A/N: Another revision I managed to churn out, inspired by the SiF critique of 'Snow Place Like Home', I made an attempt to rewrite the second half of the episode so that it all ties in a bit more. Instead of Thomas I utilized Henry as the fourth character and referenced back to his prior mentioned fear of slippery tracks, I made Emily a more prominent character rather than just a plot device, I did more in the way of exploring Emily and Victor's friendship along with Kevin and I tried to make a parallel with Kevin and Victor at the same time. While I love the original and I think Lee Pressman is a wonderful writer, I do agree with the blog critique that it lacked some cohesion, which is what I'm hoping to provide here.
Some important railway/engine function notes: As has been pointed out before, Victor seems to use what is normally the standard gauge rail when he goes out to search for Kevin. There is a part in this story where he and a standard gauge character are on the same track at once. In the back of my mind I justify it by saying they're on a dual gauge track, but whatever works. In any case, I realize this isn't keeping rail consistency but when it comes to having a good plot idea (Victor going out in search of his friend) I'm not going to nix it in favor of that. Also, I have no idea how long it would take in real life for piston rods to be replaced. For the sake of the plot, I'm going to pretend it can be a fairly speedy process.
Also to note, there is some very, very light/subtle implications of romantic Victor/Emily. VERY SUBTLE. VERY interpretive. I know people can be opinionated about pairings, even when both characters are steam engines.
At first, Emily failed to see the source of concern. The idea that her piston rods might be arriving with Kevin sooner than planned was exciting enough, surely the weather couldn't have been that bad! Victor's response to her suggestion, however, made her start to think twice.
"What? You think he's gone out in the snow?"
Emily shrunk back a bit (as much as she could on the lift), not expecting Victor to meet her enthusiasm with alarm.
"He did seem very keen…?" she suggested, sheepish.
Every engine Emily knew held a great bit of respect for Victor- for some of them, intimidation as well. In moments like this it wasn't hard to see why; he had an intensity to his expressions and reactions that Emily knew better than to take lightly. Oh, he was very kind and gentle, not someone she feared in the least…but she did hold him in high regard as both a friend and wiser engine and she knew if he had cause for concern she should as well.
"Oh, Kevin…" he sighed, his face falling as he moved forward to take stock of the worsening weather. "He doesn't stand a chance out in this blizzard. I have to go and find him!"
Emily balked. With her newfound awareness of how bad the snow was getting it seemed unwise for anyone to venture outside. What's more, it was the first time she had seen or heard of Victor making such an impulsive decision.
"But, Victor, you hate the snow!" she reminded him. "Victor…?"
"I do hate the snow, Emily," Victor confirmed as he received his snow plow. "But Kevin is out there and he may need my help!"
Emily supposed he had a point…if indeed it were even true that Kevin had gone towards the depot.
"But…! That was just a guess. He might still be around here somewhere! Perhaps you should take a look around first?"
Victor wasn't convinced.
"I mustn't waste time. You were right, he did show an interest in going to the depot- knowing him, that's where he's heading at this very moment. I have to intercept him before something bad happens!"
Emily wondered how Victor could have so little concern for what might happen to himself if he ventured blindly out into the storm. She knew this was all born from concern for his friend, but he wasn't thinking clearly. For as much as Victor saw himself as the only savior Emily was beginning to think that obligation fell on her instead.
"I don't think this is a good idea. Please, you really should-"
But Victor was already tooting his whistle and heading for the mainline.
"Hang in there, Emily!" he called to her on his way out. "I'll be right back!"
Realizing the danger he was willingly putting himself in, Emily called back with a much too quiet, much too helpless, much too ineffective, "Victor…?!" as he went onward, shouting for Kevin.
If she'd had a feeling of restlessness for the past three days it was nothing compared to the urgency she felt now.
"Please!" she called to any of the workers below her that might listen. "Please! I need my piston rods! I need to go after Victor, it's going to be dark soon!"
Most of the workmen seemed to be ignoring her, all except one who happened to have some helpful insight.
"Did no one tell you? Henry'll be along with your piston rods soon enough. He had to make a stop before chuffing here."
Emily was flooded with relief, just before realizing it would take some time for her to be repaired. Knowing Henry, she didn't think she'd have much luck convincing him to go out after Victor and Kevin, nor did she feel it was right to put that burden of danger on another engine. She would just have to hope that her friends would fare well and that the repair would go quickly.
