Summary:

Something is seriously wrong with Finn, and Holley is the only one who can see it. Finally, the day she dreaded arrives, and now she is left confused, lonely, and heartbroken. She has her friends, but are they truly the way they seem to be as well? Crazy hardships, mysterious characters, tragic hellos and goodbyes, an old failed science plot, and not a sliver of it makes sense. As time goes on, Holley does her best to find out what is wrong with her partner. It all piles on everyone as they get closer to the truth, but all the pieces they've gathered to the puzzle go flying out the window when the most shocking news of Holley's life tells the truth to her face...

First story I ever published here; tell me what you think if you want to!

Disclaimer: I do not own Cars or any of its characters. OCs belong to me.

Cars and all its characters belong to Pixar Animation Studios.

Cover was done by and belongs to me.

The Way They Seem

Prologue

The hallway was empty; a gaping white mouth with several doors aligning the sides. The lights above flickered ever so slowly, that one would not notice unless they were paying attention. A yellow 'Wet Floor' sign reflected its image upon the glossy tile, marking the scene of a bloody outburst. The smell of cleaning chemicals was strong around it. A beautiful purple sports car rolled slowly down the hall, trying to keep calm. She was here for one reason and one reason only: To find out the truth. Or, at least, as much as she could. There was no telling who he saw her as now. Friend or foe, it didn't matter. And she didn't know. She hadn't seen him since he disappeared three years ago, and only a month ago did they find out he was caught. They were shocked when they were told he was put in the one and only High-Security Insane Asylum for the Mentally Corrupted. Had he really gotten that bad?

It was a lonely three years before she was notified and sent here to see him. Sometimes during then, she missed him. Okay, even she couldn't lie to herself. She missed him ALL the time. She was quite close to him, so his betrayal really shocked her. It shocked everyone. And now, three years later, she was going to see him again. But it wasn't going to be a happy reunion. Would he remember her, or was his mind so filled with insanity, that he forgot who she was? What if he was so far gone, that he wouldn't listen to her and just try to kill her on the spot, even though he'd be restrained? What if he tried to sweet talk her into joining him? So many what ifs… The car closed her eyes and breathed heavily. One thing he himself taught her was how to remain calm, even in impossible situations. It seemed so wrong, so backwards to use his own advice because of him and against him. Outside, she kept her calm. But inside, she was absolutely terrified to see him again.

What seemed like an eternity later, she got to the end. A large white 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe LT with a black bug deflector and black window guards was waiting for her. The initials H.S.I.A.M.C. were inscribed in black on his doors and hood. He knew she was on her way, so he prepared to let her through when she got to him. The two exchanged words, their voices very different: one feminine, scared and quiet, yet masked with false confidence, and the other masculine and authoritative, but unsure of what would happen behind that door. He let her through once she confirmed who she was, and locked the door once she went in. He didn't want to lock it, as only the world's most insane and deadly cars went in there, but he had to. Safety regulations require it. All he hoped for, was for her to return safely. After all, she was going to see THE world's single-most deadly car, that is.

As soon as that door closed, it shut out the normal world. She would have given anything to go back to the white hallway. Now it was as if she had been placed inside the minds of every insane car in existence. No, scratch that. Every insane car in existence and who has existed since the beginning of time. The intense feeling of mixed emotions, centuries worth of anxiety, depression, anger, suicidal urges, and hatred for oneself and others all bombarded her so harshly, she wondered if she had physical dents. The sleek purple car shook her hood and let out a small noise of being afraid, then ran into the wall. She began to get a hoodache from the sudden rush of thousands of mentally unstable cars and their voices, screaming at her, telling her things. But as soon as she ran into the wall, they all stopped. Her hood felt normal, and she looked normal, but most importantly of all, her thoughts were normal again. The voices in her head were gone as well. She could only guess the presence of all the violent cars made this place feel the way it felt. And their unstable minds were so unstable, that they actually emanated their feelings so others could feel the same.

