Welcome to my first story! Feel free to leave constructive criticism (i.e. "It fricking sucks" ;D ), but I've already planned out how the story will go and probably wont be taking suggestions (unless they're super good and wont cause me to rewrite much!)

Poppy knew it was true love, and she knew that he knew as well. So why are they even beating around the bush? Oh well, she'll just have to take matters into her own hands as usual.

"Queen Poppy! Queen Poppy!" A sunny yellow troll raced to her, "Too many trolls want to live on the lower south-west branch, but it can't hold all their weight. What can we do?"

"I'll be right there!" Poppy exclaimed brightly, "I'm sure I can convince some of them to move their pods to the branch below!"

"Queen Poppy! We really need a place for the children to learn and play !" Another troll snuck up on her, one of the schoolteachers.

"The classroom will be up and running soon, I already have some trolls working on it! For now, lets keep them by the tunnel's entrance where they'll be safe from construction!"

"But what if they try running around the tunnels? They could get lost easily?"

"Already covered, sir! All except the direct route got closed off with boulders yesterday, and the forest entrance is under watch so they can't run off there either!"

"Wonderful, my Queen! You've thought of everything!" The schoolteacher skipped off satisfied.

Actually, it was all Branch's idea, Poppy wanted to point out, but she momentarily became lost in a daydream at the mere thought of him.

"Queen Poppy, the housing issue!"

"Oh, sorry, lead the way!"

It only took a few minutes of pep talk to convince some of her citizens that the branch just below got the same amount of sunlight and thus was absolutely perfect for them to live in. With a little time to take a breather, Poppy took the opportunity to look around her as each and every troll enthusiastically labored to turn Troll Tree into a home again, all of them singing along to some sort of sing, at least several going all at once to make a jumbled hum fill the air that, in itself, was still rather harmonious. Construction was almost done, trolls were starting to relax more now that they were on the home stretch, and those that finished their own projects helped with others, making the process go even faster. Soon enough, everything would be complete and they could all celebrate with their first HUGE party since they begun relocating.

Poppy knew that as a Queen, she would become saddled with a wide range of responsibilities, but up until recently she never thought those responsibilities would involve relocating the entirety of troll kind to their old tree home, constructing the village from scratch, and making sure everything went as smoothly as possible.

There were many bumps in the road for sure in the past three months; negotiating a treaty with King Gristle, paving a safe route to and from the former village, constructing brand new homes or relocating the old ones from the village, organizing and spacing the homes for everyone's comfort; the list goes on!

She had her father and her friends, and Branch, mostly to thank for taking some of the load off her. Her father helped with the negotiations as well as leading groups to the old village. Cooper actually seemed to be conveniently built to pull heavy wagons without much strain on himself, and thus joined her father most of the time. Satin and Chenille worked overtime on temporary tents to sleep on, hammocks for workers to rest in, and comforters and sheets for the new pods. Smidge did a ton of the heavy lifting, mainly for either relocating old pods or bringing building materials up high. Guy Diamond and Biggie teamed up with her on the village planning, leaving only the biggest issues up to her. DJ Suki's main role was motivation and energizing all the workers with song and the occasional dancing.

And Branch, she sighed dreamily, she couldn't even begin to start. The troll everyone once thought too gray and too grumpy turned out to be one of the most remarkable and amazing trolls ever. All his years living in isolation in his bunker, as sad as it sounded to her, made him incredibly resourceful in ways she couldn't dream of. It wasn't enough that he saved everyone from being eaten; he continued to save and help everyone even after.

He founded to most direct and safest route between the two villages, making travel far easier than the winding, aimless journey her father Peppy took over twenty years ago. He taught everyone how to fend off certain predators and what signs to look for when danger was too close. He also made sure they all learned how to survive if they got separated from the group and lost in the forest, which eventually became essential when one troll actually did. He even went on the first few trips to make sure everything worked out right, and used all his old bergen traps to secure the former village after it became apparent some critters were slowly encroaching the area and making it a little harder for trolls to repossess their belongings.

Before construction could even begin, he insisted they planned everything down to the last twig, even if it took them a few weeks; where pathways and bridges would be built, how many inches of space between each house, how much weight can each branch hold, where residential and commercial zones, and even set out areas specifically for evacuation in case the tree ever caught fire or something other. He made sure the tunnels were reinforced so they couldn't collapse, blocked off the areas not directly connected to the forest or Troll Tree, and installed lighting on the main tunnel, as well as widening it for large cargo to ease through. By his convincing, everyone first dug out an artificial lake that connected to the Bergen's water supply; she was especially grateful for that, because building a village sure turned out to be exhausting and thirsty work!

