In the forest, near an area safe from predators, a young troll stared at something above his head. The roots of the trees coming out of the ground were like the claws of a bergen ready to grab him were getting him worried, but if he wanted that snack, he had no choice but to get out the bunker that day.

- You must learn to face your fears... he whispered these words to himself constantly, trying to motivate himself.

Above his short tuft of jet-black hair, hanging from the branch of a tree was a delicious-looking fruit; yellow, sweet and full of sugar, he was so hungry! Even if he didn't like it, sugar wasn't so bad if it wasn't in a cupcake.

In an awkward movement, he stretched his hair again towards the desired fruit. Being too far for him, he missed it and his hair came back to slap him to the ground with a squeal of pain.

- What are you doing there, lil bud ? A familiar voice teased him gently.

The little troll turned to the one who had choosed to adopt him up a few weeks ago despite the thoughts of the other trolls.

" A gray shouldn't raise another gray troll ! "

Though he was exactly what the young soul needed. The old troll's heart sank at the sight of the kid's watery blue eyes.

- I'm hungry, he whimpered, I want to do things like a big boy...

The other troll smiled softly at him and came over to help him up to his feet. He took him in his arms; despite his slightly small size for an older troll he was still able to carry the 5 years old in his arms to reassure him.

- Come on, come on, don't give up so quickly! Even if there is a closed door in front of you, there is always a key somewhere.

- A key ? His small hand chased a tear on his cheek.

- Yes, and the fun part is to search for it.

He put him standing on a mushroom next to the tree. With a heart warmed by this new goal of teaching this little troll to love life, he encouraged him:

- It's just like solving a puzzle, tell me, do you see that key?

A puzzle ?? He loved puzzles! He began to look for the key around him... to finally notice; he took a pebble from the ground, and threw it at the fruit to make it fall.

The fruit fell on the old troll's head, followed by a gasp from the little troll.

- Sorry...

He took the fruit, laughing like he hadn't in a long time, and handed it to his young friend;

- See ? There's always a solution, always a key somewhere.

. . .

Last night had not been that pretty.

After screaming for help for long minutes, poor weakened Branch had returned to the shelter with tons of sticks under his aching arm, just to make a good fire to keep them warm during the first night they would spend lost in this forest, days away from Trollstopia... the thing is, Poppy's leg needed medical attention because the pain had started to make her sweat and quiver like a little leaf about to let go.

The gray troll had fortunately taken care of the task like a hero.

"Lay down" He had ordered her as he made the fire with hands covered in dried blood from her leg from earlier "I'll take care of it, don't worry, I won't let you go".

And he had kept his promise; all night the male troll had taken great care of her wound, placing foam balls of cold water on her forehead for her growing fever, helping the wound not get worse by pressing his leaf jacket on her flesh to prevent too much bleeding. Eventually he even found some clay and honey and other poultices that he carefully applied on her open wound, doing everything he could to help her bear the pain... luckily the bandage had stopped the blood, and with all his efforts, he had managed to put Poppy to sleep peacefully...he had forgotten to sleep himself.

Branch, lying on the rock inside of the crevasse, shirtless because his jacket had served as a blanket for the pink troll, was sound asleep. If you didn't take the time to notice his ribs rise and fall with the rhythm of his breathing, you could almost think he was dead.

Poppy ? Well, the survival expert's care had been a real miracle ! With the help of wooden crutches he had made last night, she had managed to get to the gray troll's side with slow movements, now deciding whether or not she should wake him up from his dreamless night.

In the wide-awake mind of the energetic pink troll though, several questions swirled with a hunger to answer... was he still angry about the fuzz-odils that made him sing against his will ? Had he ever been lost in the forest before and therefore knew how to find his way home, right back to Trollstopia ? Why was he suddenly so worried and terrified about her wound ? Would he mind if she stroked his soft looking black hair for a few minutes ?

A rumbling sound suddenly heard, startling Princess Poppy... She first thought it was the gray troll's stomach that must be starving and was screaming for the cure, but all clues led to her own stomach! The pain had taken so much space that she had forgotten that she was starving right now !

