Grumpy and Funshine made plans to begin to carefully search Care-A-Lot after their meal, and two days later they began. They had decided to start in the Gloomy Glen, as Grumpy had suggested, because nobody really liked to go there. Even Tenderheart was loath to go there very often, so they figured that he might have missed something. Since Grumpy had been living in the Glen for several weeks, he was less inclined to jump at the creatures there. So they began to make their way through the woods, looking in every hollow and bush.
After two weeks of carefully combing the entire Gloomy Glen from one end to the other, they had to come to the conclusion that the journal simply wasn't there. After thinking it over, they made plans to go to the Forest of Feelings to search there in a couple days. But as Funshine dropped Grumpy off at his Care-A-Van, he thought that the blue bear looked a little dusky.
"You sure you'll be okay, Grumps?" Funshine asked.
Grumpy smiled, his expression tired. "I'll be fine, Funshine. I'm going to go bumbleberry picking. I'll see you tomorrow."
Funshine wasn't so sure, but the sky was clear and it was a bright day. Without any other evidence that Grumpy wasn't feeling well, the yellow bear left. He was uneasy, but he didn't want to overstep. Grumpy had been irritable all day, and he didn't feel like he had a right to impose his presence on the blue bear any longer.
It was while he was on the Rainbow Ride that he fully realized his mistake. The sunny day changed so rapidly to a dark, overcast sky that Funshine knew at once that he shouldn't have left Grumpy. He also knew that the subtle changes in Grumpy's coloring, the shadowy dusting that had darkened his fur, hadn't been a trick of the light. He should have stayed. He should have pushed. But he had no choice but to wait until the cart got to its destination before he headed to the Forest of Feelings.
As soon as the Rainbow Ride docked, Funshine shouted for the Forest of Feelings. The cart took off again, and he nervously tapped his foot on the floor, worrying his bottom lip as the wind picked up. As the cart swayed, he began to murmur in Thunderspeak a poem he'd learned.
"Calm. Calm. Calm," he crooned, looking up at the angry sky."Let the sky give no rain, no matter what the pain. Calm, please, let the anger drain. Winds don't blow throughout the valleys, let the gales not sweep the alleys, where the cloud roils and smoke boils and the whole world shivers and toils, until everything is calm again."
The poem was a comfort, though it didn't stop the cart from rocking in the winds. He gripped the sides, watching the rainbow carefully. It was steady and strong, with deep magic holding it in place. But Funshine wasn't really worried about the cart coming off the rails. He was worried about Grumpy. The forest was huge, so where was he to begin searching? And what if somebody saw him? Not just bears either. Share could speak to the animals, and they were sure to tell her about Grumpy throwing a fit.
He jumped out of the Rainbow Ride as it settled into place, lightning flashing overhead. The day was now so dark that he lit his belly badge to illuminate the forest. He wanted to race into the woods to try and find Grumpy, but he needed to think first. Where would Grumpy go to pick bumbleberries? He wouldn't touch the bushes around Share's house out of respect for her baking. And if he was feeling bad, he would avoid high-trafficked areas like the bridge. There were a bunch of bumbleberry bushes down the way that were close to the Gloomy Glen. They were less used because of their location, but Grumpy would find that to be better than others. That's where he would try then.
As he started for the bushes, fat droplets of rain started to fall from the black sky. Funshine hurried as fast as he could, aware that things could get much worse very quickly. The wind picked up, buffeting him this way and that, but he marched on through the forest, pushing aside bushes and low-lying plants to get to his destination. When he drew near the bushes, he heard a low rumbling noise. He paused and looked at the sky. Was it actual thunder, or was it Thunderspeak? For a moment he was unsure, then he heard it more clearly.
"No, no, no, no."
Funshine hurried toward the source. Parting two thick bushes full of bumbleberries, he saw Grumpy. He wasn't quite black, but a dark navy, and his belly badge was in the transition stages, half hearts, half lightning bolts. Funshine took a deep breath as the sky broke open, pouring rain in thick sheets that were freezing cold. Fighting through the rain, the yellow bear knelt down and spoke to Grumpy; if he was having a flashback, Funshine didn't want to touch him.
"Grumpy!" he shouted over the rain. "It's okay!"
Grumpy looked up, his eyes yellow-white. He spoke, the Thunderspeak slicing through the rain effortlessly, but Funshine didn't know most of the words. He understood only one clearly.
"Help."
"You got it! I'm going to touch you! We need to get out of the storm!"
Grumpy nodded, reaching up, his expression half crazed. Funshine looped his arm around Grumpy's shoulders and pulled him to his feet. They staggered through the rain, the trees so far apart in this area that they did little to stop the rain. Funshine had no idea where to go, and even his beacon did little to pierce the gloom. Grumpy tugged him in one direction, and Funshine had to follow. He hoped that Grumpy was leading them to some sort of shelter. He didn't know this area at all, but maybe his friend did.
A dark hole loomed up in front of them, barely visible through the driving rain. It was a cave of some sort, and as soon as they'd passed the entrance, Funshine's belly badge illuminated the entire area. The cave went down about forty feet then ended in an earth wall. It was perfect to wait out the storm. Grumpy collapsed to the floor and curled up, his paws over his ears. Soft noises of distress started to come from his throat, and Funshine plopped down beside him. He was so cold and wet, but he ignored that for the time being and scooted closer to Grumpy.
"You okay, my bear?" he asked tiredly. Unsurprisingly, Grumpy shook his head, moaning. "Well, I'm here to listen when you can speak English. Okay? Even if you just want to babble in Thunderspeak, I'm here."
