Chapter Nine: Ancient Ruins

Silent Secret wasn't sure where Mountain was taking her. He had been acting a bit odd ever since he got back from patrol not too long ago. After he got back, he simply asked her to follow him, where? He wouldn't say. She wasn't sure what was going on, was something wrong? He didn't seem angry but he did seem upset. Upset about what he wouldn't say, no matter how much she asked. Mountain was usually a bit more upbeat and talkative than this, why was he being so quiet? It was starting to worry her, Silent Secret had no idea what was going on and the fact that Mountain wouldn't tell her anything didn't help.

The little smurfette followed her mentor through thin branches and entwined bridges, allowing her gaze to wander a bit as she was led through the treetop camp. Briefly looking at each wood and straw hut, most of which were newly built or recently fixed up, before shifting her gaze to the next hut. Mountain seemed to be leading her to the living quarters, but Stardust had shown her this area already and Mountain knew this. So, why was he bringing her here?

Mountain stopped in front of an older wood and straw hut that was built into the tree's branches. It appeared to be well maintained despite nobody living in it. The home was decorated with all kinds of gifts. Such as pelts, jewelry, flowers, rest in peace charms and totems exerta. Silent Secret had seen this hut before but Stardust had told her that they weren't allowed inside, that they had left the hut here in remembrance of the Clans leader before the title was handed down to Mountain, though Stardust didn't tell her who they were. Was this what he wanted to show her? But why?

"Why are we stopping here?" Silent Secret asked, not really expecting an answer seeing how quiet her mentor had been so far.

"You'll see." Mountain sighed simply as he pushed the doorway's leather flaps aside and stepped inside the hut, "Come along."

Silent Secret followed her mentor inside, her confusion and curiosity growing by the minute. Once inside, she found the room she was greeted with to be quite cozy. There was a neatly made bed up against the wall, the walls were lined with spears, swords, shields and all kinds of items from different places and a nice looking rug, which appeared to be made from the pelt of a long foot, laid down gently atop the well swept floor.

The little smurfette looked over at Mountain, who was staring at a shield that sat against the wall. It wasn't the biggest one here but Silent Secret had to admit it was pretty, while the shield itself was simple in design, a simple but large circle. But the metalwork that surrounded the edge of the large circle was beautiful, almost like silver water yet it was carved to look like flames that blazed around a little red and blue flower. Silent Secret could see that the shield's surface was covered in the scars of battle, there were marks where arrows had embedded themselves in the wood, and slashes where swords or spears had struck. The shield's owner must have brought it to many battles.

"This home belonged to an old friend of mine." Mountain spoke, refusing to look up at her. His gaze remained fixed on the shield that laid against the wall, "Her name was Sand Dune."

Sand Dune? Silent Secret recognised that name, she'd heard Jagged Rock use that name here and there as well as a few other warriors but she really didn't know who they were. Those that did often went quiet whenever she came around, she didn't know why and she never really gave it much thought. Silent Secret had learned a little bit about Sand Dune through their whispers, she knew that she was a smurfette that didn't like what Jagged Rock was doing and had run away before she could be changed. Nobody really knew where she had gone at first, until Sand Dune, with Mountain's help led a small ambush patrol into the Clan of Unity's camp.

"I've heard a bit about her." Silent Secret told the larger smurf, whose gaze shifted away from the shield, "She was part of the Clan of Unity before disappearing and leading an ambush into the main camp."

"Is that all you've heard of her?" Mountain asked, his tone was filled with sorrow, "Do you know why we led that 'ambush?'"

The little smurfette shook her head at this question. Silent Secret hadn't heard why they had led the ambush, she only knew that they did.

"I'll start by telling you this: It wasn't an ambush that we led into that camp, it was a rescue mission."

"A rescue mission?" Silent Secret echoed in confusion, "Who were you trying to save?"

"You." Mountain replied simply.

