The song Willow sings in this chapter is called "Up" by the Star Darlings.
Here's the link to it if anybody is interested in listening. watch?v=2JE9uBzqhOw

The kitchen area, Willow found, was small. It barely had enough room to move around, but her partners were able to find places to be without getting in her way too much. Something she was extremely grateful for as they insisted on filling the silence with conversation.

"Come on, Fish Stick," Barb pouted while Willow gathered her ingredients. They could hear the others start practicing in the other room. "I wanted to see Willow beat up John Dory."

"I know," Trollex chuckled. "But I don't think watching his siblings fight would have benefitted Branch. And then Willow would have felt awful for upsetting him."

"He was gonna put him in a diaper," Barb deadpanned. "I think Branch would have forgiven her."

"But Willow wouldn't," Trollex disagreed. Willow grit her teeth. Why were they talking about her like she wasn't there? "You know as well as I do how bad she'd feel. She loves Branch more than anything, and we all know Branch wants his siblings to get along."

"She should be allowed to argue with her older brothers, though," Barb relaxed into Trollex. They left them behind for over twenty-six years, and John Dory has been controlling and condescending this entire time. She should be allowed to stand up for herself."

"Can you stop talking about me like I'm not here," Willow snapped, slamming a bowl onto the counter. "I know I have a right to be upset with our brothers, and I know Branch wants all of us to get along. But all I can think about when I look at them is how they all abandoned Branch when he was two years old." She growled and started mixing the dry ingredients. "They don't bother to write to let us know they were okay, and I have no idea whether Clay was at the Tree during the escape or not."

She put her head in her hands and sighed. "If he was at the Tree, he was there when Grandma passed. It also means he was there while Branch was gray and never bothered to come to check on us." She turned to face her partners, distress clear on her face. "How do you respond to that? Our brothers left us behind before I even hatched. How am I supposed to sing a 'perfect family harmony' if I don't feel like part of this family?"

Willow turned back to the brownie bowl. "How am I supposed to be a part of a family that only got back together because one of them was in trouble? If Floyd was never in danger, would we have ever come together as a family?" She laughed harshly. "What kind of family are we when we've spent my entire life separated?"

Barb got up from the table and rubbed the back of Willow's shoulders. "Do you feel a little better now that you got that out?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Willow nodded after a minute. "I do." She groaned as Barb led her to the kitchen table. "Why is everything so complicated right now?"

"Family is complicated, Sweet Beat," Trollex smiled at the Pop Troll. "You all may have been separated for a long time, but you're together now. The best thing you can do is make the most of it. Try to get to know them as they are and give them the chance to get to know you."

"And that starts with finishing these delicious brownies," Barb sang pointing to the mixing bowl. Willow smiled at her girlfriend. "You just want to eat the brownies," she teased. She rolled her eyes and stood up. "But, fine, I'll finish the brownies." She looked around the kitchen in thought. "Maybe we should do some dinner too. It's getting late." She looked at Trollex. "Do you mind asking if anyone has any allergies I should be aware of?"

"On it, Sweet Beat," Trollex grinned and left the kitchen to talk to the others, leaving the two alone.

"Sorry, about upsetting you earlier," Barb apologized. "But we knew it was the only way to get you to talk about what's going on." She chuckled. "You Pop Trolls are terrible at talking about what's wrong."

"I like to think I'm better than most at it," Willow grinned before looking down at the brownie bowl. "Then again, I did come in here after yelling at an older brother I haven't known in years, probably traumatizing Branch in the process. Maybe I'm not as balanced as I thought."

"You're fine," Barb grinned while she watched Willow finish the brownie batter and put it into a pan. "You just need help sometimes. And that's what we're here for."

"Thanks," Willow gave her girlfriend a soft smile. She placed the brownies in the oven.

"No food allergies at the moment," Trollex said, walking in. "But when you get Floyd, he's allergic to peanuts."

Willow nodded. "Cool. That means I can make veggie stir fry." She rummaged through the kitchen. "Good, he has all the ingredients I need."

The trio spent the next hour prepping, cooking, and cleaning while the five in the main area practiced. When they finally left the kitchen, the group practicing had stopped again. "We've been at this for over an hour and we still haven't gone through the whole song once," Clay complained. "Sounds like you could go for a break," Willow grinned holding the food she made with her partners. "Hope you all are hungry."

"You made stir fry!" Poppy shrieked, running over and grabbing a bowl. "Thank you! It smells so good."

"We need to finish practicing," John Dory insisted. "We don't have time for this."

"You're gonna have to make time," Willow raised an eyebrow in defiance. "I made us all dinner. Besides, it's getting late and we all need to rest if we're going to do this 'perfect family harmony' you keep going on about."

"What do you mean 'we'?" John Dory crossed his arms. "We've all been practicing while you've been in the kitchen flirting."

