The Lost Tribe

Chapter 4

Poppy and Branch were walking through the village, to get to the clearing. It was early in the morning and the two of them were rubbing their eyes and yawning, and Branch was holding a large coffee mug in his hand. They entered the clearing and looked around for Aria until she jumped down from a tree again.

"Seriously, how do you not break your knees while doing that?" Branch asked. Aria just shrugged.

"What are you guys doing down here? The sunrise is up there!" Aria pointed to the tree she was in. Both Poppy and Branch wrapped their hair around a tree branch and hauled themselves up, while Aria climbed up the trunk.

"Why don't you just use your hai-" Poppy trailed off, remembering that Lost Trolls had no magic in their hair. "You can't use your hair, can you?"

"Nope, but at least I have Echo." Aria laughed as Echo nestled on her shoulder. The three trolls watched the sunrise as the sky grew a beautiful orange color.

"Oh, before I forget," Poppy reached into her hair to find something. "I got these for you. Gumdrops!"

"Really Poppy? Again with the gumdrops?" Branch asked dryly.

"Hey, if it worked on Hickory it can work with Ari." Poppy said. Aria perked her head up.

"Ari?" She asked.

"Oh sorry, I just always give my friends nicknames." Poppy explained.

"No no, I like it!" Aria smiled. "Ari." She said to herself. She then looked over at Branch. "Does Branch have a nickname?"

"I mainly call him Branchie!" Poppy cooed while Branch rolled his eyes. Aria laughed as she ate one of the gumdrops, her face immediately scrunched up.

"Whoa those things are sweet!" Aria said, her face scrunched up. "I mean...they're nice but how do you guys eat these all the time?"

"Just one of the joys of being a Pop Troll!" Poppy chirped.

"You guys are so different to my tribe." Aria stated. Branch and Poppy tilted their heads. "In a good way! I love how you're so upbeat all the time."

"Most of us are like that." Poppy added. "If you want, you could meet some others." Aria looked doubtful.

"Poppy, we've been over this." Aria sighed. "I trust you two, don't get me wrong. But what if others aren't like you? Like they'll see me like your dad sees me? Dangerous." Aria looked down. Poppy and Branch looked at each other, Branch shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, what if we bring some good friends of ours here tonight?" Poppy asked. "We'll make sure they don't freak out. I promise you, they'll be understanding." But Aria was hesitant.

"Okay..." Aria finally said. "Just tell them beforehand! I don't want them getting all surprised and freaked."

"Okay, it's a deal!" Poppy smiled.

***

As Poppy and Branch left the clearing, Branch looked at Poppy doubtfully.

"Poppy, are you sure this is a good idea?" Branch asked.

"Of course! This'll help Ari become more comfortable with other trolls." Poppy said confidently.

"But you know what she's like, and what if the other tribes of trolls believe in this whole 'Lost Trolls are dangerous' thing?" Branch asked.

"Well...we'll tell them all about her and prove to them that she's not dangerous." Poppy said. "Especially to my dad." Branch's eyes went wide as she grabbed Poppy's arm.

"Whoa Poppy, you can't tell your dad about her!" Branch argued. "You know what he told us. He was very serious about the Lost Trolls." Poppy looked at him as she thought about it. He was right, it was too soon to introduce Aria to her dad.