Silent Secret stared at him wide eyed, her glowing pools flashing cyan for a moment in shock, "M-me? Why me?" She asked, thoroughly confused, why would they plan a rescue mission for her?

"Because you were her daughter." Mountain answered bluntly, saying it so quickly the little smurfette nearly didn't catch it. But he knew she'd heard him clearly, her glowing eyes were now as wide as glowing lakes, her gaze then shifted down.

Doubt and utter confusion filled her as she stared down at the floor, desperately trying to make sense of the bombshell that had just been dropped on her. Sand Dune was her mother? But how? Her mother had been a warrior loyal to the Clan of Unity but had passed due to an illness not long after she was born… at least that's what Jagged Rock had told her, more lies… "Jagged Rock told me mom got sick…" Silent Secret spoke quietly, mostly to herself. Her words made Mountain scoff a bit under his breath.

"That's what he's told you." The smurf huffed with a shake of his head, "Well, at least it wasn't a complete lie. It's true she's gone, but it's not because of some illness."

The little smurfette was silent for a moment, before looking back up at Mountain, "What really happened to her then? Where has she been all these years?" She asked, her voice rising with each word.

"Sand Dune was a smurfette of many things, secrets unfortunately being one of those things," Mountain started with a deep breath, "While I may have been one of her… best friends, she didn't tell me everything. But she told me about the childling she had been trying to get away from that tyrant. But could never find the opportunity to go in and grab her. So in return for her help, I agreed to help sneak into his camp and help her find you." He paused for a moment to take a quick breath before continuing, "But she got caught, just before she was able to even get into the nursery… Jagged Rock had looked her in the eyes and told her you were dead." Mountain stopped again, his voice cracked with anger before he took another breath to calm himself. "She didn't believe him of course, but we were outnumbered and were forced to flee. Know this Secret, Dune did everything in her power to get you back. But her quest to get you back was eventually her undoing… during a fierce battle with Jagged Rock, she… got too close to the edge of a great gorge and… she fell."

Silent Secret could feel tears welling up in her eyes as she listened to him speak. So, it really was all lies then. And she had hoped the simple, white lie laced stories of the Clan of the Sky were where it ended. But no! He had lied to her, he looked her in the eyes and lied to her face about so many things, and about her mother of all things, something she deserved to know!

But how could she be sure Mountain was being truthful? Could he too be lying to her? If he knew who she was the whole time then, why was he willing to send her back to the Clan of Unity, why didn't he tell her any of this from the get go?

"Hold on, if you knew who I was the whole time then why didn't you tell me any of this from the start?" Silent Secret asked, "Why are you telling me all this now? Why not tell me earlier!"

"I didn't want to overwhelm you." Mountain replied with a sigh, "You were already scared and didn't know what was going on at the time. If I had told you everything right then and there, you might not have believed me."

The little smurfette looked down at the floor. Alright, he at least made a good point. If he had told her everything the day she arrived here, she probably wouldn't have believed him. At least he actually told her what happened, instead of lying to her... like others.

"Why did you decide to tell me now?" Silent Secret questioned, shifting her gaze back up to Mountain.

The larger smurf took a breath, hesitating a moment before replying, "I have to take you to the border at dawn, they plan to take you back to the Clan of Unity." He explained, "I thought that before you left, you'd want to know the truth."

The little smurfette's heart sank. Take her back? No! She just got here, she just started training and learning to survive out here, far away from them! She couldn't go back, not now, not ever!

"No, you can't send me back!" Silent Secret exclaimed, "You can't let them take me! I don't want to be changed!"

"Listen, I know you don't want to go back." Mountain told her, "I don't want to take you back either. But to avoid making this war worse, I have to." He explained sadly.

"We really don't have much of a choice do we?" The little smurfette asked, with a sniffle of both sadness and fear.

Mountain merely shook his head.

