With the last of the yarn coming to a taper, Spinner Smurf took his foot off the pedal of his favourite spinning wheel and looked at his handiwork with a satisfied smile. This was some of his highest quality yarn yet, he had no doubt the Dwarven recipients would be pleased. He stood up from his stool to stretch his aching limbs and finish the glass of water he'd left on the desktop.
All he had to do now was pack the yarn securely into a travelling bag, and get Papa Smurf to allow him to take a stork over to the village of Portabelli, where he'd been instructed to give the contents back over to the Dwarf seamstress that had commissioned (in exchange for a cut of the particularly rare wool) him in the first place.
A knocking at his workshop door caught Spinner's attention, and he bounded over to open it.
"Did you finish on time?"
"Sure did – just, in fact. Over here" Spinner ushered his cousin, Tailor Smurf, inside and lead him over to the spool of yarn that was still sitting on the wheel.
Tailor tentatively reached out a hand in awe and ran a finger along the threads, making little murmurs of approval.
"Never thought I'd see it with my own eyes – why DID the Dwarves go through all the trouble of having you spin it way out here anyway?"
"Clementine said in her letter that Portabelli is in a precarious spot in rocky terrain so importing good wooden spinning wheels is harder than just importing the yarn every so often. Plus they're pretty resourceful about their imports most of the time, apparently this stuff goes for ages if you make good use of it – she let me keep some as a payment when I told her Smurfs have no use for her gems or gold"
"Fair enough" Tailor nodded, looking appreciatively at his cousin's work "Angora jackalope yarn eh, amazing stuff"
"You bet" Spinner pulled a small bag from the corner of the room and revealed the unspun contents to the other Smurf "Go on feel it, it's like goose down in woollen form"
"I could make some fine stuff out of that" Tailor grinned playfully "You tell that Dwarf friend of yours if they ever need clothes importing there's a Smurf right here that'll take a handful of their jackalope wool off their hands"
"You're just jealous they wanted me first" Spinner grinned, tying the sack back up and placing it carefully back in its designated spot in the workshop "Anyway, I better start packing"
"Packing?"
"For the journey!"
"You're going to Portabelli yourself? I've never known you to be a travel smurfer, Spinner"
"If anything happens to yarn this rare I'll lose my credibility in the spinning world – no way I'm letting some meshuggeneh Smurf get himself lost on the way there. First thing tomorrow I'm grabbing a stork from Papa and heading there myself"
A shadow falling across the floor made both Smurfs look up.
"Eyy if it isn't my two favourite Smurfs – finished your unicorn yarn, Spinster?"
"It's jackalope actually, and don't you dare touch that" Spinner swatted playfully at his brother "I don't know where your hands have been"
Weaver grinned playfully "I bet Tailor's already felt it though right?"
"That's because I can trust him"
"He's right"
The three Smurfs laughed amongst themselves before Spinner actually let Weaver touch the wool too. Weaver agreed it was of utmost quality and lamented the fact they wouldn't be able to visit Portabelli himself – apparently some of the stones from the mountains were to die for even if Smurfs had no use for them as currency, Weaver liked to keep them for trinkets and jewellery. Alas, she had other plans the next day.
The textile trio bade their farewells for the night and left Spinner to his packing for the journey ahead. He packed a small backpack full of overnight stuff, then secured the large spool of yarn in a saddlebag for the stork to carry. As he climbed into bed he reached over for the small rock he kept on his bedside drawer – a memento from when he, Weaver and Tailor had been preteen smurflings and had taken their first – and last, solo trip with permission from Papa Smurf. The three of them set up a tent in the woods with the intention of sharing smurfberry smores and midnight ghost stories. At around 2am they'd all been scared out of their tent by a badger that had come along and had to hide in a small cave until morning. Being the oldest of the three, Spinner had felt the most responsible for keeping his younger sibling and cousin safe but truth be told he'd been terrified that night – so terrified he'd never gone camping again, and had developed a secret fear of caves that prevented him from travelling far if he could help it.
