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Cloud Kingdoms - QC Planet

Forgotten Legacies featuring Timesheart Tiger

Never Too Late For Caring By Darrel James Vanwinkle November 3rd, 2009 to March 5th, 2014

Disclaimer: I do not own the Care Bears and they only appear in the story as support characters to further along the development of Timesheart Tiger, a custom made Care Bear cousin who was created by me. No copyright infringement is intended and all rights are reserved. No sexual displays appear in this story.

Dullton, Georgia; Planet Earth

"Mr. Dangers," exclaimed the school teacher. "You are late again. You have just earned another afternoon in detention."

The boy sighed as he took his seat. Most of the other students were all giggling and razzing him, which only made him feel worse than before. The rest of his day was going to be really long and sad.

"Nobody loves me... maybe I should run away..."

Care-a-lot Square; Cloud Kingdoms

At that moment, the Caring Meter chimed loudly alerting all of the Care Bears to the emergency immediately.

"What do you see, Cheer Bear?" asked Grumpy Bear. "The Caring Meter made me mess up my model kit project."

Cheer Bear replied, "There is a boy in Dullton who needs our help. His name is Harold Dangers. He has a problem with being on time. He's always late and getting detention. He's on the verge of running away from home."

At that moment, Braveheart Lion and Brightheart Raccoon arrived from the bridge that led to the Forest of Feelings. Braveheart roared, "We can't let him run away from home, guys! No Heart and Beastly are recruiting kids near Dullton for an evil experiment! If Harold leaves town, he'll bump right into those fiends!"

Brightheart hummed, with a thought on his mind. "The boy is always late, is he...?"

Cheer arched an eye. "What are you thinking about, Brightheart?"

"I know someone who would be perfect for a mission like this. The only problem with this person... is that he's currently depressed."

Braveheart face-pawed himself, covering his eyes. "You mean my son; I don't know. He's just reached that age where he could get missions. He barely knows how to use his tummy symbol."

Grumpy folded his arms over his chest. "So who are you guys talking about? You never told us that you had a son, Braveheart. Who is this Care Bear Cousin?"

Braveheart turned to face in a direction that none of the Care Bears had explored as yet. "He lives in the Isles of the Forgotten Legacies." He paused. "His name is Timesheart Tiger and his special powers are time manipulation and time travel. He's been depressed ever since he found out that our producers won't let him be in one of our TV episodes."

Cheer exclaimed, "WHAT?! That's preposterous! He's one of us! He should be in our shows! What is his catch phrase?"

Brightheart smiled. "He came up with an awesome one all by himself. His catch phrase is... There's always time for caring."

Even Grumpy received the heart-felt feeling when he heard the catch phrase. "We have to go get Timesheart! That boy down there NEEDS him! Let's get over to the Isles of the Forgotten Legacies right now!"

Brightheart said, "To the cloud cars, everyone! I'll lead the way to his island!" And the Care Bears and the Care Bear Cousins all scrambled to the cloud cars and immediately took off following Brightheart's cloud car.

Braveheart muttered to himself, "This is going to be mission impossible; I just know it."

Isle of Nod, Isles of the Forgotten Legacies; Cloud Kingdoms

On the shores of a lone island in the mists, the Care Bears and Care Bear Cousins saw and heard a mish-mash of scenes and events stemming from both famous history and random personal history from people on Earth. In fact, it was rather chaotic.

"Welcome to the Island of Nod," exclaimed Brightheart. "And don't worry; nothing you see and hear can hurt you. It is only replaying images and sounds from the past on Earth. It freaked me out the first time, too. Timesheart's Tower of Time is in the center of the island. I know he smiles every time I come to visit him. I hope he doesn't frown when he sees all of us."

Funshine Bear asked, "Does anyone else come out here, Brightheart?"

Brightheart smiled. "Just another forgotten legacy. His name is Dalis Hailey. He is a panthagoyle inventor. He and I compare notes a lot. He's pretty cool. When I told him about Timesheart, he wanted to meet him. This island gave him some strange ideas. He was studying the effects for hours."

Soon, the group stood at the base of the tower that was covered in Dali like clocks and digital time displays. Some running forward, others stopped on important dates, and yet others running backwards.

From somewhere within the tower, the group heard... BOOM! "Wow! That was a wild trip, Timesheart! Thanks for taking me back to the War of 1812! Now I'll be sure to ace that test in school!"

