𝓓𝓲𝓿𝓲𝓭𝓮𝓭 | 𝓣𝓻𝓸𝓵𝓵𝓼 |𝓑𝓻𝓪𝓷𝓬𝓱 𝔁 𝓯𝓮𝓶 𝓣𝓻𝓸𝓵𝓵 𝓡𝓮𝓪𝓭𝓮𝓻 {𝓣𝓱𝓲𝓻𝓭 𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴}

𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓵𝓿𝓮. 𝓞𝓷𝓮 𝓢𝓽𝓻𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓣𝓸 𝓖𝓸!

𝓟𝓸𝓹𝓹𝔂'𝓼 𝓟𝓞𝓥:
I regret everything I've said to Branch - or rather, everything I've screamed at him. Now, his possibly beyond mountains, getting further away and closer to our Village. Leaving me here, all alone, with my knees buried in the damp earth. Frustration pulses through my nerves, and my trembling hands press against my eyes, trying to catch the tears spilling down my cheeks.
This entire situation is a disaster. I'm kneeling by the riverbank, sobbing into my palms, and my sister torn from my eyes, taken right under my nose and is still somewhere unknown.
Branch said something about her teaming with the Rockers. Fighting by the enemy's side - at Barb's side. But would she really do that? I can't believe it. I won't.
Slowly, I lower my palms from squeezing my eyeballs and catch the glance of the still water, where my reflection stares back at me, puffy-eyed, seeming broken. A shadow of who I'm supposed to be. Some Queen I've turned out to be, huh?
I remember the String still being tucked behind my mane. I reach up, fingers searching, and pulls it free. There it is - glittering softly in my hand. The main reason I'm stuck in this situation, and everything that happened, in the past and present. This little thin, metal String awakens the dreaded greed in Trolls. I tug gently at the ends, and the dim glitter brightens with a soft glow. I hear footsteps around me, each one growing louder as they draw closer. They're moving fast - too fast. A gasp escapes me. That someone who is coming, could possibly be on the lookout for my String. I quickly shove the String back where I pulled it from, hiding it beneath my hair. With shaky hands, I wipe away the stained remnants of tears from my face, then push myself up to stand. Ready for the possible threat. But luckily for my oversized ego, it's only Hickory. I'd almost forgotten about his existence.
"Poppy, there you are!" His pace slows the moment his eyes find me, and I catch the soft sigh of relief as he realises I'm okay - or at least safe.
"Hickory!" We meet in the middle, reaching each other and falls into a quiet embrace. "It's so good to see you!"
"Where's Branch?" He speaks as we part ways. Then he circles around me, eyes scanning the area - probably expecting Branch to appear out of nowhere. "We had a fight, he's gone. On his way back home." I admit it, my eyes dropping to the ground, still weighed down by guilt. "That's a shame. I really liked that guy."
"I was so desperate to be a good Queen, that I stopped listening to anyone, but myself..." I slump down onto the hard ground, the cold surface pressing against me as I sit. "Including my own sister! And it's all because of this stupid String!" I yank the String back out from where it was hidden beneath my hair, my fingers curling tightly around it in a grip fuelled by anger. My expression mirrors the storm inside of me.
Hickory doesn't respond right away. When I glance back up at him, I catch the look in his eyes - he's captivated by the object. But the fascination doesn't last. In an instant, his face shifts, the awe melting into unmistakable terror. "Poppy, take the String and run as fast as you can, you hear me?"
"What? What are you talking about?" Confusion washes over my features as I rise back to my feet.  "Trust me, just go!" He's being pulled backwards by his own rear end, swatting at it in frustration as if trying to force it back in line with the rest of him. "Now! Please, just go!"
"Hickory. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." He sounds calmer. As he's forced to retreat, I take a step forward, but he makes sure to maintain the distance between us. His hind hooves lean on the two in front, as though trying to wrench themselves free. He stumbles back forward this time. "Hey! Hey now, stop that!"
I desperately want to look away, but I can't.
Suddenly, two arms burst through the fabric of his pants on either side. A sharp gasp escapes me at the horrific sight. Nausea twists in my gut. I think I'm going to be sick. His rear finally succeeds in tearing itself free, and it's now walking on its own. This time, I scream. I'm definitely going to be sick.
"Nein! What are you doing, Hickory?!" His butt - now with arms - is speaking. It spins around to face Hickory, now fully revealing itself to me too. Standing there is a small Troll, with wild orange hair and a matching beard. He looks fully grown, aside from his height. "Quiet, Dickory!"
"What's going on Hickory!"
"I'm- so sorry." Only now do I realise I should be backing away, clutching the String tightly to my chest in a protective manner. Hickory looks at me, meeting my shock with eyes full of sorrow. His voice has changed, his accent no longer carries that familiar country twang. Instead, it sounds almost German. "Yeah! Show her who you really are, Hickory!" Dickory grabs hold of Hickory's torn pants and yanks them off, revealing a completely new outfit which has been hidden away underneath. He begins bouncing excitedly in a dance, his voice rising into a melodic chant. He's yodelling - and to my disbelief, Hickory joins in. "Wait. You're the Yodellers?!"
