Chapter 13

11 Years Ago

"There's nothing scheduled today so the track's all yours Mr. Xiao-Long." The track manager said.

"Thanks." Taiyang said. The pain of returning to Forever Fall was intense but he felt like it was something he had to do. Carrying a small bag he walked out of the office and made his way to the track. It had been a few months since Summer's accident but he could still see it in his mind as clearly as if it had just happened. He walked down the back straight, crying as he relived those fateful moments.

Taiyang walked off the corner to the armco, a shiny new stretch in place of the barrier Summer's car had obliterated. There had been more. He had seen her sailing limply through the air, but he was fairly certain that this was the spot where her life had ended. He reached into his bag and pulled out a small wooden cross emblazoned with Summer's name. He jabbed it into the ground and tapped it down with his hand. Reaching back into his back he grabbed a single rose and placed it before the cross before sitting down beside it. The track managers had discussed placing a permanent monument there, but there was always that kind of talk after a driver was killed, and rarely did anything materialize. Taiyang was compelled to ensure there was something there, however fleeting, to honor Summer's memory. After the years of joy she had given him, it was the least he could do.

Taiyang had not really been sure what he would do when he got there. A few scenarios had played in his mind but not the one that actually came to pass. He sat there thinking, about the past and the future, happy times and sad, for hours. He was surprised he was physically capable of crying for so long. All he could do was sit there, staring down at the grass. He lost all concept of time. After arriving sometime near midday, he became dimly aware that the sun was beginning to set. Had he been there that long?

Taiyang heard a car approaching. He looked up to see a beat-up family sedan rounding the turn from the direction of the start/finish straight. Was the manager he had spoken to earlier getting worried? He probably should have been worried. No, he recognized the car. Unbelievable.

The car slid to a stop right in front of him. The driver's door opened on the other side of the car and Qrow stepped out. He walked over and sat beside Taiyang. He was not stumbling and something in his eyes indicated an abnormal alertness. For once he did not smell like alcohol.

"Qrow, are you sober?" Taiyang asked.

"I wasn't about to drive over here wasted." Qrow said. "I even waited two hours after the call to make sure."

"Who called?" Taiyang asked.

"Ozpin." Qrow replied. "The manager here was getting worried about you. He said you were sitting here crying for two hours. That was four hours ago, and here you still are. Ozpin called me because he couldn't make it out but wanted someone to check on you."

"Thanks, but I'll be fine." Taiyang said. "Wait, you were watching the kids. Did you leave them alone?!"

"I might be a drunk but I'm not an idiot." Qrow said. "Besides, I thought they should have the chance to pay their respects as well."

"You brought them!" Taiyang shouted. "Damnit Qrow! I would have preferred you left them alone."

"Why, planning something they shouldn't see?" Qrow pressed.

"Of course not, what would give you that idea?" Taiyang asked nervously.

"Well your gun wasn't at home." Qrow said. "Neither was your holster."

"You thought I was going to kill myself and you didn't rush over immediately?" Taiyang said.

"I was giving you a little credit." Qrow said. "Besides, it's a two hour drive so I figured it wouldn't matter much. I was not going to drive drunk with the girls in the car. I had the manager watching you anyway. He would have stepped in if you did anything rash. I'm kind of surprised you didn't notice him, he's not exactly stealthy."

Surprised, Taiyang looked up to see the manager from earlier standing across the track. Could he really have been there the whole time? "Qrow, what do you want from me?" Taiyang asked.

"A good start would be handing over the gun." Qrow replied. "Then I want you to come home to your family."

"Maybe that's not a good idea." Taiyang said. "I can't take care of them, not without Summer. I can't do anything without her. What's the point anyway?"

"The point?!" Qrow shouted. "You have two kids! They've already lost their mother. Do you want them to lose their father too? How selfish are you going to be? What kind of life do you think they'll have without you? My sister's not going to take care of them. I'd try but you know what kind of influence I'd be. They need their father."

"They need a good father." Taiyang said. "I don't think that's me."

"It has to be, you're the only one they've got." Qrow said. "And you know damn well you can do it. You're just afraid. So, are you going to take the coward's way out or man up and take responsibility?"

