"THIS IS PERFECT!" I scream and look at the dress I've pulled out of my closet. Not too much, but not too little. It's perfectly practical! Just perfect for Branch! And perfect for me and Branch's date tonight.

"Well, turn around and show us!" I hear Suki say from her and the other girls' spot on my bed. I grin widely and turn, holding the dress out in front of me. Suki smiles back at me and gives me two thumbs-up.

"OH, YEAH!" Smidge yells excitedly. And oddly, Satin and Chenille stare at the dress with their mouths hanging open. Uh, oh…. Either this is really, really bad or really, really good.

"Umm…. Chenille, Satin? Do you like my dress?" I ask, questioningly. They seem to straighten up and snap out of their stupor.

"Yeah, sugar, it's-" Chenille says, waving her hands out in front of her.

"Yeah, girlfriend, it's, uh-" Satin adds, with a strange sound to her voice.

"Something!" they chime together. I raise a brow and purse my lips.

"What's wrong with it?" I ask, crossing my arms.

"Nothing!" they exclaim defensively. I sigh and walk over to them.

"Please tell me what you really think. That's why I asked all of you over. I want to make sure that I don't look stupid for my first date ever in my life with the best guy in the whole world." They exchange a glance and I give them a pleading look.

"Well… If you really want to know what we think," Chenille says, and grabs the dress from my hands, holding it away from her as if it's some sort of disease.

"To tell you the truth," Satin trails off.

"We really just don't like it at all," Chenille finishes.

"No color!" Satin adds and inspects the white lacy frills at the bottom.

"No pizzazz!" Chenille pitches in while pointing at the embroidered flower patterns at the bottom.

"And most of all-" Satin says.

"No style!" they say at the same time, both grabbing one of my arms and dragging me out of my pod. I glance at Suki and she shrugs her shoulders, taking a sip from her soda and following us out the door. Smidge hops down from the bed and follows behind her.

"Girlfriend, you gotta have a dress that pops!" Chenille says. All of us giggle at the pun. Pops! Haha!

"I'm sure we got something to spice you up a little, right, Chenille?" Satin asks her sister. Chenille nods, grinning widely.

I willingly walk with them as we head for the twins' pod. We converse about what Branch could be planning to do for our first date. This is so EXCITING! I can't wait to go out with Branch! The more that we talk about it, the more excited I feel!

We finally arrive at their pod and they waste no time in pushing me through the door.

"Alright, honey, let's go get you a dress!" Chenille exclaims excitedly. We all take a seat on their beds. Ooh! Squishy!

"Okay, you guys! Wait here and we'll be back in," Satin and Chenille exchange glances then finish together, "two minutes."

I nod and smile. Once they disappear into their enormous walk-in closet, I turn to talk to Smidge and Suki, who are sitting on Chenille's bed.

"So, what do you think they're going to come out with?" I ask. Suki shrugs.

"Probably something poofy."

"Or glittery," Smidge says.

"Or colorful," Suki adds.

"OR HAIRY!" Smidge stands up and shouts. Me and Suki stare at Smidge. She looks at both of us, then sits down quietly. "I liked that idea…" Suki looks at me and we both laugh.

"That's pretty weird. I like that though. It sounds soft and fun!" I say with a huge grin. "Whatever they've got, I'm one hundred percent sure I'll love it!"

"We're back!" They suddenly shout simultaneously, jumping out into the doorway, holding up a glitzy, sparkly blue dress. I watch it shimmer… This is beautiful! It's like a glitter troll rolled into a dress!

"Wow," I say, my mouth hanging open.

"Put it on!" Smidge yells excitedly.

"Okay!" I grab the dress and head for the closet. I shut the door behind me and take off my current clothes, shortly after pulling on the new dress.

I look in the mirror at myself. The dress comes down to my knees and has spaghetti straps. Whenever I move, it glistens and bedazzles everywhere. I love this! It's absolutely incredible!

