Chapter Eleven: Acceptance

The girls hugged each other, they bowed and squealed excitedly like kids. The lights went out and they turned to leave the stage. Poppy saw as Queen Essence was greeted by King Quincy, they shared a quick kiss. Barb hugged her dad and she was head over heels at how happy he looked, how proud he was of her. Carol bumped a boy's fist, probably a new boyfriend. Clampers jumped on Delta Dawn's hair and gave her a big hug. Trollex was hugged by a red mermaid and Trollzart said "beautiful" to Marigold, who accepted the compliment shyly tucking her hair behind her ear.

"It's hard for me to say the things
I want to say sometimes
There's no one here but you and me
And that broken old street light
Lock the doors
We'll leave the world outside
All I've got to give to you
Are these five words when I"

Poppy turned around. Blue lights came from the ground, going up and illuminating a pair of blue teal feet she knew so well. She felt her chest swelling up with happiness. There he was!

" Thank you for loving me
For being my eyes
When I couldn't see
For parting my lips
When I couldn't breathe
Thank you for loving me
Thank you for loving me"

... and the happiness went up to her eyes and somehow decided to come down again in form of tears. Her eyes met Branch's and he gave her a tender smile mixed with some anxiousness. She couldn't believe he had been planning that. The crowd, that was already leaving, returned to see him pouring his heart out to the Pop Queen.

Poppy saw Barb on the other side of the stage, getting her electric guitar ready to join the presentation, but the pink queen raised a hand to stop her. "Let him shine." It was the first time Branch had willingly put himself in the spotlight.

As the song continued, Poppy saw Branch's dad giving him a back up with the bass and Riff was at the drums. Even King Thrash joined with his keyboard. He was able to get all the boys out there just to perform for her. She laughed, covering her mouth with her hands. She didn't know what to do, she was just... full of joy.

" You pick me up when I fall down
You ring the bell before they count me out
If I was drowning you would part the sea
And risk your own life to rescue me
Lock the doors
Leave the world outside
All I've got to give to you
Are these five words tonight"

Hair, she loved him, that was no other word that could translate how deeply she felt for him. She had to bit her lower lip to keep herself from sobbing loudly in front of everyone. The overwhelming feelings consumed her, it was intense, it was passionate, it held admiration and devotion. She couldn't picture a more un-Branch-like love declaration, but it came straight from his heart.

"Thank you for loving me
For being my eyes
Oh, when I couldn't see
For parting my lips
When I couldn't breathe

"Thank you, Poppy."

He sang the last part, but he couldn't go on, being overwhelmed by emotions and tears that both blinded and muted him. She ran towards him, but stopped before giving him the hug he deserved. "Thank you for not giving up on me, for being there... despise all this uncertainly, this rock blood and all...thank you for standing up against Glenda... "

She couldn't wait anymore. She engulfed him in one big hug before pressing her lips on his, shutting themselves in their own world and forgetting that they were in the middle of a stage, with the whole world looking up at them. What a mesmerizing creature he was.

ooooOOooooOOoooOooooOOoooooOoooooOoooooOOoooooOooooOOooooOoooooOoooo

Several weeks later, Branch was jogging around Pop Village. He wasn't much of a fit troll, but he noticed that if he burned enough energy with exercises and... other activities... he could keep his rock blood in check. It was less likely to feel the primal force dominating him when his body was tired enough, so his new motto was "keep body tired to keep mind sharp."

To keep his mind sharp, by the way, was very difficult when he was in a relationship with a certain bubbly queen. Things were getting busier for her, but she always had time to surprise him with something incredible. Like now, when he jogged his way back from Poppy Present Support Group, which he quickly had to go after getting a framed portrait of his teenage mother that she had been working very hard to find since the girl band concert was over.

He got inside his bunker, again with an unsettling feeling that he could never give her a gift as good as she had given him. He had adjusted his home for her, he changed the decor a little, made it more inviting, with a small garden at the first elevator stop, before it actually descended deep underground. He changed the scratches and scary cartoons on the wall with pictures, some of abstract artwork, and covered the walls with white and green painting. He also used the elevator stop as a place to keep clean and folded towels for when he returned from his exercises.

Branch went straight to the bathroom to get a quick shower before continuing his daily chores, which included a whole lot of international affairs reading that Poppy had sent him. He was using a new soap, organic, seaweed-made that Trollex had been exporting so the residues wouldn't contaminate the environment... apparently, techno trolls were excellent biologists and dedicated their lives to protect and improve the ecosystem.

