Chapter Text
John approached her the day after she came out to the Snack Pack, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
“Branch, just the girl I wanted to see. Walk with me.” He said, already pulling her towards his room.
“John- John! I have to go check on the veggie garden!” Branch protested, trying to squirm out of his grip.
“It’ll only take a few minutes, then you can play in as much dirt as you like… please?” He added the last word on hesitantly, but it made it clear this was an Actual Conversation, and not just her brother messing around.
“Fine.” She sighed.
John kicked the door shut behind them, placing Branch on the bed while he grabbed his desk chair and sat in it backwards.
“And how’s my little sister, today?” He started, making Branch huff. Partly from the warm fluttery feeling those words brought, and partly from being interrupted for this.
“I’m good, JD. How’s my oldest brother doing?” She answered, smirking as his face fell at the reminder.
“Kids.” John muttered, rolling his eyes.
The man took a breath before addressing Branch again.
“Look, I’ll cut to the chase. Is this why you’ve been acting weird when we bring up the band?” John asked, making Branch freeze.
“I- uh-“
“Hey, I’m not making accusations.” He said, reaching out a hand to hold Branch’s. “I’m just trying to see… what is going on. If it’s the boy band part, or if you don’t want to sing with us again, or… what. You seemed pretty open to it before, but if something’s changed, that’s okay.”
Branch stared up at him for a moment, before it became too much. She looked down at the floor, letting go of JD’s hand to tuck her legs up to her chest.
“I- I just…” She sighed. “You guys keep making jokes, and I know they’re jokes, but something… doesn’t.”
“Jokes… jokes?” John whispered to himself, his brow furrowing as he tried to think.
“Can’t have Brozone without the bros.” She filled in, stomach twisting again.
“Ooh… oh, hair. Yeah, that must have really sucked. Look, Branch- ow, ow-“ John hissed as he pulled something trying to get out of the chair. Branch couldn’t help the small smirk at the sight.
“That’s what you get for trying to look cool at your age.” She said, giggling at the offended look John gave her.
“Wow. Betrayed. Betrayed by my baby sister.” John shook his head, before growing serious again and stepping forward. He reached a hand out to cup her face, hesitating just before making contact. Branch nodded once, John softening as he held her cheek and directed her to look at him.
“Branch, kiddo, honestly? Screw a boy band. Screw Brozone. If that’s what you want. We can- we can make a family band, we can change the name- I-…” John took a deep breath. “I spent a long time prioritising the wrong things. Fame, perfection, but that stuff doesn’t actually matter. Not when it comes to you guys. Not when it comes to you.” Branch could feel her cheeks heating up, and John must have felt it under his hand, because he paused to actually take her in. “I don’t wanna be like that again, so any reservations you have about singing with us again, you take the time to think them over and come back to me. And if it comes down to it, we can absolutely have Brozone without all actual bros. Like the way Poppy and Viva are bros, even though they’re not bros, y’know?”
Hands shaking, Branch reached out and tugged John Dory closer, hugging him and clutching onto his vest. John didn’t react for a moment, but his arms came down to wrap around her.
“Thanks, JD.” She murmured, burying her face in his chest.
“Anything for you, kid.” John said back softly. She pulled back once she managed to blink away the tears, smiling up at her brother.
“I’d ask you to help in the garden, but I think you’d throw your back out.” She smirked, the effect ruined when she sniffled once.
“Brat.” John chuckled, ruffling her hair. “Go play in the dirt, you little gremlin.”
~~~
Branch was helping the teachers set up for the kindy graduation, placing a banner up while the teachers set up rows and rows of chairs for supportive family members. She tried not to think of how hopeful she had been for her own kindy ceremony. Back when they still lived at the troll tree, and she had still had hope that her brothers would come back.
Carefully climbing down the ladder, she studied her handiwork on the banner from the ground for a few moments.
“Hey Branch!” Someone called, pulling Branch out of her thoughts as she turned and saw DJ Suki running up to meet her.
