Double-Sided #2: The Experiment

Sugar Rush Speedway
Pistachio Peaks Racetrack
System Clock: 1999.09.09 01:24

"Argh! C'mon, silver-spoon! You'll never keep up with me if you don't give it all you've got!"

The two had already raced past a dozen near-frozen twists and turns, boosting on straightaways and sliding as quickly around corners as they could. One-on-one races rarely gave them the chance to use offensive items, which was just as well--whenever Taffyta raced Vanellope, the two always agreed never to use them.

Pistachio Peaks was lined with both ice and ice cream, most of which had a habit of seeping onto the track itself. Traction was therefore more of a luxury than something to count on. They'd just made it through a cave dripping with mint-flavored frozen dairy, with more than one close call in the process.

"Maybe I oughtta just challenge Sour Bill instead! At least he knows how to keep on rolling if he wants to!" Taffyta lightly swerved around another ice patch as she called out to her competitor. Taunting was one of her special racer's skills, but here, it was mainly to keep herself motivated.

Because Vanellope never answered back.

Taffyta had never been able to figure it out. Either keeping calm under pressure was one of Vanellope's special abilities, or she was just too naive to know what all the taunts meant. Either way, that pretty-pretty princess was always able to stay mere feet behind her, constantly giving Taffyta a run for her money, remaining unfazed all the while.

Honestly. Having a rival kept her on her toes, but the price was a never-ending frustration.

Taffyta shifted her gaze back to the road, deciding to ignore the Sugar Princess for now and concentrate on finishing the race. The decider was dead ahead: a sharp turn, followed by a huge jump, with the finish line a short distance from landing on the peak which gave the track its name. Win, and it was always a total rush. Lose, and, well... regeneration, but also total humiliation, which Taffyta just wasn't about.

She decided, for once, to play it safe. She let go of the gas, and softly applied her kart's brakes going around the corner until she knew her angle would pull her out straight. She then pushed her brakes further for a single full second, letting her powerslide carry her through the rest of the turn. By the time she hit the gas again, her kart's built-up boost rocketed her forward, allowing her to sail off of the chilly ramp with extra speed and force.

Taffyta smiled to herself. Her jump was perfect. Let's see Sugar Rush's so-called "ultimate racer" beat th-

"Taaaffyyytaaaaa!"

-oh, no.

Taffyta looked behind her, her worst fears confirmed. How? How was Vanellope still right behind her? And catching up to her in midair, no less! Had she kept her speed through the whole curve?

And she was still smiling without a care in the world. That was always the worst part.

However, just as Taffyta's heart threatened to drop to her stomach, she noticed something ruffling around Vanellope in the wind... after which Vanellope's car became smaller in Taffyta's rear view.

So it was true.

It'd have been hilarious if Taffyta didn't feel just the slightest bit sorry for her. There was a reason she'd chosen this course for their race, with this final huge jump at the end. Now she had her answer.

She landed and crossed the finish line, fully confident in what to do next.

---
Sugar Rush
"Double-Sided"
Chapter 2: The Experiment
by Bookish Delight, 2012-2013
All characters and referred properties belong to Disney.
---

"And that's that." Taffyta exited her kart and dusted her hands. "Looks like you and I are back to 50% win ratio against each other! So sorry to have to remind you who's boss around here," she said, doing her best to ignore the crown perched atop her rival's head. "Oh, wait--so totally not."

"Hey, now!" From close by, Princess Vanellope's head popped up from her kart. Her voice was fast and high-pitched, yet controlled--almost forcefully so. "You gotta admit, it was way close! Shoot, it seems like it always is between you and me."

Taffyta huffed and rolled her eyes. "Don't remind me. I mean, for Sucrose's sake, is rubberbanding your special racer's power?"

"Heh heh! Aww, don't be like that, Taffyta." Vanellope got out of her car, her flowing red royal dress poofing out to all sides to accommodate its newfound extra breathing room. "You of all racers know know I'm better than I let on."

Taffyta sighed. "Yeah, yeah. Main Character Clause and all that. Guess it's a good thing for me that I get saved so often by your lack of fashion sense. I mean, seriously. That last jump. Do you get it now?"

"I..." On cue, a strong breeze blew, causing Vanellope's royal dress to ruffle harshly and noisily. "...huh. Okay, yeah, I'm listening."

Taffyta produced a lollipop from her pockets and began sucking on it. "I keep telling you, it's that primped and prissy princess dress that's slowing you down. Look at all the drag it creates!" Taffyta pointed her lollipop at the dress's lower half, then its shoulders. "Totally non-aerodynamic."

