Author's note: Well fans, I'd like to start with an apology, I've been neglecting this fan fic. I was so busy with school stuff and vacation stuff. Well now its time to get back to work. Here's a tidbit to keep you happy until I finish another chapter. We'll get to brief Christy POV in another chapter or so. I don't want to reveal too many plot lines yet. Remember I don't own any Care Bear original characters or content. Enjoy!

Chapter 4 Shadows

Grumpy Bear grumbled as Dawn shook him awake.

"For Great Star's sakes woman, leave me alone," Grumpy swatted Dawn's hand away.

"Come on Grumpy Bear," Dawn lifted him up to his feet, "We have to stay awake."

The four were afraid of what would come with sleep. They didn't know if they would dream of someone loved and lost, and if they did, if they would wake. The smell of coffee mingled with the smell of Jon's cigarettes and James looked towards the path that lead to the lake.

Jon handed Grumpy Bear another cup of coffee. It was his fourth. "Come on old bear, don't quit on us now."

"Damn kids," Grumpy mumbled as he took the steaming cup of black coffee and sipped it earnestly, "keep me up for 8 hours and expect me not to fall asleep."

"I'm going to check out that area again." James walked towards the path that lead to the forest which was the area where the shadow lady appeared. The others grumbled in acknowledgement as he walked out the door. They'd already checked the area twice. The forest hadn't burned down and the trees seemed to be alive. There weren't any more remnants of the shadow lady, but James was relentless in his search for Christy. He and Jon had even taken a boat out towards the middle of the dark lake and James dove in with an underwater flashlight. Nothing had shown up in his search. Now the team's focus was on staying awake and trying to wake up the other counselors and children.

James reached the area where the shadow lady had stood. He inspected the trees once more. Nothing seemed to be blackened or burnt. James sighed and turned to return to the path as the clouds moved to reveal the light of the full moon. As the light hit the trees, he saw the blackened area. James placed his hand on a nearby tree and yanked back. The tree was hot, as if it were still smoldering from the inside. How did….James thought as he walked around the circled blackness. On the other end of the circle a small black path followed out of the circle towards a dead end in the path. James followed the small path to a large rock with a blackened silhouette of a door. James cautiously pushed on the silhouette, it was warm, but not hot like the tree. The door opened revealing a hall made of luxurious wood and carpet. James turned around and considered returning to the camp to bring the others.

"Dark Heart…." A lustrous voice called from the hall.

James turned back to the hall and entered the doorway. As he stepped in, the door closed behind him and candles lit up as he looked down the hall. The end of the hall opened up into a large room decorated like a parlor with a large fire place in the middle. To the side of the fire place was a large chair with a shadow sitting in front of it. She looked like a shadow of a woman with a sleeveless corset dress, and long locks of shadow hair.

"Welcome to my abode," the shadow lady took a sip of wine from her glass, "Dark Heart."

"My name is James," James stared at the shadow as his anger grew, "Where's Christy?"

"Such a shame," The lady swirled the wine in her glass, "that you took on a human name for your human appearance. Tell me, do you like being human Dark Heart?"

"Where's Christy?" James clenched his fists as he approached the figure.

"I rather miss it," the lady took another gulp and placed the glass on the table beside her, "well sometimes at least."

"Where's Christy?" James boomed at the dark figure.

"I don't have her," the lady poured another glass of wine.

"I know you do!" James grabbed the glass of wine from her hand and threw it into the fire, "You were there when she was stolen. Who else could have her?"

The lady rose from her chair and walked towards the fire place and reached her hand into the fire and pulled out the glass, as if it were new. She turned with burning eyes and answered in an icy cold voice, "The Care Bears."

"That's impossible!" James walked towards her, "They are nothing but good. They do nothing but good. You're lying, they'd never hurt Christy, they saved her!"

"No," the darkness placed the glass on the table, "As I recall, you're the one who saved her."

"I couldn't have done it without them." James stared at the shadow.

"You don't realize what they did to you do you?" The shadow stared back into James' eyes.

