Author Note - Super short one here. Sorry guys. I've been really busy lately so I'm just grateful to have been able to write anything. I have a couple of things coming in terms of Dolly/Woody not for this collection as well so be on the lookout for those soonish hopefully.

Disclaimer - I don't own Toy Story 3, but honestly you should know that by now. Plus, I haven't read a lot of stories in this section, so any similarities I assure you are coincidental.

I've Been There Before

3. A Case of Nerves

"Okay, you guys. Bonnie's birthday party is any time now and you know what that means," Dolly tried her best to sound calm and casual as the others gathered around her. "Bonnie may or may not get any new toys, but if she does, you all know the drill." Bonnie's original toys all nodded while Andy's old toys looked at each other in slight confusion. It was their first birthday with Bonnie and they couldn't help wonder if it would be different than how birthdays with Andy had been. "Buttercup, you go over the basics with everyone while I go take a quick look at things," she excused herself as Buttercup began to explain things for the benefit of Andy's old toys.

Dolly was just at the door when Woody's voice startled her from behind. "I never pegged you as one to run reconnaissance missions on birthdays." She turned to see him with his arms folded across his chest and a questioning smirk on his face.

"Well, uh, I don't know if I'd call them reconnaissance missions. We just like to be ahead of things when we can. You know, the times when toys aren't dropping into our lives unexpectedly," she gave him a playful wink and Woody rolled his eyes.

"Oh yeah, I could see how that would be bad," he played along as they both began their careful trek to where they could spy on the goings on of Bonnie and her parents as they got things ready for the party.

"So, we do a little spying on the party so we can be prepared for whatever happens," Dolly continued once they reached a safe spot. "I mean, it rarely happens. We were a pretty small group before you guys came along. Bonnie doesn't really get a lot of new toys. And when she does, it's usually unexpected. But it doesn't hurt to be prepared right?"

"No, I agree," Woody immediately responded, glad for yet another thing in common with Bonnie's toys, or at least one of them. "We used to do the same thing for Andy. Only, he was always getting new toys it seemed like. Now we had all out reconnaissance missions, with army men and walkie-talkies. Oh you should have seen it," he said as if he wanted to somehow pull her into his memories.

His cheerful reminiscence brought a smile to Dolly's face as she imagined Woody at the helm of such an operation. "That sounds like it would have been fun," she said with slight longing in her tone, although neither seemed to truly notice.

"It was," he nodded, not even realizing how he was gazing at her with a dreamy look on his face.

Dolly knew that he was probably still far away in the past, mentally, but Woody's intense stare still made her feel self-conscious and made her feel as though her butterfly hair clips were actually fluttering about inside her stuffing stomach instead of holding her pigtails up. "So, uh…" she finally managed to tear him away from his reverie. "Did you ever get nervous?"

He blinked at her a few times. "About new toys?" She nodded. He looked away hesitantly. Even on the day of Buzz's arrival, Woody had always kept a strong facade when it came to birthdays and holidays. It was just part of who he was. "Well, between you and me, yes," he admitted with a deep sigh. He trusted her to keep his secret. "I never let anyone know, but it wasn't easy keeping a room full of toys relaxed and open to change. I mean, I've never really handled change well myself," he was continually surprised at how easy it was to share his deepest secrets and feelings with Dolly. Maybe it was because things were different in Bonnie's room and he didn't feel the same pressure or maybe it was just because she made him feel comfortable. Either way, she was quickly learning things about him no one else – save maybe Buzz and Bo – had ever known.

"So it's not just me then?" Dolly looked like a serious weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

"No, it's definitely not just you," Woody had to admit he was a bit surprised that she got nervous. She was so inviting. She seemed pulled together in so many ways, not lacking the confidence that most toys could be prone to. "I think every toy experiences it. It's that sense of not knowing if you'll be replaced or if this will be the birthday where your kid suddenly gets something great that doesn't involve playtime…like a laptop or something," he tried to explain. "It's normal to be nervous," Woody tried to reason, although he knew such logic hadn't stopped him from thinking irrationally when he would get nervous.

"I guess I just feel like it's silly for me to worry. It's not even like me really," Dolly admitted, giving Woody more reason to think she wasn't like other toys. "I think having more toys around would be fun. You being here has been proof of that. But I still get that nagging feeling every now and then of things changing beyond my control. I suppose it's not easy being a toy is it, cowboy?" She decided she was ready to lighten the mood, making Woody wonder if sometimes her witty nature was her own little comfortable defense. It sure was more pleasant than his temper, he thought to himself, but he wasn't about to let even her in on that thought.

