"Sir! Sir!" I heard one of my workers call. I looked up from my desk, and saw the Dock Assistant Manager entering the office.
"Yes?" I asked calmly. The Assistant Manager looked at his clipboard.
"The ship that was heading to Germany from the mainland has had an engine failure, and is being forced to dock here! There are two engines from the Great Railway Show on board! What should we do with them?" he asked. I leaned back in my chair and thought.
The Great Railway Show had just ended two days ago, and all of the engines were now heading back to their homes. If the ship to Germany was delayed, that meant... Ivan and Frieda would be stranded.
I had personally been to the Great Railway Show, and Frieda had been one of my favorites. She was big, blue, strong, and firm. It would be cool to meet her in person. I set down the stack of papers I had been holding.
Being the Dock Manager had some benefits, and one of those benefits was making decisions.
"Get Ivan and Frieda off of the ship once it docks. If the ship is having engine trouble, they'll either have to wait for it to be fixed, or for another ship bound for Germany to come. Either way, it will be several days, and there's no point in confining them. Let them roam around Sodor for a while. I'll go out and personally greet them." I said, standing up from my desk.
I followed the assistant manager out onto the docks, where a large freighter was being pulled into the harbor by several tugboats. It had a German flag waving from its mast.
Once it was in position, Cranky lowered his train claw into the ship's cargo hold, and as it finally raised, I saw... Ivan being raised out of the ship.
Ivan was a small shunting diesel who had done fairly well with his challenge. He had taken second overall in the competition, losing only to Sodor's own Thomas, and Ashima from India. They had both been declared winners due to a technical foul.
As soon as Ivan was placed onto the tracks, he was smiling happily as all of the people in the area went over to talk to him and congratulate him.
I looked back as Cranky's hook lowered again, and pulled out... a massive blue tender from the ship.
He set it onto the tracks carefully, then his hook went back to the ship, and pulled out the massive German engine herself. Frieda, who was looking fairly unhappy, as she apparently always did. I stayed a fair distance away, keeping a careful watch on not only Cranky, but the rest of the harbor. It was my job, after all.
Eventually, you heard a CLANG! As Frieda was set onto the tracks, and her tender was connected. I noticed that although she was right next to Ivan, not one person was paying her any mind. I slowly walked towards her, and felt a little scared.
She really was a massive engine. Six massive red drive wheels, four small wheels in front, and two in the back. A massive streamlined blue front end, with four headlights built in, two speed panels, one on each side of her face, and a small yellow stripe down her side.
As I finally got close enough, Frieda was looking down at the ground angirly. No... wait...
Upon closer inspection, Frieda didn't actually look angry. Her brow was furrowed, and she certainly wasn't smiling, but I didn't think she looked angry. She actually looked... sad. But she was trying to cover it up with her natural tough demeanor.
"Hello Frieda." I finally said, causing her to look up at me.
"Vat do you vant?" she asked in a sharp, heavily German oriented voice. I smiled, hoping she would understand that I was a fan.
"I'm the Sodor Dock Manager. It's my job to greet all visitors that come in via ship, but I thought I'd start with you, since Ivan is already getting plenty of attention.." I said. Frieda looked towards Ivan, and scoffed grumpily.
"He alvays gets all zee attention." she said. I walked up to her.
"You know, I was rooting for you at the Great Railway Show." I said. Frieda showed a small sign of surprise.
"Vere you really?" she asked. I nodded.
"You kidding? I was amazed by the amount of pulling power all you engines had. I thought you did well." I said. Frieda scowled.
"I did not place vell." she huffed. I shrugged.
"Maybe so, but you are still just as strong as the others. You did the same thing they all did. You got the heavily loaded freight cars moving."
Frieda stayed silent. I folded my arms.
"Well regardless, since you're going to be stuck here for a little while, feel free to explore the island. If you need anything, just ask for Anon. And please, do try to cheer up a little. Everyone likes to see a pretty smile." I said, walking back to my office. Frieda watched me go.
"As eef I vould need to ask you for anything." she muttered, before steaming away.
. . .
I leaned back in my office chair. Besides the Germany bound ship being stalled by engine failure, nothing interesting had happened all day. I stared at the clock, which read 4:45pm. Fifteen minutes until I could head home. I decided to go out and walk around the dock to make sure everything was as it should be.
As I walked out my door, I was surprised to see Frieda sitting in a siding, looking bored.
"How are you doing, Frieda?" I asked. She barely cast me a glance. She was watching the ocean silently.
"Nul acht funfzehn." she said. I didn't even bother to try and understand that.