"I know you don't like the outfit, Taffy. But no amount of fun-making will change the fact that this is the only one I've got." Vanellope sat on the hood of her kart, shrugged and pointed to Taffyta's strawberry-themed ensemble. "Just like that's the only one you've got. Fighting game characters get multiple costumes." She plopped her chin into her hands. "We don't."

---

Taffyta looked at the resigned Vanellope, and sighed again. No doubt--it was time. Half of her still couldn't believe she was about to do this. As if Vanellope needed to be any more special?

But she'd committed to this a while ago, and she might as well see it through. If nothing else, it would make their races even more interesting than they were already. Yeah. That was the ticket. It was all for the racing.

"Actually... about that." Taffyta went to her kart, opened a side compartment, pulled out a miniature box made of thin, bright red cardboard, and gave it to Vanellope.

"What's this?" asked the princess.

"Ugh, don't ask me. Just open it," said Taffyta.

Vanellope did so, pushed the paper inside aside, and her eyes went wide as she took out a turquoise hooded sweater, striped socks, and a brown skirt in a set. She stood up, spread each out in front of her in sequence, disbelief written on her face. "Wha... I... Taffyta, i-is this..."

"Y-Yeah. I..." Taffyta's hands fidgeted and wrung together as she rocked back and forth on her heels. "...got tired of heckling you about the stupid dress too. Unlike you, though, I decided to do something about it. Got the idea last time I was doing runs here. I brought it up to the others, and they jumped on board scary quick."

"They..." Vanellope's mouth widened to match her eyes. "...they did?"

"Uh-huh. See, look." She stepped closer, and took out a mirror from her pockets. "Minty noticed how much you love candy canes so she did the striped stocking design, kind of like mine. And the brown on the skirt totally goes with nobody but you, especially 'cause of your eyes."

Vanellope grinned. "I like! Who thought that one up?"

Taffyta muttered her answer under her breath, forcing Vanellope to lean in closer. "Huh? What'd ya say?"

Taffyta huffed and lightly stamped a foot in the ice cream. "I said it was Rancis, okay?"

Vanellope blinked. "What."

"Yeah. Kinda threw us all for a loop. Talk to him about it if you're so curious, okay? Moving on! We tossed in some black shoes from some old concept model that never got used. Put 'em all together, and boom! The new Vanellope Von Schweetz! If she wants it." Taffyta paused. "Please want it. I'm tired of beating you on jumps."

Vanellope didn't answer. She simply stood with a stare, anything she attempted to say coming out as a mild squeak. Eventually Taffyta could only take so much. "Look, quit your gaping and try it on already, will ya? It's still pretty cold up here."

That snapped Vanellope out of it. "R-right! Don't gotta tell me twice!" She laid the ensemble on top of the box, reached out, and touched it with one hand. The clothes dematerialized in a swirl of glowing 1s and 0s, then swirled around herself.

One white flash later, the whole thing was on her, with her royal dress nowhere to be found. "Oh my gosh."

"Huh." Taffyta took a lick from her lollipop as she observed Vanellope checking herself out in the mirror--and did the same with her own eyes. "Not bad at all."

"And you guys made all this for me?" Vanellope stepped closer to her rival. "I never knew you cared this much, Taffyta."

Taffyta fought a blush--and failed miserably. Curses. "W-well... just the idea was me. Total group effort, I told you. Like, it turns out Candlehead's really good at sewing. Once we, uh, took shifts to make sure her candle was out whenever she worked so she stopped scorching the fabric textures, that is."

Vanellope giggled.

"No, seriously! Do you know how attached she is to that thing? She's all 'My candle's a part of me! Get rid of that, and I'm just a head!' And the whole time we're just rolling our eyes, and you know how she is around water already, and..." Taffyta fell silent for a few seconds, then took a deep breath. "Look, if you tell anyone this, I'll deny it. But all of us, me included? We wondered if you might've felt a little out of place. I know I didn't help matters any. So if this helps you fit in with the other Rushers a little more, then I've done my job. And you're welcome to it."

A long silence passed before Vanellope whispered her reply. "You were right."

Taffyta did a double-take. "We were?"

"Yeah. You were." Vanellope nodded. "In the back of my mind, I was always scared that maybe you guys didn't like me very much because I was 'The Princess,' you know?" She lowered her head. "A-And if you did, I-I didn't know what I could do about it. I didn't ask for the role. I was written into it."

Taffyta stepped in front of Vanellope, and nudged her head back up. "But you're a cool princess. No one's really got a problem with, like, who you are, or how you do things. But hey, now you do get to choose when that is, instead of being forced to broadcast it all the time."

Vanellope smiled. "Yep! And I'll be takin' that option aaaaallllllll the time, trust me."

And for the first time, Taffyta smiled back. "Well, I'm glad you're so into the idea! 'Cause that means I can make with the coup de grace."

