Well, it took quite some time, but I think I've got something going on here. I did do a little time jump because I didn't want to repeat the same stories over and over again. I did write this chapter based on a story prompt, but also to get some character development going between Justine and Woody. The finish of this chapter will help me figure out a way to write the next chapter, but if there's anything I can improve on, please review or IM me! Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I own none of "Toy Story," I only own Justine, Emily, Edmund, and Bridgette. I also do not own the song "I'll Try" by Jonatha Brooke.

August 20, 2040

Summer flew by, and before I knew it, I was getting ready for my first day of a new school year. The summer was full of accomplishments for the whole family. My mother experienced her first trials as the town's doctor, most of which involved treating the many wounds of the townsfolk. I remember one day where my daddy had to assist her: a woman was traveling home with her husband when her baby decided to arrive early, so my parents worked together to deliver the baby in the new clinic. My daddy was quite occupied, but not just with keeping the town safe; he prayed more than usual, asking God for guidance. He added a Bible verse to our prayer at dinner, praying that he would be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. I am glad to say my daddy has not gotten angry too quickly since.

As for me, I spent my summer playing with Chloe during the day and Emily in the evening. Chloe has become a lovable companion and is ever more curious. Her favorite toys are the aluminum foil ball my mother made and the stuffed bird Auntie Jessie got her. Emily and I have enjoyed making new dresses for this coming school year. My daddy has also continued to teach me how to drive, and we are both confident that I will be ready to test myself for a license soon in Tulsa.

"I saw that a new family is in town," Daddy spoke up at breakfast.

"Are they stopping by?" Mother asked, wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"They came in a wagon full of luggage and supplies," Daddy explained. "I think they're settling here."

"Do we know them?" I asked, trying to think of what toys we had not reunited with.

"I don't think so," Daddy answered. "Everyone we know is here. So, I introduced myself to them, explained that I'm the sheriff. Pevensie was the name, I believe."

"Pevensie?" I asked. "Why does that name sound familiar?"

"Beats me. They have two kids – Edmund and Bridgette."

"Edmund Pevensie! I remember now. Edmund Pevensie is the name of a character from The Chronicles of Narnia. Wait, did he travel in time?"

"Time travel doesn't exist, Justine," Mother said. "There has to be a logical explanation for this. And besides, a book character doesn't exist in our world."

"Actually, about that," Dad started to say, and then he took a deep breath before continuing. "Bo, do you remember Karena? She's the woman who changed everything. She was from a different world, but she moved to Todayland."

"Oh my word!" Mother exclaimed. "I totally forgot about that."

"Because Karena moved there, all dimensions merged together into one world, changing the laws of time and space, which is why we turned human. But you still could be right, Bo: this Edmund cannot be the same Edmund in the books. That Edmund was a child during World War Two if I remember my literature right."

"And that was 100 years ago," I said in awe.

"Edmund and Bridgette may be Edmund's great-grandchildren."

"But that doesn't make sense," I replied, crossing my arms. "Edmund Pevensie in the books died in a train crash."

"Justine, it is very possible that Edmund may have married and had children before he died," Mother explained. "But why don't you ask them yourself? They're probably going to be at school today."

"Oh, Chutes and Ladders!" Daddy exclaimed. "We gotta get to town!"

When Daddy enrolled me in school in March, I had made friends with all my classmates in no time at all. So it was no trouble for me to recognize Edmund and Bridgette Pevensie when I got there for the first day of a new school year. I saw that Edmund, who looked very similar to the Edmund Pevensie I read about, was hanging his head down, telling me that he was reserved. Bridgette, the blonde sister, was all smiles.

"Hi!" Bridgette greeted me. "Edmund, say hi!"

"Hello," Edmund said shyly.

"Howdy!" I replied with a smile. "I'm Justine Pride. Welcome to Elkhorn."

"Thank you!" Bridgette replied. "It is such a quaint little town. I've never seen a town like this before."

"Well, this town is like no other," I said. "This town was created with the imagination of a little boy a long time ago. My daddy is the sheriff and my mother is the town doctor."

"Edmund, I feel I've gone back in time!"

"You've said that already," Edmund replied, still with some shyness.

"Edmund, are you and Bridgette related to Edmund Pevensie of London?" I asked.

