A/N: Follow-up to "By Your Side" with ideas from Fandom_Kingdom_ Girl and Pixarchan on AO3

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"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow," John Dory moaned, wincing in discomfort as Spruce applied the ice pack to the side of his face and held it steadfast.

"Chill, bro," Spruce said, trying to keep JD's squirming-self still.

"How can I not chill? That thing's cold!" the teal Troll whimpered with his teeth chattering. He tried to move away when Spruce pressed it up tighter against him, and the purple Troll rolled his eyes.

"Bro, even my kids act better than this," he said, and it was true. John Dory was being ten times more squirmy than they ever would be when being aided with an injury.

"Sorry dude, but, ugh, I can't even believe that happened. He hit me! Hard! And it hurt!" John Dory blurted, and then shook his head in disbelief. "That was so weird!"

"It was a punch, JD, why wouldn't it hurt?" Clay asked.

"It didn't hurt before!" John Dory mumbled.

It took a sec to understand where JD was coming from, and when Clay did, he shook his head in disbelief. "Are you talking about when Branch was a baby?"

"Well, yeah, when else?"

"You gotta be kidding me. He was a baby, JD, of course it's not gonna hurt the same way it does now!" Clay blurted. Did John Dory really not see that?

Spruce disregarded the obliviousness in his older brother. "I'm surprised Branch didn't clock us either," he said to Clay, shuddering to remember how difficult it was to get their youngest bro under control when his fists had been wildly flying out at JD.

"Well, you're lucky he didn't!" John Dory moaned.

Spruce snorted. "Y'know, it coulda been avoided if you'd just stopped talking. Didn't you see how triggered he was getting when y'all were arguing? He was literally twitching."

"No, I didn't," JD said.

The purple Troll sighed and looked at Clay. The two of them were thinking the same thing. How long had John Dory been alone that he'd forgotten how to read the most basic of social cues? Well, it didn't matter now. What had been done was done, and JD was most likely going to have a bruise to show for it.

"Yo, when do you think Branch and Poppy will be back though?" Clay asked. "It's been a little bit, don't you think?" He grabbed a few more sticks, nursing the little campfire that he'd made in the meantime. The sky had been an orange-gradated twilight when Branch had stormed off, and it was now turning a deep blue, soon to be black and speckled with stars.

Spruce shrugged. "He could still be blowing off steam. But you know... a lot can happen between a guy and a girl when they're alone, too."

Clay narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean," Spruce answered simply, giving his brother a look.

Clay suddenly understood. "Ugh, no, Spruce! Why you gotta think like that?" He shook himself. "You really think Branch is gonna be up for any frisky business after the way he was fuming?"

"Look, I'm just saying, from personal experience this time," the purple-haired Troll replied.

Clay didn't respond. Now THAT is weird, he thought to himself, because even thinking about Branch being old enough to have his own relationship was something he was still trying to wrap his head around. He sighed. I really can't believe it's been that long...

The three Trolls let some minutes of silence pass, each one wondering what they should say next, when they heard the sound of someone approaching.

Three sets of eyes flitted over to find Branch and Poppy, silhouetted by the firelight, coming toward them. Branch looked far more relaxed than he'd been previously, but the brothers could tell he still wasn't feeling a hundred percent. There was tension still lingering in the air, crackling the same way that the flames were.

Even more silence passed, to the point where things began to feel a little discomforting.

"So... um... you good, bro?" Clay asked, in an effort to fill in the space with chatter.

Branch shrugged, not looking Clay or any of the others in the eye. He kept his gaze on the ground, arms crossed and a look of exhaustion on his face.

"We think so," Poppy answered for him. She quietly whispered "C'mon," to Branch, wrapping an arm around his shoulder and guiding him back to the caterbus. She'd just put a her hand on the door when both of them were stopped.

"Hey, guys," Spruce spoke up, causing the pair to turn around. Noticing Branch's apprehension, John Dory shot the purple Troll a look like, Let sleeping dogs lie! But Spruce paid him no mind. He had to say what he wanted to say if they wanted to get this situation under control for good.

