Chapter One; Holcroft's Book of The Dead
Oh and I just wanted to make a note that I do love the Buzz/Jessie shipping, but it just doesn't work for what I want to do later and I think the shipping in this story is going to be really interesting.
Bonnie Anderson had just turned nine years old. It seemed like it had been forever since Andy's toys had come to live with her, yet it had only been a little more than a few years. That night after she went to bed everyone but Jessie fell right asleep. Well that is at least they had tried to get some sleep, but Jessie kept them awake since she couldn't stop talking about the movie they had just seen. "I still can't believe that woman in the movie went back to being a doll, I mean if I had a chance to be human I would certainly take it." She said as everyone else groaned.
"Woody she's your sister or whatever, could you please shut her up? Bonnie has school tomorrow and I want to have enough energy to spend the day with my wife." Mr. Potato Head said. "Here, I'll talk to her." Woody said as he stood up on the shelf. "Come on Jess." He told her. "But what did I do?" she questioned him as he led her outside the window and the two of them stood up on the sill while the moon shone down on them.
"Listen Jessie, being human is vastly overrated, believe me I should know." He told her. "Why? It's not like you've ever been human before." She told him. "Uh yeah, right." He began nervously as she stared at him suspiciously like there was something that he was hiding from her but he continued on. "Look I've been around humans for generations, and they get sick, and old, and they have to go to work and school, then eventually they die. I mean even though toys don't last forever at least we don't have to go through all that. And besides, you said it yourself that there is no better feeling than being loved by a child. And what about Buzz? You guys like each other don't you?" he asked her. "Oh, yeah, that." She began. "Well the truth is that Buzz and I decided that our relationship really wasn't working and now we're just friends." She told him. "Oh." Woody said as Jessie sat down on the windowsill and gazed out at the night sky. "I just can't help but think that there's a whole nother world out there." She began.
"I mean I wonder what it would be like to have real skin, and clothes that you could actually change. Or drive a car and go to the mall." She said as she gave a dreamy little sigh. "Trust me Jessie the real human world is not a good place to be. You're better off being a toy." He told her. "Now why don't you just get this ridiculous idea out of your head and go back inside and get some sleep." He said. "Fine, but don't expect me to be happy about it." She said as she stood back up and walked back inside while Woody rolled his eyes at her. "Whether you're a toy or a human women are always the same." He muttered to himself realizing that he would never understand them for as long as he lived before he followed her back inside.
….
The next day after school Bonnie came bursting through the door with excitement. "Mom! Mom! You'll never guess what I got from the library!" she exclaimed before she pulled a thick brown book out of her backpack. "Holcroft's Book of The Dead, just like we saw in that movie last night." She showed her mother. "Maybe it'll really work and then Dad can come back to life." She said. "Aww honey, I know you miss your father but there is no such thing as magic and you should be old enough to understand that real life doesn't work like the movies." She told her daughter. "Yeah, I guess you're right." Bonnie said as she heaved a heavy sad sigh and hung her head.
However her heart was still filled with hope that there was the slightest chance that it could really work. Bonnie ran upstairs to her bedroom and quickly shut the door behind her before throwing her backpack down on top of her bed and gazing down at the picture of both her parents together before picking it up and continuing to look at it for a moment and then quickly setting it back down on the counter. She decided then and there that that night she would try the spell when her mother was asleep. So that night she carried a candle up to her bedroom.
Jessie was outside her window and staring out at the stars again while Bonnie busily prepared the alter. Jessie slowly turned to look over her shoulder before getting up and secretly hoping that Bonnie wouldn't notice her as she climbed back inside. She watched Bonnie finish setting the alter which was her father's wedding ring inside his watch before she closed her eyes and started saying the incantation like the little girl had done in the movie. "Zamba targa ish to neverine." Jessie gasped loudly and she was so startled that the spell was real and it was actually working that she tripped over her boots and fell into the center of the alter. However Bonnie's eyes were closed and she was so focused that she didn't even realize what was happening as she continued to chant the incantation.