-==Chapter 5==-
Molly and Heather's History
-Start of Flashback-
It all started back in March 2009, where Molly McQueen and her mother are out to Las Vegas for a visit. Molly's mother had a business meeting with her workmates, and Molly tags along with her mother, as it was a "Bring your Daughter to Work Day" special. After the meeting, it was 11.00 a.m., and Molly wants to go to an Arcade.
Molly: "Mom, can we go to the arcades?"
Molly's mother: "Of course, honey. Las Vegas has this big arcade, GameWorks, at the Town Square!"
Molly: "Well, let's go there!"
Molly and her mother went to GameWorks, located at the Town Square of Las Vegas. GameWorks hass a LOT of Arcade game cabinets, ranging from Classic arcade games of the 1980s and 1990s, all the way to the 2000s ones. Molly notices a quad of Pink racing game cabinets which read: Sugar Rush. This is the original 1997 version of the game, and like its successor, is capable of 4-players.
Molly: "New racers daily? Sweet!"
Molly took Seat #1 and inserts her first quarter, and that's when she met Heather Madison.
Heather: "Hello. Would you like to race together?"
Molly: "Sure. I'd love to."
Heather inserts her first quarter as well. Molly picks Vanellope and Heather picks Taffyta. Just like the successor, after you picked your racer, the screen will display the character stats and the kart they drive. You can decline the choice if you want to pick another racer instead. Because Molly and Heather are too eager to race, they just confirm Vanellope and Taffyta as their respective racers anyway. And since this Sugar Rush is not in Litwak's, this Sugar Rush still has Vanellope, driving the Royal Racer kart.
Vanellope: "Oh? (Jumps in Excitement) Ha-HAAA!"
Taffyta: "(Brushes her hair with one hand and pumps her other one up, carrying a LolliPop.)"
Molly and Heather chose "Play together", so that they can compete against one another. The original 1997 Sugar Rush Arcade game has 5 tracks opposed to its successor's 18 tracks. The tracks are from easiest to hardest: Sweet Ride Circuit, Cakeway Town, Frosty Rally (Before renamed to Frosty Heights), Nougat Mines (Before renamed to Nougat Underground) and Royal Raceway. Back then, Sugar Rush's top speed was about 120 MPH. Molly and Heather had fun together, and when it was time to leave GameWorks, they made a good deal of friendship.
Molly: "Well, we had fun, but now it's time for me to go back home."
Heather: "Me too. Say, I'd like to meet you again, where can I find you?"
Molly: "Mission Street, San Francisco. Here's my phone number."
Heather: "Thanks."
Molly: "I'm Molly McQueen."
Heather: "Heather Madison."
And that's how Molly and Heather became friends.
Molly and Heather were 9.
2011
Molly and Heather met at "The 1UP" Arcade in Denver.
Molly: "Hi, Heather! Wanna play games?"
Heather: "Sure! Which game would you want to play?"
Molly: "I wanna play Sugar Rush, you?"
Heather: "I'm going with Fix-It Felix Jr."
Molly: "Okay then, I'll Rock-Paper-Scissor you for it! Winner picks their game!"
Heather: "Deal!"
Molly and Heather: "Rock-Paper-Scissors!"
Molly: "ROCK beats SCISSOR! I won, so we play Sugar Rush!"
Heather: "You're on! I won't go easy!"
Molly and Heather ran to Sugar Rush, and indeed, there are 4 cabinets in "The 1UP" Arcade. But they bumped into a girl their age, it was Sally.
Sally: "Ouch!"
Molly: "Oof! Oh, I'm so sorry i…"
Sally: "It's okay. Sorry I got in your way, which was rude of me."
Heather: No hard feelings. Say, what game would you want to play?"
Sally: "Sugar Rush. What about you two?"
Molly: "The same. We're gonna play Sugar Rush!"
Sally: "Sweet! Look, the game has three available seats as that one kid over there already took it."
Heather: "Right!"
