Author's Notes: HI. I apologize for this taking so long to get out. Some of you know that I'm working at Disney World right now for a semester, and my life has been kinda taken over by the mouse. I still do think about this story though! I still have the intention of finishing it! Thanks for sticking with me :)
They arrived in Barkings in the late afternoon. Sweaty and exhausted, Woody, Jessie, and Bo found their way into an inn all the while drawing interesting looks from those around them.
The three sat at the bar for a while, swimming in their thoughts.
It was all very surreal to Bo. Everything came flooding back: the distinct smell of the dust, the almost tangible heat waves, and the uneasiness that came from the memories creeping up into her head. She tried desperately to shrug it off, to pretend like that part life didn't even exist. Except that she couldn't deny the fact that she had sat in the same stool she was sitting in at that very moment long ago.
Woody picked up on her extreme discomfort, and yet he was torn between being there for Jessie as well. His mind drifted towards Buzz again.
Perhaps it wasn't him? They had been fooled by that before. Even Buzz himself had been posing as a different person for an extended period of time. But that didn't quite explain how the cowboy was able to pick up on the fact that Buzz was about to shoot, nor the way that the space ranger fought exactly like he normally did. And although he didn't have much other evidence, Woody also couldn't ignore the overwhelming sense in his gut that it was truly his friend that had attacked them somehow.
Right next to her brother, Jessie found the same line of thinking wandering into her mind. She was never really one for heavy drinking, but in that moment all she wanted was a bottle of whisky to ease the throbbing in her temples.
Although the trio had been caught up in their own world, the residents of Barkings around them were extremely uneasy. Bo remembered they had always been a fidgety people, always being attacked by bandits or robbers, and so they didn't always take too kindly to strangers.
But this scenario was different. By the time Woody and Jessie started to remember that Bo was still a wanted woman on Earth, the Inn had been cleared out and even the bartender shrank away silently.
They sat in silence for a moment, absorbing what had just occurred.
"What…?" Bo started to say quietly.
The Inn shook.
A blast from outside promptly started the place on fire and sent the trio reeling back behind the check-in desk. The flames licked up the bar quickly on the far end of the room using the alcohol as an accelerant. Thick, sickly sweet smelling smoke quickly arose in the air forcing Woody, Jessie and Bo to stay low to the ground.
The three scrambled around for a solution. Woody had managed to snatch a gun that had been left behind, but with very limited ammo. If it was indeed Space Rangers outside the building, bullets would do little to deter them. And then suddenly some of Bo's memory started to spark.
"If we can make it to the sheriff's office, I can get us out of here!" she shouted to the others above the crackling of the fire.
Woody nodded to the staircase leading to the rooms upstairs. "I've got a crazy idea."
The girls followed him through the smoke, ducking through ash and debris. The cowboy forced his way through the first door they could get to where there was a window where fire was escaping to the outside. He yanked the quilt and pillows from off the bed and threw it around the three of them.
"Ready?" He yelled. The girls nodded.
They jumped out through the window blind to how far the drop was. They met the ground with a sick thud, pillows doing very little to break their fall. Bo felt a sharp pain in her leg, and was sure she had broken something. Despite all of that, the three stood and started sprinting immediately with the blonde leading the way towards the sheriff's office. While running they snuck a look behind them, only to see Buzz Lightyear himself along with a group of Space Rangers rocketing towards them.
They reached the building in what had seemed like an eternity with Buzz gaining fast and tore through the doors.
Woody and Jessie tried to barricade the entrance as best as they could while Bo wrenched the door open to an empty jail cell that had fallen into decay.
"I hope it's still here…." the blonde muttered while moving aside the moldy cot and rug. After lifting up a few bad floorboards, the cell revealed a small hole into darkness. The trio stared into the pit for a few seconds until being reminded of how dire the situation was when a blast hit the side of the building.
Once again, fire started to stretch across the dry wooden floor, only this time Buzz and his gang were trying to come in after them.
"Go!" Woody shouted as the girls slipped into the darkness. He pulled up one of the discarded floorboards and let it catch on fire before hopping down into the hole himself. "We don't have long until they discover this path. Where does it go?"
"About half an hour out of town on foot. Several years ago before I was sheriff here, a criminal had managed to escape through this passage. The town could never afford to fix the jail cell," Bo replied. "It goes through some sort of abandoned mine shaft, so watch your step."
