Crafty: WOHOO! That's snowball fight number two that I've won! I'm getting really good at this!
Vanity: (hugging himself and shuddering) Y-You g-g-got l-lucky!
Grouchy: (also hugging himself and shuddering) I h-hate th-that Cr-Crafty g-got lucky!
Crafty: (snickering) Quit being a bunch of sore smurfers! We won fair and square! Girl power rules! (high fives Smurfette and Sassette)
And as you can see, Crafty had fought and won her second snowball war in a row, even with five Smurfs against her, Smurfette and Sassette. It was smurfing awesome! You guys smurfed it down!
Crafty: Yeah, we smurfed it down! Hey, read the reviews. I want to see if anyone's said anything about my first victory.
Smurfing the reviews...Oh! Here's one from Chloe! She says "You go girl!" She also says that she hates being underestimated because of her gender and that the boys need us just as much as we need them.
Crafty: Exactly! I just don't understand why men just don't get the message.
That's because only men can get the point. They're just acting like children. Oh, Painter, she also says you owe her since she saved you from Gargamel, twice.
Painter: (snow-covered and shivering) O-Oui. I kn-know th-thiz. I-I am cur-currently working on it. D-Do n-not fret, M-Mademoiselle Chloe.
Okay, next is flowerpower71, who also gives her congradulations for the accomplished snowball fight. She also says that Snappy has a horrible memory, just like herself.
Snappy: I-I d-do n-not!
Alright, who was the first Smurf to talk in this whole disclaimer?
Snappy: Uhh...Sm-Smurf m-me a m-minute.
;) Sure. Take all the time you need. Also, I am greatly flattered that this is one of your favorite stories, but alas, all good things must come to an end at one point or another. As a matter of fact, this is the last chapter of this entire story, but, it is definitely the longest one of them all and worth reading in the end. Besides, the sequel will be even longer than this story. And I know, Hummer does look completely adorable in his little scarf.
Hummer: (puffs out his chest, modeling his red scarf)
Snappy, anything at all?
Snappy: I said smurf me a minute!
Ghost that haunts scardy (holds Scaredy close as he shakes from the cold and fear)- By candle do you mean an actual candle or dynamite? I'm not sure what you mean by that. You'll have to make that more clear to Crazy.
Crazy: I WANT A COOKIE! (cookie appears out of mid air) YAY! (grabs cookie and runs into the corner, petting the cookie) My precious...They will never have you! YOU ARE MY PRESCIOUS!
Everyone: (takes many long steps away)
Okay, um, you're gonna have to wait for that answer. Now for the final disclaimer of this story. I only own Crafty, Hummer, etc.
Smurfette: We all belong to Peyo.
Alright, Smurfs! Let's make this final chapter one worth reading!
"Whispering Wasps! Are we gonna go soon, Crafty?" Sassette asked impatiently. Papa Smurf had given them permission to do the camping trip. The Smurflings, Crafty, and Hummer were in their mushroom were all ready to go with their heavy winter wear and their backpacks. Well, everyone except Snappy.
"We would've been gone by now is Snappy wasn't being so stubborn!" Crafty irritably mumbled as he tried to get Snappy into his heavy wear. It wasn't making any sense to her, though. She thought that of all the Smurflings, he would be the most anxious and ready to go. Why was he being so difficult now?
It was the truth, actually. Snappy was never like this. He was acting this way for a reason and the other Smurflings knew it, too.
There was a sudden knock at the door and Sassette said she would answer it. She smiled as she opened the door and saw a warmly clothed Gutsy Smurf, all prepared with his things to take the Smurflings on the camping trip.
"Alrigh', kiddies. Ye all ready to get goin'-Oh! Lassie! Not dat it's nice to see ye, but what're ye doin' 'ere?" Gutsy asked perplexed at seeing her with the Smurflings. Perhaps she was getting them ready so he can pick them up and take them on thier trip?
