Chapter Thirteen- Remembrance and Love

"If you don't put me down," Mira threatened. "I'm gonna hit you so hard over the head your brains will come out!"

"Now, now." Gargamel warned, waving a finger at the forest sprite in his grip. "You are in no position to-OUCH!" He jumped, throwing Mira into the air. Gargamel kicked Hefty off his foot, sending the Smurf flying. Mira swooped down and grabbed the bulky built Smurf. She couldn't hold him in the air for very long, but she could slow their decent so they landed somewhat softly on the ground. Unfortunately, they stood on the edge of the cliff and Gargamel blocked their only exit. Mira looked behind her and noticed the portal closing. She still had the dragon wand in her hand; she quickly cast a simple spell on the portal-a spell that would keep the portal open until Mira herself closed it.

"When are you going to stop biting me?" Gargamel growled. Azrael hissed.

"Just leave her alone." Hefty said, putting himself between Mira and Gargamel.

"Or what?" Gargamel laughed.

"Or I blast you into next week." Mira threatened.

"You're magic is nothing now." Gargamel snapped. "What do you think you'll do? Tickle me?" He and Azrael laughed. "You know what? I'll give you one free shot. Hit me!"

Mira looked down, between Gargamel's legs, and saw the rest of the Smurfs hiding behind a rock. Papa pointed up at the ceiling. Mira's eyes locked with his; she pointed the dragon wand at the ceiling and blasted some rocks loose. They weren't large rocks; each about the size of a quarter. But when it hit Gargamel's head, he looked up in confusion, giving Hefty and Mira time to dart under him and make a run for it. Mira and the Smurfs ran down the path to the entrance of the cave. Gargamel's shouts echoed behind them and Azrael was getting closer.

"There's the entrance!" Smurfette shouted, pointing to the forest ahead.

"What do we do about Gargamel?" Clumsy asked. "He'll see the village!"

"This is a predicament!" Brainy panicked.

"No duh!" Mira snapped.

"I'll take care of it!" Gutsy announced. He ran ahead of the group and grabbed a length of vine. Mira realized what he was doing and flew to him, grabbing the other end of the vine. They let it go slack and waited for the Smurfs to pass before pulling on it. Gargamel tripped over the vine and face-planted into the ground. Azrael jumped over him and leaped for the Smurfs.

"Someone catch that crazy cat!" Dabbler shouted as he dodged Azrael's claws.

Mira flew down, grabbing Azrael's ear and yanking it to one side. Azrael directed his attention to Mira and chased her, snapping his jaws. Mira turned, pointed the wand at the cat, and shouted, "Dormir!" A puff of smoke went POOFin front of Azrael's face. Azrael coughed, and then his eyelids grew heavy. He stumbled and fell down, snoring a little as he slept.

"Nice one, Mira!" Papa cheered.

Mira pretended to hold a skirt and curtsied. "Thank you."

"You blasted little wretches!"

Everyone scattered as Gargamel resumed the chase. A hand suddenly grabbed Papa and pulled him behind a root.

"Tell me you know a spell to get him out of here." Mira asked desperately.

"You knew the spells to fight Gargamel and keep the portal open, but not anything else than that?" Papa groaned.

"I skimmed those spell books." Mira explained. "I paid attention to those spells because I knew I'd need them. I didn't account for shrinking when I came through the portal."

"I know a spell." Papa nodded. "You think you have enough power to do it?"

"I was thinking you could do it." Mira smiled weakly.

Papa rolled his eyes. "Give me the wand."

Mira gladly did so. "I'll distract him. Do your stuff."

Papa nodded and Mira flew off. She circled Gargamel's head like a fly.

"Get away you blasted little moron!" Gargamel shouted, trying to swat Mira out of the air. Mira stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry. Gargamel tried to hit her again, but he suddenly found himself hovering in the air. He turned and saw Papa with the dragon wand, lifting Gargamel and Azrael into the air.

"Oh please, Papa Smurf!" Gargamel whimpered. "Have mercy!"

"No worries, Gargamel." Papa assured. "I'll make sure you land in your nice, soft bed."

"Soft?" Gargamel scoffed. Papa suddenly threw Gargamel and Azrael into the air, in the direction of the wizard's hovel. Gargamel screamed as he flew through the air. He crashed through his roof and landed on his bed, just as Papa promised.

"I..." Gargamel groaned, his voice growing louder with every word. "...hate...SMURFS!"

"Well done, Papa." Mira complimented as she landed.

"Thank you." Papa nodded. He held out the dragon wand.

"Uh, maybe you should hold onto that." Mira suggested.

"Keep it." Papa insisted, pushing the wand into Mira's hands. "You'll need it to practice. You're gonna be a great sorceress someday." Mira smiled and jumped forward, wrapping her arms around Papa's neck. Papa chuckled and returned the embrace.

