Over the next few months, Grumpy spent an increasing amount of time with Funshine as they continued to search for the journal. The yellow bear was learning Thunderspeak with a voracious appetite rivaled only by Grumpy's appetite for food. He would get up bright and early and head to Gloomy Glen to make a huge breakfast. Grumpy would inevitably be drawn outside to the food, and then they would begin the lessons. By this time, he could speak relatively fluently. Grumpy was impressed with his progress as they took a break one afternoon for lunch.

"You're doing really well," Grumpy said between large mouthfuls of spaghetti and meatballs. "I didn't expect such progress."

Funshine sipped on a fizzy lemonade. "I really want to be able to talk to you if you go back into a flashback. And I like the language. It's so expressive, so diverse. I love it."

Grumpy smiled, swallowing some lemonade. "I think so, too."

As he moved to take another bite of his lunch, his entire countenance suddenly changed. His body spasmed, and a startled crack of thunder came out of his mouth. The bowl of spaghetti tumbled from his twitching fingers, splattering over the table, and he folded over, groaning low in his throat. Funshine jumped up,

"Grumpy!" He hurried around the table and grasped the blue bear's shoulders, which trembled beneath his hands.

Grumpy continued to groan, and electricity zapped over his body. He quivered in pain, assaulted by images that were foreign to him. What he saw was shocking and saddening. He sensed pain so deep that it tore at his soul, and he arched back, thunder cracking out of his mouth again as he screamed. Funshine held him, the electricity crackling across his hands and arms, sending bolts of sheer agony to his heart. Tears poured from his eyes as he gritted his teeth. He felt a shadow of memory, of neglect and loneliness from one front, rage and self-hatred from another, and the need to make others pay for the pain that lit his reality every second of every day.

And then, in a single moment, the Gloomy Glen came back into focus, and Grumpy sucked in a long, deep breath. His heart pounded fiercely in his chest as he gasped for air. His entire body was on fire, and he realized that electricity was rolling across his body in waves, visible to anyone who passed by. Funshine's muscles were contracting from the bolts that passed over both of them. It took a tremendous effort for Grumpy to siphon the electricity from his body. But it burned inside of him like fire. Unable to do anything else, he threw up his hands, and lightning shot from his paws into the surprisingly dark and cloudy sky. The wave of sound that came from the action was like cannon fire, exploding across the sky in a terrific blast that left Funshine's ears ringing.

The yellow bear collapsed onto the ground, shaking from head to foot as he tried to regain control of his body. "W-what w-w-was th-that?" he chattered, shivering.

"C-coming," Grumpy stammered. "Three of them. They're coming to hurt everybody. Gotta protect them. We've got to raise the alarm."

Funshine jolted to his feet, still quivering, and Grumpy staggered up. They half-ran toward the Rainbow Ride, moving as fast as their shocked bodies could. They settled in, the buckles latching them to the seat. The sky was eerily quiet, not a bit of wind or rain despite the boiling clouds.

By the time they made it to Tenderheart's house, they had control of their bodies again. They leaped out of the cart and bolted for the door, pounding on it frantically. The hatred and desire to hurt, maim, kill! had been so strong in the vision and sensations they felt that they were desperate to get everybody together. Tenderheart opened the door, dripping wet and wrapped in a towel. When he saw the looks on their faces, the irritated expression on his face turned to worry.

"What's wrong?"

"Thunder Bears," Funshine gasped, nearly delirious from the onslaught of somebody else's feelings. "Mean. Angry. Hurt! Kill! Hate!"

Panic appeared in Tenderheart's eyes. He whipped the towel off, dried himself haphazardly, then tossed it behind him, still half wet.

"Wonderheart's at Share's. We've got to get everybody together! Move!"

They all bolted for the Rainbow Ride, which suddenly moved far, far too slowly. Grumpy, swamped by the enraged emotions getting closer and closer, gripped the side of the ride so hard that there was a cracking sound. His claws, normally hidden, were piercing the golden wood that made up the cart. Tenderheart was tapping his foot impatiently and didn't seem to notice. Funshine grabbed Grumpy's other hand. They met each other's gaze, and Funshine could tell that Grumpy was disturbed and in some kind of pain. The yellow bear figured that even though he could no longer feel the incoming pain and loneliness, Grumpy was very, very aware of it.

When they got to the Emerald Bridge, they barreled out of the cart and sprinted for Share's house. Share and Wonderheart were sitting under the eaves of the small porch staring at the sky when the three bears came into view. Share stood up and grasped Wonderheart's hand.

"Beacons. Now. All of you," Tenderheart commanded.

All five of them sent up their badges in the sky. Grumpy's was dark and angry, but he managed to keep the red hearts on his badge. He couldn't hold it together for as long as Tenderheart wanted, and he stopped projecting, turning away and moaning. Tenderheart glanced over.

"Grumpy?"

"I don't feel so well," he said hoarsely, looking back over his shoulder.

Tenderheart could tell that something was definitely wrong with Grumpy. His face was pinched and his eyes were bright, and a quiver passed over his frame. Tenderheart nodded then focused back on the belly badges. Within minutes, Care Bears began to arrive, and Tenderheart had them join in with their belly badges.

"Grumpy, make sure everybody's accounted for," Tenderheart ordered.