James sneered, "Did what to me?"

The shadow turned towards the fire and stared into its core, "When Christy came back from your poisonous spell, you transferred your power, your energy to her heart. You gave warmth back to her soul. The Care Bears had nothing to do with it, their silly power was for nothing, and they never cared whether Christy was brought back to life or not. All they cared about was that your power was taken away."

James stared at the figure in disbelief, "I gave up my power so she could live. She's the only one who ever cared for me."

"Before you met Christy, your heart was your power, it was the only thing that mattered to you," the shadow turned towards James, "The Care Bears threatened that power and you captured them, you contained them, but they escaped and nearly destroyed you had it not been for that girl. In return for your life, you gave her your heart. Why do you think you became human James?"

"No," James shook his head, "It can't be true, they saved me."

The shadow scoffed, "She saved you, she is your heart and they have her!"

"Why would they take her? What's their motive?"

"Why else? They want to ensure that your power is, how shall I put it, destroyed."

James shook his head, "No, no they would never do anything like that."

"Wouldn't they? She's locked in a crystal, asleep for now, but eventually her life force will end." The shadow turned and walked away from James, "Eventually she will die or they will speed the process. When she dies James, you will die."

James walked towards the shadow lady, "I don't believe you."

"I can understand your unwillingness to believe, that's why I'm going to show you for myself." The shadow turned around took off the key that hung from her neck and walked towards a door in a corner of the room. She placed the key in the lock and as she opened the door a familiar light emitted into the parlor.

"But how?" James walked towards the open door, before him was the home of the Care Bears, the Kingdom of Care-a-Lot. It was daylight, and the sun shone into the room revealing a blackened, flame-licked room. As he began to step through the doorway, the darkness extended a hand, stopping him from entering. James looked down at the arm of the shadow lady, it was pale, blood-drained, the fingertips were black, the arm was cold. She hid her face and body behind the door as if she were afraid of the light.

"It would not be wise to enter Care-a-Lot without proper cover; the Care Bears would most certainly discover your sudden appearance and link it back to me. I can't be discovered just yet." The shadow took back her hand and withdrew a small vial filled with a light blue liquid from a pocket hidden within the folds of her long black skirt. "Drink this; it will give you exactly ten minutes of invisibility."

James took the vial and raised it to the light, the color changing to a dark blue color. "How do I know you won't kill me?"

"If I wanted to kill you I would have done so." The shadow drew back a step, "When you enter the kingdom, go behind the castle, there should be a trap door in the shape of a star. Enter the door and climb down three flights of stairs, no more no less. When you reach the end of the third flight of stairs go straight through the moon door and whisper 'we care' into the door handle. The door will open and you will see Christy. She will be asleep on a bed within a crystal. You will not be able to touch her. Return before your time runs out. When you return to this door you will be transported back to the forest. Don't bother trying the door again; it won't work a second time. Think about what you plan to do. When you have made your decision all you have to do is go to a dark place and light a candle. There you can tell me whether or not you want to save your beloved." The shadow lady gestured for James to leave the room.

"How will I know that what I see is real?"

"Let the potion wear off and see what happens."

James looked at the shadow before him, her arm extended and a glowing space where her heart should've been. "What do you call yourself, who are you and why do you know so much about all this, about me?"

The shadow lady cocked her head, "You may call me Broken Heart, and as far as your other questions, you'll find out in good time."

James scanned the ruined room and looked again at Broken Heart, "Why do you change in the light?"

"The darkness hides the truth, you of all people should know that Dark Heart."

"My name is James," he said as he drank down the vial of liquid, "and quite honestly Christy is the one who showed me the truth." His figure faded out and the door closed behind him

Broken Heart looked at the closed door, "That makes her your light."

To Be Continued…

Author's Note: Gosh I'm sorry its so short, but hopefully the next one will be longer and more intriguing. I own Broken Heart (as far as I know) and she is my own original character. Don't worry gang, you'll get her story soon. But can the Care Bears really be that evil? Find out in the next chapter. Please R&R!