“You up for a hug, girl?” She asked, grinning up at her.
“High five?” Branch offered a compromise, smiling as Suki whooped happily and slapped her hand.
“Alright! Okay, I won’t keep you long, I just thought you might appreciate these! I know you’re not the type of troll to have a coming out party, so I just thought I’d pass them on whenever I saw you next.” Suki explained, reaching into her hair and pulling out a gift bag.
“Oh, uh, you didn’t-“ Branch cut herself off as she automatically looked into the bag shoved into her hands, eyes widening slightly. Suki had gotten her an assortment of scrunchies, clips, barrettes, and headbands. A few bright colours, but only one with glitter, and most still in the greens and blues she preferred.
“Wow, Suki, these are amazing!” She grinned up at the red troll. “Are they really… all for me?”
“Of course they are! I’m not gonna let one of my girlfriends go scrunchie-less!” Suki said. Her voice was peppy and upbeat, but also sincere in a way Branch was still learning how to read.
“Thank you, DJ. I really appreciate it.” Branch said, carefully moving the bag to her hair so she wouldn’t lose them.
“It’s not a problem, Branch.” Suki smiled. Branch smiled back, trying to think of something to show her appreciation. This gift made her feel so warm and fluttery inside, spreading out from her chest into her limbs as if she could just about squeeze - oh, right. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around DJ in a hug, beaming as she returned the gesture.
“Thank you.” Branch said as she pulled back. Suki chuckled, squeezing her hands.
“You’re welcome, Branch. I gotta check on the speakers for tonight, I’ll see you later!”
“Let me know if you need a hand!” Branch called after her.
Branch took the bag out, grinning as she studied the various accessories. She picked out a small barrette with two blue flowers and clipped it onto her hair near her ear. Placing the bag back in her hair, the warmth spread to her toes and made her bounce happily, before she took control of herself and got back to work.
~~~
“Yo, B-girl!” Darnell called, making Branch pause and turn around.
“Oh, hey guys.” Branch greeted Darnell and Cooper.
“Congrats on the transition, girlie pop.” Darnell said with a smirk, Branch giving a long, long sigh.
“You’re so lucky I like you.” She said flatly, making the prince snicker.
“We like you too, Branch!” Cooper said cheerfully, totally unaware of the sarcasm and teasing.
Branch smiled, softening a bit.
“You guys alright?” She asked, wondering if the sink had botched again.
“Yeah girl, we’re good. We wanted to give you this.” Darnell said, reaching around and grabbing the handles of a gift bag with his teeth. Branch took the bag, looking up at them.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a present!” Cooper beamed, stomping his feet excitedly.
“A traditional funk troll coming out gift.” Darnell elaborated, chuckling a little at the way her eyes widened.
“I- hang on-“
“Come on, don’t reject it before you even look at it.” Darnell said, nodding to encourage her to look. Branch stared up at them both, before opening the gift bag and removing the tissue paper. Inside was a deep blue blanket, dotted with little stars. She reached in to feel it, a soft material meeting her fingers.
“This is beautiful, I-“ She swallowed back her instinct to deny and reject such a nice gift. “Thank you…”
Darnell and Cooper gave her matching grins.
“It’s meant to be something soft, to symbolise you being comfortable in yourself, with star imagery, to symbolise you finding your place in the world.” Darnell explained. “It can take a lot of different forms with something that loosely defined, but I figured you’d like something practical.”
“I- I do. This is amazing, thank you.” Branch said, carefully pulling the blanket out to study it closer. “Woah, wait, hang on… is this an accurate star map?! Oh my hair, how long would this have taken?!”
The boys laughed, Cooper lifting a leg to knock her shoulder in a friendly manner.
“Yeah it’s accurate! You like stuff like that!” He said easily. A chime sounded, their hug time bracelets going off and lighting up. Branch took advantage of the fact, pulling both boys into a hug.
“Thank you.” She breathed shakily, closing her eyes as Cooper and Darnell lowered their heads to hug her back.
