Chapter Three: Beginning a New Adventure
That evening, most everyone went up to Wheel Well to celebrate Lightning's return. Harley followed some time later, spying Lightning and Sally at one of the tables. No doubt they were both thrilled to see each other again. Harley didn't blame them; it was nice to see the two lovebirds together. She saw Mater carrying a tray and wearing a bowtie license plate, no doubt pretending to be a waiter to hang out with Lightning some more. Man, that guy needs a girlfriend. Harley thought with a giggle as she wandered into the Wheel Well building.
"Hey guys." Harley greeted as she approached Fillmore, Sarge, Luigi, Mater, and Guido at the bar. The men greeted her briefly before returning their attention to the television. Harley sat on the counter, following their gaze to see The Mel Dorado Show on. A green Range Rover with solar panels on his sides and roof was being interviewed, the title card below him labeling the car as Sir Miles Axlerod.
"And on satellite, a World Grand Prix competitor, and one of the fastest cars in the world: Francesco Bernoulli." Mel Dorado introduced. A new figure appeared, this time a red, white, and green Formula One racecar.
"It is an honor, Signore Dorado." Francesco said, apparently live from Rome, Italy. "For you."
Harley rolled her eyes. Oy vey.
"Miles, why not invite Lightning McQueen?" Mel asked, surprising the Radiator Springs' folks.
"Of course we invited him, but apparently after his very long racing season he is taking some time off to rest." Miles explained.
"The Lightning McQueen would not have a chance against Francesco." Francesco boasted. "I can go over three hundred kilometers an hour. In miles, that is like…way faster than McQueen!"
"That's one hundred eighty-six miles an hour." Harley droned. "And Speed Racer can go two hundred."
"Did you know about this race?" Sarge asked.
"Yeah, I got the email." Harley nodded. Being crew chief meant she was in charge of Lightning's racing email and kept track of all his races and invitations to races. "Speed Racer and I talked about it and he decided he wanted to take some time off. I don't blame him; it's been a long and quite eventful season."
"Yeah that Italian feller you got on there can't talk that way about Lightnin' McQueen. He's the bestest racecar in the whole wide world."
Harley perked up at the sound of Mater's voice on the TV, and she glanced over to where Mater was once standing. Upon finding a lack of tow truck, she and the rest of the boys turned to see Mater was on the phone nearby.
"Uh oh." Sarge said worriedly. He and everyone else turned their attention to the TV again as Francesco responded.
"If he is, how you say, 'the bestest racecar,' then why must he rest? Huh?" Francesco asked snidely.
"'Cause he knows what's important!" Mater snapped. "Ev'ry now and then he prefers jus' ta slow down, enjoy life."
"Oh! You heard it! Lightning McQueen prefers to be slow!" Francesco laughed, the argument drawing attention from the other Wheel Well patrons. "Of course, this is not news to Francesco. When I want to go to sleep, I watch one of his races. After two laps, I am out cold."
Most of the patrons gasped a bit, murmuring. "That ain't what I meant!" Mater snapped.
Harley growled a bit. "Oh I'm gonna reach right through that phone and throttle that Francesco Bernoulli!" She moved to jump off the counter only for Guido to suddenly grab her and hold her back. Harley finally stopped struggling enough to catch sight of Lightning staring at her questioningly. She and Guido gestured to the phone booth, where Mater's back end stuck out.
"Mel, can we move on?" Francesco requested, sounding bored. "Francesco needs a caller who can provide a little more intellectual stimulation, like a dump truck."
"Oh now I'm really going to kill him!" Harley growled.
"Smettila, piccolo." Guido said firmly.
"Ha-ha! That shows what you know. Dump trucks is dumb!" Mater laughed. He yelped when somebody grabbed his tow hook and yanked him out of the phone booth.
Lightning drove forward and approached the phone. "Yeah, hi. This is Lightning McQueen."
"The Lightning McQueen, huh?" Francesco looked happy to actually talk to McQueen.
"Look, I don't appreciate my best friend being insulted like that." Lightning said, trying to keep a lid on his anger.
Francesco smirked. "This is the difference between you and Francesco. Francesco knows how good he is. He does not need to surround himself with tow trucks to prove it."
"Those are strong words from a car that is so fragile." Lightning said with a smirk.
Harley immediately busted up laughing. "Oh! Burn!"
"Fragile?! He-a calls Francesco fragile?!" Francesco shouted, his mood doing a complete 180. "Not-a so fast, McQueen!"
"'Not so fast.'" Lightning mused. "What is that, you're new motto?"
"Motto?!" Francesco snapped, beginning to shout in Italian until Mel could shut off the Formula One car's mic.
