It's been a while since I updated this story. I've got a couple more chapters done, but, like I said, I'm planning Halloween and Christmas specials, so I don't want to move too fast.

Cherish

2006

Fudge stirred as she heard the reveille and the electric guitar, sounding much closer than they normally did.

"Will you turn that disrespectful junk off?!"

"Respect the classics, man! It's Hendrix!"

Fudge moaned and rolled over, trying to go back to sleep, but it was futile.

A few minutes later, all the noise stopped and Sarge came back in. "Morning, soldier. Sleep well?" He knew she must have; she didn't have any nightmares the night before.

"Until you started yelling", she answered.

"Well, you should be up by now, anyway", Sarge insisted. To him, waking up at six-thirty was a sleep-in. However, he didn't start with the reveille until seven; despite believing that everyone should be awake at the same time he was, he knew the other residents would kill him if he did it any earlier.

"I wanna go and see Guido and Luigi!" Fudge announced.

"Well, get dressed then", Sarge instructed her. "Then we'll go over to Flo's."

Fudge had spent the night before at Sarge's because lately, she'd been having very bad dreams. They came after social workers came into town a few months earlier and insisted that the five-year-old would be better off growing up in a town where she had some children her own age and more exposure to humans. In all of her five and a half years, Fudge had never seen another human. Unfortunately, the townsfolk's efforts were not enough to prevent her relocation. On her sixth birthday, she was moving to an orphanage in Wisconsin.

As if being told that wasn't traumatising enough for a five-year-old, the cold-hearted social worker who came to town to inform her of this also told her that her mother had abandoned her. That was a moment that would haunt Fudge for the rest of her life...

Fudge was scared enough as it was. This woman had threatened to take her away from the only home and family she'd ever known. Then she'd had her entire family arrested. Now, she was asking all kinds of weird questions about humans and stuff.

"It's important for your development", Mary, the social worker, had explained, "both physically and psychologically. Vehicles have very limited knowledge of the development of humans and vice versa."

Of course, that didn't clear things up for Fudge. Being five, she didn't understand a single word of that.

So, the poor girl was quizzed about human body parts, her day-to-day life, what kind of food she ate, stuff like that.

Finally, she was done and a phone rang. Mary answered it and her assistant, Kevin, followed. So, Fudge was sat in the booth at Flo's by herself for a while, swinging her legs back and forth and hear heart racing. She still didn't completely understand what was going on, but she knew she was facing the possibility of being taken away from her home. They wouldn't really do that... Would they?

After about ten minutes, the social workers came back and Fudge was more scared than she'd ever been in her entire life. (In Radiator Springs, she didn't have much to be afraid of; just the occasional thunderstorm, that was about it. This was something she'd never experienced before.)

Kevin gave Mary a hard look and announced sternly, "I'll tell her!" He was almost as afraid of her as Fudge was, so he didn't talk to her like that often.

To his surprise and relief, Mary nodded. "Fine."

"Fudge", he began slowly, "your family are on their way home-"

"Yay!" she cheered, ultra-relieved that they weren't going to jail.

"But the thing is", he went on nervously, "the head of ACAFCA has made her decision..." He took a deep breath. "You will have to leave Radiator Springs on your sixth birthday."

It broke Kevin's heart to watch all of the happiness leak out of Fudge's face as she started bawling.

"I'm sorry", he sympathised, moving closer to give her a hug, but she jerked away from him.

"It's for the best", Mary insisted, glowering at the town, looking like she was sucking on a lemon. "Have you seen this dump?! I can understand why your mother left you, but why, of all places, would she leave you here?!"

"Mary!" Kevin gasped, appalled.

"I don't have a mom!" Fudge informed her.

When Fudge repeated this to her family later on, they were horrified that the social worker had told her that. In turn, Fudge was horrified to learn that she did, in fact, have a mother somewhere. A mother who just gave birth and then left her in Radiator Springs without a second thought. It hurt the poor little girl so badly to know that the woman who gave her life chose to do such a thing.

Now, all of that was a few months ago and the deadline was drawing closer. The closer they got to that dreadful day, the more frequent her horrific nightmares became. And scarier. She'd had the worst one yet a few nights ago. So, Guido and Luigi had been awake all night, comforting her. Since they were so tired, Fudge had spent the previous night at Sarge's, so he could take care of her if she did have another nightmare.

"Why?" Fudge had wondered when she heard the news. She sounded hurt as she looked at her fathers. "Don't you want me anymore?"

