------------------------------------------------------
Forever Knight and it's characters are the property of 
TriStar/Columbia. Toy Story is the property of Disney 
& Pixar.  I'm simply borrowing them for a time.
------------------------------------------------------
                        

Nick walked out of the elevator, with Natalie right on his heels.  She did
not look happy.

"Nick Knight, are you listening to me?"

He turned to face her. "Yes, I am.  I don't know what you want me to 
say,other than what I already have." He looked defeated, and his voice 
reflected the same.

Natalie was furious, "Oh, you said plenty at the Raven."

"I didn't say anything..."

"Oh, I forgot.  You were just agreeing with them."

"I wasn't...I was...if you only knew the whole story..."

"There's more?  I have a feeling that is something I DON'T want to hear."

She turned, practically running.  Feeling numb, Nick could do nothing but
stand there, reaching for her.  "Please Nat..."

When she reached the elevator she spun around, "This is the last straw, Nick.

Just stay away from me.  Don't come near me, and don't call."

She slammed the elevator door shut.

Nick fell down into the couch.  He held his head in his hands as he tried to
figure out how what had just transpired happened.  He sure was in a mess this time.
 

As he thought, a tiny female voice said, "Boy, you sure did it this time."

He looked down at his coffee table to see Little Bo Peep and Rex staring up
at him.  The plastic green dinosaur moved closer toward him.

"Don't worry, Nick, I know how it feels.  I just can't seem to get anything
right, either."

"Rex, it's not quite the same.  We're talking about his love life here."

"Well, it's close.  And I can't help if Andy never had any female dinos."

Nick jumped in, "Hey, guys, it's okay.  I can handle my love life, thank
you."

Bo put her free hand on her hip. "Yeah, we can see that."

"That's enough."  He decide to change the subject. "I've got good news for
you two.  I've located Andy."

Rex began to jump excitedly, "That's great! I can't wait to get back to the
rest of the toys."  Suddenly, he stopped, and a mortified look came over him. "What
if we get back, and he's already got another dinosaur?  Oh no, what if I've been
replaced?"

Bo laughed and placed a reassuring hand on him, "It's only been a couple of
days since we fell out of the back of the moving van.  He probably hasn't
even noticed that our box is missing yet."

"Bo's right.  When I take you over tomorrow night, he'll probably be
surprised you were even gone at all."  He then headed for the kitchen.

Bo and Rex jumped off the table and onto the couch.  They climbed up on the
back to look into at Nick.  He sat at the kitchen table, staring into an
empty wineglass.  Bo sighed.

"Poor Nick."

"Yeah, I wish there was something we could do for him."

Her eyes lit up. "Maybe we can help."

Rex looked at her, puzzled. "What are you talking about?  We're toys, not Dr.
Ruth."

"Dr. Ruth doesn't deal with this aspect of relationships, Rex.  And how do
you know about her, anyway?"

"I saw a news story on her when Andy left me downstairs one night."

"Well, anyway, there has to be something we can do for him."  She pointed in
Nick's direction. "Look at him.  He's so lost."

"But what if we do something, and it makes things worse?  I don't think I
could handle the guilt.  I already have enough from that incident from the first
move with Woody and Buzz."

"He helped us.  We should help him now.  And you heard Natalie.  I don't
think we could make it any worse than it already is."

"Okay."

They slid off the couch and headed toward Nick.  When they reached the chair
opposite him, Rex lifted Bo Peep up on it.  She then put her staff down for
him to reach, and lifted him up.  They did the same to get up on the table.  Then
they walked over and sat on the edge in front of the mopping vampire.  He was so
deep in thought, he didn't notice the two toys until Rex spoke.

"Is there something we can do, Nick?"

His eyes didn't leave the glass. "I don't think you can."

"How do we know unless we try," Bo said. "How about you tell us what went on,
and we'll go from there."

"Well," Nick sighed, "I guess it couldn't hurt.  Right now, I could use all
the help I can get."

"That's the spirit!" Rex cheered. "So what did you do to make Natalie so
angry."

"It all started when I just finished locating Andy for you.  I stopped by the
Raven to see LaCriox.  I believe I mentioned him before."

The toys nodded in response.

"Anyway, I  was talking to him and Vachon, another vampire, when this woman 
walked by.  She was very attractive, and LaCriox and Vachon mentioned this.
I agreed that she was beautiful.  Then they started talking about...what they
would like to do with her."

"Just like the stuff Dr. Ruth talks about!"  Rex exclaimed proudly.

Nick looked at the dinosaur, puzzled. "How do you know about Dr. Ruth?"

Before Rex could answer, Bo Peep jumped in, "Let's not go into that again. 
We're here to figure this thing out."  She stared at Nick, accusingly, "So,
did you want to do these same THINGS with this woman?"

"No, I didn't.  I was going to say that there are other attributes to women
than looks and appeal when Nat came up behind me and started screaming.  I don't
know how long she had been there, but she heard enough to jump to the
conclusion that I wanted to be with the that woman."

Bo stood up, straightened her dress, and looked Nick in the eye. "So, this
is your classic misunderstanding."

"Yes, that's it.  But how do I get Nat to see that.  She doesn't want to have
anything to do with me."

"Take it from another female, there are ways to get our attention, no matter
what we say.  There is a way to fix all this.  You just do what I say, and things
will be fine."

*************************************

Natalie, riding in the elevator, was holding about three dozen long stem
roses in her arm.  She was reading, for the tenth or so time, the card that came with
it.

I AM A WORM.
I AM A MALE PIG.
I DO NOT DESERVE YOU.
YOU ARE TOO GOOD FOR ME.
I WAS WRONG.

                                                               Love,
                                                                 Nick

When it stopped, she opened the door to find Nick standing at the counter
pouring himself a drink.  He didn't turn around, but he knew it was her.

"Nick, you've done it once again.  I can't believe I'm here, but this
card..."

"I meant every word, Nat."

She walked into the kitchen area as Nick turned to face her.  To her
surprise, he held two wineglasses.  The other was filled with a white wine.  She laid her
roses on the table, and notice the two toys.  As she took her glass, she pointed to
them.

"We playing with toys now, Nick."

He laughed, "No.  I just found them, and I've just found their owner.  I'll
be returning them tomorrow."

"Gee, you are full of surprises, aren't you?"

He smiled impishly, "Yes, I am."  And he pulled her into his arms and kissed
her.

Bo Peep and Rex smiled.

THE END  








-- The End --

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