#Some more leftovers :) | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

dulltoned · 4 months

Text

Branch's boyband days are far behind him. Far, far behind him. He's way too busy to be singing and dancing and playing games. He's building the hideout-- his bunker-- and it's a lot of work to dig out the rooms and start collecting all the supplies and provisions he'll need in the years to come. His grandma is gone, he has no idea where his brothers are or when they'll come back, and the rest of the village isn't really his biggest fan. It's just him and he needs to keep his head on straight.

It's not his fault these other trolls won't leave him alone.

A oneshot collection that tries to build a canonical way for Kismet to exist while exploring how the other members of the band came into Branch's life, how they grew to be close friends, and the trials they help each other through along the way

Admittedly, Branch could have planned this better. He left the bunker a few hours ago to restock the wood for his construction supplies and he already had two large bundles but he needed three. He realized a little too late that he didn't really have the means to carry three full bundles through the woods. He glares down at the bundles he already has. He was almost a fully grown troll now, only a few years out from adulthood, and he should've thought about this before he even left the bunker. He's learned the hard way that he can't rely on anyone else and he can't afford to make stupid mistakes like this. The Bergens could show up at any time and if he's unprepared it could mean his death.

"Damn it," He sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose to stave off the budding headache. He could probably fashion some sort of strap out of a vine or two so he could carry one of the bundles on his back but he was a long way away from the bunker and he didn't want to hurt himself if he could avoid it. He'd be leaving himself vulnerable if he pulled something and that was an amateur mistake he won't be repeating. It's looking like he might need to make a second trip if he wants to have everything he needs for the next room expansion but a glance up at the sky quickly puts a stop to those plans. The sky is overcast and heavy with dark clouds rolling in. He'd be caught in the storm if he had to walk all the way to the bunker and back again but he'd already collected all the suitable material from around the clearing he's built the bunker in. Any and all wood he could collect would be soaked through and useless if he tried to do two trips. He didn't want the structural support in his walls to be warped after all. "Come on, Branch." He sighs, tapping his foot as he tries to decide the lesser evil. He needs the supplies if he's going to be productive and it'd throw a wrench in his plans to push back the expansion.

He's resigned himself to an aching back when he hears a light humming coming from the bushes to his right. His ears twitch, alert, as he turns to face the incoming stranger. The humming gets louder, occasionally forming mumbled lyrics, and Branch's shoulders rise with building tension as the noise gets closer. He doesn't have time to gather up the supplies and get out of there before he's spotted so he waits anxiously for the inevitable confrontation.

It's not too much longer before a yellow glitter troll emerges from the bushes, pushing aside the foliage with one paw and holding a large handful of red berries in the other. He's singing the last notes of whatever song he had stuck in his head under his breath, seemingly unaware of Branch as he picks some stray twigs from his purple hair and brushes leaves from his trousers. He pops one of the berries into his mouth. Branch is hoping that maybe the other troll will just walk right past him and leave him be. He's never been lucky. The troll stumbles to a stop when he catches Branch out of the corner of his eye and for a few seconds the two just stare at each other with wide eyes. The glitter troll shakes himself from his stupor and offers a soft smile, "Hey, didn't see you there," he greets. There's no judgment or hesitation in his eyes when he talks to Branch and it catches him off guard.

"Uh, hey," He stutters before he can remind himself to ignore the intrusion. The glitter troll doesn't so much as blink at the awkward response though. Instead he pops another berry into his mouth and steps closer to get a better look at the heavy bundles of wood Branch has left on the ground. "Whew, that's a lot of wood." He remarks curiously, turning green eyes to look at Branch more closely. He still doesn't say anything about Branch's gray pelt or the colorless black of his hair and Branch doesn't know when the other shoe will drop but it's starting to make his skin itch. He doesn't like this attention, he feels oddly exposed beneath this random troll's warm gaze. "Are you in construction or something?" Branch raises an unimpressed eyebrow in response. The troll blinks, confused, before he suddenly perks up, "Oh, I'm Boom by the way." Branch hadn't been looking for an introduction but he supposes it's nice to put a name to the face he'd like to avoid.

Branch doesn't reply. He decides that he doesn't know what this troll wants but he isn't inclined to give it to him. He looks back down at his supplies and commits to his backpack idea. He nods sternly to himself and heads off towards one of the nearby trees covered in thick vines and moss tangled in the gigantic bark. He doesn't bother to keep track of Boom as he sets about his task. It takes him a few minutes to assess the tree to determine that the best way to get down the vines would be to climb up and cut them off. He's startled out of his thoughts when Boom makes himself known again.

