Poppy only frowned as they waited impatiently.
It's been a while since they last saw Branch, maybe around half an hour? She didn't know, she didn't bother checking, all she'd been doing was waiting around nervously as Creek attempted to get her to calm down.
As much as she loves yoga lessons, she didn't want to be doing it after she got Branch angry.
Branch never got that mad at her. He did get mad, but never that mad. Sure, he'd destroy her invitations sometimes, but he never broke other things in his anger.
It made her feel as if she didn't know him at all.
As she paced, Floyd walked up to her, making Creek give a short smile but as soon as the purple troll walked away, the pink-haired brother gave a fake smile, sticking his tongue out and blowing a quiet raspberry as soon as the purple troll turned, before putting a hand on Poppy's shoulder.
"Listen, Creek, I know it's important-" Poppy started, sounding agitated before Floyd gave a small chuckle, making her turn her head quickly.
"I didn't think that I was purple," Floyd said, making Poppy give out a quick apology, turning around fully to look at the other with a small smile (which looked more like a grimace anyway,) before she looked at him curiously.
"Did you need something?" She asked, tilting her head slightly as the brothers watched.
"Nah, but do you? Looks like you're about to drill a hole into the ground." The blue troll said with a small smile, making Poppy let out a sheepish laugh.
"Yeah, totally! Just- just a little nervous ya know? Branch seems really..." She trailed off, looking at the ground sadly before Floyd touched her shoulder again.
"I know. You know what I think you should do?" He said, calming her a little as she looked up at him, eyes slightly wide as she unknowingly pushed her head forward, making him smile gently.
"I think you should apologize. It doesn't have to be big. Or special. Just apologize from the heart." He said, patting her shoulder gently as he smiled, watching as the princess gave an uncertain look.
"Are you sure that that's gonna be enough? I mean, Branch was pretty angry- don't you think he'd want something big for an apology?" Poppy asked, looking like a guilty child as she glanced around, fiddling with her fingers nervously as she avoided the olders' gaze.
"If Branch is anything I remember, he'll just want an honest apology." The blue troll said, bringing his hand to his side as he gave her another gentle smile, before patting her on the head, turning to walk to his brothers as they waited anxiously for Branch to return.
Soon enough, the screen started loading again, words slowly appearing as they waited.
"Branch will be placed back soon. He will be sleeping. Do not wake him." It read plainly, showing a quick picture of Branch sleeping in the corner of a room, random destroyed items surrounding him as if to make a shield to protect him, rock trolls slightly nodding, slightly impressed that a Pop Troll was able to make that much damage.
Branch was placed on a large bean bag, which looked like an animal bed with a blanket, and madly comfortable, almost snoring quietly as his brothers ran over, gently moving the blanket and checking him for injuries before sighing quietly in relief, bundling him up again as they noticed that the youngest was slightly shivering, Floyd placing a comforting hand on him as he slowly stopped shivering.
Poppy watched on in concern, fiddling with her fingers as she took small quiet steps towards the brothers, before Creek placed his hand on her shoulder, making her turn to look at him as he shook his head slightly, making her pause with a frown, turning to look back at the brothers, not noticing the screen loading up again, about to play as the room slowly lit up, bringing everyone's attention from the brothers to the screen.
"I just want to take a moment, and get a little real," Poppy started, quieting the trolls down as they noticed King Peppy now standing on top of the mushroom, walking up to stand next to Poppy as Cooper watched happily, Poppy and Peppy looking at each other soft smiles.
"Poppy! She's my friend! I know her!" Biggie interrupted, shouting out happily as he began pointing at her, using his other arm to hold Mr Dinkles, looking at the Snack Pack with a wide grin, before they shushed him, making him go quiet quickly as Mr Dinkles squeaked. The camera then shifted from them to Poppy, who was looking at them with a small smile, Peppy giving them a blank look with furrowed brows, clearing his throat.
"I'd like to take a second to celebrate our king... My father." Poppy continued, giving a small smile before looking at King Peppy, bringing a hand out for him to hold as he smiled back at her.