Grumpy fumbled inside his Carry-All and pulled out an old list of all the Care Bears. His hands shook as he took a pen and began to make checks as he wandered through the crowd. Having something to focus on helped to lower the waves of anxiety and the foreign feelings growing closer every second. At last, he had most of the bears checked off. There were only two not there.

"Anybody missing?" Tenderheart asked.

"Giving and Grams," Grumpy croaked, handing over the list.

The beacons were shut off at a gesture from Tenderheart. The bears were all murmuring amongst themselves. It was very, very rare for a mass beaconing. That usually meant something terrible was about to happen.

"What's going on, Tenderheart?" Good Luck asked.

"Thunder Bears are coming," Tenderheart said, looking at the sky, which was still roiling with dark clouds, but the air was so still, so thick with some intangible quality that everybody could sense it.

"What?" several bears exclaimed.

Fear flashed through the group, and they huddled together.

"What are we supposed to do?" Friend asked.

"We need to stay together," Tenderheart said.

"I don't want this surprise," Surprise said, trembling.

"What do they want with us?" Secret hissed.

"They're so angry," Funshine said, his eyes scanning the sky. "So very angry. They want to hurt us. All of us. They're so mad and it's all our fault."

Tenderheart paused, turning slowly to look at Funshine. "What do you mean our fault?"

Before Funshine could think of something to say, Grumpy groaned loudly.

"Here," he gasped. "Here!"

There was a soft hissing noise, and Funshine understood at once that it was laughter. He spun around and saw the glowing yellow-white eyes of three tall figures staring out between the trees.

Funshine froze, and Tenderheart stiffened and followed his gaze. Then he yelled. The hiss of laughter came again, and the first bear stepped out. Funshine knew at once why Grumpy was considered a runt. The Thunder Bears were almost two heads taller than the average Care Bear. Funshine stood stock still as Tenderheart cringed back, spreading his arms as if to protect the bears.

"Well, well, well," the one in front said in Thunderspeak. "They certainly scare easy, don't they Spritz?"

The one on the right grinned. "Yes. And they're so small!"

The third one narrowed his glowing eyes. "How could these little freaks hurt us? They're tiny and insignificant."

"Isn't that what they called us? Insignificant?" Spritz snarled, baring his glowing teeth and clenching his fists. "I say we show them how insignificant they are."

"No!" Funshine shouted, and all three Thunder Bears jumped.

The Care Bears went quiet. All of them stared in shock at Funshine, who stood shaking in between them. They had only heard wind and thunder and rain as the three large black bears spoke, which they all knew was Thunderspeak. But to hear a clap of thunder from Funshine's mouth startled them.

"You speak our tongue?" the first bear demanded, looking wary.

"Yes. A bit," Funshine said.

"How?"

Funshine didn't answer. He didn't want to throw Grumpy under the bus. "I learned," he finally replied. "What's your name?"

"Crumble."

"I'm Funshine."

"You're so yellow," Crumble said. He took two steps forward, leaning closer, and Tenderheart made a strangled noise.

"It's okay, Tenderheart," Funshine said in a soothing voice. "He's just curious."

Grumpy was pressing back into Share's tree, his claws sunk deep into the wood. He could feel the pulses of pain from each of them, and he was terrified. He knew what he had to do, but he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Funshine stood very still as the three Thunder Bears walked around him. His limbs were trembling, but he forced himself to stay calm. He could sense caution from them, but there was also a glint of hostility. He knew that he was a curiosity for the moment, but he wasn't sure he could keep them preoccupied for long. He didn't know how to get out of this situation without lots of pain. He hoped Grumpy could help… somehow.

Tenderheart's mind was racing as he watched the bears gather around Funshine. How did Funshine know Thunderspeak? How did he know that they were angry? Why did he say that this was their fault? What was going to happen? He didn't know the answers, and if something happened to Funshine, he never would.

"Little yellow bear knows our tongue," the third Thunder Bear snarled. He leaned close. "Does little bear know why we hate him?"

Funshine met his eyes and nodded. "Yes. Our ancestors hurt your ancestors. And you've been suffering ever since. I can't take back what they've done. But I am very sorry."

"Sorry?" the Thunder Bear asked, his tone too soft. "Sorry for the collapse of our society? Sorry for the darkness we all now struggle through? Sorry for the fact that our powers are failing more and more often? Sorry that we suffer because you believe us to be evil?"

Funshine shrank back, but he bumped against Spritz, who towered above him with angry eyes.

"I am," Funshine gasped. "I can't change the past. But I know you're not evil. Please, give us a chance to make it up to you."

"You don't deserve any chances! We're not evil but your kind is!" Funshine was picked up in strong paws and sharp pricks of pain dug into his neck from the sharp claws. He gave a cry, and the bear grinned.

"Enough!"

The booming bark of thunder sent the Care Bears tumbling forward into a heap. The Thunder Bears jumped, and the one holding Funshine released him. Funshine hit the ground and crawled quickly toward the only bear he knew could make this situation better. Grumpy strode forward and stood in front of Funshine, who sat back and grasped his bleeding neck with one paw.

Grumpy stood tall in front of Funshine. He didn't know how this was going to go, but he knew it had to be done. He stared down the Thunder Bears, power rolling off of him in waves. Purpose filled him to the brim, and he knew what to do. It was time for him to do what the Thunder Bears were supposed to do.