|
Author
|
Topic: "The Smurf Of Solomon" (full story)
|
Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 07:51 AM
Here is one of my Bible-based EMPATH: The Luckiest Smurf stories. Enjoy!
-----
Chapter 1
One day in the Smurf Village, Smurfette was out by the memorial park reading to herself while watching Baby Smurf. Most of the other Smurfs were busy with their own things, so they paid no attention to what Smurfette was doing all by herself.
"'Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth; for your love is better than wine'," she read aloud. "'Because of the fragrance of your good ointments, your name is ointment poured forth; therefore the virgins love you. Draw me away!'"
"Hi there, Smurfette," Sassette said as she came over with her pet frog. "What are you doing today?"
"Oh, I'm just watching over Baby Smurf while reading Tapper's holy book, Sassette," Smurfette said.
"Tapper's holy book?" Sassette said. "Is there a story in it that you're reading right now?"
"Uh...why, yes, Sassette, there is," Smurfette said. "It's such a wonderful story of romance that I can't smurf it down."
"Gallopin' grasshoppers, Smurfette, can you read it to me?" Sassette asked, sounding very excited. "Huh? Can you, pretty please?"
"I'm sorry, Sassette, but I'm afraid you're too young for this story," Smurfette said.
"Aw, gee, I'm always too young for things you adults smurf for granted," Sassette said, sounding sad as she walked away with her frog.
Smurfette sighed as she watched Sassette walk off. She never liked having to send her sister Smurf away by things she would rather not share with any other Smurf, but what she was reading in Tapper's holy book sounded too personal and too adult for Sassette's ears to listen to.
"'We will run after you'," she continued to read. "'The king has brought me into his chambers. We will be glad and rejoice in you. We will remember your love more than wine. Rightly do they love you.'"
Meanwhile, Empath was visiting Tapper in his distillery as he was brewing a new batch of sarsaparilla ale. Empath noticed that Tapper was singing a very different song from what he was used to hearing from the village bartender.
"Great Ancestors, Tapper, you're in a happier mood than this smurf usually sees you in," Empath commented. "This smurf wonders what's going on with you."
"Aye, it's one of those days that I smurf from my prayer and worship sessions that I feel that the Almighty has smurfed me with His love, Empath," Tapper said. "It's the kind of joy you get that can't be desmurfed in words."
"You actually feel that this Almighty expresses His love toward you, Tapper?" Empath asked.
"I already know that He does, from the fact that He has smurfed me His Son so that anyone who believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life in Him," Tapper said. "But sometimes I feel that kind of love in a more tangible way, as words alone cannot make me feel what He has done for me."
"So how does this Almighty express His love toward you?" Empath asked.
"He speaks to me in my heart, Empath, things that I need to smurf from Him in order to be the kind of Smurf that He wants me to be," Tapper said. "The more I smurf down my life to become His child, His servant, the more He opens Himself up to me and reveals the kind of God He truly is."
"This Almighty seems very...intimate in His expression of His love toward you, Tapper, from what this smurf is sensing," Empath said.
"Indeed He is, Empath," Tapper said. "He knows everything about me, the things that I smurf through on a daily basis, all my faults and weaknesses. There isn't a day where I wouldn't want to smurf my soul out to Him and smurf him everything that is in my heart, about how I wish my fellow Smurfs would be just like Him. I don't know where I would ever be without Him in my life."
"Sometimes this smurf feels like about this smurf's fellow Smurfs, and also about this smurf's friend Polaris," Empath said. "This smurf feels so close to every Smurf and to Polaris that it would make losing them a painful moment in this smurf's life."
"I would imagine it would, Empath," Tapper said. "But you know that the Almighty will always be there for you, waiting to resmurf you with open arms when all others are gone from your life, including me."
"This smurf would never imagine what it would be like for this smurf to solely rely upon this Almighty for a loving relationship apart from this smurf's fellow Smurfs, Tapper," Empath said.
"All I can smurf to you, Empath, is that when He's all that is left for you to smurf hold of, He's all that you'll ever need," Tapper said.
Later on, as Empath helped Tapper bring kegs of the ale into the tavern, Smurfette came in with Baby Smurf. "Hello there, Tapper," she announced.
"Ah, my dear sweet Smurfette, I see that you smurfed your fill of the words from the Almighty," Tapper said.
"I just wanted to return your holy book to you, Tapper," Smurfette said. "The words in it were very inspiring to me."
"Very inspiring?" Tapper said. "The words of the Almighty are full of life and spirit, given by the breath of the Almighty Himself."
"This smurf senses that Smurfette may have been 'inspired' in a very different way, Tapper," Empath noted. "You wouldn't by any chance want to share with this smurf what it is from the holy book you have read."
"Empath, that is a very personal question to ask of anyone who smurfs from the holy book," Tapper said.
"That's right, Tapper," Smurfette said as she handed the book to Tapper. "You should know better than to ask me about things that are very personal."
"Well, since this smurf can't pry the information out of you, Smurfette, then this smurf will not pursue it any further," Empath said. "This smurf only hopes that you have enjoyed what it was you were reading."
"I'm sure that you can figure it out for yourself, Empath," Smurfette said. "Anyway, I've got things to smurf with Baby Smurf now. I'll smurf you later."
Empath and Tapper watched Smurfette leave the tavern. "I'm very ashamed of you, Empath, that you would stoop to smurfing like Nosey in smurfing about things that are none of your smurfness."
"This smurf's job as the assistant counselor is to have Smurfs reveal things about themselves in private sessions that they don't want others to know about, and to keep their issues with confidentiality unless it warrants having to tell Papa Smurf about them, Tapper," Empath said. "But what this smurf was sensing from Smurfette was some kind of intimate pleasure coming from somewhere other than this smurf."
"So why not just let the matter pass, Empath?" Tapper asked.
"It's hard for this smurf to let the matter pass when this smurf is so curious about what makes you so enamored about this Almighty that the holy book even talks about, Tapper," Empath said. "There's something she read in that book that makes this smurf curious as to her behavior."
"I would suggest that the only way for you to find out what it is that has smurfed her interest is for you to read the holy book yourself," Tapper said.
"This smurf has read the holy book enough times already, Tapper," Empath said. "Why would this smurf need to read it now?"
"It's just what I'm smurfing in my spirit about what Smurfette wants you to find out, Empath," Tapper said, handing the book to Empath.
And so Empath spent the night in his bedroom reading through the holy book again. As Empath read every word, verse, and chapter, he felt drawn to skip through the books that were in the book when he came across the name of King Solomon. He knew that he was one of the authors who was responsible for writing Proverbs and Ecclesiastes because of the wisdom that the Almighty had blessed him with. But there was something more about Solomon that he needed to find out about.
It was through his reading that he found one of the books that was called the Song of Solomon. He read it one time and found it to be the most explicit form of love poetry ever written by anyone, even more so than anything Poet Smurf himself would write about Smurfette.
Then as Empath read through the book, he realized that this must have been the book Smurfette was drawn to reading. She must have pictured herself as being the Shulamite woman whom her beloved, King Solomon, was after and that she herself had desired.
He felt like he had to talk to Smurfette personally about this.
--------------------
VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA
"Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4102 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
|
|
Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 07:54 AM
Chapter 2
The following day, Smurfette is out with Vanity working on the community beds, planting new flowers to replace old ones. While she was doing that, she found herself hearing verses she read from Tapper's holy book being spoken in her head:
How beautiful is your love, My sister, my spouse! How much better than wine is your love, and the scent of your ointments than all spices!
Your lips, O my spouse, drip as the honeycomb; honey and milk are under your tongue; and the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
A bolted enclosed garden is my sister, my spouse; a spring locked up, a fountain sealed.
Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates with excellent fruits, fragrant henna with spikenard,
spikenard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense, myrrh and aloes, with all the chief balsam;
a fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon.
"Awake, O north wind, and come, O south!" Smurfette said. "Blow upon my garden, that its spices may flow out. Let my beloved come to his garden and eat its excellent fruits."
"Smurfette, who are you smurfing to?" Vanity asked, noticing how distracted Smurfette appeared.
"Oh, nobody in particular, Vanity," Smurfette answered. "Just some character that I smurfed from a book."
"This wouldn't happen to be Don Smurfo again now, wouldn't it?" Vanity asked, sounding curious.
"Oh no, Vanity...this character is much different," Smurfette said. "He's so radiant and ruddy, that he stands out among the ten thousand."
"Then I would have to say that it's Prince Theodore, whom you have smurfed as a frog a few years ago," Vanity said.
"He is a king, I can smurf you that," Smurfette said. "He smurfs on a bed, with sixty Smurfs surrounding him, the best Smurfs of Israel. He smurfs out of the wilderness like columns of smoke, like the smoke of sacrifices of myrrh and frankincense, of all the fragrant powders of the merchant."
"This king smurfs too good to be true, Smurfette," Vanity said. "Do you think you will even meet him?"
"Oh, I just hope so, Vanity," Smurfette said, finding herself swooning. "He thinks that I am as beautiful as Tirzah, lovely as Jerusalem, awesome as an army with banners!"
Vanity pondered for a moment. "Well, I have no idea what any of that means, but I hope Empath doesn't become jealous because you have smurfed somebody else more fascinating than him."
Smurfette paid no attention to anything else Vanity had said about this character she read about or anything else. She felt like she wanted to meet this king who has attracted her attention and called her to himself.
"Empath, you appear to be distracted from your duties as the assistant counselor," Polaris noted.
Empath realized that his mind has been what he had read from Tapper's holy book than on what his friend was telling him. "This smurf apologizes, Polaris, for not listening to you about important village matters."
"This one senses that your mind is upon the literature that you have borrowed from Tapper Smurf, this 'Song of Solomon' that has captured your attention," Polaris said.
"You are correct, Polaris," Empath said. "This smurf cannot get the thought of what Smurfette was supposedly reading out of this smurf's mind."
"Is it possible that Smurfette's amorous interest has been drawn to a fictional charcter that is part of that story, Empath?" Polaris asked.
"This smurf knows that she's interested in the character of Don Smurfo for reasons different than this smurf's interest in the same character, Polaris," Empath said. "However, there's something about this King Solomon, one of the two main characters in this story, that may have captured her interest."
"May this one wish to know who this King Solomon is, Empath?" Polaris asked.