The three girls sat down on seats 1, 2, and 3. And after they insert their quarters, they chose their racers: Molly+Vanellope, Heather+Candlehead, and Sally+Rancis.
Vanellope: "Oh? (Jumps in Excitement) Ha-HAAA!"
Candlehead: "(Claps her hands and a fire is ignited on her candle, and then pumps her right fist up.)"
Rancis: "(Smugly raises his right fist up and does a Karate-Slice with a vain look on his face)"
Because the kid at Seat #4 chose "Play solo"; when Molly, Heather and Sally chose "Play Together", only the three of them enter VS Player. And Still, the Vanellope in "The 1UP" drives the Royal Racer kart and with no Character Skill. While the three girls raced, Molly's mother went out shopping, and when she came to "The 1UP" to see her daughter play, she met a woman who was a bit younger than her, and she has a son.
Molly's mother: "Hello, little boy, what's your name?"
Jackson: I'm Jackson Madison."
Molly's mother: Nice to meet you, Jackson. So, you must be his mother, right?"
Heather's mother: "Yes I am. Jackson here has an older sister."
Molly's mother: "Who is she?"
Jackson: "Heather. She told me about her friend Molly."
Molly's mother: "Well, Molly is a good girl, and she's quite friendly."
Molly and Heather's others then look at Molly, Heather and Sally, playing Sugar Rush together. They believed that the young girls sure made good friends to one another.
Molly, Heather and Sally were all 11.
2012
2012 is where Molly came across Litwak's Family Fun Center and Arcade on California State Route 83. When Molly entered, her first game is Hero's Duty.
Molly: "Hero's Duty? Alright, I'll see what it's like. If it's good, I'll tell Heather and Sally about this. (After she won the game and gets a REAL-LIFE Hero's Duty Medal LITERALLY (Because the Arcade cabinet hands out these medals as Souvenirs for patrons)) Well, that was fun.
Molly then notices Fix-It Felix Jr. and proceeds to play. And she does have fun with it, she even came to Level 39 on her first quarter, beating the high score of Level 34. This is because over the course of three years ever since her first visit to GameWorks at Las Vegas, she has been playing both Sugar Rush and Fix-It Felix Jr. She became so good that she can just go on an "Endurance Mode" which will become the main gimmick of Fix-It Felix Jr. in the present day and the Distant Future.
Molly: "Yes! I beat the High Score! What else does this arcade has to offer? (Sees Sugar Rush) This arcade got Sugar Rush too, Albeit only two seats? Alright then, it's better than nothing. Hey, I got next…."
Molly suddenly looks at the roster, which caught her eye in suspicion. She was aware that the game is currently played by two game hogging boys, but they're not the problem, the problem was the roster. The racer on the center spot was NOT Vanellope.
Molly: "What the? Who is that?"
Bully #1: "Can't you see, Four Eyes? That on the middle is King Candy, he's the Best racer in the game."
Molly: "What the? King Candy? ("But that's Impossible! There's no Best Racer in Sugar Rush! Vanellope is Beginner Friendly AT BEST! Who the heck is this King Candy guy?") But… That name sounds simplistic, isn't the star racer Vanell…"
Bully #2: "No! Never heard of this Penelope person, all this game got for a Royal racer is King Candy!"
Bully #1: "And Back off, Junkpile, we're playing all nine racers today."
Molly: "Well, that's rude. ("And seriously?! No Vanellope?! This Sugar Rush is Sus!")"
Then, she came across Stan Litwak himself.
Molly: "Mr. Litwak…"
Stan Litwak: "What is it, sweetheart?"
Molly: "I want to talk about Sugar Rush."
Stan Litwak: "What about it?"
Molly: "It's only two seats, while other arcades have four of them each."
Stan Litwak: "Well, I bought them on a Discount Prize back in 1997. I had plans to buy more so the game can be the standard Quad-set like the others, but sadly, last year, TobiKomi stated that the original cabinets are no longer in production, and currently, they are making a top secret experiment."