"Well, this sounds like something that needs to be settled on the race course." Miles noted. "What do you say, Lightning McQueen?"
"Well, I would love to." Lightning said. "Except my crew is off for the season, so…." He heard the distinct sound of spraying paint, and he looked to the counter to see Ramone painted a quick banner that read "Team Lightning McQueen." Luigi, Sarge, and Fillmore stood ready with smiles. Guido quickly and skillfully popped the corks off some champagne bottles and Harley twirled her wrench.
"Peet stop!" Guido called.
Lightning smirked. "You know what? They just got back. Deal me in, baby. Ka-chow!"
The entire Wheel Well cheered for the racer. Lightning hung up the phone and reversed out just in time to catch Harley skating over to hug him. "All right, Speed Racer. Looks like we're goin' on a road trip."
"You sure you don't mind?" Lightning asked. "It's gonna be a long way from home."
"Yeah, but Radiator Springs will still be here when I get back." Harley assured. "No way are you goin' without me."
Lightning chuckled, looking to Sally as the Porsche approached. "I know, I know, I just got back. But we won't be long—"
"Oh no, don't worry about me." Sally assured. "Mater's going to have a blast, though." She noticed the change in Lightning's expression. "Oh come on, Stickers. You never bring him to any of your races." Lightning and Harley cast a look towards said tow truck just in time to see him taste a drink only to spit it back in the cup again. They both smirked. Sally could sort of understand Lightning's hesitance; Mater wasn't exactly professional unless it came to his line of work. The guy was like a young boy in a man's body. But she knew it would mean the world to him if he could join his best friend and little sister on such an adventure. "Just let him sit in the pits. Give him a headset. It will be the thrill of a lifetime for him."
"I can keep an eye on him too." Harley offered. "He'll listen to me." Lightning couldn't argue with that. Harley and Mater shared a very close bond as surrogate siblings, and Mater often did whatever Harley said.
"Your drink, sir." Mater said as he came up.
"Mater." Lightning said.
"I didn't taste it!" Mater said hurriedly.
Lightning smiled. "How'd you like to come and see the world with me?"
Mater gasped, smiling broadly. "You mean it?"
"Yeah! You got me into this thing. You're comin' along." Lightning confirmed.
"All right!" Mater cheered.
The next day, Ramone decked out Lightning with some new racing decals: flame accents, his number 95, and a Hudson Hornet Piston Cup logo painted on his hood. Ramone was also able to paint on the World Grand Prix logo with the American flag and install a set of headlights onto the red stock car. Along with Mater, Lightning chose Luigi, Guido, Sarge, and Fillmore to join him as his pit crew with Harley. Each of the vehicles received a large sticker shaped like a flame with a number 95 on it, labeling them as Lightning's team. Harley received a black T-shirt with the sticker printed on the front, along with the words "Crew Chief" printed in red underneath the sticker.
Days later, the team boarded a jet and departed for Tokyo, Japan, where the first race would take place. Sheriff, Ramone, Flo, Sally, and Red saw them off, with some sobbing on Red's part. The plane ride was comfortable, especially since they were able to get first class seats. Harley spent much of her time on the flight with Mater and Lightning, reading through a Japanese language book to at least have a basic understanding of how to speak the language. She tried to teach the boys some of it, but they were too distracted watching Japanese game shows the entire flight.
Upon arriving in Japan, Harley decided to mostly ride in Mater's flatbed for the sake of not getting run over in the busy streets. She stared in wonder at the city of Tokyo, amazed by it all. She had never been to such a big city before in her entire life, and the tall buildings surrounding her made the brunette feel rather small. But she continued to stare in awe. The team spent a few days in Tokyo, getting a look around the area. Harley insisted on going to see a geisha dance, which the rest of the team seemed to enjoy. Mater got a little too into it, getting a strange red and white paintjob along with a wig and paper umbrella. Harley managed to bite back her giggles, but she could see Lightning was a bit embarrassed. So she suggested a sumo match the next day, which allowed Lightning and Mater to go wild with cheering. The team relied much on Harley's language skills, even if she spoke in very broken and rough Japanese.
Finally, the night before the race came. Miles Axlerod invited all the competitors and their teams to a major pre-game party celebrating the start of the race. The party setting featured flashing camera lights, a calm yet exciting atmosphere, and plenty of good music. It was hard to hide the excitement as the Radiator Springs team rolled into the large building where the party took place.
"Look at this!" Lightning breathed, amazed by the beautifully built and decorated building. "Mater, remember: best behavior."
"You got it, buddy." Mater nodded. "Hey, what's that?" He sped off before Lightning could stop him.
"Mater!" Lightning called.
"Don't worry, I'll go keep an eye on him." Harley assured, skating after her surrogate brother.