"No, no, no, no, no!" Luigi had exclaimed, smothering her forehead in kisses. "It is not like that, angel."

"Just the opposite", Sarge had chimed in. "Everyone in this town wants you. So, we have to take it in turns."

Fudge couldn't help smiling. "Really?"

"Really."

"Guido!" Fudge cried, racing back to Flo's. "Luigi!"

"Fudgie!" they both exclaimed, cuddling her. "We missed you last night!"

"I missed you too!"

"Was she okay last night?" Luigi wanted to know.

Sarge nodded. "No nightmares", he reported.

"Good." Luigi smiled with relief.

"Got some breakfast here for ya, honey." Flo dropped off a plate of sausages and eggs in front of the girl.

"Thank you!" Fudge tucked in. "So, what's everyone doing today?" she wondered.

"Just the usual", Doc replied with a shrug.

"Does anybody wanna play with me?" Fudge requested.

"Sure, kiddo", everyone agreed. "What do you wanna play?"

"Hide-and-seek!"

So, the RS gang spent a nice little morning, playing hide-and-seek. It was a little fun, but there was a lot of sadness surrounded the activity. Could this be the last time they ever played hide-and-seek? They hoped not. Fudge had a beautiful smile and they were glad to see it back, even if it was just for a little while.

"What does everyone want to do now?" Fudge wanted to know once hide-and-seek had come to an end.

"Well, honey", Flo began, "do you wanna help me make lunches for everyone?"

"Okay!" Fudge agreed.

So, she followed Flo into the café where she had some questions.

"What's an off-nidge?" she wondered. She had asked this question multiple times over the last few months. The others all understood that it was just because she was scared, so Flo explained what an orphanage was patiently one more time.

"Will they give me food?"

"I promise they will, honey", Flo assured her. "But I can't guarantee it'll be as good as mine", she added with a smile.

"I saw a movie the other day where people in off-nidges are horrible to kids! They got locked up in the basement for three days without any food! Just because there was a tiny little speck of dust on a plate they were washing."

Flo gave her a hug. She could see that Fudge was genuinely afraid. "Oh, honey! That was just a movie! You know movies aren't real, don't you?"

"Yeah", Fudge admitted, "but that could be real. People could be horrible to me! What if the other kids don't like me either?" A tear slipped down the little girl's cheek and the former show car hugged her even tighter.

"I know it's scary for you", she whispered sympathetically.

"I don't wanna go!" Fudge wept.

"I know you don't", Flo told her. "We don't want you to go either, but you're not going yet... Do you wanna finish off making lunch?"

Fudge nodded and wiped her eyes and nose.

"Why don't you wash your hands first?" Flo suggested.

Meanwhile, everyone else was parked outside of Flo's, watching the little girl. Everyone felt sorry for her, but nobody knew what to do about it.

"I can't think of anything to say to her", Luigi informed his friends sadly. "I wish I could tell her it was going to be okay, but I don't know that it is."

"She's too young to be dealing with this kind of thing!" Sarge insisted. "She's five! She should just be doing her schoolwork and playing with her family."

"I still can't believe a social worker thought it was a good idea to traumatise her like this", Fillmore commented, shaking his front in sadness.

"Maybe", Doc began quietly and everyone turned to look at him. Whatever he was about to say was going to be heavy. "Maybe", he repeated, "we never should've kept her here in the first place. We all had doubts that this would be a good place for her to grow up. And the state of Arizona clearly agrees."

Nobody wanted to come right out and admit it, but they were beginning to fear that Doc was right.

Lunch was a very quiet affair. Nobody even felt much like eating after that. So, they all just sat there in silence, cherishing the fact that they were all together.

At the end of lunch, however, Luigi sighed. "I suppose I should leave now if I want to make it to Ashgrove before the stores close."

"You're going to Ashgrove?" Fudge cried, horrified. She'd never been to Ashgrove, even though everyone else had. She didn't want Luigi to go anywhere.

"Yes", Luigi confirmed. "I need to get us some more food." He kissed her. "I love you, angel."

"Don't go, Luigi!" Fudge shrieked, throwing her arms around his tyre as best as she could. "Don't go!"

"I have to go", Luigi informed her gently. He tried to remove Fudge's arms from his tyre, but Fudge wouldn't let her go.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no!" Fudge screamed.

"Fudge, come on now!" Sarge called out firmly, but gently. "You're too old for this kind of behaviour!"

"I'm not too old!" Fudge yelled. "I'm only five!"

"You'll be six soon", Sarge pointed out. "You'll be a big girl then and big girls don't act like that."

