Chapter Three- Hesitation
"Hey Taff, I was wonderin' where ya were!" Vanellope beamed brightly as the girl drove up.
Taffyta didn't say a word, her head hanging low and a gloomy look on her face.
"Hi, Nelly…." She said, hopping out of her kart.
"Hey, what's wrong?" asked Vanellope "Someone say somethin' 'bout your caterpillar brows again?"
"They are NOT-!" Taffyta growled but she blocked out the anger, taking a deep breath "Sorry…I…I'm just not having a good day."
Vanellope's eyes twinkled as she held a finger before Taffyta "Then I know the PERFECT solution for that!"
"And that would be!"
"ICE-CREAM SLEDIN'!" Vanellope jumped into the air, glitching.
Unable to hold back a giggle, Taffyta felt a bit of a smile forming on her face; she couldn't explain it but there was just something about Vanellope's energy that made her feel better, even when things were starting to look a tad bleak.
"Well…that DOES sound fun!"
"Heck yeah it does!" the raven haired raver said as she grabbed Taffyta's hand "I got the cookie sleds an' everythin'! Let's get goin' before all the good hills are taken!"
"Y-Yeah! L-last one there is a rotten egg!" Taffyta laughed as she took off.
Vanellope gasped, seeing that Taffyta had slipped away from her "Aw, nah! I'll pass ya yet, Muttonfudge!"
As the two girls left, they were unaware of two eyes watching them from the bushes. Once the girls were out of sight, the pair of eyes were only joined by a smile.
A devious smile.
A shadow crept from the bushes, moving with slick and smooth speed. It moved over to Pink Lightening, licking its chops as if the vehicle were a delicious piece of candy.
Of course, it WAS candy but eating it wasn't in the figure's mind.
No, something much worse was.
"Heheh, such a beautiful vehicle…." The figure cooed, rubbing its fingers on the shiny surface delicately "It would be a shame if something would happen to YOU….and your driver."
Back at Cookies n' Cream Hill, the two racers were having a good time sledding down the hill, all cares and anger forgotten.
At least for a while anyway.
"HEY TAFF!" Vanellope yelled as she continued to slide down the hill at top speeds "DIDN'T YA SAY YA WANTED TA TALK TA ME ABOUT SOMETHIN'?!"
"Er…." The strawberry racer looked down "W-WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT LATER!"
Before both girls knew it, it was night.
"Whew, that was fun!" Taffyta said "So, ya want me to take ya back home?"
Vanellope jolted a bit but she turned towards her friend, smiling wide "Nah! Wouldn't want ya ta waste fuel on me!"
Taffyta giggled, waving a hand "Vanellope, that's ridiculous! Ya shouldn't hafta walk home alone! It's no problem, just lemme-!"
"Meh, I can handle it!" Vanellope said "I've done it HUNDREDS of times before!"
"Yeah, an' I'm not havin' ya do it one hundred and one times!" Taffyta said in a haughty tone as she took Vanellope by her hand, pulling her towards the kart "I'm taking you home!"
The raven-haired racer pulled her hand away "NO!"
Taffyta turned, her eyes wide in shock. Vanellope gulped, realizing that she might have been a bit TOO loud.
"I mean…." She sighed "Taff, I can handle things by myself okay! Just go home so ya can rest up for the race tomorrow!"
"B-but….Nelly, I've been friend with you for so long but I've never seen your home. Can't I just do one favor for ya?"
Vanellope blushed horribly as she looked down at her feet, rubbing her arm. A wave of sadness began to wash over her but a smile formed on her face, her eyes brightening.
"Taff…can I tell ya somethin'?"
"S-sure! Tell me whatever you want!"
"I…I wanna thank ya for hangin' out with me….even if ya don't have to!"
Taffyta was stunned at the confession but at the same time, she was a little confused "Vanellope, y-you're my best friend! I would stick by ya, no matter what!"
