Foxy was trotting along the main road, heading towards the Interstate at a steady pace, looking for more ingredients for a mixture. She was going to try to mix beer with fruit and create a beer cocktail.

While she was doing so, her acute, cat-like hearing picked up several pain-filled cries. She hesitated, then took off towards the noise, Thunder following after. He had come along, as he normally did, to hold her bag when she climbed into a tree, and for some attention.

The two soon came over a hill and saw a small car being attacked by a mountain lion.

Foxy gasped, her hands flying up to her mouth as her eyes widened. Thunder was growling and standing ready for Foxy's command. "Thunder, sic 'em!" She exclaimed, and he took off like a shot towards the lion. He jumped onto its back, snapping it like a twig from the rate of speed he was traveling at.

Now that the lion was sufficiently exterminated, Foxy came down towards the car, who looked a little young to be out on its own. The car was now scrambling away from Thunder, unsure of what he was. "Are you okay?" Foxy asked in concern, trying to see if the car was well enough to respond.

The car whimpered and visibly shrank away from her. "Thunder, heel."

He obediently trotted back to Foxy's side, and sat down.

"You're a good boy. Now can you stay here? I'm gonna go see if they're okay." She crouched down, setting a hand on his head and ruffling his ears.

He licked her face and wagged his tail, making Foxy giggle.

"Good boy. When we get back, I'll make sure to give you two surprises, then after that, you can come back for the lion. I'll skin it, make a blanket, then you can have the meat."

He woofed quietly, but remained sitting.

Foxy gave him a smile, then began heading slowly towards the car. As she got closer, she could see that it was a boy. "Hey, little guy. What're you doing out here all by yourself?"

He just whimpered again, and yelped as he began inching away from her.

'Something underneath broken, more then likely... Either that lion did a number on him, or he's been on his own for a while...'

She crouched down, and continued to try to coax him to her. Finally, her voice seemed to win him over, and he began inching towards her, still skittish. He was quivering from roof to tire, and Foxy could only coax him towards her until she could pick him up.

He was an extremely tiny, toddler-aged truck. He was a dark blue, but the fresh scratches and claw marks along his sides, hood and roof were slowly turning it into a midnight black.

"Ohh, sweetie. Did that big, mean lion hurt you?"

The truck's enormous brown eyes began filling up with more tears, and he began whimpering again, burrowing his injured bumper into Foxy.

"Ohh, poor baby." She murmured, cradling the child gently before adjusting his position slightly so she could see his face. "Where's mommy at? Or are you out here with daddy?"

He tried to shrug, but winced and whimpered.

"Where did you see them at last?" Foxy asked the child.

He pointed with a tire towards one of the rock formations, the one of a giant Hornet's front end. Still cradling him, she went over to the rock, and looked.

What she saw horrified her, and she hurriedly covered the truck's windshield with a hand, not wanting him to see the oily bodies of his parents. "You shouldn't see this, sweetie. It's not a good thing for little boys to see." She told him when he started to struggle.

He whimpered, and Foxy dipped a finger into the oil. Still moderately warm. She called Thunder to go get Mater, Doc, and Sheriff, and to go as fast as he could.

A bark told her she'd been heard, and she saw a blur moving rapidly down the road in the distance. She walked to the hill where she had witnessed the attack, and sat down, setting the child in a more comfortable position. "So, what's your name sweetie?"

"N-Nikki. Are mommy an' daddy gonna be okay?"

"Do you want them to be?"

The little truck shook his hood, and just when Foxy was about to ask why, he slumped to the ground.

"Nikki?" She instantly began nudging him gently with a hand. When she got no response, she scooped him up, held him close, and stood up.

Realizing that she couldn't leave, she began pacing, chewing on her lip frantically and hoping that the others got here soon. For what seemed like an hour, she paced in an extremely stretched out oval, her thoughts a constant repetition of 'I hope his parents are all right. I hope HE'S all right.'

When she heard the sounds of Thunder barking, she turned towards the road and ran as fast as she dared, not wanting to drop Nikki's unconscious body. As she neared, she could see Doc stop in surprise and his eyes widen. She saw Sheriff and Mater's bumpers drop to the road. She could only imagine how she looked, but the words poured out of her mouth in an ever-quickening flow. "...And It took me forever to coax him to me, and when I did, he kept whimpering, and he was shaking, and I asked where his parents were, and he said over by the rock that looks like Doc, and I went over there, and his parents were lying in pools of their own oil, and I covered his eyes and I told him that he shouldn't look and I carried him over to the hill and-"

"Foxy, just calm down. There will be enough time to get the story later. Right now, we need to worry about these two."

"But, Doc, he just passed out! I-I didn't know what to do, and he just-"

At that point, Thunder trotted up to her, and sat at her feet, looking up at her, his head tilted a little and his ears standing upright. As she looked down at him, he whined and gently pawed her leg. She crouched down, and Thunder nosed his way to Nikki through her grasp, and began licking his side in an area where he wasn't gushing oil.