Grumpy nodded, a brief, weak smile touching his lips before he curled up again. Funshine sat there, shivering in the small cave, his paw resting gently on Grumpy's side for reassurance. Grumpy slowly stopped moaning, his body eventually relaxing so that he lay quietly on the floor of the cave. He breathed slowly and deeply, and after a while, Funshine wondered if he was sleeping. Then Grumpy sat up, his eyes glowing blue, his color still dark, but definitely lighter than before. He sighed.
"Thanks," he said hoarsely.
"N-n-no p-problem," Funshine chattered.
Grumpy looked up at him in surprise. "You're shivering!"
"C-cold rain," Funshine said.
Grumpy quickly pulled his Carry-All around and dug into it. He pulled out a towel and tossed it to Funshine before going back in. As the yellow bear gratefully dried himself off, Grumpy pulled out a small camping heater. He set it between them and turned it on. Funshine wrapped the towel around himself and cuddled close.
"That's better," he murmured.
Grumpy pulled out a blanket. "Here. This is dry."
Funshine switched them out and sighed with relief. "Thanks, Grumps." He eyed his friend curiously as he lazily dried himself off. "Why aren't you cold? You're just as wet as I was."
Grumpy smiled. "Eh, Thunder Bears are more resistant to cold and wet. Our fur is waterproof. You never wondered why most of my rain runs off of me?"
"That's pretty cool, Grumps," Funshine said. "How are you feeling?"
Grumpy spread the towel out on the floor to dry. He looked a bit shy. "Just having a bad day. I had some bad dreams last night, and they brought up memories, and I tried to push them away all day. They caught up with me."
"Why didn't you tell me you were feeling bad?"
"I don't know." Grumpy played with the latch of his Carry-All. He breathed out. "I guess I didn't want to bother you," he finally admitted.
"Bother me? Grumps, I care about you. It's no bother if you need me to listen or help you through a hard time." Funshine paused then sighed. "I knew something was off. It's my fault, too, for not asking. I didn't want to push myself on you."
Grumpy smiled slightly. "I do like my privacy."
Funshine nodded. "Yeah. But still. I'm sorry I didn't stick around."
"And I'm sorry I didn't tell you what was going on. It's still hard to believe that you care about me. The real me, I mean."
"The real you is pretty awesome. I think our friends would like to see the real you sometime."
Grumpy smiled, then he poised his paw over his Carry-All. Funshine smirked, recognizing the invitation for their new game. The yellow bear was determined to list one thing that Grumpy didn't have in his magical bag. So far, he'd had no luck. Everything from apples to marbles to a zipper, Grumpy had pulled out everything he'd named. For the moment, however, he wanted food, and he knew Grumpy needed some anyway.
"Mozzarella sticks," Funshine challenged.
The paw dipped in, rifled around for a moment, then tugged out a plateful of hot, fried cheese sticks.
"With marinara!"
Another search and a large bowl of marinara was pulled from the depths of the bag. Funshine laughed. Well, he was on Italian food…
"Spaghetti and meatballs!"
The plate popped out and was set on the floor.
"Margherita pizza!"
The pizza was settled next to the mozzarella. A wicked idea filled Funshine's mind, and he sat up straight as he made his last request.
"My own spaghizza!"
Grumpy paused, tilting his head, then began to search again. As the seconds ticked by, a gleeful grin stretched Funshine's muzzle. He'd finally stumped him!
"Aha! Knew it was in here somewhere."
And out of the bag came a half a pie of the spaghetti/pizza fusion that Funshine had created himself. Funshine was so delighted and tickled that Grumpy had that in his Carry-All that he burst out laughing. He wasn't even mad that he'd lost again. That was the best round yet! Plus they now had a feast to consume.
Grumpy smirked as he set aside the Carry-All. But as he reached for the mozzarella, thunder crashed outside, a loud boom that shook the sky and made Grumpy's entire body spasm. The glowing blue in his eyes was immediately swallowed by hot, bright white, and he cringed back, whimpering. Funshine set aside his slice of pizza and began to murmur.
"It's okay, Grumps. You're not there, you're here with me and we're about to enjoy this shinin' food. Okay? Take a few deep breaths. I'll do it with you. Come on now. Breathe in slow."
Grumpy obeyed his instructions, and after a few minutes, he relaxed a bit and shook his head.
"Sorry. Reminded me of Daddy," he grumbled.
"It's okay. But you're not with him. You're with me. Now let's eat. You've got to be half-starved."
Grumpy touched his belly and nodded. "It's starting to ache."
Funshine chewed on his spaghizza slice. "What happens when you don't get enough food?"
"Catabolysis," Grumpy said, dunking a cheese stick into the bowl of marinara.
Funshine paused. "What's that?"
"My body will eat itself," Grumpy said through a large mouthful.
"Dude, what?!"
Grumpy shrugged. "It would happen to anybody who didn't eat enough. Mine's just quicker."
Funshine stared at Grumpy as he continued to eat. That was certainly interesting, though a little dark. Then he figured it was just one more thing that made Grumpy, well, Grumpy.
"Hey, leave me a couple of those mozzarella sticks!" Funshine said. "Have some spaghetti!"
Grumpy tugged out some silverware and picked up the plate. Funshine tried one more time.
"Parmesan cheese!"
With one paw, Grumpy reached into the bag, rooted around for a moment then tugged out a jar of grated Parmesan.
"Oh come on!"
Grumpy laughed.