So this was it then? She really had no choice but to leave. But she'd never be able to get away again, not if her father had anything to say about it. She'd never be able to see her new friends again. But maybe if she left, then everyone would be safe, she could somehow convince Jagged Rock to call off this war and everyone would be safe but not without getting a few truths out of him first. Though, she supposed that was wishful thinking. But she had to at least try right?

The flight to the ancient jungle was a long one. Much longer than Silence had expected it to be, with only a single break in between the forest and the enchanted jungle and despite the fact that her stomach had felt awful the whole trip, it was worth it. While the place had changed quite a bit, it wasn't unrecognisable like the forest had been. It was still as beautiful as it was all those centuries ago, though she couldn't tell if it was just as deadly as it was back then from this height, all she could see was the top of the blueish-purple trees that covered the ground beneath it.

Upon landing, Silence was greeted with a lush land of various colors mostly blues and purples but it was just as beautiful as she remembered it, though she did notice many new plants among the few that still stuck around from when she lived here all those years ago. Silence was awestruck as she got a good look at her surroundings, everything was so different yet somehow still the same. The new sounds that surrounded her were almost overwhelming. It was amazing.

Silence found herself stepping away from the group absentmindedly and into the nearby clearing, her softly glowing eyes sweeping the lush jungle floor before letting her gaze slowly rise up to the blue sky above her. Watching as the colorful birds and dragonflies flew around above her, seemingly mesmerized as she listened to the sounds of the ancient jungle.

Silence couldn't help but smile softly as she looked back down at the tree line, stepping into the center of the clearing. It reminded Silence of the clearing Mountain used to train her, Stardust and the Salamander in. And if she closed her eyes, she could almost hear their voices and their laughter as they ran around the small grassy plain. Chasing each other before tackling each other to the ground, playing, training. She missed it, she missed them, but she knew there was no getting them back.

"Silence?" The smurfette turned to the smurf that spoke up behind her, one of the few from the village, other than Grandpa that had decided to tag along. Clumsy gave her a look of concern as he asked, "Are you alright?"

Silence nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine." She replied, eying the rest of the group behind him as they too stepped into the clearing, "Just reminiscing, is all." The smurfette sighed.

"Have you been here before?" Clumsy asked, curiously.

"No," Silence shook her head, "But it reminds me of a place I've been before." The smurfette told him, before starting to walk back to the group, "Come on, I can't wait to see my old camp." She told him excitedly.

Clumsy smiled as he followed along, glad to see Silence's spirits were back up. He had noticed that the ancient smurfette had seemed pretty out of it on the trip here, she seemed sick at times and other times she almost looked like she was in pain. He had wanted to ask her several times if she was alright but she was either too far away to ask or she seemed too out of it at the time. But now that they were here in this jungle, she seemed happier and he was glad.

In fact, Silence's mood seemed to improve the closer she got to the ruins. She seemed much more excited, giddy. Almost skipping ahead of everyone, she seemed to know where she was going now that she was on the ground. She watched the trees, listened to the birds and wind through the branches almost as if they were whispering to her, telling her where to go.

The smurfette stopped at the base of a large, ancient looking tree. It was gigantic, one of the biggest in the whole jungle, if not the biggest. The group stopped close behind her, everyone followed her gaze to the top of the ancient tree. Silence smiled widely at the sight of the ruins that was built into and around the great tree's branches. The smurfette wasted no time in grabbing her spear and backing up to get a running start. She rushed for the tree and pounced, jumping as high as she could before embedding her spear into the bark of the tree. She then began to climb. Silence could hear the smurfs below calling up to her but she ignored them in favor of getting to the top of the great tree.

Once at the top, Silence was greeted with a decrepit looking camp. But while the old camp was basically falling apart, she barely saw any changes. There were many pieces of the camp missing, bridges had fallen, homes had caved in on themselves. But some of the homes that were hidden in the branches or built into the tree still stayed somewhat intact. Even now, she still remembered her way around the old camp.