Foxy closed her eyes tightly, then took a deep breath. Afterwards, she sat down next to Thunder, still holding little Nikki tightly. Thunder sat at her side, his tail wagging and hitting her in the back occasionally. She leaned against the large dog's shoulder, her head resting gently against his neck. "Thanks, Thunder." She replied in a sigh, and his tail wagged more quickly.

Just then, Doc came rolling back up the hill to the two. Foxy looked up at him as she noticed him coming towards them. "Are they going to be all right?" She asked, although she already knew the answer.

He shook his hood slowly, regretfully, and Foxy lowered her head down to Nikki's cab slowly.

"Is there anything we can do for Nikki?" She asked, her voice muffled.

"First, we'll need to get him back to the clinic."

Foxy nodded, then stood up, still cradling the tiny body. Mater offered her a ride back with him, which she accepted. She climbed up into his bed, and Thunder hopped up after her. As the group went back to the town, Foxy kept one hand wrapped around Nikki, and the other was holding onto Mater's towing arm.

He dropped her off in Doc's clinic, then went to tell the others. Thunder was sitting just inside and to the right of the doors, waiting patiently for his treats. Foxy was anxiously pacing from one side of the waiting room to the other, and Thunder soon got up to join her at her side.

About an hour later, Doc rolled out into the waiting room, and chuckled quietly. Foxy and Thunder were pacing the room, their footsteps completely in sync. It looked as though Foxy had a shadow in the form of a dog.

"He's fine. And awake." Doc's voice cut through her haze of thoughts, and her head snapped up.

"He is? Oh, good!" Foxy sighed in relief, sinking into a chair and running her hands through her hair.

"Foxy, you've barely known this kid for two hours. What's so special about this one?"

"He's an orphan now, Doc. Me and Thunder were the only ones there to see it. I feel like the least I can do is worry about him."

"You really like him, don't you?"

Foxy's small nod, accompanied with a sigh, was exactly what Doc expected.

"Legally, you could adopt him. It won't be an easy process, especially since he will be wanting to know where his real parents are..."

"I don't want him to have to go into a shelter. One of my friends I knew at home had been in a shelter, and you could tell that it was just horrible there. Plus, once he turns eighteen, he'll just be thrown out into the streets and expected to fend for himself. Please. He's too sweet to have to go through that." Foxy begged desperately.

Doc sighed, then nodded. "I agree with ya. It would be better if he were here. I'll go get the paperwork."

Doc went down to the courthouse, and Foxy sat down in a chair. Thunder came over and laid his muzzle in her lap. "Well, Thunder. Looks like I've just added one to the family." Thunder's tail wagged gently, and Foxy chuckled. "At least I know he won't be bored. Not with an awesome mom like me, and a playmate like you." She ruffled his ears gently, and he licked her hand.

Doc rolled in the doors, and Foxy stood up. The two went over to his desk, where the papers were quickly filled out and filed. "Looks like you've got yourself a son, Foxy."

"I like the sound of that." She replied with a small smile, and Doc chuckled.

"You can go see him. I think he's expecting you to pop up soon."

With that, Foxy was gone, already on her way to see Nikki.

She poked her head into the room number Doc called to her. "Hey, little guy. You feeling better at all?"

Nikki shook his hook gingerly, being careful of the stitches going across his hood.

"Awww, poor little guy. Come here." She said gently, sitting on the edge of his bed, facing away from the door.

He clambered over to her as best as he could, and finally, his broken axle caused him to collapse onto her lap.

"Awww, poor baby." She murmured, picking him up gently and giving him a hug. "Nikki, there's something I need to tell you, okay?" He nodded, and she continued. "Your mommy and daddy... aren't... well... they won't be coming back for you. See, the mountain lion hurt them really really bad. Even worse then he hurt you. We tried everything we thought would work, but... it didn't. Since you're too little to be on your own, you're going to stay with me. Is that okay?" She felt him nod through her embrace, and mentally sighed with relief. "Good, good. But for now, until you get better, you have to stay here. I'll come and visit you every day, and maybe the giant doggy will too. Would you like that?"

Unknown to her, Doc was watching quietly from the doorway, and had seen the entire exchange of information. 'She did better then I thought she would.' He thought, continuing to watch, his hood slightly tilted.

In response to Foxy's question, Nikki shook his hood gingerly.

"Don't you like the doggy?"

"No."

"Why not?" She asked gently.

"Because daddy said that aminimals are mean."

"Not this doggy. He's silly. And he knows lots of tricks. Should I show you?" She felt him nod, and gently released him after placing him back under the blanket. "Thunder, c'mere boy!" She called into the hallway, and heard his nails clicking on the tiled floor. She turned to him, and saw Doc standing in the doorway.

He gave her a smile, and waved a tire as though saying, "Please, continue. It's really entertaining to watch."

