In case you didn't notice, there's another new chapter before this one. This is the final chapter of part three, so here we go!

Chapter 10- One Small Step for Fudge

I felt a lot better when I opened my eyes; once again, both physically and emotionally. I felt warmer, I felt cleaner and I felt drier. Plus, my family were surrounding me- Luigi, Guido, Lightning, Sally, Mater, Fillmore, Sarge, Sheriff, Flo, Ramone, Lizzie and Red; Finn and Holley; and RJ.

"How you feeling?" Sally wanted to know.

"I'm okay", I responded, a bit drowsily. "I'm still hungry, thirsty and sore, but I'm okay... When do you think I'll be able to come home?"

"It may be as soon as tonight", Luigi replied. "Maybe not, though. Don't get your hopes up, though. Wait until the doctor comes in to see you, okay?"

Luckily, there wasn't much wrong with me. Although I was thirsty, I wasn't dehydrated because I'd managed to get some rainwater. After I'd had some more water and juice and something to eat, the doctor said I could go home.

"Remember", Luigi reminded me as I got loaded into Mater's truck bed, "you are going back to the hospital in a few days."

Of course I was.

A few weeks later, I got to visit Sammy in hospital. To be honest, I was pretty nervous. I wasn't sure what to expect. I knew cancer was a horrible disease, but I didn't know much about the ins and outs of it at the time (I knew a little bit from Megan, but not much). I knew she was going to look different.

"She's your sister", everyone pointed out to me. "She'll want to see you. She needs you."

I knew they were right, but still. I was afraid.

When I got my first glimpse of my sister, I was shocked. She just looked so thin, weak and sick. Her beautiful rainbow hair was all gone. It was horrible.

Still, she smiled when she saw me. "Fudge!" she greeted me in a hoarse voice.

"Hey..." I didn't know what else to say.

"How you doing?" she wanted to know.

"I'm doing okay. I start physical therapy soon. I guess the most important question, 'How are you?'" How could she think of me when she was going through something much worse than I was?

"S**t", Sammy answered honestly in her usual blunt way and I had to smile a little bit. "I'm feeling like s**t. But I'm gonna get better, I promise."

"How do you know?"

"Come on!" Sammy let out a little laugh. "I'm tough. I've beaten bad guys. I can beat something as evil as cancer."

I wish I could be so sure of that.

Sammy knew I wasn't convinced. "Trust me!"

"I just want you to get better..." I let out a couple of sobs.

However, my sister was adamant. "I will! It may just take a while. Like your recovery... In fact, I've been inspired by your incredible fight after your accident. I ain't gonna give up because you never did."

I sniffled. "I don't know about never..."

"Well, you're going great", Sammy insisted. "Promise me you won't give up. As long as you don't give up, I won't either."

"I promise..."

Even though it was slow-going, Sammy started getting better after that.

As for me, my life was starting to pick up piece by piece and I was feeling pretty good about things; except for...

"No!" I wept. "No! I can't do this!"

"Yes you can!" at least half a dozen voices insisted. "Come on, Fudge! You can do this!"

"No!" I repeated. "I can't, I can't!"

"Come on, angel!" Luigi cried. "You are so close!"

"But I can't do it!"

Where was I? Well, I doubt you'll be surprised to hear that I was back at the hospital, working on my physical therapy. By then, it was towards the end of September. I hated physical therapy; the only good things about it were talking to another girl named Sam and that it would take me closer to normal life. Everyone kept telling me that I was so close to standing up and walking on my own. I couldn't see that, though. Every time I tried to move, all I felt was pain.

"Of course it's going to hurt!" the doctors insisted. Dr. Cartwright (the head of the physical therapy team) was there with a few others. "You haven't used those muscles in a long time. You just need to keep practising and you'll find it a lot easier."

"That is right!" Luigi agreed. "It is just like everything else. Remember when you started racing? You had no idea what you were doing then, but you practised!"

"I know, but-"

"But nothing", Luigi interrupted me. "You can do this, just like you learned how to race!"

I thought about that. It was true. Plus, the sooner I did this, the sooner I could get back into racing. I wanted to do it; I really did, but I just couldn't. It was too hard! Nobody listened to me, though.

"Yes you can!" were the words I heard more than any that day.

So, when I got back to bed that night, I was really depressed and frustrated.