"I don't want Luigi to go!" Fudge insisted. "What if he doesn't come back?"

There was a stunned silence. Everyone stated sadly at the little girl as tears bubbled in her eyes. They all knew that she's had abandonment issues lately, thanks to discovering what her mother did to her and the fact that she was leaving Radiator Springs. Now, if anybody left her, she feared that they would never come back,

"Of course I will come back", the Fiat promised her gently.

"But what if you don't?" Fudge repeated.

"Don't worry about that", Luigi affirmed. "I will be. And I will bring you back a surprise."

"Oooh! What?!" the five-year-old wondered.

Luigi smiled and gave Fudge a playful tap on the nose. "You will have to wait and see." He gave his daughter another kiss on the forehead. "I love you, angel. Be good."

Then he was off.

Fudge cried a little when he left, but she was fine, considering. For most of the afternoon, she was running around and playing half-heartedly, still upset by the situation she was in. Every game she played with her family, she couldn't help wondering, Is this the last time we'll ever play this game together? Will kids in the orphanage play with me? Will I even be allowed to play in the orphanage or will I be locked up in the basement?

All in all, it wasn't exactly Fudge's best day ever.

"I got some dinner here for you, honey!" Flo called out that evening.

So, the little human ran over to claim her plate of mac and cheese. "Thank you, Flo... Where's Luigi?"

"Fudge, you know where he is!" Sarge replied. "He went to Ashgrove to get some groceries."

"I know that, but why isn't he back yet?" she questioned.

"He'll be back soon, sweetie", Sally assured her, parking beside her. "Ashgrove is a two and a half hour drive from here, so it might take him a while."

"Oh. Okay. I just hope he's back soon."

"I'm sure he will be, honey", Flo piped up. "Now, eat your dinner."

Fudge smiled and did as she was told.

While she ate, the rest of her family held a hushed conversation.

"You know, I am startin' to get a little worried", Flo declared. "He should be back by now."

"He probably just got held up", Doc countered calmly. "He could just be takin' longer than usual to get groceries. And you know what traffic can be like at this time of the day."

They all nodded.

"I guess you're right", Flo agreed. "We'll wait a little longer."

An hour passed. Luigi still didn't return. Everyone hung around in the café, not really doing much of anything. Dinner was long gone and so was dessert. Someone had put the radio on and the townsfolk were only half-listening to it.

"This is a Piston Cup first!" the announcer exclaimed excitedly. "A three-way tie between Strip Weathers- otherwise known as The King- Chick Hicks and rookie sensation, Lightning McQueen! The whole dang country will be watchin' to see just who will win that Piston Cup."

"Can we please turn that off?" Doc requested drily.

"Why?" Sally wondered.

"I just don't wanna hear about racin', that's all."

"I do!" Fudge shouted. "I saw a race last night! A red car, a green car and a blue car all won at the same time."

"Really?" Some of her family members were interested.

"Yep", Fudge confirmed. "The red one was really good, but his back tyres blew in the last lap!"

"Well, that was stupid of him", Doc muttered.

"But he was so fast! It was so cool!" Fudge insisted. "Maybe one day, I'll be that fast."

"Hey, Fudge! You love this song!" Doc turned up the volume on the radio as a song started up, hoping it would distract her from talking about racing.

"Yeah!" Fudge cheered, enjoying the song. It was one of her favourites.

Before too long, another hour had gone by. Luigi still hadn't come back.

"Where is he?" Fudge questioned worriedly.

"I don't know, Fudge", everyone replied. They were as worried as she was, but they didn't want her to know it.

"Let me know if he comes back", she instructed the others as she slid of the stool at the counter and headed in the direction of the bathrooms.

However, as soon as she was gone, a news report came on the radio.

"One car and two humans have been killed and dozens more are injured in a horror crash in Ashgrove this afternoon. The accident occurred on the corner of Church Street and School Street when a drunk driver lost control and crashed into two more cars and several pedestrians, resulting in a horrific ten-car pileup. More details to come."

The residents of Radiator Springs stared at each other in horror. The grocery store was on the corner of Church Street and School Street. What if Luigi had been involved in that crash? What if he was that one car who'd been killed? That would just be the worst thing ever, especially if they had to tell...

"Is Luigi back yet?" Fudge asked as she came running out of the bathroom.

"Not yet, sweetheart", Sally answered quietly.

"He's gotta be here soon!" Fudge insisted.

"(We'll just see, angel)", Guido told her sadly, scooping her up.