"I'm sorry." Taiyang said. He reached into his coat and withdrew his gun, handing it to Qrow. Qrow checked the safety before slipping it into his pocket. "And thank you."

"Don't mention it." Qrow said. "Now, what do you say we give the girls a chance to say goodbye then all go home together?"

"I guess that would be for the best." Taiyang sighed.

Qrow got up and walked to the car, opening the back door for Ruby and Yang. "Were you and dad fighting?" Ruby asked, looking a little scared.

"No, I just had to cheer him up a bit." Qrow said with a gentle smile. "You know how he gets when he thinks about your mother. He was feeling down but he should be better now." He turned to Taiyang and gave him a pointed look. Be happier or else. Taiyang got the message.

Present Day

Yang and Ruby stood before the stone monument sitting just outside the final corner of the Forever Fall Forest Circuit. It was a simple rectangular stone with the image of a rose on it. Ruby had visited her mother's grave often but had not been here since she was a child. Yang stood back while Ruby spoke, talking to her mother about what was happening in her life as if she were having a normal, if one-sided, conversation. After a few minutes she stepped away. Rather than looking sad she looked happier than before. "I'm ready." She said to Yang.

Yang nodded and stepped forward. She knelt and placed her hand on the stone. "I still miss you." She said. "I hope I'm making you proud." Yang wiped away a stray tear as she stood. She gave Ruby a big hug, too tight for her liking. Yang backed up and held Ruby at arm's length. "I know she would be so proud of you. Come on then, let's get to work." Yang and Ruby started walking back toward the garage.

"Hold on a moment, please." Ozpin said. He walked up and laid a rose on the monument, just as he did every year. "For a long time now, I've wanted to apologize." He said, almost choking in the words. "What happened...it has to be at least partially my fault. It was my car. The buck stops with me. I'm sorry for all you've had to go through, as a family and individually. If I could…"

"You can't keep blaming yourself." Ruby said. "Accidents happen and it was nobody's fault."

"Racing is dangerous and she knew the risks." Yang added. "The last thing she would want anyone to do is blame themselves for it. You were very good to her and dad, and she would want you to be happy."

"I suppose she would." Ozpin said. He pushed up his glasses, hiding his eyes more than usual. "Well, I think we've all spent enough time in the past today. It's time we shifted our focus to the present."

"I agree, I have a car to prepare." Ruby said. "Well, my part might not matter much, but I'm sure Blake could use a hand with the engines."

"If you're ready, I'm ready." Yang said. She put her arm around Ruby's shoulders and they walked back to the garage.

"Are you two alright?" Weiss asked as Ruby and Yang returned. She had lost her mother too and knew the pain.

"We're fine." Yang said. "I think Ozpin is actually the one we need to be worried about."

"That's a relief." Blake said, not looking up from the engine she was working on. "You need to be totally focused on the task at hand. If you're going to be fast here, there's no room for error."

"Oh, Yang, I wanted to show you something!" Ruby cut in. Most of the body panels were still detached from the cars and Ruby knelt beside Yang's. She pointed at a series of tubes and cables.

"What am I looking at?" Yang asked.

"I installed a redundant brake system." Ruby said. "It's just for this race. It's not as strong as the main system, but if you lose that it should be enough to slow you down to a relatively safe speed."

"I'm not sure this is necessary." Yang said. "We've never had brake problems and I don't expect them to pop up here."

"I just wanted to make sure what happened to mom doesn't happen to you." Ruby said. "It's installed on Weiss' car too. I want you both to be safe."

"Thanks, but won't it be a little heavy?" Weiss asked.

"Not really." Ruby replied. "We use smaller brake discs here, and the weight we save on that is greater than what I've added. I guess I could remove it if you want."

"No, that's alright." Weiss said. "After the last race I could use some piece of mind."

Tukson was gone but the WFR team was still running, and with two cars. At Adam's insistence, his replacement had been hired almost immediately following the race. Now the second WFR car would be driven by Francois Banesaw, an F2 driver and trusted friend of Adam. The speed with which Tukson had been replaced and Adam's insistence on continuing as if nothing had happened struck many as rather unseemly. Still, it was how F1 tended to work.

Ironwood appeared just outside the Beacon GP garage. "Ms. Rose, may I borrow you for a moment?" He asked.

