A/N: I never thought I would become so busy during my college life. Like, seriously, part of me really hoped that I would at least have time to write but that's just not happening. So I aplogize for the long wait, and how lame this story is probably going to be. This story is going to become a free time monster that may or may not get better with time. Feel free to stick with me to see how it turns out though!

I don't own WIR.


"I was coming to tell you not to worry about the sign, since I knew you'd see it. But also to kind of brag because… well… it's awesome, okay?! The old unfinished bonus level where you taught me how to drive will be finished! Oh! And then there's another bonus level through the underground cavern where all those cybugs were! And then there's-"

"Okay, okay, we get it, kid," Ralph smiled putting a hand on the bouncing Vanellope to steady her, "I was just worried, okay?"

"Look if anything happened to my game you guys would be the first to know, alright? And besides, most things I can handle myself!" Vanellope responded, puffing her chest out proudly. Ralph and Felix both smirked and exchanged glances.

"Anyway, now that I already told you I better get back to the starting line. Everyone is waiting for me and I have to be present in President Mode!" she saluted before turning on her heel to walk away. That was when Ralph's smirk from earlier had faltered and with one finger, had snagged the child by the hood of her hoodie.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa; you're racing during your update?"

"Are you kiddin'? We're getting a new racer! So everyone's lined up at the track to welcome her with a Race of Initiation!" she crossed her arms, glaring up at giant holding her, "With ears as freakishly huge as yours, I thought you'd be listening."

"Why you-"

"A race of initiation," Felix repeated behind Ralph, interrupting his co-worker, "Sounds awful nice. I'm sorry we won't be able to see it. We'll come back after the arcade closes to meet her then."

Exhaling any annoyance he had a moment ago, Ralph set the pint-sized president down, "Alright grease-monkey, you're off the hook; for now," he said while turning to leave with Felix.

"Whatever, stinkbrain!"

"Short stack!"

"Godzilla!"

"Princess!"

After that, Ralph was already on the train leaving Sugar Rush Speedway, and wouldn't hear whatever Vanellope had decided to call him next. Huffing and puffing and insisting that the throne had died with her, Vanellope turned on her heels storm back to the starting line.

It seemed just like any other day. The karts were all lined up at the starting line, ready go to, while the racers stood in groups, talking to each other on the sides of the finish line when Vanellope had returned. Aside from finishing bonus levels and what not, everyone was excited the most for the new character that could possibly hit the rosters. Even though she wasn't jumping off the walls like she normally would be, Vanellope was very excited as well.

However, she was in 'President Mode.' When she was in 'President Mode,' Vanellope had her head held high, face stoic and stern, with an air of seriousness about her. No one questioned Vanellope's authority while she was in 'President Mode,' especially when she was in serious situations such as - Oh! Lollipop!

Vanellope pulled the lollipop that had stuck itself on the arm of her sleeve and stuck it in her mouth, sucking on it absent-mindedly while the update went on.

The first thing to download was the kart; and it was big. Pixel-by-pixel the car came in. Frame first, interior next, and finally, the exterior (Which took the longest). There was nothing aerodynamically special about the body. Rather than the front of the car being smooth, it had an almost boxy look to it from the front to the back. The body itself didn't start out narrow in the front and wide in the back either. It had open wheels like most of the other cars, but the tires were huge. The center, where wheels connected and the majority of the frame sat, was hard candy. It very well could have been made of the same material as a Jawbreaker. The tires were giant, fluffy marshmallows, all four the same size. They were tall enough to make the wheels almost tower above the body itself. Red licorice springs and suspensions were everywhere. The exterior was red velvet cake, curved enough to give the body an appealing appearance without venturing far from the boxy form it started out with, and white icing decorated the cart in lines that traced the curvatures which made them stand out. The seat was also marshmallow, but a different kind than the tires. Lining the interior was white fondant, and the controls were constructed of the same hard candy that made up the frame. The last thing to upload, after most of the car was set on the track, were slits of gram cracker that stuck out of the marshmallow tires, taking on a strange pattern.