Without thinking she slowly walked along the old rotting planks, the boards creaking with each step she took. Her softly glowing gaze trailing along the ancient ropes that still managed to hold up what was left of the ancient camp. It almost felt like just yesterday she was walking along these old wooden pathways, with her friends by her side every step of the way. Talking, joking, laughing. All those good moments she missed so dearly and now might never get back.

Silence was quick to push away those negative thoughts, she couldn't be thinking like this right now. She should be lucky she was even alive and not still stuck in stone. At least she'd soon have answers to what happened to her clan, maybe she could get at least some kind of closure at the end of this visit.

The first place she wanted to visit again was the hut she, Stardust and the Salamander all shared all those centuries ago. It didn't take her long to find it, then again she knew where it was. A cozy little hut, built in between two branches on the far side of the tree. Close to the camp's center, yet still secluded. Stardust often complained that there was no view and that it was too far from the rest of the camp. The Salamander on the other hand felt it was too close to both the edge and too close to the camps center. He'd always complain about all the noise the camp's residents made every morning, then again the Salamander didn't like most other creatures to begin with. Silence however always felt it was a perfect spot, she didn't get what they complained about.

Upon reaching the old hut, Silence found that the outside was decorated with all kinds of gifts. Such as pelts of various kinds, many different types of jewelry, all kinds of rest in peace totems and charms. A Lot of which had been ruined and corroded by years of exposure to the elements. She figured many homes had been decorated like this after news of the ambush had reached them.

Upon stepping inside, she found that everything was just how she'd left it all those years ago. Except for the fact that everything was severely aged, wood was rotting, the place was falling apart and everything was covered in a thick layer of dust. The large bed that she and Stardust had shared for a short while was still in the corner, though the wooden frame had been chewed up by little insects as well as the pelt that had acted as their home's rug. Hanging beside their bed, somehow still mostly intact, was the Salamander's little bed or 'Sal' as he liked to be called. A little basket woven out of the best wood and straw they could find, suspended by a braided rope and inside was a slightly charred pillow Stardust had made for his one week 'hatchiversry' as Stardust had called it and underneath the pillow, the basket was lined with a lightweight, yet fireproof stone. To keep Sal from accidently setting the basket on fire.

Silence stepped up to the suspended basket, carefully pulling it down to see if maybe her little buddy had left anything inside. She wasn't entirely sure why, perhaps she was somehow hoping that he had somehow survived that fall, and the cliff collapse that followed. She didn't expect to find anything, she had expected an empty basket, besides the pillow, but upon peering inside she found that someone had placed something in the basket. Both items were as intact as the day they were made, in fact they almost looked brand new. Silence didn't think they would still be here, then again they seemed worthless so it made sense no one would want to bother taking them.

Resting inside the basket were a pair of intricate obsidian rings Sal had made for her and Stardust when he discovered she was going to propose. He'd always told her they made a cute couple, though he was far from the only one.

Silence could feel warm tears falling down her cheeks before she had the chance to stop them. Though the smurfette was quick to wipe them away as the sound of voices grew louder, the group had reached the top of the tree. She gave herself a moment to calm down, before carefully pulling the basket off the rope that attached it to the ceiling. She wouldn't be able to bring a lot back to the village with her but she figured that Sal's old bed could help her carry the few items she decided to bring back, that's if she was able to find anything else that had somehow managed to survive the passage of time, as well as the wear and tear of the elements.

Wait, there was one thing that might still be where she had left it, that is if no one had found it and taken it. She set the basket on the bed for a moment before reaching over and grabbing the ancient pillow, quickly patting it down to see if she could feel it.

The smurfette smiled as she reached into the pillow and pulled out a silver disc, with the face of a titan crudely carved onto both sides of it, slightly rusted on the edges but still recognisable. It was a good luck charm she had carried for quite a few years, she found it at an old magical water well that was said to grant wishes on an eclipse every thousand years. She had given the well the tip of her first spear, which had the sharpened tooth of her first hunted prey, which was her most precious item to her at the time and even though she hadn't made her wish on that certain day, the well had given her this disc in return. She didn't exactly know the significance of the crudely carved disc but she held onto it as a good luck charm, not that it had done her much good.

