Chapter 8 – Storming Forward

She was still thinking as she finally reached the tent. Drawing back the folds of the little entrance, Storm wasn't expecting to see Blossom and Lily sitting up in their sleeping bags and talking quietly to each other. But they stopped immediately when they saw her.

"Storm! Where've you been?" Lily asked anxiously.

"We were so worried!" added Blossom, who actually looked worried for once.

Storm hadn't considered the possibility of her tent-mates to be awake. As such, she hadn't prepared an excuse of any kind. "Uh, I just…stepped out for some air," she brushed off, hastily rubbing away any traces of tears still left on her face.

"But you were gone for hours," Blossom whined, sounding very upset. "I know you were! I woke up and saw you weren't here. So I waited and waited for you to smurf back, but you never did! So then I woke Lily up and we were just about to go looking for you. Please don't do that to us again!"

Storm said nothing. Normally, she would just ignore Blossom's pointless fretting over things that didn't matter. But instead, she felt touched by Blossom's concern, even a little guilty for putting her friend in panic-mode.

"I'm sorry, Blossom," she apologized. "I didn't mean to worry you. I won't leave again without telling you first."

Both Lily and Blossom stared at her in stunned surprise, clearly not expecting such a calm response from Storm, let alone an apology.

"Where were you anyway?" asked Lily.

Storm crawled inside and sat on the sleeping bag she was using, right in between her friends. "Not far. I just took Spitfire out to do some laps."

A voice inside her head was ordering her to stop hiding secrets. After opening up so much tonight, she found herself agreeing with it; she was tired of holding back. "And I took Clumsy with me."

Lily and Blossom's eyes bulged out of their sockets. "Clumsy?" they both gawked in unison.

"Yep."

"But how…?" Blossom squeaked.

"I saw him down the road. Thought he might like to tag along."

"You smurfed the night with a boy?" Lily asked. "For real?"

Blossom's face lit up, excitement sweeping in to kick her previous anguish clean out. "Oh my smurf! Were you on…a date?"

Storm looked at her. "What's a date?" she asked, genuinely unfamiliar with this new word, though immediately felt skeptical considering Blossom's sudden mood shift.

"It's what a girl Smurf and a boy Smurf do when they're…when they're…in loooooooove!" Blossom sang with humongous emphasis on that last word. Storm felt her whole stomach drop and her face flush red.

"W-What?" she spluttered, taken completely off-guard. "Who the heck would invent a word for something as dumb as that?"

"The boys did," Blossom gushed, her hands flying all the way up to her cheeks. "Melody told us all about it after Lily took you away to get cleaned up at dinner. She said that Harmony Smurf asked her out on a date! How romantic!"

Although Lily maintained her cool, there was a tell-tale amused smile playing upon her face as she studied Storm. "Is that true, Stormy? Were you and Clumsy on a date?"

"No!" Storm exclaimed, feeling completely hot in the face. "We weren't on a date…and we're not in love!"

"Awww, but you're blushing!" Blossom squealed, not hearing her at all. "Stormy's in love with a boy! Oh, I knew you two would get along. You look so cute together! I'll bet it was the pie he threw in your face…it must have been filled with a love potion!"

"Blossom, just quit it already!" Storm snapped peevishly, her mind a total mess now. "We…we were just…"

"Just what? What were you doing, all alone in the middle of the night?" Blossom asked with the eager intensity of her eyes boring into Storm's skin.

As she opened her mouth to retort, something inside of Storm made her stop. What had she and Clumsy been doing? They obviously were not in love, but something had definitely happened between them. And it was the reason why she felt so different now. Her ancient bitter past had not changed at all…yet at the same time, Storm felt like something had changed. Memories of everything that had transpired on this night were now flooding in, making her realize that she was taking this in the wrong direction.

With all this in mind, she took a breath and answered clearly.

"I told him about Thunder."

The smiles on her friends' faces dropped instantly.

"You…you did?" Lily asked in a shocked whisper.

Storm nodded defiantly. "Yeah."

Blossom wasn't looking slap-happy now. Now her face displayed a mixture of horrified confusion. "B-b-but…why?" she asked, her voice equally now in a hushed tone.

Removing her quiver and setting it down by her feet, Storm pushed her bangs out of her face. "Well…we kinda got to talking and…one thing led to another. I told him what happened. And he helped me figure out a few things. Some things I've been ignoring and trying to hide from."

She wasn't quite sure how much she wanted to say, but stopped when Lily lay a tentative hand on her shoulder. "Storm…"

The warrior looked into the eyes of both her friends. The two Smurfs who had stuck by her side for as long as she could remember after losing her big sister. It was them who had visited her every single day until she had finally ventured out of her house. And after she had, they always took it upon themselves to make sure she wasn't too lonely or overworking herself. It was hard for her to say these thoughts into words, but in this moment, there was nothing she needed to do more.

"Listen you two…Lily…Blossom," she said slowly. "We all know I've never been the same since that night. But I just want to say…in all these years when you never left me alone even when I just gave you the cold shoulder, keeping me from going insane with my training, and being nice to me even when I was never nice back…I never forgot that."