Vanellope looked at it with curiosity more than awe, as did everyone else. It was certainly… different, and didn't look like racing material. The more she thought about it, the stranger it seemed. After the kart was finished, the jumbo-tron showed several different locations where new tracks were being laid out throughout the game, and where some unfinished levels would finally be able to be played. While everyone had been watching that, Vanellope had walked onto the track to inspect the new kart further. Was this meant for off road levels? Could this monster even go as fast the other karts? She was so focused on examining the new candy car, Vanellope didn't notice the wind picking up until someone (She thought it was Candlehead) gasped and called out to her.

Looking up, she saw that the blue clouds that had come with the update were spiraling rapidly. In the middle, right above the finish line, the clouds began reaching down. It took a moment but finally the twister (If that's what it even was) touched down. The rapid spinning of the blue pixelated clouds started to slow, but it still stood its ground and didn't rise back up. At its core, there appeared to be an empty avatar. Empty meaning it was just the basic body shape, like a mannequin, and nothing more. Above the avatar were three words and a percentage:

Downloading Carmine Cakewalk… 1%


"I'm sorry ma'am, but I just can't help you. Your computer is too outdated for all of the antivirus wares we have to offer."

The woman across the counter had obviously wanted to strangle him. Better yet, she may just have to beat him with her 'outdated computer'. As obsolete as said machine may be, she still needed every ounce of information on it. Pleading with the nerd on the other side of the counter wouldn't work, and reasoning only got her a skeptical look in return. Hell would have to freeze over before she got on her knees and begged. He should seriously be concerned for his health right now. No, wait, she shouldn't think like that. A huff of breath expelled beige colored strands away from her face, giving her a clearer view. She was not giving up this easily.

"Look, I have a lot of information on his thing and I can't just let it get eaten away! Please, isn't there anything you guys can do about this? I only have one week of spring break to get this done. I can't even finish my assignments! I need this computer fixed!"

The man on the other side of the counter gave her a heavy sigh. She leaned forward with anticipation when he opened his mouth to respond. Her breath caught in her lungs whilst waiting. His mind was drawing blanks when searching for what to tell her. He let out a short breath followed by a weak smile.

"You said you've tried everything?"

"Anything that I could run. Windows 2000 doesn't exactly agree with a lot of things."

"I know, I know," he mumbled and scratched the back of his head, "It's just… you've already done my job for me. There's really nothing that can be done. That virus you have is nasty, and your computer is a dinosaur. It's a free-for-all.

"As for all the memory on the computer; I can save that."

"Really?!" The woman asked, suddenly on the balls of her feet, "Oh that would be great!"

"Awesome!" he shared her enthusiasm and pulled up something on his computer that she couldn't see, "Now I just need some information. Your name?"

"Carmen Waters."

"Date of birth?"

"January 12, 1991."

"Phone number?"

"402…827…9874."

There was a moment of silence following the last question. It was a slow day in the small local computer store. So slow, that Carmen had to be the only customer in so far, she was sure. While waiting, she chewed on nails that were already as short as she could make them.

"So how'd you find us here?"

The nail-muncher jumped, not expecting him to try and start a conversation. Repressing her startled behavior the girl looked back out the glass doors at the gas station across the street.

"I stopped to get gas and happened to see it from over there."

The computer geek made a sound of acknowledgement that kept Carmen from continuing the conversation. There was a slight sting of disappointment when she realized it was just another question. Finally his swift fingers pulled away from the keyboard.

"So I do have the equipment to pull your files from your computer. Just leave it here with me and I'll have it done within a week."

"A week?!"

Now it was his turn to be startled. The man jumped at her sudden shriek and looked at her in amazement.

"Well yeah," he began, "The virus took over your computer completely. There's no way to quickly just turn it on and pull files over."

The expression on her face went from surprise to a look of absolute hatred.

"I don't have time for a week!" she snapped. Her voice had taken on a whole new tone and even a whole new accent. The man cringed at the sound of it, but she didn't stop there. Carmen raged for a full moment, fumbling with her large backpack and trying to fit her outmoded 'dinosaur' into it.

"Ya cramped up nerds an' yer fancy machines," she ranted while zipping up her bag. The monster-sized camping backpack was slung back onto her shoulders. Carmen struggled to get her arms through the loops as she continued, "Ya know what?! Up yers! Screw ya and yer freakin' computers! Ya think ya cn' screw me over and mess wit' mah files fer a week?! Mah laptop's a senior citizen, show some respect ya son of a-"

The doors slammed behind her.