"I'm getting the Smurflings ready to take them camping for a few days. What're you doing here?" Crafty asked, also becoming a little confused.
"I'm here to take the Smurflings camping for a few days. Sassette came to me and smurfed me to take them."
"Slouchy came and asked me to take'em campin' just a few days ago."
The two adults turned to the four Smurflings and gave them suspicious glances. Then Crafty asked, "Smurflings. What's smurfing on here?"
The Smurflings gave each other panicked stares, hoping one of them would give them a convincing explanation, or at least do something. Then, they did the only thing that Smurflings know how to do best.
"Guys!" Sassette protested. "I thought we smurfed that Crafty was taking us!"
"No we didn't!" Snappy snapped. "I remember that we absosmurfily agreed that Gutsy was taking us! I'm not taking any orders from a girl!"
Crafty lifted her eyebrows at Snappy's last comment. Normally, she would be completely indignant and angry if any other Smurf said that. Actually, if any other Smurf did make that comment, they would be on the dirt, not knowing what hit them. But Snappy was a Smurfling. He was a (mostly) innocent, little boy that didn't understand the complexity of the equality of the genders. He wouldn't understand or accept it even if someone sat him down and explained it to him for a whole five hours. He was just too young that he probably still thought that girls had cooties.
"Nu uh! We said that Crafty would take us! She'll make it more fun for us!" Sassette started raising her voice, causing Slouchy and Nat to flinch and start to shrink back from their arguing brother and sister.
"No she wouldn't!" Snappy argued, now starting to get in Sassette's face.
"Yes she would!" Sassette shouted pressing her nose against Snappy's.
"Would not!"
"Would too!"
"Would not!"
"Would too!"
"WOULD NOT!"
"WOULD TOO!"
Slouchy and Nat went and hid behind Crafty and Gutsy to shield themselves from Snappy and Sassette's wrath. As amusing as the fight actually was, the two adults knew that something had to be done about it.
"Alright, alright! Will there be a problem if the both of us take you?" Crafty inquired, starting to become irritated with the never-ending argument. Snappy and Sassette jumped at Crafty's raised voice, looked at each other and nodded.
"Good. Now that that's smurfed, you two can come out of hiding, now," Crafty chuckled directing her statement to the two Smurflings in hiding.
Nat poked his head from behind her and said, "Are you sure, Crafty?"
Slouchy started coming out from behind Gutsy, "Yeah. They were really smurfing at it."
"Don' worry," Gutsy brushed off. "There'll be no fightin' on dis campin' trip, right?"
"Right," Snappy and Sassette mumbled. Snappy then went and got his heavy winter wear and handed it to her. He then proceeded to hold his arms out, ready for her to help him into it. She smiled and finally got his winter clothing onto him without any fuss at all.
"Good. Let's get going. We're smurfing daylight," Crafty said as she started to leave out the door with Gutsy following with a distinct "Aye." to agree with her. The Smurflings followed them at a slower pace, each nodding at each other with approval.
"The old "senseless Smurfling bickering" routine. It never fails," Snappy whispered, high-fiving Sassette beofer the two adults could see it.
"Well, this looks like a good place to camp out," Crafty announced, finding a nice, small clearing with the snow on the ground untouched, a nice burrow to go into in case the weather gets too cold, and a incredible view of the sky. They had hiked for about two and a half hours and were glad to have found a nice spot, especially with the current weather conditions.
The others nodded in agreement. Hummer let out a grunted squeak as he dropped his wooden basket with all of the dry firewood. The Smurflings let down their bags with their extra clothes and a few books. Gutsy did the same thing, but also carried most of their rations of food. They were, after all, only camping for two days. Crafty, of course, didn't need to pack much extra clothing since she had her incredibly warm cloak on her.
For the next hour, they set up their tents and other essentials near the large roots of the tree with the burrow to keep the wind from blowing cold air into them at night.
"Alright. Now that we're all set up, what should we smurf first?"
The Smurflings looked at each other with large grins and cried out while jumping up and down, "Sledding! Sledding!"
