The Birth Of Psycheliana/Part 2

Over the course of the next seven months, the Smurfs noticed how the pregnancy was changing Smurfette. At first it was simply giving her morning sickness, and every time she was having morning sickness, Empath was experiencing it as well.

Duncan chuckled when he saw Empath having to go through the same experience. "You regret that you're smurfing this bond between you and Smurfette now?" he asked.

"From what this smurf could sense of Papa Smurf's own experiences during my Mama Smurf's pregnancy, what this smurf is going through is totally unique and very atypical, Duncan," Empath said.

"Either that, or you're not cut out to be the Papa Smurf that you should be, Empath," Duncan said. "Male Smurfs are supposed to have the fortitude of iron, as my dear old Papa Smurf would say. They're supposed to stay strong to help carry those who lack the strength, such as our Mama Smurfs."

"This smurf would imagine that Smurfette is the braver of the two for having to experience it firsthand, while this smurf can only experience what feels like echoes of her pregnancy," Empath said.

"Then might I suggest that you smurf of a way to block most of it out, for it would smurf you no good if you become as she is when the child is ready to be smurfed, Empath," Duncan said.

"This smurf may consider that a necessary possibility, Duncan," Empath said. "As much as this smurf may enjoy sharing the experience in the form of these 'echoes', this smurf would not want to have to feel as if this smurf is the one who will give birth to this child."

"That I would agree on wholeheartedly," Duncan said. "If Mother Nature intended male Smurfs to be pregnant, she would have smurfed us wombs instead."

Around mealtime, Empath noticed Smurfette having unusual cravings for food...at least, unusual for her. It was as if she was having a buffet straight from Farmer's garden and then some. Even Smurfette was amazed at the things she was eating.

"Is this usual for a female Smurf to have this kind of appetite, Papa Smurf?" Empath asked.

"You should see the kind of things your Mama Smurf was eating when she had you, Empath," Papa Smurf said. "I couldn't get her to stop eating those things. Of course, the reason for these strange food cravings is that the child has special nutrition needs, so whatever it wants, the mother has to smurf them."

"And she would be eating these things throughout the entire pregnancy?" Empath asked, sounding amazed.

"Being a Mama Smurf requires a lot of work for a female Smurf, Empath," Papa Smurf said. He then noticed Empath clutching his stomach. "Empath, are you all right?"

"This smurf was feeling as if something was kicking inside this smurf's stomach, Papa Smurf," Empath said. "That must mean the child inside Smurfette is kicking."

"Amazing," Papa Smurf said. He went over to where Smurfette was sitting in the dining hall, where she also was clutching her stomach.

"I could feel the child kicking inside of me, Papa Smurf," Smurfette said.

"Would you mind if I...?" Papa Smurf began to ask.

Smurfette nodded and allowed Papa Smurf to touch her stomach. As he did, he could also feel the baby kicking inside her, as also did Empath.

"There's something else, Papa Smurf," Smurfette said. "It's like I'm smurfing a voice inside of me, that is asking 'who is the one that is touching my mother?'"

"A voice?" Papa Smurf asked. "You mean...the child is speaking to you?"

"This smurf hears it as well, Papa Smurf," Empath said. "The child is becoming aware of being inside a womb and wondering what's going on outside it."

"Just like Lillithina," Papa Smurf said. "That's even more amazing."

"You think this child may possess the same abilities as Empath, Papa Smurf?" Smurfette asked.

"I can't rule out that possibility, Smurfette," Papa Smurf said. "You may be the Mama Smurf of another telepath."

"A telepath...just like this smurf," Empath said. "This smurf is truly eager to find out upon the child's birth." - Empath mentioned this possibility to Polaris Psyche, who was intrigued by what he had heard concerning Smurfette's pregnancy.

"Great Ancestors," Polaris said. "If that is the case, then surely you would want to raise the child within the village instead of having it being raised apart from you, Smurfette, or your fellow Smurfs in Psychelia."

"This smurf would do everything to keep the Psyche Master from ever smurfing his hands on this smurf's child, Polaris," Empath said.

"This one may understand your reasons, Empath, but wouldn't this child benefit also from the disciplines you have learned from being in Psychelia in the control of your emotions?" Polaris asked.