Shakily, she started forward. The lighting was dim, but the haunting feeling of abandonment and insanity was intense. She kept her thoughts clear, not letting her mind slip away from her, as his mind had so easily done with him. The low light revealed a wide, fairly short hallway with far spaced, ten-inch-thick soundproof steel doors. Each one had an insane car behind it. Not just regular mental hospital insane. Beyond insane. They weren't just mentally unstable; they were possessed with madness. Once a car has ended up here, there was no saving them now. And she could tell. Even though the doors were soundproof, she could still hear the victims on the other side. Screaming, cursing, ramming into the wall or door, trying to talk to someone, or pleading for help. In a way, she felt bad for them. Some weren't here on their own terms. Those cars were here because they were forced to lose their mind. She shook her hood again and sped up, trying to escape the feeling of slight madness. She was afraid of staying too long when she finally came to his holding cell. A large sign hung above the door, marked number 314. Another sign hung on the door itself, with several warnings:

Patient is extremely unstable.

Do not enter unless permitted to do so by the president of H.S.I.A.M.C.

Do NOT get within 10 feet of the bars separating you from the patient.

All allowed visits must be no longer than 10 minutes.

If patient becomes too violent and/or lashes out, they must be restrained by the guard.

Unless patient mentions them first, talking about those closest to them is not recommended.

DO NOT TOUCH PATIENT

The spy kept her eyes on the second to last rule and felt her oil run cold. She didn't need to ask to know she was one of the 'those closest' to him. Now she was even more nervous about going in.

The guard in front of the door watched her with concerned grey eyes. He knew it must have been terrifying to go in alone. But the white 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee let her in.

Verifying who she was to the guard first, (and wondering how he hadn't lost his mind yet, spending time down here must have some sort of consequence) she went in.

The room was dark, save for an almost spotlight-like circle in the center, coming from the ceiling. She could see the light reflecting off something within the darkness, and realized they were bars. Good, he wouldn't be able to hurt her. Taking a nervous breath, she forced a single word from her lips.

"Hello?" She waited. The seconds went by like years in the silence. Then suddenly it came from the black void before her, and her breath hitched.

"Hello…"

It was definitely his voice. Something she hadn't heard in forever. But she knew who it belonged to. She would recognize that smooth, accented tone anywhere. But something was different about it this time. His voice was still the same, accent and smooth, but now it had a dark, sinister twist to it. It was almost a beckoning call itself, as if listening to it would have one under his spell, and just by saying 'hello' he could have an entire army at his tires. But it was just a simple greeting, and nothing else.

"D-do you recognize me?" she stammered, not caring that she broke the second to last rule just by being here.

"I can't see you, my dear. You are in the dark, yet your voice rings a bell…" he responded. She was shocked he wasn't trying to tear down the bars and kill her. Yes, he was that kind of insane. Unless… He could control himself…

"Why are you here? What happened to you?" she suddenly demanded. "I want the truth. You disappeared and betrayed us all. What happened three years ago?" There was a long pause, and the car rolled up to the bars, letting himself be seen by the light's glow against the white tile.

"I left. I decided I didn't want to be with you all anymore. I discovered a new path in life." He glared at her. "If you were smart, you'd join us."

"Smart? How is being evil smart?"

"Oh, it is, sweetheart. Siding with them is one of the best things I have ever done. Their purpose, in my opinion, is much better than the one of whom you work for, honey." Even though she felt different about him now, she couldn't help but admire how he still spoke correctly. But she didn't admire the fact that now he was evil he had taken up using pet names. "Not only is it better to me, but it's also more fun. You don't have to follow rules. You can do what you want, especially with violence. I've had my share of violence on the good side. Now, it's time to turn the tables. It's not a terrible change, trust me. Killing innocent lives is a pastime thing. I've even killed some old fellow spies." He paused, waiting for a reaction. She gasped, genuinely shocked it was him; he was the reason three spies were missing. "Stealing important items is simple and fun. Every mission I've been on is far more enjoyable than the ones I went on when I was good. Heh, it's ALL enjoyable. You just have to become like me. It is quite exhilarating." The older car was as close as he could get to the bars. The younger car drove forward to get a better look at him, breaking the 10 feet between them. He didn't budge or try attacking. For a few moments, the two let their eyes wander over each other, remembering. For him, it was remembering the past. For her, it was remembering what he used to look like. The silver car looked like an abused classic now. There were gashes in his metal body, red oil smeared here and there, a headlight was broken, his paint was chipped and scraped, more car-blood was on his wheels, a line that resembled a scar was on his left eyelids, and…his eyes. His pretty, once aqua green eyes were tinted red. The natural green clashed with the unnatural red, and that's when the purple car realized.