"I told them I can't do it!" I recounted to Lightning as the tears poured down my cheeks. "But they kept saying, 'Yes you can!'"

"Because you can do it, Fudge!" Lightning insisted.

I thought Lightning would understand, but he was just as bad as everyone else! "No I can't, Lightning! That's what I'm saying!"

He nodded. "Right. Now, listen to what I'm saying. You can do this! We all believe you can!"

"But it's hard!" I protested.

"I know it's hard!" he assured me. "I never said it wasn't! That doesn't mean it's impossible. Remember how scared you were in London? You were really scared to confront Axlerod. You still did it."

"It's not the same!" I insisted.

"Of course it is! You had doubts about yourself both times. That time, you did it, though. You are capable of so much more than you give yourself credit for, Fudge-O!"

"Really?"

He nodded. "Absolutely. You did expose Miles Axlerod and you even got knighted by the Queen for that!"

"I did, didn't I." It was a statement, not a question.

"You sure did. And we're all so proud of you for that." He kissed me. "Can you make us proud again? If the doctors say you won't be able to walk, we'll still be proud of you. You'll make us proud if you just try."

"I'd do anything for you guys!" I assured him.

Lightning smiled softly. "Good girl."

After a moment of silence, Lightning came forward and wrapped his tyres around me. For the first time since the accident, someone was giving me a hug. The hug felt good.

"I love you!" I whispered to Lightning.

"I love you too, sweetie!" His voice was so soft I barely heard him. He stroked my hair as he hugged me and gave me another kiss.

The next day, I was back at the hospital.

"Come on, Fudgie!" Luigi cried. "You can do it!"

Luigi, Guido, Dr. Cartwright and several other doctors were there with me. Guido had his video camera going, eager to see and capture something happen.

I kept thinking about what Luigi had said and what Lightning had said. Plus, I remembered what I'd told myself about how I could get back into racing. I thought about how I had so many people loving and supporting me and reminding me of how much I'd accomplished that year. That wasn't just my family in Radiator Springs. It was RJ, Sammy, Lightning's racing buddies and fans, even Doc!

I was inspired by all of them, especially Sammy, who was trying to remain strong as she battled cancer. She said she was doing it for me. So, I had to do this for her. So, I grabbed the two wooden rods on either side of me. Everything hurt and... nothing. It hurt, but it wasn't so terrible. I could stand. I could stand! I couldn't believe it!

"I'm doing it!" I exclaimed in disbelief.

"You are doing a very good job, angel!" Luigi proclaimed, giving me a kiss followed by another and another.

"(Go, Fudge! You can do it!)" Guido added.

After standing up for a few seconds, I felt ready to try something I hadn't done in a very long time.

"Can... Can I try taking a step?"

Dr. Cartwright nodded. "If you feel you're ready for it."

I thought I was. Slowly and cautiously, as if I was expecting something terrible to happen, I lifted my foot. It dangled in the air for a few seconds before I, just as slowly and cautiously, put it back down in front of me.

"Ow!" I moaned.

That definitely hurt. I felt like giving up. Then, once again, I remembered all of the people who believed in me and my promise to Lightning. I had to try. With so much love and support, I was capable of doing so much! I could do this! Tentatively, I repeated the slow process with my other foot. Then I did it again. And again. And again.

"Yes, yes!" Luigi squealed as if he'd just won the lottery.

"You're doing an amazing job, Fudge", Dr. Cartwright added.

I had the biggest smile on my face; I couldn't believe I was really doing it. It still hurt and it was still difficult, but it felt good.

I kept practising all afternoon, remaining focused on every step I took. The only time I got distracted was when the door opened and I heard lots of shouting. My entire family from Radiator Springs were there!

I lit up. "Hi, guys!"

There was a lot of cheering going on.

"Hey, Fudge-O! Wow! Look at you!"

"Way to go, kiddo!"

"We're all so proud of you, soldier!"

"You little champion! Look at you!"

I was kind of embarrassed, but also loving the attention; I was proud of myself and I was glad they all were too.

Now that my family was with me, I spent the rest of the afternoon showing them all what I could do. Sometimes, I had to stop and take a break, but nobody cared. They all cheered every time I got further. Guido filmed the whole time and, of course, I was the star. Just about everyone in the room, even Dr. Cartwright, had tears in their eyes. All of my family and I definitely did. It was just such a great day! I felt my confidence soar higher than it ever had all year.

