A/N: So since I'm assuming you guys are liking this story, I'll upload the rest of Part One today. I also included a story summary on chapter one and I will put up part two in a few days!

Read and review! Thanks for reading!

Chapter Eight: The Piston Cup

Lightning tried to stay focused as he prepared to race. He even got his new paintjob washed off to show his old racing colors and stickers. But no matter what he did, he could only think back to his memories of Sally and his time in Radiator Springs. He was even beginning to miss Harley calling him "Speed Racer." Mack graciously offered to be Lightning's pit crew and crew chief, and Lightning found he had missed the goofy semi. Everyone, press and spectators alike, were talking about his sudden disappearance and reappearance, but he tried to tune it all out so he could focus on the race. It was the Piston Cup. It was his dream. His chance to show everyone he could land the championship, a new sponsor, and the title of Rookie of the Year in one sitting. It was the one thing he had been wanting more than anything else in his entire life.

And he was next to miserable.

Lightning grunted a bit in pain when a light flashed into his eyes, and he glared in annoyance at Chick flashing his reflective sticker and laughing. As if this day couldn't get worse. Lightning thought bitterly as he, Chick, and The King rolled out on the track and towards the starting line. Chick began rambling on about something, but Lightning couldn't exactly hear him as his thoughts wandered back to his drive with Sally. Was she missing him right now? Most likely not. Or was she? After all, she seemed at least a little upset when he was forced to leave.

A green flag flashed.

Lightning blinked in surprise to discover the race was starting, and The King and Chick were already on their way. "Shoot!" Lightning hissed, speeding up to catch up with the other two cars. He was still at least a hundred feet behind Chick, The King holding a slim lead as fifty laps passed. Only one hundred and fifty to go. Lightning picked up speed, coming up on Chick. He moved to the inside, hoping to pass Chick and catch up with The King. But he was so focused on the blue racecar he didn't see Chick coming until the green racecar darted out and cut him off, forcing Lightning to brake a bit before resuming his speed. He mentally hit himself, trying to regain his focus on the race. It's only two other racecars. You can do this! Lightning told himself, revving his engine hard and desperately trying to regain the ground he lost. He glared in determination, his eyes fully set on the two racecars in front of him…..

…..on Sally as the two of them drove casually through the forest to Wheel Well. Lightning smiled warmly, feeling the sun on his hood and the cool shade from the trees. Sally ran right through a deep puddle, aiming to splash the stock car…..

…..and when the "water" cleared Lightning was forced to swerve with tires squealing before he could hit a wall. He spun out into the infield, The King and Chick pulling far ahead as Lightning skidded to a halt.

It was useless. He just couldn't stop thinking about her and about all of them. He never should've tried to come to the stupid race. But, stubborn as he was, Lightning forced himself to go back out onto the track.

"Hey kid, you all right?" Mack asked over the radio.

"I don't know, Mack." Lightning groaned. "I…..I don't think I…."

"I didn't come all this way to see you quit."

Lightning blinked in surprise, glancing towards the pits. "Doc?" He smiled broadly at the sight of not just Doc, but nearly everyone from Radiator Springs cheering him on in the pits. Even Harley rested on top of the crew chief platform, waving excitedly. "Guys! You're here! I can't believe this!"

"I knew you needed a crew chief, but I didn't know it was this bad." Doc spoke into the headset, a smirk on his lips.

"I thought you said you'd never come back." Lightning noted, making a beeline for the pits.

"Well, I really didn't have a choice." Doc said. "Mater didn't get to say goodbye."

"Goodbye!" Mater called into the mic. "Okay. I'm good."

Lightning chuckled, pulling into the pits and stopping to allow Fillmore and Sarge to refuel him. Everyone greeted him warmly, but he focused on Doc. "All right, if you can drive as good as you can fix the road, then you can win this race with your eyes shut." Doc said with a determined smirk. "Not get back out there!"