"Yeah! You're dam Skippy, playa-play!"
"And you were gonna hand my String to Barb?! A-and Juniper. Did you hand her over like she's the medal to the winner?!" Each breath I inhale lands heavy in the bottom of my lunges, my palms slick with sweat, making it increasingly difficult to hold onto the thin metal of the String. I have no idea what Barb intends to do with my sister, but the thought of finding out terrifies me. "Ding, ding! Give this Queen a Strudel for the Correct answer!" Dickory's gaze shifts up to Hickory, who is clearly avoiding both of our glances on him.
"And you've been in back the whole time?"
Dickory's cheerful mood vanishes in an instant at my third question. He folds his arms tightly across his chest with a scoff, and shakes his half of the ripped pants off, kicking them further away with the tip of his foot. "Next subject please..."
"I am the main fault of Juniper's disappearance, Queen Poppy... I was the one shoving her off of the raft." Hickory's admission makes my head snap back to him. He doesn't look proud of the choices he has made - if anything, he seems weighed down by shame. "But why, Hickory? Juniper hasn't been anything else but nice, since you came along with us." He's the reason my sister suddenly went missing, and she's being held captive by Barb and her Rockers. Maybe Branch wasn't overreacting - or hallucinating- after all. He might have actually seen her in that Rock Outfit he described. "Barb promised the Tribe, who brought her Princess Juniper, would get ownership upon an island, with only their taste in Music. It was our only opportunity to save our beautiful Yodelling... So sorry."
"Hickory!" Dickory growls through gritted teeth, angry that his partner is the one apologising for what they have agreed to do. "But trust me. You need to get out of here, right away!" "What are you doing, Hickory?" Hickory lowers a hand to block Dickory's path to me, keeping him on a short leash. That little Troll is bursting with anger. He darts around Hickory's extended arm and lunges at me, grabbing the opposite end of my String and tries to yank it from my grasp. "Nein, Dickory!" Hickory launches for the middle, the sudden force pulls me off balance, and I stumble. "Shut your mouth-hole please!"
"Let go!"
"We must save our beautiful Yodelling!" I felt two pairs of hands clamp down on my arms, one on each side, forcing me backward and weakening my grip on the String. Dickory cartwheels back, caught off guard by the sudden release, the String now clutched in his hand. I glance over one shoulder and see a Rock Troll. Turning to the other, I see another one.
"I thought I heard a Yodel." Another Troll steps out from the shadows. A bright red Mohawk crowns her head, contrasting with her grey skin. Her clothes are more holes than fabric. Could it be... "Queen Barb!"
Dickory holds the String out for her with pride, and she doesn't hesitate, snatching it from his hands in an instant. She tugs on it, making its pink glitter shimmer as it begins to glow. "The final notes of Pop. It will never invade anyone's Brain again." Now she twirls it around her wrist, stretching the metal, completely ignoring my presence. "I'm not gonna let you do this!" I pull against the hands gripping my forearms. Barb turns as I snap at her, looking me up and down before letting out a snicker, clearly holding back a laugh. "This is who I've been worried about? This little Pop-squeak?" She approaches me, leaning her palms on her knees in a mocking gesture. I hold my ground, straightening my back to make myself appear taller. "I'll never stop fighting, until I make things right!" She simply nods, feigning understanding. "And I'm not a Pip-squeak!"
"Oh, yeah you are. 'Cause I'm a whole centimetre taller than you!" Then she rises onto her tiptoes, lifting a flat palm to compare our heights, making herself the taller one by contrast. But she's caught off guard when I suddenly lunge forward, kicking my feet to force her back, even though her minions still have me firmly in their grip. "Leave me alone!"
"Leave you alone? Uh, I'm sorry. You were the one who was all desperate to be best friends." She scoffs, then slips a hand into her pocket, pulling it back out a moment later with the invitation I indeed sent to her - though it's clearly been burned. Without a second thought, she tosses it over her shoulder. Just before it falls from view, I catch a glimpse of the cut-out of Juniper. "What did you do to Juniper!"
"Oh okay, all right, you're feisty. I respect that. Strong woman to strong woman, am I right?" She's clearly trying to change the subject, arms crossing over her torso, a knowing smirk playing on her lips. "Where is my sister, Barb."
"YOUR sister? Oh, don't you worry. She's safe. I would never hurt family." She snickers, putting extra emphasis, on the word 'your'. Then she turns to walk back to her scooter she has arrived on, while I'm left to wonder about her statement. "Family?" I mumble to myself, which she catches on to. "Oh, haven't you heard? Juniper and I have been brutally separated at birth. We're Twins, Pop-Squeak." My heart sinks into my stomach. There's a real chance now, that I'll never see my sister again. I mean half. The girl I grew up with. "No..."
"Don't worry. I let y'all say your goodbyes when Rock takes over the world... Sid, Demo, get her out of here." I keep up my protesting, still struggling to reach Barb. "You know who else was Feisty?.. Pop Village." Barb turns back to give me one last smirk before taking off with Hickory and Dickory, Leaving me behind - trapped in the grip of her two minions. "Wait no! Let go of me!"