Chapter two of two for today! Enjoy! How does Fudge go in her first race as crew chief? You're about to find out!

Chapter 2- Chief Fudge

"You ready, Fudge-O?"

"Yeah. Are you?"

"Ready as I'll ever be!"

"Well, once Guido's done your tyres, you will be!"

Lightning laughed. "Right!"

"Peet stop!"

It was the day of the Florida 500, the first race of the season. That meant it was time for my debut as the crew chief. I was excited, but I was mostly nervous.

"You'll be fine, Fudge", Lightning assured me.

"You really think so?"

"I know so. You've done this for me before and I think you're great. The rest of the team thinks you're great." He glanced around at all of them and they all nodded in agreement. "Even Tex and The King have said you're great. Besides, you can't back out on me now."

"I guess not. All right, but don't blame me if it doesn't go well. Well, I guess you can blame me, but I did try to warn you!"

"Shut up! You're gonna be great."

"Okay... Now, is everyone ready?"

"Peet stop!"

"All fuelled up, man!"

"I'm revved up and ready to go!"

"All right!" I cheered. "Let's go, Team 95!"

"This year, Team 95 has a new crew chief!" Bob Cutlass announced. "Or rather, a new old crew chief!"

"That's right, Bob!" Darrell Cartrip confirmed. "His one-time stand-in tiny crew chief is makin' a comeback and this time, it's the real deal! As he returns to the Piston Cup after a difficult year, McQueen has named Fudge Rossi-Topolino his permanent crew chief."

"She's still a bit young", Bob added, "at the age of thirteen, but after her display as crew chief at the age of nine, I'm sure there are very few who doubt her abilities."

He was right. Hardly anybody was laughing at me as Luigi wheeled me up onto the crew chief platform. Either they just didn't care that I was still a kid or they remembered how well I'd performed as part of Team McQueen in the past. Still, it wasn't quite enough to calm my nerves.

"Are the wheels locked?" I questioned nervously. The last thing I needed was the wheelchair to go flying off the platform.

"Yes." He gave me a kiss. "Good luck, angel."

"Grazie." I needed all of the good luck I could get.

The racers all lined up at the starting line.

"All right!" I radioed to Lightning. "Can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear!"

"All right!" I repeated. "Last year was a tough year. Let's put that behind us and make 2014 the year the Piston Cup returns to Team 95!" Bobby Swift had won the previous year; Lightning had managed to get a couple of first places in the very few weeks he raced at the end of the 2013 season, but it wasn't enough to get him the win.

Even from a distance, I could see Lightning's grin. "With pleasure!"

The green flag came out.

"Boogity, boogity, boogity!" came Darrell Cartrip's signature catchphrase. "Let's go racin'!"

Lightning shot off with the forty-two other race cars and the race was underway.

Lightning seemed to be doing a lot better than he had at the end of the last season. He wasn't making all of those rookie mistakes he had been then.

"Looking good!" I called through the radio. "You're going well. Just keep your cool."

He still froze up a couple of times as he rounded corners.

"I'm right here, Lightning!" I assured him gently. "I'm not going anywhere."

"I hope not!" He gave me a weak smile.

"Well, I think it's time for you to pit", I announced.

"All right!"

So, Lightning came into the pits.

"Ready, guys?"

"Ready!" Luigi, Guido, Sarge and Fillmore confirmed, having the tyres and fuel ready.

"All right! Let's go!"

Guido removed the tyres at breakneck speed and put the new ones on just as fast. Fillmore gassed Lightning up and he was away.

"Good job, team!" I congratulated them.

The pit stop seemed to be what he needed. He got back out there, more focused on the race and less worried about me. It was funny how that worked out, but I wasn't about to argue with it.

"Keep climbing through the pack. Slowly, but steadily. You're doing very well."

"Hey, Cal!" Lightning called teasingly. "Your blinker's on!"

"It is?" Cal checked. "Hey! Your blinker's on, McQueen!"

"Good comeback, Cal!" Bobby called as he sailed ahead of the Dinoco racer.

"How many times are you gonna fall for that, Cal?!" Lightning wondered with a laugh.

"How many times are you gonna fall for that?" Cal retorted.

"Good comeback, Cal!" Bobby and Lightning repeated in unison.

"I know you're having fun with your friends and that's okay, but make sure you're focused on the race", I instructed.

"Don't worry. I am."

I know I fell asleep at some point during the race (I was still taking naps at this point; Lightning assured me that was okay and if I felt like taking a nap, I should just take a nap). When I woke up, there were about ten laps to go.

"What did I miss?" I quizzed the rest of the pit crew.

"Not much", Sarge reported. "There was a minor wreck about fifteen laps ago, but that was it."

"Is Lightning all right?" I wondered. I was worried about him both physically and mentally.

"He wasn't involved in the crash", Sally assured me. "He was a little shaken up, though. We reminded him that you were okay. You were with us. He came straight to the pits to see you."