Foxy sighed, her eyes rolling up to look through her bangs, then she turned back to Thunder. "Now, Thunder, Nikki here is a little unsure about you yet. He wants to see you do tricks. Can we do that?"

Thunder nodded, and Foxy smiled.

"Good boy. Thunder, say 'Hello' to Nikki, since you two didn't get to know each other very well yet."

Thunder made a noise that sounded like 'Hewrow.' and Foxy grinned.

"Hi, doggy." Nikki replied hesitantly.

"Thunder, I still don't think he believes us. Maybe a wave would be better."

Thunder sat up on his hind legs and moved a front paw up and down, looking at Nikki.

Nikki waved a tire gingerly back, and Foxy giggled quietly. She tossed a treat towards the wall, and Thunder raced for the wall. He ran up it, caught the treat, then did a flip and landed on the floor. "Wow..." Nikki replied quietly, his eyes wide. She gave Thunder a wink, then tossed another treat up into the air. Like a kangaroo, Thunder shot off the ground while standing on his hind legs, and caught the treat. "Hey, Thunder, you wanna dance?" Foxy asked once he had finished, and Thunder nodded.

He stood up on his hind legs, and put his paws in Foxy's hands. The two danced a modified version of the tango a short distance across the floor, and Foxy scooped up Thunder in her arms. He got out of her grasp, and balanced on her shoulders, looking at Nikki happily.

Nikki, who was now watching intently, didn't seem to be very fearful of Thunder any longer, so Foxy let him down. The two bowed, and Foxy fed Thunder two treats for going to get help earlier.

Nikki giggled quietly, and even Doc chuckled. "He does seem like a nice doggy... will he come on the bed?"

"Sure. Do you want him on the bed?"

"Down there." Nikki pointed with a tire at the foot of the mattress, and Foxy looked at Thunder.

"You heard the little man, Thunder. You won him over."

Thunder woofed quietly, then got onto the bed cautiously, laying down at the very bottom edge of the bed.

"Closer, doggy."

Doc and Foxy shared a glance, and watched as Thunder inched towards the little truck.

"Stop. Right there."

Foxy watched intently, holding her breath, as Nikki slowly reached out a shaking tire, and set it on Thunder's side. Thunder's tail wagged, but not much else happened. Nikki gently began petting Thunder's side, and snuggled closer to him after a few minutes.

Foxy sighed in relief, and gave Thunder a smile. She walked over to the two and began petting Thunder. "He's a good doggy now, right?"

Nikki nodded with a smile, already lying between Thunder's front paws as Thunder licked him.

"He's all slobbery!" Nikki giggled, and Foxy laughed.

"Yeah, he sure is. He used to do it to me, too." Foxy spent the rest of the day with Nikki, and the two got to know each other better.

Finally, Foxy left his side, but only because he had fallen asleep. When she reached the doorway and Thunder wasn't with her, she turned to find him laying next to Nikki, giving her the sad eyes. "All right. I'll stay here too. Let me go tell Fillmore."

Thunder wagged his tail, and Foxy smiled before walking down the hallway and out the doors.

"Ya ready to go, Elizabeth?"

"Actually, Fillmore..." She bit her lip, unsure how to explain that she had just adopted an injured orphan and was going to spend the night with him in case something happened.

He parked and looked down at her curiously.

"There was an incident today. Me and Thunder saw a toddler-aged truck being attacked by a mountain lion. Thunder killed the lion, and I went to get the truck. I asked him where his parents were, and he didn't know. I asked him where he had last seen them, and he pointed to a rock formation. I went over, and they-they were..."

"...Dead..." Fillmore replied quietly, his eyes widening.

Foxy nodded. "And then he passed out, and we brought him back to Doc's, and I was in there all day with him, because I was trying to get him to warm up to Thunder, and for another reason. I didn't want him going to an orphanage, so I kind of... sort of..."

Before she finished, Fillmore swept her off her feet and hugged her tightly. "That's mighty sweet of ya. Is he comin' out tomorrow?" He asked eagerly after he had set her down.

"I'm not sure. He's pretty beat up from the lion attack, and I don't want it to be too much..."

Fillmore nodded, then nuzzled her affectionately. "You'll be a good mom, man."

Foxy blushed, and smiled. "Thanks, Fillmore. I will be over in the morning for coffee. Don't think that just because I adopted a kid, things are going to change."

The two chuckled at her joke, and he nudged her. "Want anything?"

"Nah, I should be all right for one night. Thanks though."

Fillmore nodded, and rolled down the road, towards his dome.

Foxy watched him go, then entered Doc's again, going to the room that Nikki and Thunder were in. She settled down on the floor in the corner of the room, and quickly drifted off to sleep.

New story! How does everyone like it? Just to let you know, Nikki comes before my Cars 2 story. :) There will be more to this story, so keep on reading! I'm going to try out an ending that I haven't used before, so if it sucks, then that's why. Hope you all keep reading, Liz