"According to Tapper's holy book, he's the king of Israel who succeeded his father King David," Empath answered. "Before he took the throne, Solomon was asked of the Almighty what he wanted, and Solomon asked for great wisdom to rule the people of the Almighty with. And so he was blessed not only with great wisdom, but also with great wealth and honor, and with this he had the first temple built unto the Almighty so that they could make sacrifices unto Him and call upon His name."
"So this King Solomon must be like the Psyche Master among the humans?" Polaris asked.
"Not exactly, but he was well sought after for his wisdom, and he became richer and richer over the years," Empath answered. "However, his heart was led away from the Almighty as he sought after marrying so many wives, including those that worshiped other gods."
"It would seem that the power this human has accumulated from this Almighty has corrupted him," Polaris said.
"That would be this smurf's assessment of what this smurf read from the holy book, Polaris," Empath said. "Tapper believes that the Almighty has made man and woman to be monogamous so that they would learn fidelity not only to each other, but also to the Almighty, and that polygamy is one of man's attempts to be like the Almighty, to have power over so many women."
"It is oddly fascinating to discover that savage beings like humans would use physical intimacy as a means for accumulating and controlling other people," Polaris commented.
"Hearing things like this makes this smurf's skin crawl, Polaris," Empath said. "Tapper himself is appalled to find that even noble kings like David would stoop to having harems that the Almighty had warned His people about."
"So why would Smurfette be drawn to this king whose heart isn't steadfast upon a single mate?" Polaris asked.
"This smurf really doesn't know, Polaris," Empath said. "It's something this smurf hopes to ask her in private."
Later on at Tapper's Tavern, Tapper was having a private conversation with Hefty while he was sitting at the counter drinking his Vita-Juice.
"What's with Smurfette reading your holy book all of a sudden?" Hefty asked. "Is she interested in smurfing this Almighty that you smurf about all the time?"
"Smurfette's reasons for smurfing the book are her own, Hefty, and I would not want to smurf things about her that are strictly between her and me," Tapper said. "Nonetheless, she is free to read the book and explore questions about what she's reading if smurfing out the Almighty is her desire."
"Yeah, well, don't think you will catch me smurfing from that book, Tapper," Hefty said. "I think the whole thing is a bunch of made-up stories just to control people's minds."
"The stories in the holy book are not all 'made up', Hefty...every single word smurfs from the Almighty Himself, just the way He wants it to be smurfed," Tapper said. "And those stories are not smurfed to control people's minds, but to educate them, to make them aware of Someone much greater than themselves or even any of the gods that smurf in this world or beyond it."
"I don't need 'someone much greater' to control how I choose to smurf my life, Tapper," Hefty said.
"You wouldn't even have a life if there wasn't 'someone much greater' to smurf it into existence, my fellow Hefty," Tapper said.
"I know who smurfed me into this life, Tapper...my own Papa and Mama Smurf," Hefty said.
"Your parents only smurfed the necessary components for smurfing a new life, the egg and the seed, but only the Almighty can unite them together and make a living being from that," Tapper said.
"Well, thanks for the biology lesson, Tapper...I still don't buy that this Almighty is responsible for me being smurfed into existence," Hefty said, taking another sip of his juice.
"I will not stop praying for you, Hefty," Tapper said. "You're a good Smurf despite all your faults, and I would hate to see you perish along with the rest of the world."
Hefty nodded but didn't say anything more. Tapper took it as a sign to end the discussion and turned his attention toward Empath as he arrived with the holy book.
"So, my fellow Empath, have you discovered what it is that Smurfette may have been reading?" Tapper asked, receiving the book from Empath.
"This smurf has a pretty good idea, Tapper," Empath said. "What makes this smurf curious is why she would be attracted to a particular character in this 'Song Of Solomon'."
"That story is quite a fascinating part of the holy book, Empath," Tapper said. "Why the Almighty would allow such a story to be part of it is a question you'll need to answer for yourself."
"You think there may be something more to it than just a simple shepherd girl and a king with many wives being attracted to each other, Tapper?" Empath asked.
"I believe there is, Empath, but as I said, it's something you'll have to answer for yourself," Tapper said.
"This smurf would pretty much want to ask Smurfette, but this smurf senses that she would rather be private about this matter and not even reveal it to this smurf," Empath said.
"Then perhaps there is a way you can explore the answer together," Tapper said.
Meanwhile, Duncan arrived in the tavern with Smurfette. "This lassie's been smurfing my ear off, Empath," Duncan said. "I was just wondering if you would be so kind as to smurf her off my hands, dear boy."
"Oh, you just love listening to me, Duncan," Smurfette said, laughing.
"And I would wonder about the kind of things Smurfette would be smurfing to you about, my fellow Duncan," Tapper said.
"Just some character in a book she's been smurfing, this King Solomon," Duncan said. "I don't know what she even smurfs in him that she doesn't smurf in Empath."
"You know that it's Smurfette's private matters, and if she wishes to divulge any information, she will only smurf so at her own discretion," Tapper said. "So what may I get you this fine evening?"
"A tall glass of the finest sarsaparilla ale, if you don't mind," Duncan requested.
"Aye, a tall glass it is, then," Tapper said, filling up a mug with the frosty brown foaming liquid before handing it to his friend.
"So what was gotten you so attracted to this character from that part of Tapper's holy book that has captured your attention, Smurfette, if this smurf is permitted to ask?" Empath inquired.
"Oh, just something that I'm not very comfortable to share with you yet, Empath," Smurfette said.
"You're almost making this smurf feel jealous that there's someone else in your life besides this smurf, Smurfette," Empath said.
"It's not like that, Empath," Smurfette said. "It's just something...very personal. Something that really smurfs to the heart of me."
"You mean like a religion or something?" Empath asked.
"I'm sorry, Empath, I just can't smurf to you about it," Smurfette said. "Please don't smurf the issue any further, okay?"
"If that's how you feel about it, Smurfette, this smurf will leave you in peace about the issue," Empath said. "But if you want to talk about it, you know that this smurf will be ready to listen."
"I think I'm just going to call it a night and smurf back to my house," Smurfette said. "Have a good night, boys. I'll smurf you in the morning."
Empath, Tapper, and Duncan watched Smurfette leave the tavern. "That Smurfette is certainly being so secretive around you, Empath," Duncan said.
"This smurf senses that feeling about her, Duncan," Empath said. "It's like she wants to communicate her feelings, but she isn't sure how this smurf will take what she has to say, particularly about this character in a book she's reading."
"If she's smurfing for the Almighty, you should know that it is a personal matter, Empath," Tapper said. "There may be things that only the Almighty may be able to help her with that you with all your abilities are incapable of smurfing."
"So this smurf may be competing with this Almighty for her attention and her affections, Tapper?" Empath asked.
"The holy book does say that He is a jealous god who doesn't like anyone smurfing any other gods before Him, Empath," Tapper said.
"I still think you should find out just what it is about this King Solomon of that book she's been smurfing that has smurfed her heart away from you, Empath," Duncan said.
"But how?" Empath asked.
Tapper thought about it for a minute. "I believe there may be a way for you to know for sure, Empath."
--------------------
VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA
"Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4102 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
|
|
|
|
Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 07:58 AM
Chapter 3
The following day, Empath met Tapper inside the Imaginarium for something important.
"What you are about to enter, my fellow Empath, is a fantasy setting based on the Song Of Solomon," Tapper said. "Here, you will be playing the part of King Solomon, who is smurfing out the Shulamite girl. Now, the important thing is to learn everything about the character from the setting and try to smurf within the character as much as possible so you will discover the cues you will need to find the Shulamite girl and to marry her."
"This smurf feels rather uncomfortable with the idea of playing a polygamist, Tapper," Empath said. "This smurf does not want to do anything that would make Smurfette think that this smurf has made myself impure."
"I'm not saying that you should defile yourself even with the imaginary wives of your character, Empath," Tapper said. "However, you should treat these wives in the same manner as you would treat Smurfette as your wife, with utmost care and respect. You are, after all, going to be playing a king, and most importantly, the king of Israel who serves the Almighty night and day in all things."
"This smurf understands and acknowledges, Tapper," Empath said. "This smurf is ready to begin."
"Then I will leave you to start the fantasy setting," Tapper said. "When Smurfette arrives, I will smurf her what she will need to know."
Empath nodded with acceptance. After Tapper left the Imaginarium, Empath stood before the main crystal in the center of the room. "Imaginarium, take this smurf to the start of Tapper's fantasy setting," he requested.
The crystals shone bright until the entire room disappeared in a white flash, and then suddenly Empath found himself lying down on a luxurious bed in a chamber that looked like it belonged in a grand palace. He looked at himself and saw that he was dressed in a fine linen nightgown with a gold sash around his waist, and wearing a gold star-patterned hat with a crown. Next to him on either side were two female Smurfs that were sitting on the bed, looking down upon him.
"Good morning, your Lordship," one of the Smurfettes said. "How did you sleep last night?"
Empath decided to play along, at least until he can get away from the multiple wives and concubines in the story. "Oh, well, this smurf slept like a king. This smurf appreciates your company."
"You are the king of Israel, my lord," the other Smurfette said. "We are here to serve you as we would serve Jehovah God, as your humble servants."
"Is there anything you need from us, my king?" the first Smurfette asked.
Empath got himself up from the bed. "Well, this smurf would like to be dressed in his royal vestments."
"Of course, your worship," the second Smurfette said. "The master of the wardrobe should be appearing soon."
Soon a Smurf resembling Tailor wearing royal court robes appeared. "I believe that this is the time for my king to be properly dressed," he announced as he carried the king's vestments.
"This smurf appreciates the honor," Empath said as he received the vestments.
"Oh, please, your lordship, let us do the honors of preparing you for your day," the first Smurfette said, taking the vestments from Empath.
"That would not be necessary, my servant," Empath said. "This smurf is quite capable of dressing myself."
"But you are our king," the second Smurfette said. "We insist that you let us treat you with honor and respect as we would our God."
Empath sighed with resignation, realizing that this is part of playing along with the fantasy setting's character. He allowed the Smurfettes to remove the nightgown and to dress him in his proper royal robe with a gold sash and a cape. He felt rather uneasy with the attention his fantasy setting servants were giving him.
Empath then saw himself in the reflection of a mirror in the bedroom. He saw that he truly looked the part of a king, even more of a king than he saw how Brainy looked when he was King Smurf, or how Dreamy remembered being king of the Pookies.