Silence slipped the silver disc into the basket, just under the charred pillow so it wouldn't accidently damage the obsidian rings. Holding the basket close to her, the smurfette turned to walk out of the decrepit hut. And as much as she wanted to take one last look back at her old home, she didn't allow herself to do so. She had to keep moving forward.

"Figured you used to live in this old village." Silence lifted her gaze up from the basket to the smurfette that spoke up as she walked into the hut, "Surprised to see this place still standing, considering it's apparently been here for millions of years." Willow told her as her gaze swept the old hut.

Silence nodded in agreement, "Yeah, it is much more intacted than I thought it'd be."

"Whatcha got there?" Willow asked, looking at the basket the ancient smurfette held close to her.

Silence looked back down at the basket, "It… belonged to an old friend of mine." She replied sorrowfully.

"Your friend have a pet?" The smurfette asked, to which Silence shook her head.

"No," She sighed simply, "It was his bed."

"Oh, I see." Willow murmured in realization, "Your friend was really small I imagine?"

Silence let out a hollow huff of amusement, "You know, if he were here he'd be yelling at you that he wasn't that small."

Willow offered an amused smile, "Small and angry then?"

"You could say that." Silence replied, returning her smile. The Salamander did have a bit of an anger issue when it came to almost everyone but her and Stardust. He was picky about the creatures he'd be genuinely nice to, but when it was just her and Stardust, Sal was usually quite calm and a bit chatty. If they were someone she was friends with he would give them the benefit of the doubt and at least try to be a little nice. Strangers however were a different story entirely, if there was someone he didn't know, the Salamander would usually be completely silent. He liked to observe the creature before he'd make an attempt to talk to them and if he didn't like someone, you'd know it.

Silence's smile fell as she slowly began to walk out of her old hut, "Come on, there's other places I'd like to visit before we leave." The ancient smurfette added quietly, her softly glowing gaze locked on the two rings that rested in the basket.

Willow followed behind Silence closely, watching as she made her way around the decrepit camp without even having to look up. She knew which way to go easily, then again she'd walked these ancient paths before. It didn't take long for other members of the group to find them and follow along, all curious as to where the ancient smurfette was going.

Silence stopped in front of one of the oldest looking huts on the other side of the ancient camp. Unlike her old home, this hut had aged beyond recognisable and yet it didn't matter. Yes, all the rest in peace gifts were now gone and half the hut had either been eaten away or was buried on the ground below but she knew whose home this was. She had been here a few times before, to search for answers to any questions she had. Though Silence knew perfectly well she wouldn't find any answers here this time, this place had none left, especially now. Even so, she still felt it was a place that deserved to be visited.

The smurfette set the basket by the door as she stepped into what was left of the ancient home, pushing aside the rotten board that had fallen to block off the old doorway. She figured the place would be empty but now, it felt much more empty than she thought it would be. It was almost eerie, she swore she could feel a shiver run up her spine as her softly glowing gaze swept what was left of the home.

Silence couldn't help but let out a crestfallen sigh. The item she was really looking for wasn't here. If there was anything of her mothers she would have wanted to bring back to her new home, it would have been her mother's shield. It wasn't here, maybe it was on the ground below with the other half of the house. Though it was more likely that someone had taken it a while back ago, maybe that someone found it when it fell with the house. She couldn't be sure.

"What are you looking for?" Silence heard Clumsy ask.

The ancient smurfette turned to him, "N-nothing, let's keep looking around." She replied, slowly walking past him, taking a moment to scoop up the basket. The last place she needed to visit was the main hut, she had seen it on her way to her mothers home. It appeared mostly intact when she passed by, which was good. If any place had answers as to what happened to her clan then it was there.