"Sure, just give me a second." Ruby said as she completed an adjustment. She slid out from under Weiss' car and walked up to Ironwood. "What is it?"

"I'm having some difficulty with one of my drivers...Penny." Ironwood explained. "You seem to be the only friend she has at the track, so I was hoping you could talk to her. Given the circumstances, I find it very appropriate."

"Of course I'll talk to her." Ruby said. "Where is she?"

"She's in our team's trailer." Ironwood replied. "I'll tell the crew to give you access. I hope I'm not interfering with your work."

"It's fine, I was just finishing up." Ruby said. "There really isn't much for me to do anyway. I'll head right over."

"She's right in there." Ironwood said, pointing to a closed-off room inside the trailer.

Ruby opened the door to find Penny sitting in the corner crying. "Penny, what's wrong?" Ruby asked, shocked to see her in this state. Penny was probably the happiest person she knew.

"I...I...I can't...I can't do it." Penny stammered.

"Do what?" Ruby asked.

"Drive." Penny replied. "I'm too afraid. I don't want to die like Tukson."

Ruby walked over and sat beside Penny, putting her arm around her shoulders. "That's what this is about?" Ruby said. "It's okay to be afraid and I know you're brave enough to keep driving."

"How can the others not be terrified?" Penny continued. "I never really paid attention before, but after the Emerald Forest I did some research and...there are so many...so many dead."

"Everyone's scared." Ruby said. "Yang's scared and Weiss is scared and I'm scared for them. It's totally normal."

"If they're so scared, how can they keep racing?" Penny asked.

"Every driver has a different way of dealing with it." Ruby said. "Weiss gets really focused on making sure everything's perfect before the race starts. Yang tells a lot of jokes. Once they get in their cars they're too focused on driving to think about anything else." Penny seemed unconvinced. "My mom died in a crash at this track. It was just bad luck, there was nothing anyone could have done. She knew how dangerous it was, but she loved racing. Even if she knew how it would end, I don't think that would have stopped her. Don't you love driving?"

"I do...but…" Penny started. "I don't know."

"You can't let fear get in the way of things you love." Ruby said. "Yang knows what could happen, but if she didn't race she wouldn't be happy. My father gave into his fear, but it just made him miserable and eventually he forced himself to overcome it. If you don't get past this, you'll be miserable too. It hurts me so much to see you like this. You're always happy, always smiling. I want that Penny back, and I know that won't happen unless you're doing what you love."

"Maybe you're right." Penny sighed. "Maybe I just have to do it. I don't want to die but I don't want to be sad either."

"That's the spirit!" Ruby encouraged. "Come on, I'm sure everything will be fine. Practice is starting soon. Get in that car and overcome your fear!"

Penny leapt to her feet. "I will!" She declared. "Thank you Ruby. I'm going to get out there and be happy!" She charged straight out of the trailer. Ruby could not help but think about how strange her friend could be.

Practice results were incredibly discouraging to most of the field. Penny led with Ciel second, a sizable margin ahead of anyone else. Coco, Yatsuhashi, Mercury and Emerald were fairly close to each other, swapping the next four spots. Then there was a big gap back to Yang and Weiss and another decent gap to everyone else. The track was pure speed and the best engine would almost certainly win. Even Pyrrha's incredible skill was not enough to crack the top 10. There were simply not enough turns. Blake's modifications may have added power to Beacon GP's engines, but it was not nearly enough.

Time trials showed the difference in times was not a fluke. As the clock wound down, Yang and Weiss were seventh and eighth, with Sun and Neptune not far behind. The had apparently found some speed. Pyrrha was still nowhere and the top six were the same as in practice. The only thing really to be decided would be the exact order.