Molly: "Aren't there any second hand Sugar Rush cabinets for sale?"
Stan Litwak: "Sadly, no. Guess this arcade will be stuck with only two seats. Have you tried it?"
Molly: "Actually, I played Sugar Rush since 2009 when i first came to GameWorks in Las Vegas, which was the first time I went to an Amusement Arcade in my life."
Stan Litwak: "I see. Anything else you have a problem with?"
Molly: "There is one; it's about the star racer. It's not Vanellope like the other Sugar Rush games in other arcades. Instead, it's this King Candy guy. The name is too bland and he looks like that Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland. It's like having a Union Pacific Big Boy locomotive run on British Railway Lines."
Stan Litwak: "I thought so too. When I check other arcades, their Sugar Rush games have Vanellope as the star racer. This is evident with her portrait on the cabinets. I already contacted TobiKomi about this bloody nonsense, and they told me that the only royal character in Sugar Rush is Vanellope, and other arcades, like I said, have her."
Molly: "I hope someone fixes that bloody nuisance. Vanellope must show up in this one in particular."
And it was the next day, when Molly came back to Litwak's, she came for a Surprise.
Molly: "(Playing Fix-It Felix Jr. again) Huh, Bonus levels?! This is new!"
This time, Molly has reached level 54, and many people cheered on her. And when she came across Sugar Rush again, she's in for a SHOCKING surprise. As she inserted her quarter on Seat #1, the roster's center spot has a Question Mark, and when she chose said Question marked square, that spot displays a Silhouette of Vanellope and a different kart. After she confirms her racer, Vanellope and her kart's Silhouettes form into their full display and…
Vanellope: "Oh? (Jumps in Excitement) Ha-HAAA!"
Molly: "OH MY! Vanellope is HERE?!"
Everyone around her noticed, and they rush to Sugar Rush to see the commotion. And to their shock, they all saw Vanellope on the screen.
Molly: "Wait, what?! She has a different kart?!"
Molly was confused, but she just plays the game anyway, and during the race, as Molly approaches the finish line, Vanellope's kart starts to glow, and Molly's Power-Up button flashes on and off like crazy, as well as the sudden appearance of a Superpower Bar, which is fully charged.
Molly: ("What's this? a Superpower bar? Never seen that before. And, what's with the Power-Up button flashing like crazy? Well, might as well try it. What could possibly go wrong?")
So, without warning, Molly presses the Power-Up Button, and to her and EVERYONE's Surprise… VANELLOPE GLITCHES FORWARD TO FIRST PLACE!
Everyone was amazed! This Vanellope is unlike any other Vanellopes from other arcades. This one drove a unique kart, and has an Insane Superpower!
Molly: "WHAT THE?! Is that?! (Vanellope then Top Shelfes the screen, which Molly awkwardly does) Uhhh... thanks? ("Seriously?! Is this some kind of Voodoo Black Magic or something?)"
Stan Litwak: "Well it's about time she showed up."
Kid #1: "WHOA! Sugar Rush got a new racer?!"
Kid #2: "How come we never notice?!"
Kid #3: "That Vanellope girl must be the BEST RACER!"
Molly: "WHAT?! But, Vanellope is only BEGINNER FRIENDLY at BEST! Everybody knows that there's no BEST Racer in Sugar Rush!"
Kid #4: "Who cares! She's a Cheat Character so we can win races against those Pros out there!"
Kid #5: "Those pros who kicked our butts are gonna PAY!"
Kid #6: "Move aside, dumpsters, I'm gonna Sugar Rush!"
Kid #7: "What gives!"
Kid #1: "Oh, you're on!"
Kid #2: "Yeah, go get him!"
Kid #3: "YEAH! Show him who's boss, girl!"
Molly: "Uh, Mr. Litwak..."
Stan Litwak: "What is it?"
Molly: "Vanellope's back but she's got some kind of superpower, something she never supposed to have."