Oh well, with a stork taking him to the mountains he'd be able to sleep soundly in a nice Dwarven bed before flying home one day later. Easy.
The next morning, after finishing his breakfast in record time, Spinner ran back to his hut and grabbed his supplies, before rushing off to find Papa.
"Shalom, Papa Smurf!" Spinner smiled and he walked up "Is the stork ready to fly?"
Instead of smiling back, the elderly Smurf looked grave.
"Ah Spinner, there you are"
"Oo this doesn't sound like good news – what is it?"
"Weather Smurf has predicted a strong blizzard passing over Smurfback Mountain"
"Ah"
"It shouldn't settle on the mountain according to his predictions but it will make the skies dangerous to traverse, I'm afraid the storks won't fly that way for three or four days"
"So what should I do?"
"Well you can wait a few days if you're not in a hurry – or you can walk the mountain path. The rocks will keep the worst of the winds away from you down there but you'll have to camp overnight, it's a two day journey on foot".
Spinner's heart sank – he'd promised Clementine the jackalope yarn TODAY and didn't want to let down his customer by making her wait so long for a stork. Going on foot would be faster than that but it meant a fair trek, and he was hardly a qualified mountaineer.
"I see ... well if it's my only option I suppose I better pack a bigger bag" Spinner sighed "And I'll see if Tracker's willing to take me, he knows the ranges around here better than anyone, I better go and find him"
Spinner found Tracker alright – huddled up in bed with a hot water bottle on his head and a bin full of tissue.
"Gooth morninth Spinner – aaATCHOO! Wat cn I do fr yu?"
"Err, well I was going to ask if you'd be willing to take me up Smurfback Mountain but .. I see that you're, um, perhaps not in the right state at the moment"
"Sorry Spinner, I've caught a-a-a-aAAATCHOO! Smurfinkly terrble cold – I culd take yu up in a few thays?"
"No don't worry about it, Tracker, I kind of need to go as soon as possible – I'll just get a route from Papa and take myself up, how hard can it be?"
Tracker looked at him incredulously over the top of his duvet.
"I wouldn't go up alne if I wre yu, Spinner"
"Neither would I" Spinner muttered under his breath - but some divine intervention seemed to want to prevent him from getting his delivery to its destination. But Spinner was stubborn as a mule and determined to get there one way or the other. "But I don't have much choice – hope you feel better soon!" And with that, he closed the door, making a mental note to wash himself thoroughly before he did anything else.
Spinner was carrying a single-Smurf tent he'd borrowed from Camper back to his hut when Papa stopped him.
"Ah Spinner you're still here, good. I was worried you'd taken off already"
"No, Papa. Tracker's ill with a cold so-"
"Ah yes, I'm aware. That's what I came to talk to you about – I have another Smurf willing to take up to Portabelli"
"You do?" Spinner breathed a sigh of relief. Truthfully he wasn't super confident about facing the mountain alone. He'd have even gone up with Brainy Smurf if it meant him not getting lost.
"Wooly here tells me he's quite familiar with the trail"
"Yes sire, ah used to go up that mountain trail every month in my younger days – not to Portabelli of course, ah was headin' to the Gnome village south of that. They had some of the best honky-tonk dancin' that side of the ridge, hooey those were good square dancin' nights – if ye need to get to the Dwarves you'd just take the northern fork o' the path – ol' Wooly'll get you there in two shakes of a lamb's tail"
Spinner blinked, politely pretending he'd understood any of that. Wooly was the village's sheep shearer – the oldest Smurf of their generation and a gruff, no nonsense Texan cowboy. He was responsible for bringing back wool from Molar Mountain on the night of the wool for the textile trio to work with for winter clothes. Truthfully, despite the many years he'd been bringing fresh sheep wool directly to Spinner, they'd never really had a proper conversation outside of their polite business transactions. Spinner was too introverted and keen to get back to his work to socialise and Wooly never seemed to enjoy small talk either so the relationship had been purely professional up till now. Still, Spinner could think of plenty of worse Smurfs to travel with and despite his eccentric phrases, Wooly was a serious Smurf who wouldn't mess him about, which Spinner appreciated immensely.