Yang and Weiss went out at the same time. They hoped that by using the draft to slingshot past one another on the straights they could gain some speed. Yang ran in front as the exited the final corner, an unwinding right-hander. As they pair flashed across the line Weiss built up speed, moved right and rocketed past. She moved back to the left and Yang tucked in behind her. They slowed a little for the first turn, a nearly flat-out right sweeper. Early in the corner there was something of a run-off area but by the exit the armco was tight to the track. Yang built up momentum on exit and flashed past as they pair hooked through the slight left-hand kink just before the track's tightest corners. They ran nose-to-tail through the first, a slow but sweeping right-hander. After a short straight was the second, another right that was more abrupt and tight, but an obtuse angle that allowed for more speed. They pulled out onto another long straight, a slight left-hand kink taken flat-out in the middle. Weiss flashed past just before the next corner, a gentle left-hander. They barely slowed for the turn then accelerated hard out onto the back straight. Halfway down the straightaway Yang drove past Weiss on the right before pulling back to the left to prepare for the final corner. Both drivers braked hard and slid through the banked and unwinding right-hander, getting back on the throttle as soon as they dared. Weiss got a good run off the turn and they crossed the line side-by-side.

The Beacon GP pair had gotten closer, but not improved their position. Weiss did jump Yang for seventh. Ahead of them Penny had easily grabbed the pole with Ciel a comfortable second. Coco, Mercury, Emerald and Yatsuhashi put in almost identical times to take the next four spots. After Weiss and Yang were Sun and Neptune. Pyrrha ended up a disappointing fifteenth, Jaune last.

At least Team Juniper would have more to look forward to the following year. For the next season they had made a deal with Ozpin to combine the two teams' engine programs. There was also hope that they could work out a deal with Schnee Automotive to provide at least year-old motors that would be an improvement over anything else on the market. The prospects for that looked a bit dim as the higher-ups at Schnee recognized the pace Pyrrha and the Beacon GP drivers had, and so were reluctant to make them faster. If Penny managed to win the title though, it might just happen.

Race day was warm and dry, a tremendous disappointment to everyone save Schnee Automotive. It had been clear all weekend that only rain could derail their dominance. That morning Penny looked focused, more serious than ever before, but by race time she was all smiles. As the cars rolled around on their parade lap she was still smiling. They lined up on the grid and the starter raised his flag. After a brief wait it dropped and the cars roared off to start the Forever Fall Grand Prix.

Penny got a perfect start, as she usually did, and pulled out a decent lead over Ciel by the time the cars arrived at the first corner. Mercury jumped into third and Coco slipped in behind him as the cars dove into the turn. Further back Weiss held on ahead of Yang, and Pyrrha was up to eleventh after a blinding start. Things were already starting to spread out by the time the cars reached the back straight. Penny led with Ciel tucked in behind. Mercury, Coco, Emerald and Yatsuhashi made up a tight pack with a small gap back to Weiss and Yang. Then there was another small gap back to Sun and Neptune. Pyrrha tried but she soon fell back. When the cars reached turn 1 for the second time she had already fallen to thirteenth.

From there things spread out. Penny and Ciel pulled away, Ciel not daring to even attempt a pass. Coffee Inc. and Phase Two traded positions on just about every straight, completely unable to get away from each other. Weiss and Yang swapped spots as did Sun and Neptune, going back and forth as the draft carried them along. Behind them it was chaos. A four car breakaway fought tooth and nail. Then came Pyrrha, alone on track, her lead over the next five fluctuating wildly from lap to lap. Jaune was in a fight at the back, shuffling positions with the other slowest four cars.

Some good news for the field came on lap 23. Yatsuhashi's engine went up in smoke, proving that at least the previous year's Schnee design was vulnerable. Attrition began to take its toll. Sun's engine failed two laps later, shaking itself to pieces when a loose part caused it to become unbalanced. Cardin and Sky lost engines within a lap of each other and Adam dropped out of the race when his transmission failed.

By lap 47, little had changed as far as the order. At the back Jaune was still fighting with some slower cars. He headed into the final corner but at the last second Amber Autumn of Maiden Racing dove to his right. She was going too fast to make the corner. She barely clipped the right-front of Jaune's car with her left-rear. Her car was pitched into a spin, brakes locked, and skidded off the track. In the grass the damaged left-rear suspension caught and flipped the car just before it slammed into the armco barrier top-first. Jaune's car spun off the track at a lower rate of speed and smacked into the guardrail beside her, pancaking the left side.