"You have both done a fine job," Empath said to the two Smurfette servants. "This smurf greatly commends your efforts."
"You deserve our best, your Highness," one of the Smurfettes said as they both bowed down before him. "We are yours to do whatever you wish from us."
Empath stepped out of his bedchamber and entered the grand hallway of what he assumed was King Solomon's royal palace. Even though he was playing the part of a king, he felt rather humbled by the appearance of the very palace that his character was supposedly living in.
"You have awakened from your bedchamber, Your Highness," a character who resembled Polaris Psyche that was playing a royal adviser greeted him. "How was your resting period?"
"This smurf is amazed to have gotten any sleep with all these wives and concubines at this smurf's beck and call, but this smurf has slept remarkably well given the circumstances," Empath replied.
"This one is here to make sure you will attend the morning sacrifice at the Lord's temple, and that you will bring the required daily sacrifice," the royal advisor commented.
"Then this smurf trusts that you will fill this smurf in on what is required for this smurf to make the daily sacrifices that will be pleasing to the Almighty," Empath answered.
"That is what this one is assigned to do, Your Highness," the royal advisor said, nodding without smiling. "This one will take you to the royal stables where you will receive the animals from your stable hands."
"Then, by all means, lead this smurf to the stables," Empath said as he followed the royal adviser.
Later on, Smurfette appeared outside the Imaginarium, where she found Tapper waiting for her. "You've actually smurfed up the scenario, Tapper?" she asked.
"I have created it to the best of my ability in trying to smurf it to be as accurate as the Almighty would have wanted it, though I may have smurfed some artistic license in some areas, and hopefully I will be forgiven for that," Tapper answered.
"So where will I appear when I start smurfing the scenario?" Smurfette asked, sounding curious.
"You will be playing the Shulamite woman, Smurfette, and as that character you will obviously be playing a Hebrew peasant woman in that particular culture," Tapper said. "Don't be surprised at where you will find yourself, is all I will smurf you."
"I'm ready to smurf this a try," Smurfette said, sounding eager. "Thank you for smurfing it up for me."
"It's always a pleasure, my dear Smurfette," Tapper said as she gave him a kiss on the cheek that made him feel a bit rosy.
Smurfette entered the Imaginarium and said, "Please smurf me into the Song of Solomon scenario that Tapper has created."
And suddenly with a flash of a bright light, Smurfette found herself dressed in a robe and shawl, standing in what appears to be a simple abode made of earth materials. The furnishings in the room looked rather primitive and a bit less cozy than her own bedroom in the Smurf Village.
"Well, if the Shulamite is supposed to smurf like this, then I might as well just smurf the role," Smurfette said to herself.
"Salome! Where are you?" a voice that sounded like Papa Smurf called out.
Smurfette watched as a robed figure that resembled Papa Smurf had entered the room. "Papa!" she exclaimed.
"Why aren't you out in the vineyards collecting grapes like you're supposed to?" Salome's father asked sternly. "Your brothers have been smurfing all the work, and you're just smurfing your days in your room smurfing Lord knows what."
"Oh, well, I didn't know that was supposed to be my job, Papa," Smurfette responded. "I'll get smurfing on it right away."
"I know you're a grown Smurfette, but you have responsibilities to your home and your family, Salome," her father said. "Someday you'll have to settle down and marry one of the people in the village, and you will provide your husband with a loving family."
"But Papa, I don't know if I want to be married to any of them," Smurfette said.
"It's what we smurfed you to be, my young dear," Salome's father said. "I have already smurfed with the other fathers in the village, and they are willing to present their sons so that you will smurf for yourself which one is the right one to marry."
"But when is it going to be that these...sons of the other villagers will be presented, Papa?" Smurfette asked.
"It will be in a few days, Salome," her father answered. "But in the meantime, you must continue with your chores and smurf your brothers a hand in the vineyards. They can't keep smurfing all of your work."
"Oh, very well, Papa," Smurfette replied, seeing a basket nearby and picking it up before heading for the door.
"Don't worry about your future, my child," Salome's father told her in an assuring voice that sounded much like Papa Smurf saying the same thing. "In time, the Almighty will bless you with sons and daughters of your own to smurf care of you in your old age."
Sons and daughters, Smurfette thought to herself as she went into the vineyards with her basket. She could imagine what it would be like to be able to give Empath children if that was what he desired. Being a mother to Baby Smurf seemed very easy compared to being a mother to a child that she herself would produce.
"We were wondering when our big sister is going to smurf out here and smurf some work," a voice that sounded like Snappy said in an impatient tone. "We've been smurfing this for hours."
Smurfette saw what appeared to be Salome's three brothers and her sister in the form of the Smurflings. "I'm sorry, but I don't even remember any of your names," Smurfette said.
"I'm Akan, and these are Adna and Asher, and your sister is Eden," the one who sounded like Snappy responded.
"What were you smurfing all by yourself, Salome?" Eden (who sounded like Sassette) asked, sounding curious.
"I was just getting ready for my day, Eden, that's all," Smurfette answered.
"You sure were smurfing a lot of time getting ready," Adna (who sounded like Slouchy) said. "I bet you were smurfing of your beloved again."
"You know of my beloved?" Smurfette asked.
"That's all you ever really smurf about nowadays, Salome, this beloved of yours," Asher (who sounded like Nat) said. "How he's going to smurf you off your feet and smurf you into his palace to be his queen."
"But what makes you think he's going to smurf somebody like you?" Akan said. "Look at you...you're a peasant who smurfs all her time smurfing grapes in the vineyard to make wine. And because of that, your skin is so dark, just like ours."
Smurfette looked at her hand and realized that it had turned a dark shade of blue like her character's siblings. "Great Smurfness!" she exclaimed.
"Good luck having the king of all Israel marry you," Adna said as the three brothers left the vineyard laughing to themselves.
"Oh, don't mind what they smurf, big sister," Eden said when she was alone with Smurfette. "They're just jealous of you because there's no other Smurfette in the village who's just as beautiful as you. And you know, I feel jealous of you because I only wish I were as beautiful as you right now."
"You'll become beautiful, Eden, I promise you," Smurfette said. "I just can't stop thinking of my beloved, because he's so radiant and smurfy, the best Smurf who stands out among ten thousand."
"I know he must be really handsome and all, but couldn't you be happy with any of the Smurfs in the village, who are probably just as handsome as he is?" Eden asked.
"He isn't like any of the Smurfs in the village, and that's what's making me so lovesick for him," Smurfette said. "One of these days, I'm going to meet with the king of Israel and I'm going to marry him."
"I hope so, but I only hope that it will make you happy, Salome," Eden said, sounding concerned. "With all those wives and concubines that he smurfs, I don't know if he will ever smurf any time with you."
After Eden had left the vineyard, Smurfette was all to herself playing out the role of her character. It was unbearably warm, and she couldn't think of keeping herself in her robe for too long while she was tending to the grapes.
"Tell me, O you whom I love, where you feed your flock, where you make it rest at noon. For why should I be as one who veils herself by the flocks of your companions?" she asked.
Then in response, whether from inside her head or from the Imaginarium fantasy setting itself, she heard: "If you do not know, O most beautiful among women, follow in the footsteps of the flock, and feed your young goats beside the tents of the shepherds."
"Who's that?" Smurfette asked, wondering where the voice was coming from.
"I have compared you, my love, to my filly among Pharaoh's chariots," the voice continued. "Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments, your neck with chains of gold."
"We will make you ornaments of gold with studs of silver," a chorus of female voices joined in.
Smurfette didn't know where the voices were coming from, but she felt attracted to whoever it was that was calling her. She was wondering if this was truly King Solomon speaking to her, praising her for her beauty.
--------------------
VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA
"Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4102 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
|
|
Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 08:04 AM
Chapter 4
NOTE: Part of Ecclesiastes was used in modified form in this chapter.
In the meantime, Empath was being educated in the ways of his character by his two advisers, one of which resembled Polaris Psyche and the other which resembled Brainy. It amused Empath that Tapper would have the supporting characters in the story exude personalities similar to those of his fellow Smurfs, with one adviser being plainly factual without emotion and the other just being obsequious to the point of trying to curry favor with the king, as Brainy would be desiring to do anything of importance for Papa Smurf just to be recognized among his fellow Smurfs.
Empath got a brief glimpse of the Jerusalem that was in the Imaginarium fantasy setting he was acting out, and he almost felt like he had stepped back in time to living actual history that was recorded in Tapper's holy book. Admittedly, though, some liberties had to be taken as far as its presentation, for besides the city being recreated to Smurf scale, it also had elements of the Smurf Village such as certain structures having mushroom-shaped domes. Nevertheless, Empath felt that it was authentic enough to present the story as adequately as possible.
After the morning sacrifice and a breakfast that truly made Empath feel like a king, he was taken to the Porch Of Judgment where he was to discern cases that were brought before him of various matters. This job seemed a lot like his role as the assistant counselor, having to arbitrate among his fellow Smurfs on certain disputes they have among themselves. At first it seemed like it was entertainment, but after a while of settling a dozen or more cases Empath felt like it was work and that he needed a break.
The royal adviser who resembled Polaris, whose name was Zabud son of Nathan, noticed Empath staring out into the city after all the people have been sent away. "May this one know what is unsettling you, my Lordship?" he asked.
"This smurf is the king of Israel, blessed with great wisdom and also with great wealth and honor, and yet for all that, this smurf still feels somewhat empty, as if this smurf doesn't have anything of value," Empath answered.
"What do you mean, you don't have anything of value?" the other adviser named Azariah son of Nathan asked, sounding like he couldn't believe what his liege was saying. "You have smurfed very great works since you were king. You smurfed houses for yourself, you smurfed vineyards, smurfed gardens and orchards, smurfed trees in them, of all kinds of fruit. You smurfed pools of water for yourself, to water the forest springing up with trees."
"You have bought slaves and maids, and had servants born in your house," Zabud added. "You also have more livestock, herds and flocks, than all were before you in Jerusalem. You also gathered silver and gold to yourself, and the treasure of kings and of the provinces. You have men singers and women singers for yourself, and the delights of the sons of men, wives and concubines."
"This smurf knows that by heart," Empath said. "This smurf was great and increased more than all that were before this smurf in Jerusalem; also this smurf's wisdom remained with me. And whatever this smurf's eyes desired this smurf did not keep from them. This smurf did not withhold this smurf's heart from any joy, for this smurf's heart rejoiced in all this smurf's labor, and this was my share from all this smurf's labor."