As she was contemplating a plan of action and trying not to think the worst, Henry rolled in.
"Henry!" she exclaimed. "Am I glad to see you!"
Henry was surprised at the reception.
"I'm glad to be in a warm building," he replied. "I think I'll just spend the night here if Victor is agreeable. I'd hate to have to get back on those slippery tracks- and the sheds are so far away!"
"We'll have to find him first," Emily sighed, satisfied at least to see that the workmen were moving quickly to pull her piston rods and begin the process of repair. It took more of them than it would have normally without their crane. "And Kevin."
Henry was shocked. He looked around the Steamworks as if to confirm that the both of them were, in fact, missing.
"Oh dear!" he whimpered. "Where've they gone...? I hope the Abominable Snowman didn't get them…!"
Emily usually found Henry's paranoia amusing more than anything else, but right now she couldn't find it in her to laugh and assure him otherwise. If Henry was not only scared of slippery tracks, but imaginary snow beasts as well, there would be little chance of convincing him to go out in search of Victor and Kevin.
What was worse, the workmen then announced that they wouldn't be able to do Emily's repair without Kevin.
"Oh, this is awful!" Emily groaned. "Victor could be anywhere by now…and the snow looks like it's getting worse!"
Her worry was punctuated by a sudden, rhythmic tapping at one of the far windows. Henry all but leapt off the tracks.
"It's the Abominable Snowman! I knew he was real!"
Emily squinted, able as she was from her position to get the smallest glimpse of what was hitting the window pane.
"That's no snow monster…that's Kevin! He must be outside!"
Henry calmed and joined Emily in feeling an overwhelming sense of relief once more.
"Henry, please," she begged. "You have to go out there and help him. Once Kevin's here I can get repaired and go after Victor!"
Henry seemed hesitant to even do this. Emily knew him better than to think him selfish, he was just so overcome with his own nervousness and could easily convince himself of nonexistent things like monsters that it often became difficult for him to do the right thing. In the end, Henry agreed and fetched Kevin from the snowbank he had fallen into.
Kevin was then treated to the scolding of a lifetime by Emily as he helped to repair her piston rods.
"I hope you've learned your lesson, Kevin," she said, her face stern as she watched him below. "Because you didn't listen you've put yourself and Victor in danger."
"I know, Emily," Kevin sighed. "I'm really sorry! I didn't mean for any of this to happen. The snow just looked like so much fun and-"
Kevin's apology wasn't enough to assuage Emily, still concerned as she was for their friend left without help. She continued to remind him, in no gentle fashion and without pause, how silly he had been not to not heed Victor's warnings.
Henry and Kevin exchanged a look sometime in the middle of her ramblings.
"I think there is something scarier than the Abominable Snowman," Henry confessed.
"Oh, yeah…" Kevin agreed. "Angry Emily!"
The snow was building and swirling as Victor continued. He was finding it harder and harder to plow through as the storm worsened and the light of day (what little of it there had been) began to disappear in lieu of nightfall. He couldn't bring himself to regret his decision, however; if Kevin really was out here there would've been no one else to save him. Victor wasn't intent on stopping or turning back until he had found his friend.
Unfortunately, circumstance had other plans. His sandbox had gone empty some time ago and though he knew it was foolish to continue on icy tracks without it he also knew that he was Kevin's only hope. Victor's plan of action was to be especially cautious and try not to stop too soon, but it wasn't enough. Despite his best efforts he ended up taking a bend just a little too fast and coasting into a siding, right into a pile of snow that had either accumulated or been left on the tracks.
"Ay dios…!" he sighed, attempting to reverse, then to go forward, and finding that both attempts were futile. He was stuck good.
Victor had been in a similar situation before, years ago when he had first arrived and been accidentally knocked into the ocean. The feeling of fear and uncertainty while sitting on that jetty for days began to revisit him now. He wondered just how long he would be stuck out here, just how much damage the snow would do to him before it melted, just how worse off Kevin was without his help.
Victor wasn't one to give up, however. Even in his darkest moment on the jetty he still contemplated ways he might try to save himself (all of them futile, of course) if for no other reason than to conjure some sense of hope. He was in the middle of doing this when he heard an engine whistle he knew very well.
"Emily?" he breathed, disbelieving. When and how had she gotten fixed?