It was a hard hit for Jaune, leaving him a bit dizzy. Still, he was aware of the danger of fire and climbed out as quickly as possible. Amber's car lay on its side, almost upside-down a little further along, and judging by the angle she would not be able to get out without assistance. Knowing her car could catch fire just as easily as his, he hurried over and vainly tried to push it back onto its wheels. He was not strong enough to do it alone, but at least there did not appear to be any fuel leaking. He ducked down to the cockpit to check on the driver. "Amber, are you alright?" He asked. There was no response. He ducked in closer. "Amber?" Her eyes were open, darting about in terror. It looked as though she was desperately trying to speak. Jaune stood up. A group of marshals was rushing over, along with some nearby fans. "She's hurt! We need help!"

The combined effort of the track workers and Jaune managed to turn the car over onto its wheels. Amber was unconscious by the time she was lifted from the car and transferred to a waiting ambulance. Jaune decided not to go. Amber was clearly in bad shape and he did not want to be in the way. Besides, he did not think he was that badly hurt, maybe a broken collar bone. He could wait. When the track was clear he ran across and made his way to the garage area.

With yellow flags waving for almost a dozen laps, passing was banned at the final corner. The other drivers continued around, not paying much attention. There were plenty of places to pass and this accident did not have the fiery horror of Tukson's.

On lap 66, just two from the finish, Emerald's car ground to a halt, its engine having failed. Suddenly the Beacon GP drivers were both in points-paying positions. Yang was ahead as the pair started the final lap. Weiss got a good run down the main straight but did not pass, instead just tucking in behind Yang. Yang knew what Weiss was planning. They rounded the track, Weiss remaining just behind Yang. Weiss held back as they blasted out of the corner that led onto the back straight. Using the draft Weiss got a very good run and moved right. Yang matched to block and Weiss jumped to the left. Yang could not block or they would crash and Weiss completed the pass. Yang made one last attempt to take the spot on entry to the final corner but came up short. Yang got alongside as they crossed the line but Weiss had clearly taken the position.

In front Penny had won easily. Ciel never even attempted to pass. She knew her place. She was only there to help Penny win the championship. Third was Coco followed by Mercury. Sun and Neptune were seventh and eighth, just outside the points, and Pyrrha was a disappointing thirteenth. Some of the drivers were a bit concerned about Amber, but there was no news on her condition so celebrations went on as normal.

There had probably never been anyone happier to win a grand prix than Penny. She stood on the podium sporting a big smile, waving to the fans below. She seemed fit to burst. Ciel was happy to finish second and almost managed a smile. Penny hugged her and Coco repeatedly, unable to contain her joy. When Ironwood arrived as a representative of the team Penny hugged him too. Her childlike happiness was infectious and even the usually stern Ironwood could not help but smile and laugh.

After the ceremony Ironwood made his way to Beacon GP's garage, still carrying his trophy. Inside the crew was packing up while Weiss and Yang debriefed with Ruby and Blake. "Ms. Rose, can I speak to you?" Ironwood asked.

"Sure." Ruby said. "Go ahead."

"I have to thank you for talking to Penny." Ironwood said. "I don't know what you said, but she's back to her old self. She never would have won without you."

"Don't mention it." Ruby said. "I was just helping a friend."

"Be that as it may, you should be rewarded." Ironwood said. "It's not much, but have this." He handed Ruby his trophy. Ruby took it looking stunned. "Your parents were good friends of mine, good people. It warms my heart to see you take after them."

"Hello James." Ozpin said, just arriving. "You don't have to do this you know. I'm sure Mr. Schnee will be less than pleased when he finds out you gave away his trophy."

"I don't really care what he thinks." Ironwood said. "I'm just doing what's right." He paused for a moment. "Speaking of which, I'm going to push to get you that engine deal but I can't make any promises."

"Anything you can do would be more than enough." Ozpin said.

"I actually have another reason for coming here." Ironwood admitted. "I've been instructed to replace Ciel for the remainder of the season with one of your drivers. Full disclosure, Pyrrha was Mr. Schnee's first choice but she rejected the offer. I'm to offer Ms. Polendina's services for next season as a trade. This would go a long way toward getting those engines."

"I'll pass." Yang said immediately. "I'm happy with the team we've got here and I know you're not going to take them along too."

Ironwood nodded and looked to Weiss. "And you?" He asked.

"You know where I stand." Weiss said. "I will not drive for my father."

