It was a bright, clear day on the Island of Sodor, and Thomas was pulling the Local; the slow train that stops at every station along the Main Line, from Knapford to Vicarstown. He stopped at Kellsthorpe Road Station to pick up passengers before he set off again. Only a few days ago, he and Emily had helped James heal one of his deepest wounds of breaking up with Molly and finally getting them back together again. It was quite a happy time and Thomas simply enjoyed his run, until…
"Clarabel, was that-No! It's a lovely day, Annie! Can you...hear the birds singing?" said the coaches. "Yes, the birds!"
"What are you two going on about? I can't hear any…" then he heard the whistle. "Gordon!" he began to pick up speed.
"No, Thomas, don't! There's nothing to prove! This is the SLOW train!" the coaches snapped, getting a little annoyed at Thomas' cheeky behavior.
"Just to the next signal box, ladies! First past the post wins the race!" and he picked up speed to try and keep ahead of Gordon. Annie and Clarabel protested, but Thomas kept huffing on as fast as he could.
"And it's Thomas coming on the inside! It's our plucky little tank engine, everyone's favourite No. 1, taking on the big, blue beast known in Tidmouth as...GORDON!"
"Express coming though!" called Gordon.
"Thomas's tiny tank engine pistons are pumping now! Full steam ahead!" Gordon came closer by the second, being the fastest engine on Sodor.
"As Thomas races towards signal box, VICTORY!" and indeed, Thomas did beat Gordon just by a centimeter.
"I win! I win! Bad luck, Gordon!" called Thomas.
Gordon frowned indignantly and carried on to his guaranteed connection at Vicarstown Station. Thomas was still going pretty fast as he arrived at the big station at Vicarstown, the last mainline stop on the Island of Sodor. He glided to the platform and stopped quickly.
"One day, I'm going to race right through this station, and over the bridge to the Mainland again," he breathed.
"Not today, Thomas," said Clarabel. "This train terminates here." Then Thomas heard an unfamiliar whistle…then an amazing sight of a big and powerful steam engine.
"Oh wow! Who's this with two tenders?" The big engine was Flying Scotsman, arriving to take his coaches full of passengers to the Mainland…but he had another purpose of coming here…
"Hello," greeted Thomas. "Are you from the Other Railway? I was built on the Mainland you know. And once, a long time ago, I went back across with the other famous engines from Sodor."
"Is that so? I didn't think there were famous engines on Sodor." But then when Flying Scotsman looked to his right, his chance had come. "Oh, hello Gordon," he teased.
"Do you two know each other?" asked Thomas.
"Yes, Thomas, we know each other. This is my brother. They call him The Flying Scotsman," Gordon said begrudgingly.
"Indeed they do. It almost makes me sound famous, doesn't it?" said Flying Scotsman, and he winked at Thomas. Thomas knew that this famous engine was only saying all of this to tease his brother.
"Oh, Gordon, I wanted to tell you my news! I've been invited to take part in the Great Railway Show on the Mainland, I shall be racing!"
Gordon gasped hard.
"The Great Railway Show? What's that?" asked Thomas.
"Oh, the Great Railway Show is where engines compete to see who's the fastest or the strongest or, what have you. But I'm not sure any engines from Sodor will be going," said the Flying Scotsman, smirking back at his brother.
"I wouldn't want to go anyway, not if it's full of engines like you always boasting about how exciting things are on the Mainland!" hissed Gordon.
"Well, I want to go!" chimed Thomas.
"Of course you do, Thomas. And with any luck, maybe you shall. Flying Scotsman, coming through!" And the big famous engine set off for the Mainland to prepare for the special day.
"Amazing…" murmured Thomas. "I remember going there once before so long ago…"
"Hah!" snorted Gordon. "I will NOT go there only to hear all the engines beyond Sodor boasting about us being inferior to them! We should just ignore the open world and fulfill our duties to Sodor."