"Very well, if you have a bag ready we can set off, I just need to pack this tent into-"
"Hold on a minute there, Smurfaroo" Wooly brought two fingers to his lips and let out a sharp whistle.
There was a pit-pattering of little feet along the ground when a large brown and white speckled rat suddenly appeared around the corner, wearing a saddle aligned with saddlebags. It came to a stop beside Wooly, who scratched her chin affectionately.
"This here is Calam – course, I'm partial to frog ridin' myself but if it's a cold mountain you need to get up there's no better steed that one with fur. There's only room for one unless you wanna get real cosy but she'll take a load off ya"
As if to emphasise his point, Wooly grabbed the tent Spinner was holding with and slung it effortlessly onto a clip.
"Ah've already packed the other essentials, you just go and get the yarn an' your own bag and we'll be good to go"
"Wow you know what you're doing, hm? Alright, thank you I'll be right back"
"Aw shucks you's can just call me Wooly same as any of them – we're Smurfs here right?"
"Right" Spinner felt as though he was in a slight daze, unsure if any of that had really happened. But he was keen to get this mission out of the way, so he went and grabbed his smaller backpack again, as well as the precious cargo and took it back to his travelling buddy.
Wooly eyed the spool shaped bag as Spinner brought it over.
"This the jackalope yarn?"
"Sure is" Spinner popped the top off of the bag and let the cowboy feel the product for a couple of seconds "And it's vital I get it there in peak condition"
"Gotcha" Wooly secured it to a clip on Calam's saddle and let Spinner inspect the hold to make sure he was satisfied with it. "Well, no time like the present – lets hit the trail! There's a small abandoned underpass about a halfway up the trail, used to be fer transporting metals out of the place, we should be able to hunker there for the night without too much disturbance, then carry on to Portabelli in the mornin'"
"Sounds good" Spinner waved Papa and the rest of the village off as they left through the northern streets towards the foot of the mountain. It loomed over the couple of Smurfs, high and daunting with a peak so tall neither could see it with the naked eye. All of a sudden the fierce spark that had been pushing Spinner forwards seemed to fizzle out as he realised that yes, in fact, he was going to scale this.
The two of them proceeded up the path, Wooly keeping Calam under control to match the pace of Spinner's walking. He had to admit, having a rat to carry the heaviest of burdens was pretty useful at any rate. They walked in silence for a couple of minutes until Wooly couldn't bare it anymore.
"So, jackalope wool huh? How'd you get a gig like that anyway?"
"The Dwarves prefer importing yarn to spinning wheels – they're usually pretty resourceful about what they can get and I suspect love trade more than doing everything at home; gives them the opportunities to socialise when they're so far out"
"Hm, I always thought sheep wool was just fine anyhow"
Spinner smiled politely.
"Angora jackalope's are particularly rare and only found in the coldest of climates – they're notoriously hard to find, let alone brush or sheer. I believe the Dwarves may have successfully farmed some of them which is why Clementine was alright letting me have a cut of the wool in exchange for my service"
"Clementine, she's?"
"The Dwarf lady who commissioned me for the yarn – never met her, just received her letter. Apparently I'm to take the yarn to her shop, she left me directions" Spinner patted the pocket on his leggings, where he kept the letter.
Wooly nodded, pausing briefly to redirect their path.
"Y'know Spinner, it's been – what, how many years since you started spinning?"
"Well depends if you mean professionally – me and my family all sort of got into our jobs at the same time, I'd say seventies or so"
The cowboy nodded again.
"So give or take another eighty years … Gee, we've been business partners a while huh? I bring the wool down from Molar Mountain, you three turn it into fancy little outfits – but I feel like I don't know any of ya. Now's as good a time as any – so what are you like, Spinny – mind if ah call ya that?"