"I know…" the raven-haired racer said, her face dropping a bit "An' as my friend, I just ask ya for one thing, okay?"
"Y-Yeah! What is it?"
"I….I'm not comfortable with people comin' over ta….ta my house. Just not yet."
Taffyta blinked; why was Vanellope so nervous all of a sudden? Didn't she trust her?
"Vanellope….is somethin' wrong?"
Vanellope looked over at Taffyta, a small but weak smile on her face "Taff, th-there's still a lotta things I hafta tell ya but….but I'm just scared! I'm scared ya won't like me if I told ya tha truth."
Taffyta's heart began to race. Was this the truth that King Candy had warned her about? Was he right in his accusations that Vanellope was stealing parts? Oh, how Taffyta hoped that it wasn't true but given the way Vanellope was acting, it was teetering close to that edge.
But then she remembered the promise that she had given the girl. Not a minuet ago, she had promised Vanellope that she would be her friend and considering how AWFUL Vanellope looked, there was no better time that Vanellope needed a friend than NOW. Without even thinking, Taffyta held Vanellope tight….
And pulled her into a hug.
Vanellope squeaked in surprised as she felt herself scooped into a hug.
"T-Taffyta?!"
"Just tell me…." The strawberry racer said, her voice cracking "Please, don't keep anything from me…"
Vanellope felt a lump forming in her throat but she was still too embarrassed to tell Taffyta the truth; the truth that she lived in Diet Cola Mountain. The truth that she lived in a hovel. The truth that she had to dig through Candy people's trash for things.
She couldn't let her know.
What would Taffyta think if she knew the truth?
"I-I can't!" the racer said, nearly to tears "I mean-! N-not yet!"
"Then when?!" asked Taffyta "Do you not trust me?! Am I not your friend!?"
"YOU ARE MY FRIEND!" Vanellope shouted "YOU'RE MY BEST FRIEND AN' I DON'T KNOW WHAT I WOULD DO IF I LOST YA!"
Silence fell on the area as the two girls looked at each other.
"H-How about this, Taff?" Vanellope squeaked "Tomorrow? After the roster race? I'll tell an' show ya everythin'…."
The strawberry racer nodded, her hands clasped together "Th-thanks great! A-at least we can finally stop hiding things from each other!"
"Yeah…." Vanellope mumbled "Right."
Taffyta shook in her boots as she began to leave "S-so, are you still sure you don't need-?"
"No…" the raven haired racer blurted "I can make it by myself."
Taffyta gave Vanellope a weak wave as she headed away from the hills, not taking her eyes off of Vanellope even as the racer disappeared from view.
"W-what is goin' on?" Taffyta asked herself.
"THAFFYTA!"
The racer squeaked in shock as she stopped, looking up at King Candy, the man looking none too pleased.
"What are ya doin out here tho late! Ya know you have a race ta run!"
"I'm sorry!" the girl said, bowing her head "I-I just was with-!"
She stopped; she knew if she told the king she was with Vanellope, she would never hear the end of it and worse! He might ban her from the race!
"I was…I was with Bezzie! She wanted to show me some of her new sledin' moves!"
The monarch sighed as he rubbed his temples before looking back at Taffyta, "Dear…I know ya wanna have fun but itth dangerous, especially with VANELLOPE glitchin' around!"
"Y-Yes, I know…"
King Candy smiled at his favorite little racer, putting his hand on her back and leading her away from the hills.
"Now, what was this about Adorabezzle teachin' ya new theldin' moves?"
"IS HE GONNA COME HERE?!" shivered Adorabezzle, Nougelstia holding her down.
"Sis, its okay! Stop shaking so much!"
"No, from what I heard, he wants her to talk with him in Hero's Duty!" Vanellope mumbled, much too angry at the moment to think straight.
"That's what he wants!" a figure said, walking up to the group.
"TAFFYTA!"
"But he ain't getting' it!" the racer said, an angry look on her face.