"You've been brainwashed…"

"Just now figured that out? Congratulations." He rolled his eyes exaggeratedly, then narrowed them at her. "You were always a disappointment. Now I see you're still not better, and now slow at figuring things out. I haven't seen you in three years, and I expected better of you. In fact, I almost expected you to come find me not long after I went missing. I thought I taught you better. Guess not." His words stung, but she knew not to let it get to her.

"I know that's not actually you talking." she declared. "It's your opposite, evil, brainwashed self." What he said next was completely unexpected, and exactly what she didn't want to hear.

"Are you sure? What makes you so confident I didn't ALLOW myself to be changed?" His words hung in the air, and he smirked at her, letting that sink in. She stared, completely shocked, and turned away, not wanting him to see the tears fall. Could it be true? Did he let himself be brainwashed? Come to think of it, his behavior was a little off in the three months leading up to his disappearance. She didn't want to believe it, but what was there to say? What was there to do if he wanted to become bad? "I know you are confused. Come here, my dear. Touch me and see." The purple car wiped away the tears beading in her windshield.

"I'm not supposed to touch you. Last rule in capital letters on the door." she reminded, turning back to face him.

"You've broken two already. Nobody is going to know or care. Might as well." He held his tire up to the bars, pressing it through them as far as it would go. She looked cautiously at it, then into his eyes. "I know you want to know." he said as if he read her mind. She wanted to, but could she trust him? Slowly, she rolled forward. As soon as her tire touched his, it was as if the world stopped. Images flashed before her eyes, old memories of forgotten times that once were. She saw many deaths and many traumatizing moments. She even saw herself more than once, of both good and bad times. She saw other scenes, images of things that never happened, but were instead imagined with a wish to be real. Those scared her the most. Thoughts filled her head, thoughts of killing, torture, evil, hatred, and snapping. Voices rang in her ears, telling her to turn away from everything she cared about, to become one of them. Evil excitement flooded her, and she almost collapsed under the pressure of anxiety. She wanted it all to stop, but she couldn't put her tire down. It was like a force was preventing her from it. Finally, he pulled away, and she sank low on her axles, breathing hard. Nothing that ran through her head made sense, and she wondered how by just a simple touch, he shared his feelings and why he went insane. But she was too afraid to ask. C.H.R.O.M.E. would not be pleased to hear about what she had seen. Especially since two words kept running over and over in her mind. She shakily got up and turned from him, hiding her now falling tears. Two words she did not want to hear repeated once more, along with a third, and she never heard them again. Join them. Join him.

"I used to look up to you, Finn. You were so good at everything you did. I wanted to be as good a field agent as you. I was excited when I learned you agreed to train me to be one." It took everything in her power not to let her voice shake as a few tears ran down her hood. They were tears of confused sadness, liquid diamonds of denial. "I had no idea that's how you felt the whole time. You never seemed to be that way…" Behind her, Finn sighed.

"Things aren't always the way they seem to be, Miss Shiftwell…"

I have been to this website many times in the past, and now this is my first fanfiction here. This dark prologue is the only chapter that is completely italicized, all others are normal.

Almost every Cars character will show up in this story with at least two speaking lines. It'll be hard fitting them all in, but I've been writing stories for a long time now, and would like a challenge! Many of the OCs are vehicles I know or knew in real life. There won't be an insane amount of OCs, though.

Reviews are greatly appreciated!