"You are the envy of all the nations, your Highness," Azariah said. "The nations smurf to you for wisdom, and there's no lack of anything for you. So why do you smurf very little of everything you have?"
"Probably because this smurf has looked upon all the labor, and has seen that it was all vanity, a grasping of the wind, a striving of spirit," Empath said. "And how many wives and concubines has this smurf accumulated in all this time?"
"At the latest record, you have 300 wives and 700 concubines, which has far exceeded those of your father King David," Zabud answered.
"All those wives and concubines...and yet they are more like servants to satisfy this smurf's desire rather than anyone this smurf really wants to be alone with for purposes other than physical intimacy," Empath said.
"But what do you want us to do with the wives and concubines you have smurfed?" Azariah asked. "They're all smurfully bound to you as one flesh, according to the Word of the Lord."
"They're more for securing allegiances with other kingdoms than anyone this smurf truly loves," Empath said. "What this smurf should do is look within this kingdom for somebody that this smurf would truly love."
"What makes you so certain you will find somebody within the kingdom that will satisfy your heart in ways that your wives and concubines are unable to?" Zabud asked.
"The one thing this smurf doesn't want to repeat is the mistake of my father King David, who only married this smurf's mother Bathsheba because he had committed adultery with her," Empath said.
"What do you mean, it was a mistake? You are the king of Israel, therefore you have the divine right to smurf whoever you wish to be your wife," Azariah said.
"Not if it violates the Lord's commandments, which would have resulted in death had it not been for His mercy upon King David," Zabud countered. "If finding the female that would satisfy you completely is important to you, then we will help you in your search and make sure that you follow the Lord's commandments completely while doing so."
"This smurf appreciates your help, the both of you," Empath said. "This smurf is going to need a chariot to take this smurf to the outer villages, preferably where the Shulamites live."
"But what do you expect to find among the Shulamites, if this one may be bold enough to ask, my liege?" Zabud asked.
"Hopefully the one whom this smurf's soul loves," Empath said, leaving the two advisers puzzled as he walked off.
In the meantime, Smurfette was leading a flock of sheep out into the pastures outside of the village of her character, trying to be discreet as possible since Salome's father told her that unmarried females shouldn't be visible to every male that would catch sight of her.
"Shall I help you smurf the flock out into the fields, fair maiden?" one of the male villagers who sounded like Tracker asked her.
"You shouldn't be smurfing alongside me, unless Papa catches me with you," Smurfette said.
"Then we'll just be smurfing in the same direction, since I'm going to be smurfing some wild herbs and flowers," her traveling companion said.
"Is anyone sick in the village?" Smurfette asked.
"If you must know, most of the Smurfs my age have smurfed with a sickness only one thing could cure -- your hand in marriage," her traveling companion said.
"I mean seriously, like some sort of real illness that would have you smurfing out into the forest to smurf herbs and flowers," Smurfette said.
"Just for upsmurf stomachs, but nothing that a little faith in the Almighty couldn't cure," her traveling companion said. "Have you smurfed up your mind about who in the village you're going to marry?"
"I honestly don't know," Smurfette answered. "I feel like I'm the new Smurfette in town and I'm just smurfing to get to know everybody first."
"If your Papa even lets you smurf anyone at all besides your fellow Smurfettes," her traveling companion said. "But really, every Smurf is just wanting to make you smurfy however way they smurf fit to do so. Who else would be willing to smurf your hand that isn't in this village?"
"I keep smurfing of my beloved, who is the like the apple tree among the trees of the woods," Smurfette said. "How I long to smurf down in his shade with great delight, and smurf how wonderful his fruit is."
"I'm sure someone here in the village can smurf your fill of fruit, if you're willing to smurf a chance with him," her traveling companion said. "Otherwise, you might as well be asking the Almighty who would be the smurfect husband for you that isn't smurfing here."
Then the voice Smurfette heard earlier spoke to her again: "Rise up, my love, my beautiful one, and come away. For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. The fig tree ripens her green figs, and the vines with the tender grapes give a good smell. Rise up, my love, my beautiful one, and come away!"
"O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the cliff, let me see your form, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your appearance is beautiful," Smurfette responded.
"Who is it that you're talking to?" her traveling companion asked, looking at her as if wondering what's going on.
"The voice of my beloved!" Smurfette exclaimed. "Behold, he comes leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills."
"All I really smurf are just the hills," her traveling companion said, looking in the direction that Smurfette was looking in. "You sure you're not just imagining things?"
"My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag," Smurfette said. "Behold, he stands behind our wall; he is looking through the windows, gazing through the lattice."
"Okay, I think this is the part where we smurf our own ways," her traveling companion said. "I'll smurf you later, if we have the chance."
Smurfette barely noticed her companion walking off without her, for she was seeing the form of her beloved on the hill, and when she looked away for a moment to see her companion, he wasn't there anymore, and neither was the image of her beloved. Nevertheless, she felt captivated by the sight of what she had just seen.
"My beloved is mine, and I am his. He grazes among the lilies," Smurfette said to herself as she guided her flock onward to the fields. "Until the day breaks and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag upon the mountains of Bether."
Empath had finished his business as king for the day when Zabud and Azariah directed his attention to a palanquin that was waiting outside his royal palace, carried by four strong Smurfs. "Behold, your chariot awaits, my King," Azariah said with a bow.
Empath took a moment to look at the palanquin, noting how exquisitely constructed it was. "This seems rather excessive for a simple ride out into the villages beyond Jerusalem," he commented.
"It is only necessary that to escort you on your journey, you will be surrounded at all times with sixty mighty Smurfs, who are the best warriors in Israel," Zabud said, as the group of Smurfs all dressed in warrior garb and carrying swords with them arrived to surround the palanquin.
"For the king of Israel, you can't be smurfed with anything less than the best," Azariah said.
"That would be a sensible precaution," Empath said as he inspected each of the warrior Smurfs who would be coming with him. They looked rather fearless, as if ready to handle any enemy that would come their way to harm the king. "This smurf is ready to put this smurf's life in their hands to make the journey."
"Is there anything else you will need for your journey, your Excellency?" Zabud asked. "It will be quite a journey that will take at least a day."
"This smurf appreciates your concern, but this smurf will be sufficiently comfortable, Zabud," Empath answered. "This smurf is leaving the both of you in charge of the kingdom until this smurf returns."
"This one acknowledges, my liege," Zabud said as he and Azariah bowed while Empath got himself onto the palanquin when it was lowered. He felt how comfortable the bed was, as if the blankets, the mattress, and the pillows were made of the finest materials and scented with such fragrance that filled his nostrils with majestic pleasantness.
The four Smurfs carrying the palanquin lifted it up and started carrying Empath toward the outskirts of Jerusalem. Empath saw the people in the city looking at him and wondering what's going on, some even going so far as to bow down in respect, others throwing flower petals and palm branches in his path.
Empath had to remind himself that this was part of playing the character of the king. He had a feeling that Smurfette is in the village of the Shulamites, looking for this beloved of hers from the book. He hoped that he would arrive at the location and find out from her who and what has been attracting her attention.
--------------------
VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA
"Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4102 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
|
|
Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 08:09 AM
Chapter 5
NOTE: Empath's arrival on King Solomon's palanquin is based on Song Of Solomon 3:6-11.
At the end of the day, Smurfette retired to her character's bedroom. She never thought that a day of playing along in the role she was given would make her feel tired. However, before she could go to sleep, Salome's sister Eden came in.
"Shouldn't you be asleep along with your brothers, little sister?" Smurfette asked.
"Who can sleep when I'm too busy smurfing of who you're going to marry," Eden said, sounding excited. "So did you smurf your beloved today? And what was he like?"
"Yes, I have smurfed him when I was smurfing the flocks out into the fields today," Smurfette answered. "His head is like the finest gold. His eyes are like doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and set in a frame. His cheeks are like a bed of spices, like grown herbs. His lips are like lilies, dripping flowing myrrh."
"Really that handsome?" Eden said, sounding curious.
Smurfette nodded. "His hands are like folds of gold filled with precious stones. His torso is smooth as ivory overlaid with sapphires. His legs are like pillars of marble set on bases of fine gold. His appearance is like Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. His mouth is most sweet. Yes, he is altogether lovely."
"Oooh, you've got to smurf me this beloved of yours when you have the chance," Eden said, sounding all excited.
"If only I knew where he lives," Smurfette said. "All I know is that my beloved has gone to his garden, to the beds of spices, to graze in the gardens, and to gather lilies."
"He's got a garden?" Eden asked. "Sounds like someplace I would want to smurf in. Can you smurf me with you when you smurf your beloved? I'd like to help you find him."
Smurfette looked at Eden in the same way that she looked at Sassette whenever there was something private they wanted to share with each other. "I'll see what I can smurf, sister, which is all I can promise you. In the meantime, you should smurf off to bed before Papa finds out you're not in it."
"Have smurfy dreams of your beloved, big sister," Eden said as she gave Smurfette a hug before she left the bedroom.
And afterward, Smurfette blew out the candle and fell asleep on her bed, wondering where she was going to see her beloved next. Before long, though, she heard a voice calling out her actual name, which sounded like the voice of her beloved calling out to her.
She opened her eyes and saw that her bedroom was replaced by a banqueting table filled with all sorts of delicacies, and sitting there at the head of the table was her beloved, dressed in kingly robes.
"Come, enjoy yourself and relax," he spoke to her. "There is nothing for you to fear."
"But who are you?" Smurfette asked. "Are you King Solomon?"
"I am the lover of your soul, and I have been calling you to me," her beloved said.
"But why? Who am I that you should be calling out to me?" Smurfette asked.
"You are the Shulamite, a beautiful woman in whom there is no defect," her beloved said.
"But I don't feel so perfect," Smurfette said. "I feel so dark and shameful of myself, like I don't belong in your presence."
"You do not need to feel that, my dear," her beloved said. "Come and dine with me, because I want to make you feel loved in a way that you have never been loved before."
"But what about Empath?" Smurfette asked.
"I will not take you away from him," her beloved said. "He is also looking for you, but there is something else he is looking for that you alone cannot give him."
"What is it, my beloved?" Smurfette said. "What is that one thing that I cannot smurf him?"
"It is something that I can reveal to him alone, my child," her beloved said. "That is all you need to know, so don't worry about him. Come and enjoy yourself before the day breaks."