Against all odds it was Emily, the very same engine that had been hanging from the ceiling of the Steamworks when he left.
"Victor…? Victor, is that you sticking out of the snow?"
He didn't blame her for having some difficulty picking him out. The wind and snow had whipped up to such a fury that it was hard for him to see even an inch or two from his nose.
"It's me," he confirmed, loud enough for her to hear but with a somber tone of defeat. He had never felt sillier- which, all things considered, was much better than feeling scared.
"What a mess you've gotten yourself into, Victor," Emily tsked. He could hear her moving up along behind him.
"No, no, don't bother with me. Go find Kevin first!"
Emily did no such thing as her driver got out and did his best to couple her up to Victor's back buffer amidst the cold wind.
"Had you listened to me you would've found Kevin just outside the Steamworks. He was there all along, stuck in a patch of snow- not unlike you!"
She giggled a little just before making an attempt to pull him out of the thick snow drift. Her wheels gripped and grinded against the sanded tracks, but none of it was sufficient to heave him out.
Victor, meanwhile, was extremely relieved to hear his little friend was safe, as it had been his biggest concern even above what would become of him. Along with that, however, came a very strong feeling of embarrassment. He had acted rashly, more so than he would've ever thought wise for anyone else.
"You were right, Emily," he agreed. "I was silly…and now I've put both of us, you and I, in danger. The blizzard is getting stronger…and it'll be dark soon. You should go back while you still can."
"Now you're being silly," Emily scoffed. "I'm not leaving you out here! So, pulling didn't work…let's see what a good shunt will do."
Victor could hear the sound of Emily reversing along the siding, building up momentum for what was certainly going to be a hard shunt. He suspected he would be treated not unlike a troublesome truck, so he closed his eyes and braced himself for the bash. Emily did just as he had anticipated, racing down the short length of track, straight into his back buffers…and it did the trick, Victor went sliding out of the snow drift with ease.
"¡Calderas hirvientes!" Victor exclaimed with a laugh of surprise. "You did it, Emily!"
He couldn't see, but Emily was beaming brightly. She always loved being praised for a job well done, something Victor had always been consistent about providing for her. Even more than that though, she was glad to see her friend out of danger.
After Emily gave Victor some sand, the two of them went coasting down the track towards the Steamworks, neither of them deterred by the thick gusts of snow. Their new-found relief and pride was enough to keep them chuffing despite the weather.
"You weren't silly, by the way," Emily told him. "To go after Kevin, I mean. You were worried…and I think that's my fault. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions either."
"It was a good guess!" Victor assured her. "Kevin had been quite keen to go to the depot…but I still should have listened to reason before acting on impulse."
"Either way, Victor…Kevin's very lucky to have a friend like you."
"And I'm very lucky to have a friend that would face dangerous weather to pull silly me out of a snow bank."
The two of them exchanged smiles and reddened cheeks that were not entirely caused by the frigid air.
Back at the Steamworks it was decided that Henry and Emily would stay out the night, given the intensity of the weather.
"I'm sorry I didn't go after you sooner, Victor," Henry said shamefully as all four of them congregated around the warmth of the furnace. "I could have done it before Emily, I just-…well…"
Victor laughed. "It's quite alright, my friend. All's well that ends well."
"I'm sure Victor wishes Kevin had even just a fraction of your fear of snow, Henry," Emily supplied with a smirk.
The three of them chuckled while Kevin blushed and grinned sheepishly.
"I'm sorry, boss! I know I should have listened to you to begin with. I still can't believe you went out into the storm just for me!"
"That's what friends are for, Kevin," Victor smiled. "And you are my best friend."
For however endeared Emily was to the exchange, she still cleared her throat and gave Victor a meaningful look.
"Ah, yes, but-…the truth is, I should have listened too. Emily suspected you were still nearby and I acted on impulse anyway. I suppose, in the end, we've both learned our lesson in being mindful of what others say."
"I learned that I can shunt another engine out of a snowbank with perfect ease," Emily added with a wink in Victor's direction.
"I learned that there really is no such thing as the Abominable Snowman," Henry said, proud of himself for coming around to this revelation. However, no sooner had he said this than a harsh gust of wind wrapped on one of the windows in such a way to make him wince and yelp. "Ah-…! Er…maybe I spoke too soon."
The other three couldn't help but giggle as Emily sighed out a tired but endeared, "Oh, Henry!"