So she had a bit of a temper.

Losing control of her accent was completely embarrassing; no matter how rare those moments occur. Carmen's cursing had become low mumbles as she walked across the street where her bike was waiting for her. The old, silver café racer was leaning on its kickstand waiting for her. One leg was thrown over the seat but before she could do more than that her stomach had made a complaint. The sudden sound of gurgling and the feel of her bowels shuddering made the girl come to a screeching halt. She checked her phone; it was a quarter past two.

"Dangit," she muttered, putting the device away and looking up at the small store. Food from inside was calling out to her, singing to her like welcoming angels. Time was of the essence, though. Carmen was supposed to be at the lake house with her friends four hours ago, and she'd only been driving for an hour now. Stopping at the computer store didn't help any at all, but she wasn't expecting anything to take long. The cry of her gastrointestinal tract finalized her decision. Well, she was already this late; might as well take her time at this point.

Incognizant to three pairs of eyes watching her, Carmen had set her bag down and began looking for her wallet. 'No, no, that's not it, nope, nuh uh, that's the change purse…' she thought, pulling out the small bag in question. The cash was saved up for nights that would be spent doing very unladylike things over the spring break. However, if the wallet was nowhere to be found, she may need it right now. So she set it aside and kept digging.

Something flashed by in a blur. Startled, Carmen looked up and noticed that her change purse was gone.

"What?!"

Immediately she saw the three boys riding away on bicycles and let out a low, frustrated growl. They were not taking the cash she had been saving up for this occasion. Open backpack forgotten, Carmen jumped back onto the bike, slapped her helmet on and didn't bother to strap it down. With a flick of her wrist, she went after the boys.

A block ahead, the boys turned left. Carmen rolled to a stop at the intersection, her left blinker on and shoulders hunched as if she were about to take off at full speed. Once the green arrow came on, she twisted the handle and took off. At a steady, but fast pace, she traveled down the road the boys had turned on to. Eventually she saw them, way far ahead, turning into the parking lot of a building with a neon sign that said 'Litwak's Arcade.'

Something in her anger sparked.

They stole her money… to go to an arcade. Her tires screamed in protest as Carmen roughly parked her bike in front of the building and walked past the three bicycles that were chained to the rack just outside the doors, giving one of them a nice kick as she passed.

Setting aside her admiration for all the old games present, Carmen scanned them and looked at each of the children who were currently putting in quarters. It took some time for her to recognize one, and immediately she was after him.

He was in a Jurassic Park game, the kind where you sit in a small room with the bench, guns, and screen in front of you to shoot at the dinosaurs as your car moves through the game. The boy didn't notice how much trouble he was in until he looked to see who had plopped into the seat next to him, coming to face a very angry woman with a forced smile on her face.

"Have you happened to see my change purse anywhere?"

The game that had just started was suddenly abandoned as the kid ran out of the game screaming. Carmen followed, but with a little more difficulty. She forgot that she had her backpack on and didn't take a moment to put it down. The boy ran off and interrupted one of his friends who were playing a different arcade game. Carmen was still struggling with her huge backpack to get out of the cramped space that Jurassic Park had provided while the other kid stopped his game with Fix-It Felix Jr.

The two set off to look for the third boy, whom had Carmen's change purse she demanded. When the first ran by Sugar Rush he tripped and fell, followed by the other boy. Their heads popped back up to make sure no one had seen them fall. When they stood up they looked to see what they had tripped over. It was a mat covering a thick wire connected from a cart across the isle to Sugar Rush, which was currently out of order. The boys shared a glance and grinned. They then made sure that Mr. Litwak was nowhere near the entrance; he wasn't.

Carmen had finally caught up to where she had seen the boys last. She stopped in front of an older arcade game that one of the two had been playing a moment before. The girl let out a frustrated growl and turned back toward the entrance hoping she wouldn't see them riding their bikes and escaping her once more. Instead, she saw the third and final kid that had been involved in the theft, carrying her change purse with him across the arcade.