Gutsy grinned with them and slapped his hands together, "Alright! Now we're smurfin'! Let's smurf down that hill there!"
Hummer, Crafty, and the Smurfling's jaws dropped at the hill he was pointing at. It had to be as tall as a castle and a big one.
Crafty then just looked at him and shook her head, "Now I know you're insane."
"And proud of et, lassie!" Gutsy laughed grabbing the three sleds they had brought with them. "Now c'mon! Sleds aren't any good if they ain't on a hill!"
The others were hesitant in following Gutsy to the large hill, but did it anyway. Once they were at the top, Snappy and Nat offered to go first.
"Ready, boys?" Gutsy asked getting ready to push them down the hill.
The two Smurfling boys looked down and suddenly got a bit dizzy from the great height. But before they could speak their second thoughts or even have any, Gutsy gave them a firm shove and down they went to the bottom of the tall, snowy hill. They both yelled at first in shock and fright, but it quickly turned into shouts of joy and adreniline. Once they reached the bottom, the two rolled off the sled and onto their backs, panting but smiling at their rush they felt just then.
The next to go were Slouchy and Sassette. The two were a bit more enthusiastic to go down the hill. They both screamed with delight as they sped down the hill, swerving just for the fun of it. By the time they got to the bottom, Nat and Snappy were still trying to recover from the sled ride they had experienced. Both were on the ground, no longer panting but just letting the adreniline drain from their blood. Sassette and Slouchy followed vice versa and smiled at the exciting rush that was coursing through their veins.
"Alright, lassie. We're next," Gutsy instructed patting the sled after setting it down.
"What?" Crafty asked wide-eyed as Gutsy nudged her in the back towards the sled. He pushed her down on the sled and held her down by sitting down behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Hurry, Hummer! Give us a push!"
Hummer squeaked in reply, using his body to push the two down the hill, jumping onto the back of it before it could get away from him. Crafty felt the cold wind rushing onto her face and through her braided hair. The wind was so harsh, she could barely hear Gutsy's shouts of excitement and Hummer's squeaks and fluttering wings. Gutsy swerved them around crazily to try to get something out of Crafty, since she didn't make a sound even from the beginning. Though she made no sound, Gutsy did notice that she relaxed more into the ride as they went further down the hill. When they reached the bottom, Gutsy hopped off of the sled, breathing hard and grabbing his knees at the thrill of the ride.
"Tha' wasn't so bad, eh lassie?" Gutsy asked.
Crafty only got off of the sled and punched Gutsy hard in the chest. He flinched and jumped back at her sudden action as she said with narrow eyes, "That's for pushing me onto the sled."
Gutsy rubbed his chest to tend to the slight pain. However, Crafty suddenly grinned and chucked a snowball at Gutsy's face.
"Okay, I forgive you now," She giggled as he wiped the wet snow from his face. Gutsy growled wolfishly and eyed her in a mischievous way. Crafty's eyes widened and she squealed as she ran away from him, fully knowing Gutsy's intentions. Gutsy grinned predatorily at the sudden challenge that was given to him. He dashed right after her, both of them leaving the now recovered Smurflings there, giggling at their sudden actions.
"Thrashing Thunderbirds! This is gonna be easier than I thought!" Sassette giggled out, remembering why they were out there in the first place.
"Yer really gonna get it, lassie!" Gutsy cried, narrowing his eyes at his "prey". He had to admit it, Crafty was doing really well for running on snow for the first time in her life. Especially since he had been doing it for years and she was able to outrun him.
Crafty giggled as she attemped to swerve and throw him off of her trail. The two ran and ran for several minutes, until Crafty squealed as she felt strong arms wrap around her and the two Smurfs fell to the ground, rolling around and laughing.
"Got'cha," Gutsy breathed as he lay on top of Crafty.
"Yeah. You got me. Now what?" Crafty retorted.
