Work Text:
1)
Floyd sat on a hill, watching the bustling party below him. He sat quietly, enjoying the soft breeze rustling his hair and the grass beneath his fingers. While he was trapped in the bottle, all he dreamed about was being able to experience this again.
A loud laugh cut into his musings, and he glanced down at the party. John had somehow tripped and fallen into the arms of a country troll (their leader, if Floyd remembered correctly) and Clay and Bruce were laughing at him. Branch easily walked up and started conversation with the country troll, ignoring John as he grew more flushed.
“You're one of the new trolls, right?” A voice chimed in.
He turned to see a troll with purple flocking and long, green hair approaching him with a calm smile. He nodded, slowly.
“I just wanted to welcome you to our lovely village!” The troll continued. “I'm Creek. I'm a yoga teacher and meditation expert. If you ever need help relaxing, just ask!”
Floyd nodded. “I'm Floyd. Um, thanks? I don't know how much yoga I'll actually be able to do, though.” He pointed at his legs, which were still partially crystallized, and his cane, which sat on the other side of him.
Creek waved him off. “It'll be fine, I actually know some exercises that may help that.”
“Really?” The doctor had said it was a matter of waiting and seeing, but she had also mentioned they hadn't seen anything like his case before. Maybe this troll would know…
“Of course!” Creek said. “I just want to make sure you're safe and happy in our village!”
Floyd smiled softly. It seemed like this guy was a more zen Poppy. “Are you one of Poppy's friends?” The snack pack (a rather strange group) had been approaching him and his brothers as they settled into the village, making sure everything's okay. It wouldn't surprise him if this guy was her way of making sure he wasn't overwhelmed with the party.
He shrugged. “Oh, I don't know, I feel like every troll she's ever met is her friend,” the zen troll joked. “She's even friends with the unstable gray troll.”
That made Floyd pause. “What?”
“Oh dear,” Creek said, his face falling. “Did no one warn you about him?” When Floyd shook his head, he sighed sadly. “There's a troll,” he explained. “He's, well, gray. And for years, he would burst into gatherings, yelling paranoid ramblings. He destroyed any party invites he was given, and made weapons!”
Floyd hummed shortly in consideration, face flashing through emotions.
“He's down there,” Creek continued, pointing out where Branch was standing by the snack table, alone (as John, Bruce, and Clay all received a lecture from Delta Dawn). “He calls himself ‘Branch.’ There was one day, out of nowhere, he tried to strangle me!” Creek emphasized, pointing at his neck.
“Don't forget I tried to strangle you too,” a new voice cut in.
Floyd turned to see Queen Poppy, standing behind them with her arms crossed. Her face and voice were flat and unimpressed.
“Ah! Queen Poppy!” Creek said in a rush, stumbling to his feet. “I was just-”
“Trying to socially isolate my boyfriend?” She guessed. “You are already on thin ice after trying to sacrifice the whole village to the bergens. The people have given you a second chance, but don't make me regret it,” she warned, fur bristling.
“Oh, it's fine,” Floyd said, not diverting his gaze from the party. “It was interesting to hear what he thought of my little brother.”
Creek paled, looking between the two. “Little… brother..? But he's a monster!”
Their eyes both snapped to him, threateningly.
“Out!” Poppy roared at him, pointing into the woods.
Creek turned around and fled, tail between his legs like the coward he was.
After he was gone, Poppy walked over, plopping onto the ground next to Floyd.
“Sorry about him,” she said. “I'm not allowed to exile him.”
Floyd stared at her. “The bit about him trying to sacrifice the village? What..?”
She shrugged. “To try to prevent his own death by, at the time, our enemies, he directed them to the entire rest of the village.” Floyd stared at her in stunned silence. “Most of the village has forgiven him, since no one ended up actually getting hurt, and he did it out of fear. Of course, Branch, my friends, and I haven't, but as Queen, I have to keep the peace.”
“But as Poppy?” Floyd questioned softly.
She snorted. “That was Poppy, when I yelled at him. Branch has already talked me through how I can allow myself to feel negatively, and that I am not Queen all hours of the day, so don't worry about that.”
Floyd nodded with a hum. “Do you want to talk about it?”