All I can think is who's that hot babe in the mirror. That's me! I strike a pose with one arm on my hip, the other behind my head, and my lips poked out. I look and think about how far this dress is from the one I was going to pick.

Wait… What if Branch doesn't like this one? What if it's too flashy for him?! What if he decides I'm just not his type?! What if-

"Hey, Popps, you coming back in here? We want to see too, you know," I hear Suki say albeit impatiently.

I step out of the closet and watch as everyone's eyes bug out and their jaws drop.

"Girlfriend, you're the definition of wow," Satin says. Chenille nods.

"Yeah," Smidge agrees.

"You're going to knock Branch dead with that thing," Suki says. I grin, knowing that this is a great compliment since Suki doesn't get that excited about dresses and such. But wait! I don't want to knock him dead so hard that he's scared of me! My grin fades quickly and I look down at the floor.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Chenille asks. I look back up at my friends and their worried faces.

"I just…. I don't want to scare him off," I say reluctantly, not wanting to spoil the others fun. Their eyes widen and they run over, hugging me the moment they're in range.

"Poppy, honey, you're not going to scare him off," Chenille says.

"Yeah, Branch loves you no matter what you wear," Satin adds.

"Besides, if he gets scared off by this then he's the biggest, trollin' idiot I've ever seen," Suki states bluntly. I giggle. Well… I feel a bit better about it. After all, what is the possibility of me shocking him so bad that he runs away?

…

Okay… Prepare yourself. Soon, behind that door will be the guy of your dreams. It's great, right? Right. Alright….. He's gonna knock….. Now! Hmm. That didn't work. And….. Now! Still no Branch. Fine, then. Third time's a charm. AND….NOW!

Knock, knock, knock!

Ohmygoodnesshe'sherewhatdoIdo?! I gawk at the door. Finally it hits me that I need to open it. I walk over at the pod's door swivels revealing Branch.

Woah, baby! Hot tamale! I scored a hot date! I look him up and down, unashamedly checking him out. He's wearing a black jacket with a white shirt and some matching black pants. In his hand is a flower. I look at it a little closer. That isn't just any flower… That's a poppy!

I raise my wandering eyes back to his face. He's staring at me with wide eyes and his mouth's hanging open.

Great. I don't have to worry about him running away, just him dying from the shock and getting rigors mortis. Riggins mortis. Dang it, what is it called?! Oh, yeah, rigor mortis. Anyway, my whole point is that we're going to have to drag him outside and bury him in the backyard while he's stiff as a board and heavy as a rock.

Okay…. Moving on from el cray cray thoughts…

"Um… Branch?" I ask, secretly checking for signs of rigor mortis.

"Oh!" Thank goodness! No after-death effects. Phew! "Umm… Poppy, you look good- no, great- no, lovely! Lovely. Yes, you look lovely," Branch says nervously, shortly after clearing his throat. I blush and clasp my hands in front of me.

"Uh, I brought this for you. I hoped you'd like it since it's a poppy… Like you," he mumbles, holding out the flower to me. I grin and grab it, bringing it to my nose for a good sniff.

"Thank you, Branch! I'll go put it in some water. Come in! I'll be ready to go in just a second," I say enthusiastically. Running for a cup and to the sink, I remember something.

"Hey, Branch?"

"Yes?" I grin as I place the poppy in some water. There, perfect! I skip back to Branch.

"I think you look very handsome," I say, smiling. I watch as his normally blue face turns to grape in a matter of two seconds.

"Oh, uh… Thank you, Poppy," he stammers awkwardly.

"You're welcome!" I exclaim and grab his hand. "Come on! Let's go!" I run out the door dragging him along behind me.

"Wait, Poppy! You don't even know where we're going!" He says, laughing. I stop and look at him.

"Okay, then. Lead the way, mon amoro!" Branch shakes his head, chuckling, as I take his arm.