"What do ya mean, he's not getting' it?" asked Snowanna, raising her glasses up.
"I'm not doin' it!" Taffyta said angrily.
Vanellope was stunned, glitching out of her seat "What?!"
"I'm not playin' his games ANYMORE!" the strawberry racer said, shaking her head "He's not getting' THIS racer ta listen to his sob stories!"
"Good for you!" Sticky nodded "Somethin' tells me that guy has somethin' fishy planned anyway."
"Wow…I'm glad you're not goin' but….but I wonder…."Snowanna mumbled, a hand behind her head "How's ol' yellow-teeth gonna react ta this?"
"I told ya Nelly, I ain't goin' to talk to Turbo! I don't CARE how much he has to spill! If he wants to spill it, he can do it someone else!"
Vanellope nodded; she knew that if she were in the same position, she would probably be very hesitant as well. This was TURBO everyone was talking about! Even with the mistakes he had made, the man was still crafty enough to pull one over on anyone he talked to and with the Candy Racers involved, who knew what he had planned.
But there was something else to this that bothered Vanellope.
Why had Turbo wanted to talk all of a sudden and of all things, why the incident in Sugar Rush? Sure, he had taken over the racing game for fifteen years but he had done other things as well. Road Blasters, his absence before the takeover, this recruitment of the viruses.
Why only Sugar Rush?
And why Taffyta?
"He saw me as his favorite 'widdle' racer…." The strawberry racer growled "Or better yet, his favorite 'widdle' PAWN."
"Taff, don't beat yourself up over that. Its…its over…" Vanellope said.
"Nuh-uh, what happened we can't brush under the rug, Nelly! But….but even so, I still don't want to see him!"
"So….what now?" asked Swizzle "I mean, if Taffyta refuses, what's he gonna do?"
"He can ROT for all I care…." Taffyta said coldly.
"TAFF!"
"President Vanellope! President Vanellope!"
Vanellope turned around, seeing Sour Bill running up to her.
"Billy? What's wrong?"
"Th-there's-!" the candy ball stopped, holding out a hand so he could catch his breath "There's another news report on that you MAY want to see!"
The group of racers looked at each other as they then moved into the ice-cream parlor, a tv showing the broadcast.
"Breaking News from Hero's Duty! Turbo is setting his second plea for a chance to talk to Taffyta Muttonfudge about his crimes!"
Taffyta blushed horribly, hiding her face in her hands "Did they really hafta say my name?!"
"I don't know if Thaffyta can hear me…." The man began, the girl peeking from her hands "But if ya can, I want ya ta know….there is a reason why I wanted to talk ta ya first!"
"Pfft, yeah right!" Vanellope snorted, her arms crossed.
"For fifteen years, I pulled the wool over the eyes of EVERYONE in Sugar Rush. I did HORRIBLE things ta tha residence an' tha racers but…but my deepest regret is that I lied tho much to Thaffyta in order ta get things movin' my way."
"NO DUH YA CREEP!" the girl shouted, her face turning red "An' our reputation is no better thanks to it!"
"Taffyta, hush!" whispered Torvald.
"Tha reason I wanted ta talk ta ya was because I thought that out of everyone there….you'd be tha most understandin'! Tha most open! Tha most-!"
"SHUT IT OFF!" roared Vanellope, unable to take Turbo's lies "Urgh! That guy has a lot of nerve actin' as if HE'S the victim in all of this!"
"I know, right!" laughed Rancis.
"Ya were right about not goin' ta see him, Taff!" Vanellope said as she sat back in her chair "I wouldn't waste a precious moment of my life just to hear him spot out a buncha hot air!"
Taffyta said nothing. She only stood in the middle of the floor, her fist clenched and an angry look on grew face.
"Taffyta? Taffyta, what's wrong?"
The girl shot Vanellope a HORRID scowl, the raven haired racer almost falling off her seat.
"I think it would be best if I reconsidered…."