She glanced up at him in surprise. “Are you sure? I mean, you just went through a lot…”
He just nodded. “It's not a competition. And besides, I feel like everyone's been catering to me lately. It feels a little nice to know someone else is having negative emotions too.”
Poppy stared at him, before deliberating how to start. “I haven't really had a chance to talk this through before,” she admitted. “Branch was there for most of it, and I don't really… talk to anyone else about this stuff.”
Floyd kept his face open, waiting for her to continue.
“Creek and I were… dating… when it all began. I feel bad for saying this, but… I didn't really love him at the time. He was my best friend, and so when he said he liked me, I didn't want to reject him.” She winced. “I didn't feel like the troll I liked would ever like me back either.”
“The troll you liked?” Floyd said, voice teasing in a way that indicated he already know.
She flushed. “I said I just wanted to be his friend, but everyone noticed that I made an effort to end the morning song near where he was supposed to be foraging, that I made him specialized invites, and that I was so much more showy when I knew he was there.” She glanced up at Floyd, who looked amused to see her blushing. “Is it weird that I had a crush on your brother?”
“I mean, you guys are dating, so it'd be kinda weird if you didn't,” Floyd joked.
She flushed again, letting out a light laugh, before her face fell slightly. “Well, way back when, I guess Creek noticed how much I wanted to… ‘befriend’ Branch, and told me that he'd start helping too.” She frowned. “I'm- uh, not great with sarcasm. Branch has been helping me, but he's not great at it either. But, uh, Creek would just make sarcastic and snide comments to and about Branch whenever he could. Whenever I'd express a concern about it, he'd just brush me off.”
Floyd hummed. “It sounds like he was being cruel to the both of you.”
“I- yeah. Yeah, he was,” she conceded. “It got worse after the 20th anniversary party. He and some others got captured. He got separated, and while we were trying to save him, he agreed to sell out the village. We got recaptured trying to save him, and he came up to the cage and stole my cowbell to do it.” She frowned, burying her face into her knees. “He told me ‘I'll have to live with that for the rest of my life. At least you get to die with a clear conscience.’”
Floyd sucked in a breath. “I'm sorry. That's a horrible thing to say to someone.”
Poppy nodded, her breath shaky. She sniffed, and became aware of tears falling from her eyes. Quickly, she moved to wipe them away. “I'm sorry,” she said, quietly. “I'm the Queen. I should be stronger than this.”
Instead of arguing, like Branch always would, Floyd just held his arm out for her to lean against him, which she did.
—
2)
Poppy was walking around the village, greeting her people and any visitors, just like any other day. What was not like any other day, though, was the troll she caught sneaking out of the doctor’s pod out of the corner of her eye.
For a second, she thought it was Branch, since he was the culprit to that activity the most (besides her, but that was besides the point), but then she noticed the pink hair.
“Floyd?” She asked, curiously, standing behind him.
He startled and let go of the branch he was clinging to. Luckily, Poppy didn’t flinch as she lifted her arms and caught him.
“Run!” He hissed, clutching her shoulders tightly.
Without a second thought, she bolted into the woods, holding him against her chest.
She stopped at her favorite flower field- the one she and her friends picnicked in. “What’s wrong?” She was close enough to the village to go back and grab others, but given her experiences with trolls sneaking out of the doctor’s pod, most likely she was just going to have to deal with an angry Moonbloom.
“Clay-” Floyd panted, as if he’d been the one running. “-and Bruce-”
“Are they in danger?!”
“No- no, they’re- they’re just-” he trailed off, gesturing widely with his hands. He deflated with a sigh. “I lived alone for over 20 years. I can handle taking care of myself.”
She nodded, slowly placing him down to stand on his own two feet. “They’re being overprotective?” She guessed.
He nodded. “I told them Branch would pick me up from my appointment, to just get some alone time, but they still insisted on joining us.”
Poppy winced. “Well, if you’re trying to hide from Branch, he probably knows where I took you.”
Floyd blinked in surprise. “What? No, Branch hasn’t been as bad as them. Speaking of-” he pointed around them. “Why?”
“Why, what?” Poppy asked, head tilted.