"Oh, sustain me with raisin cakes, refresh me with apples, for I am lovesick," Smurfette responded.
"Come to me and drink," her beloved said, as he handed her a goblet of wine which she drank from. It was not like any sort of wine, even made by Vino Smurf, that she ever tasted. It was almost heavenly.
And the next thing Smurfette knew, she was back in her bed in the Imaginarium story setting that was still being played out, and it was now morning. "My beloved? Where are you?" she asked as she arose from her bed and looked around to find nobody there.
"Salome! Who is it that you're calling for?" the voice of the character's father called from outside the room.
"Uh...nobody, Papa," Smurfette said. She got dressed and joined her family at the breakfast table.
While this was going on, Empath had fallen asleep during his journey toward the village of the Shulamites. It was in his sleep that he also found himself in the same place that Smurfette was, only he was there by himself. "Empath," the person at the head of the table gently spoke.
"Who are you?" Empath asked. "What have you done to Smurfette?"
"I am the lover of your soul, Empath," the person said. "You are here because you are wondering why Smurfette has been drawn to the one who has been calling her."
"What do you intend to do with Smurfette?" Empath asked.
"There are things she desires that she cannot receive from you," the person answered. "Just as there are things you desire that you cannot receive from her."
"You speak as if you know what this smurf is looking for," Empath said.
"Your soul has been troubled, my child," the person said. "You live in the shadow of a past that you had no control over, being in a place that has caused you great turmoil even as it has educated you. You long for things that your fellow Smurfs had which was denied to you, and it has made you feel hurt and jealous of them."
"You are correct," Empath said. "There isn't a day that goes by that this smurf doesn't think about how much this smurf wants to turn back time and get back what this smurf had lost."
"But what you have in here is only an illusion," the person said. "You can only recreate things that you have lost, but you cannot reclaim them, nor bring all things back to what you want them to be."
"But what is it that you're offering this smurf that Smurfette herself cannot give this smurf?" Empath asked.
"Peace," the person said. "A peace that surpasses all understanding, a treasure greater than all the gold in King Solomon's court, greater than all the pleasures of the earth."
Empath wondered what this mysterious person was talking about. Peace? Could this be the peace of the Almighty that Tapper himself feels? "Is there anything you desire this smurf to do?" Empath asked.
"Look for Smurfette," the person said. "She will tell you about what she has found. For now, come sit with me and enjoy yourself."
Empath sat at the banqueting table and took the first piece of fruit from one of the trays. The taste of the fruit was beyond anything he had ever experienced coming from Farmer's garden or even from the Smurf Forest itself.
And as he ate of the fruit, Empath heard the voice of one of the strong Smurfs carrying his palanquin, "We will be entering the village shortly, your Highness."
Empath woke up and saw that he had fallen asleep...and yet the dream he was in seemed more like it was part of the Imaginarium fantasy setting, like it had physical reality. He hoped that he would find Smurfette and discover if that person who was in his dream was truly the "beloved" she was looking for.
Throughout the day, despite her Salome's father's warnings, Smurfette had gone about asking the villagers if they had seen "the one whom her soul loves", but most of them looked at her rather confused, as if they didn't know who or what she is talking about. Some of the young male Smurfs her age tried to humor her by saying that they themselves are the one she was looking for, but Smurfette didn't find it all that funny and just dismissed them.
"This feels so ridiculous," Smurfette said to herself. "I might as well be looking for Empath in this scenario than smurfing after this beloved that I can only smurf in my dreams or..."
"Behold, you are beautiful, my love! Behold, you are beautiful! You have dove's eyes behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats lying down at Mount Gilead," the voice said.
Smurfette turned and saw that it was her beloved, standing in the shadows, looking at her and smiling. "Oh, please, don't disappear from me," she cried out as she raced to meet him and embrace him.
"Your teeth are like a flock of shorn sheep which have come up from the washing, every one of which bears twins, and none is barren among them," her beloved said "Your lips are like a strand of scarlet, and your mouth is lovely. Your temples behind your veil are like a piece of pomegranate."
Smurfette felt her heart leap for joy. "I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the does of the field, that you do not stir up nor awaken love until it pleases," she said to herself.
Then suddenly she heard the sound of a shofar being blown. "Behold, the King of Israel is arriving in our village," someone cried out.
Smurfette was curious to find out who it was that was entering the village. "Please don't smurf away...I'll be right back," she said to her beloved as she headed for the main concourse of the village, where the villagers had gathered.
She could barely see through the crowd, but she could smell fragrant perfumes as the king's palanquin was drawing closer. And soon everyone in the village was cheering and praising as the king passed through.
Finally Smurfette broke through the crowd and saw that it was King Solomon on the palanquin...or rather, it was someone very familiar to her playing King Solomon. "Empath?" she asked.
Empath saw someone emerge from the crowd that had gathered around him and recognized who it was. "Smurfette?"
"Empath, what are you doing, playing as the king?" Smurfette asked, trying to make herself heard above the crowd and also trying to get closer, only to be blocked by the warrior Smurfs who were surrounding the palanquin.
"No one is allowed to get close to the king without his permission," one of the warrior Smurfs said.
Smurfette felt frustrated. She didn't want to start a fight, but she had to think of some way to get Empath's attention so they could be alone and find out why he was looking for her. "Please...I know the king personally...you have to let me..."
Suddenly one of the warrior Smurfs pushed her back roughly, causing her to fall to the ground.
Empath saw what had happened. "Great Ancestors! What have you done that for?" he asked the warrior Smurf very sternly.
"We must protect you from those who are smurfing audiences with you without your permission," the warrior Smurf said.
"Allow her to come closer, then," Empath said. "This smurf is giving royal permission to her so that she may have an audience."
"It would not be advisable for you to seek audiences with such a crowd in public, your Lordship," one of the strong Smurfs said.
"Yeah, let us smurf you to one of the lodges that you own in this area," another strong Smurf said. "There you can smurf your audiences in an orderly fashion."
Empath felt frustrated that his assigned servants wouldn't stop just to allow him to talk to Smurfette. He had a feeling that Tapper had made the characters respond in a way that would prevent him or Smurfette from taking any short cuts through the fantasy setting. The only way he could ever hope to talk to Smurfette alone was to play through the scenario as it was designed.
He sighed as he just sat back and allowed his palanquin to be carried through the streets and past the crowd that was showering him with praise.
Meanwhile, back where the palanquin had just passed by, Eden and her brothers had found Smurfette as she was picking herself up from the ground. "Holy hickory nuts, where have you been?" Asher asked.
Smurfette groaned, finding herself feeling hurt but having no injuries. "I was just out here smurfing for my beloved again," she answered.
"Well, we better get smurfing home soon, because Papa's going to be smurfing mad if he doesn't know where you've been all this time," Akan said.
"It's too bad we missed the King of Israel smurfing through our town," Adna said.
"Yeah, we really miss the smurfy stuff happening that all the grown-ups get to smurf in our village," Eden said.
"You're still too young to meet the King of Israel, Eden," Akan said.
"That doesn't mean I can't smurf about him like Salome does," Eden said. "Just smurf at the bed that he smurfs upon, and smurf at his clothes. What I wouldn't give to be smurfing in his palace as his queen."
Smurfette followed Salome's siblings as they headed back toward their house. On her way there, she looked at the place where she met her beloved and saw that he was no longer there.
--------------------
VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA
"Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4102 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
|
|
Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 08:14 AM
Chapter 6
NOTE: The scene where Smurfette goes out into the night to find her beloved is based on Song Of Solomon 5:2-8.
Outside the Imaginarium, Papa Smurf decided to pay Tapper a visit, since he was beginning to wonder where two of his little Smurfs, Empath and Smurfette, had gone to. He was in his tavern doing some cleanup work to make his glasses and mugs all clean and spotless.
"Greetings, Papa Smurf," Tapper said. "What may I smurf you for, since this isn't the normal time for the tavern to be open?"
"I'm not here for anything except to find out where Empath and Smurfette had smurfed off to," Papa Smurf said.
"Oh, yes, well, you see, Empath and Smurfette were both curious about this story in my holy book, and so they wanted to experience it for themselves, which is why I smurfed up the scenario based on the story in the Imaginarium," Tapper said.
"I'm usually not the Smurf who would interfere in any Smurf's religious pursuits unless it smurfs harm to any of my little Smurfs, Tapper," Papa Smurf said. "But does this scenario need to smurf precedence over their duties in the village?"
"The scenario is only meant to last for a few days, Papa Smurf," Tapper said. "Besides, I believe the other Smurfs can handle the work in their absences without much disruption. If there's an emergency you need to smurf to Empath's attention, you will be able to smurf in touch with him at any time."
"I'm relieved to hear that, Tapper," Papa Smurf said. "May I ask what this story is that Empath and Smurfette are smurfing part in?"
"It's a rather...personal romantic story, though not one that smurfs beyond the level of kissing, if you were wondering about that, Papa Smurf," Tapper said.
"A romance story," Papa Smurf said, stroking his beard while thinking. "I wouldn't think that your religion would even allow for such things to happen, much less smurf them in any such detail."
"The Almighty created male and female to be smurfed together as one flesh for all time, Papa Smurf," Tapper said. "Surely He would want His creation to smurf more than just an attraction to the other *** in order for them to smurf together as compatible mates. However, this particular romance story is not just about male and female smurfing together as one, as hopefully Empath and Smurfette are starting to figure out for themselves."
"You would mean that this Almighty of yours may be smurfing out a relationship with them?" Papa Smurf asked.
"The Almighty smurfs out a relationship with all His creation, Papa Smurf," Tapper said. "That's the reason He created everything in this world, even the humans that He smurfed in His image."
Papa Smurf chuckled. "Well, I will not interfere with this story being smurfed out unless there is an emergency, Tapper. But next time, please inform me of such scenarios that you create from your holy book that will draw away my little Smurfs for a time."
"Aye, Papa Smurf, that I will make sure to smurf in the future," Tapper said, nodding with acceptance.
Inside the Imaginarium setting, Smurfette was in her character's house being scolded by her father. "What were you doing smurfing off by yourself instead of smurfing home like you're supposed to?" he asked.
Smurfette didn't know how to tell her character's father that she was looking for her beloved again. "I...uh...heard that King Solomon was coming to visit our town, Papa, and I...uh...just wanted to smurf him, that's all. He is our king...why shouldn't I be allowed to see him?"