"Well, it's not easy for toys like us anyways," Woody placed his hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eyes. "We care too much about things. We want to keep things together."

"We feel too deeply," Dolly added, his hand soliciting a strangely wonderful feeling against her ragdoll skin.

"Yeah," Woody nodded as the air became thick around them. "It's like you can't stop even if you think you want to," there was a strange tone to his voice as his hand slipped downwards on her arm just a little.

"And maybe you would wish you hadn't if you did," Dolly continued the train of thought easily, although the feeling of Woody's hand on her arm and the closeness between them made her wonder what exactly they were talking about now. Did they still mean how they felt as leaders among the other toys or was it another matter entirely that they were trying to figure out where they stood.

"Maybe," Woody looked thoughtful as the word seemed to hang in the air. Just as soon as he looked like he was on the verge of making sense of something, the two toys heard a squeal of delight coming from their young owner. They both turned to see what was going on, Woody's hand falling from Dolly's arm in the process.

"What is it?" Bonnie looked like she was about to explode as Mr. Anderson brought out an early birthday present for his daughter. He carefully set it down and Bonnie eagerly opened the lid to the box that wasn't even wrapped. "A kitten!" Her sudden cheer rang out loud and clear as she carefully pulled the gray little animal from the box and giggled over how it immediately tried to climb up onto her shoulder.

Woody and Dolly, on the other hand, didn't seem to share in her enthusiasm. They stared with equally wide eyes. "Say, cowboy," Dolly said out of the side of her mouth as she now placed her hand on Woody's arm instead, although keeping her eyes fixed on Bonnie and her new furry companion. "You wouldn't happen to have any stories about cats you'd like to share now would you?" The question was one part playful and one part hopeful as the thought of the animal worried her in ways a new toy never could.

"Uh, not exactly," Woody chuckled nervously. "Andy had a dog," he said as he finally turned and looked at her. He could easily tell that she was just as nervous as he was. This time, however, they could be there for each other while being there for the others, he decided. The others! They had to go warn them, he suddenly realized.

As if reading his thoughts, or maybe because she was thinking the same thing, Dolly suddenly turned to Woody and said, "We need to tell everybody. This is pretty big." She was surprised that the only response she got was his lips curling up into an odd sort of smile as he looked down on her. "What?"

"Nervous?" he asked finally asked.

"Well, yeah," she answered, not exactly sure why it was particularly relevant at the moment. That is, until he reached out and grabbed her hand and she decided she suddenly couldn't care less about relevancy.

"Good. So am I," he said as his smile widened. "Let's go." He then pulled her along back towards Bonnie's room, not once letting go of her hand as they hurried to share the news with their friends.

A/N (cont.) Like I said. Short. And with minimum fluff. But I hope you all enjoyed it anyways. Also, I hope dog lovers don't hate me for giving Bonnie a cat! It's not that I don't picture Bonnie as a kid that wouldn't want a dog (since most kids want dogs right?). It's just that I sort of picture Mrs. Anderson as being the kind of mom not really into the idea of having a dog. Or at least, not trusting Bonnie to have a dog just yet. You know? Maybe it's just the way she comes across to me in the film *shrugs*

Oh but now for something that has nothing to do with my writings, I need to gush over the promotional stuff that has come out for the new Toy Story Hawaiian Vacation short. Have you seen it! Have you seen it! (I'm guessing you probably have, but I'm going to share my thoughts anyways lol). If you haven't seen the article or the 30 second clip, both links are in my profile so feel free to go take a look at them so you can gush along with me. Basically, there are a few things pertaining to Dolly and Dolly/Woody that I feel the need to point out. 1. In the picture of all the toys together, if you look, they chose a picture where Dolly just so happens to be standing next to Woody! That's great, but add to it that from left to right it's Dolly, Woody, Buzz and then Jessie, it looks like they are two couples xD Since this is the position Bo would have been standing for sure. 2. Placing here seems to solidify everyone's notion that she's a major part of Bonnie's room because it comes across as though she's a leader along with Woody, Buzz and Jessie. 3. In the video clip, if you pay close attention, before Woody even says anything, Dolly glances over at him like she knows something's off and he's probably going to say something (connection!). The only other toy that looks at Woody is Buzz (which makes sense of course) but only after he starts talking. GAH! This is good. This is very very good yes? It at least lets us know we're not completely crazy right? Okay. I'm done overanalyzing now.