"Come again?" I asked.
"I vant to go home. I miss eet." she said. I took a seat next to her on a pile of lumber.
"I'm sure you do. I don't know how long it will take to fix your ship, but it won't be for a few days at least. I'm sorry." I said. Frieda tore her gaze away from the ocean to look at you.
"Vat am I schupposed to do? I vill not shtand by und do nothing." she asked. I thought.
"Well, we could always use help here, moving freight around."
"Inakzeptabel! I am not a shunter!" Frieda said loudly. I stood up firmly.
"Well I'm only in charge of the docks. You want anything else, you'll have to ask Sir Topham Hatt!" I said, walking back to the office. All I did was try to help, and Frieda bit my head off! Maybe she wasn't such a nice engine after all.
Regardless, it was now time for me to leave for the day. I punched out, grabbed my coat, and walked back outside. Frieda was still sitting there, watching the ocean again. I walked to my car, and slumped into the drivers seat. If Frieda was here for a while, it would most likely be a strain on everyone.
I drove down the country road to my small house, and parked. As I got out, I stood in silence. The docks were always so noisy, so it helped to just listen to the peace and quiet for a few minutes every day. It's the small things that matter the most to some.
Once I got inside, I changed into more comfortable clothing, and made dinner. I switched on the radio to a pleasant musical station, and ate.
But, of course, right in the middle of my meal, the phone rang.
"Yes?" I answered. It was the Dock Assisant Manager.
"Can you please come and do something about this bloody German engine! She's frightening people and won't stop shouting." he said. I groaned internally.
"Fine. I'll be there soon." I said, slamming the phone down. I huffily walked back to my car, and drove back towards the docks.
When I got there, nothing seemed wrong, except that Frieda had moved to a different siding, and everyone seemed to be avoiding her. The Assistant Manager ran over to me as soon as I got out of the car.
"I've tried everything! Offered her jobs, offered to let her stay with Ivan, and I even told her she doesn't have to stay here! Sir Topham Hat is away to the mainland, so you're in charge!" he informed me.
Alright, it was time to put on the game face. I walked over to Frieda, arms crossed.
"Okay Frieda, what is the problem here? I've been told that we've been trying to accommodate you as best we can, and you've been nothing less than rude." I said sternly. Frieda didn't seem to be intimidated.
"Abzischen!" she snapped in reply. I had had enough. I stepped on her buffer bumper to be face to face with the grumpy blue engine.
"Alright, that does it! Listen here Missy. I don't care how grumpy you are, how much you want to go home, or how big you are. You are an engine on this railway, of which I am in current command of. I don't tolerate engines who are rude to people who are just trying to help. Either you change your attitude, and at least try to be friendly, or I will have you locked in a shed until your ship is fixed, and then you can go back to your precious Germany, where I'm sure everyone puts up with you on a daily basis just fine! Do you understand me?!" I yelled, your face inches from hers.
Frieda was shocked indeed. I stepped down onto the ground, and waited for her answer.
"Well?" I asked. Frieda's expression had changed, but I couldn't place it exactly. It looked like a mix of worry, shock, and approval.
"I...I vill try to restrain myself. I am sorry for zee trouble I haf caused." she said quietly. I nodded.
"That's better! Now you can either help out at the docks starting tomorrow, or go and find something that you'd like to do. As for tonight, I'm going back home! I already had to come back once because of you, and if I have to come back again, I will be very annoyed!" I said firmly. Frieda gently blew her whistle, and chuffed out of the siding, and around the corner without saying a word.
"That's what I thought." I muttered, walking back to my car. I stopped by the Assistant Managers office and poked my head in.
"If she starts shit again, call me immediately. I won't tolerate another instance like this from her." I instructed. The Assistant Manager nodded, and I finally went back home for the night.
. . .
As I lay in bed with my lamp on, heavily engrossed in a book I was reading before I went to sleep, the phone rang again.
"You've got to be kidding me." I grumbled, quickly climbing out of bed to answer it.
"What now?" I asked impatiently.
"This is Vicarstown Station. We're just calling to let you know that we have an engine named Frieda who will be spending the night here. She told us to inform you, so you would know." said the voice on the other end. I sighed in relief.
"Fine. That's fine. Thank you for notifying me." I said, before hanging up. Maybe after both Frieda and I had a good nights sleep, we would be able to turn over a new leaf.
For all of those who have already told me, or for those about to, I know Ivan is Russian. I put him on the same ship with Frieda because in the short about Frieda, she and Ivan traveled home together!