Hey everyone,
Yes, I have a lot of challenge ideas up my sleeve. Some of them may sound good, others may sound terrible, but everyone has an opinion and I am privileged to my own regarding my stories, challenges and categories. I chose this one because the crossover is one of my favorite Pixar movies and I love seeing it come true.
Enjoy,
Venquine1990
Challenge #2
A special friend
Harry's POV
First year 1992
"Something's wrong. I just know it." I whisper to my friends, keeping my voice down as to keep others from glaring at me as they have been doing for the past two weeks since Hermione, Neville and I lost the 150 points. The two of them, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, look at me and I look around as I whisper:
"Wood would never suddenly cancel a pre-arranged Quidditch Practice to just study new strategies and even if he did, why would he do so in the busiest part of the common room? And since when do Seamus and Dean do their reading homework in the common room instead of the dorm like they have been all year?"
At this my friends look at the two parties I mentioned, Hermione making sure to glance at Wood from over her own textbook and Ron faking to look at some old chess pieces that he brought down to cheer me up with a game of chess, only to actually look past the pieces and at the two people in our dorm that hate and despise us.
Wood himself is barely paying attention to the small board that has drawing and sketches of the Quidditch pitch on it and to make matters even stranger has he actually thrown one of the pieces that represent a Gryffindor Chaser off the board and does he barely seem to notice this, while I can already recognize it as a Chaser piece.
Instead of that, does the Keeper constantly look into the fire, which strangely enough makes him smirk as if he just won a Quidditch Match against Slytherin and every time over the last five minutes that he has done so, do I feel a shiver running down my spine as if someone just walked over my grave – to use a Muggle term of saying.
"It gets even stranger than that, mate." Ron then whispers at me, making me look back at him as he keeps pretending to inspect one of his knights – a knight I actually managed to strike just two minutes ago – and he says: "One of the sixth years just left upstairs to sleep, but then returned and met Wood at the entrance five minutes later."
This makes me look at Wood as I do indeed remember him meeting the sixth year, one Jacob Frinsby, at the Fat Lady Portrait, but the elder year had only pushed something in the Keeper's hand before telling the rest of us he would get a book from the library to help him sleep, before he had sneered at me about saving points.
I had just let the insult roll over me, yet now – looking again from the silently smirking first year dorm mates of mine, to the smirking team captain that has drilled me in practice almost every session now to the Fat Lady where the sixth year has yet to return from, do I whisper: "Enough is enough. This can't be some strange coincidence."
And my friends nod, both of them standing up and Ron using a bit of magic to pack up his chess set, making those sitting close to us look at us. Yet the fact that they don't sneer and glare at us, but instead snicker and grin victoriously only unnerves me even more and, with Ron and Hermione beside me, do I head for Wood.
The Keeper is now constantly looking at the fire, where I can see something strange being laid next to the burning logs and while for some reason alarm bells start ringing in my mind at the sight of this, do I not recognize the strange object and instead of that, do I turn to my traitorous team captain, my friends beside me as I ask:
"What's going on, Wood?" And while I know I have everyone's attention on me, does Wood only look at me and I ask: "Seamus and Dean doing their reading homework in here instead of the dorm, you cancelling a scheduled training and studying strategies in the busiest part of this place, that Sixth year handing you something?
How stupid do you think we are? Did you really think we would believe all those events happening on the same day some kind of coincidence? Do you really believe us that much of a fool?" But instead of answering, does the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain only smirk at me in that same manner as before, unnerving me as he asks:
"How does it feel, Harry?" This question shocks and confuses me and while the alarm bell rises in sound, do I tentatively ask: "How – how does what feel?" Hating how I have to play along with his game to get some answers and he asks: "To lose something precious? I think you know that feels – at least, now you do."
And with that does he again look at the fire, making the alarm bells sound like a hurricane inside my head as I, again, look at the same fire, where I finally recognize the strange thing that is burning up inside it; a small plastic green hat, a military colored jacket, a plastic shotgun, a frown and a grin that are melting as I look.
My heart breaks and my mind bursts into pieces inside me as I recognize the toy I acquired so long ago, when I was only two years old and that has been my only friend since that day and while I feel tears starting to leak out of my eyes and my hands starting to tremble, do I shout the only word I can think of us as I dash out of the room:
"MURDERERS!"
There you have it!
Like I said, not all of my challenges are happy, jolly, loving or heartfelt. Some of them have angst and pain in them and this is definitely one of them even if the pain and angst are only meant to be at the start, perhaps sometime later in the story as the years progress and they are only meant as a starting point. Now here are the rules:
Rules: Harry as Main Character.
Takes place in either First or Second year.
Harry's toy has a name that has a Toy Story Reference.
Harry must have had the toy for at least 5 to 7 years.
The Toy MUST be male gender
Harry must have come across a Barbie doll in his youth – say he found one in primary school, but lost it to Dudley's bullying or something.
Either Harry's Dorm Mates or the entire House must be the first to discover Harry's toy - if it's the Boys it must be a good event, if it's the rest of Gryffindor it must be bad, like during after the 150 point loss incident.
The toy must play a vital role in people realizing that Harry is more than just a name and a scar.
Harry must learn that his toy is alive.
Harry must be claustrophobic - who cannot be so when growing up in a Cupboard, right? - but fights the illness with help of his toy - seeking comfort, etc.
Guidelines:
Close friends Harry/Neville
Close friends Harry/Dean - chose the bad event, this CANNOT happen.
Seamus abandoning Harry - see earlier Guideline plus Bad Event
Diary in Second affecting Toy
Toy's POV in character
Harry developing skills by playing with Toy
Sirius getting an early release.
Harry's Toy being Valuable/Rare/One of a Kind.
Harry getting Adopted - preferably Hermione or Weasleys.
Harry's toy reuniting with Barbie - yes, a bond between them can exist, it did between Bo and Woody and Buzz and Jessie.
Forbidden:
Manipulative Dumbledore
Harry fighting Voldemort in first
Ron, Hermione, Neville turning on Harry
Quidditch team supportive of Harry - see Bad Event
Sirius staying in Azkaban
Harry returning to the Dursleys after First
Woody/Buzz being Harry's toy
Harry's Toy being Female.
Anyone OTHER than Harry as Main Character
Slytherin turning on Harry - see Bad Event.
Harry losing his toy - only temporarily allowed if in combo with Bad Event.
Okay, so I've really been thinking this story out and I just have one very vital Rule regarding this Challenge: ANY chapter that you plan to post, please show me first. That is all, thank you,
Venquine1990