They walked briskly in silence with the darkness slowly enclosing on them as they reached the mine shaft.
"Buzz is gonna be on our tails within a matter of minutes…" Jessie finally stated. "I think I could reach him if-"
"No! Absolutely not!" Woody interrupted knowing immediately what his sister wanted to do.
"Let me just talk with him! I have to try and break through somehow!"
"It's too dangerous!"
"Well what else are we supposed to do!?" Jessie nearly screamed. She stopped dead in her tracks, exasperated.
"Jessie-"
"Look, We can't even get away long enough to make any sort of plan and he's just going to keep coming after us!"
"But-"
"And I don't care how dangerous it is, I'm not going anywhere until I get him back!" Tears were rolling down the redhead's cheeks as she yelled.
Suddenly Woody was reminded of something he'd said just a few days ago. Look, I came here to get Bo back. You guys can get out of here if you want, but I'm not leaving until she's safe.
The cowboy gazed at his sister, unable to produce any words.
It was too late.
Buzz and his crew had found their way into the tunnel. Woody was suddenly torn apart. He couldn't allow Bo to be taken again, and he had to protect his sister as well. There was no time to do both.
Jessie knew the predicament that her brother faced, and she knew the importance of keeping Bo out of McNairy's claws, so she finally took action.
It was almost too easy, swiftly stealing the gun Woody had picked up out of his holster and then hitting him squarely on the jawline. After Bo rushed to help him up and out of the initial shock, the cowgirl took a few steps back and shot a well aimed bullet to one of the rotting support beams keeping part of the tunnel upright.
After realizing what she was doing, Woody sprung up. "Jessie NO!"
The beams and dirt came crashing down, separating Woody and Bo from the redhead. The cowboy immediately attempted to shift the rubble and dirt.
"Woody…" Bo said gently as he continued his futile attempts.
"What is she thinking?! She's going to get herself killed!" the cowboy said ignoring all sense of reason.
"Woody, stop… please," Bo cried, setting down their makeshift torch and grabbing onto his hands.
The touch seemed to almost electrocute him, like it was proof that what had happened really did just happen. He continued to look at the cave in as he spoke. "He's gonna kill her. He's gonna kill my sister."
"We need to get out of here. We can't go back through here, we're going to have to go to the other end of the tunnel," Bo told him. He didn't respond. "Woody can you hear me? We've got to get out of here."
Finally the cowboy was shaken out of his trance and sheer determination swept his face. He grabbed the torch and started off briskly again through the tunnel. Bo on the other hand started to feel the shocks of pain through her leg as she tried to keep up with him. It wasn't until she actually tripped and yelled out in pain that Woody had noticed. He went back to help her up.
"I'm sorry, I think I might have broken something when we jumped out the window…" Bo said sadly.
The cowboy shook his head. "It's my fault. It's all my fault." He supported her side by slinging her arm over his shoulder and together they walked in silence as the torch began to die.
Jessie stood in darkness after the cave had collapsed. All of her fears manifested themselves in one fell swoop, leaving her shaking as she heard the Rangers get closer. At the very least, their suits were glowing green in the dark and as they came closer she was able to see a little better.
What she would she say? What would she do? These were things she hadn't really considered.
"Drop your weapon and put your hands up!" she heard Buzz's voice ring in the darkness. The cowgirl dropped the gun immediately and brought her arms up. The rangers reached her and one kicked the gun further away.
"Get on the ground! Hands behind your head!" another Ranger barked, and so she did so obediently.
"Where does this tunnel let out? Where are your friends?" Buzz demanded.
"They're your friends too, Buzz," Jessie replied softly.
"Don't play games, agent of Zurg. We know that you plan to use the Black Star."
"No, that's what your pal McNairy plans to do."
The other Rangers seemed uneasy. "We should be done with this one. She's not going to have any useful information," one of them chimed.
Panic shot through Jessie as they lined her up executioner style. "No wait! What about due process? What about the legal system?"
Buzz leaned down to look at her in the face. "By taking the key to weapons of mass destruction, you have committed an act of terrorism and I have the right to terminate you right now, right here."
Although she felt her hands go numb, Jessie continued to stare him down. "Would you, though?"