Chapter 20

Twenty Years Ago

Summer and Taiyang had only been married for a few months and Summer was already pregnant with the couple's first child. When Summer had run the season's first race at South Vacuo, she had likely already been with child, though she had not known it. If not it had happened soon after. By the time the four month gap before the second race was over Summer was already showing. This presented a problem. There was just no way she could get in a race car. Being pregnant was a happy problem to have as far as she was concerned, but it still hurt that the she could not race.

Vale City was the site of the year's second race. That it was the most glamorous and prestigious grand prix of them all only made it harder for Summer to remain on the sidelines. Truth be told, she did not really want to be there at all, but she had to support Taiyang. She also felt she owed it to the team given the promise from Ozpin that he would keep her seat open for the following year. That made it harder to find a replacement driver, as the position had no future for him, but Ozpin worked his magic and secured the services of former champion Peter Port. He was over the hill, his hair greying and his waistline expanding almost as much as Summer's, but he still had talent and prestige.

Summer arrived after the team, only reaching Vale on Thursday, the first day of practice. When she arrived at the garage there were signs out front with the drivers' names. Xiao-Long and Port. It made her frown. So recently it had been Xiao-Long and Rose. To a driver like Summer, her car, her garage were sacred. They were hers. To see someone else occupying them cut deep. She had not expected it to hurt so much but seeing someone else's name in place of hers was almost too much to bear.

Summer heard an argument approaching. She turned to see Ozpin and some of the race's organizers. "I don't care, I want it changed." Ozpin demanded.

"But sir, the rules…" The organizer countered.

"I said I don't care." Ozpin repeated. "Change it. Even the driver wants it changed."

"Very well sir." The organizer sighed. "It will be...corrected...as soon as possible." The organizers walked away.

"What was that about?" Summer asked.

"Oh, Summer, so good to see you." Ozpin said. "Don't worry about it, just a little...misunderstanding." He paused for a moment. "You shouldn't be standing out here in the sun. Come inside, take a seat."

"I'm not sure I want to." Summer sighed. "I'll be too tempted to get in the car."

"I know it's hard but I intend to keep my promise." Ozpin said. "That car is still yours." He walked Summer over to the car she should have been driving. He pointed to the side of the machine. "See."

Summer looked down at the cigar-shaped silver machine. Just above the number on the door - 4 - was the driver's name, right where it always was. 'Summer Rose' was there in big letters, just as it always had been. "Won't that hurt Port's ego?" Summer asked.

"He actually insisted upon it." Ozpin replied with a laugh. "He knows how tough it can be for a driver to see someone else in her car, and he wanted to make it as easy on you as possible. He knows he's just a temporary replacement."

"I really appreciate that." Summer said. "I'll have to thank him."

"Oh, that reminds me." Ozpin said. He began digging around in one of the drawers nearby, eventually finding a permanent marker. "I have to make a quick correction to the garage decor." Ozpin walked outside and stopped before the sign with Port's name. He crossed it out and wrote 'Rose' below it. "There. Much better, don't you think?"

"You have no idea." Summer said with a smile. "Thank you."

Present Day

Though Pyrrha was not feeling well at all, she made it to the race track. She needed to support Ruby and the team. Beacon GP was still fighting for a Constructors Championship, only 3 points adrift of Schnee Automotive, and with Pyrrha and Yang out Ruby was now effectively second in points, 5 back of Weiss. Even knowing it was temporary, it hurt to see the name 'Scarlet David' on the side of her car. Her name was still there too, but it was painful all the same. That was her car. Even with all the assurances that she would be back once healed, she could not be sure. F1 was cutthroat and all the promises in the world would be meaningless if her replacement drove well enough.

Pyrrha was not the only driver who needed replacing. Yang would obviously not be coming back to Goodwitch GPE. A sports car driver named Sage Ayana was tapped as her replacement, at least until the end of the season. Sage had recently seen great success in endurance racing, winning the year's 24 Hours of Vytal for Nevermore. F1 was a totally different style of racing, but the man clearly had talent. Still, he was only signed through the end of the year and there were rumors that the team was engaged in secret negotiations with an established driver. Who that was or even if the rumors were true was unknown.