But as Gordon eventually made his way out of Vicarstown Station, he had a tremendous urge to outshine his brother somehow. Although he said he didn't want to go to this show, he would soon change his mind as he thought about spreading the word to a few engines…
Thomas eventually made his way back to Knapford Station. Little did he know that what Flying Scotsman mentioned was just the first of the many events that could put some unusual circumstances in place, both for him and Emily. Thomas saw James, Emily and Percy passing by on the other line, simply going about their business…until Thomas saw a poster placed on Knapford's wall.
"Look. The Great Railway Show!" he exclaimed. Then all around him, engines came passing through the yards and the station, singing about the possibility of going. First Duck, expressing how special it would be. To go to a Railway Show meant engines could go with no train whatsoever. Then Edward, Norman and Stanley. Henry came by and sang about how he pulled the heaviest loads. Although he was prone to illness, Henry did have a gift for strength.
Of course, Gordon joined in the song too, stating there was no better engine than him to take the express, only to be embarrassed by Philip when he mentioned the time he "ironically," raced with Gordon and turned out to be the only one racing. And of course, Diesel wanted to go as he was the first diesel ever brought to Sodor, but he was NOT loyal, kind or true. The Fat Controller marched off the platform, getting a little overwhelmed by all the fuss.
Thomas chuckled to himself and continued on his way. He was becoming more and more excited to go to the show now. As he passed over a tunnel, he heard three more engines singing out of it. Sidney, Percy, and to his delight, Emily. She sounded excited too and he hoped she would get a chance to go.
"Oh, I MUST go if she wants to go too!" Thomas whistled. "She'd love it there!" Everywhere Thomas went, the engines kept saying "Will you? Won't you?"
But the Steam Team wasn't the only group of engines getting caught in all the excitement. Charlie, Scruff and Stafford were excited. Fast engines like Flynn and Belle the rescue engines, Henry and Daisy, the long engines. Bill, Ben, Timothy and Marion, the tough, hard-working engines.
Skarloey, Rheneas, Sir Handel and Peter Sam, small but still strong in their own way.
At Brendam Docks, Salty, Porter and Paxton were aware of all the excitement going across the island. But Cranky just cranked, "I'm not going anywhere."
At Arlesburgh, Oliver and Rex, Mike and Bert, the Small Railway Engines had heard about the show and were hoping for a chance to go too, but it was utterly pointless for them. The Small Controller would need them to run the Small Railway anyway.
Even Stephen, once known as the "Rocket," wanted to go as he and the Fat Controller huffed along the line with Winston. Suddenly, Donald and Douglas came up behind Winston and shunted him and the Fat Controller along the line, begging through their song to be taken to the show. In front of Winston, Gordon, James and Diesel crowded round, begging just the same. Then Henry and Duck came alongside Donald and Douglas. It was quite a fuss for the Fat Controller, until Thomas came into the sidelines, trying to join in…but as Gordon James and Diesel looked at him, he trailed off meekly. Then laughter ensued.
"Oh, Thomas! Why would Sir Topham Hatt want to take a little tank engine like you to the Great Railway Show?" laughed Gordon.
"I haven't decided who I'm taking yet!" said the Fat Controller. "In any case, I do have to keep some engines on Sodor. After all, we still have a railway to run." He looked around, only to see no one made a move.
"I said, we still have a railway to run," he said, to the point. This made the engines settle down and meekly get back to work.
"Sorry, sir," said Henry.
"Oh…right, sir," said Diesel.
"I'm on my way," replied James. Gordon said nothing. He suddenly felt bad for jeering at Thomas. He was holding a secret of his own. But the Fat Controller saw that Thomas still wouldn't move and was looking a little shameful.
"Thomas? What's the problem?" he asked.
"Why must they always look down on me when big events are offered to Sodor? I went to the Great Railway Show before. Couldn't I do it again?"
The Fat Controller smiled reassuringly. "Thomas, you're still really useful, and to me, that's very good of you. I will need time to think, but all the same, don't get your hopes too high. It's just a show after all. There will be many of those, but there will never be another Sodor for you to work on and be really useful on." Thomas felt a little better, but Gordon and James' jeers were still fresh in his mind, making him cross for the rest of the day. Even when evening came in, not even Percy could brighten his spirits.