Timesheart was heard replying, "Any time, Dalis! Just remember: There's always time for caring! Unless you're a producer!"

Both occupants were then heard laughing their asses off!

Funshine whispered, "Sounds like he's in a good mood."

Brightheart replied, "Until he sees his dad, that is... right Braveheart?"

Braveheart sighed. "He and I... have a sore spot 'issue' that we always end up arguing about. I... really don't want to talk about it."

Grumpy Bear then asked, "Who is Timesheart's mom, anyway?"

Braveheart sighed again. "That is the sore spot issue."

Grumpy Bear said, "Oh."

The discussion inside the tower seemed to be moving downward toward the ground floor and then it sounded as if the volume of the conversation was approaching the door.

Brightheart whispered, "Prepare yourselves. I don't know what his reaction will be to all of us standing here."

And then the front door opened and the large black panthagoyle known as Dalis Hailey strode out passed the Care Bears and then he took flight and flew away giggling. He either didn't see them or ignored them.

Timesheart Tiger on the other paw had a neutral look on his muzzle as he saw the group and his father. "What are you doing here, father?" asked Timesheart. "I have been staying out of your way."

Braveheart replied, "A mission came up. And the others thought you were the best one who could handle it."

Timesheart sighed. "Come on inside." And he allowed the group and his father inside the Tower of Time. "Does mom know you're out here bothering me? Of course she doesn't. Because you won't tell me who she is. Who is this kid who needs my help?" He didn't sound happy to be dealing with any of them.

Brightheart coughed. "Timesheart... we aren't out here to give you and Braveheart Round 12... Harold Dangers is in trouble and about to be in worse trouble. He has a problem with being on time... he's always tardy for school and he is getting detention because of it. And worse... he's planning on running away from home. And now for the really bad news. No Heart and Beastly are outside of Dullton capturing kids for an experiment of theirs."

Timesheart sat down in his throne of time. "Give me a N! Give me an O! Give me a Dash! Give me a H! Give me an E! Give me an A! Give me a R! Give me a T! What does that spell? No Heart! No Heart! YEAH!" He then looked at the others. "What's in this for me if I help?"

Grumpy Bear growled, "What do you mean 'what's in this for you if you help?' You help because it's the caring thing to do! Besides, I am the only one allowed to be grumpy in the Care Bears!"

Cheer Bear stepped forward. "Timesheart... please. What would you think appropriate for your help?"

Timesheart sighed again. "Bring me one of three things. I'll let you choose which. One, get the producers to let me star in one of your TV shows or movies. Two, force dad to bring mom to me. Or three, fetch me a bottle of the best Scotch in Pony Land. They make the best stuff."

Braveheart growled. "Have you been drinking again?"

Timesheart nodded his head. "Can you blame me?"

Braveheart suddenly said, "Okay son, you win. Your mother's name is Jazzheart Jaguar. I had a one night stand with her one night at a club where Champ Bear and I were clubbing at. A year later, Jazzheart surprised me in my cave in the Forest of Feelings and she handed me you. And she told me to raise our son, Timesheart Tiger. Then she left again. I haven't seen her since. But I did learn later that she was performing criminal acts with Professor Cold Heart. Last I heard, she left for the Q.C. Amazon. And after that, I hadn't heard a thing. I didn't have any trouble raising you until you started asking these questions about your mom. Then you moved out on me and came here. At least you have Dalis. And now you have your payment, son. Will you help us now?"

Timesheart hummed. "That information will be extremely useful later. And now..." he stood up and pointed off toward a central chamber. "Come! We will now turn back time and interact with this Harold Dangers BEFORE he leaves his house for school! And we will learn for ourselves what is making him late! To the Chamber of Time!"

Within the chamber, there was a jukebox on a pedestal and Timesheart activated it, and powered up the Transporter to Yesterday! "All ABOARD! Next stop! Dullton, yesterday!" And the Care Bears and Cousins all joined Timesheart within the teleporter and when the jukebox began to play the song "If I Could Turn Back Time" by Cher, they were transported back in time!

And the colors of the time stream flew by them as the sun set in the East and the moon rose in the West and set in the East and the sun slowed... then began moving in it's normal time pattern again.

Dullton, Georgia; Planet Earth

And instantly, the Care Bear rescue party arrived in Dullton the evening before the Caring Meter Alarm sounded.

