by David Lewman
“I can see that!” Branch said.
“Okay, everybody!” Poppy said brightly. “Let’s get off this Caterbus and find out where we are! C’mon!”
“Wait a minute,” Branch said. “Are you sure it’s safe out there? Should we all just jump off the bus and into the unknown?”
Poppy put her hands on her hips. “Well, what’s the alternative, Branch? Live on this Caterbus forever?”
“That could work,” Branch said.
“Cloud Guy,” Poppy said. “Please open the door. Slowly, if possible.”
Cloud Guy pushed a lever and the big front door swung open. Poppy led the way, confidently striding off the Caterbus. The others followed cautiously, looking around, listening carefully.
When they got outside, they stood in a clump and stared at the world around them. In the near distance, they could see three different landscapes. In one direction was a snowy, mountainous land. In another they saw a deep, dark forest. And in the third direction were rolling green meadows.
Branch pointed toward the meadows. “Well, that way looks friendly and inviting, but you just know it’s going to turn out to be horrible and terrible once you get there.”
Cloud Guy smiled and nodded. “Right,” he said. “It could easily be the way to CERTAIN DEATH…death…death…death.”
“Or at least imprisonment,” Branch countered.
“Sure,” Cloud Guy agreed. “Could be imprisonment. Definitely.”
“Followed by death,” Branch said.
“Or MAYBE,” Poppy argued, “it could turn out to be just as nice and safe as it looks!”
“Maybe,” Cloud Guy said skeptically.
“Doubt it,” Branch added.
“So, which way will get us to Bergen Town?” Biggie asked.
They all looked at Cloud Guy. He just stood there smiling. Then he realized they expected him to answer.
“Oh!” he exclaimed. “You’re asking me?”
“Yes!” Biggie said. “You’re the driver!”
“That’s true,” Cloud Guy said, taking a moment to consider exactly what his passenger responsibilities were. “Well, let me see….” He looked in each direction. He licked his finger and stuck it in the air to test the wind. He took a deep sniff. He got down on his hands and knees and listened to the ground for a long time. Then he stood up and smiled.
“No idea. We’re totally lost.”
The Trolls started to panic, frightened that they’d never get to Bergen Town or back home. Tears rolled down Biggie’s cheeks.
Poppy and Branch took charge.
“Don’t worry,” Poppy reassured her friends. “We’re not going to stay lost. We’re going to find our way out of here and get to Bergen Town!”
“Poppy’s right,” Branch said. “There’s no need to panic.”
“Actually, I’m pretty sure there is!” Biggie sobbed. “We’re hopelessly lost!”
Poppy reached up to pat Biggie on the back. “Lost, but not hopelessly. We’re full of hope!”
“We are?” Biggie asked uncertainly.
“Sure!” Poppy insisted. “We just have to figure out which way leads to Bergen Town. We’ll split into three scouting teams.”
“Good idea,” Branch said.
“Cloud Guy, you’re with me and Branch,” Poppy said. “We’ll check out the snow zone.”
“Cool,” Cloud Guy said. “Literally.”
Branch rolled his eyes. “Wait a minute…,” he objected, not fond of the idea of being on a search team with Cloud Guy.
But Poppy had already turned to the next team. “Biggie, Cooper, and Smidge, you investigate that forest.”
“You got it, Poppy!” Smidge said with deep-voiced gusto. With her tremendous strength, there wasn’t much that scared the little Troll. Biggie and Cooper, on the other hand, exchanged a nervous look.
“Satin, Chenille, and Fuzzbert,” Poppy continued, “you go take a look at those rolling green meadows.”
Satin raised her hand. “But didn’t Branch say that way could turn out to be…”
“…horrible and terrible?” her twin said, finishing the question with her hand raised, too.
“It could turn out to be horrible and terrible,” Poppy said. “But it could just as easily turn out to be wonderful and delightful! Right?”
The fashionable twins didn’t look too sure. But they loved their queen, and her confidence gave them confidence. They were willing to be brave if she needed them to be. They nodded.
“Okay, teams,” Branch said. “We’ll meet back here at the Caterbus to report our findings.”