"Come on, guys!" Clumsy urged. "Let's show Mira the village!" He grabbed Mira's hand and started pulling her along. Mira laughed and went at first, but suddenly held back.

"Clumsy, I have to go back." Mira protested.

"Back where?" Smurfette asked.

"To Patrick and Grace." Mira nodded her head towards the Forbidden Falls. "They're waiting for me."

"Can't you stay for a while?" Gutsy requested.

"When's the next blue moon?" Mira asked Papa.

"Next year." Papa replied sadly.

Mira sighed. "I can't then. My dad may not care about me much, but he willcare if I go missing for a year. Patrick and Grace might get in trouble."

"But you'll love the village!" Clumsy said happily. "The Smurfs would love to meet you. And you'll see the river and the Great Oak and Papa's lab and-"

Mira gently covered Clumsy's mouth. "I can't Clumsy. Not today, at least. But I promise I'll come back. Then you can give me the grand tour of this place." Clumsy's face fell.

Mira turned to the other Smurfs. "Thank you guys, for everything."

"Our honor." Gutsy said, bowing playfully. "We'll never forget you."

Mira pulled Gutsy into a hug. "Thanks, Gutsy. And thanks for never giving up on me when I acted like a total...you know."

"Not a problem, lassie." Gutsy assured, ruffling Mira's hair affectionately.

"Hey, what are we?" Hefty protested. "Chopped Smurf?"

Mira laughed. "I've got a hug for all of you." she assured as she hugged Hefty. "Way to keep a cool head. You're a good friend."

Mira looked towards Grouchy, but the grumpy Smurf quickly crossed his arms and frowned. "I hate hugs." Mira pulled him into one anyway, and Grouchy's face melted. "But I hate you leaving more." He sniffed a little and Mira wiped away a tear. It only made the lump in Grouchy's throat grow more.

Mira hugged Dabbler next. "You're a pretty good doctor. But Patrick was right; you didn't understand the medicine I used. I'm sorry for shouting at you. It was uncalled for."

"Yeah." Dabbler nodded. "But I guess I should've paid more attention. I'll remember that next time."

Smurfette tackled Mira in a hug from behind. "You just haveto come back soon. I want to see what you look like in a dress."

"Are you serious?" Mira asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You'd be surprised by Smurfette's persuasion skills." Brainy noted.

Mira rolled her eyes and hugged the brainiac. "You are such a nerd. But I'm really gonna miss you."

Brainy straightened his glasses and hugged Mira back, a smile on his lips. "Maybe someday you can show me your writing?"

Mira looked at Brainy over the edge of her glasses. "Someday." She nodded. She walked up to Clumsy, whose eyes were still on the ground. Mira moved so she could be in his vision and smiled. "I promise I'll come and visit next year. The portal will open again."

"It'll open every year." Papa assured.

"See?" Mira said. "I'll come in a week or two early and stay until the festival. Cross my heart." She made an X over her chest to emphasize the point.

Clumsy smiled at last. "Ok. I'll be waiting." He shook his head. "Uh, I mean, we'll be waiting. 'Cause I'm sure the other Smurfs will be happy to meet you and everything and, uh, you'll love he village in the summer, and uh..."

Mira rolled her eyes as Clumsy stuttered and stammered on. She grabbed his shoulders and pulled him in, planting a kiss on his lips. Clumsy's eyes widened and he became silent, even after Mira pulled away. His usually blue face turned pink and purple. Then, he started laughing a little, and he fell backwards.
Mira and the other Smurfs laughed. Mira turned to Papa, and she felt her chest constrict. She hugged Papa tightly, burying her head in his shoulder.

"We'll see you next year." Papa promised. Mira only nodded. She pulled away, fighting the tears that threatened to spill. "Go on, now." Papa urged, gesturing to the Forbidden Falls. "They're waiting for you."

Mira nodded and took off. She turned to wave good-bye to the Smurfs until they disappeared from sight. Then she looked ahead, allowing a few tears to escape her eyes and fly off her cheeks. She didn't look back; especially when the portal came into view. Mira flew through the portal and shot out the other side. She landed softly on a few rocks before using her wand to close the portal.

"Welcome back." Patrick greeted. "You were gone for a while."

Grace noticed Mira's eyes were pink and wet. "What's wrong?"

Mira came up and hugged her aunt and uncle. "Nothing." She mumbled.

The Smurfs were trapped in solemn silence when Mira left. They remained that way for a long moment before Gutsy sighed.

"Well, that's that." He shrugged. "We'll not see her again fer a year."

"I'm really going to miss her." Grouchy said sadly.

"She affects you the same way Baby does, huh?" Brainy guessed.

"Smurf up." Grouchy growled.

"Come on." Papa said. "Let's surprise the others."

"Race ya to the village!" Hefty called cheerfully.

