Faded Rainbows

Vibe City

Poppy hummed happily as she dashed about her pod, throwing things here and there as she tried to decide the best things to pack for operation "Rainbow fish", at least that's what she was calling it. Among what she considered essential was: Gumdrops, candyfloss, candy canes, Chocolates, A change of clothes, and enough glitter to make a glitter troll jealous, as well as a few other items.

Despite all she packed, she still managed to get her bag closed, swinging it around to wear on her back. She was practically skipping as she left her pod, singing a song softly to herself. She was confident that with the four of them working together, they would get Trollex's colors back in no time! After all, who doesn't like music and parties and fun, right?

When glanced up, spotting a branch hanging overhead, and decided she'd have a little fun getting down to the plaza. She drew her head back, and swung it forward again, her hair responding to her will and stretching forward. It reached the branch she had spotted and wrapped around it, allowing Poppy to leap off of the step she was on and swing forward.

With a mid-air flip and a landing with a flourish, she earned the applause of the trolls that had stopped to watch her. She offered a few humble bows to her audience, but paused when she saw Branch stepping forward through the crowd, clapping as well.

Poppy felt her cheeks grow hot as she stood straight again, tucking a stray hair behind her ear. "Oh, Branch! I didn't realize you were done getting ready for our big adventure!"

He let out a huff, crossing his arms. "It's not an adventure, Poppy; it's just helping King Trollex get his color back. It'll help Tribal relationships to." He glanced over her shoulder at the backpack. "...That bag is surprisingly...small, Poppy. What do you actually have in there?"

She grinned, giggling softly. "Only the essentials, Branch! Don't worry about it. I even packed a life raft!"

Branch blinked slowly, staring at Poppy. The idea of her packing a raft for any sensible reason seemed unlikely, so he had to wonder just what she had packed it for.

It turned out that she was using it as a replacement for her portable glitter pool. You know, for whenever you want to jump in a pool of glitter, obviously.

Without allowing Branch to question her further, Poppy bounced on her heels a bit. "So, where's Trollex anyway?"

Branch glanced around. "I told him if he wanted he could explore a bit, but now that I think about it, the other trolls are to calm. If Trollex was somewhere in the village, they'd be going crazy..."

Poppy hummed, thinking it over. "Maybe the snack pack heard something? Wait, I think I see Smidge! SMIDGE OVER HERE!"

The diminutive troll turned to Poppy, which was when Branch noticed how stressed she looked. "Um, Poppy, does Smidge look worried about something to you?"

Poppy nodded a bit, watching as Smidge used her hair to swing down to them. Neither the king nor queen got a word out before Smidge spoke in a panic. "Guys we lost Trollex!"

The two looked at each other, sharing a moment of stunned clarity before shouting in unison. "YOU GUYS LOST THE KING OF THE TECHNO TROLLS?!"

-Meanwhile, elsewhere-

Trollex grumbled softly, his ear fin twitching before he scratched at it.

"You alright, man?" Cooper asked from his bubble, floating near enough to Trollex's to talk without much trouble.

The young king sighed, nodding. "Yeah, just an itchy fin." He chuckled a bit. "Must be someone talking about me."

Cooper let out a sudden laugh. "You guys have something like that to? For Pop trolls it's their ears!" He scratched at his own ear, as though to demonstrate.