"I know what I'll be doing when everyone goes to the Great Railway Show," he snapped grumpily.
"What Thomas?" asked Percy.
"Shunting trucks in the yard!" As he arranged Henry's train, he angrily began mimicking the Fat Controller. "'I do have to keep some workers engines on Sodor.' Blah, blah, blah! 'We still have a railway to run!'"
"Well, you are very good at shunting with your engine Thomas," complimented Percy.
Thomas finished arranging Henry's train as he whistled and set off.
"Thanks but no thanks Percy. I'd rather go to the Great Railway Show." Suddenly Philip flashed up beside Thomas.
"If you really want to go, all you have to do is put your mind to it! See that's how I beat Gordon! I set my eyes on the track…and took off racing! Toot-toot! And as big and fast as Gordon is, he never overtook me."
"That's because you rushed off on your own. Gordon wasn't even racing, Philip," corrected Percy.
"Oh, I wish everyone would stop saying that! That's not the point!" said Philip. "The point is that you can do anything you want to Thomas, if you just put your mind to it!"
That night, Thomas returned to Tidmouth Sheds, still feeling troubled over his hype for the Great Railway Show and what Gordon and James said. He was also thinking about what Philip had said. He had done many things that he wanted throughout his life, but what else could he do if he put his mind to it. The biggest thing he ever did was save Emily during her dark days after putting his mind to her happiness. Speaking of which, when he saw Emily in her berth, he managed to smile a little. At least he could tell her what he had experienced earlier that day. He backed into the berth beside her and she looked at him.
"Hello, Tommy," she smiled.
"Hello, Emily," said Thomas. "I'm sorry I didn't see you more today."
"It's all the Great Railway Show talk, isn't it?" asked Emily. "I know, I was talking about it too. A big event on the Mainland for competitions."
"What do you think, Emily?" asked Thomas. "Percy and Philip support me…won't you?" Emily looked at Thomas, a little confused.
"Of course I support you on this matter, Thomas," she said kindly. "Why do you ask?"
"Uhh! It's Gordon and James again!" groused Thomas. "Teasing me as usual whenever big events come by, they want to hog all the spotlight!"
"But…what suddenly started all this Railway Show excitement?" asked Emily.
Thomas perked up at that. "Oh…Emily, the way I first heard about it was from Gordon's brother…the Flying Scotsman himself."
Emily gasped quietly. She had heard a few stories about Flying Scotsman back when she still worked on the Great Northern Railway, and now her savior had actually met him.
"You met the Flying Scotsman?" she asked.
"Yes. It was him to told us about the show in the first place," said Thomas. "Then Gordon must have spread the word, getting everyone so excited and not really noticing how I feel."
"Well, I'm excited by the possibility of going too, Thomas. You're not the only one," said Emily. "And Philip is right. If you put your mind to it, you certainly can do anything…that's exactly what you did when you cared so much for me and wanted to get my happiness back."
"Well, that is a good point…and speaking of Railway Shows, I never told you, Emily…but I actually did go to a Great Railway Show before, many years ago."
"Really?" gasped Emily. "You were there before?"
"Yes, I was, Emily," said Thomas. "That show wasn't about competition though. It was more of a museum-exhibit. The big engines were all very angry that I was chosen to go to that show on the York Railway. But it almost right away went wrong when a crossing-gate lock broke and I crashed into it, damaging my front. A lorry took me the rest of the way and at least I got to see the lovely countryside…until the lorry's driver got lost on the way to the show. Then he parked in an unfitting spot to find a telephone and ended up being ticketed by a traffic warden."
"Already this is sounding like a disaster trip," said Emily.