“What about me?” Guy Diamond asked.
Biggie handed Mr. Dinkles to the glittery Troll. “You stay here and take care of Mr. Dinkles. I don’t want to carry him into danger!”
“Mew?” Mr. Dinkles asked, his eyes growing wide with uncertainty.
Trudging through deep snow, Poppy, Branch, and Cloud Guy made their way toward the mountains.
“This snow is beautiful!” Poppy enthused. “Look at it sparkle in the sunshine!”
“It’s also cold!” Branch complained. “What are we looking for, exactly? A road?”
“A sign saying ‘This Way to Bergen Town’ would be nice,” Cloud Guy suggested.
“I’m thinking we’ll run into a friendly stranger who’ll point the way,” Poppy chirped. “And give us hot chocolate!”
They met no one as they tromped on through the snow on the ground. And then it started snowing….
But it wasn’t normal snow.
WHAM! WHOMP! THWUMP! Gigantic snowflakes fell from the sky and stuck into the ground on their sharp points. Each flake stood twice as high as a Troll!
“Watch out!” Branch called as they dodged the huge flakes. “Don’t let one of them bonk you on the head! It could be deadly!” WHAM!
The snowfall stopped as quickly as it had begun, but it left behind a barrier of upright snowflakes. Picking their way around them, the Trolls felt like they were trying to solve a maze.
“You know, this really isn’t fun at all,” Cloud Guy observed as he trailed behind the two Trolls.
They got clear of the big snowflakes, but the situation got worse. Another storm began, and this time, giant icicles fell from the sky! SHWUNK! SHWUNK! SHWUNK! They fell straight into the snow like spears! The Trolls and Cloud Guy had to run in zigzags to dodge the plummeting icicles.
“The weather around here is really terrible,” Cloud Guy said.
“Yeah—can’t you do anything about it?” Branch asked as he jumped out of the path of another colossal icicle. SHWUNK!
“Why me?” Cloud Guy asked.
“BECAUSE YOU’RE A CLOUD!” Branch shouted.
“Cloud Guy,” he corrected. “There’s a difference.”
Luckily, they managed to escape the icicles, and the storm didn’t last long. When they got past the icicles stuck in the snow, they realized they were close to the base of a frozen mountain. Cloud Guy shaded his eyes with his hand and peered ahead.
“I see something coming,” he said.
“A friendly stranger with mugs of steaming cocoa and whipped cream?” Poppy asked hopefully. “And a light dusting of cocoa powder?”
“Nope,” Cloud Guy said, “a huge snowball. And it’s rolling this way.”
He was right. An enormous snowball was rolling straight at them. And two more were coming right behind it!
“RUN!” Branch yelled, somewhat unnecessarily, since Poppy and Cloud Guy were already sprinting to get out of the way.
FWOOM! FWOOM! FWOOM! The three snowballs rushed by them, picking up more snow as they went, growing and growing, until they crashed into the field of icicles the Trolls had left behind. SMASH!
“Where did those giant snowballs come from?” Poppy asked, shocked.
“I’m guessing those guys,” Cloud Guy said. He pointed up the towering mountain.
Poppy and Branch saw large, fierce-looking creatures covered in long white hair. Thin legs and antennae extend
ed from their bodies. Sliding down the side of the mountain on sheets of bark, the hairy beasts were headed straight toward the Trolls and Cloud Guy, growling and snarling.
“Who are they?” Branch asked.
“Freezyfluffs,” Cloud Guy answered. “And from what I’ve heard, they’re not friendly.”
While Poppy, Branch, and Cloud Guy were struggling through the snowy foothills of the frozen mountains, Biggie, Cooper, and Smidge were hiking into the dark woods. They soon found themselves in a thick forest of Troll-sized fir trees.
“It smells nice in here,” Biggie said, drawing in the sweet air through his nose. “Piney!”
“It smells nice,” Smidge agreed, “but it’s tricky to walk through!”
She was right. Growing out of the ground were vines and shoots that wrapped around the trees like garlands of tinsel. Other plants formed themselves into shiny ribbons and bows. The Trolls had to make their way through thick snarls and tangles.