"You!" she yelled, and ran in his direction. The kid stopped and recognized her immediately. Gasping, he started running back in the direction he had come from. Carmen was just about to turn the corner when her foot hit something. Unable to regain her balance in time, especially with an eighty pound backpack, Carmen fell forward and groaned when said backpack almost completely pinned her on the ground.

She felt like a total idiot. Carmen pushed herself up off the ground and cursed, blaming herself for being so reckless and chasing after twelve-year-olds like this. The two boys got up from their hiding positions, dropping the wire they just used to trip her with, and ran in the direction their friend had gone, leaving Carmen on the ground kicking herself. When she finally stood up, she kicked the wire off her shoe and let out a roar of frustration.

She was not giving up that easily.

The girl spun on her heel after the boys once more. If they were stupid enough not to leave, she was stupid enough to try again. However, she was only able to take one step before her life got worse. With all the pressure put on the wire, the guts of the exposed portion almost started to spark. When Carmen took that one step to continue her search, she stepped right on the part of the wire that was already under the most pressure.

It happened so fast she almost threw up.

First her foot went numb, then her leg, followed by everything else. For a minute she felt completely paralyzed, and suddenly everything went black.

Then she was being shoved.

The sensation was very similar to falling, and that alone was enough to make Carmen completely sick with fear.

She was being pushed through a dark tunnel that sparked every time she came in contact with the walls, giving her a sharp feeling similar to being shocked. She felt like she was going to be sick, thrashing and flipping for a hold on reality as she was thrown through bits and pieces of information. Carmen had no idea that she was hitting bits and pieces of code as she was forced along.

Soon, she exited the tunnel and became surrounded by a blue fog that seemed endless. The clouds of the fog began to spiral and suddenly, the pit of her stomach felt free. She was no longer being pushed. However, now she was falling. Straight down, with nothing to catch her if she hit anything. Suddenly, her throat felt sore and the sound of an ear splitting scream came to her attention. Carmen didn't even realize that she had been screaming.

Tears accumulated at the corners of her eyes and blur her vision. Carmen was completely unsure if they were from her own fear or because she was falling at such high speeds. Nevertheless, the saltwater drop did nothing to calm her as a wild, feral panic took over her body. Arms flailing and throat becoming numb, Carmen tried to brace herself for any incoming impact to no avail. She was going to die…!


Carmine Cakewalk's download was taking ages. Everyone was on the edge of their seats waiting for the percentages to rise and for the new racer to be completed. Vanellope was practically dancing in place from excitement.

The crowd buzzed with talk about what she could possibly look like, and whether or not she'd be able to beat the racers some specific citizens were loyal to. The racers themselves were talking about what her strategy for racing would be.

"Especially with a kart like that," Vanellope heard Taffyta say at one point. Not necessarily said out of malice, though that's what it sounded like. Vanellope didn't pay attention to what was said next, not entirely interested. As much as she wanted to socialize with her friends, Vanellope had to be in 'President Mode'. President Von Schweetz was a respectable leader that socialized when it was important (or at least, that's the message she liked to send in 'President Mode').

Vanellope's thoughts were interrupted by the sudden silence of the crowd. Their excitement had died into a silence that made the young girl nervous. The only sound was the wind howling in low tones. Straining her large ears to listen, eventually she heard something else. A high-pitched sound rang in the air, steadily growing louder with each passing second. All eyes watched the skies, wondering where the sound was coming from. Something fell through the top of the twister where Carmine's empty avatar was currently at thirty percent.

Something- no, someone was falling into the update.

Several characters gasped while others watched wide eyed as the figure, partly visible now, fell through the center of the twister and screamed the whole way down, crashing into the empty avatar of Carmine Cakewalk.

There was a sickening crunch following the crash landing, and within seconds the loading bar filled up completely.

Carmine Cakewalk Complete

100%


A/N: Going into game mode over an exposed wire; lame right? I thought so too. Actually I have a bigger explanation as to what happened but... I didn't know how else to put it or what else to do so you're going to have to deal with the lameness. Yeah. Lame.

Carmen's character has an issue with hiding her accent which is very strong. She normally has some good control over it but once she reaches a point of panic or extreme anger it's not going to be managable. Sorry about that.

...It's supposed to be a southern accent by the way...

Reviews are appreciated. Any questions, feel free to ask on here or PM me.