"I've been called worse" Spinner gave a forced smile, he hated small talk. "Erm, well not much to say really. I spin stuff on my wheels, my favourite wheel is a beech wheel – she's the one I used to spin this jackalope yarn – my favourite colour is yellow and I speak Yiddish and Hebrew – same as Weaver and Tailor. Er, what about you?"
"Mm, suppose I'm a bit of a lone cowboy myself, knows my way around a lasso and how to cook a good grits, mah favourite colour is red an' I don't speak other languages – unless you count talkin' to sheep. You gotta know what you're doin' to calm em down, I save the wranglin' fer the spicy ones"
"I'm sure that, er, wrangling is an art form"
"Darn tootin' partner, it ain't fer the faint of heart, that's for sure"
"I'll leave that to the professionals like you then"
A couple of hours into the walk, Wooly pulled them over towards a large lake to rest their feet and allow Calam to drink. Spinner sat down on a nearby rock and pulled out the lunch he had brought with him. He chewed thoughtfully on his sandwich as he stared out across the lake, watching as the cowboy brushed and patted down his steed, giving her little scratches behind the ear and whispering to her, although Spinner was too far away to hear the specifics.
Wooly was a good Smurf; that much Spinner had already decided was true. He felt kind of bad having not befriended him properly over all these years, and figured the next time he came to drop off a supply of wool he'd invite him in for a slice of Babka. He owed him that much just for taking him out this far.
With Calam watered and grazing on the feed Wooly had left for her, he joined his fellow Smurf on the rocks, taking out his own packed lunch as he stared over the lake, looking deep in thought.
"This place hasn't changed a bit in all the years I've been here"
"Oh?"
Wooly swallowed a bite of his food.
"Used to stop by this lake every year on the way to the square dancin' – in the summer nights you sometimes see fireflies out here – sometimes water sprites too if yer lucky. Just don't agree to dance with em, they'll try an' pull ya into the lake and I've not met a Smurf yet who can walk on water"
"Are you speaking from experience?"
The older Smurf grinned sheepishly.
"Perhaps once … I was a bit of a wild child myself"
"You? No, I can't imagine it" Spinner teased, hiding a grin behind a sip of drink.
"Oh you best believe it, partner. Papa says it were a wonder ah didn't get myself carried off by a hawk. Course, bein' the oldest of you lot I needed to shape up right fast to take on some responsibility. Goin' to the dance was the one night of the year I got to feel like I wasn't picking up his slack. Till I started doing night of the wool, of course"
Spinner remained silent for a few moments.
"Gee Wooly, I didn't realise"
The cowboy shrugged.
"Were years ago now, I don't really begrudge Papa for it. He had his hands full with so many of us all on his lonesome. But the mountain is a right purty place to escape to every now and then"
"Hmm" Spinner sat back on his hands, staring at the sky. He allowed a cold breeze to pass over him. "I heard tales of Smurfback Mountain"
"Oh?"
"Crazy stuff" Spinner smirked "You wouldn't believe"
"I reckon I've heard a few mighty strange stories in my time"
"The yeti that lives on the eastern ridge?"
"Aint never seen him"
"Alpine goblins?"
"Never heard of 'em"
"Teenage Smurfs sneaking tents up here?"
"Now THAT" Wooly laughed "I have some dirt on. But it aint none of yer business"
"Oh trust me, I don't want to know any details – just wondered if it was true"
They ate the rest of their lunch in a comfortable silence.
Another couple of hours up the mountain, Wooly pulled Calam to a stop and pointed at something far below them.
"See that? That's the lake we had lunch at"
"It looks like a puddle – just how high are we right now?"
"About halfway up – it's a tall mountain!"
"No kidding" Spinner shivered a little "I hope the Dwarf village isn't too much higher, since it's so cold here already"
Wooly frowned.
"Now that you mention it, it IS a might chilly – and that's with my wool hat"
Something cold and white landed on his nose, causing him to look up at the sky.