I nodded understandingly. "Right." I pinged him over the radio. "Hi, Lightning!"

"Fudge! You're here!" he exclaimed, sounding mega-relieved.

"Yeah, I'm here."

His speed picked up a little right away as he hunted after Bobby and Cal. He laughed a little. "See how much better I do when you're here?"

I smiled. "Yeah, I'm not going anywhere."

"I hope not. I need you to help me to win this Piston Cup!"

"Okay. Then I should probably tell you that you're kind of all over the place. One second, you're on the inside and the next, you're on the outside." I paused, observing the race car and adding, "And you're a little too tight."

"You see?!" Lightning laughed some more. "I need you!"

"Good job!" I called as he corrected himself.

Even as he rushed by at over two hundred miles an hour, nothing more than a blur for a fraction of a second, I could've sworn I saw him smile.

"Last lap!" I exclaimed. "Come on, Lightning!"

Lightning saw an opening between Brick Yardley and Tommy Highbanks (racer number 54 for Faux Wheel Drive). He slid through before they even had time to blink. Now, he was in third place behind Bobby and Cal.

"Yeah!" I heard him shout. "Ka-chow!"

"Yes!" I cheered. I was so happy; not just because of how the race was going, but ka-chow was a phrase I didn't hear an awful lot last year. I'd missed it.

They went around the second turn and I was afraid that Lightning was going to slow down any second. Luckily, he didn't. In fact, he sped up. The gap between him and Cal and Bobby was gradually growing narrower and narrower.

"Come on, Lightning!" I repeated.

Normally, Lightning would be cracking jokes with Bobby and Cal, but this time, he was quiet as he could possibly be. He didn't want them to know he was coming. I grinned as I watched him close the gap. His two friends were racing side by side, each eager to beat the other one. However, when a gap separated them at the end of the third turn, Lightning took it. As he'd done with Brick and Tommy, he slalomed through and took the lead.

"McQueen!" Bobby exclaimed in disbelief. "Where did you come from?!"

Lightning laughed. "It doesn't matter where I came from! What matters is where I'm going! The finish line! See ya there!" He floored it around the fourth and final turn.

"Home stretch!" I shouted. "You got this, Lightning!"

He most certainly did. He crossed the finish line with ease, sending everyone into cheers.

"Well, it looks like Lightning McQueen is back and better than ever!" Bob Cutlass commented.

"You wouldn't have even known what he's been through last year with that performance!" an impressed Darrell Cartrip chimed in.

"Way to go, Lightning!" I cheered.

"GO, MCQUEEN!" Mater hollered.

"Yeah, Stickers!" Sally added.

The crowd began chanting, "Lightning, Lightning, Lightning, Lightning!"

I could see Lightning grin as he did several donuts. Then there was that famous line again. "Yeah! Ka-chow!"

"You did it!" I congratulated him when he came back to the pits.

He and I hugged.

"Yeah, it's great to be back into racing!" he declared. "I mean, it was hard because of... you know, but I really have missed it! I've just gotta stop making all these dumb rookie mistakes."

"You were great out there!" I insisted.

"You really think so?"

"I know so! Did you not hear the announcers? They said you wouldn't know what you went through last year."

"I could say the same thing about you", Lightning informed me with a smile. "You've made me very proud today, Fudge-O."

"Really?"

"Yeah! You were amazing! Maybe you should listen to the announcers."

I listened.

"Fudge Rossi-Topolino has certainly shown she can give the older crew chiefs a run for their money!" Darrell Cartrip commented.

"That's right, Darrell!" Bob Cutlass agreed. "I must admit, when McQueen first used her as a crew chief, I was a little sceptical and I'm sure I'm not the only one. Now, however, I have no doubts that she's up to the job."

I felt my face turn red. "I'm not that great..."

"Not that great?!" Lightning repeated incredulously. "You were awesome! Everyone seems to think so!"

I giggled, embarrassed.

"Come on! Let's go get our trophy!"

"Our trophy?"

"Yeah!" he confirmed. "The winner of the race gets a trophy, remember?"

"But I didn't win", I reminded him.

"Sure you did. I couldn't have done it without you; therefore, you won. Come on." He scooped me up onto his hood. "Victory Lane is waiting for us."

"For you", I corrected him.

Lightning laughed. "Oh, will you stop?! You're the one who said we were gonna get the Piston Cup back to Team 95. Not Lightning McQueen! Team 95!"

I couldn't argue with that. We were a team. We worked together to get Piston Cups. Still, at the end of the day, Lightning was the one running the race and the one who got his name on the trophies.

"Fine. Let's go get our trophy." Under my breath, I mumbled, "That's really yours."

Lightning laughed. "Come on." He started to drive off. "Maybe 2013 was the Year of Fudge" (that's what I called it when I was convinced that great things were gonna happen for me and look how that turned out!) "but 2014 is gonna be the Year of Team McQueen!"

"Yep!" I agreed. I glanced up at the monitors replaying my brother's win. "And it looks like we're off to a great start!"

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