He dried himself and pulled on some pants, wanting to stay inside the rest of the day. When he opened the bathroom's door he had a feeling he was being watched. He just hoped Cloud Guy wouldn't show up. Suspiciously, he looked around, but couldn't see anything. He entered his bedroom to grab a shirt and he found the source of his worries sitting right there in his bed.

... wearing nothing but bed sheets.

"Hm... what is this?" Branch asked, not sure if he should say anything, for it was very self-explanatory what she was doing there.

"I miss you." Poppy was caught off guard by his question. Her self-confidence a little damaged, she pulled the sheets up her shoulders.

He had missed her, too. The whole queen thing kept her away from him more than each would like to admit. He wanted to ask her about the event she was having that evening, that all tribes leaders were invited to and the big fancy ball Pop Trolls would host for the first time. He decided he could wait to ask her about her plans.

He couldn't take his eyes off her, she looked mind-blowing like that. He had to confess he was surprised she had been so bold to surprise him that way and he hoped she would do it more often. He wrapped his arms around her, kissing her while kneeling down on the bed, next to her. His hands pressed up against her hips, bringing her towards him so she was straddling his lap. She let the sheets fall back, giving him an eyeful. He jumped her like a starving man jumps to a feast.

He grabbed her by the waist, barely separating their lips as he laid her down on his pillow, the sight of her alone excited him so much he could die just then and there. The small noises she made when he kissed her neck, the way she opened her mouth and closed her eyes just before biting her lower lip. She wrapped her legs around him just after he traveled with his exploring hand up her thighs, bringing him back to her lips and devouring them with passion.

She was glad to see that he hadn't lost control on his rock blood, that he was doing his part and getting better at keeping that demon tamed. She loved it when he collapsed on top of her when they were done, he would hold her close and she would play with his hair until he could move again, showering him with kisses.

He sat on the bed and watched her as she made her way to the bathroom. He heard the water running and sighed. Hair, he loved that routine. She would return sometime later, looking refreshed and, if he wasn't careful, he would get her for another round. He was actually considering it when he saw that she brought the party dress and hung it behind his bedroom door. There was also a suit for him.

"When did you get that skull-y guitar in the corner?" He heard Poppy asking from the half open door. Branch looked around and saw the guitar she was talking about. He had just gotten it two days ago.

"My dad sent it to me. He said I made him proud."

"He's trying really hard to catch up with the lost time."

Poppy returned and gave him in a long kiss, letting the towel fall down. She slipped through his fingers when he tried to pull her down once more and gave him a playful smile. She turned around and reached for her clothes. Branch leaned down and watched her as she put on her panties - that ended just below her tattoo - , her stockings, her beautiful golden dress. Like an artist, she put on the exact amount of makeup, the right clips on her hair and the right amount of perfume. She kept all that in a drawer he had given her... a drawer that quickly took over half of his bedroom.

"Aren't you going to get ready?" She asked him, through the mirror, as she clipped her diamond earrings. He could see - right there - the moment the girl vanished and the queen took place.

"I thought only the leaders were invited to the first part." He shrugged.

"Precisely." She answered him in a small voice, barely above a whisper. He looked down and remembered that he had never answered her question.

"All right." He jumped off the bed, getting the suit from the hanger and getting dressed quickly by her side so they wouldn't be late.

"Are you okay with this?" Poppy asked as they stood hand in hand in front of the ballroom doors. His palms were sweaty. He wasn't okay... he was really nervous about the whole royalty thing. She could tell from a mile away. She licked her lips and turned to face him, staring at him with a seriousness that was really rare coming from her. "Branch, I know you don't feel comfortable with it. I don't want to put you through it or ask you to stay here with me, but... I'm really failing my confidence this time. This is huge and it was your idea so... Stay by my side. As my best friend. You don't have to be anything else tonight."

"My idea?" He whispered at her, listening as someone inside the room started introducing their names.

"We're signing the currency deal tonight, didn't you read the documents I've sent you?"

"I was going to, until someone showed up naked in my bed."

They stopped talking and Branch took his place as she requested, as her best friend, as her partner and as her bodyguard. He felt much more comfortable this way, guiding her across the hall like the treasure she was. He couldn't believe she had negotiated a currency with all the tribes, he had just suggested it for her, he never thought she'd go through with it. She valued his opinion that much.

He watched her as the boring ceremony took place. There she was, shining on her queen self again. He felt blessed that he was the only one in the room to know the girl behind the queen. The troll that wore the crown.

A thunder came crashing down outside and Branch sat up on the bed. He glanced at the clock on his nightstand. It was past two in the morning; the rain and the wind threatened to be dangerous. Poppy's pod was the most vulnerable one, being in front of the others in the tree.