Mater rolled up to a section of the room blocked off by glass windows. Inside was a smaller vehicle dragging a rake through the sand. Mater tapped his tow hook against the glass, catching the attention of the vehicle (and some of the patrons around him). "Hey! You done good. You got all the leaves."
Harley giggled. "Mater, he's not raking leaves. It's called rock gardening. It's a very Zen-like. He's carving the sand to make it look like ocean waves."
"Oh!" Mater nodded. He looked to the vehicle inside. "Good job!"
"Mater!" Lightning hissed, making Mater and Harley jump. They began rolling off and away from the glass. "Listen, this isn't Radiator Springs."
"Yer just realizin' that?" Mater asked, surprised.
"Mater, look, things are different over here." Lightning explained gently. "Which means maybe you should, you know, act a little different too."
"Lightning." Harley hissed, frowning a bit.
"Different than what?" Mater asked.
"Well, just help me out here, buddy." Lightning said.
"You need help?" Mater perked up. "Why didn't you jus' say so? That's what a tow truck does."
Lightning mentally sighed. "Yeah, I mean….."
"Hey, looky there!" Mater gestured to a corner of the room where a familiar Formula One stood. "It's Mister San Francisco! I'll introduce you."
"Mater, no!" Lightning groaned as he and Harley were forced to follow Mater up to the platform where Francesco stood.
"Look at me. I'm helpin' you already!" Mater said proudly. "Hey Mister San Francisco!"
Francesco turned to see the familiar racecar. "Ah, Lightning McQueen! Buona sera."
Lightning swallowed a bit, but put on a friendly smile. "Nice to meet you, Francesco."
"Nice to meet you too." Francesco said, brushing off the greeting. "You are very good-looking. Not as good as I thought, but you're good. And-a certainly not as good as-a this beautiful flower here." He looked to Harley at that last comment. "Buona sera, fiore."
Harley blinked, her cheeks going a bit red. "Oh, thank you. And buona sera. Il mio nome é Harley Hudson."
"Ah, and-a such good taste in language!" Francesco laughed.
"Your drink, Francesco." A young human man said as he came up, setting a drink down before the Formula One.
"Grazie." Francesco said. He looked to Harley. "This is-a Raul. He is a part of my crew."
"And what an honor it is to be part of your crew, signore." Raul said. "So much easier to change the tires without the fenders." He approached Harley and took her hand in his. "Don't you-a think so, signorina?" He kissed the girl's hand.
Harley had stopped blushing, and she chuckled albeit nervously. "Honey, I'm more than just the crew; I'm the crew chief." She slid her hand from Raul's grasp, smirking.
"Ah, I love a woman who can-a take charge." Raul chuckled walking off. Harley chuckled a bit too before the sound morphed to a groan.
"Kin I git a picture with you?" Mater asked Francesco.
"Anything for McQueen's friend." Francesco agreed, allowing Mater to roll up beside him so the pictures could be taken.
"Miss Sally is gonna flip when she sees this!" Mater gushed in his excitement. "She's Lightning McQueen's girlfriend. She's a big fan of yers."
"Mater's prone to exaggeration." Lightning explained with a smile. "She's not a 'big fan.'"
"Yer right. She's a huge fan!" Mater corrected. "She goes on and on about yer open wheels, here."
"Well, mentioning it once doesn't qualify as going on and on." Lightning protested.
"Dude, that night back at Wheel Well was just the first time she said it while you were in earshot." Harley whispered to Lightning, making him blink in surprise.
"Francesco is familiar with this reaction." Francesco assured. "Women respect a car that has-a nothing to hide."
Lightning faltered a bit at the subtle, backhanded comment. It took every ounce of willpower Harley had to not slap that smirk right off Francesco's face.
"Let us have a toast!" Francesco suggested. "I dedicate my win tomorrow to Miss Sally."
"Oh, sorry, I already dedicated my win tomorrow to her." Lightning said, a smile still on his face. "Besides, I don't have a drink."
"Well I go git ya one!" Mater offered, not catching Lightning's point that he kind of wanted to leave. "Hey, you mind if I borrow a few bucks fer one of them drinks?"
"They're free, Mater." Lightning droned.
"Free?" Mater exclaimed. "Well shoot, what am I doin' here?" He turned and sped off, much to Harley's amusement.
Lightning fought the urge to roll his eyes. "I should probably go keep an eye on him. See ya at the race."
"Yes, you will see Francesco." The Italian racecar said, halting Lightning and Harley's attempt to leave. "But not like this. You will see him like-a this, as he drives away from you." Francesco turned around and showed his bumper to McQueen, where he had stamped stickers that read "Ciao McQueen."
Lightning forced a chuckle. "Hey, that's cute. Did you have one of those made for all the racers?"