"It's 'mon amour.'" We walk in amiable silence for a few moments until curiosity so prickles at my mind that my mouth opens automatically.

"So, where are we going?" I ask eagerly.

"I can't tell you. It's a surprise," he says looking straight ahead with a small smile playing on his lips.

"Oh, come on… Please?" I beg, poking my lip out for, even if I do say so myself, an excellently tear-jerking pouty face.

"Nope. Not gonna happen, Jelly-Bean," Branch says, smiling.

"Hmmph. That's rather rude, Candy Corn," I respond. He gives me a strange look.

"Okay…. Where exactly did you come up with that?" I flash him a big grin.

"Just off the top of my hair," I say. I hold his arm a little tighter and rest my head on his shoulder.

Soon enough, he stops and I look around.

"We're here," Branch says. I get a good look at the place. The moon is out, there's soft, squishy moss everywhere and there's a large, shimmering pond with a boat on the shore. Branch leads me to the boat and helps me onto it.

I sit down and watch as he carefully pushes the boat off of the moss with an oar. I glance around the boat suddenly noticing that a picnic basket is resting under Branch's seat. Branch's eyes meet mine and I find myself lost in their sparkling gaze. My heart flutters as gives me a soft smile and a loving look.

Branch dips his oar down into the water to stop our movement so that we are in the middle of the water. I scoot forward, smiling as he pulls out the picnic basket. He spreads a checkered blanket out over the boat's floor, takes out two plates, and places a sandwich on each. He finally takes out some cups and fills them up with lemonade. Branch gives a glass to me and I take a sip. Mmm…. Lemony!

I reach for my sandwich and pick it up. Strangely, there's two pieces cut rectangularly. I furrow my brows and look at the sandwich.

"Hey, Branch?"

"Hmm?" he hums a response as he chews.

"Why are these cut rectangularly?" I ask. He looks up at me, shocked.

"Well, Poppy, triangularly cut sandwiches are extremely dangerous due to their sharp edges and-" he stops when he sees me staring at him, one eyebrow raised. "Um… Would you prefer for me to cut it triangularly from now on?" I giggle. He's so silly!

"Nah, I like your weirdly cut sandwiches," I say and look up at him as I take a bite. Branch smiles nervously and averts his eyes down to his sandwich.

"So how did you get so persnickety?" I ask and he gives me a playful glare.

"Precautionary, Poppy. Not persnickety as you so insensitively and uneducatedly put it. And I became very careful during the many years of living alone with nothing to survive on but your wits and handiness," he proclaims. Albeit proudly, might I add. I shake my head and take a big bite.

"That must've been the pits. Why didn't you just sneak into the village at night and get some stuff. I mean, we grow plenty of candy on bushes." Branch gives me a strange look and I gasp. "Do you not like candy?!" I ask, shocked.

"No, not really. I don't really love it," he admits, biting into his sandwich once again.

"Well, what do you love?" I ask curiously as I lean forward a bit and narrow my eyes with a sly grin, eager to know the answer.

"You," Branch said, quickly looking up at me with a bit of a surprised expression that matches mine to a T. I guess I really shouldn't be this surprised. He admitted this back when we were in the Bergens' troll-eating pot.

"I love you too, Branch," I say, smiling warmly at him. I think my heart just might burst from all of the sweetness floating around! He returns my smile and looks at his surroundings. We're silent for a little while until Branch finally spoke up.

"Hey, Poppy?"

"What?" I ask.

"Do you mind if I do something?" I hear him say. I glance up at him.

"No. Go ahead," I say looking at him intently. What is he going to do? Is he gonna dance with me, serenade me….. Kiss me? I can't hardly imagine that thought! It sounds wonderful… Him leaning in carefully, his lips pressing gently against mine. Mmm… Sounds heavenly…

He gently moves the blanket and the things on top of it before taking my hands and helping me up. I look into his eyes, mesmerized by the beautiful blue pools staring into my own eyes.

Have I told you lately that I love you?