"Salome, I don't want to risk losing you to someone who isn't of our village," her father said. "I know that Solomon is our king, and that he deserves to be treated with respect, though we will always honor and worship the Almighty above all. But what will you be if he decides to smurf you away from here? Do you think you will truly be his queen, to smurf beside him on his throne?"
"Papa, I don't want to be queen, and I don't want to marry him just because he is the king," Smurfette said. "I want to marry someone I can truly love with all my heart and soul, and somebody who truly loves me with all their heart and soul. If King Solomon is the one who the Almighty has chosen to be my future husband, I want to know it for certain that he is the one."
"I will not question the Almighty's decisions if that is what He has smurfed for you, my dear," Salome's father said. "But at least let the village's sons have a smurf at you first so that you would not be smurfing a mistake. Who knows, maybe the Almighty is testing you to see if you will truly follow where He wants you to smurf."
"I will do it, Papa," Smurfette said. "I'm sorry for not smurfing here like I should."
"You are forgiven of that misdeed, Salome," her father said. "Come, let us prepare for dinner and then we will resmurf for the night."
"Yes, Papa," Smurfette said as she followed Salome's father into the next room.
Meanwhile, Empath was settled in at a lodge that his character had owned in the village, and there he was treated like a king, almost as if he were back in the palace. The villagers visited him throughout the day to offer their worship unto him, which made Empath feel uneasy to accept, but nevertheless accepted just to make them happy. After a while, though, Empath got bored with having the villagers come to visit him and had the guards remove them from the lodge so that he could have some peace and quiet.
Empath then just stared out of the window that looked out into the outskirts of the village, feeling like he just wanted to run away with Smurfette at that point and do something romantic with her like a picnic or a nice long walk through the wilderness together.
"Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon. Look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from the mountains of the leopards," Empath spoke. "You have ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; you have ravished my heart with one look of your eyes, with the pendant around your neck."
He then called the guards into the room. "Yes, your Highness, what is it you require me to smurf?" the one who sounded like Hefty asked as he and the two others entered.
"The young female who tried to seek an audience with me as we were passing by...this smurf would like to know where it is she lives in this village," Empath requested.
"May I ask to know the purpose of knowing where this female smurfs?" the first guard asked.
"It is of a personal nature, which you do not need to know," Empath answered. "I would like you to inform this smurf as soon as you know the location of her residence."
"Yes, your Lordship, I will smurf right to it," the first guard said, bowing before he left.
"And what, smurf tell, shall we be smurfing while he seeks out this young female's house, your Highness?" the second guard who sounded like Duncan asked.
"You shall accompany me wherever this smurf goes in this village, but your role is to not interfere with what this smurf wishes to do unless it goes against the commandment of the Almighty," Empath said.
"Aye, your Majesty, that I will smurf to do for you," the second guard said, bowing before he and the third guard also left.
Empath picked up a fruit from the plate that was on his table and ate it. He hoped that he would be able to find Smurfette and talk to her about her obsession with the character in the story that now seems to be drawing him toward himself.
It is now the middle of the night, and all the villagers are asleep except for the guards who walk through its streets in patrol to make sure it is safe. Smurfette was in her character's bedroom also asleep when she heard knocking.
"Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my perfect one; for my head is covered with dew, my locks with the drops of the night," a voice from outside her door called.
Smurfette recognized the voice. "My beloved! He's come!" She quickly rose from her bed, only to notice that she wasn't wearing anything but her character's underclothes, and that she was barefoot. But she felt that the visit was urgent, and she had to answer.
She went to the door, and when she touched the handle of the door, she could feel that her hands were dripping with myrrh. She frantically went through the locks on the door so she could open the door to her beloved. But by the time she got the door open, Smurfette found out that her beloved was gone.
"Oh no! I was too late!" she moaned.
"Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon. Look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from the mountains of the leopards," the voice of the beloved called.
"Where are you? Please answer me, my beloved!" Smurfette cried, as she left her bedroom to look for her beloved.
She had gone past a few houses when the guard found her, dressed as she was, running through the streets in the night. "Stop, maiden!" the guard commanded.
"Please, you got to help me find my beloved!" Smurfette said. "He was at my house, and now he's gone!"
"Maiden, you must smurf with me back to your house," the guard said. "I can't let you smurf around loose wearing your short clothes at this hour of the night."
"If you won't help me find my beloved, then I will go smurf for him myself," Smurfette said, running past the guard.
The guard then pursued her, trying to get her to stop running. This caught the attention of another guard, who then intercepted Smurfette as she made a turn unto another street.
"Please let me go!" Smurfette cried out. "You don't understand! I must find my beloved!"
But the guard then grabbed Smurfette to keep her from going anywhere. She was crying hysterically for her beloved, struggling to get herself free as the first guard finally caught up with her.
"You're going to have to smurf with us, maiden, for disrupting the peace and for improper exposure," one of the guards said.
The villagers had stepped out of their doors to see Smurfette being taken away by the guards, looking every bit like a madwoman who had just flipped out.
"I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem," Smurfette cried out, "If you find my beloved, that you tell him I am lovesick!"
"Okay, fellow Smurfs, there's nothing here for you to smurf," the second guard said to the villagers. "The show's over."
Smurfette sat in a cell that felt particularly very cold, making her wish that she hadn't run off into the streets of the village wearing just her underclothes. She felt tears coming down her face because she knew her beloved had appeared at her character's house and yet was soon gone, but nobody in the story setting believed her to be anything but crazy.
Smurfette was starting to think maybe she was going crazy over this character from the story in Tapper's holy book. Why was he making her do all these silly things to make her go after him, and why did he keep disappearing from her? It was like she was chasing after a ghost, or some sort of delusion that claimed to know her and Empath very intimately.
There was soon a knock on the door of her cell. "Smurfette?" a voice called.
Smurfette recognized the voice. "Empath, is that you?" she asked.
"It is this smurf, Smurfette," the voice replied. "Come to the door and you'll see that this smurf is not an illusion."
Smurfette went to the door and peeked through the barred window. "Empath, it is you. Oh, thank Smurfness. I didn't think you would abandon me in here."
"This smurf does have the power to let you be released from this prison, but this smurf is being directed to simply let you stay in here until your character's father comes to have you be released to him," Empath explained.
"What do you mean, you were directed to not release me?" Smurfette asked, not believing what she was hearing. "Who smurfed you that?"
"This smurf believes that it is the same character who is calling you to pursue him, Smurfette," Empath said. "He told this smurf not to worry, that you will be treated fairly."
"Oh, this is ridiculous," Smurfette said. "You're playing the king of Israel, and yet you can't release me because my beloved smurfed you so?"
"Please, Smurfette, this smurf is only trying to find out why this character in the story we're playing out interests you," Empath said. "You can hate this smurf afterward when we're finished with this scenario, but for now you need to trust this smurf and see that this will eventually work itself out."
Smurfette nodded with some understanding. "If this is how it's supposed to smurf, Empath, then I will smurf with you later."
"This smurf can sense your sadness, Smurfette," Empath said as he reached out to touch her face through the bars of the window. "This smurf will not leave this fantasy setting until we leave it together...this smurf promises you that."
"I know that you won't, Empath," Smurfette said, touching his hand with hers until he pulled his hand out and then left with his guards.
And as she was left alone in her cell, she could hear, "O my love, you are as beautiful as Tirzah, lovely as Jerusalem, awesome as an army with banners! Turn your eyes away from me, for they have overcome me."
"Oh, beloved, why couldn't you stay?" Smurfette asked the voice.
"Look for me in the garden of nuts to see the greenery of the valley, to see whether the vine has budded and the pomegranates has bloomed," the voice told her.
"But Papa won't let me smurf out and find you," Smurfette said.
"Return, return, O Shulamite," the voice said. "Return, return, that we may gaze upon you!"
"What would you see in the Shulamite; as it were, the dancing of two armies?" Smurfette asked the voice.
But the voice stopped answering, and Smurfette was left with only the mention of going down to "the garden of nuts" by what seemed to be the voice of "her beloved". She could only close her eyes and rest in her cell while she waited for her release.
--------------------
VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA
"Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4102 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
|
|
Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 08:22 AM
Chapter 7
NOTE: Part of 1st Corinthians chapter 13 is used in modified form in this chapter.
ANOTHER NOTE: I had to edit some things in the story because of the wording.
By morning, Salome's father has appeared at the guard house where Smurfette was being held in custody. He paid the fine for her release and brought with him a robe to cover his daughter with when she was released from her cell.
"You are really beginning to worry me, Salome," her father said. "I can only wonder what has smurfed you to go smurfing out in the middle of the night without your clothes on."
"I only thought I heard somebody smurfing to me, Papa," Smurfette said. "I didn't think he would just smurf up and leave me when I opened the door."
"It's possible that you were just hallucinating because you're nervous about the Smurfs you're going to meet tonight," Salome's father said.
"But none of what I smurfed was a hallucination, Papa," Smurfette said. "I smurf that I could see this person even in the marketplace. I feel so attracted to him that I want to smurf out and meet him."
"Perhaps then it could be an angel or a demon or something," Salome's father said. "All the same, I want you to be careful that you do not let yourself be smurfed astray. I don't want to have to smurf the worst that a father in Israel has to smurf to his beloved daughter."
"You mean...you would exile me from Israel?" Smurfette asked.
"It would be much worse, my child," Salome's father said. "The Lord has commanded that children that are constantly disobedient to their parents should be smurfed to death. The same punishment should also be smurfed unto daughters who would smurf the harlot in their father's house."
Smurfette gulped when she heard that. "Oh, please, Papa, I would never want to disobey you in anything, let alone smurf the harlot in your house."
"That's why your brothers are only smurfing out for you and your sister, Salome," her father said. "They may be younger than you, but they want to make sure that you're smurfed to the right Smurf without them having to smurf an issue of your purity. That is also my duty as your father, to keep you safe and protected for the day of your marriage."
"I understand, Papa," Smurfette said. "By the way, may I have your permission to go to the garden of nuts this afternoon when all my chores are done?"
"Normally I should have you smurf at home for the things you have smurfed," Salome's father said. "But somehow I feel smurfed to give you permission to do so, as long as you promise that you will return in preparation for the feast that we shall be smurfing tonight. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Papa, and thank you," Smurfette said as they approached their house together.