Francesco turned to smirk at McQueen. "No."
"Okay." Lightning smirked as he drove off, Harley skating right beside him.
"Ciao, McQueen!" Francesco called.
Lightning glared. "He is so getting beat tomorrow."
"Oh relax." Harley waved a hand dismissively. "You could wipe the floor with his oh so fancy open wheels."
"Hey, I thought you said you were gonna keep an eye on Mater." Lightning said.
"Lightning, he can't help but be himself." Harley shrugged. "I'm sure he'll stay out of trouble. You just focus on socializing with everybody."
"Yeah, but—" Lightning was interrupted by a voice over a speaker system, introducing Sir Miles Axlerod. "Oh! We're starting!"
"Well come on!" Harley urged. "Let's go check it out!"
With most everyone focused on Miles introducing the racers, Finn and Emily found that sneaking into the building was much easier than they thought. They drove/walked casually through the crowd before finding a more secluded and private location just behind one of the art structures in the building. Emily kept a lookout for suspicious characters while Finn activated his camera, scanning the television cameras near Miles for matches to the camera from the derrick. Much to his vexation, none of the cameras matched, but he did take notice of a purple Jaguar milling about the area. The moment she locked eyes onto him, however, the Jaguar began making her way over.
"Ooh, sexy hot rod at twelve o'clock, eh Finn?" Emily chuckled, only to yelp in pain when Finn kicked her with his tire. He put on his normal, suave smile as the Jaguar approached.
"Oh, hello." The Jaguar greeted, her soft feminine tone laced with British dialect.
"Hello." Finn returned the greeting in his own accent.
"A Volkswagen Karmann Ghia has no radiator." The Jaguar said.
"That's because it's air-cooled." Finn replied.
The Jaguar smiled warmly. "I'm Agent Holley Shiftwell from the Tokyo station. I have a message from London."
"Not here." Finn whispered, beginning to drive off and forcing Emily and Holley to follow. The three of them entered one of the glass elevators, giving them the privacy they needed to talk. "So the lab boys analyzed the photo? What did they learn about the camera?"
"It appears to be a standard television camera." Holley said. "But the oil platforms you were on? They're sitting on the biggest oil reserve in the world."
"How did we miss that?" Finn wondered aloud.
"They've been scrambling everyone's satellites." Holley explained. "The Americans discovered it just before you did and placed an agent on that platform under deep cover." Holley explained. "He was able to get a photo of the car who's running the entire operation."
"Great." Finn nodded, the three of them exiting the elevator. "Miss Largo, any idea who this undercover agent is?"
"How should I know? Not in my unit, most likely not in my department." Emily explained with an almost bored tone. "I tracked that area for quite a while before I was allowed to go near it. Which means I need to have a serious talk with my supervisor."
"Then who is it?" Finn asked Holley. "Has anyone seen the photo yet?"
"Nope, not yet." Holley replied. "The American is here tonight to pass it to you. He'll signal you when he's ready."
"Good, good." Finn nodded, smiling a bit. Things were finally falling into place. Of course, that was the one moment when everything went wrong. Finn's eyes widened a bit at the sight of Zündapp, two Gremlins, and a Pacer entering the building. "Oh no." Finn murmured, reversing backwards and out of sight. Emily and Holley turned to him in surprise.
"What is it?" Holley asked.
"Change of plan." Finn told the Jaguar. "You're meeting the American."
"What?" Holley asked, surprised. "Me?"
"Those thugs down there were on the oil platform and think I'm dead." Finn explained. "If they see me, the whole mission is compromised."
"No, no." Holley shook her hood. "I'm technical, you see. I'm in diagnostics. I'm not a field agent."
Finn smirked. "You are now."
Holley swallowed. "Um…."
"Oh just lug nut up and get out there." Emily huffed.
Holley stared at Emily, rather insulted. "Excuse me? I haven't been trained as a field agent! Forgive me if I feel unprepared for such a task!"
Emily sighed, but she could understand Holley's hesitance. Emily knew the feeling of jumping into a new job as a field agent when working on a computer made up the beginning of one's career. "Tell you what: there's a chance those guys won't recognize me." Emily offered. "I'll go stealth and watch your back…er, trunk."
Holley cast a slightly irritated glare at Emily before looking to Finn worriedly. "Are you sure about this?"
"It's our only chance." Finn confirmed.
Holley took a deep breath. "All right. I'll do it."
A/N: Italian translations, which I had to get from Google Translate so apologies to those fluent in the language:
Smettila – stop it
Buona sera – good evening
Fiore – flower
Il mio nome é Harley Hudson – My name is Harley Hudson (probably easy to guess)
Grazie – Thank you