Engine revving strongly, Lightning rocketed out of the pits and onto the track. "You go, Speed Racer!" Harley cheered.

"Hot snot, we are back in business!" Doc nodded in satisfaction. "Kid, you can beat these guys." Doc told Lightning. "Find the groove that works for ya and get that lap back." Lightning sped up, tearing down the track with renewed spirits. The fact that he was an entire lap down didn't seem to bother him in the least.

Harley noticed the pit crews for The King and Chick were staring at them, whispering and murmuring amongst themselves. Soon, it became apparent that they weren't staring at them; they were staring at Doc. Harley glanced up towards the big screen, finding the cameras were all pointed towards Doc, and she smiled broadly. Soon, the entire stadium had caught sight of the legendary Hudson Hornet, and a thunderous, excited cheer rang out.

Harley nudged Doc's wheel with her elbow. "Hey Doc. I think we just found your big welcome."

Doc didn't say anything, but he couldn't hide his warm smile.

It took several laps, but Lightning finally managed to pass the leaders and get into the lead lap. With only sixty laps to go, the pressure was on.

The laps kept going, and before they knew it only 25 laps were left by the time Lightning caught up with Chick and The King. Chick evidently saw Lightning coming up behind him, and he knocked against Lightning's back fender with just enough force to send Lightning spinning and fall back.

"Hey!" Harley snapped. "That's a cheap trick!" But she, like most everyone (especially Chick), were surprised to see Lightning suddenly reverse and go racing backwards to pass Chick.

"Whoa! Git-R-Done!" Mater laughed. Lightning spun around to face forward again, keeping his position amongst the leaders. Mater laughed again as he smirked proudly at a couple of Chick's pit crew. "I taught him that. Ka-chow!" He reflected sunlight off his mirror and into the men's faces, Harley giggling.

"Ten to go." Harley murmured, staring at the tower where the laps were being counted. "You got this, Speed Racer."

Lightning kept right behind The King, but he could hear Chick coming up behind him. He swerved across the track, keeping the green racecar behind him at all times. But Chick managed to get alongside him and suddenly rammed into the stock car. Lightning desperately tried to move away but heard a loud Pop! Something flapped uselessly against his back fender, and he soon realized it was his tire.

"Doc, I'm flat! I'm flat!" Lightning called, panicked.

"Can you get back to the pits?" Doc asked.

"Yeah, yeah. I think so." Lightning confirmed.

"Yellow flag!" Harley called, pointing to the official at the finish line.

"Hey, got a yellow." Doc informed Lightning. "Bring it in. Don't tear yourself up, kid."

A pace car drove out in front of The King and Chick, slowing them down. But Mack voiced everyone's fears. "We gotta get him back out there fast or we're gonna be a lap down and we'll never win this race!"

Doc looked to the light blue forklift of the group. "Guido! It's time."

Guido put on an almost deadpan look, determination in his features as he gathered four tires and his drill. He ignored the taunts from Chick's pit crew, giving his drill a few whirrs. Lightning rolled into the pits, stopping right in front of Guido. Then, before everyone's eyes, Guido tossed the four tires up in the air. As each one fell, Guido unhooked the old tires and screwed on the new ones. There was a furious whirring of the drill as Guido managed to hook up new tires in four seconds flat, allowing Lightning to shoot out of the pits and back towards the track. Everyone watched anxiously, praying Lightning made it past the pace car. Doc held his breath. Come on, kid.

Lightning put on an extra burst of speed, narrowly missing the pace car as he made it out.

Everyone cheered happily. Guido blew on the nozzle of his drill, looking to Chick's pit crew. "Peet stop."

The jaws of the humans in Chick's crew dropped and the grills of the green forklifts fell off as they stared at him in shock. The Radiator Springs' residents gathered around Guido, congratulating and complimenting him. Harley kissed his roof, hugging the forklift. The blue forklift only smiled proudly, with a look that seemed to say "Yes, I am that cool."