"Who, twenty years ago, this night... Saved all of us from those dreaded-" Poppy continued, furrowing her brows slightly before she was interrupted by loud, thundering footsteps, making all the trolls gasp as they looked around, Poppy and Peppy turned to look up as the camera shifted to show the pods shaking with each footstep.
"Bergens..." King Peppy said, looking up as Cooper walked forward, every troll turning to look in the same direction before Chef's foot was shown, the camera shifts to show the Chef, who was looking at them with a triumph grin, hands on her side as they saw how messy she was, her clothes dirty and leaves sticking out of her hair.
"Did she not bother to bathe..? Aren't there any rivers nearby?" A classical troll asked, face showing disgust as they looked at the screen, making others nod in agreement as Chef rolled her eyes, twigs and leaves still sticking out of her hair.
"Gotcha." She said, looking at the three on the mushroom before the camera showed them, looking at her in shock before Cooper pooped out three chocolate, strawberry frosted cupcakes, with little cherries on top.
"... Is that... Is that normal for Pop Trolls..?" A rock troll asked, covering their mouth with a finger as they squinted their eyes at the screen, before turning their head to look at Poppy.
"No, as far as I know, Cooper's the only one who can do that," Poppy replied, looking back at the rock troll, becoming more aware of how many vastly different types of trolls are in the room with them.
The camera switched to show Chef, now changing from her smug look to a look of disgust, camera switching to show Poppy, who was wide-eyed and slightly fiddling with her hands, before she took a glance at the cupcakes, picking them up quickly and going back to her place, lifting her arms slightly.
"Cupcake?" She offered, still looking at the Bergen with wide eyes, though this time with an unhinged smile, the camera then showed Chef smiling again evilly, opening up her fanny pack which made Poppy drop the cupcakes, dropping her unhinged smile and instead looking at the Bergen with a blank face.
"... Do you guys eat his cupcakes..?" The same rock troll asked, now looking a little disgusted as they turned to look at Poppy again, others turning with them.
"Listen I don't want to talk about this right now." She said, looking at the screen with a blank face, interlocking her fingers in front of her as she crossed her legs.
"RUN!" Poppy shouted out, making all the trolls clammer to find a hiding spot, running away as Chef glanced around quickly, picking up Guy Diamond, making him shout out to Poppy for help, making her step forward a little and reach her hand out, before Biggie came into frame, looking around for Mr Dinkles, catching the attention of Chef, Biggie running around as it was revealed that Mr Dinkles was stuck on his vest.
"Has anyone seen Mr Dinkles?!" Biggie panicked, before turning to run away from Chef as Mr Dinkles squeaked, however, he was too slow and got caught, making Poppy shout out for him as Chef used her other hand to catch Fuzzbert.
"Blend in! Blend in! Blend in!" Poppy shouted out, making a few trolls listen to her as they hid in the grass, before a troll shouted out for her, making her notice Chef's hand trying to catch her, dodging by jumping to the side before the screen showed three trolls using their hair to hide in the trees, almost getting caught as the glitter troll in the middle moved to avoid the Chef.
"... 'The Bergens won't find us', huh..." A rock troll muttered, looking at the screen with an angry look, making Poppy wince as she watched with an anguished expression.
"That doesn't make me feel any better." She snapped back, surprising the Snack Pack before the Rock Troll glared at her.
"Good, it's not supposed to." They said blankly, before turning back to the screen, other genres watching silently as Poppy looked down, clearly upset as the Snack Pack only assured her, some other trolls wincing at the harsh tone of the rock troll, looking at Poppy with concern.
It then showed Smidge almost getting caught, jumping through the Bergens' fingers, though the Chef reacted quickly, grabbing her by the bow in her hair, making her shout out 'Oh my god!', the camera switching to show Satin and Chenille running away. Still, they were also caught, the Chef putting her finger right in the middle so that their hair would be caught, making them fall back before the Chef pulled them back, putting them in her fanny pack as Poppy watched with a panicked face, before a trolling shouted for her help, Cooper with them.
Poppy grabbed one of their hands, forming a train as they all held each other's hand not to lose each other, Cooper running with them as he looked behind, shouting out 'Go! go! go!' as they ran into the grass, changing their hair to disguise themselves.
