. "I heard you need help?"

"Oh, yeah, sweet!" DJ cheered. "And I'm supposed to give you something when you're done."

"Well, what is it?" Branch asked, a little impatient. "And you're not going to record me again, are you?"

"What?" DJ asked. "No."

"I hope not, because that was REALLY embarrassing last time!" Branch cried, hugging himself.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry," DJ said. "But if it wasn't for your recording, then your Gen Day would've been ruined."

"Well, actually, it was because you guys all offered me yours," Branch corrected. "Hey, wait a minute-"

"Anyway," DJ said, interrupting Branch, "I need you to do a few things. I need help setting up the lights on the pods and the tree, make sure the fireworks are safe for us to use, and then I need you to patrol for critters that want to eat us."

"That specific," Branch said.

"Well, King Peppy said that its the season for some of our predators, so I just want to be sure we're safe," DJ replied. This is what Branch appreciated about DJ. Even though she is just as much as a Pop Troll as all the others, she one of the few, two of the ones he knows, including himself, who take the most precaution when it comes to partying. The time Chef came in on their anniversary party was one of the few times DJ forgot to take precautions, all because she was busy...and excited.

DJ is prepared to make sure that no one gets hurt in her hosted parties, at least, not killed anyway. DJ is a firm believe that if you didn't get bumped a little, then you weren't having fun. So...as long as no one gets hurt too badly, DJ is totally okay with a little bumps and scrapes.

King Peppy told her that there are a few of their predators out right now, and he gave her valid information. Whimsy Wasps is one of them, and those things are disastrous. Last time, they almost completely destroyed Pop Village, Troll Village at the time, but they're nowhere NEAR as bad as Boring Beetles. Thankfully, those don't come around too often, at least not for the Pop Trolls, who celebrate something nearly every night.

Another one they have to be cautious of is Cuddlepups. The kids are no problem but the parents aren't, and they definitely not too fond of loud sounds. Bergens would be a problem, but they solved that problem.

And, finally, they are moles. Moles like to come around during this time, especially at night, which is drawing closer. Moles aren't too fond of large crowds, but he wouldn't consider Pop Village a 'large' crowd, besides their height, there isn't many of them compared to larger species.

"Alright, fine," Branch said. "I'll take the precautions first, then I'll set up the lights."

"Thank you, Branch!" DJ cheered. "You won't regret it!"

Branch knew he was going to, but he really, REALLY wanted to see what's at the end of the messages. Like...desperately. Besides, the faster he finishes, the quicker he could have the next clue, and DJ wouldn't have to worry about them later.

Branch can be quick and precise with his work. He's been doing it for so long inside his bunker, quickly making repairs, and fixing them so they wouldn't fall apart, like his water pipes for instance. They're a little leaky, but nothing a quick knocking can't do. He usually makes sure he knocks on it a couple of times before he leaves his bunker. They don't mess p too often, but when they do, it gets kinda rough, and he never even notices until they start screaming and spraying water inside his bunker.

DJ gave Branch a sheet of paper that had her ideas for the lights. Branch accepted them and began to get to work right away. He climbed the tree with his hair, being sure not to drop the string of lights in his hand, and start tossing the lights around the large trunk, using a different section of his hair to wrap it around completely then pull it back.

He leaped between different pods to wrap those with the lights, then grabbed onto the large branch of the large tree, and swung himself around it, moving himself downwards to end the lights.

"Oh my gosh, that's perfect!" DJ exclaimed. "Nice job!" Branch hesitated. He was going to take the precautions first, but he got so carried away with her lights he'd completely forgotten!

How, out of anyone, could HE, The Village Protector, as Poppy called him, forget to take precautions. "I'm loosing my edge..." he muttered to himself, shaking his head, and walking towards the fireworks.

The fireworks seems completely harmless, as long as no one stood too close, which he made sure to inform DJ on that, and then took his last job in checking the outside border of Pop Village.

Branch made sure to scan the trees for any Boring Beetles or Whimsy Wasps, which he didn't find any, except for a lone Boring Beetle child, which he shooed away quickly. Once the trees were clear, he jumped down from the trees and started searching the floor for any signs of moles or their tunnels.