As a matter of fact, Gutsy really didn't have a clue what to do. He didn't think past the phase of actually catching her. Catching her was pretty much impossible, so he didn't exactly think about it any further than that. As Gutsy thought, his hand absently brushed against Crafty's side, causing her to let out a high-pitched shriek. Gutsy noticed this and smirked mischievously.
"Ah, so de lassie's tickelish, eh?" He slyly brushed his fingers against Crafty's side and she bit her lip, doing her best not to let out a sound.
"Gutsy," Crafty tried to sound serious, but her voice was trembling a bit. "Don't-don't you dare...!"
But it was too late. Gutsy started attacking her sides mercilessly with unstoppable tickles. Crafty let out many giggles and squeals, surprised that the creatures of the forest had not come to investigate the high-pitched noises. She squirmed and kicked trying desperately to get out of Gutsy's grip and get away from him.
"S-S-Stop, Gutsy!" Crafty wheezed out. She was starting to run out of oxygen in her lungs.
"Ah ah," Gutsy teased. "Say yer sorry first."
"Y-You're evil, Gutsy Smurf!" Crafty whined and laughed at the same time.
"Say it."
"N-Never!"
"Say it!"
"Alright! I'm sorry! I'll never smurf another object at you ever again! Smurf's Honor!" Crafty gave in, now wanting to breathe more than to put up a fight.
"Okay, but all ye had te do was ask, lassie," Gutsy chuckled, finally ceasing his ticklish assault.
Crafty gasped in a deep breath and panted, trying to let the oxygen in her lungs make her less dizzy and delusional.
Gutsy lay on top of her, letting himself rest from his worthwhile chase.
"You know, we should probably smurf back to the Smurflings," Crafty breathed, her heart rate now returning to normal.
Gutsy's eyes widened and he mentally cursed. He forgot completely that the Smurflings were still at the bottom of the hill from the sledding they were doing earlier.
"Yeah. Yeah, we should get back," He concluded, pulling himself and Crafty to their feet and dusting the snow off of them both.
"Oh and by the way," Crafty smugly started. Gutsy turned to her and before he could say anything, Crafty swooped in and kissed his cheek. He stiffened and stared at her wide-eyed as she pulled away, smiling at him coyly.
"Thanks. That was really fun," She said softly, now turning away and now going in the direction of the Smurflings. She stopped for a quick second, then made a mad run in the same direction.
Gutsy stood there for another second, brushing his fingers over his cheek. Then he shook his head and went after her and the Smurflings.
And so, the whole day was filled with snowball fights, more sledding, building Snow Smurfs, and anything you could possibly smurf in the snow. They did, so much, the sun had nearly set when they started to head back to their camp site.
"Smurfaroo! That was so much fun!" Snappy cheered, enjoying his hot soup and hot chocolate around the warm campfire with the others. "Can we do that again tomorrow? Huh? Can we?"
Crafty chuckled, "Sure, Snappy. We can do all of that all over again tomorrow. You know, minus a certain Smurf smurfing me onto the sled."
"You enjoyed it, didn't you?" Gutsy pointed out. "'sides, if I didn't do it, you wouldn't've tried it."
"Touche. I'll smurf you that one. But next time you do that, you're getting worse than a snowball to the face."
Gutsy looked at her in fake hurt, "Aw, but lassie! Ye Smurf Honored that ye wouldn't hurt me!"
"Ah ah. I Smurf Honored that I wouldn't throw anything at you. That doesn't mean I can't hurt you another way. Besides, I was desperate for oxygen at the time. I would've Smurf Honored to give a hug to Grouchy every day for the rest of my life to make you stop."
Gutsy chuckled, "Yeah. Ye make a good point, dere."
"Gutsy? Can you smurf us a story? Please?" Sassette asked, politely interupting the "conversation" between him and Crafty.
"Aye, lass. What tale will I be spinnin' tonight?" Gutsy replied, hands on the back of his head and sitting agains one of the large tree roots.