"I would like to propose a toast", Luigi began later that night. "To Fudge! You have worked very hard to get to where you are now and I know it has been very hard on you, but it has finally paid off! We are all so proud of you, angel! To Fudge!"

"To Fudge!" everyone else cried, clinking their glasses.

I grinned and I was pretty sure my face was going red. We were gathered at the Wheel Well Motel to celebrate the fact that I'd just started walking again. My family had insisted on making a big deal over it. All of them, even Mater, had been through the car wash, most of them had put on car wax and some of them were even sporting bow tie license plates. I had had a bath and was wearing a dress. All of the adults had the expensive Italian wine my parents liked in crystal wineglasses. I had a wineglass too, but I didn't have any wine in it; instead, I had cherry Coke, one of my favourite drinks.

"I couldn't have done it without you guys!" I insisted. "Thank you so much! To you guys!"

"To us!" my (modest!) family shouted.

"And RJ!" I added, thinking of all of the great people who had supported me along the way.

"To RJ!"

Then I thought of someone else who needed support in a battle and had helped me with mine. "And Sammy, who I wish a speedy recovery!"

"To Sammy!"

And how could I forget... "And Doc, who's always watching over us!"

"To Doc!"

I listed a lot of wonderful people and great things I had to be thankful for that year. After all, Flo came up with an excellent idea.

"Why don't we eat up before it all gets cold?"

"Besides, we're gettin' off topic", Sheriff added. "Tonight is supposed to be about Fudge."

My face went even redder.

Flo had prepared a lot of my favourite foods- three types of pasta, pizza, sushi, potato salad, plus some vegan friendly food for Fillmore- and it all looked elegant combined with the good china, crystal wineglasses and lit candles. As we ate, everything felt like it was supposed to be. We were all talking and laughing and the food was delicious! It all just felt so comfortable, you know?

On top of that, Flo had one last surprise for me: a cake! It looked absolutely gorgeous and had CONGRATULATIONS, FUDGE! written on it in blue frosting.

"Oh, wow!" I squealed. "Thank you so much! You know, you didn't have to do this!"

"Of course we did, sweet pea!" Flo laughed. "This is a special occasion!"

Everyone, except for Fillmore, took a slice of cake and, in a matter of minutes, the whole thing was gone. It tasted as good as it looked.

"Thank you guys so much! I really appreciate it!"

"You deserved this!" Lightning assured me. "You've been through such a hard time lately and I'm really sorry about that-"

"Don't say another word!" Luigi cut him off.

Everyone turned to stare at him. Luigi had been pretty quiet all evening, which I guessed was because he wasn't looking forward to spending an evening with Lightning. He still hadn't been nice to my brother all year.

Lightning was the one to break the uncomfortable silence. "Excuse me? Just because you won't talk to me, it doesn't mean I can't apologise to-"

"I said don't say another word!" Luigi interjected. He took a deep breath. "I am the one who is sorry."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Did Luigi just apologise to Lightning? Everyone stared at him in disbelief. This was long overdue.

Lightning couldn't believe it either. "You? Why?"

"It is just that..." Luigi began before trailing off with a huge sigh. "You know I love Fudgie so much! And because I was very upset about her accident, I just felt like I needed someone to blame. And so, I blamed you."

"Yeah", Lightning agreed quietly. "Yeah you did."

"It was an accident", Luigi continued. "I know that. I am very sorry. I have not been very fair to you... Do you forgive me?"

"Of course I do!" Lightning assured him. "I understand why you were so upset! I love Fudge and care about her a lot too!"

Luigi responded by giving Lightning a hug, which he returned wordlessly. I heard two lots of sniffling. I was so happy that the two of them were friends again.

"I love you guys!" I exclaimed as I rolled forward in my wheelchair.

Without a word, they let me join in with their hug. Before I knew it, everyone in Radiator Springs was enveloped in one massive group hug. Every last one of us was in tears. I don't know about everyone else, but I was crying because my family and I had been through so much that year and everything seemed to be gradually falling into place. I was happy.

I must've fallen asleep at the Wheel Well. The next thing I remember was being woken up by Lightning.

"Hey, Fudge-O! Wake up, sweetie! Guess what! I got some very exciting news!"

