Trolls and the Enchanted Forest (rewrite)

Chapter 21

     In the morning, the Troll Village trolls all woke up bright and early, getting ready to head back home, having overstayed their welcome in the Enchanted Forest.

     "Ok, everyone," Peppy announced, as he stood in front of the large group of trolls, who all stood, listening closely to their king. "We have a long journey ahead of us, so..."
"King Peppy," Chief Tula suddenly interrupted, walking up behind the old orange troll.

     Peppy turned at the sound of the voice, looking at her suspiciously. He didn't trust her after what had happened the day before. She had kidnapped Branch, and threatened his people. That was completely un-acceptable...

     "I would like to formally apologize for my behavior yesterday," Tula said politely.

     Peppy smiled at her statement, forgiving her instantly.

     "And I would like to apologize for my people building that dam without your permission," Peppy said in return. "It really was supposed to be a gift to stop flooding in your village."

     She smiled at his apology, but her smile quickly faded, as she looked at him firmly.

     "About the dam..." she started. "I'd like to explain to you why I got so upset about it."
"Of course," Peppy nodded. "I'm listening."
"Well... it's just that..." She paused, as she caught a glimpse of Branch through the corner of her eye.

He was standing over with the rest of the snack pack, fiddling nervously with his fingers, as he looked at Poppy, trying to work up the courage to tell her how he felt.

     "Hmm..." Tula mumbled, glaring over at the grey troll suspiciously.

     Branch laughed at a joke Poppy had just told, smiling with pure joy. He had never been happier than these past few days when he was with Poppy. But his smile quickly faded, when he noticed Chief Tula staring at him intently.

     He gulped, backing away a bit, as his ears drooped down in fear. What is it that she wanted from him...

     Chief Tula looked at the young boy one last time, and then turned her attention back to King Peppy, smiling once again.

     "Why don't we go talk in private..." she suggested.
"Of course," King Peppy agreed with a slight nod. "Trolls!" He turned to the group of trolls, everyone looking at him, instantly stopping what they were doing to listen to their king.

     "I will be back in a moment," he told them. "Please... enjoy yourselves here while you wait."

"Shall we?" Tula said, gesturing off towards the forest with a slight smirk.

Peppy nodded, following the Enchanted Forest troll Chief into the seclusion of the Enchanted Forest...

     Creek's dad, River, watched suspiciously, as the two leaders went off into the forest together, all alone, and then sneakily made his way to follow.

     Right before they disappeared into the woods however, Tula glanced back at Branch, looking at him closely with an evil sneer.

     Branch slunk away, frightened by the icy glare he was receiving from the Enchanted Forest troll leader. What was her problem with him!?

     "What's wrong, Branch?" Poppy asked, noticing her friend's fear, as she raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"I... it's that Chief Tula," he explained, looking at Poppy with terror in his eyes. "She freaks me out." He looked back in the direction the Chief had taken. Although he could no longer see her, he still had a chill going down his spine just thinking about her. "I don't think she likes me very much," he continued, staring off into the distance.

"Aw, mate," Creek said mockingly, walking over to place his hand on Branch's shoulder. Branch looked at him, as the purple troll smirked maliciously before continuing. "No one likes you."

     Branch glared at Creek, pushing his hand off of his shoulder. Then he looked back at Poppy, and smiled. Just seeing that beautiful face filled his heart with so much joy.

     It didn't matter what Creek thought. Branch knew Poppy liked him, and that's all that mattered. And Branch liked Poppy right back. He just needed the guts to tell her...

     Branch took a deep breath, turning to Poppy, as he gazed lovingly into her beautiful pink eyes.

     "Poppy... I... I need to tell you something..." he said softly, his voice trembling a bit in fear.

     "What is it, Branch?" Poppy asked, looking back at him.

     His eyes widened, as he gulped. What if what Creek said was true? Almost even worse... what if Poppy didn't feel the same way he did? What if she hated him for even bringing up the subject!?

     Poppy saw him hesitating, gently taking his hands in hers, as she gazed into his eyes.

     "You know you can always tell me anything," she told him comfortingly.

     He took another deep breath, trying to calm himself down, but it didn't work too well...

     "P... Poppy..." he stuttered, his heart still pounding out of his chest. "I... I... I... I need to tell you that... that..."

"King Peppy! Watch out!" they all suddenly heard in a terrified shout.

     Everyone flinched, turning in the direction the cry had come from.

     "AHHHHH!" The scream filled the forest, sending chills down everyone's spines. What was going on...

     "Dad!" Poppy cried out in fear, recognizing her father's pained scream.

Quickly, she took off, running towards where she had last seen her father heading. Where he went off alone with Chief Tula...

Branch's eyes widened in fear, as he saw Poppy running off into the forest.

"Poppy! Wait!" he called out, quickly following behind to protect her. "Poppy!"