When building began, it was again Branch that made sure any construction occurred no closer than ten feet from any of the temporary tents below, and first from top to bottom; it turned out for the best when the occasional slip up sent a pod or some building materials falling down below. And everytime it happened, a quality control team had to check up the area for breakage or damage before anyone could get back to work. And if something major were to be damaged, it was immediately and safely removed, and Branch would go right back to the blueprint to work-around and redesign the area.

In short, Branch had been very, very helpful. And practically king-like, Poppy thought with a smile and a blush.

So helpful, in fact, he only just begun making his own home less than a week ago, living off a tent long after the majority of the trolls already had accommodations up in the tree. She felt bad, but he insisted that he did so back when he first started on his bunker, so it wasn't anything new for him. He was a newer, brighter, and bluer Branch, but he lived twenty years in self-isolation in a bunker made by himself, and so decided to make his home farther away from the other trolls, at the base of the tree almost opposite the tunnel, in a small enclosure of gnarled roots and a cracked boulder. She hadn't had a moment's rest to visit or help him, and only knew about it when her eyes wandered away from work, searching first for coal-black hair amongst the crowd, before realizing she need instead spot deep azure, still a tad darker than most troll's hair anyway.

She wanted so badly to visit him, see him, touch him, but they were both so very busy and rarely had time for more than the occasional nod and glance from a distance, or to talk formally about their projects. She looked forward to the moment the village was complete, not for the big celebration that would absolutely happen and she would need to make invitations for, but so she could finally see more of her father, her friends, her Branch.

After a long days work and many farewells, she would quickly shower and eat and head straight off to bed; she would happily fall asleep wondering what a relationship with Branch would be like; dates and holding hands and kissing under the moonlit sky after singing a super sweet love duet. She had pretty much no experience in being in a relationship; even though she had been loved by all and most likely sent many hearts a flutter, she never had a boyfriend, keeping all suitors at a distance, preferring to remain friends only. Even Creek (the creep), her first crush, the only one bold enough to persist even after she kept him at arms length.

She should think of something else before she lingers too much on a sad thought.

Branch, she dreamily drooled. Yeah, much better.

"Poppy?"

With a sudden jolt, Poppy blinked away from her daydream and back to reality. Biggie (and Mr. Dinkles) and DJ Suki were in front of her with worried faces. And looking around she could see a sea of eyes just as equally concerned.

"Um, oh."

"Poppy, you've been standing there for fifteen minutes, we've been trying to snap you out of it," Suki explained.

"Sorry guys, I was just lost in thought. Everything's okay!" She called out to the other trolls. Like a spell had been broken, the citizens ventured off to her homes, ready to rest for the day.

"Must've been quite the thought," Satin and Chenile popped up from seemingly nowhere, snickering.

"Umm..."

"You got a little..." Biggie gestured to the corner of her mouth.

"Oh!" She realized she had been drooling! She wiped it off quickly, face a darker pink.

"Everything alright?" And now the rest of the gang turned up suddenly; Guy Diamond, Smidge, Fuzzbert, even Cooper who likely just got back from traveling. She found it strangely convenient, yet thanked fate for magically bringing the Snack Pack together.

"Take a guess." Guy Diamond sanged with a smirk.

Her friends all looked at one another and all together replied: "Branch."

Poppy' face got even darker, "W-what are y-you talking about!"

"No need to hide it, girl, no one's living under a rock here." Satin replied.

Except Branch, Poppy thought happily.

"There's that face again! She's totally thinking of him!" Chenille and Satin giggled.

"Okay, okay, you're right." Poppy plopped down, suddenly drained. Her friends followed suit, forming a circle, except for Biggie, who was too large, and so sat down just behind Poppy.

"I can't help it, okay! Everything's been so busy I rarely get to see him, or any of you, so I'm kinda glad you're all here now, so don't get me wrong I really, really want your company right now, but I also...UGH!" Poppy leaned backwards, accidentally falling onto Biggie. He simply handed over Mr Dinkles for comfort, which Poppy gratefully accepted, petting the worm.

"You need a break," DJ Suki started, the others nodding in agreement, "You've been working so hard, and doing a fantastic job by the way! You deserve a little vacation, and I'm sure the workers will understand."

"And you're dad's here now!" Cooper helpfully interjected.

"That's right! You can tell him the situation, I'm sure he'll be okay taking the reigns back for little while," Suki smiled, "He'll want whats best for you."

"I don't know...could I?" She questioned, glancing over them.

"You're the boss."

"Thanks guys, and I think what I need really is a little more fun. How about a sleepover?" She paused and thought for a moment, "I mean, if you guys want, and aren't busy?"