"Last one there's a rotten smurfberry!" Gutsy chimed in. The Smurfs started sprinting towards the village, none of them wanting to be the last one there. Papa held back when he noticed a Smurf missing. He turned and found Clumsy standing a ways off, staring in the direction Mira went. Papa walked up behind him and placed a comforting hand on the accident-prone Smurf's shoulder.

Clumsy slowly turned around. "I don't feel so smurfy, Papa."

"Oh really?" Papa asked, feigning confusion. He knew exactly what was happening, but he decided to play along.

"Yeah." Clumsy nodded. "My chest kinda hurts and my stomach is full of butterflies. My face feels hot and I feel dizzy. You think I'm sick?"

Papa smiled. "I think you'll be fine. You may feel a little unsmurfy for a few days, but you'll be fine." He jerked his head towards the mushroom houses peeking out over the hill. "Let's go home."

Clumsy nodded and followed Papa down the trail. "You think I'll need some medicine?"

"Oh yes." Papa nodded, fighting a laugh. "A couple slices of smurfberry pie and a few rounds of smurf ball ought to do the trick." Clumsy smiled. His mouth watered at the thought of Greedy's cooking; he hadn't eaten Greedy food in ages.

As Clumsy and Papa approached the village, they noticed a large group of Smurfs gathered around Gutsy, Hefty, Dabbler, Brainy, Grouchy, and Smurfette. Gutsy suddenly turned and pointed to Papa. When the Smurfs noticed Papa, there was a mix of responses: cheering, overjoyed tears, a few fainting Smurfs. Papa sped up a bit as he and Clumsy made their way down to the others. The Smurfs hugged Papa, tears in their eyes. The Smurflings jumped onto Papa and accidently knocked him to the ground. Farmer came up with Baby in his arms; Papa gladly took the little Smurf and held him close, not minding that Baby was tugging on his beard again.

"It's so good to see you again, Papa." Vanity sighed in relief. "I was starting to get worry lines."

"Andwe were concerned for your safety and health." Greedy piped up, casting Vanity a look.

"Ya'll scared us." Farmer added.

"Gargamel's fault." Clumsy said. "But Mira and Papa took care of him."

"Who's Mira?" Narrator asked. "Usually, I always know more than anyone else."

"She's amazing!" Gutsy said happily. "If only ya could've met her."

"Well, don't keep it all in!" Handy said. "Tell us about her!"

"I think we allhave some explaining to do." Papa assured. "Why don't we head to my house? We can explain everything there."

Mira sat on the fire escape, staring at the now snow-white moon. She shrunk her wings and laid them flat against her back, hiding them under her nightgown. A soft, warm breeze caressed Mira's face and blew her hair behind her. She sighed.

"Good evening."

Mira turned to see Grace at the window. "Hey."

"You doing alright?" Grace asked.

"Fine." Mira said softly.

"You don't sound fine." Grace said. "You miss them, don't you?"

"They were the closest thing to my mom." Mira nodded. "They were her family. By extension, they're my family."

"You'll see them again soon." Patrick assured as he appeared next to Grace. "A year will go by fast."

"Not fast enough." Mira said.

Patrick sighed. "Come on inside." He and Grace walked back in and made their way to the office. Mira climbed through the window and closed it behind her. She took one last look at the moon. Then she kissed her fingers and pressed them against the glass.

"What do you want to talk about?" Mira asked as she sat on the couch.

"We just want to talk." Patrick said. He sat down next to Mira and Grace sat in a chair. "We have a surprise for you."

"A surprise?" Mira raised an eyebrow.

"We e-mailed your dad." Grace explained. "We just got an e-mail back."

"And?" Mira asked.

"We've made an agreement with your dad." Patrick explained. "So you can spend the summers with us."

"Every summer?" Mira clarified. "Three months with you?"

"Yep." Grace nodded. "And you can spend a few weeks with the Smurfs before staying with us."

Mira's eyes lit up. "Really?" They nodded, and Mira nearly squealed as she hugged them.

"Also," Patrick said, pulling out something from behind his back. "I found this." He handed Mira a thick envelope.

"What is it?" Mira asked, feeling the stuffed paper.

"Not sure." Patrick shrugged. "You can tell us tomorrow." He and Grace bid Mira goodnight and left for bed. Mira opened the envelope and pulled out seven small pieces of paper. Upon reading them, Mira realized that they were from the Smurfs, written a few days ago.