"What was this place?" The smurf asked, making Silence stop.

She stopped by the door, holding the basket close to her as she replied, "It was a home." She told him simply.

"Who's home?" Willow asked, stopping Silence before she had the chance to leave the hut, "If you don't mind me asking?"
"It doesn't matter." Silence replied, a bit harsher than she had meant to.

"Well given your tone, I'd think it does." SmurfStorm snapped, shooting a glare at the slightly shorter smurfette as she stepped in front of her leader, "Whose home is this?" She retorted sharply.

Silence glared back for a moment, wanting to snap at her. But instead she sighed, there didn't need to be a fight, not now. Her gaze falling to the charred pillow and the pair of obsidian rings that rested atop it, she held the basket tightly as she spoke, "It was my mothers." She told her quietly, refusing to look back up. "But, like I said," The smurfette drew in a breath, "It doesn't matter." Silence stated as she slipped past the small crowd that clouded the doorway. Wanting to escape the nearly suffocating tension she had created. She moved quickly, vaguely aware of the others either around her or following her. Like before, she didn't even have to look up to know where she was going. She had walked all these ancient, decrepit walkways before.

She trotted on to the center of the camp where the main hut stood. But Silence found that while it still stood, it's current state was no better than her mother's home. It's roof had caved in, rotting wood and hay blocked the doorway she stood in front of. The smurfette let out an annoyed huff and jumped onto a branch below the old rope bridge before leaping up to the one next to it which led to another doorway into the main hut. But was disappointed to find that this entry was blocked off as well, which most likely meant that the other doorways were blocked off too.

The smurfette sighed, preparing to walk over to the other side of the building to check if she could get in any other way when a familiar voice spoke up.

"Here, let me give you a hand with that." Silence turned to see one of the smurfs that had tagged along, Hefty carefully walking across the old bridge to the blocked off doorway.

Silence didn't reply, she merely stepped aside and watched as he grabbed the rotting board at the bottom of the pile of old wood and hay and, with little effort, he pushed it up. The smurf managed to prop the old board against what was left of the doorway, making a small entryway to nothing except for more fallen debris. It was then Silence realized that there truly was no way inside, not from the way the roof had fallen. She could look for a way into this place all damn day but it would get her nowhere.

And here she thought she'd find answers. Answers as to what happened to her clan, how the war ended. But the place where she believed she'd find some sort of closure was inaccessible now. All she had found were a few ancient momentos and old memories. She had thought that being in this familiar place would bring her some form of comfort but instead she just found herself lost in sorrow and grief. Hoping for things that could never be. If anything she felt worse off than when she'd arrived.

The smurfette quietly sighed as she stalked off, ignoring the concerned calls of the others around her. Wanting to get away from everything and everyone, all she wanted right now was to be alone.

She dropped down onto one of the lower branches, hiding herself in a tangle of branches near the trunk of the tree. She set the little basket down beside her before turning away from it and burying her face in her arms and knees. Letting the world around her disappear as she sunk deeper into herself.

Silence stayed there, drowning in her sorrow and grief for what felt like hours, but it could have very well have been a few minutes, she wasn't sure. The sound of soft footsteps upon the branch she sat on broke through the sounds of distant creatures and fast moving wind, taking her away from her thoughts. For a moment she thought it was one of the smurfs coming to talk to her, she had half the mind to tell them to leave her alone. But when she felt something fluffy brush against her, she realized that it wasn't a smurf at all.

The smurfette looked up to find the smoogle had found his way down to the branch she was on. The creature sat beside her, staring up at her with those big topaz eyes. She braced herself, waiting for the smoogle to cry out and alert the others but soon relaxed when it became clear he wasn't going to. With a soft huff, Silence looked away from the creature and went back to sulking.

