As the gang followed their two old friends, they heard the soft hopping on the floor of a familiar old squeak! They all looked at each other. Could it be? Then he came into view, more messed up looking than the last time they had seen him, but it was indeed him! "Wheezy!" They cheered. Jack wagged his tail, happy for them, but he had never met the little penguin before.
"W-Woody?" Was the first thing Wheezy spoke.
"Wheezy?" Woody echoed him.
"Woody, is that you?!"
"Yes! Oh, yes, Wheezy. It's me!" Woody's eyes lit up. He, Buzz, Slinky, Bullseye, Jessie, and Potato Head surrounded their long lost friend.
"Wheezy, we missed you so!" Jessie giggled, twirling him around in a hug. "It's you! It's really you!"
"Wheezy, pal!" Slinky licked his old friend. "It's so good to see ya again!" They all enclosed on him.
"I...I missed you all too!" Wheezy exclaimed in relief, not acting quite as joyous as they would expect. "Is...is it safe?" He asked nervously, peeking his head behind his friends.
"Yes. Yes, Wheezy. It's okay now. We're all safe." Buzz said reassuringly.
"Yes, the scumbags are receiving the rewards of their deeds, little fella." Combat Carl added.
"Are you sure?" Wheezy asked. He was obviously still afraid of the gang making a surprise ambush.
"Yes, buddy." Link nodded. "Take my word it, they're gone and they're not ever coming back." Link said it with such confidence that Wheezy decided to trust his hunch.
"Woody, are you all right?" He asked with concern.
"Oh," Woody shrugged. "I think I'll live." Man was he sore, and his chest still ached. "I'm just glad to see you."
"Wheezy, what are you doing in a place like this?" Buzz asked unhappily.
"Oh, never mind. Don't worry about me!" Wheezy cried. "We can catch up later, everybody." He pulled on Woody's arm. "Woody, you've got to come. Mitsy's hurt...bad! She needs you!" Woody tensed again. He'd already forgotten.
"Show us!" Buzz commanded. They followed the penguin and the fox. They entered a classroom, the same one that earlier some of them had watched Woody get tortured in. Woody's stomach turned. He remembered this room and didn't like the thought of being led back into it.
"Guys, I think only Woody and Buzz should come with me." Fox groaned. The toys froze: they didn't like the sound of that!
"I'm coming too!" Jessie announced bravely.
"Jess..." Link tried to refuse her.
"Mitsy's my friend." Jessie interrupted him. "If something's happened to her, I want to be there to help her through it!" She bit her lip, knowing by their old friends' manners that it was going to be ugly, but she was determined. If Buzz was going to be with her, she would manage. Buzz tightly gripped her hand.
"Okay," Fox said dismally. Link stayed behind with the other toys as Woody, Buzz, and Jessie slowly followed Fox. They all gulped, not exactly sure what to expect but dread filled them more and more with every step they took. They finally saw a familiar little head of long, blonde hair on the ground. They could make out Mitsy's figure lying on the floor. Well, at least she still had her hair-mangled as it was-! She was underneath a desk in the shadows. Jiminy Cricket was standing next to her waiting for them. "Jiminy, any..." Fox started to ask. The cricket shook his head.
"No change." He said grimly.
"Thank you for looking after our friend." Jessie spoke to him sadly. Jiminy offered a feeble smile.
"Oh, it's all right, ma'am. It's the least I could do for her. The very least." He muttered.
Woody wanted to speak, he wanted to rush over to his 'daughter', just take her in his arms and hug her to let her know that she was safe now and that the battle was over. But something seemed to be keeping him glued to the spot where he stood. His stomach was filled with dread and it made him shake. All he could see so far was that she was unconscious, lying on her side with her back to them. He did notice she looked thinner. Actually, a lot thinner, but that wasn't possible was it? They were toys, they couldn't starve to death.
"What's wrong with her?" Jessie asked timidly. Fox looked straight at Buzz for help. Fox felt that he was the only one strong enough to handle this without breaking down. Buzz knew what he wanted. He took a deep breath, gently let go of Jessie's hand and bravely marched forward. Jessie and Woody stood a little distance away. Fox stood over the princess and flicked on a flashlight. Buzz bit his lip hard and knelt down next his 'niece'. He slightly moved her then gasped. He ran his hand down his face.