He quickly threw the blankets away and exited his bunker. The rain hadn't started, yet so he rushed in the middle of the dark until he reached his beloved's place. Indeed, it was going back and forth with the wind and looked very susceptible to physical harm during the storm.

Another thunder clashed just when he jumped inside. His heart broke at the scene. Poppy had fallen asleep on top of books and documents she had been reading for her presentation. She was so tired that she didn't even pay attention at how much her room was shaking.

"Poppy...?" He called her gently, she stirred, rubbing her eyes with her hands.

"Branch, what time is it?"

"It's still the middle of the night, but there's a storm coming. Do you want to come down to the bunker with me?" She was too tired to disagree with him, and so he picked her up and when the rain finally started to pour, she was warm and happy, cuddling with him.

Poppy elegantly took a golden quill and passed the document to Delta Dawn, who read the whole thing through before giving her signature at the end. She passed it to Trollex who did the same. Poppy searched for Branch's eyes and gave him a nervous smile. He walked up to her and stood by her side, showing her that he was there.

He sat in the middle of the lake, inside a boat, fishing with King Peppy. He was really nervous about the reasons the King invited him in the first place. Poppy looked slightly worried when she handed him the invitation that morning. She knew her dad had figured out they were intimate, but she didn't know Branch's own father had played a key role in telling him that.

"I'm not here to lecture you, my boy." Branch jumped in fright when he heard his father-in-law speaking, making the boat shake. "You are a decent troll and I'm sure you're treating my baby girl right." He had to say 'baby', didn't he? Branch nodded and he went on "This is one of the things I didn't tell her. This conversation is supposed to remain between us." Whatever was coming it got Branch intrigued. "If you really, - really - chooses to spend your life by her side, you must understand that you'll be a public figure. Whatever you do, whenever you have a fight, what you wear, it's going to be news. It can be smothering and I know Poppy can play it out with her eyes closed, but can you?"

"I believe it will be hard, sir... but I'm up for the challenge." Branch answered quietly.

"They will go through your past as well. They'll want to know who you are and if you deserve the queen. I had to go through some hard stuff to stay with Poppy's mom."

"Sir?"

"Didn't I tell you? I'm not royal, her mom was. I took my place as King when her mother was eaten and Poppy was still inside the egg."

"I didn't know that..." He wondered if stepping up as king had been an easy job for Peppy. He surely had become a legend with the escape from the Bergens. "I have rock blood..." Branch said. "Do you think that may complicate things for Poppy?"

"Nah, she's going to stand by you no matter what. Besides, that rock blood of yours is partially royal, so..."

Branch heard as rock trolls applauded when Barb signed her part of the document, She laughed and raised a 'rock on' hand for them. Queen Essence and King Quincy leaned to sigh their parts as well. Branch noticed that they shared their royal duties equally; he glanced back at Poppy and saw her looking at them longingly, as if that was the ideal of relationship she was searching for.

He was really upset with her. He looked up from his cards and saw her as she slowly placed both her feet on his table, giving him a view that wasn't proper for the game they were playing. He really hated losing. She had lost several rounds in a row and as her clothes came off the game changed and it was his turn to start losing. He could barely keep his head straight. She looked at him with a lollipop in her mouth, with her cards in her hands strategically hiding certain parts of her body. She didn't even flint.

"That's it!" He threw his cards in the air. "I'm not playing anymore."

"But strip-poker was your idea, darling." She said in a sweet mocking voice.

"I know what you're doing. You're so annoying!" He practically screamed, watching as she lowered her cards to the table.

"And you love every-tiny-piece-of it."

"Very much!" He shouted before pulling her over the table.

Poppy leaned in and sighed the line that was reserved for her in the document. She had played the major role in writing down the rules, she had designed how their economic system would work and how they could trade fair and transparently.

The doors opened and the other trolls were allowed inside. They sat at round tables, picking up their places one by one and filling up the room. Poppy made sure they mixed up the tribes so they had a chance to meet each other.

Branch offered her his hand and she smiled, taking it. He lead her to the front, where she was supposed to give her speech. He had been so self-absorbed in his own fears of exposure that only then he realized that she was shaking as well. She could be a queen, she could play her part beautifully, but still, there was a little girl inside her that just wanted a hug from her loved one. He dared a peck on her lips when he placed her in front of the microphone.