"He's our great-great-grandfather," Edmund answered. "I'm Edmund Pevensie III."

"Are you both originally from London, also?"

"No, our great-aunt Susan took our great-grandfather and his siblings in after the train crash," Edmund explained. "They moved overseas to America, and they lived in New York City. The family kept on moving west. Our grandparents lived in Cleveland. Our parents were raised in St. Louis. At first, we were in Tulsa, and now we're here. Mom and Dad thought a small town would benefit us both."

"Well, you both have a friend in me," I boldly replied just as Miss Anderson started ringing the cowbell.

"Why is she ringing a cowbell?" Bridgette asked with astonishment.

"My daddy gave her the cowbell as a thank you present," I answered as we walked up the stairs.

We sat in our seats and eagerly awaited Miss Anderson to come inside.

"Welcome, class, to the first day of a new school year. We have some new students here today, so would you both please come up to the front?"

Bridgette walked up with eagerness while Edmund still looked shy. I will admit, however, that Edmund was a fantastic historian.

"My name is Miss Anderson. And you are?"

After school, I had discovered that my daddy and Slink had to go out of town to help Prospector Pete again. From what I heard from Hamm, not only was Pete stuck in the mine again, but he also misplaced his pickaxe, which he did quite often. My mother had joined the search party in case Pete were to be injured. With my parents out of town, I went with Emily to the café.

"I sure hope Pete makes it out alright," Estelle said as she poured the tea for us.

"Me too," Emily replied.

"I think that mine just needs to be closed," I suggested. "I mean, Pete's always losing himself in that mine. He's always losing his axe. My daddy always said there's not any gold in that mine. There's nothing to mine for in there. So why not just close it?"

"Who's in charge of that?" Emily asked.

I pondered for a moment before answering.

"Your dad?" Emily asked again.

"Yep. I know that in the past there were mining companies that owned the mines, but this is the only set of mines in the area and no one owns them."

"Hi!"

Emily and I turned to see Bridgette walking towards us with a big smile on her face.

"Would you like to join us?" Emily asked.

"Don't mind if I do!"

Bridgette sat down to my left before Estelle poured some tea for her.

"Excuse me, what kind of tea is it?" Bridgette asked.

"Raspberry lemon," Estelle answered, and then gave Bridgette a look. "I've never seen you before. Are you passing through?"

"No, me and my family just moved. I'm Bridgette."

"It's very nice to meet you, Bridgette. I'm Estelle Potato-Head. I'm the owner of the café. My husband Don owns the saloon next door."

"What a silly name. Where did that come from?"

"Almost all of the citizens in this town were once toys," Estelle explained, sitting down at our table. "After Woody became a lost toy, we started to transform into humans and we knew it was time to start living our own lives. Woody and Bo Peep founded this town, and we all eventually reunited and built the town to what it is today."

"All of the children here were orphans who stumbled upon Elkhorn," Emily said with a smile. "And we were all taken in."

"All except for Justine," Estelle chimed back in. "One day in 2023, Woody and Bo Peep had announced that they were expecting a baby, and we all cheered. Bo was the most beautiful pregnant woman we all ever saw. The town was buzzing when Woody and Bo announced Justine's birth and we threw a party for them."

I smiled, appreciating the storytelling Estelle provided about my birth. I never really asked my parents about it, but it was nice to hear about it.

"So, where are you from, Bridgette?" Estelle asked.

"We moved from Tulsa."

While Bridgette explained her history to Estelle and Emily, I saw Don peering in at the window. I walked out of the café to greet Don.

"Let me guess: you need me to sing again?"

"Could ya?" Don asked. "All this panic about Pete is putting down my customers."

"I'll see what I can do."

"Oh, Justine, one more thing: I bought a piano. Do you know how to play?"

"Actually, yes!" I answered excitedly. "Miss Anderson gave me lessons back in the day."

We walked into the saloon together.

"Justine!" all of the customers yelled out with excitement.

"Howdy, everybody!"

"Whatcha going to sing this time?" Hamm asked.

"We've gotta have hope while Woody's looking for Pete," Rex explained.