Pyrrha met her replacement Scarlet the day before practice. He seemed nice enough, if a little bumbling. Like her he had been an F3000 driver, with a win and a few podiums on the year. He was not considered a special talent but he was reliable and, most importantly, available. He had tested F1 cars in the past so he was not a complete novice. He seemed to get along with Ruby so team cohesion would likely not be an issue either.

More concerning to Pyrrha than the person occupying her car was Ruby. She was acting differently. Where she had once clung to Pyrrha she now seemed to avoid her. Their conversations were brief and Ruby always seemed to have somewhere to be, something to do, whenever Pyrrha wanted to talk. Finally, on the morning of the first day of practice, Pyrrha managed to corner Ruby. "Ruby, can we talk?" Pyrrha asked. The look on Ruby's face told Pyrrha she was searching for an excuse, an escape. "Please, it's important."

"This is about me avoiding you, isn't it?" Ruby sighed. "I'm sorry. I really am."

"What's wrong?" Pyrrha asked. "Do you not like me or…"

"No, that's not it." Ruby replied. "It's just hard seeing you like this. I'm used to you being invincible and more than that, I'm used to you being in the car and happy. It makes me sad to see you hobbling around on crutches, looking all depressed. And it reminds me how dangerous it is out there. If you could get hurt, if Yang could, I'm definitely not immune."

"Oh I...I'm sorry!" Pyrrha said. "I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."

"Don't apologize." Ruby said. "I should have said something instead of just avoiding you. I'm sure this is really hard for you too, having to watch from the sidelines."

"I'll be fine." Pyrrha said. "If you want I'll stay away until the race is over."

"You don't have to." Ruby said. "I need to face reality here. Racing is dangerous. Anyone can end up hurt or dead. There's no sense pretending otherwise. The sooner I can come to terms with it, the better."

"That's very mature of you." Pyrrha said. "If you need me to do anything, just let me know. I'm here for you."

The incredibly long frontstretch of Haven Raceway made it a power track, but the fast sweeping turns that characterized the rest of the place meant cars with superior grip and downforce could compete with the Schnee-powered teams. Nevermore also brought a slightly upgraded engine package, though they only had enough new motors to supply Ruby and Blake. Practice showed the new engines were an improvement. Blake and Ruby swapped the top spots through all three sessions, except the second in which Weiss took second behind Blake and ahead of Ruby. Then came a mixture of Penny, Coco, Velvet, Nora, Ren, Emerald, Mercury and Reese. Sage and Scarlet were just getting up to speed in their new cars, but were not too far from being competitive.

Still, practice meant little. Qualifying would show what the drivers really had. As time wound down in time trials Weiss held the top spot from Penny, Ruby and Blake. The rest of the runners were a bit behind, even though Schnee qualifying power was as mighty as ever. With their turbos turned all the way up Weiss and Penny were looking good for pole, but Blake and Ruby were not done. There was still enough time for one last go. Ruby's team fitted the best tires they had, filled the engine with the thinnest oil possible, and turned the turbo up past its normal maximum. She would set a fast time or the engine would explode.

The final corner was a sweeping right called Parabola. Ruby slowed extra on entry, then got her car wound up through the turn, blasting onto the frontstretch. By the time she reached the line, almost halfway to the first turn, the engine was screaming and the car was at its top speed. Turn 1 was fast, but given her blinding speed Ruby had to brake hard for the right-hander. After a short blast she was on the brakes again for Turn 2, another sweeping right. A similar short straight and more braking led to Turn 3, an even sharper right as the track began an uphill climb. Ruby barely had any time on the throttle before VIP, a very tight left-hand hairpin. She got some wheelspin on exit but controlled the car and accelerated onto the track's second fastest stretch.