“You’re welcome, girlie pop.”
“Yeah, we’re glad you like it!”
Branch pulled back, carefully putting the blanket back in the bag so she could transport it safely.
“I’m gonna talk to my brothers and see when a good chance to have you for dinner is.” She said, grinning up at the two of them. They grinned back, Cooper stamping his feet excitedly.
“Looking forward to it!” He laughed. She hugged the bag to her chest, waving them goodbye as she ran towards home.
~~~
Branch knocked on Guy’s door, her brothers behind her. It was Guy’s turn to host the Snack Pack dinner, and her friends had made it clear to her that her brothers were also welcome. Bruce had left back to Vacay Island and his family yesterday, so she was kind of hoping the chaos of all her friends together would help distract her three remaining brothers.
“Daddy! Daddy you gotta open the door!” Tiny said from inside, making Branch chuckle.
“I’m coming, Tiny, don’t worry.” Guy said, the door opening as he spoke. “Hi guys, welcome in!”
“Aunt Branch!” Tiny yelled, jumping up into her arms.
“Hi, kiddo.” She said, ruffling his hair. Tiny’s little arms stretched across her cheek in a hug.
“Wait, put me down again! I have something for you!” He said, squirming.
She lowered him towards the floor, chuckling quietly.
“Thanks for hosting, Guy.”
“It’s my pleasure! Come on, all of you.” Guy said, smiling as he led them all properly inside. Poppy grinned and waved at them, grabbing an office chair and rolling it over.
“Hey guys! Floyd, I thought you could use this chair tonight, so you can still get around but don’t have to tire yourself out.” She said, her usual bright smile in place. Floyd brightened a little, smiling back at her.
“Oh, thanks, Poppy. I really appreciate that.” He said, letting go of Clay to wrap an arm around her shoulders.
Poppy hugged him back, before carefully helping him into the chair.
“You’re welcome! You guys want some drinks? Yes, yes?” She skipped off to grab drinks, Branch chuckling softly after her.
“Aunt Branch!” Tiny yelled again, holding something that was at least his size, if not bigger, around a lock of hair. “Aunt Branch, I made this for you!”
Branch picked Tiny up again, carefully grabbing the thing.
“I got it, you can let go.” She said, pulling the thing closer. She flipped it over to the right side, her breath catching in her throat. Tiny had made a picture frame, the sticks a similar teal to her skin, with four glittery shapes in each corner, a star, a heart, a flower, and a leaf. The picture was one that Poppy had taken at the Putt Putt village on their way back to Pop village, Tiny sitting in Branch’s hair, and both of them smiling at the camera. Puffy stickers spelt out MY AUNT BRANCH on the top and bottom.
“Do you like it?” Tiny asked, his little legs kicking excitedly.
“Tiny, it’s incredible. Thank you so much, kiddo.” She beamed, lifting him up to press a kiss to his cheek. He laughed happily, climbing up into her hair. “Careful, I need to put this in there too, for safekeeping.” She smiled, moving the frame into place.
Satin and Chenille had entered the party behind them.
“Oh, Branch! We were hoping you were coming tonight, we got you some new clothes!” Chenille beamed, Satin holding a large box.
“Guys, come on, you don’t need to keep giving me stuff just because I came out.” Branch said good naturedly.
“It’s not just because you came out.” Smidge said. “It’s because you’re our friend, and you came out. Wouldn't you wanna celebrate if any of these guys came out?”
Branch blinked, thinking that over.
“Yeah, I guess I would.”
“That’s all we’re doing for you, Branchifer.” Poppy said, passing the drinks to Clay before taking her hand. “The same you would do for us.” Her girlfriends presence calmed her, and Branch took a deep breath before turning back to the twins.
“Alright, let’s see what you’ve got.”
The first dress was the same maroon shade as the pants they had made her, with the same embroidery as the vest except in black. The second dress was a replica of one of Poppy’s favourites, except in a pale pink instead of blue (Branch’s cheeks went purple when she realised). Next was a yellow shirt with simple flower embroidery, and a pair of black shorts to go with them.