"Well…"

I remembered the day I myself got lost in the mine. I was ten, and it was a Saturday in town. Emily and I were playing hide and seek around town on our horses. I decided to be the ultimate winner of hide-and-seek and hid in the mine. Never did I know that I would get lost in a mine, and I started to get scared. I had never felt so alone before and I had cried, thinking that I would never be found. There was a song that I remembered playing when nightfall came, and I kept on playing it, truly believing that my daddy, not Emily, was going to find me. He had found me and hugged me tight. He had made me promise to never get out of his sight again. Since then, I had found myself doubting my daddy sometimes, because he was always stern if I ever thought about venturing off by myself.

"I think I have something," I finally spoke up.

I walked to the piano, and played the tune that I had learned to play all those years ago. It was somber, but full of hope as I started to sing while my fingers tickled the ivories.

I am not a child now

I can take care of myself

Mustn't let them down now

Mustn't let them see me cry

I'm fine, I'm fine

I'm too tired to listen

I'm too old to believe

All those childish stories

There is no such thing as faith

And trust, and pixie dust.

I try, but it's so hard to believe

I try, but I can't see what you see

I try, I try, I try.

I continued to play the piano, and I heard clapping in the background.

My whole world is changing

I don't know where to turn

I can't leave you waiting

But I can't stay and watch

This city burn, mm watch it burn

I try, but it's so hard to believe

I try, but I can't see what you see

I try, I try

I try and try to understand

The distance in between

The love I feel

And the things I fear

And every single dream.

I paused, took a deep, long breath before continuing on to the next verse.

I can finally see it

Now I have to believe

All those precious stories

All the world is made of faith

And trust and pixie dust.

So I'll try, 'cause I finally believe

I'll try, 'cause I can see what you see

I'll try, I'll try

I will try, I'll try

I paused again, playing notes on the piano before finally putting a smile on my face.

To fly

I finished playing, and I heard a roar of applause.

My parents and I were eating dinner at the table, but there was a strange feeling at the table: it was quiet. Too quiet.

"So, how was your day?" I asked, hoping to get a conversation going. "Did you find Prospector Pete?"

"Yeah, we found him," Daddy answered with a flat affect.

"He's okay," Mother replied. "Just a little shock as always, but no injuries. We found his pickaxe also."

"Bo, Justine, the people around town seem to think that I'm going to be closing the mines," Daddy spoke up in a grim voice.

"Wait, you aren't going to close the mines?" Mother asked.

"Daddy, what's the point of keeping the mines open? There's nothing to mine in there. Besides, people keep hiding in there, and they're putting themselves in immediate danger. What if someone dies in there because they are careless?"

"Because Pete is a prospector, Justine," Daddy answered sternly. "Mining is his job. And it may come in handy someday."

"In 2040?" I asked skeptically. "Daddy, asides from our little town, the whole world is ages ahead. No mines are open at all. So why do we have open mines?"

"I'm with Justine on this one, Sheriff," Mother chimed in.

"Pete doesn't know how to do anything else," Daddy replied, crossing his arms.

"He can farm, can't he?" Mother asked. "We're going to need the help now that Justine's back in school and I'm the town doctor."

"We do not need help on the farm, Bo. We've got it under control."

"Daddy, you have to watch the town, too. Unless you want us to wake up long before the crack of dawn to finish the barnyard chores and tend to the sheep."

"Justine's right, Woody. It's either all of us waking up at four in the morning or not feed the animals until sunset."

"We are not changing anything!" Daddy snapped. "Pete has a job to do at the mine, that is where his destiny is."

"You know what your problem is, Daddy?" I asked angrily. "You think that you have all the solutions to this town. Prospector Pete's trapped. What do we do? Sheriff Woody will get him out."

"Justine—"

"Auntie Jessie is out of stock," I continued. "What do we do, ask Sheriff Woody to go out of town and get it? And what if Estelle is out of pastries? Only you can save the day? We need to think of other people and their safety, Daddy, not. Just. YOU."

I heard my mother gasping while my daddy had his mouth gapped open.

"You do not have the answer to everything, Daddy. You are here acting like you own this town and that you have to run it because you're the sheriff. Why can't other people solve their own problems without you butting in?"

I watched my dad cross his arms and he gave me a stern look.

"You don't mean that, young lady."

I returned the stern look, telling my daddy that I did mean it.

"Justine, you are excused from the dinner table," Daddy told me sternly. "I'll meet you in your room."