"So," the glitter troll drawls, popping another berry into his mouth. Branch scowls. "Do you want some help with that?" He asks, not looking away from the vines Branch had been appraising.

"No," Branch grinds out, easily extending his hair up to loop around an especially thick vine that swoops back up all the way into the foliage. He pulls himself up with ease and balances precariously on the thick body of the plant. He digs a small pocket knife out of his pocket and cuts through the vine with a single slice, using the severed end to swing back down to the ground. He doesn't spare a glance at Boom as he estimates the length he'll need before cutting it accordingly.

"Cool," Boom beams. He doesn't gush or awe but he nods at the impressive feat. Not dismissive but not over the top either. Branch can't figure out what he wants. He growls and coils up his vine before stomping back over to his abandoned wood bundles. Boom, of course, merrily follows after him.

Branch does his best to ignore the pest that's latched onto him and shrugs the rolled-up vine up onto his shoulder. Boom only watches on in silence as Branch hefts one bundle of wood up beneath each arm and begins his trek further into the woods. Branch expects the glitter troll to give up after he so rudely brushed him aside but no such luck. Instead, Boom trails after him, popping another berry into his mouth before holding out the dwindling handful in a silent offer. Branch shoots him a dirty look and picks up the pace.

Boom follows. No matter how far into the forest Branch goes Boom is right on his heel. Branch feels his irritation growing until he can't just grit his teeth and bear it anymore. His head falls back with a loud groan before he whips around to face the offending troll, "What do you want!" He demands, glaring daggers at his self-appointed shadow.

Boom blinks. He ran out of berries a few paces back but that still hadn't deterred him from following Branch around like a lost cuddle puppy. "Sorry man, I guess I just figured you could use some company?"

Branch blinks back, brows furrowing, "What could have possibly given you that impression?" He huffs, adjusting the wood in his arms. His arms were already starting to burn and he hadn't ever collected the third bundle yet. He was going to be sore tomorrow but he could work through it he's sure.

"Well you just seemed kind of upset," Boom shrugs with a kind smile on his face like that was a decent excuse.

Branch scoffs and rolls his eyes, "I'm grey." He says like it explains exactly why that was such a ridiculous reason. To him, it does. People around the village avoided him. The adults weren't unkind but they looked at him with undisguised unease and discomfort. A lot of the younger trolls could be borderline cruel. Mocking words were often thrown his way by trolls his age and even if he wanted friends-- which he didn't-- it wasn’t like anyone wanted to spend time with someone like him. He was bad luck; unhappy and miserable just like the Bergens that killed Grandma.

Boom shrugs, "So?" Branch was used to the blind optimism of Troll Village but this was too much.

"What do you think that means?" Branch snarls, his temper rising again.

"That you could use some company." Boom throws back, a smug look sliding across his face when Branch could only blink back. The tables have turned, it seems.

Branch sighs, glaring at the glitter troll who only grinned back unfazed. They stand locked in a stare-down for a minute before Branch rolls his eyes and drops one of his bundles to the floor, rolling his shoulder to ease the ache. It feels good to shift the weight, the one bundle is a much easier burden to carry. "If you're not going to leave you could at least be helpful." He sniffs, turning his glare down to the floor. He likes being alone. There's no one who can disappoint him if there's no one there. There's no one to lose if he has no one to care about. But he can admit that it's lonely. It hurts to be disregarded by the same trolls who watched him and his brothers grow up before BroZone fell apart and Grandma died. He's been tossed aside so carelessly time and time again but Boom still lingered no matter how unkind Branch was. It was stupid how this hesitant yearning sparked in his chest.

Whatever. They weren't friends. He'd probably never see Boom again. If nothing else he can at least get an extra pair of hands out of this.

Boom absolutely beams and scoops up the bundle of wood with a small grunt of effort, "You got it!" He's way too excited for Branch's liking and he looks far too content to be doing manual labor for a stranger in the woods but whatever. If it'll keep Branch from unnecessary pain and keep him on schedule then he'd be an idiot to say no. They travel through the woods in relative silence as Branch picks up more sturdy-looking branches and Boom occasionally hums a stray melody. Boom doesn't lose the bounce in his step for even a second, happily following Branch along, and even occasionally picking up a few stray pieces of wood himself to add to their growing collection. Still, he doesn't say anything unkind or start asking invasive questions. He just follows behind Branch and helps without so much as a complaint. Branch still doesn't understand but he's starting to accept that maybe this was all there was to it and there wasn't some secret agenda lurking around the corner.