Salome's brothers and sister greeted the two upon their arrival. "So, Salome, did you smurf your beloved in the village last night?" Asher asked mockingly.
"Yeah, and what did he smurf to you when you finally smurf him?" Akan asked, also in a mocking tone, before he and his two brothers laughed.
"That is not funny, you Smurfs," Eden said, sounding very displeased.
"Hey, we're not the ones who went smurfing out in the middle of the night with hardly any clothes on," Adna said.
"It only smurfs her right that the guards caught her when they did, or else she would be smurfing in much worse trouble right now," Akan said.
"That's enough, my little Smurflings," Salome's father said sternly. "Your older sister is back among us and should be treated with respect. You will not smurf on about this incident as long as you're still smurfing in my house. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Papa," the three boy Smurflings said together.
The four male Smurfs left Eden to talk to her sister. "What were you smurfing in the middle of the night anyway?" Eden asked. "Was that your beloved who was really smurfing out to you?"
"I thought it was, but then he just suddenly disappeared," Smurfette said. "I'm not sure what I'm really smurfing after anymore."
"If it's really your beloved, I'll help you go and find him, sister," Eden said. "I would want to smurf him in person and see if he's everything you ever smurfed about, even more than the king of Israel himself."
"Yes, even more than the king of Israel himself," Smurfette said, as she thought about Empath playing King Solomon.
Meanwhile, Empath had woken up and is now dealing with the people in the village who were visiting him for his judgments on settling various types of matters when one of the guards have returned. "My lord, I would want to speak with you in private on the matter you have smurfed me out on," he requested.
Though Empath couldn't sense what any of the characters in the Imaginarium setting were thinking, he had a feeling that the guard had some news about Smurfette. He had the other guards dismiss his visitors from his chambers in the lodge he was staying in.
"Now pray tell this smurf what it is you have found out about the Shulamite woman that has been imprisoned last night," Empath told the guard.
"From what I have smurfed, she is the daughter of a local farmer who also has three sons and a younger daughter," the guard said. "There's also some talk of a feast that they're going to smurf tonight, and something about her father smurfing the right kind of Smurf for her to marry."
"So the father is planning to marry her off to one of the Smurfs around her age in the village," Empath said as he pieced what he heard together.
"What shall we do?" the guard asked. "This seems to be a very private affair among the people of this village."
Empath thought about that for a minute. "We shall keep ourselves out of this affair, since this is a private matter. We will return to Jerusalem by tomorrow morning to see after more important matters of the kingdom."
"You do not wish to smurf after this Shulamite woman that you inquire of?" the guard asekd.
"What this one wishes to do with this Shulamite woman is this smurf's own personal matter," Empath said. "You are simply to obey this smurf's orders. We will be leaving this village by tomorrow morning. Is that understood?"
"Yes, my King," the guard said, bowing respectfully before he left the king's chambers.
Empath sighed, for he wondered what this "beloved" of Smurfette's that was drawing her towards him wanted of her and also of Empath. What seemed to be a very unusual love triangle going on among himself, Smurfette, and this "beloved" was becoming more complicated the more he continued to play out this scenario. He had no idea that this "beloved" was also calling out to him, as if he himself was being pulled away from Smurfette unto the same person that was drawing her unto himself.
"You seem worried about what I am doing to Smurfette," a familiar voice spoke. Empath turned to see that it was the same person he met in his dreams.
"This smurf is more concerned about your intentions for her," Empath said to the person. "How does this smurf know that you will not bring any harm upon Smurfette?"
"It is the thief that has come to kill, to steal, and to destroy," the person said. "My purpose here is to give life, and to give it more abundantly."
Empath seemed to know just who it is that is speaking. "Then you must be Jesus."
"That is one of my many names, child," the person said.
"So...what's your purpose of going after Smurfette?" Empath asked. "Are you desiring to offer her your salvation?"
"She is greatly loved, as are you, of my Father," the person said. "Only he can offer you both the kind of love that neither of you will be able to find in each other, a love that is beyond your ability to completely grasp."
"But why wouldn't she able to give me the kind of love that this smurf desires?" Empath asked. "And why wouldn't this smurf be able to give her the kind of love that she desires?"
"You are both born of the flesh, and the flesh can only offer as much love as it can provide to another person," the person said. "The love that comes from the one and only God of heaven and earth is an everlasting love that is longsuffering and is kind. This love does not envy, does not boast itself, and is not puffed up. It does not behave indecently, does not seek its own, is not easily provoked, and it thinks no evil. It does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth. It covers all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. And most of all, this love never fails."
"This smurf fears that this smurf will fail her," Empath said. "That there will come a time when this smurf will not be able to rescue her, and this smurf fears living with that regret. But to ask that this smurf should put my trust in you for her safety..."
"If you truly love Smurfette, you must put your faith in the fact that she will be protected until her appointed time has come, Empath," the person said. "For you as a creature of flesh can only know in part and can only prophesy in part. It is only when the complete whole comes that those things which are in part will pass away."
"Then what do you ask of this smurf to do in this fantasy scenario?" Empath asked.
"I will bring her through it to its intended conclusion, Empath," the person said. "The only thing I ask of you is to simply believe and trust in me to do it."
And then suddenly the person vanished, and Empath was left alone in the king's chambers wondering if going back to Jerusalem was the right choice in playing out this scenario.
In the afternoon, after her chores as the character she was playing were completed, Smurfette went out to the place that her beloved was calling her to.
"How beautiful are your feet in sandals, O prince's daughter," the voice of her beloved spoke. "The curves of your thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a skilled artist."
She saw him up ahead and raced over to embrace him. "Oh, that you were like my brother, who nursed at my mother's smurfs! If I should find you outside, I would kiss you; I would not be despised. I would lead you and bring you into my mother's house, to teach me; I would cause you to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate."
"Your navel is like a round goblet; it lacks no mixed wine. Your belly is like a heap of wheat set about with lilies," the beloved said. "Your neck is like an ivory tower, your eyes like the pools in Heshbon by the gate of Bath Rabbim. Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon which looks toward Damascus."
Smurfette felt like she couldn't stop kissing him. "Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love is as strong as death, jealousy as cruel as Sheol; its flames are flames of fire, a flame of YAH."
"Your head is like Carmel, and the hair of your head is like purple; the king is held captive in its tresses," the beloved said. "How beautiful and how pleasant you are, O love; so exquisite!"
"Many waters cannot quench love, nor can the rivers overflow it," Smurfette said in the heat of passion. "If a man would give for love all the wealth of his house, it would be despised with contempt."
"Your stature is like a palm tree, and your smurfs like its clusters," the beloved said. "I said, I will go up into the palm tree, I will grasp its stalk. Let now your smurfs be like clusters of the vine, the fragrance of your nose like apples, and the roof of your mouth like excellent wine."
Smurfette couldn't believe that this was her pouring out her heart and soul to someone besides Empath. She felt so ashamed of how she acting in the presence of her beloved that was calling to her. She suddenly backed away as if she was fearful of what she was becoming.
The beloved reached out and touched her face gently. "You are greatly beloved, my child. There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, and virgins without number. But my dove, my perfect one, is the one, the only one of her mother, the pure of the one who bore her. The daughters saw her and called her blessed, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her."
"How can I love you more than I love Empath?" Smurfette asked. "He is the one that I find that smurfs out among the hundred of my fellow Smurfs in the village. No Smurf can ever compare to him."
"I will always be here for you, my love, long after the ones that you love in the world are gone," the beloved said. "When Empath is but a memory, you will know that I am the only one that you will ever need."
Smurfette shed a tear at the thought of ever losing Empath, but she felt that the words of her beloved were sincere and that she could believe him. "Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; let us lodge in the villages. Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine has budded, whether the grape blossoms are open, and the pomegranates are in bloom. There I will give my love to you."
"Come and rest with me for a while before you return to the village," the beloved said as he directed her toward an apple tree.
While Smurfette slept in the arms of her beloved, she could find herself dreaming of a marriage scene in heaven where all her friends in the Smurf Village would be attending, including Empath. Standing next to her at the altar was her beloved, wearing a shiny white robe and a crown that seemed to look like many crowns stacked on top of each other, making it look like a miter. He looked at her with the look of love, as if he was ready to take her into his chambers to make her marriage to him complete.
Before them, a massive person sitting on a grand throne presided as the minister of the wedding. "Do you, my Son, take Smurfette to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love, honor, and cherish her, in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, for as long as the heavens and the earth shall stand?" the person asked.
"I do, my Father," the beloved said.
"And do you, Smurfette, take my Son to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love, honor, and cherish him, in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, for as long as the heavens and the earth shall stand?" the person on the throne asked.
"I do, your Highness," Smurfette said.
Then the beloved took a cup that the person on the throne had handed to him. "This is the cup that you both shall drink from, which shall seal the covenant between you as husband and wife," the person said. "You shall both make your vows before you drink of this cup."
"I vow unto you, Smurfette, that my life shall be yours if you shall have me," the beloved said as he drank from the cup and then passed it to Smurfette while looking at her.
"I shall vow unto you, my beloved, that my life shall also be yours if you shall have me," Smurfette said before she drank from the cup.
"Then by the power that is within me, that none can swear an oath by anything higher than myself, I shall pronounce you to be both husband and wife," the person on the throne said, to which all the assembled guests cheered. "You shall now kiss your bride."
"You who dwell in the gardens, the companions listen for your voice; let me hear it," the beloved said as he pulled Smurfette close to him.
"Make haste, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices," Smurfette said as she leaned her face to close to her beloved's to kiss him.
"Salome, your father has called me to look for you, to say it is time for you to prepare for the feast," a voice broke in.
Smurfette woke up from her dream and found herself lying under the apple tree with nobody there beside her but another character in the Imaginarium setting, probably one of the people from the village.
"I'm sorry, but I don't know who you are," Smurfette said.
"I'm only your uncle, child," the character said. "Your relatives have come to attend the feast, so that they will know which one you will choose to be your husband and that they may come and celebrate your happiness with you and your family."
Smurfette sighed, realizing that this was part of the Imaginarium setting. She picked herself up and followed Salome's uncle back to the village.
--------------------
VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA
"Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4102 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
|
|
Vic George The ND Guy
Super Smurf
Member # 300
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 08:28 AM
Chapter 8
It is evening in the village of the Shulamites, and Smurfette was looking her best as she sat with her character's father as well as with her younger sister and her three brothers at the table when the guests have assembled for the feast.