At first, Biggie led the way. He was the biggest, so he tried to clear a path for the other two Trolls to follow. But the decorative undergrowth was too dense for him to plow through, and soon he was stuck!
“Here, let me try!” Cooper said. “I’ve got twice as many legs to run on!”
“I don’t quite see how that’s going to help,” Biggie said.
“Just watch!” Cooper cried as he backed up, got a running start, and plowed right into the undergrowth, churning his four legs as fast as he could.
But in no time, he was stuck, too, hopelessly tangled up in the vines and shoots.
“Um, a little help?” he said weakly.
Using the great strength of her hair, Smidge pulled Cooper out of the jumbled mass of shining greenery. With maximum effort, they managed to pull Biggie free.
“Thanks!” Biggie gasped. “Smidge, maybe you could somehow clear a path with your hair.”
“How?” Smidge asked.
“Whip it around like you’re whacking weeds!” Cooper suggested. “That’s sure to work!”
Moving her little head in a circle, Smidge whipped her hair around faster and faster until it was a blue blur.
“Okay, great!” Cooper called to her. “Now use it to clear a path!”
Smidge moved toward the thick undergrowth, put her head down—and almost instantly got her long hair tangled up in the plants!
“Uh-oh,” Biggie sighed. “Who’s good at untying knots?”
“Pirates?” Cooper guessed.
At the same time that the first party was trudging through snow and the second party was getting tangled up in vines, the third party was happily skipping through the beautiful meadows.
“This is…,” Satin began.
“…so fun!” Chenille finished. The twins joined hands, laughing.
Fuzzbert giggled, his laughter muffled by the long green hair that covered his whole body.
“It’s very nice, but how are we supposed to find the way to Bergen Town?” Satin asked as they strolled through the cool, soft grass. A light, warm breeze blew. The air smelled like flowers.
“Look!” said Chenille, pointing ahead. “Maybe they know the way!”
Fuzzbert and Satin looked to see what she meant. They saw a crowd of critters, and they were all singing! It was a choir of Tunebugs, Chimers, Critterchords, Chorusflies, Humworms, Chanters—just about every kind of musical critter there was. Their song filled the air with buggy melodies and harmonies.
The Trolls quickly made their way over to the critter choir.
“Excuse us,” Satin said.
All the critters stopped singing. They turned and stared at the Trolls with bulging eyes.
“Do you happen to know the way to Bergen Town?” Chenille asked. “We’re kind of lost.”
“As in…,” Satin began.
“…totally,” Chenille finished.
The critters looked at each other, wiggling their antennae and petals. The Trolls got the feeling the critters might be saying something in their own secret language. Then one of the Critterchords stepped forward.
“Do you…sing?” it asked.
Satin grinned. “Well, sure! Trolls love to sing!”
The musical critters smiled and nodded.
The Critterchord said, “We will be glad to tell you the way. But first—sing with us!”
The Trolls looked at each other and shrugged. If it meant getting directions to Bergen Town, they guessed they had time to sing a song or two….
But after singing many, many, many songs with the critter choir, the Trolls had had enough. Their voices were getting tired. And they needed to find their way to Bergen Town.
“Well, that was fun,” Chenille croaked. “But we’ve really got to get going. If you could point us toward Bergen Town—”
“You all sing very well,” a Tunebug interrupted.
“We like to sing with you,” buzzed a Chorusfly.
Fuzzbert made some grunting sounds that the Trolls understood to mean “Thank you very much.”
“But now…,” said Satin hoarsely.
“…it’s time for us to go,” Chenille said in a rasp.
The musical critters looked at each other and quickly formed a ring around the Trolls.
“No,” the Critterchord insisted. “You are in our choir now. You will stay and sing with us. Forever!”
Poppy, Branch, and Cloud Guy watched the hairy Freezyfluffs slide down the mountain straight at them, their bark sleds kicking up clouds of snow.
“We’ve got to get to Bergen Town to help Bridget,” Poppy said. “Maybe they know the way!”