"We've actually been communication with one another, we're all taking a break, too." They smiled "We've just been waiting for the perfect moment to strike."

"So you're all actually ambushing me," Poppy giggled, "starting a coup against your queen!"

"You know it!" Her friends laughed, and without any provocation from their charms, began embracing one another, showering their love. After almost eternity, Poppy felt relaxed and free again. She has the best friend!

Apparently their sleepover was happening now. She was almost tempted to tell them that she should really rest first, and then ask her father to take over before they do anything. She was just too happy, and more energized, so instead she gratefully accepted a delicious sprinkled cupcake and braided Smidge's hair, all while good friends caught up, sang, hugged, and danced around her pod.

After a few hours of good old fashioned fun, though, they eventually circled around again, listening as Poppy ranted off, as she's tend to do once in a while after too much hot chocolate.

"I mean I just don't understand," She was pacing around them in a fret, Mr. Dinkles in one arm and her empty fifth cup on the other hand. "We went on a remarkable once-in-a-lifetime quest, saved all of trollkind and made friends with the Bergens; at my lowest moment, when I lost all hope and turned grey with grief, he lifted my spirits up and brought back mine, and everyone's color. He saved me from spiders!" She turned to her friends, hands up in frustration. "We sang our confessions!"

"Girl, what were you two doing up in that flower?"

"We hugged!" Poppy cried defeatedly, letting go of Mr. Dinkles. She finally made up her mind to settle in Chenille's lap and let the twins play with her hair. "I should've went for a kiss! But I chickened out and we hugged."

"I gave you the perfect opportunity and you waste it on a HUG!?" Smidge threw her bow far across the room, then begrudgingly went to retrieve it.

"It was still a big deal for him, 'cause he's Branch," Poppy sighed, drawing circles on the rim of her empty cup. "I didn't want to ruin anything, or make him uncomfortable or feel cornered. I thought I had all the time in the world."

"Don't you worry, we're almost done building and you'll have plenty more free time to hook up."

"BUT I WAITED TOO LONG!" Poppy sprang up, nearly colliding with Chenille's chin had the twin not ducked fast enough. "What if he thinks there's nothing between us? What if he got tired of waiting? What if there's another troll now and...ERRRGGHH!" Poppy started pulling her hair when suddenly she got hit by a pillow.

After ten minutes of playfull pillow fighting (and a sudden hugging session), the Snack Pack lied down on the floor, heaving but feeling happier.

"Thanks guys, I needed that."

"There's nothing to worry, Poppy, the way you two look at each other is like no one else," Biggie endearingly, "It's like...super good friends or something."

"No," Poppy interjected, "It's like...true love."

Silence lingered for a bit. Poppy looked around and noticed they were waiting for her to continue on.

"...I never felt this way before...not even with Creek..."

It became even more quiet, and she wondered if maybe she shouldn't have just said that name, but Guy Diamond thankfully broke the silence.

"Do you think you maybe you've always have?"

Now everyone was looking at Guy Diamond wide eyes, even Poppy.

"You always made his invitations more special, more made with...love."

"You know," Satin started, "He always crushed them, and said the meanest things towards you, and wanted you to go away, and you just...kept going back." She looked to her sister to continue on.

"We thought you just kept persisting 'cause you wanted everyone to be happy. But maybe...you went the extra mile for him because of something else?"

"He kept the invitations," Copper spoke up; it seemed her friends were taking turns to shock everyone tonight. "Some trolls were gossiping 'bout it in the trail. Apparently they found them while hiding in the bunker."

"I heard of that!" Smidge yelled. "There was poetry too!"

"I thought that was a mean rumor!" Suki gasped. "They all mentioned 'laughter brighter than the sunlight, pink hues of the most fragrant of roses, and stuff like that."

Fuzzbert started murmuring and Poppy was grateful she couldn't understand else she might've had a heart attack.

"And remember the things he said back at Bridget's date? There's no way he just thought that up on the spot!"

"He totally likes you back! For who knows how long!"

"That's it." Poppy threw her pillow at the ceiling and got up. Her pod popped open at her command. She jumped out onto her pathway. It was late, the path now lit up with the dim, warm glow of hanging lanterns.

"What're you doing?" Though Suki had sort of an idea what might be going on.

"Finally going to ask out your boyfriend?" Guy Diamond teased.

"No." Poppy surprised them with such a firm, serious reply. She turned around to look at each and every one of them in the eyes, and spoke with absolute certainty:

"I'm going to ask him to marry me."

With that, Poppy turned completely around again and marched off along the pathway, leaving her friends with gaping mouths.

Chapter 2 will be Branch's POV, and he's in for a big surprise!