Me: Hey guys, Alpha isn't here today, so we have a new guy to introduce.
Fred: That's right, the name's Fredrick Williams, but you can call me Fred, and Welcome to Journey To The World Of Steam.
Me: That's the name of the story, however, this will add advents from the RWS, the model series (Barring 8-12 since people don't want to talk about it), The Adventure Begins, and so forth, along with the Magic Railroad, there will be some original stories, but I will try to keep them as close as I can to the series.
Fred: Wow, and you already finished this chapter? that's an achievement so far.
Me: Oh stop, it's not really an achievement, I can say that I did that with Mighty Morphin Sonic Rangers months ago. And believe me, Fred, this story has a connection to my Captain N crossover story, and you were mentioned, but not by name.
Fred: I see, but why?
Me: You're about to find out. *Get's crushed by the disclaimer again* WHY ME?!
Discaimer: Prowl does not own Thomas and Friends, he only owns his OCs as well as the story
Fred: *Lifts the disclaimer as I get out from under it* Is this the fist time it's happened to you?
Me: Trust me, this is not the first time this happened to me, but it's the first time in a while that this happened to me
Me & Fred: Enjoy the fist chapter, folks!
Fred was excited to see the newest season of Thomas And Friends since he heard of it's release on the web before it could be seen on TV, he had been a little kid when he first heard of the series through the books, and since he was getting older, his love for the series had not gone away, he always kept the biggest book containing the Railway Series, although it was old, it was kept in great condition, he took care of it everyday, and not only did he read the books, he watched it's cartoon adaptations on television and always kept DVDs of the series in a neat and orderly fashion, he also had toys of the engines, each from wooden Railway to model engines, and some that looked like real life engines for the Wooden Railway since they were compatible with the tracks, but not the engines themselves.
He lay on his bed, wondering what it must be like to drive an engine, however, his thoughts were intercepted by the magical engine herself, she thought about appearing before him, but that would make him freak out if he saw her in his dreams. She saw him asleep with the Railway Series collection book held in his arms, it amused her, but then she had a thought, if she could send him to the island of Sodor, he would be able to experience driving an engine, and so her magic surrounded the young man and the book, but then it did something rather unexpected, it sent him and the book through the Magic Railroad, but back into the past, Lady knew her magic was powerful, but it was unpredictable and she couldn't do anything about the situation, she hoped the young man would be alright.
The last thing he knew was that he went to bed, but a bright light woke him up from his nap, it couldn't have been morning already, and he knew it wasn't, but the light proved him wrong. "I just went to sleep, don't tell me it's morning already." he said groggily, waking up and rubbing his eyes, and when he opened them, he was in a complete shock, he was in a yard, and it had tracks and a station, he looked for any engine nearby, and he realized was in his pajamas, he needed clothes, and fast, luckily, he saw his wallet lying next to him, then he found his book, and picked it up, he didn't know where he was, but he knew that he needed to get clothes, and fast.
He looked in his wallet and found that British money was beside his own money, he figured that someone prepared him with the money he needed to buy clothes with, he didn't know who, but he silently thanked them for it, looking for the nearest clothing store, he went there and bought whatever he felt was right if he didn't want to draw suspicion to himself while wearing his pajamas in public. He walked out wearing some of the new clothes he bought and went back to where he woke up, and as he got there, three steam engines were talking to each other, he couldn't place where he had seen them before, looking at his book, he instantly recognized the blue and black engines as Edward and James respectively, the teal engine he didn't recognize until realization hit him that the teal engine was Thomas himself.
Wow, I'm on Sodor, but is this...He thought when realization struck him again. I can't believe I'm here in the events of The Adventure Begins, If I can get to work my way into becoming a driver, maybe I'll be able to drive one of the engines, preferably not Gordon though, his cartoon counterpart has given him a bad reputation, Edward is a good elective, but he'll only be temporary, I do want to be Thomas's driver though. He thought, as if on cue, Gordon appeared, and it went like it did in the movie, as Gordon left, Fred walked up to the engines as soon as Sir Topham Hatt did.
"Excuse me, but do you need a driver as well as a tank engine, sir?" He asked, everyone looked at him like he was crazy. "Are you new here?" Sir Topham Hatt asked, Fred nodded. "Yes sir, I came from America, and I was wondering if I can get a job as a driver for one of your engines, preferably not the big blue one, I saw him and I've got a feeling that he's been like this ever since. But the one with the number two I will work with temporarily, he's old, but he's really useful." He explained, Sir Topham Hatt pondered in thought, looking at both Fred and Edward, then he smiled. "Hmm, now that you mention it, I do need a driver for my engines, we are on short notice and we really need the help, so I welcome you in to my railway, Edward will show you and Thomas what to do, so please listen to his instructions, and I will assign you to Edward for the time being, until you are ready for your first assignment, you will be spending time in the yard." He said, then he noticed the book in Fred's arm. "Is that a book? Well, I see you like to read, but take my advice, read in your free time when you finish your training." He said, catching Fred off guard.