"Snow down here? Papa said that it was supposed to blow right over head. C'mon, we're not too far from that underpass"
They quickened their walking pace, trying to stay ahead of the storm, but sure enough, after a few minutes the snow had begun to settle on the path in front of them, the wind now howling in their ears as the blizzard descended, threatening to knock them off the path.
"Oy vey, that Weather Smurf" Spinner spat out a word in a language Wooly didn't speak, though it didn't sound like a compliment to him.
"Ah reckon this is a bit of a jam – ah'm not sure I can find the underpass in this weather" Wooly held a hand up to his forehead to shield his eyes, trying to squint out through the biting snowflakes "Ah, we're in luck Spinny – follow me"
He gave a little click of his tongue, and Calam wrapped her tail around Spinner, ensuring he wouldn't get lost as the cowboy guided them into a small cave in the mountain face a few paces up. It was small but spacious, and definitely out of the blizzard. Perfect, Wooly thought.
Spinner didn't think so. At first, he was thoroughly relieved to be out of the weather. Then when he realised where they were, he panicked.
Wooly was too busy setting down his bags to notice for a couple of seconds, but when he turned, he saw his companion, pale as a ghost, leaning with one hand against the side of the cave and shaking like a leaf.
"Smurfin' hell" Wooly dropped the bag in his hand and ran over to the other side of the cave, ripping the backpack from Spinner's back and forcing him to sit down on the floor.
"Spinner? Spinner – what's the matter with ya? We're out the blizzard, it'll be fine I swear"
"It's" Spinner wheezed through his heavy breaths "It's the – the cave"
"The ca- aw fuck" Wooly moved around to the front of the other Smurf, grabbing the sides of his head firmly, but not roughly, in order to force Spinner to look at him "Look, I don't know where the underpass is right now, an' it's too dangerous for either of us to be out there"
As if to prove a point, there was a particularly loud howl of wind just outside the cave entrance. Wooly ignored it and kept talking.
"It's a shallow cave, no critters in here if that's what yer scared of"
Spinner tried to shake his head, though had little luck with the older Smurf holding it.
"Not critters? Alright" Wooly let go of the other's head, grabbing his hands instead and giving them a small squeeze "I'm gonna try and start up a fire; get you warmed up. You'll feel better with some soup in ya – I'm gonna let go now, and you're gonna take some deep breaths, alright?"
Spinner nodded, doing as he was told almost automatically. Wooly went over to the centre of the cave and started fiddling with something he got out of a backpack whilst Spinner tried to calm down. After a couple of minutes, he felt a warmth on his back and light flooded the cave as his companion finally struck a fire from his tinderbox.
Spinner shakily got to his feet, making his way towards the fire.
"Easy there, easy" Wooly gestured Spinner to sit next to him on a large rock, then wrapped a thin blanket around his shoulders before turning his attention to a cooking pot he'd brought along, and setting it up. "Don't like caves, huh?"
Spinner pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders, still shivering despite the warmth from the flames.
"N-no. When I was a Smurfling, I took my brother and cousin on a camping trip and we got scared off by a badger and had to hide in one … to be honest I thought I thought we might die that night and it was going to be my fault … I've never been able to stand being in one since"
The cowboy nodded, but didn't say anything. Spinner watched him pour the soup into the pan and begin stirring.
"You're a good man, . Thank you for … being understanding just now"
"It aint right to leave a fella panicking like that – besides, every Smurf has fears. No shame in that"
"Even you?" Spinner smiled slightly.
"Hm" Wooly tapped his chin thoughtfully with the end of his spoon "Smurflin's – scariest little tykes around"
Spinner laughed, feeling much more comfortable now. By the time the soup was warmed up and handed to him in a bowl, he'd even discarded the blanket. He still didn't like being stuck in a cave of course, but given the circumstances, there were few other Smurfs he would have felt safer with than the one he was with.
As the blizzard continued to rage outside, Wooly did his best to distract his new friend with recollections of past adventures, and Spinner in return shared some of his. Any awkwardness that had been there earlier in the day was no longer present, replaced instead by a feeling of familiarity, as though they had long been friends.