Stan Litwak: "Huh, (Sees a 2-Player Race with Vanellope against Crumbelina) Well, you're lucky, kid, looks like this arcade got a Limited Edition?"
Molly: "Limited edi... (Realizes the meaning) oooooooooooooohhh... That's SO COOL! WAIT UNTIL I TELL MY FRIENDS ABOUT THIS!"
Molly then proceeds to telephone Heather and Sally about her insane discovery, that one of the Arcades in America has a Sugar Rush which Vanellope was a powerful freak!
Molly was 12.
2013
Molly, Heather and Sally attend the same school, and in their free times, they visit Litwak's to compete in various games. Because Sugar Rush in the arcade is a Double setup, it's impossible to have 4 players at once, unlike the other arcades which had 4 Sugar Rush cabinets each.
Sally: "Molly, you know how insane this is! I mean, even though this Sugar Rush is a Double Setup, the existing stuff like Character Superpowers is something worth mentioning. I didn't know TobiKomi is selling Limited Edition games like this."
Heather: "Yeah, man, you're lucky you found something Ultra Rare like this. I mean, like, how is it possible to find this easily?"
Molly: "I know, right? So, who wants to go again?"
Heather and Sally: "Gotta Rock-Paper-Scissor this to determine who gets to take a seat!"
Molly, Heather and Sally were having delightful days at the arcade, and it wasn't long until everyone else started playing competitively, so much so that a Hall of Fame was made. Molly's title is the Moppet Mantis, as she broke the 2013 record of Fix-It Felix Jr.: Level 84 with 96200 points. Heather's title was the Hell-Defiler, as she became a competitive lunatic, which is probably the reason the game characters went into a Panic when they hear the name. Sally's title was the Dark Piercer for her astonishing display of unpredictability in Sugar Rush.
Molly, Heather and Sally were all 13.
2016
Three Years of competing at Litwak's sure has gotten the arcade to be booming, despite the challenges that arise from the outside. On November 2015, Sugar Rush suffers two damages, a steering wheel broke and the second cabinet was destroyed when a group of game hoggers try to yank the two players, but at the same week, there was a miracle from a "benefactor" who was willing to give the arcade three additional Sugar Rush Cabinets for Litwak to upgrade the game to a 4-player setting, as well as a replacement steering wheel to fix the remaining cabinet that was busted. It was January 2016, and Molly, Heather and Sally are in for a surprise."
Molly: "WHOHW?! This Sugar Rush is a Quad-Setting now?!"
Stan Litwak: "Of course, ladies. I got some benefactors, I guess."
Heather: "Well, that's good, now, 4 people can race at once!"
Sally: "Of course, so while we're at it, let's make this count!"
Molly: "Off to Sugar Rush, we go!"
Heather and Sally: "YEAH!"
The three girls took their seats on the cabinet, and they chose their respective racers. Many kids came to see the game, which was upgraded to be a 4-Seater setup. One of the kids gathering up to see the race was a young boy named Elvin, who is a long time Sugar Rush competitor. He has been making a name of himself in Litwak's, giving him the title: "Violet Slayer". Elvin took a seat next to Molly, Heather and Sally.
Vanellope: "Oh? (Jumps in Excitement) Ha-HAAA!"
Taffyta: "(Brushes her hair with one hand and pumps her other one up, carrying a LolliPop.)"
Candlehead: "(Claps her hands and a fire is ignited on her candle, and then pumps her right fist up.)"
Rancis: "(Smugly raises his right fist up and does a Karate-Slice with a vain look on his face.)"
As the participants try to choose the track to race on, some of the onlookers took out their phones to record the race, and post it on BuzzzTube, probably because they have been seeing this "V4n3ll0p3V0n5chw33t2" BuzzzTuber advertising Sugar Rush via Slaughter Race, unaware that the user was actually the Vanellope from Litwak's Arcade. For every video that was posted to BuzzzTube, this garnered attention from TobiKomi, who at this point were doing a Research & Development on the Successor of Sugar Rush, which would be Sugar Rush Super Speedway, which is Backwards-Compatible to the original game.