“Why did you actually run when I asked you to? And why would Branch know where we are?”
She shrugged. “I’m going to let you guess what Branch does whenever he has to go to the doctor.”
He stared at her incredulously, before his shoulders started to shake. “Oh music,” he laughed. “Over 20 years apart, and we still do the same things.” She let out a giggle as well. He buried his face in his hands. “Over 20 years apart, and I still don’t know who I am, besides who I am to my brothers,” he choked out, laughs turning into sobs.
“Oh, Floyd,” Poppy said, growing somber and shifting to help him stablize. They leaned against the stem of a flower, letting the petals provide them shade.
“I’m sorry,” he said, quietly. “You probably have stuff to do-”
“Ehh,” she interrupted, casually. “Nothing I couldn’t do later.”
“Still…” He argued, weakly.
“You know what you told me, that night at the party?” She asked, rhetorically. “‘It feels a little nice to know someone else is having negative emotions too,’” she quoted.
He sighed, before relenting. “I don’t know how much Branch remembers, but I- when I left, I wanted to learn who I was without BroZone.” He slid downwards until he was sitting on the ground. Poppy followed suit, sitting next to him. “They started the band when I was an egg. By the time I hatched, they were getting regular performances. So, of course, I had to join too. But, I was terrified and I just wanted to hide behind my brothers. I remember John Dory saying ‘no, no, it’s fine! You can just be the sensitive one! It’s your character!’” He laughed sardonically. “‘Character,’” he repeated. “I don’t think I was a person outside of that.”
“I’m sorry,” Poppy said, softly. “That sounds hard.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “That’s why… that’s why I left. But since then, I haven’t- I’m not any different. I left for nothing.”
“Well, I didn’t know you before-”
“Music, you hadn’t even hatched yet,” he realized. “I’m so old.”
Poppy glared at him. “I didn’t know you before-” she repeated. “-but, I think you have changed.” He sent her a skeptical look. “Branch told me you were constantly trying to stop fights and make your brothers get along. Just yesterday, you told John Dory and Bruce to, and I quote, ‘fuck off with your petty bullshit.’”
Floyd snorted.
“And listening from BroZone to now, your music definitely has a very different vibe.”
He shrugged. “It was easiest to blend in with the rock trolls, so I lived there for a while. Picked up some things.”
“Well, I think it sounds cool,” she said. “Besides, we’re always learning new things about ourselves. Finding out who you are is a life-long process.”
He sat there for a second, before shrugging again. “I guess. I just feel kinda bad about it all.”
“That’s okay too,” Poppy agreed.
—
3)
Floyd was enjoying the sun, settled on the side of a hill just outside of the village. The artificial lights of Mount Rageous never warmed him up like this- never felt this nice. After so long deprived of it, it felt magical to lay out in the sun again.
Then, a shadow fell over him and he frowned.
“Hey, Floyd?” Poppy asked, nervously.
He lowered his sunglasses to look at her. “Yeah?”
“...can I sit?”
He blinked at her. “...sure?”
She moved next to him, settling on the grass and beginning to mess with her hands.
“Do you… need something?” He asked, proddingly.
She winced. “Well, you said you lived near the rock trolls for a while?”
“What about it?” He asked, curiously.
She ducked her head, face flushing. “Could you… help me pick a rocker look out?” At his confused face, she backpedaled. “No, nevermind, it’s stupid-”
“It’s not stupid, but I don’t know why you’re asking me?” He said. “Isn’t the rock queen coming tomorrow?”
Poppy blushed even further. “Yeah… uh…” she muttered something, which he couldn’t quite hear.
“What was that?” He asked, head tilting.
“I want to impress her!” The queen burst out, flushed neon pink. “She and Branch always manage to make me swoon, and I want to do it to them for once!”
“And you think I can help with that?” Floyd asked, confused. “Do you see any boyfriends hanging off my arms?”
She frowned, leaning back to lay on the hill. She brought her hands together on top of her stomach, and began fiddling with her fingers.
He sighed. “Look, I know I haven’t met Queen Barb yet, but if she’s anything like Branch, you could probably make her swoon just by existing.”