Ruby climbed uphill, approaching the flat-out right-hand kink of Turn 5. She flicked the car through the corner just as she crested the rise, reaching the track's highest point, before diving down toward the track's sharpest corner Interior Parabola. She braked hard, careful not to lock the front wheels, then slung her car around the unwinding left-hand hairpin. A fast uphill straight took her to another tight braking zone for the right-hand hairpin Ear. Then the track got twisty. Ruby wrestled her car through the quick right handers at Turn 8 and Turn 9, before slowing to a crawl for the left-hand Turn 10, also known as Esses even though it was nothing of the sort. A quick stab of the throttle took her to Parabola. She was patient, waiting until just the right moment before getting back on the gas to power out onto the frontstretch. With her engine screaming and turbo whining she flashed across the line to complete her lap.

Ruby won the pole! Weiss held onto second with Blake third and Penny fourth. Coco, Reese, Velvet, Nora, Emerald and Ren finished off the top 10. Ruby was thrilled at her success but it came with a problem. She would have to be at the post-qualifying press conference with the two other top qualifiers. After what had happened to her sister and teammate, she knew there would be painful questions. Even when nothing so jarring had happened there were. When she arrived she found to her relief that Pyrrha was there as well, seated beside where the top 3 would be. At least that would take some of the pressure off. Ruby would have to answer questions about Yang but at least Pyrrha could answer for herself.

In the end Ruby got away with answering just one question. "Can you update us on your sister's condition?" A reporter asked.

"She's awake and in pretty good spirits considering." Ruby answered. "I think she'll be back at the track sooner than later." She paused. "Now, I would prefer not to discuss the matter any further. I want to focus on the present." Again the media was impressed with her maturity and to her relief they showed a great deal of restraint.

Race day was sunny and hot. Once again concerned about the media, after parking her car on the pre-race grid, Ruby retreated to the team's garage, not to emerge until it was time to roll off for the parade lap. In her place Pyrrha waited by the car, answering more questions about her injuries and when she would be back. She hoped to be ready by the end of the season, but with only two months of recovery time that was highly unlikely. Coco had questions of her own to deal with. Normally she was very good with the press, but over the preceding few days the questions about the accident two weeks earlier had begun to wear on her. Before the race it became one question too many. Coco was about ready to punch a reporter and her mechanics had to restrain her. After that the press mostly stayed away.

Finally the cars rolled off for the parade lap. They rounded the circuit before forming up back on the grid. Ruby took pride of place in position 1 with an array of brightly colored machines lined up behind her silver car. It was a long run to the first corner and she would need a perfect start to stay ahead of the Schnee cars lined up to her right. As the final cars lined up at the back of the grid a marshal walked behind the field waving a green flag. The drivers focused on the lights. One red, two, three, four, all five...lights out! To the scream of engines, the whine of turbos and the screech of spinning tires, the field dashed off the line and careened toward the first corner.

Ruby got a good start but Weiss did too. Ruby immediately darted right to block, taking the preferred line for the first corner. Weiss took what she was given and cut left, driving up alongside Ruby's car as they approached Turn 1. Ruby was forced to take a bad line into the corner. She lifted off the throttle and Weiss shot into the lead. Blake, who had gotten a blinder of a start, drove up on the left side of Ruby's car as they exited the corner. Ruby spun her wheels on exit and Blake took second position as the cars approached Turn 2. Ruby was finally able to stop the bleeding, slotting in ahead of Penny in third place.

The start of the race had not been entirely clean. Emerald spun off at Turn 1 while pushing too hard to pass Nora, and a little further back Cardin knocked off his front wing by hitting the rear of Nadir's car. A piece of debris from Cardin's wing found its way into the sidepod of Adam's car and punctured had radiator, ending his race. Emerald was out too, stuck in the sand trap on the outside of the first corner. Cardin was able to pit for a new wing and continue, though his near non-existent chances of competing were gone.

As the early laps went on Penny began to drop back as the top three remained locked in a close battle. Weiss had the power on the straights but was no match for Blake and Ruby in the corners. She would pull away just enough in the fast bits to keep her lead, and the parts of the track where Blake and Ruby had the biggest advantage were places where passing was nearly impossible. It was extremely hard work but Weiss was doing everything she needed to. So long as she made no serious mistakes, her competition would not have the engine power to pass her.