"Hold on, Emily. There's more to it," said Thomas. "When I finally arrived at the museum's workshop and had by buffer beam repaired, I arrived at the show and made friends with an engine called Green Arrow. After a little scuffle with a bag thrown onto my line and damaging my brakes, a rail tour was going to the seaside…and Green Arrow needed my help with the extra coaches. But while we were returning to the show, I stopped Green Arrow from running into eroded ground near a river. While buses took the passengers home, Green Arrow and I went safely on our own. After a few days, the Fat Controller visited us and made me an honorary member of the National Railway Museum."
"Goodness!" said Emily. "You really were given an honour to do all that just for a museum exhibit. That's actually quite interesting."
"I just wish I could go again…and I really would like you to get a chance to go too," said Thomas.
"Don't worry, Thomas," assured Emily. "The Fat Controller would surely bring his No. 1 engine to such a fun event."
Thomas sighed unhappily. "I don't think so, Emily. The Fat Controller hasn't decided on anyone yet. He was there when Gordon and James denounced my chances…in front of Diesel! Why can't they just accept that I'm really useful?!"
"They do, Thomas. They just don't want to show it all the time. James accepted our usefulness after we helped him get Molly back. If get the chance, I'll see to it that you'll go, Thomas. The Fat Controller is sure to notice you desires. Oh, and one more thing…don't relish in winning. Just be happy that you'll be seen by many people there." At that moment, Gordon and James came back, along with the other engines.
"Oh my," James gloated. "Me at a Great Railway Show! That would be splendid, not like some smaller engines."
"James!" Emily snapped. "Behave yourself."
"Yeah, James," said Thomas. "What would Molly say?"
"O-oh…uh, right," said James. "Decorum for my Shining Sun."
Gordon, however looked a little sorry as he turned round to his berth. He was still too proud to apologize, but underneath all that, he still felt bad for laughing at Thomas.
"What's the matter with you, Gordon?" Thomas asked cheekily. "Afraid the Fat Controller will leave you behind, pulling the express like you always do?"
"No, Thomas, I'm not!" huffed Gordon. "He's certainly taking me. I just know it!" But as he looked away, Thomas could still see traces of guilt on Gordon. Thomas sighed, beginning to feel tired.
"Well, I guess we should all sleep on it," he said. "Goodnight, Emily."
"Goodnight, Thomas," she answered as they both fell asleep. Gordon, however stayed awake, thinking to himself.
"I only want to show my brother a thing or two," he thought. "Not be mean to Thomas." Then he sighed to himself. He began to think that maybe the show wasn't so important. But little did Gordon know that his chance would come much sooner than he expected, while Thomas would have to wait…
The next morning, Thomas woke up with a smile on his face.
"Maybe Philip is right," he said to himself. "Maybe I CAN do anything I want to. If I go as fast as the Flying Scotsman, the Fat Controller would definitely take me to the show!" and he picked up speed again.
"But you can't go as fast as the Flying Scotsman!" called Annie. At that moment, Caitlin flew past, calling "Hi, Thomas!"
"Caitlin…what if I was streamlined like Caitlin? Streamlining makes engines much faster!"
"Silly Thomas! Who ever heard of a streamlined-Ahh!" called the coaches as Thomas sped up yet again and started to sing his own song…about being streamlined.
As he sped along and sang to himself, he began to let his fantasy get the better of him. He imagined himself rushing into the Steamworks for some redefining and a brand new slick coat of paint that would shine all the time. And he began to think the exact same thing Emily once thought about Caitlin. He could see himself being taken apart piece by piece and reassembled into a new, never-before seen tank engine. Even Annie and Clarabel seemed to get an upgrade in appearance with blue paint and red and white stripes.
Exactly like how Gordon and Spencer reacted when Connor and Caitlin shot past them for the first time, Thomas became excited over how he would look passing by the other engines as a streamliner.
He daydreamed to himself, looking much smoother, arrow-dynamic and wearing a skirt over his buffers. In his fantasy, he shot past Caitlin and Connor, taking them both by surprise, but he didn't realize that he really DID shoot past them.
"Thomas? What are you doing going so fast?"