"Buzz, what is it?!" Jessie cried, afraid to know but afraid not to. Woody shuddered as Buzz looked right at him.
"It's bad, Woody." Buzz said heavily. "Really bad."
"What!?" Woody yelped impatiently. Buzz turned Mitsy over so that she was flat on her back. Woody felt dizzy and almost fell over while Jessie screeched. Mitsy's body, her cloth torso, her bodice...her whole left side almost all the way to the other side had been savagely ripped open all the way down! From her arm pit down to her waist was nothing but shredded blue cloth and there was cotton stuffing scattered around her, torn. She'd been brutally attacked and lashed into, and the monsters that had done this had made sure it would be impossible to put her back together again! Jessie was weeping with her face cupped in her hands. Woody was devastated. Even though Fox had tried to prepare him, nothing could take away the horrible helplessness he felt. The more he looked at her the worse he felt. His 'little girl' whom he'd been unable to protect hours earlier but had cuddled close to him for warmth and protection was broken! And maliciously broken too, maybe beyond repair.
Woody slowly approached her, grief and heartache all over his face. He dropped to his knees and leaned down close to her. "Ohh, honey..." he whispered.
"She's alive, Woody. She's breathing," Buzz nodded, patting his shoulder. "But thank God she's not awake!" Woody couldn't agree more! He hated seeing her like this, but if she'd been conscious, she would've been in intense pain and Woody was even more sick thinking of that. "She needs help, right away!" Buzz finally found his voice, taking charge again. "But who can help?"
"I can help!" Daisy the rabbit answered as she came into view. "But not here. We need a better equipped area. I can sew her back up though."
"Y-you can?!" Jessie whimpered.
"I think so. It's gonna take a while though." Daisy sighed. Woody bit back a sob. It wasn't hopeless yet! Mitsy still had a chance! Maybe she could be put back together, though from the looks of it, Woody couldn't help feeling that she was done for! "We need to take her to the nurse's office."
"We could use some help over here!" Buzz yelled. Combat Carl rushed over, along with Potato Head. Matthew staggered out of the shadows. He'd arrived on the scene first after Fox's first frightening warning. When he'd seen the sight before him, he'd had to brace himself against the wall of the desk. He was a soldier and he'd seen bad things, many courtesy of the Spikes' toy gang. But this was different: it was a friend of his. And not just any friend. Matthew had been so worried when he'd heard that the cowboy and the princess had been toynapped, and the anxiety he'd felt when he'd heard her screams tonight...it was almost more than he could bear.
"Holy cats!" Potato Head gasped when he came. Combat Carl was taken aback and appalled at what he was looking at. He clenched his fists hard and growled, then started barking orders, along with Buzz.
As the others made transportation preparations like an emergency response team, Woody scooted closer to Mitsy. He leaned down and tightly gripped her small hand. He held it close to his face, needing the physical connection that she was still alive. He brushed away a stray strand of hair and softly stroked her cheek. "Hang in there, Sweetie." He said in a cracked voice. "We're gonna take care of you. We'll get you fixed up, then we can all go home. But, you've got to fight through this, Little Bit, okay?" He bit his lip and blinked his eyes though no physical tears came out. Even though they'd all been more or less thrown together from different lives, and especially after Bo was sold, Woody had come to look at Bo and Mitsy as his own wife and daughter, unofficially of course. And when Bo left, Woody had taken his 'guardianship' over Mitsy very seriously. And here tonight, she might...no, he couldn't think that way. He sadly pressed her little hand to his lips. "Just hang on. Please!" He begged.
Jessie was weeping silently as she watched Buzz and the others prepare to carefully move Mitsy off the floor and get her help. There was a heavy thud behind Jessie after Buzz's call. Jessie whipped her head around and moaned. It was Jack...on the floor.
Hey, I'm not forgetting the drama that everyone else has also been through and I plan to elaborate on that in the next chapter.