- Branch ! Braaannnnch, wake up !! The pop troll shook his shoulder, it seemed like a good excuse to get her sleeping companion's attention.

The silence troll groaned in his sleep, disturbed by the small hand on his aching shoulder. His ear twitched at the sound of Poppy's soft voice... Memories flashed in his mind; the river, pink hair, the fall, waking up on the beach and all that blood, so much blood... oh no, Poppy !

He opened his icy blue eyes in panic, looking for the princess... He had fallen asleep! Stupid dumbass, how could he leave her at the mercy of predators he should have stayed on the lookout, not slept and-

- Branch! She wrapped her arms around him, almost pinning him to the ground, glad he was now awake.

At the touch of that one warm chest against his side, Branch calmed down, taking in heavy gasping breaths; Poppy was there. She wasn't dead, he had prevent the wound from killing her... He had to stay calm, everything was fine.

- O-Oh hey... he frowned, annoyed by his sleep need.

Poppy stayed a few more seconds against the gray troll, giggling as if her injury simply didn't exist. When she had taken enough warmth from Branch to her taste, she let him free himself from the embrace, trying to find something in his hair: Branch panicked at the sudden contact;

- Poppy what the fuck d-don't- What are you even doing ??

Touching another troll's hair was a sign of huge trust. During those few minutes, the troll unable to use their best defense was extremely vulnerable. Branch trusted Poppy, but he would have appreciated a polite request and explanation before such an act; they were lost in the middle of the forest, it was the worst place and time to want to take the time to brush his hair even if she wanted to!

- Poppy, only I can defend us bo— Poppy, hell, don't touch my hair!

- But I'm hungry ! She whimpered, and I'm sure you have a snack !

Well, there was one between his legs– wait what ?

- ...WHAT ? He tried stop her, What are you going to do?— Eat my fucking hair ?!

She stayed silent, but her stomach comfirmed her words, letting out a long complaint; the poor thing was starving. Normally, Branch would have been annoyed, but her hunger was good news; the bandage had done its job and could allow the pink troll to last several days if necessary. It was important to keep hope, and therefore, he chose to reward this request from the pink troll;

- I don't have any food on me, he explained to her, pushing her hands away from his hair.

Poppy raised an eyebrow. Branch bit his lower lip;

- I'm going to have to go get some... He tried to make her understand the danger that this represented.

Poppy didn't seem to care in the slightest or understand the risk;

- Oh ! Okay, I can stay here if that's what you want.

She smiled broadly at him, showing some beautiful shining white teeth. Branch avoided her gaze, worried and nervous, somewhat intimidated by this striking beauty... She had had her sleep and was glowing with happiness, he looked like a groundhog who had just woken up from hibernation without any rest;

- You stay well hidden here, okay? He pointed at her, rising on his legs which still had the strength to support his own weight despite everything they had been through.

- Okay ! But be careful too... She asked him.

Why care about him? She was more important than him, her life worth gold, his nothing, not even shit.

- Hm-mh, mind your little pink ass and I'll mind mine... he murmured to himself.

She laughed cutely, Branch rolled his eyes, hiding a little blush and went out of the shelter to search for food, anything that could satisfied her stomach.

Once outside the crevasse, Branch looked up at the dense vegetation around him. Between the large leaves of the trees in green and blue colors, sometimes orange and golden, the rays of the sun pierced their way. The light dazzled him and he used his hand to hide his eyes while he got used to the bright light. After all it was dark in the crevasse and the sudden change in light was a shock to the retina.

Branch analysed the area around him; on one side a forest looked dark and dangerously unknown and on the other a path was leading to the wild river that could be heard in the distance. Nothing about this place seemed familiar to him, no landmarks; how to find the way home if he didn't even know where they were ?

Knowing that Poppy was safe in the shelter, he placed leaves and branches on the entrance to hide her and began to walk in search of berries or any other edible plants in this forest. The task was complicated; he couldn't find any safe berries to eat around here! So he began to dig, to search under the most little rocks... Now he was not only covered in Poppy's blood but also in dirt and mud.

