Hefty, The Luckiest Smurf/Part 5

Traveler noticed Empath turning away. "Enough! This smurf does not want to see this!" Empath shouted.

"This one understands that you are upset from having to see your alternate self become intimate with a female member of the Psyches, Empath," Traveler said. "It was not this one's intention to make you upset, only for you to see what your alternate self would become apart from your fellow Smurfs."

"But for this smurf to become intimate with a female Psyche?" Empath said, sounding incredulous. "It's beyond anything that this smurf even hopes to imagine in this smurf's wildest dreams. This smurf could never defile any of the Psyches in such a manner as this smurf just saw."

"But what would you have done if you were denied to be with Smurfette for the rest of your life?" Traveler asked. "If on that chance your life was destined to be forever connected to the one you lived in Psychelia, would you have been able to control your desires for a mate?"

Empath sighed. "This smurf would not know how to answer that question, Traveler. This smurf can see that the desire to be with Smurfette would be so great that it would have to be satisfied somehow, even if the mate chosen for this smurf wasn't Smurfette. But this smurf would want to know what would become of Smurfette's interest in Hefty Smurf if this smurf was no longer a part of her life."

"That is what this one is hoping to discover in this timeline we're exploring, Empath, if you wish to continue with this one on this journey," Traveler said.

Empath nodded. "It will be difficult, but this smurf doesn't wish to turn back on this journey right now."

"Then let us proceed onward," Traveler said, and so with a brief rush of images passing by him and Empath, the two Smurfs journeyed a bit further into the timeline to see Hefty and Smurfette enjoying doing things together that Smurfette herself would not find herself doing: playing all kinds of sports, going on jogging runs with Duncan and Tuffy following along. It seemed unusual for most of the other Smurfs to see Hefty and Smurfette being together all the time, even when it's not doing anything strenuous, as sometimes Hefty and Smurfette would enjoy sitting together holding hands and watching things going on in the forest. Papa Smurf could see that Smurfette was becoming more and more interested in wanting to be with Hefty in the same way that she wanted to be with Empath that he could only wonder when either of them would ask that important question.

Then came a day when every Smurf was summoned around the speaking mushroom for an important announcement, only to find that it was Hefty and Smurfette who called forth an assembly to make the announcement. Every Smurf was eager to find out what the two of them wanted.

"Fellow Smurfs, I am glad to have you all smurf here today for this important moment in my life that you are about to witness," Hefty said, as he lifted up a small box for every Smurf to see. He then jumped down from the speaking mushroom and knelt down before Smurfette, opening up the box to reveal a shiny gold ring with a glistening diamond set upon it -- the sight of which made every Smurf gasp in wonder.

"Smurfette, you have made me a very happy Smurf for the past few years that we have been smurfing together," Hefty began, "and so with this ring, I would like to ask you an important question...will you marry me?"

Smurfette covered her mouth at the sight of the ring, and looked at Hefty who was expressing heartfelt honesty with his proposal. "Oh, Hefty, I just don't know what to say," Smurfette answered.

"Just tell him yes, Smurfette," one of the Smurfs in the crowd said. And then most of the other Smurfs were also pleading for Smurfette to say yes.

Smurfette came down from the speaking mushroom to join Hefty as he continued to kneel before her with the ring. "I would be pleased to accept your ring and to be called Mrs. Hefty Smurf," she finally said.

Hefty slipped the ring onto Smurfette's hand, and then the two of them embraced as the entire village clapped and cheered for the newly-announced engaged couple. "I just love happy moments like this," Weepy said while he was crying.

"I just hate happy moments like this," Grouchy said.

Then suddenly Tracker approached the crowd, crying out, "Prepare yourselves for a goblin invasion, my fellow Smurfs...they're smurfing down from the sky!"

"A goblin invasion?" Papa Smurf said, wondering what's going on. And then he saw it for himself...a swarm of winged goblins all flying through the air and ready to swoop down upon the Smurfs. "Great Smurfness! Every Smurf, run for your smurfs!"

"Michty me, laddies, we'd better get every Smurf to safety while we keep the goblins from smurfing off with anybody," Duncan advised.

"Smurfette, you'd be better look after the Smurflings and Baby Smurf, make sure the goblins don't smurf after them," Hefty said.

Smurfette nodded with understanding. She quickly picked up a quarterstaff as she raced over to where the Smurflings were fleeing to with Puppy and had them carry Baby Smurf into the forest while she used the staff to fend off the goblins that got too close to the group.

"Creeping caterpillars, where's Hefty?" Sassette asked as soon as the Smurflings got themselves into the forest.

"I don't know, but I'm not leaving the village without finding him," Smurfette said. "Take Baby Smurf with you as far into the forest as you can and don't smurf for anyone."

"Holy hickory nuts, be careful, Smurfette," Nat cried out before he and the other Smurflings set off into the forest with Baby Smurf and Puppy.

Meanwhile, Hefty, Tuffy, and Duncan were doing the best they can with their quarterstaffs to keep the goblins off them and the other Smurfs as much as possible, but more and more of their fellow Smurfs were being snatched away by the goblins until there were just the three of them. "Boy, those goblins sure don't give up trying to smurf us up with the other Smurfs," Tuffy said as the last of the goblins flew off.

"Never mind them, laddie," Duncan said. "Let's find out where those goblins are taking the other Smurfs so we can go and rescue them."

"I just hope Smurfette got out of here with the Smurflings," Hefty said.

To be expanded...