Storm hugged her chest as she pressed on. "All I ever wanted was to protect our village. I drove myself mad trying to do that. There were so many times when I just wanted to give it all up. But…having you two around always gave me that push to keep going. Honestly, seeing you every day was the only thing I ever looked forward to."

Blossom placed her hand over her heart.

Feeling tears welling again, Storm squeezed her eyes shut. "I suck at opening up and saying this mushy crud, but…you're the best friends I could ever ask for. I just need you to know that. So thanks."

How empty she now felt inside as her heart poured out, as if there was nothing left to hide now. Glancing at her friends, she saw that Blossom and Lily were gazing at her softly, both trying hard not to tear up themselves.

Lily was the first to move. She embraced Storm gently, sniffling a little into her shoulder. "Oh, Storm," she cooed. "Of course, we know that."

Blossom was next, squeezing in wherever she could find room. "No matter what happens, Stormy…we'll always be there for you. Because that's what best friends are for," she hummed, tears rolling down her cheeks. "We love you so much. It's why we've stuck with you all this time."

"And we'll keep on sticking with you forever," Lily added. "Because like what Blossom said earlier…we're in this together."

Hearing the soft murmurs of her two dearest friends drifting through her ears to touch her heart, Storm let herself cry again for the second time that night, but this time for a very different reason. "I love you too," she mumbled, wrapping her arms around them and hugging them as best as she could.

Clumsy had reminded her that she still had some pretty great friends in her life.

They hugged in silence for several long minutes. Blossom then spoke quietly in her ear.

"Stormy?"

"Yeah?"

"I've always wanted to tell you that I like you just the way you are. Always so rough and tough…but so sweet inside."

Blossom pulled back and twiddled her fingers. "I never told you this before…but you helped me feel safe even when we were living in a cursed forest for all our life. Even though I laugh a whole lot sometimes, I felt scared. But I knew everything would be okay 'cuz we're always in good hands with you around."

Storm smiled at her friend. "Thanks, Blossom," she said. "And even if I don't show it, but I kinda like how cuddly you are."

The warrior's answer made Blossom beam.

"Remember when we were younger, how we used to go flying together?"

Blossom blinked at Storm's abrupt question. Then she giggled. "I sure do! We had so much fun up in the air. Just the three of us, smurfing the skies like we were on a mini-holiday."

As the stars in the night sky twinkled over Smurf Village, the trio stayed like this. They chatted for a while, sharing some of their oldest and fondest memories spent together. There were admittedly a few more questions directed to Storm regarding her time out with Clumsy. She answered truthfully each time, not making up lies or excuses, but was instead very careful with what answers were given out. There was still only so much she was permitting herself to reveal. But they had a good time. Blossom eventually reached a point where she felt satisfied enough to decide that Storm and Clumsy were not in love ("Not yet!" as she had put it) but were now friends at the very least.

By the time Blossom drifted off to sleep, Storm had told them just about everything. Almost everything that is. She had deliberately left out mentioning the lucky rock, witnessing Thunder one more time, and the very last 'gift' Clumsy had given her. They didn't need to know about that.

She sat next to Blossom's sleeping form, stroking her sister's hair absent-mindedly and listening to her gentle breathing. Never had she noticed how peaceful Blossom looked when asleep. Quite the contrast to the usual hyperactive energy charge that never seemed to run out when she was awake.

Lily was watching Storm carefully. "I never thought I'd see the day."

"What day?" Storm asked, turning to look at her.

"The day you would finally…well…be happy again," Lily answered with a soft smile.

Storm put her hands in her lap as she shifted herself around to face her friend. "Honestly, I never thought I'd see it either," she said. "It took a lot outta me to…let her go."

Lily moved forward so she could wrap her arm around her shoulders. "But Storm…Thunder will never truly leave you. She's alive right now…in here."

She placed a gentle hand to Storm's heart.

"And she'll stay alive as long as you keep her here," Lily whispered. "Thunder made you who you are. She's a part of you. And she lives in you. It's wonderful that you're ready to move on, but remember that she'll always be with you, no matter what."

"Whenever you miss her, Storm…just look for her. All you have to do is listen closely. And you'll find her. She's been by your side all your life and she always will be."

Time seemed to stand still as Smurflily's words melted into Storm's mind, making her feel warm…but also a little sad. She trailed her eyes down to her bow and quiver of arrows. "I know," she murmured quietly. "But I can't help feeling like I wasted so much of my life…doing nothing but living like this. All I've wanted to do was to be the warrior she wanted me to be. Guess I forgot that having you girls along for the ride was a part of that."

Lily let out a giggle, tightening her hold around her friend's shoulders. "I don't think that's true," she soothed. "Companionship has always been important to you even when you don't realize it. You have a kind, loving heart, Storm. And that was what made you want to protect us."

A sad little sigh escaped Storm's mouth. "I barely talk to anyone like this anymore," she said. "It's kinda nice, opening up, y'know?"