"So, what's all this for?" Boom asks when Branch ties up the last bundle and calls their search finished.

Branch narrows his eyes at the glitter troll and hefts up the two bundles. "Why?" He asks, voice thick with suspicion. He appreciated the help but that doesn't mean he was any closer to this stranger than he was before. He's already gotten teased enough about the bunker for a lifetime, thank you very much.

Boom shrugs, "Just wondering," he replies with a lighthearted grin, "You don't have to tell me or anything, I'm just curious." He adjusts the wood held a bit awkwardly in his arms, "It's just a lot, I figured it had to be for something specific."

This has to be some sort of bait. Word got around about the grey troll allegedly living underground, there was no way he hadn't heard something about it, and Branch was the only gray troll in the whole village. He huffs and turns on his heel, starting the long trek back to the bunker. The sky was dark and gray, a near-perfect match for the desaturated color of Branch's skin, and it was clear they didn't have much time before they got caught in the storm. He hears Boom pick up his happy humming as he follows after Branch without so much as a disappointed whine. It does nothing to ease Branch's confusion.

The walk back to the bunker passes in the same way the wood scavenging did and Branch wonders how someone could be so content despite getting no answers about the work they were doing. It's a while before he can see the clearing where the bunker's entrance was located but when he spots it up ahead he swiftly picks up speed. Even only carrying one bundle of wood under each arm he could still feel the weight dragging his shoulders down and he's certain that he's still gonna be sore come tomorrow morning. He can't imagine the way his body would've ached had he forced himself to lug all three bundles back by himself. There's no way in hell he'll tell Boom that.

"You can leave it here." Branch hums, dropping his own two loads onto the grass beside the hidden trap door that would finally bring him home.

Boom blinks in surprise, shifting his armful with uncertainty, "Are you sure? These things are heavy, I'm more than happy to help you take them home." Even after carrying wood through the woods for what couldn't have been any less than two hours the glitter troll is still offering more help. Branch supposes that was the way the troll community worked at its core but he's spent the majority of his life isolated from that both by choice and by circumstance. It's weirding him out.

"This is fine." He replies curtly.

"If you're sure…" Boom trails off, lowering the wood down beside the supplies Branch left on the grass. "I had a lot of fun, though, thanks." The glitter troll smiles over at him, running his hands through that deep purple hair, and Branch looks back in utter confusion.

"We just walked through the woods," Branch huffs. "I made you carry like thirty pounds around for hours." He gestures to the wood at his feet. He just doesn't get this troll and it's starting to really get on his nerves.

Boom shrugs for what must be the umpteenth time and his smile only brightens, "Yeah, but I kind of enjoy the stormy days and I was out for a walk anyway. You're a bit prickly but you don't make bad company." That, Branch knows, is a downright lie. He only raises a disbelieving eyebrow in response but Boom just laughs. "I'll see you around, maybe?" He asks, tilting his head.

Branch shrugs back, "It probably can't be helped." They both lived in the same village after all.

"Cool," Boom nods, offering a cheery wave before turning around and making his leave back the way they came. No more questions. No pushing, no scathing remarks, no disappointment. Nothing. Just a seemingly heartfelt admission of enjoying their time together and a cheerful goodbye. Weird.

Branch shakes his head, rolling his eyes as he opens the hatch and pushes his supplies in first. It's perfect timing, really, as the first roll of thunder rings out just after he hops down into the bunker entrance. He makes sure to fasten all the locks behind him. He hasn't perfected the tech to open and close the hatch at the push of a button so all the locks were manual for the time being. He was almost there, though, he could feel the breakthrough on the horizon. He can hear the rain start to drizzle down as he drags the wood over the elevator platform and it's a soothing sound. He'd probably still be walking back to the bunker if it wasn't for Boom, weighed down by everything they'd collected. Huh. He doesn't give it too much thought as he pushes down the elevator lever, hoping that the thing will work this time and he won't have to haul the wood down the stairs. It's only when the elevator gets stuck halfway down that he realizes Boom never even asked for his name.

#{ isolationist }#| Game Plans |#trolls branch #trolls boom #trolls kismet #trolls band together #dreamworks trolls #hurt/comfort #pre-canon #found family #oneshot #trolls fanfic #Branch is like 15-16 in this #He's been alone for a while but there's still some lingering hope leftover in him #{ More Than a Band }

123 notes · View notes