Chapter Ten- Mira's Wings

Gargamel pounded on the door again. "Open this door before I blast it open!"

"Hide!" Grace whispered urgently as she herded everyone into the bathroom. She locked the door and put her ear against it.

"How is this a good hiding place?" Brainy asked. "Gargamel will corner us!"

"Shh!" Grace hissed. "I'm listening."

"We can get out through the window." Patrick suggested. He opened the window and looked out. But when he noticed the sheer drop, he pulled back. "Never mind."

"Isn't there a fire escape?" Mira snapped.

"It's under repairs." Patrick said.

"Brilliant." Mira groaned.

Suddenly, everyone jumped as there was an explosion. Gargamel had finally blasted the door down.

Gargamel stepped over the broken door and looked around, keeping an eye for anything blue. Azrael darted ahead, sniffing around like a hound dog.

"Find them, Azrael." Gargamel urged. "Find them all! I sense magic has been used here recently."

Mira quietly opened the bathroom door and peered out. She could hear Gargamel's footsteps and see his shadow as he snooped around.

"I have an idea." Mira said as she closed the door. "I'll distract Gargamel. You guys sneak out the door as quietly and quickly as you can. Go to Central Park; I'll meet you there."

"Are you sure?" Clumsy whispered worriedly.

"Positive." Mira nodded. She slipped out before another word could be spoken. She crept down the hallway and looked around the corner. When she saw Gargamel, she was quick to disappear. She waited a moment before looking again...

...only to have a dragon wand in her face.

"Where are they?" Gargamel growled.

"Who?" Mira asked, keeping her voice steady.

"The Smurfs, you little witch!" Gargamel shouted. "Hand them over or I'll stuff you in my essence extractor!"

Mira pursed her lips. She wasn't afraid; not by a long shot. But she had seen what that machine did to Clumsy. Who knows what it'll do to a human? "Alright. They hid in here." She led him down to the doors of the office and pointed to them. Gargamel shoved her aside and threw the sliding doors open. He stepped inside, looking around the room with a raised eyebrow.

"Where are they?" Gargamel demanded.

Mira suddenly jumped onto Gargamel's back, covering his eyes with her hands. Gargamel shouted, waved his arms around, and tried to hit Mira with the wand. The commotion could be heard all the way in the bathroom.

"We gotta go!" Gutsy urged. "Come on!"

Grace pushed the door open and rushed out, the Smurfs and Patrick following. They stepped over bits of the front door, Patrick keeping an eye on Mira and Gargamel. She was still on his back with him trying to throw her off like some crazed piggy back ride. Suddenly, there was a vicious snarl and a yelp, and Papa went running back into the apartment with Azrael right behind him.

"Keep going!" Papa called. "We'll catch up!"

"Come on!" Patrick hurried everyone out.

"What about Papa and Mira?" Hefty asked as they ran.

"They'll be fine!" Grace assured.

"I hear them, Azrael!" Gargamel shouted. "Get them!"

Azrael yowled as he chased Papa all around the apartment. Papa tried tossing things in the way, but nothing could stop the freakish feline. Azrael finally cornered Papa against a wall, growling as he prowled closer towards the Smurf. Papa pressed himself against the wall, desperately looking for a way out. Azrael came inches from Papa when something pulled on his ears, forcing him backwards.

"You leave him alone!" Clumsy shouted. Papa watched in shock as Clumsy's fleeting moment of bravery backfired; he was thrown from Azrael's back and started running as the cat chased him. Papa ran after them, climbing onto tables to get to the kitchen counter. When Azrael ran by, Papa jumped onto the handle of a pot, overturning it and watching as it fell on top of Azrael.

Mira jumped off Gargamel as the wizard crashed into a wall. He groaned as he fell backwards onto the couch.

"Come on!" Mira called. She scooped up Papa and Clumsy and ran out the door.

Gargamel shook his head to rid himself of the stars in his vision. "After them Azrael!" he groaned.

"Merow mow mow!" Azrael mocked from inside the pot. Eventually, they managed to come to their senses and went running out the door, down the hall, and down the stairs.

Mira peered out from behind the door to the stairs, making sure Gargamel and Azrael were out of sight before walking back to the apartment.

"What're you doing?" Clumsy asked.

"There's something I have to get." Mira said as she made her way to the office. She took a look around the wrecked apartment. "I'll have to clean this up later." She darted into the office and grabbed her suitcase, throwing out her clothes as she dug through it.

Clumsy yelped as he dodged a flying combat boot. "What are you looking for?"

"This." Mira said, holding up a small wooden box. It was half the size of a shoe box and lightly colored brown with a lock on the front.

"What's that?" Papa asked.

Mira didn't answer at first. A memory flashed before her eyes.

FLASHBACK

"And Papa Smurf cried tears of joy, because his little Smurf was safe and sound." Willow finished.

"Poor Clumsy." little Mira sighed. "All that bad luck, and then his mushroom was crushed by a rock!"

"Well, it's a good thing he wasn't in it then." Willow laughed.

"Yeah." Mira sighed. She stared at the water they sat beside. "Mommy, will I ever see a Smurf?"

"I'm sure you will someday." Willow nodded, pulling her daughter into a side-hug. "It could happen when you're not even looking for them."

"Are they really as nice as you say?" Mira asked worriedly. "They aren't mean or anything?"

"They're shy." Willow admitted. "But very friendly. You can always trust the Smurfs, Mira dear. They're your friends."