Fudge didn't pick up on it. "Okay."

Fifteen minutes later, the radio repeated the news about the accident. They didn't have many more details. They couldn't give the names of the victims because the relatives hadn't been notified, but they did say the crash occurred just after five o'clock. Luigi could've quite easily been there at the time.

"Ashgrove?" Fudge repeated nervously. "That's where Luigi went."

The others had been listening carefully, praying that Fudge wouldn't notice.

"He wasn't in that crash, was he?"

The horror in her voice broke her family's hearts.

Guido squeezed her tighter. "(We don't know, angel)", he answered honestly.

"He can't die!" Fudge cried as tears slipped down her cheeks again. "He promised he'd come back. I don't want him to leave me! And I don't want to leave him!"

"(I know it is scary, Fudge)", Guido began gently, "(but right now, no news is good news. We don't know that he was hurt.)"

Fudge had a hard time believing that. So did Guido. The poor little girl cried and cried. All Guido could do was hold her and rock her gently.

Another eight minutes crawled by before the phone rang.

Doc took a deep breath. "This could be it." Everyone held their breaths as he answered it. "Hello?... This is Doc Hudson of Radiator Springs... Yes, we heard what happened... Oh, he was?" Doc sounded worried. "He is?... That's great. Thanks. Thank you so much. I'll be right there." He hung up.

"Well?" everyone demanded eagerly.

"Bad news is Luigi was in the crash", Doc began, prompting gasps from everyone. "Good news is he's gonna be fine. Just a couple of dents and scratches. They just gave him some painkillers, so they don't want him drivin' home by himself. Guido, Mater! You two come with me."

"Okay!" they both agreed.

"I'll come too!" Fudge decided.

"I think you better stay here, kiddo", Doc informed her ruefully. "But when Luigi comes back, you can give him a big hug, as long as you're careful", he added quickly.

"Yay!" Fudge cheered.

And that's exactly what she did.

"Luigi, Luigi, Luigi!" she squealed, sprinting towards him and throwing her little arms around him.

"Fudge! Careful!" Doc warned her sternly.

However, Luigi didn't seem to mind. In fact, he laughed and scooped Fudge up, holding her close. "I am so happy to see you!" he whispered and he did sound genuinely happy.

"Me too!" Fudge agreed.

"You okay, Luigi?" everyone wondered.

"Yes, I am fine", he assured them. "It was just a few dents and scratches. Anthony, Lowell's son, fixed them up for me." Lowell was the old forklift mechanic in Ashgrove that the townsfolk saw before Doc came to town. Lowell had retired several years earlier and passed the torch onto his son and protégé, Anthony, but the residents of Radiator Springs only bothered him when they were in Ashgrove. "He was very relieved I was okay. Some people were not so lucky today."

Everyone fell silent, thinking about that. They were all overjoyed that Luigi was just fine, but three lives had been lost in that crash. So, there would be devastation out there for someone.

Finally, Luigi broke the silence with a heavy sigh. "Okay, Fudgie. I think it is time we got you in the bath and to bed."

The five-year-old nodded. "Okay."

Fudge was pretty quiet in the bath. She had a lot on her mind after everything that happened that day.

"I'm happy you're okay, Luigi", she began quietly as she crawled into bed, "but I'm still sad. I'm leaving soon."

Luigi sighed heavily. "I know, angel, but can I tell you something?" She nodded. "Yes, I could have died today and so, the important thing is to cherish every day that we have alive."

"What does cherish mean?" Fudge wondered.

"Appreciate", Luigi explained. "Make the most of something. And I think that is what you need to do now. I know you are sad to be leaving Radiator Springs, but you should cherish every day that you are here and try to make yourself happy for the rest of your time here... Can you do that?"

"I'll try", Fudge promised.

"Good girl." Luigi kissed her. "Good night, angel. I love you."

"Love you too."

Guido kissed her too. "(We both love you so much!)"

"(I love you too, Guido!)"

When the two Italians switched the light out and left the room, they headed towards the living room.

"(Are you really okay?)" Guido asked Luigi.

"(I am fine, Guido)", Luigi assured him. "(I am a little sore and a little in shock, but I will be fine.)"

"(Just let me know if you want to talk.)"

Luigi nodded. "(I will... I just hope Fudgie is okay.)"

"(Me too)", Guido added, switching on the television. "(She has been very upset lately. I just don't know what to do about it.)"

"(Neither do I)", Luigi agreed. "(I suppose all we can do is cherish her for as long as we can.)"