“Oh, that will go great with the necklace I made you!” Biggie said excitedly, reaching into his vest. “I crocheted the pendant so that it wouldn’t click from beads, in case you were out exploring.” He handed over a necklace with a green flower pendant. Branch took it automatically, her breath becoming shallow. This was- this was-
“I think that may have been too much at once.” Someone said, though she couldn’t quite tell who.
“Oh, I didn’t mean-“
“I know, Biggie. We’re all trying to get used to toning it down for her, it’s okay.”
“Is she going to be okay?”
“Poppy?”
“Yeah, let’s just try and keep the volume down, and give her a minute to breathe.”
“Here, drink up, Branch.”
Branch lifted the cup to her mouth automatically, the warm raspberry tea soothing her. The smell calmed her, and the warmth grounded her. She blinked back into her surroundings, her face flushing in embarrassment as she looked around the room.
“I’m- I’m sorry- I should go- I-“
“No, no you don’t have to go.” Suki said gently.
“Yeah, we are the ones who are sorry.” Biggie continued.
“We know you need things different from us, even though we’re still getting used to it, we should have been more mindful.” Satin said.
“We want you to stay.” Guy said, squeezing her shoulder. Branch swallowed thickly, but nodded.
“No more presents tonight, please.” She said weakly, attempting a smile.
“You got it, B.” Smidge smiled, carefully boxing up all the clothes again. “Come on, let’s go name constellations for a bit.” She offered, holding out her hand. Branch took it, following her out.
The breeze outside was nice, and the two of them spent some time teaching Tiny what the different constellations were. By the time Tiny got bored, Branch was feeling better, and they rejoined the dinner party with all their friends.
~~~
Branch had been a little surprised when her brothers requested to come with her and Poppy to Burgentown, but when John Dory mentioned checking out their old family pod she didn’t question much further. Floyd had travelled piggy-back on Clay’s back.
She took them back to the old pod, where she had been listening to their old Brozone albums just a few weeks ago before the wedding.
“I gotta go with Poppy, but we’ll be back in time to get home before dark.” Branch explained, again, though her brothers didn’t seem annoyed.
“Thanks for bringing us, B.” Floyd smiled, holding out an arm. Unable to deny her brother anything, she stepped forward to give him a hug, only to get trapped into a hug with all three of them. She sighed, which only made them laugh.
They let her go when she started squirming, and she left them to explore as she went with Poppy. She was mostly just there to reign in Poppy’s crazy ideas, and to make sure she remembered to come home on time, but Branch could do anything at all with Poppy and enjoy spending the time with her.
Branch was pleasantly tired by the time they made it back to the troll tree, walking over to collect her brothers. She could hear her brothers talking excitedly as they approached.
“Hi guys!” Poppy called, excitable as always, darting forward to open the door. Branch followed at a calmer pace, smiling warmly at her brothers.
“Hey, Bitty-B, how you doing?” Clay asked as she stopped in the door.
“Yeah, I’m good. Are you guys ready to head back?”
“I know I am. I’m so ready to fall into bed.” Floyd said, smiling tiredly up at Branch. She nodded, wanting to do the same.
“Come on, you can piggyback with me.” She offered, walking over to Floyd. JD helped Floyd onto her back, before she started making her way down the tree to the tunnels.
It was good for both of them to get a bit of quiet. They didn’t have to wear themselves out trying to keep up with the others, and they could build up the emotional strength to actually get ready for bed before crashing.
“You guys seemed excited back there.” Branch said quietly.
“Clay found something we all thought was lost to time. Just a silly old thing of Mum’s.” Floyd answered, nuzzling into Branch’s hair a little. “I’m really sorry I wasn’t here, B.”
“I know. I forgive you.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”
~~~
“There’s my girl!” A familiar voice called, Branch dropping the cup she was holding.