"And what is he singing about?" asked Caitlin.
Thomas kept ripping across the line and singing loudly to himself about getting new curves and a shape to make others gape before him. And indeed, as he rocketed towards Knapford Station, James saw him and gaped.
"Whoa! And I thought I was the fast one at stations," he thought as Thomas shot past. It wasn't until he stopped beyond the platform when he suddenly regained concentration. Thomas finally snapped out of his fantasy and realized his mistake.
"Ahem!" said a familiar voice. Thomas reversed slowly back to the platform where the Fat Controller was waiting.
"Sorry, sir. I think I came in a little too quickly that time.
"Yes, Thomas. You certainly did," said the Fat Controller.
"But I had an idea. If you were to take an engine…like me, sir, and get the men at the Steamworks to add some streamlining to him, then he'd be able to win races for you at the Great Railway Show.
"That…is an excellent idea, Thomas," said the Fat Controller.
"Are you sure about that, sir?" asked Annie.
"Of course, I am, Annie, Thomas is quite right. Once he's been streamlined, Gordon will be faster than ever." Thomas gaped when he heard "Gordon."
"Isn't that right, Gordon?" called the Fat Controller. Gordon smiled impressively as the Fat Controller left to make more arrangements. As Thomas remained silent in disappointment, he felt a little neglected. He didn't mean to voice his request like that. He looked at Gordon again. The big blue engine didn't say anything. A great excitement was building inside him. Being streamlined made him think about what he said when Henry came back from Crewe.
"Why should Henry have a new shape? A shape good enough for me is good enough for him!"
Now at long last, Gordon was getting a new shape…temporarily. But even so, Gordon could not be more excited.
"Poop-poop," Gordon uttered in a monotone voice before speaking again, gasping with pent up excitement. "Poetry of motion…the only engine to be! Oh, bliss! Oh my. Oh MY!"
"Stop being an ass, Gordon!" snapped Henry, who was passing by. But Gordon didn't pay heed to Henry.
"To think I never knew…all those wasted years…I never even dreamt!" said Gordon. "I didn't want to go to the show at first…But NOW, oh, what smoke clouds shall spring up behind me as I speed on my reckless way! What A-1 Pacific engines I shall fling carelessly into the ditch! Horrid Little A-1's! COMMON A-1's! INFERIOR A-1'S!"
"What are we to do with Gordon?" asked Thomas, still disappointed that his plan failed. And as Thomas left the station, Gordon continued to exclaim and scat like a streamlined engine as he continued with the express.
"Poop-poop! Poop-poop! Ha-ha-ha! BRHMM-brm-brm-brm! Poop-PO-OP!" he exclaimed.
Thomas wasn't only disappointed…he realized that he made the same mistake Emily made when she became fascinated by Caitlin's speed. He was craving to have his shape be changed and didn't even think about how Emily would react to that. He decided he had to confess to her and huffed sadly out of Knapford Station.
He eventually met her at Wellsworth Station. She was looking calmer after all the excitement about the show came and went. She saw Thomas arrive and wondered what he was thinking.
"Hello, Emily," Thomas said feebly.
"Thomas? Are you OK?" asked Emily.
"I don't know," said Thomas. "I can't believe what I thought just some time ago. Emily…I really do want to go to that show…and I just thought of something that would have been brilliant…but I almost made your mistake."
"What mistake, Thomas?" asked Emily.
"I…I saw Caitlin rush past me…it made me excited about the show again…and…I wanted to be streamlined…just briefly so I could race in the show," said Thomas. "But then the Fat Controller chose Gordon for that."
"Oh, Thomas," sighed Emily.
"I really don't want to change my shape now…I shouldn't have thought that!"
"Don't make my mistakes, Thomas," coaxed Emily. "Just relax. If you were really left behind and didn't go to the show…then I'd stay too."
"R-really?" asked Thomas. "But I want you to get a chance to go to the show too!"