Guido nodded. "(I suppose you are right.)"

Unfortunately, when they settled in to watch TV, the show was a late night crime drama, in which three girls in an orphanage had been physically and sexually abused. Guido had never switched a TV off so fast in his life. The two stared at each other in horror. What if Fudge was treated like that?! The image of their innocent baby girl being abused like that broke their hearts. They wished there was some way to stop it.

Not knowing what else to do, the two of them went outside. Luigi just stared at the quiet and empty town, almost as if he was expecting a customer to come by at any second.

That will probably never happen, Luigi admitted to himself ruefully, but I wish it would. Then Fudge would never have to be taken away. What did I do to deserve having my own child taken away from me? What did she do to deserve this?

Luigi let out another heavy sigh. Some questions could never be answered. And thinking about them hurt more than the crash he had endured that day.

Guido went around, reorganising tyres on display, as if he, too, expected a customer to come along. He would make sure the angle of every single one was nothing less than perfect.

(Not that it matters), he decided. (No one is going to come by. And my daughter will be taken away from me soon. What did I do to deserve having my own child taken away from me? What did she do to deserve this?)

Guido sighed. Some questions could never be answered.

Meanwhile, up in her room, Fudge just stared at the glow-in-the-dark moon and star stickers on her ceiling and surrounding her door. She was scared of the dark, so she was glad that her dads had put them up for her. Most nights, they were nice to just look at as she lay there and drifted off to sleep.

This particular night, however, Fudge could not sleep. Fear fought sleep away from her. She wished she could fall asleep, but even so, she was afraid she would have another nightmare where she was abandoned or had someone she loved die, especially after what had happened that day.

So, instead, Fudge lay there, watching the blinking red numbers on the digital clock on her bedside table go up. Finally, it got close to midnight and she was a little excited. She'd never stayed up that late before. Normally, she'd have fallen asleep by now. Realising that sleep wasn't coming and knowing that she didn't want to be alone, she threw off her covers, grabbed her dressing gown and she and her stuffed cow, Moo-Moo, went downstairs.

"Guido?" she whispered. "Luigi?"

Luigi turned around. So did Guido. The former sighed. "Can you not sleep?"

She shook her head.

Luigi sighed again as Guido approached the girl and tied up her turquoise dressing gown. "Okay. You can stay up with us for a little while. Then even Luigi and Guido are going to sleep, okay, Fudge?"

"Okay", she agreed.

Luigi kissed her. "Good girl."

"Luigi?" Fudge began after several minutes of silence. They had moved over to the store's entrance and Guido was outside. "I keep thinking about my mommy."

"What about her?" Luigi wanted to know.

"I wanna know why she didn't want me."

"Fudge, we don't know she didn't want you", Luigi reminded her.

"Then why else would she leave me here?"

"Fudgie, we said we don't know."

"Luigi?" Fudge started again following a few more silent minutes.

"Yes, Fudge?"

"My birthday is soon, isn't it?"

Luigi hesitated before nodding. "Yes. Yes it is."

"June sixteenth, right?"

"Yes. Same as every year."

"And I'm leaving on my birthday."

Luigi didn't answer. He didn't want to think about it. Still, Fudge couldn't stop thinking about it and neither could he.

"I don't want to leave", Fudge went on.

"I know you don't." Luigi kissed her.

"Who will look after me when I go?"

"I wish I could answer that, Fudgie", Luigi responded honestly, "but I don't know. I think they are going to try and find your mother's family or your father."

"But you and Guido are my fathers", Fudge argued.

"Yes, but you have another one somewhere. Like how you had a mother."

"Where's he?"

"I don't know, baby. We never met him. It was only your mother who came to town... Well, there was a truck with her, but he was not your father."

"How do you know?"

"He can't be. Your mother and father have to be humans."

"Oh."

Luigi and Fudge were silent. Just like everyone else in town. Fudge leaned up against Luigi in the entrance of Casa Della Tires, cuddling him, and looked around at the town. Her home. Guido was outside the tyre shop, repeatedly straightening a tyre display that was constantly being knocked out of place by a metal sign. Sarge, Fillmore, Flo and Ramone were over at Flo's. Flo was inside the café, Ramone was parked by a pump and Sarge and Fillmore closer to the side of the road, staring up at the traffic light at the four-way intersection, separating Flo's, Ramone's, Luigi's and the curio shop. The traffic light in question was the only one in town and had been flashing yellow since well before Fudge was born. Nobody had bothered to fix it. (There was practically nobody in the town, so why did it matter?) Lizzie was asleep on her porch (just like Fudge should've been!). Up at the firehouse, on the other side of town, Red was watering the flowers. Fudge couldn't see Doc, Mater, Sally or Sheriff. She knew Sheriff was out on patrol just outside of town, but she guessed everyone else was at home. It was a normal, quiet, uneventful night.

