The Enchanted Evergreen/Part 4

"This one is curious to know who you were thinking of among the Smurfs who would help you in dealing with the dilemma of this Evil Marduk's demand," Polaris said.

"I won't smurf you in suspense, Polaris...it was Painter," Timber said. "From what Narrator could tell, Painter was busy in the Smurf Village helping to smurf up ornaments for the Solstice tree by smurfing small pinecones in various colors of paint with his fellow Smurfs. It was around that time that he received the message from me."

And as Timber's story continued, Polaris saw Painter and a few other Smurfs with a pile of pinecones, dipping each one of them in a bucket of paint by using a stick and fishing line to lower the pinecone into the paint without touching it.

"Uh, how long are we supposed to smurf the pinecone into the paint for?" Clumsy asked.

"Painter says that we should smurf it in for only about a minute or so, Clumsy," Brainy said. "But frankly, I don't smurf what the point is for smurfing it in there for so long."

"The paint is supposed to coat the entire pinecone, M'sieu Brainy," Painter said. "There is no point in smurfing the job halfway through when every pinecone needs to be smurfed perfectly."

"Well, I can't wait to be smurfing up presents for all my fellow Smurfs this year after this is smurfed," Jokey said laughing.

"I pretty much know what you're going to be smurfing every Smurf this year, Jokey, and I'm not going to be fooled one bit," Brainy said.

"Oh really?" Jokey said. "Then maybe I will really surprise you."

"I just only wish our parent Smurfs were still here with us this year for the Winter Solstice, Brainy," Clumsy said.

"I undersmurf how you feel, Clumsy, I do," Brainy said. "But Papa Smurf says that as long as we still have each other, we are still going to be a family."

"You never stop smurfing about Papa Smurf now, do you, Brainy?" Jokey asked.

"It's only because I am his special son in this village, Jokey, the one that he first adopted out of all the Smurfs among our peers," Brainy said. "And who knows, there may be something more to this relationship that I smurf with Papa Smurf than he would smurf on, and I am eager to wait and smurf out what it truly is at the appropriate time."

"M'sieu Clumsy, watch where you're smurfing with that pinecone of yours!" Painter warned as he saw Clumsy take his pinecone out of the bucket of paint and swing the stick so that it was now dripping paint all over Painter.

"Uh, sorry, Painter, I just got so distracted by that stork that's smurfing down next to us," Clumsy said, looking up toward the sky.

"A stork smurfing down to us?" Painter said, sounding curious. He also looked and saw that Clumsy was looking at: a stork that was landing next to them, carrying a message written on tree bark in its beak.

"What's that stork smurfing here?" Jokey wondered. "Is some Smurf in danger?"

"It's obvious to see that it's delivering a message to one of us, Jokey," Brainy said. "I'm only curious to find out who that message is for."

Painter took the message out of the stork's beak and read it. "Sacre bleu, that message is for me!" he exclaimed. "Dear Painter, please smurf a sack and a can of gold paint with you when you smurf back here to the island. I'll explain what we need it for. Signed, Timber. It figures that M'sieu Timber would need my artistic talents for something, if only I knew what exactly."

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Clumsy said.

"We should smurf Papa Smurf about this matter before we smurf anything that we will end up regretting, my fellow Smurfs," Brainy suggested.

"I don't think this matter can wait, M'sieu Brainy," Painter said. "I must smurf those things to Timber as soon as possible. You smurf over this job until I return."

"But...but...but...," Brainy tried to protest while he watched Painter head off in another direction.

"Gosh, I could only wonder what Timber needs to smurf with a sack and a can of gold paint," Clumsy said.

"I smurf you anything that Timber is going to smurf a joke on somebody, you just wait," Jokey said laughing.

Brainy sighed. "We won't know until both Timber and Painter return. Let's just keep smurfing this job until we're finished."

To be expanded on.