"I wanna hear the one with the Smurfs and that magical stardust! You always tell that one the best!" Nat exclaimed.
"Yeah, Blue Kilt. I finished that story. Let's see if you can tell it better," Crafty smirked.
"Yer on, lassie," Gutsy grinned, setting down his hot chocolate and stood to spin his tale.
"Long, long ago," he started in a deep, wise voice, which was actually completely unlike Gutsy. "Long before de humans started learnin' about magical creatures, dere were the Smurfs. They stood three apples high and had large hearts filled with kindness and warmth. We helped de lost travelers find der way. We made friends wit' all of de animals wherever we smurfed to. But, everyone looked up te us de most because we were the first to get de Stardust of de Heavens Above. Now, de Stardust had magical properties. It made de plants grow so much food, it could last many Smurf generations. It could let anyone who could get to et de power to do sorcery. It was filled wit' so many qualities, dat all wanted to get der smurfs on it."
All of the Smurflings, Hummer, and especially Crafty were listening with great interest. She had to admit it, he was great at telling the story so far.
"It seemed dat de whole world was becoming more and more lifeless wherever we traveled long ago. It was becoming more and more hopeless, until one day, one Smurf had wandered away from his family of Smurfs and found a magical stairway dat led straight up into de clouds. He followed dat stairway for days, nights, wit' nothin' but de food, water, and clothes on his smurf. Even after he ran out of food and water, he didn't stop goin'. He wanted the Stardust for his family, so they could all finally settle down and live in peace. It was days before he finally reached de top of the stairs. He was pale blue all over, he was skinnier den a twig, and he shook worse den Scaredy from no food or water. He was about te fall over, ready te give up and fall down from de clouds."
The Smurflings looked extremely anxious, like they never heard the story before and wanted desperately to know what happened next.
"But before he did, it was a miracle. An angel had taken de Smurf into her arms and brought him onto the clouds. She gave him food and water and nursed him back te health. When he was well enough, she had asked what he was doin' on the top of de clouds, for it wasn't de place for anyone but angels. He said he was lookin' for the Stardust. She said he could 'ave it, but dere was a condition. He could not return to his family. He had to become an Angel Smurf, for angels are de only ones who could handle de mighty power of the Stardust of the Heavens Above. The Smurf didn't want to leave his family, but he loved them too much to make them keep wandering around wit' no place to call home. So, he said yes. An' as soon as he said it, he became de Angel Smurf. He wore a white robe, had long white, feathery wings, and de Stardust at his fingertips for his command. So, he flew from de clouds to where his family was stayin', and was sad to see dat all of them were scattered, looking for him. None of dem had known he had left up de staircase or that dere was a staircase."
"He flew across de land anyway, spreading the Stardust over the whole world. When he went back to his family, he saw great things. They were eating, singing, and celebrating at the miracle dat he gave dem. He knew he couldn't go back, but he was goin' te make sure dat his family would never be unhappy again. He would watch over each generation of Smurfs and bless them with happiness. He would give them food, comfort, joy, hope, and love. An' dat's how our village is here and smurfy today."
The Smurflings had their eyes wide with wonder. When Gutsy looked at Crafty, however, he frowned as he saw she was curled up in her cloak, breathing lightly and barely moving.
"Well, I guess it's time fer bed, kiddies. Let's go," Gutsy announced, gathering up the bowls and cups to wash in the morning. The Smurflings groaned in disappointment, but he gave them a stern look, which made them hurry to their tents to go to sleep.
Gutsy chuckled and shook his head, now scooping Crafty into his arms and carrying her into her tent. He set her down and threw a blanket over her, but was sure to tuck her in right so she would be warm and comfortable. Hummer stepped in, yawned and curled up near his friend.
"Night, lassie. Night, Hummer," Gutsy whispered patting Crafty's shoulder gently and quietly making his way back to his own tent.