"I assumed as much." Ironwood said. "I'm sorry if this made you uncomfortable but I had to ask. Thank you for your time." He bowed politely and walked out.

"Yang, are you really sure?" Weiss asked after Ironwood was gone. "You could win the championship if you drive for them."

"So could you." Yang said. "We could win it here too. My father spent his whole career with this team and I intend to do the same, so long as they'll have me."

"I don't plan on going anywhere either." Ruby said.

"I'll never work for Schnee again." Blake added.

"It's pretty embarrassing to say it but I kind of like it here." Weiss said. "I'd even consider you guys my...friends."

"Stop the presses!" Yang shouted. "Weiss has a soul!"

"Hey!" Weiss protested. Everyone got a good laugh out of it.

After the race there was little laugh about. Amber was dead. The impact had broken her neck and she succumbed a few hours later in the hospital. It was two deaths in two races. Maiden Racing withdrew from the remainder of the season. But the drivers went on as they always did. There was another race to run and they were going to run it. Why not? Death was something that happened to other people.

Standings after seven races:

1st - Penny Polendina - 27

2nd - Winter Schnee - 24

2nd - Yang Xiao-Long - 24

2nd - Pyrrha Nikos - 24

5th - Weiss Schnee - 23

6th - Coco Adel - 14

7th - Yatsuhashi Daichi - 11

8th - Sun Wukong - 8

8th - Ciel Soleil - 8

10th - Mercury Black - 6

11th - Emerald Sustrai - 3

11th - Neptune Vasilias - 3

Inspirations

- The Forever Fall Forest Circuit is still based on Monza.

- Some driver have been known to be nervous wrecks, though not quite to the degree which Penny is depicted here. For one, 1961 champion Phil Hill threw up before every race out of nervous anticipation. Once he got in the car though, he was all business and absolutely fearless. He once won a sports car road race in a car that had literally no brakes left. He coasted into the corners and bounced it off the hay bales when necessary to get it to turn.

- Amber's accident has two inspirations. First is the fatal crash of Greg Moore at California. He spun into the grass off turn 2, and an access road tipped his car top-first toward the barrier just before impact. He was killed instantly. He was my favorite Champ Car driver and still is. The other is the road car accident that paralyzed Sir Frank Williams. F1 journalist Peter Windsor was in the passenger's seat when their rental car flipped while they were heading to Nice airport in France. Windsor was uninjured but the roof caved in atop Williams' head and broke his neck, leaving him a quadriplegic.

- Schnee's attempts to replace Ciel are inspired by the machinations of Ferrari under Enzo's reign. He was a deplorable human being who had no concern for the well-being of his drivers and drove more to their deaths than any other owner. He never went to the track because he was afraid of seeing his precious cars damaged, so the team was left in the hands of a manager. Enzo always believed whatever his managers (always fellow Italians) told him, and he ended up driving two World Champions away from the team as a result - Phil Hill and Sir John Surtees. As a side not to emphasize Enzo's lack of a conscience, he hated to have married drivers because he felt they were less willing to die for the cause. And in 1976 when Niki Lauda, who had almost died earlier in the year, retired from the Japanese Grand Prix in insane conditions because he felt it far too dangerous, Enzo never forgave him, running him out of the team by the end of '77. It didn't matter that Lauda's incomplete reconstructive surgery meant his eyelids didn't work properly, meaning that in the rain they could not effectively clear water and he was almost blind.

- If you want to learn more about the drivers' mindset in the era as it relates to death, or Enzo Ferrari's depravity for that matter, I suggest reading (or listening to the audiobook of) The Limit by Michael Cannell. If you have any interest in racing at all you'll enjoy it.

Inaccuracies and Anachronisms

- The engine deal dramas between Beacon/Juniper and Schnee are more typical of modern F1. In the early days, teams that built their own engines like Ferrari almost never made them available to others. Customer engines were very common, made by third parties and sold to anyone with the cash. In recent years both Ferrari and Mercedes have refused to provide engines for Red Bull because with a decent engine the Red Bulls designed by the brilliant Adrian Newey would likely crush the competition as they did before Renault forgot how to build motors.

- There were no fatal accidents at Monza in 1966.