"You know, there was one thing I wasn't tellin' the whole truth about earlier"
"What was that?"
"The rumours about sneakin' up the mountain – well, ah did once"
"You? The scandal. Who was it? Vanity?"
The cowboy guffawed.
"Ol' prissypants? He would sooner be seen dead than campin' I'm sure. No no, it was, er, Tracker"
"Huh. I never would have guessed. Makes sense I suppose, I already knew he knew this mountain – tried to get him to take me up earlier but he was sick as a dog"
"Yeah we didn't make a big deal out of it – asked him not to in fact"
"So" Spinner felt a little guilty for asking but curiosity got the best of him "What happened?"
A strange look came over Wooly's eyes; almost sombre.
"To tell you the truth … Ah ain't ever felt right about it. Not because it was Trackie, he's a fine Smurf. But he was more into it than I ever was an' ah felt bad that I couldn't always return the kinds of affection he was after – some days I'd think ah was fine and just being dramatic about the whole thing and others I really felt nothin' at all fer him and felt like I was usin' the poor fella. Not intentionally of course, I ain't able to control it. Just don't suppose I'm really able to keep such a long standin' feeling goin' like most folks"
Spinner was a little surprised, but it didn't change his opinion of his new friend.
"What about you, Spinny?" Wooly continued "Reckon I don't see you as the rebellious kind"
"Not really, just the one kiss" Spinner smiled slightly "Ol' prissypants"
Wooly's bushy eyebrows raised.
"Really? Whatdya go ahead an' do that for?"
Spinner let out a laugh.
"Not sure really, I guess I felt like I had to. It was around the time my cousin Tailor started dating that fairy boy. In the beginning he always seemed so happy, I guess I was curious. Then Weaver started dating someone – honestly don't remember who. I thought maybe there was something wrong with me since I was the oldest of either of them and they talked about romance like it was so natural. I figured my best shot at understanding them was to go and kiss someone – listen I was in my nineties – so I picked Vanity out since I figured he'd know what he was doing" Spinner's cheeks flushed pink at the memory "But to be honest I felt nothing – not really good or bad; it was like kissing a warm stone. I kind of acknowledged what was happening without really understanding the hype and Vanity got offended. I thought maybe it was because I didn't actually LIKE Vanity and I just had to wait to find someone that made me feel the way Tailor and Weaver described but it never happened. To be honest I'm not sure I have the … ability to feel like that. It's still fun to tease Tailor about though. I certainly feel love for my family but outside of them I'd only like maybe" Spinner waved his arms in the air "A nice c, you know?"
Wooly smiled and nodded.
"I getcha. Feel the same way myself – course I don't got a close family like you but I got good friends – I'd like to call you one too, Spinner"
Spinner's smile widened.
"I'd like that too, Wooly"
With the fire dying and their bellies full, the two Smurfs retired to their respective tents, which Wooly had pitched for both of them in the corner of the cave furthest out of the wind. Calam settled herself between the two, her warm fur providing good insulation from the cold.
"Good night, Wooly"
"G'night Spinny – if you get any of those night terrors you let ol' Wooly know and he'll give you a cuddle" the cowboy said in a way that indicated a joking nature, but with some genuine concern for his friend's wellbeing.
"Er, you too"
And even with the wind howling outside, Spinner felt safe enough to fall asleep.
A warmth and bright light across his face – quickly replaced by something tickling his cheek is what awoke him hours later. The blizzard had moved on from their position, replaced by a warm beam of sunlight through the mouth of the cave, and Calam was standing over him, sniffing him.
"Oy, that tickles" Spinner sat up, trying to gently push the rat's whiskers away from his face, though he wasn't actually mad at her. He glanced over to his companion's tent, but Wooly was still sound asleep, snoring gentle.
Being mindful of making too much noise, Spinner wriggled out of his sleeping bag and crossed the cave until he was back out on the mountain path, taking a deep breath in. There was still a fair amount of snow around, but the sun was making quick work of it, and Spinner felt they could safely traverse the rest of the way to Portabelli like this.