"I wasn't finished eating, Daddy."

"You are now," Daddy replied, pointing his finger to the stairs. "Go."

I went up the stairs and into my room, and I closed the door. Chloe was waiting for me on my bed. I sat down on the bed and started to pet her. Chloe started to purr, rubbing her small head against the sleeve of my purple dress. I understood that my daddy was angry, but I knew that it wasn't my fault for speaking my mind out. My daddy always did think about how to get out of sticky situations, but what if he had to attend to matters elsewhere? My daddy certainly could not be in two places at once.

I eventually heard knocking on the door, but my daddy came in before I could even speak. He closed the door, and he stood over me with his arms crossed.

"Justine Jessica Pride, I hope you have a good reason to talk to me the way you did tonight. I sacrifice my time to help the people in this town with their problems. It is my job. Your job is to go to school, come home, do chores, and be part of the family."

"Daddy, did we not just discuss this?" I asked, clearly seeing that he was not going to let this go. "You've got some nerve, telling me how to live my life. Have you even asked Pete what he wants to do with his life? How do you know he's going to go mining for the rest of his life? What you don't realize, Daddy, is that every single person in town is doing what they do because it is their calling. It was their choice to do their jobs the way they are doing them, not yours. Being a sheriff, Daddy, being a leader, that is your calling. But it doesn't make it right to butt into situations that you have no business being a part of. If Pete continues to go mining, it isn't because you picked the job for him, it's because it is his calling. You are not the leader of Andy's room anymore. You are the sheriff, my daddy, and my mother's husband. That is it. You lead your life the way you want to, and I'll lead mine. Understand?"

All my daddy did was shake his head.

"Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger," Daddy quoted calmly, but then lost it. "But I'm losing!"

My daddy let out a sigh.

"For your information, young lady, closing the mine was the last thing on my mind. Someone in the town approached me asking me if I was really going to close the mine. I heard something about the mine on everyone's lips."

"Gosh, Daddy, the only people in the room when I suggested that were Bridgette, Emily, and Estelle. That's all it was: a suggestion."

"So you started it," Daddy replied, his stern face coming back.

"All I did was say it to three people!" I yelled. "I didn't scream it to the town!"

"And what do you call serenading drunkards and prostitutes?" Daddy yelled back. "Did you scream that to town too?"

"What are you talking about?" I asked angrily, feeling my face turn red.

"Word has gotten around that you sang in the saloon after I specifically told you not to," Daddy answered angrily. "I thought I can trust you, Justine. You are my daughter. I expected better from you."

"Daddy, I am not at fault here."

"I'm sorry, Justine. You are going to go to school, and you are to come straight home. I don't want you roaming around town by yourself anymore."

"You don't mean that," I said, still with anger in my voice.

"I am your father, young lady. I mean every word. And you can forget about going to town on Saturdays also. You're staying home."

Daddy walked out the door, and I walked over to my desk. I took a piece of paper that contained a letter I was writing to my dad, letting him know how much I appreciated him, and I read it. Feeling angry and hurt, I ripped the paper to shreds and threw them out the window.

I hardly spoke at breakfast the next morning. I had tried to give Bullseye a ride earlier, but my parents stopped me, telling me that I could not do that because of my punishment. The only time I could ride Bullseye was when I went to school and when I went home.

I went to school and I greeted Emily there.

"Hi Justine, how are you?" Emily asked me as I got off my horse.

"Emily, you're still my friend, right?" I asked.

"Of course, we're still friends!" Emily answered, putting her hands on her hips. "We're best friends. Wild horses couldn't keep us away from each other!"

I blew a sigh of relief.

"Good, because you won't believe what happened between me and Daddy last night."

I had a disturbing feeling in my stomach when all of my classmates were walking away from us.

"Did… I do something wrong?" I asked. "Or wait... did you do something wrong?"

"Justine… someone is telling everyone in town that you had become a prostitute. They must have spotted you singing in the saloon yesterday."

"What?" I whispered in disbelief.

"Your suggestion about the mine be closed also got spread. It even gave Pete a panic attack."

All I could do is sit down on the green grass and lift my head up to the sky. Well that explains why Daddy is angry with me.

"Thank you, God," I said out loud with sarcasm in my voice. "Thanks an awful lot."