Lee's Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends

Stories

Henry and the Diesels

It was an early start for Henry one morning, and he wasn't best pleased at all. He'd not long just come back from his Flying Kipper duty and he now had an even bigger duty. It would take a long while to get there, and the load would be heavy. Henry wasn't in the mood for this duty whatsoever.

"Why do I have do this?" he questioned to his driver. He didn't reply, but a voice did, it was the Fat Controller's.

"Henry, I have entrusted you will do this duty to the best of your ability. It is a shame Neville is at the works, otherwise it would have been his. The fact everyone else is busy too means that only you can do it." he boomed at Henry.

"I will do my best then, Sir!" Henry replied. He then steamed off to the station to collect his work.

When he arrived, Henry noticed that there was atleast 15 flatbeds of scraps. These scraps were being taken to the Other Railway where they would be sold on.

"This won't be easy!" said Henry to his driver. He agreed, but then they had to set off. It was a slow start as Henry chugged away from the station, but he coped, just. The trip would take them a long while and it would demand a real effort from Henry, but the flatbeds were very impatient as they'd never had to go so far before.

"Hurry up!" they cried, but Henry ignored them and carried on as much as he could. Morning came and went and then the afternoon soon passed and evening was setting in and Henry still wasn't there yet. He was losing patience himself and was annoyed that he never got a rest along the way as his axles ached incredibly. Soon enough, the Other Railway was in the distance and they before he knew it, he was there. Henry was relieved, but he knew he had to return to Sodor straight the way, so he quickly reversed down the line after the scraps were delivered, but it was too fast, his wheels couldn't cope and then there was trouble. His tender de-railed and then a few of his back wheels too. He was stuck now, and he'd noticed he was in the Diesel yard where all the diesels stayed. Henry then heard two diesel horns, and out out the darkening night came two diesels, smiling very widely.

"Who are you?" boomed a gruff voice towards Henry.

"I...I...I am Henry..." stuttered Henry in response. "Who are you?" he then questioned.

"I'm Robert, but you can call me Bob...and him next to me, that's my brother Richard, but we all call him Tricky Dicky" replied the Diesel.

"I'm sorry I'm stuck here, I've de-railed, can you send for help?" Henry then asked.

"No" replied Tricky Dicky. "You'll have to wait until the morning..."

"Oh no..." cried Henry. He was left here all through the night, and he didn't want this at all. He was atleast with his driver and fireman, but he was with two diesels he'd never met before, this was very awkward indeed. Then all of a sudden, a light turned on and it illuminated an figure in the distance, it was another diesel, but it was in red. Henry was very surprised with what was happening.

"Who's that?" he questioned to the diesels. Neither Bob or Tricky Dicky replied, but a posh sounding voice did.

"I am Uxsbridge..." it declared. "I am the posh diesel!" Henry just watched in amazement, he never thought of such a thing like a posh diesel, but there was one, and it was right infront of him, but before he could even comprehend this, more lights turned on and this time Henry recognised the diesels that were now illuminated.

"Splatter and Dodge?" he said

"The very same..." they said in unison. Henry was now very surprised indeed, but his surprise as another diesel spoke.

"Don't forget about me..." called a voice.

"Who's that?" Henry questioned

"That is our leader..." declared Bob. "Her name is Bonnie..." Henry looked on at Bonnie, her light green paint was quite worn away but her smile lit up the yards.

"Since you're here through the night then Henry, we best make you feel welcome, so we'll tell you our stories..." said Bonnie in a cheery voice. She then began telling her story.

"It was a lonesome night at my station and I was just finishing my work for that day. We'd just got there, and my driver got out to talk to the signalman. He wasn't on a break, so he should have been back very soon, but he wasn't. A couple of hours passed and he never returned. Then all of a sudden, a diesel came from in the distance and pushed me to where we are now. I've never seen my driver since..." told Bonnie. Everyone was quiet throughout, and Henry was very sorry for Bonnie indeed, but he never got the chance to say sorry to her as Uxsbridge immediately began his story.

"As I was the poshest diesel on my railway, it was only natural that when we had a Royal visitor, that I would pull the Royal carriage!" he proudly boasted. Henry was surprised indeed.

"Shame you didn't actually pull the Royal carriage though...you only placed it at the station!" remarked Tricky Dicky. He laughed due to his comment, no-one else did though.

"It is a shame, but it is my proudest moment ever! If only that steamie couldn't have taken the Royal train, then it would have been my duty!" replied Uxsbridge. Henry again felt sorry, something he never expected to feel for a Diesel. The stories carried on into the night and surprisingly Bob the diesel seemed very nice indeed, which at first look you wouldn't expect. It was his brother that was the problem, and it was easy to see as he still hated steamies. Everyone else seemed less bothered with them, which again surprised Henry. He soon gained respect for the Diesels at the yard and their stories carried on...

The night sky was slowly fading as the stories were still going on. Henry's driver and fireman had found a signalman to speak to during this time and had phoned the Fat Controller to tell them what was happening. He seemed fine so Henry's driver and fireman returned to the yards to hear the last of the stories. They listened intently and smiled widely when the story had a good ending. Then a whistle was heard, and from out of the yards appeared a crane engine, it wasn't Harvey, it was painted in blue and yellow and its name was Fleur.

"Glad to be of help!" said Fleur to Henry as she lifted him and his tender back onto the line.

"Much obliged!" replied Henry. He soon said his goodbyes to Fleur and the Diesels and promised if he was ever near again, he would visit. He soon set off, turned round at a turn-table and made his way home. When he got back, the Fat Controller allowed both him and his driver and fireman a day off to relax, and when night came at Tidmouth Sheds, Henry told the stories of the Diesels to everyone else in the hope that their opinion of Diesels would change just like his had.