"Answerin' aardvarks, this is sure going to be an exciting feast," Eden said. "Salome's going to be smurfing the Smurf who will someday be her husband."
"Well, I have a feeling it's going to be a really long feast if our big sister doesn't smurf up her mind as to who she's going to pick, Eden," Akan said.
"Why don't we just pray together to the Lord to see which one He would want Salome to have as her husband?" Asher suggested.
"I don't see how that couldn't hurt, but I just hope our sister will be happy nonetheless," Adna said.
"Well, let's smurf hands and pray right now," Asher said. As the four young siblings joined hands together, Asher prayed. "Oh, God our Father, we humbly ask of you to smurf our sister the one that you would want to have to be her husband, the one who will always love her and care for her no matter what happens. We smurf you all the glory and all the praise that is smurfully due unto you, in your holy name. Amen."
"Amen," the other three Smurflings responded. And then came the sounding of the trumpet, which signaled that their father was going to make his speech.
"Fellow villagers and family members, I am pleased that you have smurfed to this wonderful festival tonight, for tonight my beautiful daughter Salome is now old enough for a young Smurf her age to smurf her hand in marriage," Salome's father spoke. "I know how eager most of you young Smurfs are in wanting to please my daughter, but only she can accept which of you will be the one that she will marry. But regardless of her choice, we will celebrate the moment together and be happy for the two that the Lord shall bind together in a covenant that shall last for as long as the Lord himself shall live."
"Here's your big moment, sister," Eden said to Smurfette. "I can't wait to see which one's going to be the luckiest of them all."
Smurfette sighed. "We might as well smurf through the candidates to find out."
And so one by one, the young Smurfs of the village presented themselves to Smurfette, giving her a present that they hope will make her happy. While this was going on, unnoticed by any of the guests, Empath watched the whole scene from a distance, seeing how unhappy Smurfette was with all the candidates that presented themselves along with their offerings. To Empath, it was like watching Smurfette go through watching all her own fellow Smurfs to find out which one she would like to marry someday.
The person standing next to Empath said, "This will be your moment. Get ready."
After a long while, Salome's siblings were getting impatient. "Gee, Salome, it smurfs like you've turned down all the villagers' sons. You're not interested in any of them."
"I'm sorry, my brothers, but I just don't feel that any of them would be the right one to someday be my husband," Smurfette said.
"Unfortunately, this means that Papa will have to choose the Smurf that you're going to have to marry someday, Salome...and you're not going to like that," Eden said.
"But what else can I do, Eden?" Smurfette said. "They're all very nice, and I'm sure that they would smurf me children and a home, but how can I give heart and soul to a Smurf that I don't even love?"
"Papa, there's got to be something you can smurf about this, can you?" Eden asked.
Salome's father sighed. "I'm afraid that I don't have any choice, Eden. It is the age for Salome to be married, and if she has willingly turned down all of her suitors, then that leaves me to smurf the decision for her."
"There is one more who wishes to present himself to the young maiden," a voice broke in. Everybody turned to see the one whom Smurfette herself had recognized, approaching the table where the family was sitting.
"It...it...it's my beloved!" Smurfette shouted, sounding excited.
"That's your beloved?!?" Eden asked, sounding very surprised.
"I am here because there is one who has come to satisfy the heart of this maiden whom my heart and soul loves, and I would want the two of them to be joined together in binds of matrimony that no one can ever break," the beloved said. "And so, may I present to you, the one who has sought after Salome..."
The beloved stepped aside, as did most of the guests, while Empath made his entrance to the feast. Everyone among the guests was in wonder and surprise as they saw the king of Israel making an appearance at a humble celebration.
Smurfette herself was rather surprised. "Empath! You've come...but why are you here?"
"This smurf is here because the beloved has told this smurf to come, to present himself to you as the one that you will marry...if your father is willing to accept the invitation, that is," Empath said, taking Smurfette's hand in his as she reached out toward him.
"But...but...I thought that I was going to marry the beloved," Smurfette said, sounding a bit disappointed.
"He said that you will someday when you're ready for him, Smurfette," Empath said. "For now, though, he is offering this smurf as the one that you will want to satisfy your heart, if you are willing to accept."
"Wandering weasels, Salome, what are you waiting for?" Eden said.
"Hold it, Eden," Akan said. "Don't you think that Papa should smurf his say in this? After all, Salome is still his daughter."
"Well, this is quite unusual for the king of Israel to smurf all this way from Jerusalem just to ask my daughter's hand in marriage," Salome's father said.
"There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, and virgins without number," Empath said to Smurfette. "But my dove, my perfect one, is the one, the only one of her mother, the pure of the one who bore her. The daughters saw her and called her blessed, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her."
Smurfette found herself captivated by Empath's words. "My beloved is dazzling and ruddy, standing out among ten thousand," she said as she rose up from her seat to look into Empath's eyes. "His mouth is most sweet. Yes, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem."
Salome's father saw the look of love in both their eyes. "In the interest of what best smurfs my daughter's future, I hereby grant her to be the wife of our noble king Solomon, the son of David. May they both be happy together and may their lives be blessed with children from the Almighty for the rest of their days."
Everybody among the assembled guests cheered and applauded as Empath took Smurfette into his arms and kissed her. Eden and the three brothers joined around the couple as they gave them their best wishes for a future together.
And then suddenly, the Imaginarium fantasy setting had ended, with Empath and Smurfette back to their normal appearances. But Smurfette noticed something that isn't right. "Why is the beloved here with us outside the fantasy?" she asked.
"This smurf senses that he isn't part of the fantasy setting, but rather took part in it because he wanted to communicate something to us," Empath said.
"You have spoken the truth, Empath," the beloved said. "Smurfette has been looking for a love beyond that which any Smurf can provide, and I have become part of the fantasy setting to help Smurfette find the peace within herself that comes from knowing the One who loves her with an everlasting love. Smurfette has also wanted the same for you, Empath, to know a peace that is beyond the one that you think you have found now that you have left Psychelia."
"So that's why you couldn't tell me anything about why you were reading the book, Smurfette," Empath said. "All this time, you were wanting me to know where this smurf can find peace within myself."
"I'm sorry that I never smurfed any of this to you, Empath," Smurfette said. "I was afraid that you were going to smurf this the wrong way and think that I would ever be unfaithful to you."
Empath nodded with some understanding and acceptance. "This smurf does admit that there are some things that neither this smurf nor you can offer each other, which only this beloved of yours can offers us both, Smurfette. This smurf also apologizes for ever having such suspicions about you. But how do we deal with the fact that we may both be seeking after the beloved now?"
"As I live, you will find me when you seek me with all your heart," the beloved said, before he disappeared.
Sometime later, Empath and Smurfette met with Tapper in his tavern. "So have you both found what you were smurfing for in this fantasy setting that I have smurfed for you two?" Tapper asked.
"It was...very educational, Tapper," Empath said. "And this smurf did find out the reason that Smurfette's heart was being drawn to the character from that part of your holy book."
"I see that he's been smurfing after your heart as well, Empath," Tapper said. "The one good thing about having the Almighty as part of your love triangle is that He wants to be part of your relationship together as well as with Him. As the writer of Ecclesiastes has eloquently smurfed it, 'if one overpowers him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.'"
"And you're smurfing that the Almighty is part of this threefold cord in our relationship together, Tapper, am I right?" Smurfette asked.
"You are indeed, my dear Smurfette," Tapper said. "The Almighty wants us to be happy in our relationships with people, whatever our relationships happen to be, as long as we invite Him to smurf part in those relationships. He is the one who will always be a friend that smurfs to us closer than a brother when all other relationships in the world will fail for whatever reason."
"It's the hardest thing for this smurf to ask the Almighty for an everlasting relationship, Tapper," Empath said. "But this smurf hopes that He will always be there for us when we need to turn to Him for anything this world can't give us."
"I can only pray that one day you and Smurfette will smurf a commitment to the Almighty for a relationship that will last longer than a marriage, for that is what marriage is a picture of...the Almighty's relationship with man, with Him as the husband and us as His wife," Tapper said.
"I thank you for smurfing that scenario for both me and Empath, Tapper," Smurfette said as she gave Tapper a kiss on the cheek. "It did turn out to be a fun adventure for the two of us."
Tapper felt himself getting a bit rosy again from the kiss. "Anything for you, Smurfette. I just want to make sure that your heart will be satisfied."
After they have left the tavern, Empath and Smurfette talked with each other in private. "I hope that in your role as the king of Israel, you weren't distracted by all those pretty females that were smurfing in your palace as your wives," Smurfette said.
"Of course not, Smurfette," Empath said. "They were just creations of the Imaginarium fantasy setting. What this smurf wants is the only other real thing that was in the setting."
"And what about my beloved?" Smurfette asked. "Are you also seeking after him?"
"To be honest, this smurf wasn't seeking after him, but he was seeking after this smurf," Empath said. "It is probably how this Almighty works, that he goes after those whom he wants to be in a relationship with him, if Tapper's holy book has anything to say about it."
"So will you smurf with me to help find my beloved again, Empath?" Smurfette asked.
"This smurf will be honored to help you find the one that your soul loves, even if it isn't this smurf, Smurfette," Empath said.
Smurfette smiled at that thought. "Solomon had a vineyard at Baal Hamon; he leased the vineyard to keepers; everyone was to bring for its fruit a thousand pieces of silver. My own vineyard is before me. You, O Solomon, may have a thousand, and those who tend its fruit two hundred."
"You still think that this smurf is truly Solomon?" Empath asked.
"I think that you may be better than him, Empath," Smurfette said. "Who needs a grand palace and a lifetime with a king when all I need is you by my side?"
"And your beloved, Smurfette?" Empath asked.
"Yes, even the beloved," Smurfette said as they walked on together.
--------------------
VIC GEORGE -- Westfield, MA, USA
"Cat and mouse games really aren't much fun for us mouse types" -- Empath from "Empath The Bandit Smurf"
Posts: 4102 | From: Westfield, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
|
|
Sassette
Moderator
Member # 2
Member Rated:
|
posted 02-14-2025 09:36 AM
What a smurfy story about the truest love that exists for us all!
--------------------
Have a smurfy day!
Posts: 4475 | From: Smurfingland | Registered: Jul 1999
|
|
|
Subscribe to the BlueBuddies RSS Feed.