"What?!" I questioned, intrigued.

"Guess who's going back into racing!"

I grinned. "I wanna say you, but that seems like such an easy answer!"

Lightning laughed. "It is me!"

"Well, that's great!" I declared.

"Thanks!"

"What made you decide to do it?"

"I've been thinking about it a lot lately and I... I think I'm ready. You know, because you're getting better."

"I can't wait to see you race again!" I proclaimed.

"Well, if I'm gonna race again, then I just need you to do one thing for me, sweetie."

"Yeah! Anything!" I promised.

So, on the first Saturday of October, I joined the rest of Team McQueen and RJ in Colorado for the next Piston Cup race. By then, I was still quite dependent on my wheelchair, but I was starting to use my crutches a little more.

I smiled when I heard Lightning's voice inside his trailer, doing his usual "Speed. I am speed" routine. I had missed this so much! I had missed hearing Lightning psych himself up. I missed the thrill of racing and the competition. I missed the excitement of being in the pits and the playful banter between the teams.

I wasn't the only one, it seemed.

"Are you ready to lose?" Lightning teased Bobby, Brick and Cal.

"No!" Cal yelled. "You're ready to lose, McQueen!"

The King grinned at the rest of us. "Should we all say it together?"

I giggled, knowing what he meant.

Lightning laughed too. "One... two... three!"

"Good comeback, Cal!" we all shouted in unison. Even Cal joined in! He knew he wasn't so good with the comebacks!

It wasn't long before we heard the announcement, calling racers to the track.

"I gotta go!" Lightning announced, coming forward to give me a hug and a kiss. Normally, I'd come to him to give him a hug and kiss before and after the race. It was like a tradition, but this time, he had to come to me. "Wish me luck!"

"Good luck!" I hollered.

"You go get 'em, buddy!" Mater shouted.

"Good luck, McQueen!" Luigi cried with a huge smile. Ever since he apologised to Lightning, he would make an extra effort to be nice to Lightning; I guess I could understand that. "I know you are going to do great out there today because you are an amazing racer and an amazing friend!"

"Good luck, Mr. McQueen", RJ added shyly.

"Thanks, RJ!" Lightning grinned at him. "And you know, you can call me Lightning! I mean, I'm Fudge's brother and you're Fudge's brother! I guess that means you're my brother too!"

RJ grinned at the thought of being brothers with Lightning McQueen!

The crowd erupted into cheers as Lightning McQueen lined up with the other racers. I was so nervous for him and really wanted him to do well. He'd done well during his two weeks of training after he announced he was getting back into racing and he'd done well in the qualifier. Now, if he continued to keep it up during the race.

"Luigi?"

My father turned to me. "Yes, Fudge?"

"Where's my headset?"

"Oh! I almost forgot!" he exclaimed. He handed me the headset.

When I put it on, the first thing I heard was Lightning's voice: "Can you hear me, Fudge-O?"

"Loud and clear!" I assured him.

You might have guessed, but what Lightning had wanted me to do was stay with him on the headset. He said that sometimes, if he races on his own, he would remember my accident and feel the need to stop and turn around as if I was still lying on the racetrack, crumpled and bleeding.

"Post traumatic stress", Sarge had explained to me at one point. "It can happen when someone suffers serious trauma." He told me a little about post traumatic stress.

"It really helps when I can hear your voice", Lightning had insisted. "If I seem to be slowing down, just remind me that you're right there, all right?"

I nodded. A grin spread across my face. "I can do that." I was excited to finally be able to wear a headset during a race. Doc used to insist that I'd just distract him.

"I know you can, Fudge!"

So, that was how I ended up wearing a headset to one of Lightning's races for the very first time. It was a responsibility I was determined to take very seriously.

"All right", I began speaking as the race started off. "Try not to worry about it too much! I'm right here! You can do this!"

"Thanks, Fudge-O!"

"It looks to me like you're getting a little too close to the wall", I observed. "You might wanna watch that!"

Instantly, I regretted saying that. I was just wearing a headset, so Lightning knew I was there. It wasn't my job to critique his performance. I hoped he wouldn't be mad.

"Oh, I didn't notice!" Lightning laughed. "Thanks, Fudge-O!"

I couldn't help smiling. "No problem."