Lightning rocketed out of the pits, the race resuming. It only took a few laps for Lightning to catch up with The King and Chick. Before anyone knew it, it was the final lap.

"This is it, kiddo." Doc told Lightning. "Drive it in deep and hope it sticks. Go!"

Lightning didn't hesitate to obey. He shot up towards Chick and The King, managing to avoid Chick's attempts to ram him and cause Chick to hit the wall. Lightning aimed his sights towards The King, picking up speed in hopes of catching the blue Superbird. But Chick suddenly came back and made a hard slam into Lightning, sending him into the grass of the infield. Chick hit The King in his whiplash, sending both of them skidding across the track in desperate attempts to regain control. Lightning felt his tires failing to grip the dirt, and his body swung to be perpendicular to the track as he desperately thought of how he could regain control.

"Drift!" Harley suddenly shouted into his radio.

Lightning was confused for a moment, but blinked in realization. Grinning determinedly, Lightning jammed his tires hard to the right, still sliding across the dirt and grass. But he felt the pressure under his tires again as the force of his turned wheels helped him regain control. Doc felt another smile grow on his face as he watched Lightning execute the maneuver. Though the expert dirt racer knew Lightning could use a little work, he was still impressed by how quickly Lightning was able to adopt the technique and use it to guide himself back onto the asphalt. In fact, he managed to pull ahead of The King and gain the lead position.

"Float like a Cadillac." Doc said with a smirk.

"Sting like a Beemer!" Lightning cheered, giving it all he had to reach his top speed.

Behind him, The King smirked. Such a move clearly impressed the veteran racer. If I'm gonna lose to anyone, I guess I'm honored to lose to you.

The entire Radiator Springs team cheered loudly, watching with excitement as Lightning rounded the final turn and sped towards the finish line and the Piston Cup.

"You go, Speed Racer!" Harley whooped, giving a loud whistle. But she caught sight of Chick and The King just in time to see Chick sideswipe The King, hard, and send the blue Superbird suddenly go flying into the air. After a few tense seconds of being airborne, The King suddenly slammed into the infield and began tumbling and flipping. Harley gasped audibly, her hand flying to her mouth as she watched The King land hard on the grass, battered and damaged. The sight bore a shocking resemblance to a certain newspaper picture Harley had seen. "Doc, look!"

Doc followed her gaze and his eyes widened at the sight of The King. Almost the entire stadium seemed to go silent from what they just witnessed. Lightning smiled away, his excitement rising as he neared the finish line, but the sound of several gasps from the audience nearby made him turn his attention to the big screen. He gasped softly when he saw The King lying limply in the infield, his eyes fluttering open. But the more Lightning stared, the more he began to see the picture of a nearly destroyed Doc Hudson. In a flash, all the memories of what Doc told him came rushing back. It seemed like some sort of omen; that The King was doomed to this fate as well.

In racing, you have to make decisions in a split-second or something could go wrong. Lightning had learned to master this art of quick-thinking, to the point where he was able to make decisions in the blink of an eye and do so without any regrets.

So he didn't even hesitate when he slammed on his brakes.

The sound of screeching brakes rang out, and Lightning left a long trail of skid marks in his wake as he came to a halt just a foot away from the finish line. He glared hard, not even caring when Chick sped past him and began cheering about his victory. Literally the entire stadium had gone silent as every man, woman, and child, human and car alike, stared in confusion and shock. Lightning's engine idled as he stared off into space, the full weight of his simple action hitting him like a rock to the roof. Only, it felt more like a pebble. Lightning looked to the ground, then back towards The King as he switched gears and reversed to the damaged racecar.

The King winced in pain, staring at Lightning. "What are you doin', kid?"

"I think The King should finish his last race." Lightning said with a smile, gently pushing against The King's bumper and rolling him to the finish line.