Have I told you that there's no one else above you?

Fill my heart with gladness

Take away all my sadness

Ease my troubles, that's what you do

He sways with me gently, bringing me closer. I rest my forehead against his, holding his gaze.

For the morning sun in all it's glory

Meets the day with hope and comfort too

You fill my life with laughter, somehow you make it better

Ease my troubles, that's what you do

Branch brings his face closer to mine, slowly. My eyelids droop a little lower, anticipating what's to come. Holy guacamole! I think he's going to kiss me!

There's a love less defined

And it's yours and it's mine

Like the sun…

His voice has became quiet and he trails off, staring deep into my eyes. I grab his upper arms with my hands as he leans in even closer, about to close the gap. I feel the side of his nose brush against mine and he hesitates for a second.

COME ON, MAN! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! GO ON AND KISS- Oh, my troll, it's happening!

His lips move against mine slowly and carefully, making sure that he's gentle. I squeeze his arms and pull him closer to me. I feel Branch's arms tighten around my waist. He moves one hand from my waist and to the side of my face. I move a hand up to his shoulder.

Before I know it, Branch pulls away and I open my eyes. He strokes my cheek with his thumb.

"Sorry… I shouldn't have just kissed you without permission. I hope you're not-mmm?" I bring my lips back against his in a short kiss. I pull away and smile up at him.

"You don't have to ask for permission. However, I do appreciate the thought," I say, looking up at him adoringly. Branch beams happily, leaning his forehead against mine.

We share several moments of loving silence until Branch finally speaks up and says the words that we both knew were coming.

"I guess I need to get you home now, don't I?" he asks, and I can hear the disappointment in his voice.

"Yeah…. I guess," I respond dejectedly.

Soon enough, Branch uses the oar to row us back to shore and helps me out. Once I'm down, I immediately latch onto him, wrapping one arm around his middle. I feel his arm snake around mine and I sigh contentedly. Goodness, I could get used to this.

After we finally arrive at my pod, I decide to open my mouth and talk, as I normally do when I'm nervous or excited. Which, by the way, I'm both.

"Branch-"

"Poppy-" We both stop and blush, looking at the ground.

"You go ahead," I say.

"No, you go ahead," he asserts gently.

"Okay… What I wanted to say was that… I had a really, really nice time tonight, Branch. Thank you so much for everything. I enjoyed it so much! Everything was just so beautiful and perfect!" I say, clasping my hands together in front of me. Branch blushes a shade of purple and looks down at his feet.

"You're welcome… I'm just glad you enjoyed it," he admits, looking up at me with a soft smile. He's so cute!

"I hope we can do it again sometime," I mumble quietly.

"Yeah. That sounds nice..."

We're quiet for a few moments.

"I guess I have to go to bed…. Lots of queenly duties and paperwork tomorrow," I say, sad to be leaving him.

"I understand. You gotta keep this kingdom running, after all. A troll's work is never done," he says, chuckling quietly.

"Yeah," I trail off. I wish this could last forever. Branch walks a little closer to me and takes one of my hands pulling me closer.

"Goodnight, Poppy," he says as turns his head to my cheek and leans over. I move my head slightly so that his lips land on mine. After a few seconds, he pulls away gently. "I'll see you tomorrow.

"See you tomorrow," I respond softly and watch as he walks away. "And, Branch?" I call out, eager to tell him one more thing and prolong our contact. Branch turns and looks at me questioningly.

"I love you," I say, grinning.

"I love you, too," he says, smiling back.

Hi, everyone! I hope you enjoyed this! By the way, this will probably be my last Troll's story for a while. ;( I need to have inspiration to do these stories and when I start to get into another fandom, I can't find the gump to do stories from a fandom that I'm not into at that moment. I hope you guys aren't too mad…. However, I possibly could do more once the Christmas special is released. If you haven't heard about that, a brief summary about it was posted on NBC. Anyways, read, comment, and have a super great day!