He come to a small clearing, where Poppy first left Pop Village to follow after Chef, right before she started singing. Here, there is a small raise in the dirt. "Hmm..." Branch muttered, bending down. He brushed his hand against the dirt softly, pushing some off the small ridge. He brushed some between his fingers, feeling some heat coming from it. His final test was a small sniff to the dirt. "Mole," he said gravely.

Branch quickly stood, scanning for any moles. He didn't find any, unfortunately, but did go back to warn DJ of moles, and told her to keep the party as contained and quiet as physically possible. DJ quickly complied, shooting him a thumbs up as well, then pulled out a small slip of pink paper from her hair. "Here you go!" she said, smiling. "You earned it!"

Branch smiled and accepted it. "Finally!" he cheered. "The last piece!" Branch walked away from DJ a bit, who started getting to work and setting up the snack table. It usually sits outside the edge, near trees, but DJ moved it closer upon his warning.

Branch unfolded the paper and began reading it out loud. "'You helped DJ, and saved the dance, for this next part, please don't prance.' Ugh, these rhymes are so stupid. 'To find the last clue, return to the start. There, you'll find the piece from my heart.' It's corny too!"

Branch tried to ignore the rhyming and the the last sentence and proceeded to go back to the beach, where he started his me day and completely forgot about it. Speaking of, he did leave his blanket there. Maybe, if the Finders-Keepers haven't stolen it, he could grab it.

Branch pocketed the note, just like all the others before, and returned to the beach, where, his blanket was stolen by the Finders-Keepers. He arrived as he saw the corner of it getting carried down into a hole.

As much as he loved that blanket, he figured it was no use fighting them for it, since their claws are worse than their greedy attitudes. Branch sighed, saluted his blanket, facing the hole, then finished returning back to where he was.

By this point, the sun had gone completely down and the moon rose. It was night, so whatever it was, he hoped he wasn't too late for it. Whatever IT was. It couldn't be too big, he doesn't like bit, and he doesn't mind nothing either, but it has to be something, putting him through all that work all day and giving him either obvious clues or ones he had to solve on his own. Not to mention the fact that he had to help DJ set up a party. He didn't mind taking the precautions for her, he would've done it anyway, but setting up the lights was a bit much.

Perhaps all this is symbolic for something? After all, there WAS a lot of light elements involved. The sun, the sky...well, the sky isn't technically light, but it's only blue when it has light, so he counts it. Besides setting up the lights at the party, the beach is also light. It's no fun at night, especially if Finders-Keepers took your blanket.

Branch found another note in a third sealed bottle. He struggled to pull this one open as well, dropping the cork when he did. A Finders-Keepers fought him for it, and won, so he gave up and let him have it.

'Congratulations, I'm out of rhymes, but don't worry about the time! All the clues, you made it through, and now the prize belongs to you. Follow the trail I drew on the map, and don't even think about taking a nap! Once you get to the end, well, you'll see, it'll be lot's of fun, for you and me!'

There is a winking smile drawn at the end of it. This clue seems different than most of the others. Besides the face, it seems a little more...flirtatious? Either these letters are from Poppy...or he has a secret admirer.

He shuddered at that thought. A secret admirer. That's something he's DEFINITELY not ready for. Besides, it'll just be a let down when he lets them go. Branch doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings, although the old him wouldn't have cared.

It depends on the situation, technically. Sometimes, Branch is frank with Poppy. She gets irritated, but Branch knows she likes it. But she likes his playful side of him more. The side he kept hidden for twenty years.

Branch looked back at the letter, to clear the thoughts out of his head. The letter has a terribly drawn map on it, with his current standing at the beach, a Troll figure, which he assumed had to be him, and a line, leading around the cliff face, and to a large, red x, ending at the end of the figure.

Branch chuckled. Well, whoever it is, hopefully Poppy, they can draw better than him. He can barely scrapbook and the Pop Trolls keep all their history, novels, non-fiction and fiction in scrapbooks, so he has a little bit of practicing to do.

Branch carefully followed around the cliff face, being careful not to step in the water. The water appears less like satin at night, but it's obvious to tell what it is, at least, if you're paying attention to it...like Branch is.

Branch slipped on a small, wet pebble, and tumbled into the water. A fish laughed at him, pointing at him with its fin. Branch muttered to himself, standing, and wishing fish couldn't laugh.