"Well, believe it or not, Storm, the world is full of all sorts of nice things," Lily said resolutely. "Many things we don't know about yet, just waiting to be discovered, some even right here at your fingertips. So try to enjoy them while they last."

Looking at her five-pigtailed friend, Storm knew that one of those nice things was here now. "You're right. And I'll try," she replied as she now lay down atop her sleeping bag, staring up at the spine of the tent. "I plan to smurf things a little differently from now on."

Lily smiled widely as she crawled into her own borrowed sleeping bag, also taking to observing the layer of protective fabric hung above them. "I'm really proud of you, Storm," she hummed. "And I know Thunder would be too…just like she always was."

Hearing this, Storm felt her own smile take shape too. Lily truly belonged on the medic team. Healing was one of her specialties.

"Thanks, Lily."

There was a moment of silence between them.

"Did it feel nice when you were talking to Clumsy?"

Storm kept her sights directly up. "Yeah, it did."

Even though they weren't looking at each other, she could sense that Lily was smiling. "So getting to know the boys isn't as bad as you thought, huh?"

"Nah. They're alright. Lefty – I mean, Clumsy was cool. But…can I ask you something, Lils?"

Her tone took on a subtle hint of hesitation. "You know that warm and fuzzy feeling you mentioned earlier?"

"Yeah?"

"Is that a…nice feeling too?"

There was a moment's pause before Lily spoke, a smile without a doubt upon her face. "Oh, yes. It definitely is."

Silence fell once more after that as nothing else was exchanged. Eventually, the sounds of Lily's light breathing were heard, indicating she had dozed off. Storm was relieved; Lily always knew when not to ask too many questions.

Though she was tired (okay, very tired), Storm still did not go to sleep. Instead, she repositioned herself so she was now laying on her belly and peering out the open entrance of the tent, gazing up at the night sky. Reaching inside her quiver, she brought out the little rock again, rolling it repeatedly in her palm as she lay deep in thought. She remembered the moments leading up to the point when Clumsy had passed on the ownership of this rock from himself to her, how much he wanted her to have his own lucky charm. Maybe this was more than just a welcome present to his village. Maybe he thought that she needed it more than he did. Or maybe she was overthinking this rock business; that silly boy probably just felt sorry for her and wanted to give her something.

But it was something that clearly meant a lot to him and he gave it to her. Just the thought of that alone brought a light blush to Storm's cheeks once more.

Placing the rock down in front of her, she dragged over her quiver. And then she took her hat off, placing it next to the quiver with its clover facing upright.

The last thing she did was to remove the leaf bracelet from around her left wrist. With it now gone, she slowly ran her finger along what it had been concealing from view all this time: an ancient scar etched firmly in her blue skin. Healed, but still present. It had been with her since the night that had changed her world forever, as a sort of twisted reminder of where it had all taken shape. And yet, now with it revealed for her to see, she found for the first time that it did not evoke the painful memories that had always been sent her way whenever she was reminded of this etching.

All of these lay before her eyes, illuminated by the moon. Storm smiled. The sounds of Blossom and Lily's gentle breathing filled her, putting her mind to rest as she then looked to the stars above. Lily's words were resonating through her, making her wonder if her big sister really was up there right now, watching over her and making sure that she was okay.

For the first time in her long life, Smurfstorm did feel truly okay. And that was okay with her.

She sniffed and frowned. Her years of training in the woods had allowed her to pick up on scents better than other Smurfs, and right now, she realized that she could somehow smell Clumsy.

At first, she thought it was probably the rock, but then Storm noticed the label stitched to the inside lining of the sleeping bag she lay upon. It had a scribbly note written on it:

If found, please return to Clumsy Smurf.

Storm blinked. And then she laughed. "Well, that explains a lot."

No wonder she couldn't get him off her mind.

A/N: For all intents and purposes, the story truly could end right here. However, there will be one more chapter. An epilogue of sorts to really put things to rest, as well as make a little connection to the 2021 TV show.

Speaking of which, I will admit that my opinion on the current TV show has shifted quite a bit ever since I wrote my first A/N for the first chapter, as I see the show in a much less favourable light now. The cliché plots, the recycling of gags, and overall laziness in designs really takes me out of it at times. How many episodes are going to feature problems that are both caused and solved by a magic potion? Why is every new Smurf girl we meet going to just reuse Storm's hair and Blossom's dress? How many times is Gargamel going disguise himself as a Smurf? And the English dub is…well…still really cringy. But even with these gripes, there's something about the Smurfs that still hooks me, making it so that I still check up on the show occasionally to see what's new. Anything with Smurfstorm is good in my eyes, even if this isn't exactly the Storm I know from the movie. I'd say out of all the characters, she's one of the few that they actually know what to do with to an extent. Regardless, it's always a treat whenever she appears on screen. I'm mostly just happy that these characters have not been forgotten and will remain relevant for the foreseeable future. Sorry Vexy and Hackus fans, I don't think they're ever coming back. It's the Smurf Girls who are here to stay, and to be quite honest, I do like that.

As for where you can read the Smurf comics that tie in with Lost Village, there's some available on the BlueBuddies website.