Cooper let out a sigh of relief, before being grabbed by the head by Chef, making him yell as Poppy shouted out for him, running out of her hiding spot for him, Chef stuffed the four-legged troll in her fanny pack before they could hear Creek shouting out.
"Everyone, minimize your auras!" Poppy heard Creek shout out before he was also caught.
"Genius. Let's shout out for trolls to minimize their auras, definitely not gonna get you caught." A different rock troll said sarcastically, making Creek glare at them as they stuck their tongue out at the purple troll.
"Does making fun of our suffering somehow make you feel better about yourself?" Creek asked, glaring at the rock troll who just looked at them blankly, tongue still sticking out as they blew a raspberry.
"Nah, but it's fun." They replied, making Creek and Poppy give them a look that was a mixture of disappointment and anger, a country troll hitting the rock troll in the back of the head in disappointment, making them glare at the country troll.
"No! Poppy!" Creek shouted, Poppy shooting her hair out so that the purple troll could hold onto it, gripping her hair tightly before he lost his grip, letting go as Poppy flew back, Creek was also being stuffed in the Chef fanny pack as Fuzzbert tried jumping out, Chef catching him quickly as she look down, spotting the rest of the trolls running to hide before King Peppy caught her attention, hitting her toe with his cane as he called her a bad Bergen.
She bent down to catch him, making Poppy panic as she called out for him, running as fast as she could to grab his hand and run under the mushroom they were standing on just a minute ago, Chef following them as she got on her knees to look under, making some hold their breaths as they waited with anxiety before the camera just showed grass balls under the mushroom.
The camera cut to Poppy's face, a mixture of sadness and terror as she held her breath, holding onto King Peppy tightly, watching through her hair as Chefs' yellow eyes stared back in her direction before she scoffed, getting up as Poppy breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
"Smart idea, I'll reluctantly admit." Another rock troll mumbled, watching intently as they felt their heart beating quickly, making other trolls quietly nod in agreement.
"Thanks for throwing the biggest, the loudest..." Chef started, looking downwards as she spoke, knowing that the trolls hiding would be able to hear her before Cooper interrupted.
"The craziest party ever!" The four-legged troll shouted out happily before being forced back into the fanny pack by Chef's finger, making him groan out as the other trolls in the pack shouted in distress, Chef ignored it and instead walked away in slight anger, destroying a pod with a grunt on her way out.
Soon after, Poppy retracted her hair, revealing her and her father to the destruction the Bergen had caused, which made Poppy walk up to look around with a sorrowful look. Trolls got out of their hiding spots, looking at the royals sadly as they began walking up to them slowly, looking at Poppy for answers as King Peppy walked up from behind, looking at the trolls before looking at Poppy, who glanced around as she slowly began panting, about to panic.
"... You did what you could." A funk troll said, putting a hand on Poppy's shoulder as they tried to comfort her, although it didn't help, only making her tilt her head down in frustration.
"Is it coming back?" A pink troll asked, looking at Poppy with a raised eyebrow.
"What are we gonna do now?" Another troll asked quietly, covered in paint as she carried a painting palette, looking around as she held a hand out.
"We have to find a new home. Everyone, hurry," King Peppy said, walking up to stand in front of Poppy.
"We have to leave before the Bergens come back!" King Peppy says, stepping forward as the trolls begin paying attention to him, turning their heads to look at him instead of Poppy, who only looked distraught.
"Sometimes it's better to prioritize the larger group. Some sacrifices are necessary." A country troll said, walking up to her slowly as their hooves made a slight clicking noise, before stopping by her.
"We have to rescue them!" Poppy said, stepping up, moving her hands as if to prove her point, though Peppy only shook his head in disagreement.
"No, Poppy, we have to run." King Peppy said, moving his hand to motion to the trolls, stepping forward to gather everyone up, saying 'Now let's go, everyone! Come one!' as they began walking away, leaving Poppy standing before she spoke up again.
"What about 'no troll left behind'?" She asked, spreading her arms for a second before putting them down, making King Peppy turn around to look at her sadly, the trolls running behind them.