"Y'know, it's sweet and all how you two go off and have your little moment," he said. "But... I think we should all have our moment, if you catch what I'm saying." Letting John Dory take hold of the ice pack so he could nurse his own wound, Spruce sat down next to him, and gestured over to Branch and Poppy. "C'mon, guys. I think we need to talk. All of us." He cut his eyes over at JD and Clay.

John Dory, still recovering from his shock of being attacked, looked like he wanted to disagree, but he didn't. He said nothing, only pressing the ice pack tighter to his head and scooting a little closer to Spruce for protection should anything else ensue.

Clay looked uncertain, but knew it was best not to voice a disagreement.

Good, Spruce thought. In his family back on Vacay Island, he'd witnessed his children having plenty of arguments before. And as a father he'd learned that it was best to talk things out, before someone did something that they regretted. Like walking away and never looking back.

He breathed out a sigh, glad to see that his youngest brother had not protested in doing as he'd requested, and sitting down alongside his girlfriend. Awkward silence stretched out once again, filled only by shifting and some distant nature sounds.

Spruce clicked his tongue, suddenly second-guessing his idea. "Umm... anybody wanna start?" he asked tentatively.

No answer.

But then...

"Well, um..."

All eyes fell on Branch, who'd spoken barely above a whisper. He looked hesitant, almost scared, but knew he couldn't stay quiet now that he'd started.

"I'm just... just so... confused," he managed. Before he could help himself, Branch felt tears forming in his eyes and falling against his will. Hurriedly he spoke, frustrated, embarrassed, and overwhelmed, the anger he'd previously lashed out with washed over with sadness. "I was confused when you guys left me... I was confused why Grandma had to die, why I couldn't just get along with others, why I'd turned gray... why I was alone for so long... and then..." - he paused, trying to catch his breath - "Right when I think things are heading in the right direction for me for once... you guys come back..." Branch clenched his fists. "I'm just so confused..." he mumbled again. "I want to know why this is happening now. I want to know, and I want things to make sense. But they just don't!..." He stopped, letting out an uncharacteristic sob. His shoulders shook and his hands were curled into tight balls, the knuckles whitening. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to stop crying, and before long he felt a familiar warm hand cover his trembling ones. Branch flinched a little, but relaxed when he saw that it was only his beloved Poppy. It pained him when he looked to see that she too was growing teary herself over the sight of him so broken.

Clay felt a pain in his chest, too. It was difficult seeing Branch like this. He could remember so many times when his pranking buddy had a great big grin on his face, right after they'd pulled a fast one on the others. He didn't think about stuff too far into the future when he'd been a teen, but the few times he did, he figured that as adults he and Branch would still be up to their tag-team jokey antics. Clearly, that wasn't the case.

"Look, Branch, I... I don't want you to take this the wrong way," he started cautiously, "but I can't sugarcoat it, bro. When we left, we did mean it. Can't say we didn't, and I'm not mad at you for being mad at me. But that was because we were each thinking about ourselves. Me? I mean, I was just real angry that everybody was laughing at me that day when we'd failed. That's why I wanted to quit. But y'know, looking back at it now, all this time later... that wasn't such a hot move. Even if we failed, and got laughed at, that wasn't a reason to just give up and leave. And I do mean it when I say that I'm real sorry." And he was. Clay could never forget how aloof Branch had been on the trip so far. Anytime he, Spruce, or John Dory had tried to spark up some conversation, they'd been given either short, irritated replies or the full cold shoulder. It ate Clay with guilt to know that it was because of them that he'd behaved that way, and this was an apology that was long coming to his youngest brother.

Spruce gave a nod at Clay, impressed by his speech, and was soon inspired to take his own shot at it.

"Imma tell you nothing but the truth here, bro," he said to Branch. "Yeah, I left. And I left for selfish reasons, not to mention petty..." Spruce glanced down at himself, remembering those "rock-hard abs" that he'd fretted endlessly over as a teen due to thinking it would earn him girls, and seeing how pointless it'd been. He had a loving wife and family without the muscles he thought he'd needed, and he was happy with his appearance now. "I wish I had some more sense when I was that young... but what's done is done, and we can move on from it. Put it in the past. Say sorry and just carry on from there. And Branch, I really am sorry, too. I'm sorry that I couldn't be there for you when you grew up. I'm sorry I couldn't be a better friend to you, or a better brother. And I'm sorry that you got hurt."