Mira,
It's so smurfy to meet you! I hope you can help Papa. He means a lot to us. And I want to get to know you better. Girls gotta stick together, right? Maybe we could go shopping with Grace! Good luck working with Dabbler. He can be such a worry-Smurf.
Your friend,
Smurfette

Mira,
I may not know you very well, but if Patrick trusts you, then so do I. I know you'll be able to help Papa. You got guts, kid. I hope I get to know you better. I have a feeling we'll get along great. Good luck with Dabbler. He's a little hard to work with.
Your favorite Scots-smurf
Gutsy

Greetings Mirabelle,
Don't smurf me for using your first name. It just sounds so pretty. In all honesty, I wish I was the Smurf to help Papa. But, sadly, I have no medical knowledge to do so. So good luck. I am available for assistance. That is all. I also want to note that you are very pretty. Bye!
Brainy

Hey Mira,
When I first met you, I will admit you kinda scared me; and I ain't scared of...well, anything. But now I see that you're just a little rough around the edges. Like me. I'll do anything and everything I can to help take care of Papa. He means a lot to me and the other Smurfs. You understand, of course. Thanks for helping.
Hefty

Mira,
I should let you know I hate writing letters and the other Smurfs are forcing me to do this. I hated you when you first came. But I'm starting to hate you less. Do not tell anysmurf I said that. It is strictly between us. To get to the point, I just want you to know that if you make Papa worse, I'll smurf your block off.
Grouchy

Mira,
I want to thank you. I think this IV thing will really help Papa heal. I'm not the greatest doctor in the world, but I do know a lot. Don't tell the other Smurfs this, but I don't think Papa will make it. He's hurt too badly. I don't what I'll do if he dies. I'm scared. I know you probably don't like us much, but all I ask is that you do your best to save Papa.
Dabbler

The last one was from Clumsy. By then, there were happy tears silently streaming down Mira's cheeks. She wiped her eyes to read Clumsy's letter, her smile growing wider with every sentence.

Dear Mira,
Very smurfy to meet you. Thanks for helping Papa. I hope you can help. Do you know magic? Gargamel used magic to hurt us; I was just thinking that magic could heal Papa. But you're the expert. I was also thinking we could hang out sometime. You, me, and the Smurfs. Then maybe you would like us better. You don't seem to like us much. But we like you; I do at least. You've got some kindness in you. I want to get to know that side of you. The side that laughs and makes your eyes sparkle.
Thank you for helping Papa.
Clumsy

Mira put the letters back into the envelope and hugged it to her chest. She glanced out the window and stared at the starry night sky. Smiling, Mira lay down on the couch and pulled a fuzzy blanket over her. She fell asleep with smurfy dreams.

Clumsy stared at the star-filled sky through a window in Papa's mushroom. Gutsy was finishing his overly dramatic version of the Smurfs' adventure with Mira, Papa interrupting now and then to clarify a few facts. Clumsy listened for a while before he zoned out. He couldn't stop thinking about Mira, wondering if she was staring at the night sky like he was. Clumsy jumped when the Smurfs started applauding.

"Alright, my little Smurfs. Time for bed." Papa announced. Papa cradled a sleeping Baby Smurf for a moment before handing him off to Grouchy. Gutsy led the way as the Smurfs filed out of the house. Many Smurfs hugged Papa goodnight, obviously overjoyed that he was home, safe and sound. The last one to leave was Clumsy.

Clumsy hugged Papa, a few tears escaping his eyes. "I'm sorry Papa. For everything."

"There's nothing to be sorry about." Papa assured, wiping Clumsy's eyes dry. "Going through that portal was a blessing in disguise."

"But if I hadn't led us down the wrong path in the first place," Clumsy protested. "Then you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

"And then we never would've met Mirabelle." Papa noted. "And we may have never found out what had happened to Mama Willow."

Clumsy nodded a little. "I guess so. I'm really gonna miss Mira, Patrick, and Grace."

"As will I." Papa nodded. "They're good friends. And I'm sure we'll see them again."

Clumsy smiled, but it faded a second later. "I still don't feel so smurfy. I've been sick all day."

"Then why don't you come by my lab tomorrow?" Papa suggested. "We'll see what we can do."

"Thanks Papa." Clumsy yawned. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight my little Smurf." Papa waved as Clumsy journeyed to his mushroom, his feet dragging from exhaustion. Papa chuckled to himself as he closed the door. "Poor little Clumsy; lovesick and he doesn't even know it."

He chuckled again and walked up to his bed. The soft, feather-filled mattress was a warm welcome after spending a few nights in a strange place. Papa pulled the blanket over him. Before going to sleep, he reached under his pillow and pulled out a picture frame. The picture inside was a beautiful clearing next to a waterfall. Papa was on a picnic blanket with Willow. Her wings matched her white tank top and black skirt perfectly. She and Papa were laughing at a recently told story. That was the one year anniversary of the day Willow moved into the village. Greedy baked a feast and everyone went to the beach to celebrate. Painter made the picture Papa currently held. It was a truly magical day.

Papa smiled, fighting tears. He gently kissed the picture and placed it on his pillow. He lay down beside it, a wistful smile upon his face.

"Goodnight Willow." Papa whispered. "Rest in peace."