“Places everybody, places!” called Woody from atop the bed of his owner Andy. The various toys in Andy’s room scurried about, following the directions of their leader. Today was an important day after all. It was Andy’s sister, Molly’s birthday today. She was turning four today. And that could only mean one thing: New Toys.
Woody had to make sure today went smoothly. He also had to make sure nobody worried too much. After all, with the promise of new toys, came the fear that someone would be replaced. But Woody wasn’t worried. They’d been through countless birthdays, and toys were not often forgotten. But it didn’t really apply to this case. It was Molly’s birthday, not Andy’s. She still played with almost all of her toys.
As the toys rushed to complete their various tasks, Woody tuned the PlaySkool radio, establishing a link with Sargent. But just as he was finding the right tuning, he heard a voice call to him from below.
“Woody! Are the toy soldiers in place?” Woody looked down to see his best friend, Buzz, the space action figure, standing there looking up at him.
“I’m just establishing contact Buzz. Come on up!” replied Woody.
“Roger that cowboy!” The athletic space toy then ran back to the Hot Wheel track, and climbed up to the top of the stack of books next to it. He then jumped onto the car, landing on one foot. The car then proceeded to roll down the track, doing a loop, and then sped up the next ramp. As it car reached its areal climax, Buzz jumped off the car, landing onto one of Andy’s balls. As soon as Buzz landed on the ball, he used a powerful jump to launch himself onto the bed, landing with a soft thud.
“Always showing off, hey Buzz?” asked the cowboy.
“It never hurts to keep in practice Woody,” replied the spaceman.
“Yeah, I guess that’s true,” chuckled Woody, as he continued adjusting the communication device.
“So, where are the others?” asked Buzz as he walked towards Woody.
“They should be here soon…just about…got it!” said Woody, as he snapped his fingers. “Sarg? Sarg, can you hear me?” Then, the green soldiers voice came out of the device.
“Ten four Mother bird, this is Alpha Bravo, read you loud and clear!”
“Good. All right everybody, gather around! We’re about to find out what’s in those boxes!” Woody looked down and found that most of his friends were gathered there. He saw Mr. Potato Head and his wife. He saw the LGM’s, Rex, and Ham. There was Bo Peep and Barbie. All that was missing were Slink, Jesse and Bullseye. But just as Woody was about to ask where they were, he heard the voice of Sarg coming through.
“Alright, we’ve got a confirmed visual on the first present…she’s unwrapping it now. It’s a…it’s a…” All the toys leaned in in anticipation, figuratively on the edge of their seats. Seconds felt like minutes, until finally, the silence was broken. “It’s blanket!” The group of toys jeered at that.
“Come on, a blanket isn’t a present! It’s a basic necessity!” cried Mr. Potato head.
“Now now, it’s just the first present, let’s give it a chance!” said Woody. Once the toys calmed down, he returned his attention to the radio. That was until he heard the familiar clip clop of his trusty steed, and a notable “Yee-Haw!” He looked over to see the cowgirl Jesse riding his faithful steed Bullseye. And running along with them was Slink.
“What took you so long?” asked Buzz.
“Sorry we’re late,” said Slink. “Andy had us downstairs.”
“That’s all right guys,” said Woody. “Alright, quiet down everybody, she’s probably opening the next present right now. The group silenced, and then everyone’s attention was on the radio.
“Alright, we’ve got a confirmed visual on the second present,” said Sarg. After a few seconds of static, the army mans voice came out loud and clear. “Alright, the next present is a…a Pink Barbie Convertible!”
“Yippee!” Cheered Barbie as she jumped in the air with joy.
“Ah, some toys get all the luck,” said Ham.
“Now, now, no need to get jealous,” said Buzz.
“I’m not jealous, I’m envious,” replied Ham.
“Hm…touché,” said Buzz.
“We’re getting the next present now,” said Sarg from the radio. For the next few minutes, Sarg read out various present names, but so far she hadn’t gotten any toys, at least not the kind of toys who could think and talk. That was, until they got to the last present. Sarg described it as a rather small box, wrapped in pink wrapping with a red ribbon.
“Alright, here we go everyone. It’s the last present,” said Woody. The entire room went silent, everybody listening closely, waiting to find out what was about to be unwrapped. Then Sarg’s voice came through, loud and clear.
“Mother Bird, we’ve got a visual. It’s a…It’s a…” The entire room was so silent, that you could hear a pin drop. Everyone stood on the edges of their seats, unable to bear the wait. “Alright, it’s a…a Vinyl Collectible…it says something Pony…It’s a…It’s a Princess Twilight Sparkle!” No one spoke, for no one really knew what that was.
“Uh, anyone know what a Twilight Sparkle is?” asked Woody. After a few seconds, he heard Barbie speak up.
“H-hey, I think I remember seeing something like that! It’s from this show that Molly likes to watch. It’s called My Little Pony!”
“Hey yeah, I remember that!” chimed Jesse.
“Alright everybody looks like we got a new arrival. Let’s do what we can to make her feel welcome!” Said Buzz, as he hopped down from the bed, landing next to the group of toys. Woody stayed atop, speaking through the radio.
“Good work Sarg! Bring the boys home!”
“Roger that Mother Bird.” Woody then turned off the radio, and hopped down onto the floor.
“Alright guys, listen up. Tonight, we’ll go in to Molly’s room and greet the new toy. Until then, let’s get everybody back to the spots that Molly and Andy left us.” The group then dispersed, and went back to their assigned place. Everyone was excited at the prospect of meeting a new toy. And tonight, they would get to meet her.
