Poppy clasped her hands together and leaned against the door as she closed it, hoping to keep her eyes on Branch as long as she could. "I am so.."

Barb was still there, legs crossed, seated comfortably on Poppy's bed. She has a pleased smile on her face, knowing exactly how Poppy's sentence would end.

"FREAKED OUT!" Poppy slammed the door shut and slid down it, curling into a little ball on the floor.

Barb sat up and swung her legs off the side of the mattress. "By.. what?"

"I got Branch for the gift exchange!" Poppy rolled over, face to the ground.

"And that's a problem because..?"

Poppy whipped out her scrapbook and created the worst possible scenario.

—

Scrapbook Poppy was shown handing a gift box to Branch, "Look Branch! I got you a gift for the gift exchange!"

Scrapbook Branch opened the box to reveal Poppy had gotten him TBD, "Thanks, I hate it."

Scrapbook Poppy shattered into tiny pieces.

—

"Okay, stopping you there, because you've lost your mind." Barb held on to Poppy's wrists and tried to calm her down, "Branch cares about you. It doesn't matter how fancy a gift is or where it came from. He'll love it, because he likes you." It felt weird that she was the one reminding Poppy of this moral.

Poppy took a few steps back, a mischievous thought coming to her mind. "You're right! I need to get him the fanciest gift from some super fancy vendor!"

"Poppy."

"Thanks Barb! You're amazing!" She gave Barb a quick squeeze and ran off, a fictional dust cloud was left behind.

"She learned nothing." Barb slid her hand down her face and faced the imaginary camera.

—

Poppy twirled through the village, singing a jolly song to herself, "It's that time of the year I treasure,
The time for giving, the best part of living,
Celebrate with friends we hold so dear,"

She sat on a rock and held a picture frame of her and her friends close, "It's almost here
So spread some cheer
Let's give love and get some back
The more you give, the more you'll have
The fire's bright now
And snow comes down
Grab your friends, hold them near,"

She grinned wide and hopped down, beginning her quest to find Branch the perfect holiday gift.

-

Barb made her way to Branch's bunker, curious to see who he had for the exchange and to help Poppy get him a normal gift. She raised her hand above the door and before she could knock, Branch dragged her in.

"Thank Trolly heaven you're here! I need help finding a gift for Poppy!" Branch was a total mess. His hair was messy and so was his office. Multiple old boxes were sitting on the ground, suggesting that he was digging through older things for a gift.

"So you got Poppy?" Barb chuckled quietly and lifted one of the boxes back on to a shelf. Poppy and Branch obsessing over pleasing each other would be her source of entertainment for the next couple days.

"Yeah, and I have no idea what to get for her. She's literally the queen! What if she doesn't like it?" Branch pulled out a scrapbook of his own. He had less skill, but it was still easy to interpret what it was portraying.

—

The scrapbook Branch handed the scrapbook Poppy a gift bag, "Look Poppy! I got you a gift for the gift exchange!"

Scrapbook Poppy opened up the TBD gift and scowled, "Ew."

The Scrapbook Branch flopped on to the ground and melted into a puddle.

—

"Maybe think about it less?"

Branch's face lit up, "Think! THINKING! That's such a great idea!" He pulled a large book off his shelf. It listed tons
of beautiful flowers and gems and stones that would make perfect for a romantic gift.

"Mm." Barb faced the camera again, shaking her head slowly.

He flipped through the pages, "What about a poppy?"

"I think she'd hate that the most."

He growled and flipped further through the book and then he landed on it. The perfect gift. It was a large crystal naturally carved like a heart and colored with the brightest colors in the rainbow (reference). "This is so perfect."

"But look how far away it's located. That trip will take days. You'll barely make the gift exchange." Barb ran her finger along the map's trail. It was all the way on the other side of the forest.

"Then I guess I better hurry." Branch shoved some basic supplies into a bag (food, water, sleeping bag, frying pan) and stepped on to the elevator shaft's platform.

—

i decided to just split this chapter into two parts, originally there was more to it. thanks for liking it though 🥺