"The show is nothing to me if you don't go, Thomas," said Emily. "I'd miss out on the show if it meant being with you." Then she continued on her way. Thomas smiled a little as he felt Emily's support holding strongly for him.
Even with all the excitement, work on the railway had to carry on, and Brendam Docks was as busy as ever. Cranky was unloading some rather large crates for Diesel.
"OK, Diesel. This is a nice big crate," he said. "How about this one?"
"Um…no, no, not that one, Cranky. It needs to be bigger. That one, yeah! That one!"
"What do you want all these crates for anyway?"
"Never you mind what I want them for…it's a surprise," said Diesel as he shunted them away.
"Uh. Some engines," said Cranky, just as Thomas came by, still feeling sulky.
"What's up with you?" asked Cranky.
"I had this brilliant idea about how I could go to the Great Railway Show, but the Fat Controller refused to streamline me!"
Cranky suddenly started barking with laugher. "Oh, Thomas! THAT'S a good one! A streamlined tank engine!"
"It's not that funny, Cranky!" retorted Thomas. Suddenly, he and Salty heard the horn of a ship. Up ahead, they saw the drawbridge for the port come down. Then suddenly, all sorts of engines came flooding into the docks. Engines that Thomas had to admit, he had never seen anything like. There were twelve engines altogether, from different countries all over the world, speaking in their own language. Thomas was most surprised and even confused. What was going on? Where did all these engines come from? The Dock Manager tried to stop the engines. He finally blew his whistle and stopped the line of engines. One, however was much further than the others. A big, red engine with black and yellow stripes named Axel stopped in time, and all the other engines stopped behind him.
"Oh, watch out!" shouted the big navy and grey engine behind Axel. His name was Vinnie, a big, rough engine from North America…with a tendency of being bad.
"Where are you all going?" asked the Dock Manager.
"To the Great Railway Show, of course," explained Axel.
"The Great Railway Show's not here! It's happening on the Mainland. This is the Island of Sodor."
"The Island of…oops," said Axel as he began to reverse, surprising Vinnie. "Wrong stop!" he called. All the engines began to reverse back to the ship and continue on their way.
"I'm coming! Please wait!" called a voice from ahead of Axel.
"The Great Railway Show?" Thomas asked excitedly and carelessly following one of the engines. "Are you really all going to-?"
"Get out of the way!" demanded Vinnie as he hastily shunted Thomas along. "Why don't you look where you're going, Shrimp?"
"Well, I'm not the one going backwards," huffed Thomas as he moved aside and let Vinnie join the other engines.
"Why don't you take me with you?" called Thomas as the ferry began to leave. "It looks like there's room for one more!"
"Is there someone missing?" asked a small green engine named Gina from Italy…who looked much like Emily if she was a Narrow Gauge Engine. Vinnie snickered to himself. What Thomas didn't notice was that one engine had been left behind in the confusion…and was coming up right behind him!
The engine bumped right into him and Thomas began leaning off the edge of the track…into the ocean! This new engine felt the bump and suddenly had workmen rushing over to prepare a rescue. Thomas cried for help as workmen hastily attached a chain to his coupling, then to the engine. The engine pulled hard and quickly. Soon, Thomas was safe again.
"Alright!" called Salty.
"What a rescue!" called Porter.
But Thomas was very angry now at the thought that he was almost pushed overboard. "What is it with all you Railway Show Engines?" he ranted and raved. "Charging about like you OWN the tracks! What makes you so special anyway?! Do you think you're better than all the other engines just beca-"
Thomas suddenly stopped and gaped. What he saw was so colorful, styled, and very intriguing. The engine he saw before him looked exceptionally, and unexpectedly beautiful. Unlike any engine Thomas had seen before. She was pink with navy blue stripes, she was spotted with decorations, her wheels were small but in big numbers, and she had fancy eyelashes.
"I'm very sorry," said the engine, with an Indian accent. "I truly never meant to bump into you. I simply didn't recognize you were behind me."
Salty saw that Thomas was too speechless to answer at what he was seeing. So he played parent and spoke for him.