“Bruce!” She called excitedly, running over to hug him. Bruce caught her and threw her into the air before catching and hugging her, Branch beaming the whole time. “I thought you weren’t coming until tomorrow?”
“JD came and picked me up in Rhonda so I didn’t have to take the overnight bus.” He explained. Branch beamed, squeezing tighter a moment. “Permission to kiss cheeks?” Bruce said, smirking. She sighed, rolling her eyes.
“One on each side.” She conceded, her smile coming back as he pressed kisses to both her cheeks before setting her down.
“Hi Bruce.” Floyd beamed, chuckling as he was also lifted up. He didn’t get thrown, their older brother wary of his recovery, but he received many more cheek kisses. And forehead kisses. And nose kisses. And wherever Bruce could reach kisses. Floyd laughed brightly the whole time. Bruce and Clay did their traditional handshake once Floyd was put down, and JD looked like he was going to vibrate out of his skin as Bruce pulled him in for a hug too.
Once greetings were over, her brothers got a Look about them. A Feeling.
“Whatever this is better have nothing to do with me.” Branch said firmly. They all burst into some form of laughter, JD and Clay full laughing, Bruce chuckling, and Floyd at the very least attempting to smother his giggles, even if it was a shit job.
“Unfortunately, it does, little-b.” Floyd said, reaching out to take her hand. “But we promise it’s a good thing. Come sit with us, yeah?”
Sighing, Branch followed. It had gotten easier to just… be with them over time. Things still weren’t perfect, but that actually seemed to be normal.
“Sit, sit.” JD hovered, sitting in one of the armchairs, though he was excited enough that his leg bounced against the floor. Clay sat on the floor by Branch’s leg, Bruce in another armchair and Floyd next to her on the couch.
“We found something when we were at the family pod the other week, something we wanted to give to you, but we also wanted to wait until Bruce was here.” Clay explained, reaching into his hair and pulling out a box. He held it up, and Branch took it hesitantly.
“This was mum’s.” Floyd said, his smile warm and sad at the same time. “I know you don’t remember a lot about her, if anything, but she loved you so much…”
“It’s a family heirloom!” John cut in, looking ready to jump out of his seat. “It’s meant to be passed down to the eldest daughter. It goes back at least six generations before us.”
“Grandma gave it to mum, back when she was young. Now we wanna give it to you.” Bruce said simply.
Branch looked around at them all with wide eyes, almost scared to open the box.
“Are- are you sure?” She asked quietly, her voice shaking a little. John Dory did jump up then, kneeling in front of her and placing his hands over hers.
“I’m so sure, Branch. I gave this back to mum when Bruce was an egg, and told her I needed to be a big brother to protect my little siblings. That we would give this to the next girl together.” He took a shaky breath, squeezing Branch’s hands. “I haven’t done a good job of fulfilling my promises, but it would mean so, so much to me if you would let me keep this one.” John Dory smiled up at her, eyes clear and warm.
Branch nodded, slowly opening the wooden box. Her eyes widened as she looked at the necklace inside, a blue sapphire on a sturdy silver chain.
“Oh, it’s beautiful…” she breathed softly. John Dory reached in and picked it up, leaning forward so he could fasten it around her neck.
“Not as beautiful as you, Bitty-B.” He smiled, cupping her cheek for a moment as he finished. Branch bought a hand up to feel the pendant, a smile growing into a radiant beam.
“Thank you.” She said, squeezing John Dory’s hand. “Thank you, really. This is…” she said again, this time addressing all her brothers. Floyd wrapped an arm around her.
“We’re glad you like it.” He chuckled warmly. Branch tilted her head at her other brothers.
“Come on, you guys can’t hug me from over there, can you?” She smirked, though it quickly turned into laughter as her brothers tackled her, squeezing and tugging and pressing kisses wherever they could reach.
“I love you guys.” She sighed happily, curling up comfortably in their embrace as they calmed down and just held her.
“We love you, Branch. So, so much.”