About half an hour later, the smell of cooking woke Wooly from his own sleep. He opened his eyes to see that his friend had managed to start a small fire himself, and was cooking an unfamiliar dish in a pan over it.
"Morning sunshine – had to beat you to breakfast to say my thanks for dinner"
"I just heated up soup" Wooly collected himself as he stood and stretched "You're putting Chef to shame here, did you rob his kitchen?"
"Nah, I just came prepared. I had them already made, they just need warming up a bit and adding a few things, I think you'll like them"
Once he was satisfied with his creation, Spinner plated up two lots of bourekas and passed one to the other Smurf, who tucked in appreciatively.
"Dang partner, aint never had a breakfast like this – you'll have to give me the recipe some time, could do with a bit of variety on the range"
Spinner chuckled.
"I have a few more to give too if you like those"
The two of them finished their plates, packed up and sorted out other morning essentials, making sure they left nothing behind but a few ashes from the fire. With Calam saddled up again, and the snow still ankle deep, Spinner agreed to share the saddle this time, a little nervous as he wasn't used to riding mounts or having to hold onto another Smurf, but otherwise trusting Wooly's ability to keep them both safe. A little further up the mountain, Wooly pointed out the underpass they'd been trying to get to, both of them jokingly groaning about how close they'd been and had the blizzard waited a few minutes the panic of the night before needn't have happened.
As the sun climbed higher into the sky, the path beneath them became slick in parts due to slush from the melted snow, but it proved no problem for a nimble rodent even with all the weight she was carrying, and before they knew it, they'd reached the fork in the road that separated Portabelli from the gnome village.
"Told ya old Wooly knew the way – git!" The older Smurf gently tugged the reins of his steed towards the north, and before long they found themselves in front of a set of great iron gates, guarded by two Dwarven soldiers with halberds.
"Halt! Name and intention?" The gruff sounding guard on the right bellowed.
"Spinner Smurf! I'm here to trade yarn with Clementine the seamstress" Spinner pulled the letter out of his pocket and handed it to the guard. He studied it, concluded it was genuine and passed it back.
"YOU MAY ENTER"
The iron gates slowly creaked open, and Wooly steered Calam onwards.
The Dwarven city was a lively and bustling place, with sounds of clamouring from the taverns and the clinking of metals from the numerous blacksmiths. They didn't seem to pay too much attention to the blue strangers (traders were common in the area) but both Smurfs were fascinated by the ongoing sights, sounds and smells of such an unfamiliar place. None of the sweet pine and oak smells of the forest, the entire city smelt of strong steels and Dwarven ale, and instead of mushroom houses the shops were carved into the mountainside itself. Markets selling weapons, jewels and gems lined the streets on either side, as well as several beard braiding stalls. A couple of Dwarf children ran in front of Calam, and were quickly reprimanded by their apologetic mother.
"Don't worry m'am" Wooly tipped his hat to the family before looking over his shoulder "Which way we headin'?"
Spinner studied his letter again.
"She said her shop is in the main square, by the Emerald café"
"This looks like a big square up ahead" Wooly pointed to where the middle of the city split into a wide open space with a giant statue of some sort of Dwarven warrior adorning the centre. Both of them stopped to admire it for a moment before Spinner noticed something.
"There's a green building, it could be the café – yes that looks like a tailor shop next to it!"
Wooly pulled Calam over to the area and Spinner hopped off the saddle, stretching his back and making a small complaint about soreness. He grabbed the saddlebag containing his precious cargo and knocked on the door.
There were a few footsteps from behind the door, and then it opened. A bearded Dwarven lady stood in a long woollen dress, several white flowers braided through the ginger locks on both her head and beard. She stood taller than both Smurfs, so she had to look down to see Spinner at first.