Timesheart smiled. "Welcome to Dullton, Georgia... Eighteen hours ago. Now we can learn what makes the boy late. And guys... I don't need to tell you this, but we need to keep it quiet out here."

The Care Bears and their cousins along with Timesheart all peeked through the window of Harold's bedroom where they saw the boy getting ready for bed. He was placing his school clothes out where he could easily find them, although he looked as if he was worried that it wasn't going to be that easy. Like it was pointless.

About two hours later around midnight, our heroes were shocked when they saw Harold's parents come into his room, gather up his school clothes, and systematically hide them -- deliberately.

Cheer Bear whispered, "I can't believe it. What are they doing? They are hiding his clothes."

Brightheart growled a little. "What a dirty trick. No wonder Harold is always late for school. He has to find his clothes every morning."

Timesheart pulled on Braveheart, whispering, "Come with me, dad. We need to get close enough to spy on the parents to see if they reveal something important about why they are doing this." And the two circled the house and arrived at the parents bedroom where the two adults were getting ready to get back in bed. And there was a conversation going on.

"I don't know honey... I just don't feel right about making him solve a puzzle every morning to stimulate his brain psychosis. I got another call yesterday about his being late for school and how he showed up wearing dirty clothes. He couldn't find his clean clothes so he pulled the dirty ones out of the hamper."

"You heard what the doctor said about him, dear. Harold will never be able to lead a normal life unless we can stimulate his ability to reason out problems in a quick manner. And we are making some progress. We just have to keep after him. It'll all work out in the end. Trust me."

Braveheart growled quietly, "I'd like to trust my fist right in her snoot." But Timesheart was just barely holding his father's rage back. "Dad, Shh."

"I'm just afraid the school is going to call the welfare agency on us if Harold is late again. I don't need this kind of publicity just before election time. The boy is a hopeless case; why can't we just ship him off to an institution for his own good?"

Braveheart was really getting mad now. The father didn't even care about his son's welfare. He only cared about his political career in Dullton.

"Dear... let's give him one more chance. If he can't solve our puzzle tomorrow... then I'll call welfare myself and get him into a institution someplace else. Now it's late. We need our sleep."

Timesheart had to drag his dad away from the parents window before the lion tried to use his Care Bear powers on them.

Grumpy Bear noticed the two returning from where they had gone. "How did it go, Timesheart?"

"Dad almost let them know we were there. The parents are just flat evil. They kept talking about institutionalizing Harold. But here's the thing... Harold suffers from mental psychosis that makes him unable to reason out simple solutions to the problems he encounters. His parents are hiding his clothes to make him think of the most logical places for his clothes to be. His being late is a side issue. They are going to give him another day to improve, but then... it's off to the institution. And if they send him there, he will never recover."

Braveheart was still growling. "I want to punch them so badly."

Cheer Bear hummed. "What can we do? I suppose we could sneak in and put the clothes back for Harold to find and-"

"NO!" growled Timesheart, cutting the Care Bear leader off sharply. "We cannot do that and here's why. Unless you suddenly forgot where we are, Cheer, this is the past. If you change the past, it will change the present we came from. Helping him this once as tempting as it might be will make it so the Caring Meter will never sound and if it never sounds, Harold will run right into No Heart and Beastly after school. And we'll have no warning of it happening."

Grumpy Bear folded his arms over his chest. "So what do we do? We can't just stand around and do nothing."

Timesheart looked directly at Cheer Bear. "Are you still in charge of the Sponsor Family program?"

"Of course I am," replied Cheer. "Wait a minute... are you saying that YOU want to become Harold's Sponsor? Mr. What's In It For Me?"

The tiger glanced off toward the moon in the sky. "If they institutionalize him no one will be able to help him. He'll perish for sure. I have to Sponsor him or its curtains for the boy." He turned to look at the Care Bear again. "What do I have to do to make it official?"

Cheer Bear placed a paw on the tiger's shoulder. "You can't do it by yourself, Timesheart. The Sponsor Family program states that the family in question must consist of a minimum of two toons but as many as four in the household. In addition to the other toons, you'll need a house, land, and the conditions for chores around the home, and of course, Harold's enrollment in the local school of choice. You have to spend at least twice a day with the boy, preferably mornings and evenings. What you do with the rest of your time is totally up to you. Are you still interested?"