There she stood, reenergized from a small kiss, not even having to open the paper she had her speech written on. Looking like a golden star herself, with her dress that featured a fitted bodice, nipped-in waist and a full skirt. Her crown held high in her head with absolute confidence. Just then, Branch understood his role. He wasn't just going to stand by her side and look male. He wasn't going to just watch her back as she catwalked her way to the public. He was there to breathe life into her lips, to make her shine like the true queen she was.

He didn't hear her speech about equality, about happiness and about being fair. He knew that speech by heart, he heard her rehearsing it a thousand times in the past weeks.

Poppy was lying on his bed, her hands holding her chin as she held herself up on her elbows. Paper scattered around her, she looked frustrated and scratched and re-wrote the lines. Branch watched her from the other room, fixing his alarm system that had been damaged by the rain. He loved to see how relaxed she was in his place. How homey she was feeling by his side.

"Why don't you take a break?" He offered. "The coffee is fresh, you know."

"I can't think about coffee, Branch." She said, biting the tip of her pen. "I don't seem to get anything right... I must finish this speech today."

"You got it right the first time." He said sincerely. "It sounded heart-felt. That's what counts, right?"

"I don't want to give a lame speech I need everybody to be proud to be a pop troll."

"What are you talking about?" He frowned, climbing down the ladder. He poured some coffee and entered his room to give it her.

"You must have noticed... all other tribes, they do important thing like... healing, building things... what do we do? We dance and hug...we rhyme..." Branch leaned down and shut her up with his a long kiss.

"I can't believe you don't realize how important it is what we do... what YOU do." He said standing up and picking up the book he had been reading during their road trip. She looked at him confusedly, but sat up anyway, putting her chin on his shoulder, reading the book with him. He quoted: "We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for."

He stared at her as his words sunk in. She bit her lower lip, fighting the tears.

"Oh Branch..." She hugged him. "Thank you."

A waltz started and trolls gathered around the ballroom for the first dance. Branch took Poppy to the middle of the room and placed a hand on the small of her back, the other holding her hand up. If someone told him years before that he would have such turn in his life he wouldn't have believed it. Years ago he was an orphan, eccentric survivalist inside his bunker, daydreaming about a certain princess... and now he had a father - not an ideal one - but still a father, he had a queen and he had actually done more to change the world than he had imagined.

Poppy was smiling at him, she stood on the tips of her toes to reach his lips and give him a sweet kiss. All eyes were on them and, for a moment, he didn't care. She felt so small near him. Her hands tiny in comparison to his, her fragile body seeking shelter in his. He returned the kiss, deepening it, making her feel just how much he loved her. He muted the surprised crowd around them.

"I'm up for it." He whispered against her lips, making her look up at him. "I'll stand by you. I'll be your king."

She gasped, her eyes wide and mouth hanging open. The world around them faded away.

"Did you just propose?" He could feel her excitement, if she wasn't wearing high heels she would probably be jumping now.

"Well... technically you did... several weeks ago..." He could barely contain the teasing.

"Did you guys hear it?" Cooper had been standing right next to them, he turned around, shouting to the crowd, making everyone silent in expectation. "Branch just proposed!"

Branch and Poppy got engulfed in several hugs and congratulations. His loner side desperately tried to endure until it was over. "Beautiful!" He heard Trollzart saying before giving him a 'I-told-you-so' hug. The Snack Pack chatted animatedly about the ceremony, giving ideas and tips on how it was supposed to occur. It took a while before both could escape the suffocating party.

"Do they need your presence here any longer?" Branch asked, adjusting his clothes.

"Hair, I don't care. Let's get out of here."

The End

A/N - I hope you guys enjoyed reading this story as much as I liked writing it. I'm very grateful for every comment, review and inspiring messages! I may not have answered all of them, but I read every single one. I'm sorry about typos and grammar mistakes that may have slipped while I was spell-checking. English isn't my first language, but it's so beautiful that I can't help it. Anyway, I wish I could update faster, but the real world calls. I'm an Architect and Labor Safety Engineer and I can only write when I get some peace and quiet (actually, I really love being by myself - jeez, I'm a female version of Branch) but I'm also a mom and eventually I work for the film industry, so let's say I'm quite busy.

I have already started a new fanfic. With Rock On I challenged myself to write a road trip story and now I want to explore how love blossoms and progresses from awkwardness to intimacy (I may write a full lemon, who knows), with a main plot, of course.

It's called Music of the Heart and you can find it on FanFictionnet and AO3.

In the meanwhile, I'm posting a original work I wrote several years ago. It would be nice if you could support it. I had a different writing style back then and I'm amused by how much I've changed. Anyway, it's called Thornwood and you can find it on Wattpad.

Thank you so much again!

See you guys soon!