On Thanksgiving of 2016, Heather is going to leave town, as her parents were having a New Job elsewhere.
Heather: "Well, I'm going to miss you two."
Molly: "Yeah, and Heather, please don't forget us."
Sally: "Yeah, man, you're awesome. I can't wait for us to play together again."
Heather: "Don't worry, I will. Well, I must be off."
Heather got on her parents' car, and Molly and Sally wave their Farewells to her."
Molly and Sally: "SEE YOU SOON, HEATHER!"
Heather: "YOU TOO, AND REMEMBER, BE A REAL MADMAN TO WIN!"
And that was the last time Molly would see Heather, as Sally would meet Heather again at one point in New Jersey…
Molly, Heather and Sally were 16.
August 2017
Molly just passed her driving school and earned herself a Driver's License, and her personal car of choice, a black Subaru Impreza WRX STI Blob-Eye model (2003). Meanwhile, Heather was at New Jersey, where she met an old friend: Sally. They were at Morristown Game Vault.
Sally: "Heather?"
Heather: "Sally? Oh my, it's been like over 8 months since I last saw you!"
Sally: "I missed you too, Heather!"
The two embraced a hug together.
Heather: "How's Molly holding up?"
Sally: "She's doing well. She has been making records in other games."
Heather: "Good for her. And please tell her that if she beats my record at Fix-It Felix Jr., I'm going to shatter it the next time I go to Litwak's."
Sally: "Don't worry; I'll make sure she gets that message."
Heather: "Good. So, wanna play Sugar Rush?"
Sally: "Well, let's do it then."
But to their confusion, Sugar Rush was nowhere to be found at Morristown Game Vault. They came to an attendant.
Attendant: "Hello, ladies, what's the problem?"
Heather: "Where is Sugar Rush?"
Sally: "We're going to race with Vanellope and her friends."
Attendant: "Oh, (frowns in sadness) I'm sorry, ladies… Sugar Rush was Out of Order, we had to unplug all the cabinets, ALL Four of them. We'd really love that game, but TobiKomi no longer makes the original game anymore, since they are already obsolete. But I do hear they are making a Sequel."
Heather: "The upcoming Sugar Rush Super Speedway? I heard that it's an improvement to the original. They are still in development, right?"
Attendant: "Well, the Launch date is October 9 2017. Two months from now."
Sally: "Oh, I see."
So, Heather and Sally decide to play other games instead. They noticed Hero's Duty, and they both remembered about what Molly said. On October 2017, the first Sugar Rush Super Speedway cabinets have been installed at Litwak's. The other arcades around the world didn't have Sugar Rush Super Speedway yet, as they are making plans about it. Molly and Sally tried to contact Heather, but she didn't respond. And it was on November 2017, when it happened…. Heather saw a boy about to get wrecked by a truck. She pushed the boy out to safety, but got herself killed in the process, and thus, the Hell-Defiler was gone.
The boy she saved was Arthur Emanuel Johnson. Heather and Arthur met two months after Heather left her two friends back in 2016. Heather became a sister figure to Arthur, just like Sarah was. Heather and Arthur were good friends, and she would protect him from harm, because Arthur was bullied at his school, the same school Heather was transferred to. Heather has been trying to stop her school's bullying problem to Arthur and several other kids, which is why she has been ignoring the phone calls from Molly and Sally. And she was too late to respond to their news that Sugar Rush has returned with the new 2017 rendition having been plugged in at Litwak's.
As a result, Heather Elizabeth Madison, infamously known as Litwak's "Hell-Defiler" is no more.
-End of Flashback-
Molly: "I would never forget what Heather said before we were separated."
Sarah: "What does Heather say?"
Jacob: "Yeah, what were her last words with you?"
Molly: "She said that: "To be a winner, you have to be an Absolute MADMAN." And she means taking your game seriously. No Mistakes allowed."
