Chapter Text
Poppy smiled as the leaders all walked around Volcano Rock City. As part of the peace agreement, they all were sharing their culture with each other, including city tours.
First on the tour was Volcano Rock City, partially because it was the least destroyed by the World Tour.
Poppy was enjoying the architecture of the city, despite her own history with the rock trolls, but she would admit it was a bit hot. Although they were right by the ocean, the air felt dry and dusty in the city.
“And here we have the market,” Barb said, nervously. She glanced over at the other leaders, studying their reactions. “Where trolls buy goods and stuff.” She winced at her own lack of elegance, but kept going.
Despite the aesthetic differences, Poppy found the structure was pretty similar to her own village's market. Small tables hosted different trolls, who monitored and set out crafts and food items for others to take. Different from her own village’s market, each of the booths had a canopy to block direct sunlight.
The other leaders nodded in acknowledgement of Barb’s declaration, studying the area. From the looks of understanding, Poppy guessed it was pretty similar in their kingdoms too.
She glanced back at the market, at one booth in particular, and saw a troll serving some kind of drink. Brows furrowed in determination, she nodded. If she was hot, Trollex could probably use some hydration, she thought, making her way over.
She picked up a cup, and was turning back when the troll behind the booth shouted.
“Are you gonna pay for that?!” He demanded, puffing up angrily.
Pay? She paused, turning back to him. “What?”
“I don't care if you're the prissy little Pop-Queen,” the guy growled, getting out from his booth. She tensed, as she very much did not say that. A crowd was starting to stare and whisper, pointing at the two. “I'm not giving out free samples! I got bills to pay!”
Free? Bills?
“Whoa, hey,” Barb said, getting between the two. She spoke nervously and unpracticed, as if she didn’t mediate very often. “I'm sure this is a misunderstanding!” She turned to the Pop Queen, smiling nervously. “What money did you give him?”
Poppy's head tilted in confusion. “Money?”
“I must admit, I am disappointed,” Trollzart said, as the other leaders floated over. The rest of them looked at her sadly, and her heart skipped a beat. “Do you truly see yourself so far above other trolls that you do not need to provide proper payment?”
“I-” Her ears moved, as if trying to hear something that wasn't there. When had she said that?! When had she implied her status put her above others?! What is a payment?! “I thought he was offering it!” She tried to defend herself, gesturing at the market at large out of desperation. “If I wasn't supposed to take it, I can put it back-”
“You were supposed to give me money to take it!” The seller said, angrily. “So give me money!!”
“I'm sorry!” She said, desperately, seeing the judgemental gazes of the trolls all around her. Her heart curled into a tiny ball in her chest. “I don't know what ‘money' is!”
“You know,” Barb tried, growing visibly annoyed. “Cash?” Poppy shook her head, eyes widening in further confusion. “Coin? Mullah? Dinero? Dollars?” The Pop Queen was still shaking her head.
She hadn’t heard any of those words used like that. She knew what a coin was, but she guessed they weren’t talking about a slice of banana.
“Queen Poppy,” Essence said, voice soothing, yet still disappointed. “If one of your people needed to… let's say make a cake,” she started. “And they needed flour. How would they get it?”
Explaining. Explaining was good. “They'd ask their neighbors first, and then there's usually a booth in the market if the neighbors don't have enough either-”
“Good,” Barb said, slowly, like talking to a child. “And what do they do at the booth?”
“I'm not ignorant!” She burst out, before freezing and lowering from her defensive stance. “They walk over, and they get it. Apparently, this is something my people don't do, and I need to know what to do to fix it.”
“Do your people have debt systems?” Delta suggested, her own brows furrowing in confusion. “Some of my villages do that, where things are given with the expectation of getting something in return later.”
“Like a thank you gift?” Poppy asked, confused. “Because, while they are kinda expected, it's never a requirement to give one?” Was that what they were looking for? “I can get one-!”
“No,” Trollex cut in. “Like, a ‘because I did you a favor, you'll owe me a favor in the future.’”
“The only thing you're owed in my markets is a thank you,” Poppy said, confusedly. “Besides, how would we keep track of who owes who?” The Thank You Gift Circles would get confusing enough already. Adding another aspect? Headache-inducing.
“So, your people are free to just walk up and take anything at any time?” Someone in the crowd asked, halfway between curious and excited.
“Well, no, of course not,” Poppy said, nervously. She didn’t like the look on some of the rock trolls’ faces. “But the whole point of a market is to provide an easy place for trolls to get what they need, right? So, it can be assumed that things in a market are free for taking, while say, something in a pod should be asked after first, because you don't know why that troll has it.”
“Fucking hell-!” Barb burst out, finally dropping the pretend smile she’d been wearing in favor of a glare. “Clearly this isn't getting solved today!” She pulled something out of her pockets and thumbed through the stack quickly, slamming it on the vendor's table. “This covers it, right?”
The vendor shrugged. “Yeah, fine.” He said, getting back behind his booth with a huff.
Poppy blinked in confusion. She just needed to give them papers? She had plenty of green paper from when she was trying to find the best color for Branch’s vest in her scrapbook. The others were staring at her, though, and she felt like maybe she was still missing the point.
Her ears fell down in embarrassment. “I'm sorry,” she said quietly to the other leaders. “I didn't mean to cause an issue.”
Barb scoffed. “Yeah? Well, you did.” The rock queen stormed away, leaving the rest of the leaders standing in the middle of the market.
With her gone, the crowd dispersed, growing less interested in the visitors.
The Pop Queen, ears still pressed downwards, looked down at the drink, before holding it out to Trollex. “Here. I- uh,” she frowned, tensing. “I thought you might need this.” Hesitantly, he took it from her hands, glancing at her, the drink, and the booth. The second he did, her arms snapped to her side to avoid touching anything else. “Excuse me,” she said, quietly. “But I think I need to leave.”
She turned towards the direction they all arrived from and walked, more briskly than she needed to, away from the market.