"Thank you for rescuing me. My name's Thomas. What's yours?" he said.
"Salty," groaned Thomas.
"She can't be called Salty. That's MY name," laughed Salty.
"My name is Ashima," said the engine with a giggle.
"Well…I mean…" Thomas began. "So…I can't stand around here all day!" he suddenly said and began to back up…right into Porter! Ashima giggled again and Thomas' quaint behavior.
"Some of us have a railway to run," he said as he hastily left the docks on another line. Thomas was actually relieved he was saved, but the only reason he refused to talk to Ashima was because of her stunning appearance. He was taken in by it, but then felt frightened for his relationship with Emily. He didn't want another engines' beauty to lure him away from the engine he loved with all his heart.
Back at the docks, Ashima looked puzzled. She expected much more friendliness and gratitude from a new engine she first met.
"I only saved him and introduced myself to him," she said.
"Oh, never mind him, Ashima," said Salty. "He's quite a cheeky tank engine at times…he can be too big for his buffers."
"I see," said Ashima. "So…I missed my ferry. Do you know how to get to the Mainland?"
"Oh, you may have to look about. I can't stop now," said Salty. "Busy day, busy day."
Soon, Thomas was back in the yard, shunting trucks again. He had been grumbling about Ashima ever since he returned. Percy and Philip could see his bad mood and didn't understand.
"I don't get it. Why did she try to push you off the docks?" asked Percy.
"I don't know, Percy. Maybe she was jealous!" snapped Thomas. "Or, maybe she's just a very pushy engine."
"But then…why did she rescue you?" asked Percy.
"Don't ask me, Percy. I don't know anything about her."
"My advice to you, Thomas, is to keep away from her," said Philip, being a diesel box cab after all. "Engines like that are nothing but trouble."
Thomas continued to shunt the tucks about, hastily but quite accurately. Then he returned to Annie and Clarabel to start his Branch Line run.
"Thomas, whatever is the matter with you, going about in a sulk?" asked the coaches.
"A bunch of pushy, thick-headed engines docked here, thinking this was the Great Railway Show! After they got back on the ferry, one of them almost pushed me into the sea, and rescued me right afterwards! What is going on?!"
"What engine, Thomas?" asked Annie.
"Her name is Ashima, and I DON'T want to think about her!"
"Why not?" asked Clarabel.
"Because…oh, forget it!" snapped Thomas. But that afternoon, as Thomas was pulling the local with Annie and Clarabel…he saw Ashima again.
"Oh no, it's her!" he said.
"Oh, Thomas? Thomas!" called Ashima. She sighed and batted her eyelashes playfully. "Hello again."
Thomas tried not to blush in vain as he answered. "Hello. I thought you were going to the Great Railway Show."
"I was…but I missed the ferry, and I don't know how to get there by rail."
"Ooh! Thomas wants to go to the Great Railway Show. Maybe you could go together," hummed the coaches.
"I don't think that's a very good idea, Annie. I'm probably not even going." Then his guards whistle blew and he set off. "You'll need to find another engine to go with. Not me!" As he left the platform, Annie and Clarabel looked sorry for Ashima. It seemed that she really needed help to find her way. She seemed worried and lost.
"I do wish you two hadn't told her that I want to go to the Great Railway Show!" Thomas complained to the coaches.
"But it's true."
"Well, what's so special about her anyway?" asked Thomas. "She's not fast or big or strong! I really don't see why SHE should get to go!"
"Well, she was very beautifully painted."
"Quite right dear, she looked stunning! All those bright colours!"
"Bright colours? Beautifully painted? Big deal! Any engine could get themselves painted!" Thomas scoffed...but then another idea flew into Thomas' funnel. He took off again…
About time, that's all I can say. This will be fairly short, by which I mean we'll be posting one chapter per day. Three chapters, one each day, three days total, you get the gist of it. So tune in tomorrow and Monday for the next chapters and tell us what you think so far. See ya tomorrow.