A Wild Winter Solstice/Part 5

"That was sweet of Wild to do while you were incapacitated, Empath," Smurfette said. "But the other Smurfs must have been worried sick about not finding you during that time."

"That's what this smurf had heard, Smurfette," Empath said. "This smurf spent days being healed, and slowly this smurf was regaining mobility, which really made the Smurfs feel frustrated in not being able to find this smurf, especially Papa Smurf since this was the first time in years that he had been with this smurf since our separation years ago in Psychelia."

"But you did get healed and you did eventually smurf back home in time for the Winter Solstice," Smurfette said. "I would want to hear about how that happened."

"Just be patient, and this smurf will tell you," Empath said. "Anyway, it was several days later, according to the other Smurfs, when they still couldn't find a trace of this smurf in the forest, and Papa Smurf's faith was severely being tested, but Tapper wasn't going to give up."

And as Empath continued his story, Smurfette saw in his mind the point in the story where it was several days later, when Papa Smurf waited at the end of the day for Tracker to return from his usual airborne search through the forest only to come home and say that he found nothing. Papa Smurf's face felt heavy with sorrow, as if he was coming to the realization that he may be losing Empath all over again.

Late at night, when most of the Smurfs were asleep in their quarters, Papa Smurf was still up at night, sitting in his chair and looking at an old hand-drawn picture of his wife Lillithina, feeling sad that she couldn't be there at that moment to comfort him during his time of loss. The first time they lost Empath was bad enough for her to take, but it felt even worse as if he was going to experience the loss all over again.

Then he heard a knocking on his door. He opened it and found that it was Tapper, all dressed up in his robe and nightgown. "May I enter to smurf something with you tonight, Papa Smurf?" Tapper asked.

Papa Smurf allowed Tapper to enter, so he pulled up a chair to sit by the fireplace with Papa Smurf. "What smurfs to be on your mind tonight, Tapper?" Papa Smurf asked.

"The same thing that smurfs to be on everybody's mind, Papa Smurf...wondering where Empath is and what he's smurfing, if he is still alive," Tapper answered.

"That's just what I was thinking, whether he is still alive tonight," Papa Smurf said. "I feel like I'm losing a special child that smurfed more to me in this world than any of you."

"I'm sure Empath is special to all of us in more ways than one, Papa Smurf," Tapper said. "But I feel in my spirit that Empath is still alive, being smurfed over by a guardian angel who has been smurfed by the Almighty to take care of him."

"You believe that this guardian angel is protecting Empath?" Papa Smurf asked.

"As surely as the Almighty is my witness, Papa Smurf," Tapper said. "I can sense that the Almighty is protecting him for a very special time in his life when he will smurf deliverance to his fellow Smurfs from a very powerful evil that would threaten to destroy us all."

"The Almighty has smurfed you this?" Papa Smurf asked, sounding a bit incredulous.

"Only He knows the exact details of how it's going to happen, Papa Smurf," Tapper said. "All I can smurf to you right you is not to lose hope, for the Almighty will bring Empath safely home at the due time appointed. We just need to continue to believe that we will see Empath again."

Papa Smurf sighed. "You seem to have more faith in this Almighty than even I do in anything at this point, Tapper."

"I'm just simply smurfing what I can as a humble servant of the Almighty, Papa Smurf," Tapper said. "This is all His smurfing, and He will smurf it to pass without fail. The One who has our lives in the smurf of His hands can never lie about that."

Papa Smurf reached out and touched Tapper's shoulder. "Thank you for your words of encouragement, Tapper. I guess that's just what I needed to hear right now."

To be expanded on.