"Yes, but I also want the whole thing filmed as if it were a reality TV show," said Timesheart. "And I think I know a few other toons who will help me provide the family environment for Harold."

Cheer arched her eye. "Filmed? What for?"

Timesheart smiled. "The producers won't let me be in your TV show, so I want one of my own. And I think it would be interesting to see how four toons and a real boy do each week on TV. Then the producers could see that I can hold a TV show position. Otherwise, how are you going to convince the producers to let me be in your series?"

"Okay... so who do you have in mind for the other toon Sponsor parents?"

With a smile, he said without hesitation, "Champion Pony, Scentheart Skunk, and Doncoyocamon. Champion Pony owns his own ranch house on an existing school route and his place always has available chores to do there. He wanted me to come live with him recently but because I was depressed then, I told him that I'd think about it. But if you help me to get Harold, I'll make an effort in the Sponsor House. Please, Cheer Bear? Pretty Please? Purrttttyyyy Pwweeeeaaassseeee!" He was now making sad puppy eyes at the Care Bear female.

Cheer Bear glanced at Braveheart. "How did you ever put up with this?"

Braveheart just smiled. "Ancient Chinese secret."

Timesheart then said, "Even if Scentheart and Doncoyocamon turn my offer down, I know Champion Pony won't. He said the offer for me to live with him would always be open."

Cheer Bear turned to the tiger again with a smile. "Okay Timesheart. I'll make it official. You and Champion Pony as the primary Sponsors. The others as extra sponsors if they choose to accept." She pulled out a contract and handed it and a pen to Timesheart. "Read these rules over and sign on the first Sponsor line."

Timesheart slowly read over the rules carefully. It sounded pretty simple to uphold. He then signed his name on the first line and he handed the contract and pen back to Cheer Bear. "Here you go."

"Once Champion Pony signs the contract, you will both be official Sponsors. Just remember that the most Charges you guys can have in the household is four, but you cannot bring in a new one until you've had the old one for a year. So you have to do your best with Harold so you can earn recognition. And the producers will likely be watching."

"I understand, Cheer. But once I explain to him why he needs to do this, he will sign it too." Especially after I plant a deep kiss on his muzzle and grope him.

Cheer Bear nodded her head. "So what do we do in the meantime?"

Timesheart grinned. "Now we wait for morning, sneak along following Harold to school, then... we go into Detention before he gets there and we surprise him with our offer. We can also talk to the principal and explain why we're even there. Once he understands why we are there, he will help us with Harold."

And soon, it was that afternoon at the school. The principal was all too eager to have the Care Bears help him with Harold's problem since nothing else seemed to be working. Harold slowly walked down the hall toward Detention Hall where he knew he was going to have to sit... yet again. But the moment he entered the room, his eyes opened wide when he saw the Care Bears and the Care Bear Cousins waiting on him. "What's going on?"

Cheer Bear said with a smile, "Hello Harold. Today is your lucky day."

Braveheart Lion then said, "The principal helped us to set this surprise up for you, Harold. Today you are receiving your own special Caring Sponsor."

The boy looked very surprised. "My own Sponsor? I... I don't know what to say."

Funshine Bear patted Harold on the shoulder. "The principal called your parents to let them know about your good fortune."

Harold suddenly brightened up! "You mean they finally located my dad? Is he okay? Was he hurt?"

All of the Care Bears and Cousins arched an eye and looked at each other quizzically.

Timesheart stepped forward looked Harold in the eyes. "You mean that man we saw last night at your house isn't your dad?"

"No," replied the boy looking hopeful for any news. "That guy is a local politician that my mom has the hots for. My dad was kidnapped a few months ago as he was leaving work. An eyewitness said the person who did it looked like a cartoon character. And because the only witness said that, the police refused to believe the story."

Timesheart growled a little when he heard the story from Harold as he glanced at his own dad. "You have my permission to punch the guy in the snoot, dad. That man last night is simply the new boyfriend to Harold's mom. I smell foul play."

"I knew it," growled the lion cousin as he rubbed over his fur covered fist. "And he acts worse than No Heart... which I thought wasn't possible."

Cheer Bear said, "Calm down, guys. This is Harold's moment." The care bear turned to the boy again. "Don't worry, we will find your real father. But in the meantime, Timesheart Tiger, here, is your new Caring Sponsor. His powers involve the movement and control of time."