"Some trolls can't be saved. You just have to accept that." The same country troll said, tipping his hat down a little, refusing to look at her while she looked with anguish, squeezing her hand tightly in distress, the funk troll simply patting her back with a sympathetic face.
"I'm sorry Poppy, that was a long time ago, and I'm... Not the king I once was." King Peppy said sadly, looking at her before looking at the ground in slight shame, looking back at her before turning around, making Poppy glance at the ground before looking up.
"Then I'll go. I'll go and save them." She said, looking determined as King Peppy turned around quickly.
"No, Poppy. It's too dangerous." King Peppy refused, raising an arm in disagreement as he looked at her in worry.
"Your father's right, dear. These Bergens... He wants the best for you, darling." The same funk troll who sat next to Branch said, her comforting voice only sounding muffled through Poppys' cotton-filled ears.
"... I know..." Poppy mumbled, slightly loosening her hands before furrowing her brows.
"But I'm an adult now. I can make my own decisions and if those decisions put me in danger... I'm willing to face it." She said plainly, simply interlocking her fingers and looking down with a frown, before looking up with a determined face.
"... Alright." Queen Essence said, simply resigning herself from attempting to change Poppy's mind.
As much as she feared for the pink troll's future, she seemed determined to save her friends. And she had hope that she would, safely. Poppy seemed like the kind of girl to be able to turn the tides in her favor, after all.
"I have to at least try-" Poppy started, looking at King Peppy desperately before he interrupted her.
"No. You can't go to Bergen Town by yourself," He said firmly, about to turn around before turning back again, "It's impossible." He finished, spreading his arms slightly as if to convince her, watching her as she slowly turned back, seemingly thinking deeply about something, taking a few steps before the camera faded to Branch in his bunker.
It showed him staring at the invite he stepped on earlier, leaning his head on one hand and laying his other on the table in front of him, looking at it with a small smile as it played the recording inside on repeat, the screen showing a close up of the fixed invite before it showed him turning to look at all the other invitations he had saved, sitting in a shelf with curtains, all from Princess Poppy.
"He... Saved my invitations?" Poppy said quietly, watching with a soft expression as she turned to look at Branch with a small smile, her teeth showing slightly as she looked at the grey troll, who was still sleeping, his brothers also watching with soft expressions, each sitting around the grey troll closely. Other trolls cooed quietly, and some only stared in confusion.
Why would he save his invitations if he didn't like her?
Unnoticed by everyone, a certain guru clenched his fist, staring at the screen with a deep frown.
Suddenly, loud knocking could be heard coming from above, making Branch gasp as he got up, closing the invite quietly as he rushed to place it with the others on the bottom shelf, though he wasn't looking where he was running and accidentally made all of them fall out, all of them opening up and playing their recorded messages, making him panic even more as he whisper-shouted.
"No! No! No! SHHH!" He tried closing the invites, attempting to quiet them as he played wack-a-mole with them, Poppy's voice calling for him before he scooped them all up, shoving them into the shelf and closing the curtains as he turned back, looking up with a mixture of shock and terror.
"Aw, that's cute! But also... How many invitations did you give him?" A techno troll asked, turning to look at Poppy as she gave a toothy grin.
"To be honest, I don't even know! But I'm glad that he kept them all... I think that means he wants to be friends!" She grinned, her overbite showing slightly as she looked back at the screen, the techno troll giving a smile back.
Soon, it showed Poppy knocking on a boulder standing in front of a dark yellow rug that read 'GO AWAY' in white bubble text, calling out Branch's name repeatedly before she gave a final knock.
"BRANCH ARE YOU IN THERE?!" She shouted out, looking at the bottom of the boulder before a tiny slit showed up in the rug, making her turn in surprise, walking up to it.
"I'm not going to your party," Branch said stubbornly, slightly shaking his head before Poppy came into frame, the camera showing her from the hole.
"The party's over. We just got attacked by a Bergen." She said, furrowing her brows as she told Branch, walking around so she could see the grey troll more properly.
The slightly cheerful atmosphere broke, now reminding all the trolls of the attack they had just witnessed, wincing and frowning as they looked at the Pop trolls who went back to frowning nervously.