Satisfied with his spiel, Spruce sat back and folded his hands over his lap.

John Dory looked as though something was clicking in his head. Suddenly, the throbbing against his cheek where he'd been nursing the ice pack wasn't bothering him as much as his need to say something to Branch as well (even if it was risking him another sock in the jaw). "Branch," he sighed, "I guess you could say that I only saw things like black and white. All or nothing. Go big or go home. That's why when the band failed, I left. The way I saw it, it was either 'bro-bros' or 'so-lo.' But now... I mean, I guess it's not so black and white, is it? Turns out there's a whole lotta gray area!"

John Dory thought he was doing pretty good so far, until he saw Branch wince at the mention of 'gray.' He didn't understand why, until he remembered what Branch had said, about having turned gray. He'd heard stories about it when he was a teen, but they were just rumors and fables passed between Trolls. He didn't think it was actually real. But Branch didn't look like he was bluffing at all.

"I-I mean, not literally 'gray,' y'know, but uh... umm... well, you get what I mean, right?" JD stuttered, feeling the throbbing in his cheek again and almost certain he'd have a twin bruise on his other cheek if he didn't make things make sense.

"What I mean is, we're brothers. And we're always gonna be brothers. Even if we say things like we never wanna see each other again... which, I know, we did... and even if we fight." JD added that last part a little nervously, having a bad feeling that he had asked for it.

But Branch didn't make any advances to JD. He'd sat there, listening, as he had when his other two brothers had taken their turn talking to him. He had calmed from his crying, although he was still sniffling slightly. Branch stared back at JD, and Spruce, and Clay. Poppy's firm hold on his hand felt like the only thing still keeping him rooted to the spot, preventing him from acting on instinct and walking away like he'd wanted to earlier that evening. If he did that, he knew he'd be acting no better than they had when they'd left.

"You know," Poppy said out loud to them, "I guess I don't actually know a whole lot about families and stuff as I thought I did. All I've ever known is me and my Dad. Then there was Viva and I, and when we met, I mean, we were like besties." She giggled a little to remember how enthusiastic the pink Putt Putt queen had been, and how sad she was to see her go. "You guys, well... you're not exactly besties right now... and I don't even think I can call you friends," Poppy admitted. "It really confused me at first. You're brothers - basically pals who can't ever leave each other! And yet..." She let herself trail off, not finding it necessary to repeat what they already knew. "I can only hope that you guys become a big happy one again," Poppy continued more quietly. "But I can't force it to happen. That wouldn't be fair to you guys, especially since I'm not exactly a part of your family..." She stopped herself, feeling funny about trying to tell them what to do when these were Branch's brothers, not hers. It was their business. She had only a smidgen of the situation in perspective compared to them. Which is why she was surprised at what her boyfriend, who'd found the will to speak again, said.

"You are family, Poppy," Branch told her, squeezing her fingers a little tighter. "We're all in this together."

Poppy smiled softly, touched that he was so confident about their relationship and trusted her on such privy matters between him and his brothers. And his brothers didn't mind either. With the time they'd been able to spend with Poppy, they could see that she loved Branch deeply, and he loved her. Then, Branch looked at his brothers.

"Look," he exhaled, "I'll continue the journey. I'll come and help rescue Floyd. But I need you to see that things are different now. I'm not Baby Branch. I'm just Branch. I'm my own Troll. You guys are too. And it depends on us whether we make that 'different' a good or bad thing." He gauged their expressions, and John Dory, Spruce, and Clay all nodded seriously. Their baby bro was speaking words of an adult, and he was right.

The conversation felt conclusive, and the five Trolls realized that the tension that had been in the air before was no longer present, attempting to hover over them like a dark stormcloud.

This was the first step to a new beginning. A fresh start.

They would start over.

Branch tossed the idea around his head.

Yes, he thought. He liked that.