Harold nodded his head. "I can certainly use some help with time."

Then Timesheart blatantly told Harold what his mother and the politician were doing with the boy's clothes every night. "...and that is why you can't ever find your clothes every morning. But that ends today, Harold. You're coming to Care-a-lot with the rest of us. We got a place for you and everything. Besides... you were about to run away from home anyway. Right?" He winked with a smile.

The boy blushed. "Um, yeah. I guess there is no hiding things from you guys. I didn't think anyone cared about me since my real dad was kidnapped."

And then he got the group hug as Cheer Bear said, "We care about everyone even when no one else seems to care about them at all. And now we are here for you, Harold."

Brightheart smiled. "Time to load up in the cloud cars, everyone. Time to show Harold his new home in the Cloud Kingdoms."

"I thought you said we were going to Care-a-lot," said Harold.

Braveheart said, "We are. The Cloud Kingdoms is where Care-a-lot, the Forest of Feelings, The Isles of the Forgotten Legacies, Yiff-a-lot, Ponyland, Gray Ponyland, and Rainbowland all co-exist at. And you'll be schooling at one of our local schools, too. Being late will be a thing of the past. And while you are in Care-a-lot, we will look for your dad."

And the lion got a hug for saying that last part. Seeing his dad again was obviously what he wanted more than anything.

Champion Pony's Ranch, Gray Ponyland; Cloud Kingdoms

In the Cloud Kingdoms between Care-a-lot and Ponyland lay the lands of Gray Ponyland and Yiff-a-lot. It was a quiet area, despite their names, with nice looking farms and ranches as well as clean looking forests, nice wooded parks, and ample fishing and swimming spots. Champion Pony's ranch was one of two ranches down a private dirt road just off of the Cloud Kingdom Freeway. When the Care Bears and Care Bear Cousins arrived on the scene they saw a flock of crows attacking Champion Pony and his corn field.

"Care Bears!" shouted Cheer Bear. "Stare! There!" And they quickly leaped in line and fired off their tummy symbols at the crows causing them to go flying off in all directions. The remaining crows fled the area as fast as they could. Timesheart Tiger ran over to check on his pony friend.

"Hey, hon... are you okay?" he asked as he placed an arm around the male pony.

Champion slowly lifted his muzzle as he now saw his old friend. "Am I ever glad you showed up today, Timesheart." Then he saw the rest of the crowd. "What gives, Tiger?"

The caring tiger whispered to the male pony as he pointed his muzzle toward the human boy. "See that boy over there?"

Champion Pony had a few things happen at the same time when he saw Harold. He blushed and immediately got erect as he whispered back, "Damn, Timesheart. He's so cute."

Timesheart smiled as he quietly replied, "Harold Dangers needs our help. He was about to get a caring sponsor, me, anyway, but I convinced Cheer Bear to permit him into a Sponsor Family arrangement with you and me and-"

The pony went alert immediately as he slapped a hoof over the tiger's muzzle as he quickly poked his head around the tiger. "Cheer Bear! Could you come over here, please!"

She glanced at the others then slowly walked over to the pony and tiger to find out what the problem was. "Yes Champion?"

"As council person in charge of the Sponsor Family program, you are aware of all of the requirements for the toons in question to have for sponsoring a boy or girl, right?"

The care bear arched an eye as she pulled out the Sponsor Family guidebook and opened it to the index section. Champion Pony pointed toward chapter two and the bear turned the pages to that section. The pony then pointed out a single word near the top of that page. Cheer Bear was taken aback that Champion was more aware of the rules than she thought she had been. "Oh my. You are right. That does make this a problem."

Timesheart said, "I don't understand, Cheer. What's the problem now?"

Champion replied for the care bear. "Old buddy... I am happy you thought of me to be a sponsor family parent, but apparently Cheer forgot one of the most important rules. You see... I qualify for the position but... sadly you do not."

"Why not?" he asked with a frown.

Cheer Bear sighed. "According to the guidebook, Timesheart, both of the primary sponsor parents must be toons, that part is correct; but it also says that both toons must be adults. Champion Pony here is the only adult of the two of you. Sad to say, you are still in high school so you do not qualify to be a sponsor parent. You do qualify for being a caring sponsor, but not for being a sponsor parent. I am so sorry, Timesheart. I know you were really looking forward to this."

