The Orb Of Inspiration/Part 3

The following day, Smurfette and Jokey were arriving from the forest carrying a bunch of purple flowers that they have picked together.

"Oh, how I love picking flowers out in the forest, and these will make such beautiful Spring Day bouquets," Smurfette asked.

"Would you like me to box them for you as well?" Jokey asked.

Smurfette giggled. "No thanks, Jokey."

"Just thought I would ask, Smurfette," Jokey said. "So what are you hoping to smurf with Empath during the pageant?"

"What do you mean by that, Jokey?" Smurfette asked.

"Well, it's no big secret that the two of you have been seen smurfing time together over the past year since he smurfed home for good," Jokey said.

"Really, Jokey, that's not any of your business what Empath and I smurf together," Smurfette said.

"Me and Sneaky are betting that by the end of the year, you and Empath are going to be married," Jokey said. "What do you have to smurf about that?"

"I think this is one bet you're both going to lose, Jokey," Smurfette said.

"Well, don't say that we didn't smurf you if that ever happens," Jokey said.

Just then, they heard Farmer crying "WHEEEEEEE" as he was riding straight towards them on the back of Puppy, sowing his seeds here and there. Jokey and Smurfette barely ducked out of the way as Farmer rode right past them and dumped seeds on them.

"Hey, that's not very funny," Jokey shouted.

Meanwhile, Harmony is making the musicians play his music so loud and so fast that they can barely keep up. Grouchy felt exhausted trying to keep blowing his tuba to the fast pace. "I hate really fast music," he muttered.

"Gosh, Harmony, I can hardly follow the notes anymore," Clumsy said as he tried to keep up with his playing the xylophone.

"Forget about the notes!" Harmony said, tossing the music sheets aside. "Just keep playing louder and faster!"

Elsewhere, Tapper was just approaching Painter as he was working like mad, splashing all sorts of colors everywhere on the canvas. "So what do you think, Tapper?" Painter asked. "It's all coming together, no?"

"Great Smurfiny Crickets, I could say that it's all running together," Tapper exclaimed, seeing the mess of colors on the canvas.

"I'm experimenting with a new smurf of art," Painter explained. He gasped as he saw something on the canvas. "Ah, I've missed a spot! Stand back, mon ami!" He picked up a bucket of purple paint and hurled its contents right onto the canvas, splattering Tapper's face in the process. "Now that is perfection!"

Tapper walked away looking really concerned. "This is getting a wee bit out of hand! I need to go tell Papa Smurf about this!" - Empath was already with Papa Smurf, telling him what he discovered about the magic orb Poet had possessed. "Are you certain that it's the Orb Of Euphoria?" Papa Smurf asked.

"It is the very same object from the book, Papa Smurf," Empath answered. "We need to destroy it so that the other Smurfs can't touch it."

"Very well then, Empath," Papa Smurf said. "Fortunately I still have the orb smurfed away in my laboratory."

But when Empath and Papa Smurf entered the laboratory and opened the case, they found out that it was empty. "Great Smurfness!" Papa Smurf exclaimed.

"This smurf senses that this case was empty all along, Papa Smurf," Empath said. "Whoever took the case with the orb must have swapped it for this."

"I know who was responsible, Empath," Papa Smurf said, sounding a bit angry. "It's time that we smurfed this problem in the bud once and for all." - Meanwhile, Hefty was watching Handy work like crazy on the pageant stage that looked like it was built haphazardly.

"It looks real nice, Handy, but if you nail down the curtains, how are we supposed to open and close them?" Hefty commented as he jumped onto the stage to inspect the work.

"I'll figure that out later, Hefty," Handy shouted. "Just leave me alone, okay?"

"There's no need to get mad, Handy," Hefty said. "I was just going to..."

Suddenly the floor of the stage collapsed under Hefty, sending him falling through the floor.

"Oh, no! Look what you've done!" Handy shouted as he climbed down the ladder and saw the hole in the floor of the stage.

"What I've done? You didn't built a stage strong enough!" Hefty shouted back.

"Oh dear...more work!" Handy shouted, sounding rather flustered.

"Hey, where are you going?" Hefty asked as he watched his brother leave the work area.

"Don't worry, Hefty, I'll be back to fix everything," Handy shouted.

Hefty decided that he was going to follow Handy to get to the bottom of this. As he followed his brother, he saw that he and Farmer had gathered around Poet's house. They both had really bloodshot eyes and looked like they were going to collapse. "Boy oh smurf, do I really need some more of that energy," Handy said to Farmer.

"Sweet mother of smurf, I could smurf more of it myself," Farmer replied.

The door opened, and Poet greeted the both of them, also with bloodshot eyes. "Come in," he whispered.

"Just as I have thought," Hefty said as he watched the two Smurfs enter Poet's house.

Poet removed the tablecloth that he had hidden the Orb Of Inspiration under. "It's getting so that I can't smurf two lines without needing more of it," Poet explained as he opened the case.

"My smurfness, its glow is weakening," Handy noticed.

"Is it running out of energy?" Farmer asked.

"What shall we do if that happens?" Poet asked.

"Why don't we find out!" another voice broke in. The three Smurfs watched as Hefty rushed into the house to grab the orb. "I think you Smurfs had enough of this thing!" He then hurled the orb into the fireplace, where it was destroyed.

"THE ORB OF INSPIRATION!" Harmony shouted as he and Painter just entered the house to witness its destruction.

"QU'AVEZ-VOUS FAIT?" Painter exclaimed, as he and the other three Smurfs ganged up on Hefty, ready to let him have it.

"You Smurfs better watch it!" Hefty responded, already swinging his fists. "This is Hefty Smurf you're dealing with!"