A Better Life

Written by: SerenaTheMoonPony

A/N: Hey guys! So, I'm not even sure where the inspiration for this fic comes from. All I can say is the idea was stuck in my head and I needed to write it out! I'm sorry that this chapter is so dialogue-heavy, but I find it needed to go down like that to establish the story the way I wanted to. This is my first ever Cars fanfic, so please go easy on me. I hope you guys enjoy and don't be a stranger; feel free to leave a review! (Any comments that I deem are rude or aren't constructive criticism I will delete; don't need that kind of negativity in my life!)

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Cars or its characters, they belong to Disney Pixar blah blah blah. You know the drill.

-SerenaTheMoonPony

Chapter 1: The Letter

"I'm looking for a Mr. Lightning McQueen?" a young man dressed in a mail carrier's uniform asked the crowded restaurant.
"right here," a red-haired man clad in a cherry red leather jacket with a yellow '95' painted on it replied, taking the small envelope from the mail carrier.

Everyone in the small town of Radiator Springs was at Flo's celebrating Lightning's last racing victory; a great way to start the season! Their celebration was interrupted when the young mailman arrived at the cafe looking for the racer.

Lightning McQueen was a 25-year-old racing sensation. He's won six championships in the Piston Cup Circuit since his rookie year seven years ago. He was barely eighteen when he begun his racing career, and rocked the nation.

"what is it, Stickers?" asked his girlfriend Sally, a petite woman with long blonde hair featuring a pale blue hue to it asked.

Lightning looked over the envelope. The return address was in Florida, something in which worried Lightning very much considering his family lived there. Opening the letter, the racer quickly read its contents. As he finished, his eyes widened.

"oh my god," he gasped.
"what?" Sally asked.
"I'm…getting custody of my sister" he breathed, relieved.
"wait, what? You have a sister?" she asked, surprised.
"yeah, I have a younger sister. Her name's Lyra. She's ten years old now; she was three the last time I've seen her in person." he explained.
"Sally, is there someplace private we could talk? I really don't want to have to explain all of this to everyone." Lightning asked.
"of course, Lightning." she smiled.

With that, the couple excused themselves and returned home. They lived in a two-bedroom apartment just above the Cozy Cone's office. Once home, the couple made their way to the living room and sat on the couch. Lightning sighed as he prepared to explain everything to Sally.

"I'm getting custody of my sister because our parents have been arrested and charged with drug possession and multiple counts of child neglect and child abuse. Seeing as I'm her brother, they're sending her out here to stay with me for the time being, at least until the trial." he explained.
"trial?" she asked, urging him to continue.
"yeah, they're unsure on the date yet, but Lyra and I are going to have to go to Florida to testify against our parents." he continued.
"were your parents really that bad?" Sally asked.
"oh yeah, they're awful. They've been abusing my sister since she was born. It wasn't as bad when I was still at home, but even then it was horrible the things they'd do." Lightning sighed.
"if it's too hard to talk about, I won't make you, stickers." Sally exclaimed, noticing her boyfriend's discomfort.
"it's fine, Sally. Besides, it's about time I get this off my chest." he sighed.
"wait, if this has been going on for as long as you say it has, didn't you ever call the police?" the young woman asked.
"many times, but every single time I did, there wasn't enough evidence to convict them. Plus, it was my word against theirs, who are the cops going to believe? A six-year-old or two adults who claim their kid is just looking for attention?" he replied.
"Stickers, that's terrible! I'm so sorry" Sally said, hugging him in support.
"it's not your fault, Sal, besides, I would gladly go through all of the abuse and neglect all over again if it meant she would never have to live through that." Lightning sighed.
"when is she getting here?" she asked."in a week or so, they're just waiting to make sure she's stable enough to travel." he replied, pain in his voice.
"what happened?" Sally urged. Lightning exhaled sharply.
"when my parents were arrested, they found Lyra locked in her bedroom. She hadn't eaten in days and was just in a horrible state; she was too weak to even stand on her own. So they admitted her to hospital. When they examined her, they…" he stammered.
"it's okay, dear, take your time" Sally comforted with a smile.
"they found several cuts and bruises on her. They also found that she had suffered internal injuries to her lungs. She was suffering from severe malnutrition, at least now she's eating. She was having trouble breathing too…" he choked, his throat getting tighter and tighter as he spoke.
"if I ever get the chance, I will kill them both. What they've done to me is one thing, but what they've been doing to her is downright disgusting. What kind of scumbags have children, and then don't even take care of them?" he asked, shaking with rage.