After a few minutes she felt the smoogle move, it didn't really bother her until she heard the familiar sound of a basket creaking. She turned to find the smoogle had taken an interest in the Salamander's old bed and had begun to pull things out of it, starting with one of the obsidian rings.

"Hey!" Silence snapped, startling the smoogle, "Put that down!"

With a sad whimper the smoogle did as he was told and put the ring down, taking a step away from the basket. The smoogle sat back down beside her, placing his paws in his lap and looking at her sorrowfully.

Seeing this, the smurfette's glare softened, she couldn't stay mad at the little guy. She let out a soft sigh as she spoke, "Sorry, little smoogle…" She murmured apologetically, "It's just, those rings are really special to me, is all… they were made by a good friend of mine." She told the creature, who gave her a look of understanding. Silence turned away from the smoogle before continuing, "I thought I'd find some closure by coming here… but I was wrong. I'm just as clueless as I was before…" She said sorrowfully, mostly to herself.

She heard the smoogle let out a soft coo of sympathy as he nuzzled her sighed. Silence didn't move, she simply let the smoogle do his thing. It wasn't long until she heard another creature jump down onto the branch, she didn't bother looking up. She didn't really care who it was nor what they were here for.

"Silence?" The smurfette heard Clumsy call. She didn't bother answering, mostly because the smoogle had done so for her. She could hear him drawing closer, "There you are, are you okay?" He asked, "Why'd you run away like that?"

Silence peered at him from behind her curtain of ocean blue hair, "I… just wanted to be alone for a bit." She replied softly, "I'm sorry if I worried you all."

"Did you get overwhelmed or something?" The smurf questioned as he sat down beside her and smoogle.

The ancient smurfette shrugged, "Something like that." She told him with a breath, "I had come here hoping to find answers as to what happened to my clan all those years ago… to get some sort of closure so I could move on from everything, but I found nothing except for a few momentos." She explained, turning her softly glowing gaze to the branch in front of her.

"Oh, I see." Clumsy murmured, sympathy leaking into his tone, "Well, hey just because you couldn't find any answers here today, doesn't mean you won't find any at all." He told Silence, making the smurfette look up at him, "I don't think you should rush your search for answers. I'm certain one day you'll find out what happened to your clan, just not today."

"I suppose…" Silence replied quietly.

"Maybe at some point we can come back here and look around again. Maybe we can help you find out what happened." Clumsy offered with a friendly smile, to which Silence smiled back.

"Maybe. Thank you."

"Of course! We'd be happy to help you find out what happened to your home." The smurf exclaimed, "But for now it's getting late, everyone's getting ready to go to the smurfette's village."

Silence shifted her gaze up to the sky, it couldn't be that late already? It didn't seem that late. But perhaps it would be best to leave these ruins behind for now, she could come back to them at a later date. Or maybe the answers she was looking for weren't here in these ancient ruins, what if she was looking in the wrong place and her answers were elsewhere? If that was the case then, where would she find them? Where could she even start looking? Where to start?

Silence wasn't sure, but she supposed that it didn't matter too much now. There was plenty of time to look for answers, for now it was time to go. Maybe the village they were going to could tell her something, she knew it was just wishful thinking but just maybe. She knew better than to get her hopes up this time though, seeing how big a failure returning to her old camp was.

The ancient smurfette scooped up the basket and followed Clumsy back to the camp, with Smoogle riding her shoulders as they made their way back up to the top of the tree. She didn't respond to anyone else's questions as she made her way to one of the dragonflies, not really caring which one she was climbing on to. She merely peered down at the pair of obsidian rings that sat on the old, charred pillow as the smurfette that happened to be driving took off.

(A/N): Okay, so quick heads up. I probably won't be able to post for a while. I'll be back don't worry, I just won't have internet for a while and I'm not sure when I'll be getting internet back. On a brighter note however, I would like to take a moment to thank my little brother for letting me use his character. Sal the Salamander belongs to him and he is letting me use him for the story! So thanks little bro!