The tiger now looked as depressed as he had been before the mission. Then he slowly turned and started walking back toward his own cloud car. "If I can't be in the Sponsor Family program, then you better get a new Caring Sponsor, too. I'll be back at my island cheering on No Heart."

But as he reached his cloud car, he saw Noble Heart Horse standing directly on the other side of it with a stern look on his face. "Did I just hear that last part right, Timesheart?" He slowly clopped around the car and walked over to the Care Bears and Harold. "Harold Dangers? Your father made contact with me earlier. When he heard that you were about to gain entry into the Sponsor Family program, he asked that you and your brother be fully processed into Q.C. Planet under our guidance."

"YOU FOUND MY DAD?!" Harold was super elated at first. Then he fainted. Braveheart Lion caught him before he hit the ground, luckily.

Champion Pony quickly went over to the side of the cloud car and propped himself up on the side so he could speak to the tiger. "Just because you can't be on the Sponsor Family team doesn't mean you can't still show up whenever you want. And no one is stopping you from being a Caring Sponsor except you. If you turn your back on this boy now, then you better just forget about ever being on a TV show because no Producer will ever look twice at you when they hear that you gave up a caring assignment."

Brightheart Raccoon said, "He is right, Timesheart. If you blow this assignment, the Producers will never see things your way. And you have to start somewhere."

The tiger slowly glanced at his raccoon friend. A moment of silence passed between them. "Find a way to bend the rules for me to be a Sponsor Parent and I'll do the assignment. Until then, leave me alone. I'll be back on my island preparing my next time trip." And with that, he started up the cloud car and flew off into the sky.

The pony and raccoon simply looked at each other for a moment.

Braveheart then commented toward the two, "A fine try, but that's always been the problem I've dealt with when dealing with him. It's his way or no way. But it was a good try."

Cheer Bear looked sad. "Isn't there any other way to get him to come back?"

"Yeah, but Grams Bear would kick our asses if we gave in to that demand of my son's."

Grumpy Bear arched his eyes now. "You mean the Scotch solution."

Braveheart nodded his muzzle. "Yeah, that."

Champion Pony walked over to Cheer Bear and said, "As much as I would like to help with the Sponsor Family arrangement with this cute boy, I like Timesheart even more. He is a good friend and I had no idea he would ever think of trying to get the two of us partnered in that particular way. But as you probably know by now... no Care Bear nor cousin lives on my ranch. I live here with Rodeo Pony, and he's not here full time himself. He's working on that western movie he is a part of. I haven't seen him in months actually. But the moment the filming ends, he would be back. I won't lie to you, Cheer. That might not be for a long time because the Director of that movie is a perfectionist."

"I appreciate your honesty, Champion," said Cheer Bear. "But now we have a big problem. I have a contract for Harold to be part of a Sponsor Family and now I have no family to match him with, thanks to Timesheart bailing at the last second. He said he could get you and possibly two others to be on the family list."

"Who else did he mention?"

"Scentheart Skunk and Doncoyocamon," replied Cheer Bear. "Do you know them?"

Champion Pony grinned. "Scentheart is currently having trouble controlling his G entle A ttack S pray, if you know what I mean." He winked.

"Oh no. What was Timesheart thinking? What about the other inquiry of interest?"

"Timesheart must have misspoke when he mentioned that Digimon, Cheer," said the pony. "The correct name is Donquiotomon. And its a she. And she hates ponies. So you can guess what that means. I think my old friend was just desperate to get anyone he could on board for this Sponsor Family thing."

Champion Pony then continued. "Although it isn't the end of the world... I personally know two adults who might be glad to help out with this. They do live together, but... they don't have chores to be done. That's the only drawback. And they currently live outside of Terryville. Both are unioned. If I had a ranch near their place, then this would work out perfectly. Harold could live with them and do chores at my place. The two I am referring to are Krypto the Super Dog and Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer."

Cheer hummed. "Both are high class citizens of the animation world. You might have something here, Champion. As for a second ranch let me talk to Lord Albert about this and see what we can arrange."

Just then, Braveheart said to Champion Pony, "Is there anyone you can think of who you could get to live with you aside from Timesheart to help Harold since you said that you do qualify for the program? Please think of something... for my son's sake."

Cheer Bear arched an eye at the lion. "What are you plotting now, Braveheart?"