“She’s nothing like Branch,” she muttered. “She’s the wild one, he’s the voice of reason. Branch is quiet, she’s always the loudest person in the room. He likes being alone, but she always has a crowd with her. And then I’m- I’m just…” She stilled, eyes pressed closed. “I don’t know…”
“You’re just the one they both love.”
“Hm?” She blinked slowly, looking over to where Floyd was turned to face her.
“Poppy, they wouldn’t be dating you if they didn’t love you,” he said. “And what’s not to love? You’re kind, passionate, a good listener, and a good queen. You’re such a bright person, you can make anyone’s day better by just existing.”
She shifted her gaze away from him awkwardly. “I… guess…”
“Why do you think you need to look rock-like for them to swoon?” He asked.
“Well… I don’t need to,” she said, shyly. “But I kinda want to? I kinda like Rock Music, now that I’m listening to it more- sure, death metal isn’t always my favorite, but some of the others- I don’t know, I like them.” She blushed. “And- uh- Branch missed it when I was wearing a rocker look before.”
Floyd shrugged. “Alright, why don’t you wear that, then?”
“It was magic.”
“Ah, of course,” he said, sarcastically. “How could I forget?” Poppy sent him a nervous smile, and he sighed. “Okay!” He agreed. “I can try-”
“Thank you so much!” She said, smiling brightly.
He grunted as he stood, grabbing his cane. “Only ‘cause it’s you.”
—
4)
Poppy smiled as the party sustained itself without her. She held a smoothie, sipping it slowly as she laughed and talked with her friends.
“Hey!” She turned at the rapid whisper to find Floyd looking at her frantically. “Poppy! You have to help me!”
She raised an eyebrow at him, glancing around the party. Before she could turn fully in one direction, though, he grabbed her face to stop her from looking. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously at him, eyes darting down to his hand in slight offense. Her friends continued their conversation as she stepped away from them.
“Poppy!” He repeated, emphatically. “You have to introduce me to him!”
She pulled her face out of his grip. “Who is him?” She asked, finishing off her smoothie and tossing the cup into a nearby trash can. “And why do I have to introduce you?”
Floyd smoothed his hands over his hair, tucking his cane under his arm to have both hands to do so. “Somehow, you have two partners, which means you must have done something right.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “And look at him!”
“Oh, so now I can-”
He grabbed her face, turning her in the direction he had previously stopped her from looking in. She batted his hand away from her face, but looked over in the direction anyways. “Just look! He’s so ruggedly handsome and tall and-”
“You mean Hickory?” Poppy asked incredulously.
“Maybe!?” Floyd said, panicked. “Do you know him?! Does he like guys?!”
She sent him a flat stare. “I don’t know. I didn’t have time to ask when he was trying to capture me and your brother to turn us over to the queen of rock.”
Floyd froze, an almost grief-stricken expression crossing his face. “Shit, do you actually hate him? He’s so hot!”
She rolled her eyes, though she was slightly honored that her personal feelings would matter to him. “No. Branch does though. Watch your language, there’s trollings at the party.”
The trollings were all far away from them, running and playing on the jungle gym on the opposite side of the party. Poppy watched as a rock trolling tried to jump off the slide to crowd-surf, only to fall flat on the ground.
In front of her, Floyd deflated. “So, you won’t be my wingman?”
“No, I absolutely will,” she said, rolling her eyes again. “Just seeing the look on Branch’s face would make it all worth it.”
Floyd narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms playfully. “Not because you want to see me happy with a guy I like?”
“Come on,” she said, ignoring his question and tugging him towards the yodelers. He shot her a panicked look, before shifting to as casual as he could get as the other troll looked over at him curiously.
“Hello, Miss Poppy,” the other greeted. His voice was deep with a slight country rasp, making Floyd flush. “Who’s this?”
“This is Floyd!” She introduced, smiling. “You guys haven’t met yet? You both travel around a lot.”
“Can’t say we have,” Hickory said. “Didn’t see him at the last party, either.” He stuck his hand out. “I’m Hickory. Half yodeler, half country troll.”
“Uh- Floyd.” The other troll said nervously. “I’m-” He raised his hand to return the handshake, unintentionally dropping his cane from where it was held under his arm. His eyes darted down, flushing in embarrassment.