He dried out his clothes, by wringing the water out of them, then continued along his way, damp. He muttered to himself, under his breath, about the fish, nearly stumbling on another rock, laughed, pointing at the rock when he didn't, and finished traversing the edge in a better mood.

When he got to the end of the map, there is a large clearing on the beach, surrounded by palm trees, with a large, hollow log in the center of the clearing. The palm trees are decorated with lights, weirdly, and the log has a table cloth on it. There are large, flat rocks on either end of the log.

"Ah," Branch said, a little nervous. This is rather fancy for just anything. Perhaps he does have a secret admirer after him? Maybe he should get out of here?

No. Branch's heart told him to sit at one of the logs and be patient, that it was just Poppy trying to be special for you...for some reason. Well...she can have SOME of the romantic moments, but not all of them.

Branch hesitantly sat on one of the logs. His palms started sweating. What if he needed to run? What if he needed to get out of there? What if-

"Ah, Branch! My man!" Poppy's voice called behind him. Branch exhaled deeply, relieved.

"Oh, thank goodness it's just you, Poppy," Branch sighed.

"Just me?" Poppy asked. "What did you expect?"

"Uh..." Branch said, glancing around. "Nothing." Poppy smiled at him, then sat at the log, on the other rock, across from him. She chuckled. "I'm glad you solved my riddles."

"They weren't really riddles, Poppy," Branch said. "They were too easy."

"Come on," Poppy said. "You had to have struggled with one? Right?"

Branch paused. One of them? Well DJ's was easy. It kinda gave it away. He didn't like the setting up the party bit, but, you gotta admit, she was being pretty clever in helping DJ. It wasn't the last one either. She said she was running out of rhymes so she seemed to have made the last one easy on purpose. "Okay, fine," Branch said, smirking. "It was the first one."

"The one with the sun?" Poppy asked. "I thought that'd be easy!"

"Poppy, I don't talk to the sun!" Branch exclaimed, laughing.

"Okay, okay, I can let it slide."

Cooper came out shortly, wearing a bowtie, a white collar, and the top half of a tail coat. "Good evening," he said, trying to keep appearances. "I'll be your waiter tonight. Is there anything I can get ya?"

Poppy smiled and ordered. Branch had to peek at the menu for a little bit. The menu consists of Branch's favorites, Poppy's favorites, Poppy's snacks, and Branch's snacks. The menu was just a list of their favorites, categorized by ingredients and color, and person. Branch smiled at the work she put into it and gave Cooper his order.

"Of course," Cooper said, trying to create a rich accent but failing. "It'll be out soon."

Branch waited until Cooper walked out of the area, with the menu in his hand, then turned to Poppy, smiling, and confused. "Did you set this up?" he asked.

"Yep!" Poppy replied.

"Why?"

"Well, I wanted to do something special for you," Poppy said. "It's our first anniversary of us dating...so...I wanted to make it special."

Branch choked back tears. "You remembered?" he asked. Poppy smiled gently at him. "Of course I did, Branch. Why wouldn't I? I remember every date!" Branch smiled, sincerely. "Poppy, you're nuts."

Poppy chuckled a little. "I know."

"And I love you for that," Branch continued. Poppy smiled, nearly shocked he'd say that. "You know, no one has ever done anything like this for me before, I mean...put so much effort into something."

"Well, I guess you can cross that off your bucket list, huh?" Poppy teased, nudging Branch.

Even though she teased him, he still appreciated it. Grandma Rosiepuff made sure each of his birthdays were special, but it has never been anywhere near making him choke up like he did. Branch smiled to himself.

"Here you are, madam," Cooper said, bending his head down and sliding a plate off, in front of Poppy. "Give me a moment, Br-uh, sir, and I'll be out with yours."

Cooper returned just as quick as he left and did the same thing for Branch's food. Poppy giggled and curtsied on her rock. "Thank you, kind sir."

Branch smiled. Grandma would be proud of him. He's proud of himself. He picked a good one, and good friends. All her friends knew about her plan and agreed to help, without telling him. Branch stared at Poppy, as she happily talked. Branch can't imagine having stayed in his bunker by himself, with no friends, no happiness, and no Poppy. Poppy goes through so much for Branch, just to show him he's special. He doesn't deserve her. But he's grateful for her.

Author's Note

This was for a school project and I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to share it. The prompt was that Branch finds a message in a bottle.