He decided to go back to the river, far enough from the area where the two trolls had woken up the day before. It was their second day in this frightening universe that was nature, but he had to stay calm, take the time to relax and look for a key.

He had two problems ahead of him; find food and find a way back to Trollstopia.

Branch arrived at the river a few minutes later, kneeling by the water to roughly clean his body. Stinking of the scent of blood was a bad idea, but he might get covered in dust later to cover up his smell.

As he brushed his tangled hair with quick, clumsy strokes, his mind was still trying to process the informations...

...he watched the current of water hit the bruises on his knees, and he felt silly for not have thought about it sooner.

.

The leaves over the entrance to the shelter moved as Branch made his way to Poppy still hiding at the bottom of that ridiculous hole. The princess's heart raced, relieved to see him return safely, except for the bruises from the night before that still appeared at his chin, he had cleaned himself from the blood.

It had to be said that Poppy had never found herself in such a desperate situation like this; lost in the forest far from home with by her side the silence troll that everyone seemed to hate. She was trying to think of positive thoughts of ignoring the discomfort and pain of her hurting leg and appreciating Branch's presence in this brand new, unexpected adventure; if they saw the good side of things, it would already be a great help on their motivation not to give up!

- Here, he threw what he had found to eat in front of her.

.... Bark. Bark freshly cut and damp from the morning dew that smelled like dirt and natural rot.

Branch hadn't noticed her expression and was busy explaining his plan;

- 'Cause the river took us away from the village, we just have to go up the course against the current! I calculated about two days of walking with your injury but we can do it if-what?

He had just noticed the pink troll still not touching her breakfast.

- You... want me to eat... this?...

She dared to touch the bark with her fingertip in disgust, her tongue in the corner of her mouth. Branch looked up at the sky, exhausted from the task of finding this very high quality meal;

- Not the bark itself, the inner part of it is edible and even has medicinal properties, perfect for your... Leg condition.

He showed her the white part inside the piece of wood, dripping with weird looking sap. Poppy looked at him in horror, like if he was asking her to eat a baby bird;

- I will not eat bark ! I'm not a beaver!

- Beavers do not eat bark-

- Still! She cut him off, categorically rejecting this suggestion on the menu.

Branch slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand, sighing in discouragement. Well, yes she had regained all her energy with the care he had given her last night, but she had also found back her annoying, bubbly side that made him want to tear his hair off and bang his head against the wall of the crevasse. He got up and with low curses, went back in search of food that she would agree to eat;

- You stay here! He warns her seriously.

- You know I could just come with you and we could choose a something together-

- God damn it... he sighed, We're not in a freakin' restaurant in case you haven't noticed, he frowned angrily, We're in the middle of the fucking forest, lost and I'm the only one able to walk at a reasonable speed, so you stay here until I come back, he turned around, fucking hell !...

Without waiting for an answer, he leaves, leaving her alone in the hiding place.

Poppy felt her ears droop, slightly pained by Branch's suddenly cold behavior. She should have expected that ! The gray troll was scared, stressed and wanted to go home, safe in his bunker where no predator could reach him. So his attitude yesterday didn't mean anything ? Did he even have a real fear for her life or did he just want to make sure to guide her home to get rid of her forced presence by the accident that had thrown them in the same boat ?

... did he even cared about her ?

She shook her head to chase away the negative thoughts; Branch was her friend, of course he cared about her ! He wasn't the kind of troll that thought about himself only; he cared about the village, even if he didn't always show it ! He was only stressed and scared... And the idiot that she was had let him go back to the forest without any emotional support ! If she wanted to prove to him how much he meant to her, she had to go through this challenge by his side, staying here would be useless!!

As stubborn as she was, the pink troll grabbed her handmade crutches and ran out of the shelter to find the gray troll; anyway he had no sense of gastronomy, and she would do much better choose her food on her own !

Not far away, the muzzle of a creature stirred at the scent of blood mixed with honey...