“Or maybe they know the way to cook Trolls!” Branch replied, exasperated.
“And Cloud Guys,” added Cloud Guy.
“Yes, and Cloud Guys,” Branch said. “So I’m thinking we RUN!”
They turned and ran, not back the way they’d come, but toward the deep forest where Biggie, Cooper, and Smidge had gone. They picked through the rocks and boulders that had rolled down the mountain, trying to stay low so the Freezyfluffs couldn’t see them.
But when they looked back, they saw the Freezyfluffs jump off their sleds and chase them on their long, spindly legs, still growling and snarling. The ones in front sniffed the air as though they were following the Trolls’ scent.
“We’ve got to lose these hairy dudes!” Cloud Guy gasped, holding his side as he ran. “But how?”
“We can lose them in the forest,” Poppy said, breathing hard.
“I don’t think we’ll make it,” Branch said. “The woods are too far. They’ll catch up with us before we get there.”
Poppy pointed ahead. “Look! Over there!” She was indicating a patch of briars and brambles.
“That doesn’t look very comfy,” Cloud Guy said.
“Yeah, but I’m betting those hairy Freezyfluffs won’t like it, either,” Poppy said. “Come on! And keep your hair up high, Branch!”
“Right!” her Troll friend answered as they ran toward the prickly patch.
“Guys! Are we sure about this?” Cloud Guy called.
“Yes!” Poppy and Branch answered together.
Keeping their hair high so it wouldn’t get caught in the brambles, Poppy and Branch scrambled into the thorny patch, trying to avoid getting scratched. Cloud Guy went in a little more slowly and reluctantly, but he went.
The Freezyfluffs came roaring up, but when they saw the thicket of briar, they slid to a stop. They were familiar with the bramble patch and had no desire to go in. Their long white hair would catch on the thorns and get plucked out, painfully. Without a word, they turned around and went back to their mountain caves to do whatever it was that Freezyfluffs did.
Poppy, Branch, and Cloud Guy were happy to see the Freezyfluffs go. But they were even happier when they exited the briar thicket and saw a road running between the thicket and the dark forest.
“Could this be the road to Bergen Town?” Poppy asked.
Cloud Guy knelt and studied the road. Then he stood up and grinned. “Yo
u know what? I think it is. Totes!”
“That’s great!” Poppy exclaimed.
“Now we just have to tell the others, get back to the Caterbus, and drive to Bergen Town!” Branch said.
They crossed the road and headed into the dark forest, calling for their friends.
“Biggie!” Poppy called, cupping her hands around her mouth.
“Smidge!” Branch shouted.
“Dudes! And lady-Troll dudes!” Cloud Guy called.
As they walked along, the going got tougher with more and more undergrowth.
“You know,” Poppy said, “these plants may be hard to walk through, but they sure are pretty. They look like ribbons and bows and garlands.”
“Yeah,” Cloud Guy said, “ribbons and bows and garlands that get all tangled up around your ankles.”
“Shhh!” Branch hissed, holding up a hand. “I think I hear something!”
They stood there a moment, listening. Then they clearly heard three of their friends calling, “HELP!”
They hurried through the shadowy woods as best they could until they found Biggie, Cooper, and Smidge. Their friends were thoroughly tangled up in some dark-green vines.
“Poppy! Branch!” Biggie said, tears running down his cheeks. “Thank goodness you’re here!”
“And what about me?” Cloud Guy asked, a little hurt.
“I don’t really know you that well,” Biggie explained bashfully.
Branch, Poppy, and Cloud Guy went right to work untangling the Trolls, careful not to get tangled up themselves. It wasn’t easy. It almost seemed as though the vines wanted to tie themselves into bows and knots.
“We sure could use some pirates to help untie these knots,” Cloud Guy muttered.
“That’s what I said!” Cooper said, glad that someone knew what he was talking about.
Once the three were freed from their leafy bindings, all six of them headed out to find the team that had gone into the meadows.
“Walk close together,” Poppy warned.
They managed to make it out of the forest. Behind them, the vines they’d stepped on sprang right back up, ready to form themselves into new bows and garlands.