"You just gave up the Piston Cup." The King noted. "You know that?"

"Eh, this grumpy old racecar I know once told me somethin'." Lightning said with a small shrug. "It's just an empty cup."

Doc smiled softly, staring at Lightning with pride in his eyes. Harley smirked, giving Doc a playful shove. Lightning and The King passed the finish line, and everyone erupted into cheers.

Harley smiled warmly, clapping. "Not bad, Speed Racer. Not bad at all."

The Radiator Springs' residents joined the Rust-Eze folks as Lightning approached the Dinoco tent, still pushing The King along. Harley crossed her arms and smiled proudly, noting the genuine smile on Lightning's lips again. Something tells me he's going to be smiling like that more often. She thought, waving as Lightning approached everyone. Everybody cheered for the red stock car, clearly proud, but Lightning remained mostly focused on Doc as he approached the older racecar.

Doc smiled proudly. "You got a lot of stuff, kid."

Lightning smiled back. "Thanks, Doc." He jumped a little when Harley skated over, hugging his hood and giving him a kiss on his side.

"I'll admit: that was some mighty fine racin'." Harley said.

Lightning smirked. "Not too shabby for a jackwagon, huh?"

Harley giggled, lightly punching Lightning's fender. "Hey, Lightnin'!" The stock car and brunette turned to see Tex, the head of the Dinoco company. "How 'bout comin' over here and talk to me a minute?"

"Come on, Harley." Lightning invited, to which Harley agreed as she skated alongside him.

"Son, that was some real racin' out there." Tex complimented Lightning. "How'd you like to become the new face of Dinoco?"

Lightning blinked in surprise, and Harley's face lit up. "Really?" The girl asked excitedly.

"Yeah, really." Tex nodded.

"But I didn't win." Lightning protested.

"Lightnin', there's a whole lot more to racin' than just winnin'." Tex said.

Harley looked to Lightning with excitement in her eyes. "Go for it!" She whispered. "It's what you've been dreaming about!"

Lightning smiled, amazed Harley could remember that. But he glanced back towards the Rust-Eze folks, who chatted and laughed with Mack and the Radiator Springs' cars. What he had been dreaming about? Well, maybe not so much seen as a dream anymore, but more like a simple goal. And was it really for the right reasons? Lightning cast a look to Harley, who blinked in confusion. She couldn't understand his hesitation. But Lightning just smiled again.

"Thank you, Mr. Tex, but….." Lightning stared at his current sponsor and team. "….but these Rust-Eze guys over there gave me my big break. I think I'm gonna stick with them."

"Even though they're rusty old cars?" Harley asked with a smirk.

"I hang out with you, and you're hair looks like rust under those streaks." Lightning noted, making Harley laugh. She smiled at him, almost seeming to cast a look of approval at Lightning's decision.

"Well, I sure can respect that." Tex agreed. "Still, if there's ever anything I can do for you, just let me know."

"I sure appreciate that, thank you." Lightning said sincerely. He smirked in remembrance. "Actually, there is one thing."

"Whoo-hoo!" Mater cheered. "Hey, look at me! I'm flyin', by golly!"

"Yee-haw!" Harley whooped and laughed, hanging onto the seatbelt in the Dinoco helicopter as it flew around Radiator Springs. Tex had kindly agreed to Lightning's request to give Mater that helicopter ride he wanted. In fact, the helicopter topped off his fuel and offered to take Mater and Harley around as much as they'd like, even if it took the entire day. Needless to say, the duo were thrilled, especially as they soared over the town.

"I'm happier than a tornado in a trailer park!" Mater laughed.

Harley laughed along with him, leaning her face into the wind as they flew. Lightning had recently returned to Radiator Springs, getting his new paintjob again from Ramone and humbly asking Doc if he could stay for a while. Doc agreed without hesitation. Even he began to realize the town wasn't the same without Lightning.