Willow looked at the room around them, suddenly aware they were all being watched. The brothers and Poppy watched cautiously to see what she would do. Branch especially looked concerned. She sighed. She didn't want to be the cause of Branch stressing out over their family fighting again. She grinned, an idea forming in her head. "Fine," She said, putting the bowl down. "We'll do it your way." She looked at Poppy. "Can I have the puffy jacket?"

Poppy nodded, concerned. "Sure," she said, handing the jacket over. "What are you doing?" She whispered to the girl. She had never known Willow to back down so easily.

"Don't worry about it," Willow whispered back, putting the jacket on.

"Good," John Dory grinned, feeling victorious. He turned to the others, who stopped themselves from grabbing the bowls of food in disappointment. "Now I think we need to make some adjustments..." he stopped talking and fell over, a dart sticking out of him.

"What was that!?" Bruce panicked, reaching for the older brother. He looked at Willow in horror as she carefully placed a blowgun back in her hair.

"Just some box jellyfish venom," Willow said with a smile. "Don't worry, it's not enough to kill him, he'll just be paralyzed for a little while. Now, he has to take a break and so do the rest of you." She glared at Branch. "Seriously, man. Go take off that stupid diaper. There's no way that's the key to this stupid harmony." Branch nodded quickly and ran off to change. "The rest of you should change into something more comfortable too," she suggested as she handed out the rest of the bowls. "I don't think you'll be getting any more practice in tonight."

"Sounds good," Clay said, relieved. He accepted the stir fry bowl from Willow. "Thanks. It does smell good."

Barb and Trollex moved the grumpy and paralyzed brother off the floor and onto the couch. "Hey, Sweet Beat," Trollex grinned concerned. "Not to undercut what you just did, because it was pretty impressive, but how do you know how much jellyfish toxin to use to paralyze and not kill someone?"

"Yeah," Bruce nodded, looking a little scared. "And why would you need that kind of information?"

"The Reggaeton Trolls showed me," Willow smiled and sat between her partners. "They know a lot about poisons and wanted to give me some tips."

"And you just have poison darts in your hair?" Clay asked, concerned. "That can not be safe." The others nodded in agreement.

"They're capped," Willow insisted, pulling another out of her hair. She handed it to Barb, who grinned and started showing everyone the capped dart. "They are perfectly safe." She put it back in her hair. "Relax everybody."

"Oh yeah," Poppy nodded in thought. "I forgot you and Branch are friends with a bunch of bounty hunters."

"I'm sorry," Bruce waved his fork in the air. "You're friends with bounty hunters? When did that happen?"

"Probably after the whole Rock Apocolypse thing," Branch said, abentmindedly as he grabbed his bowl. He had thankfully changed into his regular clothes. "Can't believe they taught you about the poisons and not me though." He pouted at his sister who stuck her tongue out at him.

"How long is it supposed to last again?" Barb asked, kicking back and enjoying her food.

"A few hours," Willow shrugged. "We can put his food in the fridge and he can eat it later."

"What's this about a Rock Apocolypse?" Clay asked, confused. Everyone else let the comment go unquestioned, but he was lost. Reggaeton Trolls, bounty hunters, Rock Apocolypse? What were they talking about?

Willow looked at the middle brother, confused before her eyes widened in realization. "Oh, that's right. You've been in isolation for a while." She smiled sheepishly. "Well, to make a really long story short, there are different Tribes of Trolls. We," She gestured to her, Poppy, and the brothers. "We're Pop Trolls. Barb is a Hard Rock Troll, and Trollex is a Techno Troll. There's also Country, Classical, and Funk. The Hard Rock Trolls tried to take over the world, and we put a stop to it. Then Branch introduced me to his bounty hunter friends." She took a bite of her food before continuing. "There's a few more details, but they aren't really important right now." Clay nodded in understanding and the group finished their meal in silence. Poppy offered to do the last of the dishes since Willow cooked.

"So what do you want to do now?" Bruce asked grabbing a brownie off the plate they were on. "We can't practice well while our dear leader is paralyzed." He gestured to an irritated John Dory.

"Well, I haven't had a chance to hear Willow sing," Clay looked at his little sister. "Branch was telling us you have a great voice. And it would be nice to know what it sounds like before we sing together."

"Yeah!" Poppy grinned, walking out of the kitchen. "Sing for us!"

"We could do a mini concert," Trollex offered. "I have my DJ equipment in the angler bus."

"I don't know, guys," Willow backed away. "Is now really the best time for an impromptu concert?"

"I think we're stopping for the night," Branch offered. Tiny had already bunkered down in Bruce's hair during dinner and was sound asleep. "You may as well. And I know you've been working on some songs."