The lack of reliability in the Schnee engines again began to show. Mercury dropped out with a turbo failure at lap 7. Penny fell out with an electrical issue on lap 15. The same gremlins felled Velvet's car on lap 26. A suspension failure led to a fairly serious crash for Russel on the exit of Parabola, but though his car was destroyed he walked away unhurt. Coco was in the midst of a spirited battle with Reese for fourth on lap 29 when the two made contact and slid off track at Turn 3. Their cars were undamaged and they rejoined but the slip allowed Nora to pass them both.

On lap 31 of 70 Ruby came in for her pit stop. It was earlier than the other leaders but she hoped having fresh tires on a clear track would give her the advantage. Blake pit the following lap, along with Coco, Reese and Ren. Blake managed to slip in front of Ruby, but only just. On lap 33 Weiss pit, along with Nora and Arslan. Weiss exited the pits as Blake and Ruby were bearing down on her, and they arrived at the first corner in one group. Weiss had the inside line but her tires were still cold. Plus it was time for the twisting bit of the track.

Blake flashed ahead as the cars entered Turn 2 and Ruby drove up alongside Weiss. Weiss tried to hold on but pushed too hard. Her car oversteered and she was forced to slow to avoid hitting Ruby. Ruby slipped into second, giving chase to Blake. Weiss tried to hold on but slowly the lead pair began to pull away. Their superior handling made them better over the majority of the lap, and it meant the cars were kinder to their tires. By the end of the race Weiss was alone in third.

Nora may have passed Coco and Reese but they were not done with her. Nora stayed in front of the pair through the pit stops but they were right on her tail. She too had something of an advantage in the corners but it was nothing compared to what the lead pair had. She made a little slip on exit of Parabola on lap 56, allowing Coco and Reese to get right up on her tail. She blocked right but it was hopeless. Coco and her superior engine were up into fourth by the first corner and Reese was alongside. Reese was forced to fall back for the moment but passed Nora later in the lap as the cars approached Interior Parabola.

Ruby shadowed Blake closely as the laps wound down. She knew she had a faster car but could not find a way past. Following Blake so closely was compromising her car's aerodynamics and the gain from the draft was not enough to off-set the loss. On the final lap she made a last-second dive on entry to Interior Parabola but Blake held her off, rounding the track for the final time to secure the victory. Ruby was happy with second but frustrated. She knew she could have won. Weiss took the final step of the podium, followed by Coco, Reese and Nora to round out the points. Ren, Arslan, Sage and Scarlet finished off the top 10.

Disappointment aside, Ruby was fairly happy. The race had provided a bit or normalcy she was in desperate need of. She now also knew she could do it. Despite all that had happened, she could keep going and she could still be fast. There was no reason to be afraid anymore. Bad things might still happen but that was mostly out of her hands. There was no sense worrying about it. Another bonus was spending a few days with Pyrrha at her home. The next race was at the Sanctum Circuit, located not terribly far from where Pyrrha had grown up. A few days of happiness amongst the turmoil that surrounded them was just what was needed.

Standings After Twelve Races

1st - Yang Xiao-Long - 50

2nd - Pyrrha Nikos - 47

3rd - Winter Schnee - 37

4th - Weiss Schnee - 36

5th - Ruby Rose - 33

6th - Blake Belladonna - 30

7th - Penny Polendina - 20

8th - Coco Adel - 16

9th - Velvet Scarlatina - 10

10th - Nora Valkyrie - 8

11th - Reese Chloris - 7

12th - Arslan Atlan - 3

13th - Lie Ren - 1

13th - May Zedong - 1

Inspirations

- The story about drivers and their cars being sacred is based on the recent situation facing NASCAR's Dale Earnhardt Jr. Sidelined for weeks with post-concussion symptoms, 4-time champion Jeff Gordon has come out of retirement to fill in. At the first race for Gordon in the car, the garage initially had his name on it but at his and the team's insistence, Earnhardt's was put back up.

- Haven Raceway is based on Estoril in Portugal.

Inaccuracies and Anachronisms

- An F1 driver has never, ever missed a race due to pregnancy.

- The media has never shown, and will never show, restraint.