"Oh! Are you Spinner? I never knew Smurfs were so adorable"
"That I am, here's the yarn you commissioned – it would have been here yesterday but there were a few complications with the journey"
"Oh don't worry about that, one day delay won't kill my work – come on it" She looked over towards Wooly "You and your handsome friend can come inside for a bit if you like"
"Ah erm, thank you m'am" the cowboy coughed, looking awkward but complimented.
Clementine took the yarn from Spinner, marvelling at the fine craftsmanship before setting it down safely amongst her other spools.
"Yes yes, this is perfect. Angus will be happy his prize jackalope wool was so well received – let me get you two something to drink"
She left the two Smurfs alone in a small office to stare around at the numerous sketches of Dwarven clothing – so different from anything Tailor would make back home. Spinner couldn't resist the opportunity to tease his friend slightly.
"She called you handsome"
"She called you adorable – want to thumb wrestle for her?" Wooly joked, knowing from the conversation the night beforehand that neither of them were remotely interested in such a proposition.
Clementine returned with three mugs of Dwarven hot cocoa and biscuits.
"So how was the journey? I do appreciate you coming all the way up here from the mountains"
"We had a small delay due to weather but nothing too serious" Spinner chose to leave out details of his panic attack "To tell the truth I was quite interested in coming up to Portabelli, never been"
"Well you and the rest of your Smurf friends are welcome here anytime, even if not for trade – just tell them Clementine sent you"
The three of them engaged in some small talk for a while before the conversation drew to a close. Clementine handed them a flask full of extra cocoa for 'the journey back' but stressed that she'd also be willing to pay for a stay in one of the Dwarven inns for the night, knowing that Smurfs didn't use gold the way that Dwarves did.
"That's mighty kind of ya, m'am" Wooly tipped his hat to her "Its gonna be another couple of days back to the village so we might take you up on that"
She pressed a small bag of gems into their hands, thanked them once more for the yarn and journey, and then Wooly and Spinner found themselves standing in front of the tailor shop again, during the early afternoon, and with no plans.
"Soo … what now? I didn't really think about the time between delivery and resting"
Wooly scratched his chin, as if he was calculating something in his mind.
"I might have an idea"
And that is how Spinner found himself dressed head to toe in a western style outfit hastily borrowed from a gnome, standing at the side of a large gnomish barn whilst a band played a variety of banjos and fiddles.
"We aint gotta do no fancy waltz - dance with me Spinny, fer the hell of it"
Wooly offered his elbow to his friend, who linked his own with it, feeling slightly awkward.
"I'll give ya the steps, don't worry about it – it aint a competition, just loosen up and have a little fun with it"
And Spinner did, as the night went on and the music got faster, he found himself enjoying the atmosphere of the 'honky-tonk fest' as Wooly had described it, and by the end of the night Spinner wasn't even the worst dancer there, having picked up the steps pretty quickly.
He decided to save the small bag of gems from Clementine for Weaver, who liked that sort of stuff, and as everyone filed out of the barn with a merry cacophony of farewells, the two Smurfs retreated to where Calam was still diligently carrying their tents. With a clear night ahead, they pitched them out in the open underneath a clear sky, with Wooly pointing out various constellations in the stars.
"You know, I'm kind of glad that blizzard hit us"
"Oh?"
"Two days ago I was a Smurf who wanted to bypass all the sights of the mountain and get home as quickly as possible – now look, I stayed the entire night in a cave of all things and went barn dancing, that's not me" Spinner laughed, dusting off the cowboy hat the gnome had let him keep "It's weird how much can happen in such a short time – and we have all of tomorrow too! Who knows what adventures still lie ahead?"
Wooly chuckled.
"It ain't just tomorrow either; yer a young Smurf, Spinner, you got loads of adventures out there still waiting to be nabbed by the horns"
"I don't always understand your crazy cowboy speak" Spinner yawned, exhaustion finally starting to creep on him as he leant against the cowboy's shoulder "But I like you anyway. You're the best friend I've ever had"
And he meant it too, despite the short time they'd spent together.
Wooly smiled softly, ruffling the other's head affectionately.
"I feel the same way Spinny"