All through the race, I had to remind Lightning that I was right there and not lying crumpled and bleeding on the track. Every now and then, I'd add a remark like "You're looking too tight. Loosen up", or, "There's an opening right there! Just- That's it! Go, Lightning!" I noticed he had made several rookie mistakes. I chalked that up to him being nervous, considering that he hadn't raced in a while and he hadn't raced because someone he loved had been injured in a horror accident. I reminded him gently of everything he did wrong. He would let out a nervous laugh and correct himself.

"He's doing a lot better than I thought he would", Sarge commented.

"Yeah, he's doing really well!" I agreed. "You just keep climbing though, Lightning!" I added as he made his way through the pack gradually. "That's right."

"You seem to be doing a very good job as the crew chief too, Fudgie", Luigi added with a smile.

I felt my face turn red. "Really?"

"Yes!" he insisted.

I was smiling as I continued to help Lightning.

Last lap came before I knew it. Lightning was in the top ten by then.

"Come on, Lightning!" I cheered. "You got this! Just four turns left. You got this."

"You ready to give it all you got?" I heard Bobby call to Lightning.

"I was born ready!" was the cocky response.

I laughed.

"Not so fast, McQueen!" came Bobby's voice.

"Oh, yes I am!" my brother laughed as the two of them gunned forward.

The two of them, Cal and Brick were all fighting it out for the lead. I was practically bouncing in my wheelchair in excitement. This was going to be one close race.

Just as they were rounding the fourth and final turn, I saw that Lightning was slowing down a little bit. His eyes were wide and his breathing was heavy through the radio.

"Lightning, it's all right", I reminded him gently. "I'm here."

I heard him suck in a deep breath. "Yeah. Yeah, I know."

He seemed to calm down and speed up a little, but by that point, his friends were all way ahead of him. Honestly, I didn't think he was going to win.

"Think you can stay in fourth?" I asked.

He took another deep breath. "Yeah."

"Okay. Then go for fourth", I instructed. "We'll still be proud of you."

It was hard to tell from where I was, but I think Lightning was smiling. "Right. Thanks, Fudge!"

So, Lightning went for fourth behind Bobby, Brick and Cal in that order. Normally, I'd be just a little disappointed whenever Lightning didn't win. I would never been disappointed in him, but there was always a little part of me that wanted him to win. This time, though, I was just proud of him for racing. So was everyone else, it seemed.

"Way to go, buddy!" Mater screamed as our team, the sponsors and Lightning's racing buddies all milled around to congratulate him.

"That was so cool, Mr. McQu- I mean, Lightning!" RJ laughed nervously.

"That's my Stickers!" Sally exclaimed.

"I told you you would be great! Like I said, you are an amazing racer and an amazing friend!" was Luigi's contribution.

Lightning grinned as he heard everyone's praise. He flashed his lucky sticker and yelled, "KA-CHOW!"

I didn't say anything. I just smiled at Lightning and hugged him. With a warm smile of his own, he hugged me back.

Not only did Lightning receive praise, but I did too.

"You seemed to be doin' a great job as crew chief", The King commented.

"I... I'm not the crew chief!" I corrected him.

"Not a crew chief?" Tex echoed with a laugh. "You should really consider doin' the crew chief thing for a livin' one day. We'd have a place for you at Dinoco if you did."

I blushed. Sure, being a crew chief was pretty cool, but nowhere near as fun as being a racer. Smiling, I remembered how close I was to start walking on my own. The sooner I did that, the sooner I could get my life back. Then the sooner I did that, the sooner I could start racing again.

We have a lot to look forward to, I thought as Luigi wheeled me off in the direction of the Dinoco tent for a post race party. And a lot to celebrate too! I added, thinking of how far I'd come from waking up from that coma, thinking that my life was ruined. My life wasn't ruined; I knew that now. All I needed to do was take things one step at a time; both figuratively and literally.

Whew! That's part three done! Part four will take place between the events of Ride and Cars 3 and it's the last part of this installment. It will have some sad moments and dark themes, but one big surprise too, so I hope you're excited for that. I don't know when I'll get that up, though.

BTW, Sam is my friend, Bolote's, OC. She appears in Bolote's fic Sam's Little Moments. You should check it out; it's really good!

Well, I guess that's all! I hope to see you Fudge fans again for part four, whenever that may be!