"I guess it could be fun," Willow admitted. She sighed and stood up. "Fine, but I haven't performed like this in front of people." Barb and Poppy rolled their eyes at that while Trollex grinned, amused. She forgot she sang in front of all the Troll Kingdoms before. "So don't make fun of me if it's bad." She looked at her partners. "Come help?"

"Let's do this," Barb grinned as the trio left Rhonda.

Branch watched as the trio left his sight before turning to his siblings. "Alright, guys. Just a head's up. Willow doesn't sing a lot of Pop music." His older brothers looked at him curiously. "Well, it is Pop, but it's more Pop Rock. And she uses musical instruments more than most Pop Trolls. It's easier for the other two, and she has more fun writing with that in mind. I've heard them, and they're pretty good, but I thought I should prepare you since it's likely not something you've heard before."

Bruce nodded in understanding. "I think I've heard her play a little. Sometimes they play while on Vacay Island."

"Cool," Clay nodded, furrowing his brows. "So is anybody else concerned about those two hanging around Willow all the time? Like they are always near her. What's up with that?" He looked at his brothers and Poppy. "Who are they?"

"They're Queen Barb of the Rock Trolls and King Trollex of the Techno Trolls," Bruce shrugged. He leaned back on the couch. "They're dating Willow."

"Those three are dating," Clay said, looking out one of the windows. "And we're cool with letting them be alone with our baby sister?"

"Thank you, Clay!" John Dory said, exasperated. He groaned and tried to move off the couch, only to fall on his face. "I've been thinking that this entire time."

"Hey, John," Bruce rolled his eyes. "Welcome back. How you feeling?"

"Like I just had a paralyzing blow dart shot at my butt," John Dory grunted before standing up. "I was not expecting that," He grinned in appreciation. "Respect."

"And what about the piercings?" Clay asked. "Why does she have her eyebrow pierced? And all those earrings? What is she doing?"

Bruce snorted. "If you have a problem with her piercings, you're gonna freak when you see her tattoo."

"She has a tattoo!?" John Dory and Clay yelled at the same time.

Branch sighed and looked at his brothers. "Look, Willow doesn't do a lot of things for her enjoyment anymore. And making music for King Trollex and Queen Barb to play with her brings her joy. And she has never played this stuff for others. Do not mess this up for her. Whether you like this kind of music or not, be supportive."

"Of course, we'll be supportive," John Dory said with a grin. "What kind of brothers do you take us for?"

"The kind that will leave the second things get too hard to handle," Branch retorted with narrowed eyes.

Bruce winced. Right, they still had to make up for that. He was grateful Willow had decided to hold off on dealing with their issues until they rescued Floyd, but he still needed to apologize. "We'll be supportive, Branch," Bruce assured. "This is our little sister and I want to see what she came up with." John Dory and Clay nodded behind him.

"Good," Branch nodded. "Because if you crush her spirits, we'll find a way to free Floyd without you. I won't let her be hurt by you," he promised before leaving Rhonda.

"He's not serious," John Dory chuckled looking at his brothers. He looked at Poppy's grimace. "Right?"

"Yeah," Poppy hissed. "He's absolutely serious." She crossed her arms and sighed. "Willow was the only sibling he had for a long time. Sure, he's on this trip to save your brother Floyd, but he'll do anything for Willow."

Branch and the others sat down on the grass in front of where the angler bus had parked. The door to the bus opened to reveal Willow holding a guitar. Barb was holding the bass and Trollex had his DJ equipment. "You guys ready?" Willow asked, looking at her partners.

The two looked at her with a grin, Barb strumming her bass. "Ready when you are, Sweet Beat," Trollex said, with a grin.

"Right," Willow nodded and took a deep breath. "I'm not singing in front of a huge crowd. It's just my brothers and Poppy." Besides Branch, they're not even the brothers she needs validation from. She didn't need their approval. Did she? Willow shook her head. No time to go through those thoughts, she could worry about that later.

Willow signaled for Trollex to start and followed with her guitar. She took a deep breath when Barb joined in and began to sing.

(Willow)

I can hear you whisper even though you're talkin' low

Catchin' every word but I'm just gonna let 'em go, oh

Let 'em go, oh

Takin' every arrow you've been aimin' at my heart

Spin 'em all around and turn 'em into shootin' stars, oh

Shootin' stars

The more she played, the more the tension in her shoulders melted away. She opened her eyes and grinned at her partners as she continued to play.

Gonna give it all that I got

Shining when you tell me to stop

I'm a girl on a mission, makin' wishes

Livin' out my dream

You can try to steal my air

I'm not goin' anywhere but up, up

Anywhere but up

Trollex and Barb grinned at their girlfriend. They loved watching her let her hair down and relax.

