Chapter Text
Things hadn’t been the same since his brothers walked out all those years ago. Branch had been able to live with it at first. Grandma Rosiepuff was still there. She’d tell him stories about his Ma and Da when he’d asked. Sometimes they would talk about John Dory, Spruce, Floyd, and Clay when he missed them too much. Back then, he’d held onto the hope that they’d come home one day. That they would miss him and Grandma too much to stay away.
He'd write letters to them. While he couldn’t send them, seeing as he’d no idea where they’d gone, he kept them in little envelopes just in case he saw them. Branch would write about the things he saw and did. He’d leave updates about Grandma and how much better his singing was getting. That always got emphasized in his letters to John Dory. He’d tell them how much he missed them. How much he missed their game nights and their cuddle piles. How he missed the safety John Dory’s arms gave him, the songs Spruce used to sing him to sleep with, the jokes Clay told him when he was sad, and the stories Floyd would tell him. The love he had for them outweighed the hurt then.
Until Grandma Rosiepuff died.
It had only been a few months since the incident, but it felt like years to Branch. Some nights he’d lay awake, crying. Begging for anyone, whether it be Grandma, Ma and Da, or his brothers, to hold him and make the nightmare go away. The nights he did fall asleep, his dreams would be plagued with nightmares. Some nights it would be Grandma being taken away over and over again. Other nights, she wouldn’t reach him in time. Sometimes it would be one of his brothers instead.
At first Branch would wake up screaming from his nightmares. Then his neighbors scolded him for the noise. A particularly nasty troll told him that he had already killed his grandma, no need to bring the rest of the tree with him. From then on, he either silently sobbed or bit his lips or hands. Anything to avoid the Bergens or his angry neighbors.
Branch knew that he was in deep trouble. All his color was gone and there was no one to care for him. The other trolls avoided him. Some were too afraid of the Bergens being lured to their pods to care for the young trolling. Others claimed he had bad luck and his lost colors proved it. Branch was left to find his own food, keep his pod clean, and to find hiding spots when the Chef came searching for trolls. The only one to offer any help was King Peppy and the older troll was often busy caring for his own daughters after losing his wife.
Despite this, Branch held onto his last string of hope. King Peppy, in an attempt to find someone to care for the young orphan, had sent four trolls into the world to find his brothers. So far two had come back with no luck and a third had been captured by Bergens on his return. Right now, Branch had one last chance to find his family.
There was only a week left though. Trollstice was coming and all the trolls knew the Bergens’ young Prince Gristle Jr. had been promised a troll. Not just any troll either; Princess Poppy was their next target and King Peppy couldn’t afford to wait any longer.
As much as Branch wanted to wait in his pod, he knew he couldn’t. Grandma had been talking about the tunnels and the life they would live once they escaped for far too long. He wouldn’t let her dreams die with him. If his brothers didn’t come back with this last scout… Branch would have to admit his brothers didn’t want him. That they never would have come back for the baby brother they had left behind.
Reluctantly, the little trolling hunkered down for another lonely night. A whispered plea for his brothers, any of his brothers, to come back and rescue him on his lips.
Unknown to Branch, three days earlier, the last scout had managed to find Floyd.
It had been a surprise to the pink-haired troll when the scout burst into his dressing room after a show. How they had slipped past security he’d never know, but he quickly waved the bodyguards off. If someone had risked sneaking past the Bergens to find him, it had to be important.
“Is something wrong with Branch? Or Grandma Rosie?” He silently prayed that they were okay.
“I’m sorry to tell you this, but Rosiepuff… She was eaten by the Bergens. We think Branch saw what happened, but we can’t get any more information from him. He burst into tears the last time we asked.”
Floyd’s heart sank. Grandma Rosiepuff… He hadn’t even told her goodbye. Not one of them did. Now they never would. He sunk into the chair behind him, tears welling up in his eyes. His grandmother had been a bit rough around the edges, especially when it came to cards, but she had helped Ma and Da raise his older brothers and himself. She took over caring for Branch’s egg when they died. She’d loved them at their lowest and they all turned their backs on her over a stupid performance.
And Branch… Oh gumdrops! He was five, maybe six now? It sounded like he survived. Floyd hoped that someone had helped him through this. “What about Branch? Did someone take him in?”
The scout shakes her head. “He’s been on his own since the incident. Between the crying and his colors, no one has been willing to risk it. King Peppy has been trying to help, but he’s raising two little girls on his own now. He can’t juggle a third trolling, much less one who need extra care like Branch does.”
A piece of the puzzle falls into place. King Peppy wouldn’t risk a troll to go after a group of runaways unless absolutely necessary. “He wants me to come back and raise Branch.”
“He’s sent out a few scouts to find all four of you, but I don’t know if anyone else has been successful.”
“And what happens to Branch if I don’t come back?”
“If the others can’t find your brothers or they decide not to come back, Branch will be left on his own.”
That almost sends Floyd into a fury. Yeah, he knows it’s out of character for the level-headed and sensitive member of BroZone, but Branch is just a baby! How could anyone leave him to fend for himself? He might have left, but he always had plans to go home. He made sure that Branch would have someone to take care of him. They would let him face the world alone because he was mourning his grandma and his colors. What in the world did that have to do with… Oh. Oh no.
“You said they didn’t want him because of his colors. Did… Did Branch go gray?”
Silently, the troll nods. “Like I said, we’re pretty sure he saw what happened. A few trolls found him after the Chef left, crying in a bush and completely gray. No one can get him to talk. He doesn’t leave the pod very much and no one has heard him sing since…" They pause, sighing as they run their finger's through their hair, "Floyd, I know you left for a reason, but Branch needs you more than ever. And if you don’t come now, we won’t be there if you do decide to come back later.”
Floyd blinks, a bit puzzled at her statement. “What do you mean you won’t be there?”
“King Peppy and the others have finished digging the tunnels. We’re planning to escape the night before Trollstice to save the Princess’ life. We don’t know where we’re going, so I can’t tell you if you change your mind. It’s now or never.”
Floyd sits there for a moment. It’s not like he was planning to leave Branch on his own. He’s going back for him, no matter what. But what is he going to do once he’s got his brother? He could always grab Branch and come right back, but that doesn't feel right. Branch needs other trolls, and they are few and far between out here. Then there’s food and a place to sleep to worry about. He does pretty well for himself, but even now he has to scrimp and pinch when work slows down. It’d be even harder with Branch. He’s gonna have to stick with the village.
He sighs. As much as he loved the trolls he grew up with, seeing the world had been the best decision of his life. It would be hard to give up the freedom he had gotten so accustomed to. He has to remind himself that this isn’t permanent. Once Branch is older, he can go back out on tour. He can bring him along, maybe sing with him if he can convince the trolling to sing again. Floyd would love to see Branch’s face seeing the ocean or the bright lights of Mount Rageous.
“I’m in.” Floyd says, “Let me get my stuff and we can head out.”
And that’s how Floyd finds himself running through a forest three days later, the scout close on his heels. He can see Bergen Town in the distance. Just another day and he’ll be back at the Troll Tree. He just hopes that he’s not too late for Branch.