"I know another time mastering tiger although he isn't a Care Bear Cousin. He's with the Cloud Kingdoms stunt union. His name is Betwixt Bengal and the producers were considering him if they ever did permit Timesheart into an acting role because my son would need a stunt double. Mr. Bengal is an adult where as my son isn't. Betwixt's specialty is the classic time stop ability, although he can manipulate all forms of time as well. Since Timesheart has bailed, we might get him to return IF we hire Betwixt to be Harold's caring sponsor so the producers have a concept to work with."

Champion Pony hummed with a smile. "Actually, I do know a Care Bear Cousin who would likely help out who has been wanting to live with me. Like Timesheart, he is another forgotten legacy. But he lives in Yiff-a-lot since he is homeless. His name is Rubs-a-lot Rabbit and has a green thumb when it comes to growing vegetables. And he LOVES cute boys probably more than I do. He IS an adult. Thing with him is... he hates sleeping by himself so... someone always ends up in the same bed with him."

"So he's like a plushie?" asked Harold who just woke up to hear the last part.

"You could say that," replied Champion Pony with a wink. "You want to meet him sometime?"

"Yes, I would."

Braveheart grinned. "Now I can reveal the rest of my plan." He turned to Cheer Bear. "With Champion, Rubs-a-lot, Krypto, and Rudolph as the four adult sponsors... we get Harold in with them and then... hire Betwixt to play escort for Harold to and from school. I then take Brightheart with me and we tell Timesheart that the bend in the Sponsor family rules is that he can live at the second ranch owned by Champion and/or Rubs-a-lot while Harold lives with Krypto and Rudolph, while doing his chores at the ranch with Timesheart and the others. Turn it into a Sponsor Chores Environment, hence, the bend in the rules that Timesheart was asking for. He could be a surrogate Sponsor Parent in training. He's a sophomore this year, but upon graduating, he would qualify as an adult full time. Can we do it that way?"

Cheer Bear and Champion Pony were then searching through the guide book for any mention of Braveheart's suggestion, but there was nothing in print about it at all. Cheer was then on her cellphone to call in the inquiry to the Sponsor Family Services to ask about the suggestion so they had the official word. Finally, she turned off her cellphone and said, "Well planned, Braveheart. They said it was a viable way to train someone to be a sponsor parent."

The lion turned to the caring coon. "Call Timesheart and tell him we found the bend in the rules."

Brightheart did that immediately.

Everyone then saw Timesheart return and land his cloud car, but he didn't get out. He didn't look like he believed the caring coon's statement.

Braveheart then went over and quietly explained the details of the arrangement with his son; how Timesheart could be a Sponsor Parent in Training toward full Sponsor Parent status upon graduating high school, but only if he participated.

But then Braveheart finished up the pitch with the following words. "...and if this falls through, I'll get you two bottles of the best Pony Land Scotch simply for your having to endure the involvement. But while you are participating, you can't touch another drop of Scotch. So are you in or not? Come on, son... I went out on a limb for you this time. Please? I can make the sad puppy eyes better than you can."

The tiger thought about it while looking at his paws. He really wanted to be Champion's number one Sponsor Parent partner, although he could still be one, but in training. It was the only loophole in the rules and his dad DID go the extra mile this time. Plus... he was offering two bottles of Scotch just for trying it this way. "Okay dad... I'll do it."

Braveheart shot a grin at Cheer. "He said he'd do it!"

Cheer shook her head as she glanced at Champion Pony. "Ancient Chinese Secret, my ass. Someday I am going to find out how he does these things."

Champion Pony grinned. "Try sleeping with him some night. That always works."

Of course the father's stipulation for getting Harold into the program was that they had to also bring Harold's older brother in as well so both boys got to have the Q.C. experience in the Sponsor Family program. Clark Halbrook Dangers was in Junior High himself although Harold was in the seventh grade. While Harold got in with Krypto (Super Dog) and Rudolph (the Red-nosed Reindeer), Clark got in with Ace (Bat Hound) and Jake Clawson (Razor of the Swat Kats).

Even though his brother Clark lived in Coolsville at the sponsor family house there, Harold was enrolled at Terryville's AniSapien Primary School; yes, that spelled TAPS. He was getting to finish his 7th grade year at TAPS although his 8th grade year would be attended at AniSapien High, for which ASH was the abbreviation. Harold was never late getting to school again and the education center had resources for assisting him with his psychosis so he could function on a normal level in his new environment.