Speaking of the red racer. "Hey! Kin we go up ta the Wheel Well?" Mater called to the helicopter.

"Just point me where to go!" the flying vehicle said.

"Isn't Speed Racer heading up there to find Sally?" Harley asked.

"You bet!" Mater nodded, an almost devilish smile on his face. Harley mirrored the look as the helicopter made its way to Wheel Well. "Ready, Sissy?" Mater asked as they began flying up to the cliff where Lightning and Sally would most likely be.

"Oh yeah!" Harley nodded, laughing. They finally reached the top of the cliff where, just as they predicted, Sally and Lightning rested just in front of the Wheel Well. Harley cupped her hands around her mouth so the two cars could better hear her sing-song voice. "McQueen and Sally parked beneath the tree!"

"K-I-S-S…..uh…..I-N-T!" Mater finished.

"Great timing, Mater!" Lightning called.

"Hep-non, hip-hop, hi-li-lilly!" Mater cried happily as the helicopter took off. "Whee!"

Harley laughed, staring out at the landscape. Things are gonna get a lot better now. I can feel it.

And they did. Lightning was true to the "rumor" that was spreading around and made Radiator Springs his racing headquarters. In no time, the town and Route 66, renamed Historic Route 66, were back on the map with an on-ramp connected the road to the Interstate. Within a matter of days, the town was back to its flourishing business environment. Harley spent almost a week hiding out in the clinic, having never seen so many cars and humans in the town before. Soon, she began to get more comfortable with the idea of customers regularly coming into town. She found she couldn't skate as much as she'd like during business hours, but she didn't mind too much. Many more humans started coming through town, allowing the girl to interact more with her own species. Sarge opened up a boot camp. One of the older buildings had been reconstructed to become a racing museum, complete with an entire wing dedicated to Doc. He even let Harley polish off his Piston Cup trophies and design the entire wing herself. No surprise, he was very proud of the final result. Harley bounced around at different jobs in the town, from waitress at Flo's café to nurse in Doc's clinic. Anytime one of the residents needed help, Harley would jump up and offer her services. Sheriff still stood at his post, and he found his job getting a bit busier as more cars came down the road. The old drive-in theater was finally rebuilt and started showing movies again, which became a regular activity the residents came together for every weekend. Sally worked her bumper off to finally reopen the Wheel Well. Doc became not only Lightning's crew chief, but his racing coach as well. The rest of the residents contributed what they could to be part of Lightning's pit crew. Even Harley became part of the crew, acting as a co-chief and self-proclaimed "official Lightning McQueen cheerleader."

Harley rested in her bed with a book in her lap, reading contently. She looked up to the window and smiled at the stars. She would never tell the other townsfolk, but she almost preferred busy Radiator Springs to the quiet town she grew up in. It was amazing, how much her life changed because of one racecar that Harley didn't even like at first because he almost ran her over. Now, it seemed like he was always part of the town. Harley could still see the neon glow of Sarge's and Fillmore's homes/businesses, and her smile grew.

"Isn't it time you went to sleep already?" Doc said as he came in.

Harley giggled. "I guess." She snuggled down into her blanket, setting her book aside and taking off her glasses to set them on the nightstand.

"Brush your teeth?" Doc asked.

"Brush your teeth?" Harley countered.

Doc smirked. "Same time." The two of them blew air into each other's faces, and they laughed. "Very good. Looks like I raised you all right."

Harley nodded in agreement. She sighed happily. "Hey Daddy?"

"Yeah?" Doc asked.

Harley couldn't stop smiling as she lay down. "I think we're gonna be okay."

Doc smiled warmly, kissing his daughter's head. "I think so too. Love you, Harley."

Harley yawned, allowing sleep to take over as Doc turned off the lights. "Love you, Doc."

THE END

A/N: Italian translations:

Vai: go

Con chi credi di parlare? Ma, con chi stai parlando?: Who do you think you speak? Who are you talking about?