Vanellope blinked. "Huh? The chocolate cake what now?"

Taffyta scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Ladies and gentlemen, Sugar Rush royalty." She reached into her pockets again and took out a small plastic bag, holding it up to Vanellope, who looked at it inquisitively.

"Candy?" Vanellope peered at it closer. "No, wait! Candy barrettes! That's genius! Lemme at-"

Taffyta yanked the bag away. "Ah ah ah! Don't touch! No way I'm leaving this to the program. I've had these for too long. They're, uh, pretty special to me."

Vanellope nodded. "I remember now! You wore these a lot before the first upgrade switched you to your hat, right?"

"Heh. Yep." Taffyta patted her strawberry top. "Didn't really like having the giant fruit on my head at first, but eventually we learned to get along." She pointed to the bag. "Still, I sometimes miss them."

"Wait, so if they're that special to you, why give them to-"

"Because quiet, that's why!" Her voice was unnaturally loud on the mountaintop. "I-I mean, they'll give me something to chase the few times I'm lagging behind you on the track. So you're stuck with' em from now on. No give-backs."

"Wow. Thanks, then."

"Save the thanks for tonight." Taffyta pointed straight at Vanellope and smiled in triumph. "'Cause that's when you're getting a personal style job from yours truly! By the time I'm done, your hair's gonna be as sweet as the rest of you." She stopped for a second, and mock-recoiled. "Don't get any ideas from all this, though. We're still rivals. Bitter, bitter rivals. Got it?"

Vanellope laughed out loud and threw her arms around Taffyta. "Sure."

"Hey, you! What did I just say?" Taffyta put up a token resistance before sighing dramatically and wrapping her arms back around the girl she was only just now admitting she might be able to--publicly--call a friend.

And that was when she felt Vanellope lean forward to whisper in her ear.

"Thank you, Taffyta. I'm not sure I would have been a princess, given the choice. But with subjects like you... I'm now so happy I am."

It was official--Taffyta was now warm enough to melt the mountain if she wanted to.

"Oh, shut up," was her only reply as she firmed her embrace around Vanellope, bringing the two closer together under an ice cream sunset.

---

Sugar Rush Speedway
Candy Castle, Vanellope's Chambers
System Clock: 2012.12.24 23:39

With a jolt, Taffyta snapped back to reality.

She tried to look up from the box, but the second she did, her body felt faint, and she immediately lost her balance. With a groan, she lost the ability to stand. Fortunately, Vanellope thought quickly and was there to catch her before she collapsed completely. "Whoa, there! Hey, it's okay. Just hold on to me."

"Not sure I... can do even that," Taffyta said weakly. "I don't know what that box did, but it took way too much out of me."

"Oh yeah. That happened to me too when I first used this thing. Something about how it reads who you are. You'll be okay in a few minutes, though. Want me to... you know. Just hold you, until then?"

"Mmmmm... you'd better... not drop me," Taffyta whispered.

"Nah, never. By the way, in case you were wondering, I was facing the bed that first time I almost fainted. C'mon, we'll sit there." She placed Taffyta on it and sat at her side, still holding her. "Aaaaaaand there. You good?"

Taffyta groaned again, but shuffled in recovery. "Wow, though. I saw everything. Felt everything. The race, what happened afterward... it was like I was really there."

"Yeah, so did I. You know, I forgot how much grief my old dress gave you. In a lot of ways it was really funny. But..." Vanellope looked away. "...you know."

Taffyta nodded. "Yeah. I know." She stayed quiet until she could gather her words. "Hey. Vanellope?" She twiddled her thumbs.

"Yeah?"

"Since it's just us two here? I was always just half-kidding about your dress. It just seemed to be the only way I could ever get a rise out of you enough that we could do the whole rival thing."

With one hand, Vanellope turned Taffyta's face so that their eyes met, and she threw in a benevolent smile--straight out of her princess days, Taffyta quickly realized--free of charge. "I know."

Taffyta sighed and shook her head. "Yeah, and I guess I should've."

The two stayed like that for a while, one holding the other, vanilla and strawberry scents mixing around them. In a matter of minutes, Taffyta felt like she could drift off right there and be happy.

Which Vanellope must have sensed, as she chose that moment to speak up. "So, uh, do you feel up to one more?"

Taffyta did a double-take. "Wait, what?"

"Well, the box is still asking for both of us. I did some checking... and there's just one file left."

Taffyta stared at the box with wary eyes. "It's not gonna, like, sap me again, is it?"

Vanellope beamed. "Nope! It knows you now. Harmless as a Twinkie pup."

Taffyta sat upright, suddenly fully refreshed.

"Then bring it on."