Branch walked with a furious step, looking for something other than bark to eat for his picky partner; his small journey had taken him to a small, sunlit clearing by the river surrounded by tall trees. He took a deep breath and spoke to himself out loud as he searched for berries in a bush;

- It's fine, it's just Poppy refusing some simple to fucking understand survival techniques! She doesn't know anything about this, you just have to adapt to her needs! That's totally nor- huh?

He stopped abrutly when a rustle was heard in the vegetation only a few meters from him. Slowly, he placed the very few berries he had find into his short pocket, his hands shaking into fists ready to hit anyone who approached him.

A pink figure came out of the bushes, Branch sighed and Poppy jumped.

- I told you to stay in the crevasse! He scolded her.

It was Poppy, of course it was Poppy! He bent down to make sure the bandage wasn't damaged; relief it was and a certain pride in seeing that it was holding up well.

- B-But I was hungry and I didn't want to let you alone...

- Poppy you are seriously hurt I don't want you to walk by yourself! He was trying to make her understand his concern, Here, just eat this ! He gave her the berries which she happily buried in her mouth, come on, we have to walk.

Her good mood succeeded in calming him down; if they continued to walk they could return to the village and go to the hospital urgently... Everything seemed to be going well, no danger seemed to await them for nearly two good hours of walking...

But it was when Poppy wanted to take a fifth break that something started to go wrong.

Rustles in the vegetation.

- H-Hello? The voice of the pink troll next to him was heard, making him jump.

Could this just be another troll? Branch turned his gaze in all directions; the noise seemed to come from everywhere at once, impossible to know where it came from !

Fear began to invade his senses, seeking the origin of the noises. Poppy clung to his arm, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it in his.

- Branch... A whisper mixed with terror whispered.

There, to their left between the fronds, two eyes filled with rage stared at them. Poppy knew this animal, and this one was clearly starving and would eat more than just a cute swampkit!

Branch had also noticed it, a grossum! There was a silent staring duel between the animal and the male troll..

- Branch- I got it! Poppy pulled on his arm slowly.

- I'm not letting you here if that's what you think!

- What? No! Just trust me, okay? I climb in that tree and you climb after me !

- What?!

- Just trust me!

She walked awkwardly to the tree behind them with her injured leg, slowly, praying that Branch would do what she told him to do.. oh no !

A whole pack of grossums were approachinh them, giggling !!

- Branch!! Listen to me please, you gotta move!

She had managed to climb the tree with her hair and the grossums were acting proud as they walked slowly towards their prey, having forgotten that they couldn't climb trees... That was their chance, and finally, to Poppy's relief, Branch decided to move and walk backwards to the tree.

Very well! Just when she thought she would have time to pull Branch into the tree beside her... The branch where she was perching cracked and broke under her weight.

With a cry of terror she grabbed the other branch above her with her hair, but one of the predators jumped on the gray troll's back at the sudden sound and she lost sight of him.

- ARGH!

- BRANCH!

The pack jumped on the gray troll, spitting and screaming like monsters. In horror, Poppy struggled up the tree before turning back to battle under her;

- BRANCH !!

There he was, struggling through the pack of predators attacking him with his fists clenched and his hair standing straight in fear. He miraculously managed to free himself from the hungry creatures, covered in claw marks, and began to run towards another tree to safety...

Until, like in slowmotion, another of the predators jumped on him, and send him flying down a little cliff about 2 meters tall. He fell against a rock with a brutal hit of grossom tail in the face;

CRACK!

Suddenly, his entire right side crashed against the hard surface and a horribly heart-pounding noise rang out. His hand gripped his body weakly. The pain blinded him, he let out a scream that convinced Poppy to came help him, screaming his name. He closed his eyes, forgetting the presence of the grossums who were preparing to devour him alive.

He doesn't really know what happened next; his vision was blurry, his body was in pain and he was having difficulty breathing, blood was streaming down his trembling eyelid. He thought he saw a silhouette fighting the predators with rage and then coming to kneel at his side in panic.

- Branch, stay with me!! A black curtain fell before his eyes.