Branch looked out the door clinging to his vest as he watched his brother leave. His immediate older brother had tasked him with two very important jobs that he fully intended to follow through with. The first one was easy. He had to take care of his grandma. It was easy because she was what he considered a grown-up and could largely take care of herself. His main job with her would be to keep her company.

The second job was going to be harder, Branch decided when he walked to the corner of the room. Their newest sibling was resting in a crib there. They hadn't hatched yet, and Floyd told him he needed to be a good big brother and help take care of them until he came back. And he promised he was coming back, so Branch was determined to be the best big brother to his new little sibling.

"Hi, baby," Branch whispered to the egg. "My name is Branch and I'm your big brother. We're going to be best friends when you hatch."

"What are you going to name them?" Grandma Rosiepuff asked, looking up from her cards, and smiling at her youngest grandson.

Branch looked back at his grandma in awe. "You mean I get to name them?" He asked, surprised.

"Of course," his grandma smiled. "Your brothers helped name you, you know."

Branch nodded seriously and looked at his sibling. "I think I'm going to call her Willow."

"What if the egg is another boy?" Rosiepuff asked. "You could have a little brother in there."

Branch shook his head and frowned. "I'm going to have a little sister, grandma." He reached up and laid a hand on the egg. "I can tell."

Rosiepuff chuckled and went back to her card game. "Alright then, peachfuzz." She looked up at him and smirked. "You should go to bed though. It's been a long day and you want to set a good example for your baby sister, right?"

Branch yawned and nodded sleepily. "Alright, grandma." He looked at the egg. "Goodnight, Willow. I'll see you in the morning." He went and hugged his grandma. "I love you, grandma. Goodnight." And with that, the two-year-old went on to bed.

Two days later, a little trolling with bright red hair hatched out of the egg in the presence of her grandmother and big brother. Branch grinned as his grandma picked the little girl up. "Hi, Willow. Welcome to the world. I'm your big brother, Branch."

Willow grinned and reached for her newly named brother. "Hi, Branch."

For the next three years, the trio was happy. Branch made new friends and started a new boyband. Willow was their biggest fan and cheerleader. She even helped with dance practice when she had better control of her limbs. Branch missed his brothers and talked about them a lot with Willow. He also told her about the hideout he was planning to build for them all when they returned. Willow didn't fully understand the need for a hideout, but she loved listening to her brother talk about something he was passionate about, so she let him explain his plans.

Unfortunately, the happier times came to an end. One afternoon, while Willow was napping, Branch was practicing his singing. He was singing loudly and couldn't hear his grandma try to warn him about a Burgen coming up behind him. Thinking quickly, Rosiepuff ran up and pushed him out of the way before he could be caught. She was not, however, fast enough to get out of the way.

Willow found Branch two hours later, grey and alone at the bottom of the tree. "Branch?" She asked, leaning up next to him. "Are you okay?"

Branch looked at her and started crying. "She's gone, Willow. A Burgen took grandma."

Willow looked at her brother in shock. She was familiar with Burgens. They came to the tree once a year to eat some of them. Grandma said it was the only way they could feel happiness. They all ensured they were hidden away and safe during the holiday the Burgens called Trollstice. But Trollsitce wasn't for another two months. The Burgen came in too early. Willow was sad their grandma had been taken, but she refused to focus on that. Her brother needed her. She climbed into her brother's lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. "It's okay, Branch. I'm here." She held him as he cried.

When he finished, he was still grey, but he forced a smile on his face. "Come on, sis. Let's go back to the pod. I'm sure you need to eat something."

Nodding, Willow grabbed her brother's hand and they stood up to make the long walk back to their grandma's pod. It was late at night when Branch was asleep that Willow let herself cry.

By the time Trollstice came around, everyone knew the grey troll and his little sister. They were alone in the tree, though everyone kept an eye out for them. Whether it was to make sure they were safe, or if they were just trying to keep them away from their happier children, Willow wasn't sure. King Peppy did everything in his power to make sure the children were at least fed and cared for, but he had his children to worry about.

And it was because of those children he had planned an escape from the troll tree. This Trollstice, the chef had chosen his youngest daughter to be a special treat for the Burgen prince.

When the sun came up on Trollstice, all of the trolls were already in the tunnels escaping Burgentown. A five-year-old grey Branch held on tightly to three-year-old Willow's hand as they ran along with the other trolls.

"It'll be okay," Branch muttered to his little sister. Willow nodded, though she was sure he was mostly saying that to convince himself. She grinned to herself. Despite being grey and scared most of the time, he still tried to keep her spirits up.

When they finally escaped Burgentown, the young duo followed King Peppy to what would be the new troll village. Willow laughed and looked around. "This place is beautiful, Branch. Come on!" She tried to drag her brother around to look at the new wide-open area they were going to live in.

Branch shook his head and stood firm. "It's too open out here, Willow. What if the Burgens come out and find us?"

Willow stopped pulling on her brother's arm and looked up, confused. "But the king said we were safe now. Is he lying?"

"We don't know for sure that we are safe," Branch insisted. "They are still out there and they could always come find us." He sighed. "I'd feel a lot better if we weren't out in the open like this."

Willow shrugged. "Alright then." She reached into her brother's vest and pulled out the plans he had made for their hideout. "Let's get started on this then." She pointed at it. "It's underground, so the Burgens can't find us." She grinned. "We can even make rooms for our brothers, so when they come to find us, they'll have a place to sleep."

Branch smiled, grateful his little sister was so understanding. "Thanks, Willow." He grabbed her hand and led her away from the celebration that had started. "Let's look for a place to get started building."

"I think it should be next to some water," Willow decided. "That way, you can build your waterslide."

"I don't know if that's a good idea yet," Branch admitted. "It may flood our home before we have a chance to live in it."

Willow nodded. "That makes sense. We'll build the waterslide later." She dragged him into the woods. "Now where should we get started?"

Hey everybody! Welcome to my Trolls story. And here is my little OC Willow. She's doing everything she can to make her big brother feel better. This is just the beginning of her story and I hope you enjoy it as much as I am writing it. Thank you for reading and I'll see you in the next one!