Crafty woke up slowly, noticing she was not around the warm campfire with the others. She looked around to see the inside of a tent. Her tent. Hummer was sound asleep next to her, chirping softly in his sleep. She smiled and patted his head. She stretched her body out and decided to go out and get some fresh air and maybe some fresh hot chocolate.
She silently made her way out of her tent and quickly started up a small fire. She boiled some water and made herself a nice cup of hot cocoa. She went for a stroll through the snow with her warm cup to relax her. Not that she was scared, but she was too awake and she needed to relax to be able to get back to sleep.
As she was climbing up the tree root that lead into the clearing, she noticed something at the far end of that root. Gutsy was sitting alone, looking out into the clearing.
"Cold there, Blue Kilt?" Crafty laughed walking and taking seat next to him.
Gutsy smiled, looking at her from the corner of his eye and replied, "A little, but I'm fine."
Crafty shook her head and held out the cup of hot chocolate to him, "C'mon. We'll share it."
"No. It's yers. You drink it," Gutsy respectfully declined.
"Gutsy, this can either go down your throat or on your head. Either way, you're going to get it and you're gonna get warm. The only difference is how much pain there'll be."
Gutsy laughed heartily, wondering if she was actually serious, but accepted the drink anyway.
"Yer stubborn. Ye know dat, right?" He asked, taking a sip of the hot drink and offering it to her.
"And proud of it, Blue Kilt," Crafty grinned, taking a small sip also. "Hey, Gutsy?"
"Hmm," Gutsy hummed in response.
"Do you remember a while ago? When we first went to Homnibus' and found Meena?"
Gutsy raised his eyebrows but nodded. Where was she going with this?
"And remember when she kinda made that "comment" about us?" Crafty continued, now becoming a bit nervous.
Also feeling anxious, Gutsy stiffened at the memory. His cheeks were starting to become violet at what Meena had said about them both.
"Did you really mean what you said? About me, I mean?" Crafty finished, grabbing her braid and stroking it. It was a habit of doing when she was extremely nervous.
"Er-Of course, I did!" Gutsy blurted out, not realizing how loud he actually answered it. He cleared his throat and replied more quietly, "You really are beautiful, lassie. Did you mean what you said about me?"
"About what?" Crafty asked teasingly.
"Ye know what I'm talkin' about. You said I was handsome!"
"No. Meena said you were handsome. I just agreed with her," Crafty smugly corrected.
"Ah, but ye were thinkin' it! C'mon, lassie. Admit it! You think I'm a stud, don't ye?"
Crafty laughed but replied, "Yeah. You are handsome. But it's just like I said before Snappy launched me out of my own cannon, you'll need more than your strength and rugged good looks to smurf me."
Gutsy chuckled, "Yer quite a challenge te please."
"Not really. Once you know what I like."
The two paused with talking and looked up into the sky. The sky was clear, the stars were out, and the blue moon was full and shining bright on the snowy ground. It made the snow glitter even more beautifully than when the sun did.
Crafty sighed and rested her head on Gutsy's shoulder. She had to admit to herself, but she didn't fall asleep earlier because the story was boring. She loved the story. But what she loved most was how Gutsy told it. He made it sound like she was hearing the story for the first time all over again. She loved how passionately he put himself into telling it to her and the Smurflings. How his eyes sparkled with life and adventure.
"Ye know," Gutsy said, interupting the silence between the two, "Ever since I first heard about dat story, I've been dreaming about et. I've always thought dat when I grew up, I'd be a Smurf like dat. To go on de adventure of a lifetime and make a name fer meself. I don' know when dat will smurf, but it will. I know et."
"Gutsy. I can smurf you right now that you won't be as good as that Smurf," Crafty paused as Gutsy looked at her with disbelief. She smiled as she finished with, "You'll be better."
Gutsy's eyes widened, then he smiled and looked back at the blue moon, leaning his head down and resting it on Crafty's.
From a distance, hidden in the pine tree branches, stood a large bird. She smirked at the sight she saw between the two Smurfs.
"Very well done, Smurflings," Meena chuckled. "Very well done, indeed."