"What was a Bergan doing here?" a troll whispered, as everyone slowly came out of their pods. "Trollstice is over," whispered another.
King Peppy looked out his window, hearing all the commotion. He ran out side to the group of trolls.
"Who was it!? Who did the Bergan take?" A troll pointed up at Rosiepuff's pod, Peppy's eyes widening. "No," he whispered. "Rosiepuff! Branch!"
He ran up to the pod, searching all around it. Neither Branch nor Rosiepuff could be found anywhere. He ran back outside. "Search everywhere!" he yelled to the trolls. "They had to of escaped! Find them!"
Everyone set off in different directions.
"Rosiepuff! Branch!" they all shouted, searching all over for the two trolls, but they couldn't find either one of them.
They had given up the search, everyone heading home, sure that the Bergan had gotten them both. They had been searching for hours, with no luck. They were tired, having no more energy to search for the two trolls who where clearly eaten.
Peppy stood in the middle of the village, looking around at everyone giving up. He lowered his head, giving up as well. Rosiepuff had always been a good friend to him, and Branch... he was just so young. Only five years old.
He started to walk back to his pod, when Poppy heard a noise, from inside his hair. She poked her head out, looking around. She heard it again. A quiet sniffling coming from the troll tree.
Quickly, she climbed out of her father's hair, making sure he didn't notice her, and began to crawl towards the tree.
Branch had found a small hole between the tree and the ground, that he had crawled into after his grandma was taken. He was in there now, crying, not knowing what to do. He had heard the trolls calling for him, but he didn't want to come out. He didn't want anyone knowing what he had done. He had killed his own grandma.
Poppy peeked into the hole, seeing Branch. She smiled, and crept over to him.
She sat down behind him, Branch not noticing her, as he cried.
"Peek-a-boo!" she shouted. Branch jumped, surprised, as he turned to look at her. "Peek-a-boo!" she said again. Branch whipped his eyes with his hand, and then looked away from her, not saying a word.
Poppy was confused. Why would her friend not play with her?
She crawled a little closer. "Peek-a-boo!" she shouted again, giggling.
"I don't wanna play," Branch said softly, hugging his legs, as he faced the wall. Poppy didn't understand. Why was her friend sad?
Poppy covered her eyes again. "Peek-a-boo!"
"I said I don't wanna play! Leave me alone!" Branch snapped. Poppy's eyes widened, as she stared at him in shock.
He looked away from her again.
"Just go away," he cried, softly.
Sad, and confused, she just sat there, looking at Branch, wondering what was wrong.
"Poppy!?" King Peppy shouted, noticing his daughter was gone. "Poppy!?"
She looked at Branch one final time, and then crawled out of the hole,
Peppy saw her, and ran over to her, picking her up.
"What in the world where you doing in there, Poppy?" He heard a sniffle, and looked at the hole.
"Hello? Is someone in there?"
Branch stayed quiet, not wanting King Peppy to find him. If he found him, he would figure out what he had done.
Peppy walked towards the hole, slowly looking into it. "Branch?" Branch looked at him, his cheeks stained with tears. Peppy noticed that he was grey. "Oh, Branch..."