"This smurf is not going to purge her of any of her emotions, Polaris," Empath said defensively. "This smurf wants her to fully experience being a Smurf as much as she wants to know how to control her abilities. But the last thing this smurf would want to do with her is make her into--"

"This one knows what you're going to say, Empath," Polaris interrupted. "This one is not offended by you not wanting to make her into a Psyche, even though you are uncomfortable of the thought of offending this one."

"But this smurf does sense that you would want to help her become fully trained in the use of her abilities as well, which this smurf would be honored to allow you," Empath said.

"This one would not wish to overstep this one's boundaries in the area of raising your child, Empath," Polaris said.

"You have been this smurf's Psychelian brother and this smurf's friend, Polaris," Empath said. "Nothing would make this smurf happier than for you to be the child's godfather."

Polaris realized what the role of being a godfather meant. "This one appreciates the honor you have bestowed upon this one, Empath." - Over time, as Smurfette's stomach was getting bigger, she was having trouble moving around the house and the village. She also found that the clothes that she used to wear would no longer fit her. It was disheartening that Empath and Smurfette now had to sleep apart from each other.

Handy came by with the completed smurfomatic wheelsmurfer. "This thing should easy for you to smurf around in, Smurfette," he said. "All you do is smurf around this joystick, and you can smurf forward, reverse, smurf to the left or right."

Smurfette watched Handy demonstrate the controls of the wheelsmurfer. "That's a real smurfy invention, Handy. Thank you."

"Gee, Smurfette, you don't sound very enthusiastic about it," Handy said. "Is there something the matter?"

"It's not your invention, Handy," Smurfette said. "It's the feeling that I'm not in control of my body anymore. I can't smurf anything that I want to before I had the child, and besides that, I look in the mirror and see that I don't smurf like I used to."

"I don't think that you smurf ugly at all, Smurfette," Handy said. "If anything, I think that you smurf beautiful as a Mama Smurf."

"Yes, beautiful as a Mama Smurf," Smurfette said. "I just miss the beauty that I used to have. I don't think that I will ever smurf back to the way I looked when I first married Empath."

"And you think Empath won't like the way that you smurf now," Handy guessed.

"Empath still likes the way that I smurf, Handy," Smurfette said. "It's just that I don't like the way that I smurf. It just makes me wish that I never even thought of smurfing a child."

"I'm sorry that I can't offer you much help there, Smurfette," Handy said. "All I can say is that you have a few more months before the child comes. Maybe then things will change again, and you'll smurf back to the way you used to."

"Maybe...or maybe I'll just smurf like this for the rest of my life," Smurfette said.

"You don't know that for certain, Smurfette," Handy said. "Anyway, I hope that you'll enjoy smurfing around now on your wheelsmurfer. When the child comes, you won't need it anymore."

"I will smurf forward to that, at the very least," Smurfette said. "Thank you again." - One night, Empath sensed that Smurfette was sobbing. He went over to where she was sleeping to comfort her, to find out what was wrong.

"I feel like a prisoner inside my own body, Empath," Smurfette said.

"This smurf knows that you don't like all the changes this pregnancy is putting you through, Smurfette," Empath said.

"Sometimes I feel the regret of ever wanting to know what it's like to be a Mama Smurf," Smurfette said.

"You're smurfing the best you can under the smurfumstances," Empath said. "All this taking care of both yourself and the child is not easy, and this smurf knows that you don't feel as beautiful as you used to be. But this smurf knows that the end result will be worth all the sacrifices you smurfed for her. All this won't matter when the time comes, because you will have a beautiful child to love, and you will feel joy for what you have accomplished."

"But I won't be the same Smurfette that you married, Empath," Smurfette said.

"You are still the same Smurfette to this smurf," Empath said. "We may not be able to enjoy the things that we used to before we received the blessing of a child, and you may not smurf back to how you used to smurf, but it won't change how this smurf still sees you and how this smurf still feels for you."

"I feel the baby's thoughts, Empath," Smurfette said. "She says that she loves me and cares for me. She wants me to stay strong for her."

"It would seem that she has more faith in you than you have in yourself, Smurfette," Empath said.

"I should have known, if this child is going to be a telepath just like you, Empath," Smurfette said.

"There's no way that you're going to fail being a great Mama Smurf to our child, Smurfette, no matter what sacrifice you'll have to make," Empath said.

"I won't make the sacrifice unless you're willing to make them for being a Papa Smurf, Empath," Smurfette said. "We're smurfing through this together."

"Even if this world ends, we're smurfing through with it," Empath said, as he and Smurfette kissed each other.