"Yes sir, I'll be sure to keep that in mind." He said nervously as Sir topham Hatt left. He wasn't supposed to see it! Oh well, he didn't ask what it was about, so I'm safe for the time being. He thought as he began walking to Edward. "I'm Fred, it's nice to meet you, Edward." He said, introducing himself to the blue tender engine. "It's nice to meet you too, Fred. Say, when you got here, where did you come from? You look like you bought those clothes recently." Edward said, looking at Fred's clothes.
Fred looked embarrassed. "I'll tell you later, right now, I have to start my training, I'm temporarily assigned you after all." He said, everyone laughed.
It was hard work, but Fred was soon adjusting to Edward's controls, while Thomas was having a hard time getting around the yard, Thomas had a few mishaps and near misses, but he eventually got tired at the end of the day.
Soon everyone...well, almost everyone was in the shed, Fred noticed that Henry was missing, but he knew that Henry would come in seconds after Thomas did because he was afraid of the rain, Fred was right that Henry did come in. Everyone was now in the sheds, the doors were shut as to not let the rain in. Edward looked to Fred. "Are you going to tell us how you got here?" He asked, Fred looked around, know that almost everyone was paying attention, but it didn't matter, he was going to tell them anyway, more specifically Edward. "Alright, you asked about where I came from, and I'll give you a straight and honest answer, I really don't know, but what I do know is that I landed here without knowing how it happened, you see, I have a passion for engines, both steam and diesel, although, it'll be a while before a diesel will come here, I also wanted to experience what it was like being a engine driver, and I guess someone sent me here to which I can thank them for doing so, the only thing besides the wallet I have is the book you saw me with, it contains stories about engines, some you might be familiar with." Every engine was looking at him. "Yes I know, but I can't read them all to you, but I can start with four, if that's alright." He said, sitting between Thomas and Edward. "I'd like to hear them, did you write them?" Thomas asked, Fred chuckled. "No, but if I did, these stories wouldn't popular from where I came from. Yes, I do come from a America, but the America I came from is in a different world and in a different time period. Now, let me begin." He said as he began reading the first story, the engines were surprised, but none more so than Edward and Thomas when Fred finished the story.
James was the first to react. "But how? That story couldn't have been about Edward! That was about couple of months ago!" He exclaimed, Fred seemed none to happy about that. "That's because this was first story that was ever written, and how were you even there? I don't seem to recall you even being there." He snapped, James went silent after that, Thomas was surprised. "Is that what happened Edward? Were you the only smallest engine in the shed?" He asked, Edward chuckled. "Indeed I was, Thomas, but I bet Fred has two more stories to read." He replied, Fred smiled.
"Yep, now this next one is about Henry, don't ask why, but this was the second story written after the first one." He said, beginning the second story, Gordon listened in, but he wasn't too thrilled about his portrayal in the story, be he was confused as to why the story took place after the first story, but decided to say nothing, Henry knew what was coming next. "Are the second and third story about me?" Fred swore he heard wrong, but Henry's question was heard clear as day. "Well yes, they're about you, Edward and Gordon are also involved, and James is somewhat involved, because of the books here." Fred finished before he began reading the two stories, Thomas was shocked hear that Henry had got stuck in the tunnel because of the rain, James confirmed that he was there, Gordon laughed at Henry's expense. Henry said nothing, Thomas was furious at Gordon for making fun of Henry, Edward reassured him that everything was alright, Fred only looked in shame at what he had done.
"Sorry, I didn't know what I was thinking, Henry, if you want, I'll stop reading." He offered, but Henry kindly declined the offer. "I'll be alright, besides, the next story proves that I'm not useless." He said as Gordon soon stopped laughing. "Oh no...not that story." He paled, not that the fact his face was already gray, but the fact that the word "next" made him realize that the story was that he burst his safety valve right in front of Henry, he didn't want hear it, but Thomas egged Fred on, and so Fred continued to read.
Thomas now laughed at Gordon's expense along with Henry joining in on the laughter as well as James, Edward just smiled as the story was finished. "Well, I guess we've all heard the stories, now why don't we get some sleep?" He asked, prompting everyone to get some sleep.
The next morning came early, Fred watched as Thomas went to the Steam Works to be repainted, but not before he climbed aboard Edward. "Alright Edward, shall we continue today's training exercise?" He asked, Edward smiled. "Of course, Fred, we'll continue training today before you're ready to do the job you're meant to do." He said, half jokingly, Fred understood why, and he knew that Edward meant well.