"Are they my family?" Mira asked innocently.

Willow smiled softly, petting her daughter's head. "Yes, Mira, the Smurfs are your family."

"Good." Mira smiled broadly. "I'd love to have a hundred siblings. Then you're never lonely!"

Willow laughed. She turned around and pulled out a small wooden box wrapped in a blue ribbon. "Mira, this is for you."

Mira's eyes lit up. She took the box and shook it a little. "What is it?"

"Something very important." Willow explained. "But you can't open it yet."

"Awww." Mira groaned. "When can I open it?"

"You have to decide." Willow said. "When the time comes, you'll know when it's really needed."

Mira held the box close. "How will I know?"

"Trust yourself." Willow instructed. "Listen to your heart."

Mira nodded, hugging the box to her chest. Willow pulled her daughter into a hug, softly singing her traditional Gaelic lullaby. Mira's eyes became heavy until she was finally asleep.

END FLASHBACK

"My mother gave me this." Mira said. "She said I'd know when the time was right to open it." She pulled out a cord from inside the collar of her shirt; on the end of the cord was a key. She untied the blue ribbon from the box and used it to tie back her hair. Then she put the key into its lock and turned it. There was a click, and the lid opened quite easily. Mira set the box down so Papa and Clumsy could see in. Inside the box was a vial of greenish-blue liquid and a rolled-up note. Mira picked up the note first and read it to herself.

Mira,

This may sound like a freaky prediction, but I bet by now you'll have met the Smurfs. Are they everything I told you about? I hope so. I know they'll take good care of you. Ask Papa Smurf; he's a very kind person. I should know. I should've told you earlier, but I never really had a chance. It's going to be very hard to believe, but I'm sure being with the Smurfs for a while might lessen the surprise.

I'm a forest sprite. I lived with the Smurfs for years. I had pointed ears like an elf and butterfly wings. The Smurfs were my family, just like you. I loved them very much; all my little Smurfs were like my own children...

The letter went on, explaining Mira's life with the Smurfs, some of their adventures, and how she became a human; everything that Gutsy and Clumsy told Mira. Mira kept reading, her eyes filling with tears. I miss her so much. She thought. All these adventures she had. If only she could've spent more time with the Smurfs. Finally, it came to the vial.

Mira, even though I took the form of a human, I was still a forest sprite on the inside. My wings were still there. And they carried on to you. But you couldn't hide your wings like I could. So I took your wings for a while. Drink this vial; all of it. When you want to conceal your wings, just focus on what you want them to do and they'll shrink small enough to hide under a shirt or coat.

Good luck my little one. You'll be wonderful.

Your mother,

Willow

Mira looked at the vial and uncorked it. She sniffed it and instantly grimaced. "This smells terrible."

"Not every potion smells like roses." Papa chuckled. "I doubt it'll taste much better. Just plug your nose and down it all in one gulp."

"That's how Papa gets us to take our medicine." Clumsy said, his nose scrunching in disgust.

Mira sighed, plugged her nose, and dumped the vial's contents into her mouth. She swallowed and her face scrunched up. "Yuck."

"How do you feel?" Papa asked.

Mira suddenly jerked. She felt something growing from her back, pushing against her shirt. She quickly shed her shirt and let whatever was sprouting from her back move freely. She felt a little embarrassed to be in her jeans and sports bra (in front of two boys nonetheless), but she wasn't too concerned about that at the moment.

"Amazing!" Papa exclaimed.

"They look like Mama Willow's!" Clumsy said happily.

Mira turned to look behind her and stared. Directly below and between her shoulder blades was a large pair of butterfly wings. Clumsy was right: the wings were elegantly shaped, white, and had black spots. They were exactly like her mother's. And they were big; the tops of the wings were half a foot above her head and the bottoms were at her knees. She stretched them a little and tried flapping them. She flapped them harder and she found herself hovering a few feet off the ground.

"Cool!" Clumsy cheered.

Mira nodded. "Yeah it is!" She grabbed her black shirt, cut a hole in the back, and pulled the shirt on (with some difficulty) so the wings fit through the back. "Perfect. Now we need something else."

"What's that?" Clumsy asked.

"The spell to open your portal home." Mira said.

"But the blue moon can't be smurfed for weeks." Clumsy protested.

"Just trust me." Mira assured.

"I know the spell." Papa said. "We have to catch up with the others."

"Let's go!" Mira cheered. She picked up Papa in one hand and Clumsy in the other, placing them on either one of her shoulders.

"Where are we going?" Papa asked.

"Taking a shortcut." Mira answered as she climbed out the window to the fire escape. She ran up to the roof and stood back, putting a foot behind her and setting her sights for the edge of the roof.

Clumsy and Papa finally realized what she was doing. "Mira!" they shouted.

"As Gutsy would say," Mira laughed as she started running. "Smurfabanga!"

Clumsy and Papa clung to Mira's hair ribbon as she jumped off the roof. They shouted in fear as they fell. Mira flapped her wings and they arched upwards into the air. Mira whooped and laughed as she flew high up, hoping everyone down below either wasn't paying attention or thought she was a bird. She leveled out and turned to the terrified Smurfs on her shoulders.

"You guys ok?" Mira called over the wind.

Papa and Clumsy shook like a rattlesnake's tail, clinging to Mira's hair so hard that their knuckles were white. Mira only laughed, turning towards Belvedere Castle.

"Hang on to your hats!" Mira called as she flew faster.