AniSapien Primary School

Brightheart Raccoon had taken a personal interest in helping Harold with his rapid thinking exercises. "And what does this picture look like?" "A cat." And this one?" "A pig." "What about this one?" "Ooh, that one looks like Braveheart when he is mad." Brightheart giggled. "Well, he did want to punch your mom in the snoot the first night we were on Earth."

Walking into the room came an adult man who looked remarkably like an older version of Harold himself. "Is this the right room to find a Sponsor Family boy?"

GLOMP! Harold had literally leaped out of his seat and was hugging the man tightly. "DAD! I-I'm... so happy to see you!"

Brightheart smiled since he had helped to set up this Friday afternoon meeting. It was the fastest that he had ever seen Harold move since they met him.

Hugging back, Mr. Dangers said with a smile of his own, "My toon mate gave me the afternoon to come see you, Harold. How have you been doing?"

"Mom is cheating on you back in Dullton, dad," said Harold in reply. "She and that local politician... were going to institutionalize me for being slow. Something you had always said was a Southern trait and not an illness at all."

Mr. Dangers just chuckled when he heard this news. "I heard that the politician went to his house to retrieve something the other night and... the neighbors heard him scream one time. And after that..." He winked at his son. "He was never seen again. Let's just say that when you mess with those loyal to High Command... the night is not your friend. Oh, I had nothing to do with his disappearance, but I know who did. Let's just leave it at that. But remember what I have always told you, Harold... the Dangers is not a surname; it's our job."

"What about mom then?" asked Harold. "Is she going to get punished for fooling around like that?"

Mr. Dangers laughed in that knowing more than he lets on manner. "Who says she didn't? The Wolf With No Name probably put her in her place once and for all. I have made certain arrangements if she doesn't live through it. But you never cheat on a Dangers and get away with it." He winked with a smile.

Champion Pony's Second Ranch, Terryville

That Saturday morning, Harold was out doing chores with the assistance of Timesheart, Brightheart, Rubs-a-lot, Champion Pony, Krypto, and Rudolph. It was a good day for chores and the boy was in good spirits since he got to see his dad during the week. He seemed to be improving vastly.

But as they were working, a limousine arrived nearby and an important Producer emerged. "Timesheart Tiger. May I speak to you for a few minutes?"

Walking over to the filming executive, the caring tiger cousin said, "I was helping my Charge but I always have time for you people. What's on your mind?"

"Have you ever heard of a floundering TV documentary called It's History?"

Timesheart thought about for a moment. "Actually, I have watched that show twice. If it had been listed as a comedy, it would have scored big ratings. But the sad part is that whoever did the historical research for the episodes really botched their assignments. In the premiere episode, after watching it, I and a friend of mine made a time trip back to the historical event the show talked about and we watched it for ourselves. And it definitely did NOT explain history correctly. Another time I chanced to watch the show was when I was visiting someone in Cloud Kingdom Memorial Hospital and that show was on the television. Again, the research department botched their assignment something fierce. I verified it with a time trip."

The Producer explained at that point, "We are looking into revamping the show to save it from being a pointless waste of resources. There are to be eight more scheduled shows in the series, but... I was thinking that you could replace the host slash narrator in the show and then you could use a time bubble when making your time trips. That way, you could take history students from various real world schools with you. We could even change the show's title to suit your doing this for us. True, it may not be the series you were hoping to star in, but it is the best start you could get. All I am asking you to do is two things... get the ratings above sixty five percent and... you will have to wear a lab coat in the show. School children on Earth will be watching this and adults might raise a fuss if a nudist host showed their goodies in front of their sons and daughters. What do you say?"

"At the beginning of the show, I get to state my full name. And at the end, I get to give my catch phrase. As for the title, we do need to change it because the title blatantly tells the viewers that the show is not worth watching. It's History does not bring happy thoughts to mind. Maybe we can call it..." He thought for a moment. "...Trial and Era, or something like that. And how does this sound for how the show starts... three students, a mix of boys and girls, are standing on a street talking about a historical event they learned about in school and they realize what they each thought they learned doesn't match. Just before running off down the street, they say, Let's go ask Timesheart. Then we roll the opening music, song, and title screen before zooming in on me in my labs. I give my name, mention where we are going that day, then a knock on the door and the kids come in..."

End of Never Too Late For Caring