It's hard to have a good time when you remember that lives are in danger.
"I knew it," Branch said, narrowing his eyes before sliding the rug to the side, getting up and grabbing Poppy by her hands and pulling her in as she gasped, the rug sliding back into place not even a second later.
Soon it showed Branch locking several things, music adding suspense before slowly dying down, as it showed him setting up a bear trap, then a little mouse trap with delicacy. The camera then panned out, showing Branch and Poppy sitting in a small circle surrounded by traps and locks, the moon shining down on them as Poppy only looked around with slight curiosity and shock, slightly fiddling around as Branch only glared above.
"Branch!" Poppy whisper-shouted before the grey troll shushed her harshly, placing his paw on her mouth to quiet her down as he glanced at her before looking up again.
"... Totally not insane, yeah... Okay..." A techno troll mumbled, watching with screen with narrowed eyes and a nervous smile, their glasses slightly twisted as they glanced around, noticing how other trolls also looked at the screen with slight shock.
"Hey, I mean, at least he's prepared..?" Another troll said, though slightly sheepishly as they gave an uneasy smile.
"I have to tell you something!" Poppy whisper-shouted again, though Branch cut her off again with another shush, giving her a shushing motion glancing at her slightly longer before he looked back up, making her give a slightly frustrated look to the ground before attempting to speak again.
"I was just gonna-" She tried before he cut her off with tuts and shushes, lifting one paw to shush her before he lifted his other to do the same, looking at her with wide eyes before turning to look back up with a serious face.
Poppy only gave him a blank stare, before raising her paw and giving him a slightly pointed look, which made him look back at her tiredly.
"Let the poor girl speak, lol." A techno troll chuckled, slightly relaxing as others joined with giggles.
"What? What could be so important that it's worth leading the bergens right to us?!" Branch whisper-shouted back, giving animated motions as he pointed behind him, before turning back around.
"The Bergen's gone!-" Poppy started before Branch interrupted her again.
"You don't know that! It could still be out there! Watching! Waiting! Listening!" He started, making a sort of watching motion as he hid the lower half of his face with his hands, before perking back up and taping his pointer fingers together to make a waiting motion, before making a different pose, moving his ears slightly to make a listening motion as he whisper shouted the last thing.
"Wait, he can move his ears? Like, he can actually move them?" A rock troll asked, raising an eyebrow as they turned to look at the grey troll, who was still snoring away, his brothers raising an eyebrow too.
"He can do a lotta things, I didn't know he could do that either," Poppy said, bringing attention to her as the others perked up a little, slightly interested in what the grey troll is capable of.
"Sometimes, when he's in a good mood and I bump into him, he tells me a little bit of what he's doing to improve his bunker. Like how he was making more space for more supplies. Actually, I think he made his bunker all by himself." Poppy said, bringing a finger to her chin as some country trolls hummed in approval, nodding slightly before a troll raised a paw.
"Wait, you said that he's looking to expand, right? Then why's he only got that lil' room yur in?" They asked, raising an eyebrow as some nodded in agreement, looking at her with question marks hanging above them.
"I don't know actually, but he does have all these tunnels all over the village that do lead to his bunker. Maybe it's something like that?" She gave a questioning look, raising an eyebrow before shrugging. Branch was super secretive about his bunker, so she didn't know much about it. But from what she's heard from it, he's super proud of it.
"Hm... Gonna need to see it ta believe it." The same country troll muttered before smiling. It was impressive enough that he had a hidden bunker, they didn't think it could get better.
"Poppy, how about we sit back down, hm?" Creek interrupted with a smile, holding a paw out for her to grab as he caught the two trolls' attention, Poppy looking at him with a slightly surprised face before she smiled.
"Yeah, okay! Talk to you later!" She agreed, giving a toothy smile before waving at the country troll, who gave one back with a slight nod.
The country troll only glanced at Creek with distrusting eyes.
Call them one of them skeptics, but they didn't have one good feeling about that purple fellow. He just seemed a little too friendly and with those back-handed comments... Well, they'd just go along with their feeling.