In an instant, Sally pulled him into a tight embrace. Within seconds, all of Lightning's worry and rage just disappeared. For the first time since they've met, Sally saw tears form in his eyes. The man she loved, who had always seemed so strong and unbreakable, was actually crying.

"it's okay, Lightning, you have every right to be angry right now. Why didn't you ever say anything to me about this before now? I could have helped you through it," Sally comforted.
"I know, but it's just so hard to talk about, Sally. This whole mess has been haunting me for years. And it just kills me knowing that my sister has been going through this alone for the majority of her life. You know, I'm technically the one who's been taking care of her all these years; most of my earnings from my races goes into an account for her to make sure she has what she needs." he replied.
"really?" Sally asked, completely surprised.
"yeah, because I know those scumbags that I call my parents won't do it; I used to work a couple part time jobs as a kid just to make sure my sister was fed and clothed! Because all mom and dad ever spent money on was whatever drugs they could get their hands on. An old friend of mine down home keeps an eye of Lyra for me; I actually got her a cell phone so I could keep in contact with her without mom and dad knowing, he gave it to her for me and he helps her get money out of the account for food, or clothes, or whatever she might need." he explained. Sally planted a soft kiss on his cheek.
"well, I think Lyra is very lucky to have an older brother like you. I think it's sweet all that you do for her. How often do you two talk?" Sally smiled.
"she'll call me typically a few times a month. I tend to leave her a voicemail right before a race more often than not." He replied.
"that explains why you're always on your phone before getting in the car at the track," she chuckled.
"yup, I'm just relieved that's she finally getting out of there and actually has a chance at a more stable home life." Lightning smiled.
"I'll make sure the guest bedroom is cleaned out before she arrives." Sally said, as she got up off the couch.
"you don't have to do that, Sal, I can take care of it." Lightning offered.
"I don't mind, Lightning. I'm more than happy to do it." She reassured.
"alright," he replied, realizing that arguing with Sally was futile; he would not win.

As Sally got up to go into the kitchen to get dinner started, Lightning took off his jacket and hung it up in the closet near the door. Sally caught a glimpse of his left arm and noticed what looked like smeared concealer on it.

"hey Stickers, is that makeup on your arm?" she asked nonchalantly.
"what? Oh, that! It's nothing…" he replied.
"Lightning," Sally urged.

Giving in, Lightning grabbed a wet facecloth from the bathroom and removed the makeup from his arm to reveal multiple roses with a name written in cursive in the center; 'Lyra'. Below it, was what appeared to be a date; '07/09/2006' which was July 9th 2006.

"how long have you had that?" Sally asked him, still staring at the tattoo.
"since I was 19." he replied.
"how is it even possible that I've never seen it before? It's not like I haven't seen you shirtless before…" she wondered.
"I've always sort of covered it up because of the press; didn't want them asking questions about it. And I guess it just became a habit to hide it," he replied.
"It's a beautiful piece; I think you should be proud of it. Besides, now that Lyra is going to be staying with us, I don't think you need to hide it anymore." she smiled.

After dinner, the young couple cuddled on the couch, watching a movie. Sally was first to fall asleep, leaving Lightning with his thoughts. He knew the others would want an explanation about Lyra, and he wasn't sure how to go about it. After fifteen minutes of consideration, he knew what he would have to do, but it could wait until morning. For now, he was going to enjoy the rest of his evening with the woman he loved soundly sleeping on his chest.

A/N: well, there it is! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! If there's any of you who are reading this who are waiting on an update for my Lion King fanfics it is coming along, I've just been stuck lately as far as those go, but I am working on it as much as I can.

Anyways, I'm not sure when I'll get around to posting chapter 2, but I'm going to do my best to get it done as soon as possible.

Until next time guys!

- SerenaTheMoonPony