Sarah and Jacob: "Whohw…"
Molly: "I know. It's a real shame. I knew Heather was looking forward to try out the new Sugar Rush Super Speedway, and she has sworn to shatter the highest record of Fix-It Felix Jr., which was Level 129 with 166200 Points."
Just then, Arthur came with some meals he purchased from the Restaurant Lounges.
Arthur: "Hey, guys, I got some meals."
Molly: "Oh, right."
Sarah: "So, Arthur, what do you want to play next?"
Arthur: "Well, I'd like to try out Fix-It Felix Jr., I heard that you shattered the highest score, Level 129 with 166200 points, right?"
Molly: "Yes, and now it's Level 136 with 187900 points. I remember what Sally said about Heather, that Heather had sworn to come and shatter the highest score should her high score got beaten. And had she been alive, she would come straight and do it."
Sarah: "I know Fix-It Felix Jr. too. It has also come to TobiKomi that they've made a spin-off with Wreck-It Ralph as the main protagonist, destroying enemy contraptions and such in the name of protecting his Animal friends."
Jacob: "Too bad we don't have a Home console to play Wreck-It Ralph: Ralph's Story."
Molly: "It's alright. So, Arthur, what are you aiming for in Fix-It Felix Jr.?"
Arthur: "I dunno, maybe going after your record?"
Molly: "Then good luck with that. It's an Endurance game, you gotta be a Madman to win, and that's what the Hell-Defiler said before she died."
After eating and drinking, Arthur, Molly, Jacob and Sarah approach Fix-It Felix Jr. Before Arthur inserts his quarter, Molly asks him something.
Molly: "Say, Arthur, how are your races after we left?"
Arthur: "it was too easy… most of the time. Some kids who played the game and decided to challenge me were playing rather clumsily, and they didn't even try to beat me, they are only focused on one another. Then there are those toddlers who needed their parents to help them. So yeah… I got lucky."
Molly: "Then you're going to need it once you cross paths with the real ace racers, like the notorious "Violet-Slayer" Elvin.
Arthur: "I see. (Inserts his quarter)"
Dispatcher: "Quarter alert! Quarter alert! QUARTER ALERT!"
Ralph: "Oh, it's time again. Get ready, everyone!"
Sarah: "Good luck, Arthur!
Jacob: "Yeah! Beat that record!"
Ralph: "I'M GONNA WRECK IT!"
Felix: "I can fix-it!"
Then, a lot of kids came to see Arthur play the game, as they also heard that he's aiming for Molly's record. Meanwhile, Molly walked in to Sugar Rush Super Speedway, and sighed… She knew Heather would love to play this new version of Sugar Rush; Vanellope not glitching anymore, everyone has insane superpowers, 3D camera mode, Motion Simulator, a dedicated Simulation Mode for real drivers, and 15 additional tracks alongside the 5 originals. Then, Sally came, and with her is Swati. Molly acknowledged that both Swati and Nafisa have proven their capabilities in Sugar Rush, so much so that they've managed to give Sally a run for her money. As Sally, Swati and Nafisa took their seats and started their game of VS Player Races, Molly couldn't help but now wonder, where did Sally get a Rancis Fluggerbutter with a different kart than his usual. She also saw Isaac, taking Seat #4, racing as Tafftyta, and challenging the three girls. Molly decides to see the race for herself.
to be continued...
Author's Note: This chapter is mostly about Molly's history with Heather, but the events of 2012, the time where the movie's story took place, played out differently, as Hero's Duty and Fix-It Felix Jr. were NOT screwed up, so Ralph's adventure in Sugar Rush played out differently, and No Cy-Bug interference. Felix and Tamora do visit Sugar Rush, but for a completely different reason. If you want to see me make a full-blown adaptation of this A.U., then let me know. Chapter 6 will be about Rancis' secret kart, the RV1, and how this fanfiction handles One Sweet Race.