Your rain is comin' down

I'm not gonna drown, gonna rise up

Yeah, I'm gonna light up

Never gonna give up, my sun is comin' up

Turn the music up (up), up (up), up (up), up

Tearin' up the past, don't want your negativity

Choosin' different thoughts so you'll never get to me

You won't get to me

Any kind of stone that you throw

I'm just gonna make into gold

I'm a girl on fire, flyin' higher

Than you ever dreamed

You can try to steal my air

I'm not goin' anywhere but up, up

Anywhere but up

Your rain is comin' down

I'm not gonna drown, gonna rise up

Yeah, I'm gonna light up

Never gonna give up, my sun is comin' up

Turn the music up (up), up (up), up (up)

I'm finally wakin' (up) up

Yeah, it's time to shake it (up) up

Things are lookin' (up) up (oh, oh)

Up, up

Branch smiled and leaned into Poppy. He didn't get to listen to Willow sing often since she was so busy. It was nice to see her relaxing with her partners.

Gonna give it all that I got

Shining when you tell me to stop

I'm a girl on fire, flyin' higher

Livin' out my dream (yeah)

Meanwhile, the other brothers were conflicted. While they enjoyed listening to their little sister singing, it hurt she hadn't sung with them yet. Trolls loved singing and they couldn't resist a good song, so the fact she spent this entire time avoiding singing with them told them just how she was feeling.

You can try to steal my air (steal my air)

I'm not goin' anywhere but up, up

(Anywhere but up) anywhere but up (yeah)

Your rain is comin' down

I'm not gonna drown, gonna rise up

Yeah, I'm gonna light up

Never gonna give up, my sun is comin' up

Turn the music up (up), up (up)

Never gonna give up (up, up)

She wasn't comfortable around them, plain and simple. And they couldn't fault her. They were strangers after all, and it was their fault. Bruce forced a grin on his face when the song ended, his little sister looking at them expectantly. "That was great, Willow," he said standing up and walking over to the younger Pop Troll. "Did you write that?"

"Yeah," Willow grinned, feeling bashful. "It's just something I've been working on." She handed her guitar to Trollex who put it in the angler bus with his DJ equipment. "You really liked it?"

"Yeah," Clay grinned. "I've never heard anything like it, but it was good."

"We've always liked hearing you sing," Poppy smiled, her arm around Branch. "It's nice to hear the three of you play together."

John Dory grunted when Clay elbowed him harshly. "Yeah," John glared at Clay as he held his stomach. He grinned at Willow. "You did great, Baby Sis." He turned to Rhonda before he could see the grin on his little sister's face grow strained at being called 'Baby.' "You were right about a break. Rhonda's been going pretty hard today and needs some rest. We'll get back on it bright and early tomorrow morning. We still need to practice with you and have a ways to go before we get to Floyd."

Sounds great," Willow forced out with a pained smile. She waited for her partners to join her before following her brothers into Rhonda. "I am getting so sick of him calling me a baby," she muttered to Barb and Trollex as they made it to the couch.

"You should say something then," Barb said, crossing her arms. "I can say something if you want."

"No," Willow shook her head, tired. "I've told him a few times already, and he's not stopping." She leaned into Trollex when he started playing with her hair. "I don't think he's able to focus on anything besides getting his brothers back. It's why he keeps calling Bruce 'Spruce'." They could all see how stressed John Dory was about getting his little brother back. Willow understood the worry he felt, but it didn't make her any more inclined to be lenient with his attitude. The trio sat comfortably with Trollex leaning against the wall at the end of the couch, his fingers in Willow's hair, Willow leaning against him, her feet in Barb's lap, and Barb resting her body against Willow. Willow, unsurprisingly, was the first to fall asleep.

Bruce walked out of the small kitchen with a brownie in hand to see the trio passed out. He chuckled and nudged Clay. "Check these three out," he grinned.

"Alright," Clay grinned after cooing at the sight of his youngest sibling passed out. "They are adorable together, I'll give you that." He glared at John Dory who was about to move the trio. "Don't even think about waking her up right now."

"Come on," John protested. "She can't be comfortable like that. And they really shouldn't be sleeping in that position."

"She's slept in weirder positions," Branch pointed out with a yawn. He grabbed one of the blankets John Dory had brought and draped it over his sister and her partners. He then grabbed another for him and Poppy. "We're taking this spot," He walked over to the side of Rhonda and laid down, Poppy following quickly behind. "Goodnight."

John Dory and the older brothers looked at each other before awkwardly shuffling to the other areas on the floor and John's loft bed. The next morning was going to be busy with travel and practice. They had to be able to hit the perfect family harmony. Floyd was depending on it.

Willow fun fact! She has weapons in her hair. After the Bergen thing and then the Rock Tour, she didn't want to be caught without a good way to defend herself. So she has long and short range weapons on her at all times. And Willow finally got to sing! It was with her partners, not her brothers, but it was still nice. The next chapter is the argument. And I may have forgotten just what Rhonda looked like on the inside until recently, so for this story, she has a tiny kitchen, not just the stove thing she has in the movies.