For about five minutes. That was when a noise that sounded like gunshots could be heard down the road.

"What was that?" Fudge questioned curiously, moving away from Luigi and running towards the road to get a better look and she wasn't the only one. Sarge, Ramone and Fillmore were all also peering down the road with the same curiosity.

"Fudge, stay away from the road", Luigi cautioned.

Little did they know that alone wasn't gonna protect her from harm.

Out of nowhere, a flash of red came tearing out of the drive-thru of Flo's, sending several oil cans flying.

"Incoming!" Sarge yelled as the flash shot past them.

"Whoa, man!" Fillmore shouted as the three of them moved aside as quickly as they could.

"Hey!" Ramone hollered after him. "You scratched my paint!"

But this guy wouldn't stop. All the trouble he caused happened in under a minute.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!" he screeched, heading straight for Casa Della Tires. And Fudge!

Guido had hidden behind the sign, but Fudge was frozen in shock. She couldn't move.

"FUDGE!" Luigi screamed, rushing forward in pure horror.

He grabbed her and pulled her out of the way at the very last millisecond. While Fudge was unharmed, the same couldn't be said for the tyres, which were thrown all over the town in the car's impact.

"My tyres!" Luigi exclaimed, though he wasn't as angry as he sounded because he was just relieved that his daughter wasn't hurt. He looked at her as he held her close to him. She had wide eyes and was panting. Whoever that was had really scared her. "Are you okay, Fudge?"

She nodded uncertainly.

Still, the mysterious car kept going, speeding in the direction of the fire station. Fudge stared at him in shock, clinging to Luigi. He narrowly avoided crashing right into the Stanley statue, which was located right outside the fire station and courthouse. Unfortunately, he ran over Red's flowers in the process, horrifying the fire truck, who had retreated inside the firehouse. The car, who was covered in barbed wire, spun around the statue and inadvertently wrapped the wire around it. He struggled to break free. He was pulling with all of his might to get away. However, he tried so hard that Stanley came flying off the pedestal. Half a second later, he landed right in front of the car!

The car screamed. He reversed down the road, screaming. What he didn't know was that, by dragging Stanley down the road with him, he was actually tearing up the road!

"What's he doing?!" Fudge quizzed her fathers anxiously.

"I don't know, baby", Luigi replied, not sure at all whether Fudge should be watching this.

By that point, Stanley was on the other side of town and stuck in a telephone wire. The car towing him was struggling to keep going with Stanley stuck. Yet he persisted. Until the wire couldn't take it anymore. Both statue and car were flung back like a slingshot. The car was left dangling there and Stanley was flying through the air.

"Fly away, Stanley!" Fudge heard Fillmore call. "Be free!"

Guido and Luigi both hurried over to Fudge, pulling her inside and holding her close to them. They had no idea where that statue was gonna land and they wanted to protect her.

Luckily, Stanley landed right on the pedestal where he belonged. After that, if it wasn't for the damaged road and the shock experienced by the town's residents, it was as if nothing had ever happened at all. Things got really quiet again. Once she saw that it was safe, Fudge ran outside and began heading down the road.

"Fudgie!" Luigi called after her. "Where are you going?"

"I wanna see!" she responded.

The two small vehicles looked at each other. They didn't particularly want her out at that point, but they couldn't blame her for being curious.

"Okay, but be careful and don't be too long!" Luigi instructed her finally. "The road is not safe now and it is late!"

"Okay!"

"Hey, kiddo", Sheriff greeted Fudge as the two of them made their way over to the car who had caused all of the damage. "What are you still doin' up? You should be fast asleep by now."

"I couldn't sleep", she explained. "And I wanted to see what happened. Why did that guy ruin the town?"

"He was speedin', Fudge, completely out of control", Sheriff explained as he scooped the girl on to his hood. By that point, they were right in front of the culprit, who was dangling helplessly from the telephone wire and breathing heavily. He was a red race car sporting the number 95. "Boy", Sheriff announced, "you're in a heap of trouble."

The "delinquent road hazard", as Sheriff later referred to him, didn't reply. Instead, he passed out.

I'm sure you all recognise that last bit. Don't forget to review.