“I got it,” Hickory said, kicking the cane up with his hoof and catching it easily, presenting it back to Floyd, who gaped at how smooth the movement had been. “Here you are.”
Floyd flushed, hesitantly accepting the item. “Oh- uh, thank you.”
The satyr smiled. “It seems very nicely made,” he commented, nodding towards the item. It was mostly wood, but with a hard metal tip. Branch said it was for rough terrain, but Floyd was willing to bet it functioned pretty well as a weapon. Along the wood, though, were delicate carvings Floyd had added while he was still bed-ridden and unable to do much else.
“You know, Floyd helped with the construction of it,” Poppy said, stepping up next to them. Floyd sent her a panicked look before smiling awkwardly at the other troll, trying to look humble. “Did all of the decorative carvings himself. Maybe he could show you some day!”
“Oh, I don’t know, I’m not much of a carver myself,” Hickory said, sheepishly. His green flocking reddened slightly around his face. “But would you want to get lunch one day while I’m still in town?”
Floyd nodded, smiling at him. “I’d love to,” he agreed, just as sheepishly.
“Great!” Poppy said, happily. “Well, if you’ll excuse me!” Without giving them a chance to respond, she turned and walked away. Mission accomplished.
—
+1
John Dory had called a family meeting. As the “head of the family” and “one with the most authority.”
Floyd had rolled his eyes at Poppy when they received the summons.
She looked back at him from her throne. [Okay, technically, it was just her office chair, but Floyd called it her throne since that’s where she did her queenly duties. Anyways-] “Most authority, huh?”
He snorted, leaning back on the couch she kept in there for her friends. “I think he only meant the bros.”
She shrugged. “Too bad, I’m coming.”
—
“Glad to see everyone made it!” John said, standing in the front of the meeting room in Branch’s bunker. Everyone rolled their eyes. “So, I think we should start preparing for BroZone’s potential fans. You know, we were extremely popular back in the day, and now that we’ve resurfaced, it could become dangerous.”
“JD, I know you’ve been living in the Neverglades for years, but I promise you no one cares,” Branch said. He leaned back, putting his arm over Poppy’s shoulder.
She leaned back into his side, locking eyes with Floyd across the table. He raised an eyebrow questioningly, and she shrugged. Branch had been fine for years, but no one really knew he was part of BroZone. She raised an eyebrow questioningly, looking pointedly at him.
His expression shifted, brows shifting up and down in a so-so manner. He had gotten a few questions himself, but nothing ridiculous.
She glanced over to the head of the table questioningly. He rolled his eyes. It definitely wasn’t worth the meeting John was calling.
She raised her eyebrows again in question. He raised his back at her mockingly.
She shifted one eyebrow up, the other down. He mirrored the expression. She switched sides, and he followed suit. She furrowed her brow, and he furrowed his as well. He wiggled his eyebrows in a wave motion. She crossed her eyes. He scrunched his nose.
“Ahem!” Both of them startled, looking over to see JD glaring at them. The others were hiding their laughs behind their hands. “If you’re going to attend this family meeting, you need to be serious.” He crossed his arms behind his back, beginning to pace. “I established rules as the head of the family-”
Floyd and Poppy sent each other a look, both exasperated by the drama. JD saw it, from the front of the room, and made an offended noise.
At that point, everyone burst out laughing.
“Sorry John,” Branch said, not at all sorry. “But I think Poppy’s head of the family now.”
The eldest sputtered. “Just because she’s your girlfriend-!”
“All in favor of Poppy leading the family!” Floyd said, loudly. He, Branch, and Poppy raised their hands. “That’s half!”
“No it’s not!” JD burst out. “Poppy doesn’t count! She’s not a part of this family! It’s 2 to 3!”
Bruce cleared his throat. “John, I don’t know how you didn’t notice, but the only thing stopping Floyd from adopting her is the fact that she’s dating Branch and will become our sister anyways.”
“Oh!” Poppy piped up, smiling. “That reminds me!” She pulled out a communication device and turned it on, pressing a button.
“Hello?”
She smiled. “Hi Barb! Do you think I should be head of the family?”
“No duh, aren’t you already?”
“Ha!”