Clarity

~Of course Finn cared about her. Holley was his daughter after all, and he would do everything in his power to keep her safe. As well as never telling her the truth. AU~

A series of vignettes

~Cars (c) PIXAR 2011~

They had been unable to save her.

He had been unable to save her.

The Jaguar laid on a lift in front of him, dim hospital lights casting a faint glow over her lavender paint. Her eyes were closed, as they would always remain from now on. The cause of death was 'unknown' meaning (of course) that it was classified. But Finn knew that it had been done by a bullet that'd been aimed at him.

And she had been with child.

The infant was well at least, small because of the early birth, but healthy nevertheless. And it was his.

The Aston Martin shifted his gaze towards the Plexiglas crib a few feet away, and shuddered. He knew that he couldn't care for a child. His job was far too dangerous, his life far too hectic. A spy couldn't raise a child. And yet it was his nonetheless. All he could do with give the infant to someone who could care for her. And yes, the infamous Finn McMissile was father to a young girl.

Rolling over to the crib, he gazed idly over the sleeping car before him. She was tiny, hardly bigger than his tire, and yet managed to survive when no one thought it possible. Her eyes had only opened once, and they had been the same color as her mother's. A brilliant, jade green.

It pained him to think that he would never see her mature, never able to watch her grow into a—positively—confident young woman. That was his only regret. Or one of them, at least.

The Aston Martin wheeled back, sighing quietly. He would never even know her name. The family that took her in would name her, and he would have no relation whatsoever. He probably wouldn't even see her again.

The spy car then began to make his way out of the hospital, containing the two women he now considered the most important in his life, and left them behind. The child could do better, and didn't deserve a father like him.

She'd been given her mother's name.

The Aston Martin gazed up at the monitor in shock, eyes never leaving the bright screen. Holley Shiftwell. The young car that was supposed to meet him in Tokyo just happened to be his daughter.

He hadn't seen her in over twenty years….he could only imagine that she looked exactly like her mother. "Something wrong, Finn?" Siddeley inquired, perturbed by his friend's silence. The spy car simply grinned softly.

"No, old chap. Everything's perfectly fine."

Even when he first laid eyes on her, Finn knew that she was his daughter. She looked exactly like her mother—as he'd predicted—soft lips and bright eyes that mirrored those of his lost love.

She didn't recognize him of course, how could she? Holley was a tad oblivious however, just like her mother had been about his undercover work, but he swiftly corrected her and they drove over to an elevator with some excuse about canapés. She was apparently in the technical department, with no experience in the field, and relied far too much on the spy manual. She was also quite critical. And yet, he wanted her as his partner.

He had missed out on a majority of her life, and though she didn't know it, Finn owed her. And so, despite her protests, Holley soon found herself as a field agent, with a top-notch partner, who just happened to be her father.

Finn couldn't bring himself to call her by her first name.

It brought back to many memories, and she looked so much like her mother…at least he had the American spy to distract himself with. Watching the tow truck from a building close to the racetrack, the younger car worried about him exposing himself. The Aston Martin had to remind her time and time again that it was simply his cover…that rust must have been expensive….

The elder spy car did everything in his power to keep his gaze away from his daughter. It shocked him to the very core how similar she looked to her mother. Just one little slipup and he would admit everything…she couldn't know the truth, Finn had ultimately decided, as he leapt out of the window and out onto the streets below, leaving his daughter behind to warn the American spy. And he couldn't call her by her real name, lest he open old wounds once more.

And so she would remain 'Miss Shiftwell.'

Finn supposed that this day could've gone a bit better.

They'd started out alright, the Aston Martin doing his best to avoid eye contact with his partner and busying himself with their newest addition, the tow truck playing his part perfectly. At least until revealing that he and the racecar McQueen actually were friends, and not just his cover. The elder spy car had been quick to warn them about the dangers of developing friendships in their line of work—he had already noticed Mater making eyes, obviously smitten, towards his daughter— and that had been the end of the conversation.

They'd arrived in Porto Corsa, sneaking Mater in with a disguise, and things went smoothly until the tow truck discovered that they were going to use the dreaded machine to kill his friend. He had full faith in his daughter that she would lead Mater out, and the Aston Martin raced towards the location of the Gremlin and Pacer, who would have the weapon.

It was then that everything fell apart.

They were all captured; their cover's blown, and had woken up inside Big Bentley, minutes from being crushed by its gears. Finn had hoped faintly that his daughter had been spared by this morbid fate, but no such luck. It seemed that they were all going to perish, and he'd never even told her.

Making a joke out of their predicament, the Aston Martin mentally cursed himself. It seemed that he would be taking his secret to the grave.

The elder spy car barely heard Mater's revelation that he wasn't in fact a spy, instead thinking of his daughter's fate. All of their fates, in fact. He couldn't subject his daughter to this—not Holley. Finn opened his mouth, prepared to tell her—tell both of them the truth—when the two lemons from before interrupted.

They taunted the poor tow truck, preparing to use their weapon on his friend, but nothing seemed to happen. Both of them left soon after, telling the trapped cars about a bomb in McQueen's pit area, and Mater promptly figured out a way to free himself of his bindings. With worry shining in his eyes, Finn had quickly assured the tow truck that both he and Holley would be all right, and he had set off determinedly.

"So…we'll really be fine?"

His daughter's voice jolted the Aston Martin back to reality, and he sighed internally before answering, "He would never have left if I told him the truth." He didn't need to see Holley to know that she deflated dejectedly. The gear they were tied to shifted, shaking them both, and an idea seemed to come to the Jaguar. She launched her taser several times, Finn incredulously inquiring what in the world she was doing just before they began to be crushed under the large gear above them (as they were meant to be) and Holley's answer sounded like something he would say.

"Trying to turn back time."

Her electric-shock device managed to reverse the polarity of the clock, and the gear they were tied too began to move (mercifully) in the other direction. From there, they drove apart so that a sharp gear on the opposite side could cut through their ropes, freeing them.

It was then that Finn realized his daughter was a genius.

The Aston Martin never told Holley the truth.

He had attempted to, several times in fact, but he would simply end up tongue-tied and have no idea of what to say. And so he let his actions show it instead. He would carefully show her the ropes, demonstrating the correct way to remain covert, and generally become a mentor for her. In response, he could only hope that she saw him as a father-figure. He tried his best, at least.

And it was after careful observation and hesitant questions that Finn found out that Holley never even had a father-figure. Her adopted father—a young police car—had lost his life while on patrol when she was very young, not even ten years old….and so she had lost two fathers. This only made the Aston Martin feel even worse, but he could never bring himself to tell her those three words. She was so oblivious, but happy with her life, and her…boyfriend. Finn had yet to go threaten the tow truck, now that he thought about it…

The elder spy car remained silent as his daughter drove out of Siddeley to go into town, Mater waiting for her so that they could drive into Radiator Springs together. It hurt him to do so, act as if she were his partner and nothing more, remaining a mentor, but never a father. At the very least, he was with her now. Her mother surely would've prided him in that, at any rate.

After a moment of silence, Siddeley spoke, "So…she's your daughter?"

Finn grinned, an empty and almost melancholy thing, but a grin just the same, "Indeed she is."