It was still early enough that morning, Edward heard Thomas calling his name, indicating that Thomas had gotten back from the Steam Works with his new coat of paint. "Look Edward, I'm blue, just like you!" Thomas said happily, Edward and Fred chuckled. "And you're also number one." Edward said, Thomas gasped excitedly. "Does that mean I'm the best?" He asked, Fred was about to reply until Gordon's whistle was heard. "Don't look now, but here comes Mr. big, blue & pompous." Fred said, looking back in dismay, Thomas kept quiet, holding back the urge to laugh at Goron's new nickname.
"The last number one was coffeepot." He said, making James laugh. Thomas didn't know what a coffeepot engine was until Edward explained. "Coffeepot is just nickname for an engine with a boiler that points up in the air, like those things people make coffee in." He explained, Fred nodded, knowing that Edward was correct. "It's true, there's still one coffeepot engine left on Sodor, and I refuse to think about what happened to the others." He said grimly, Gordon didn't care for Edward's teachings because all he cared about was taking the express. "Stop chatting, and bring me my coaches!" He ordered, Edward sighed and looked at Thomas. "You'd better better do it, Thomas. Fred and I have a train to take today, which means that this is Fred's last day in training, so he has to learn how to take goods and passenger trains while driving an engine." He said, Fred nodded, Thomas looked upset.
"But...I thought we were going to be working together." He said, Edward smiled. "We are, just not all the time." Gordon's whistle sounded, it was clear that he was getting impatient. "My Coaches!" Gordon boomed, Edward was heading over to his goods train, this caused Gordon to be surprised. "Why are you on a goods train? You're supposed to be shunting my coaches." He said, dismayed at the sight of Edward's goods train. "Well, Mr. big, blue & pompous, we aren't doing that because Thomas is doing that today, this is also my last day in training as well before I actually get the job as an engine driver, I'll drive any engine, but not you, thankfully. Now my training may look like it's rushed, but I seem to know how to work it out." He said to almost everyone, especially Gordon.
It was in the evening when it was almost time to return to the sheds, James came by with Annie and Clarabel, and halted to a stop, both Fred and Thomas could smell the smoke coming from Jame's cab. "Do you smell something smokey, James? Like a burning smell?" This caught James off guard. "No." He denied, sniffing the smoke. "Nothing out of the ordinary." He was uncoupled from Annie and Clarabel, feeling embarrassed and left. Poor James. Fred thought worryingly. Any day and he'll have an accident when his brake blocks catch fire, I hope that really doesn't have to happen. Then he saw Thomas was talking to Henry, Fred saw the conversation from a distance, he knew Thomas wasn't teasing Henry, and it was only just a question, and at that point, Henry left, Fred really forgot that James's accident would happen sooner than expected, so he went to Sir Topham Hatt's office.
He knocked on the door, and Sir Topham Hatt called for him to come in. "Sorry to interrupt sir, but it's about James's wooden brake blocks." Sir Topham hatt could see the worry in Fred's face. "I see. I thank you for your concern, but I already know about James's brake blocks, I knew they wouldn't catch fire until James would have an accident, obviously, someone thought that wooden brake blocks were better for an engine." Sir Topham Hatt replied, looking out towards the station, then back to Fred. "How did you know about about James's wooden brake blocks?" He asked, getting suspicious, Fred was about to panic, he didn't know what to say.
All of a sudden, his mouth opened, and words he hadn't expected flew out. "I saw him letting out smoke from his cab, it wasn't much, but it was enough for me for to see, and how the smoke got to me, I'll never know. But he did look embarrassed about it, though." He said, knowing it was unexpected, but what he did say was the truth, Sir Topham Hatt looked in thought, considering what Fred said was true or not, but it was believable enough to be the truth. "Sir, I believe that James's brake blocks should be checked before he has an accident. it's the least we can do before it happens." Fred pleaded, looking like he was begging for it to be avoided, and he really was.
With that, Sir Topham Hatt sighed. "Very well, I'll look into it, and you do realize that tomorrow is when you're assigned to Thomas, right?" He asked, Fred had almost forgotten about that, he suddenly remembered that Sir Topham Hatt was right. "Thanks for reminding me, sir. May I have two paper bags? I feel that Gordon's going to try to pay Thomas out for pranking him with the wake up call, yesterday." He explained, Sir Topham Hatt was confused, but he handed Fred the two paper bags anyway. "If I may ask, why two paper bags?" He asked, Fred explained. "One for lunch, and the other for if Gordon actually does goes through with his plan." He said grimly. "I hope you'll be on the express when it happens." He said, Sir Topham Hatt considered thinking about it. "Alright, I'll think about it, if Gordon does what you think he'll do, I'll be there." He said, Fred let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, sir. I'll see you tomorrow." He said, leaving the office, and headed off to Edward. "Are you alright, Fred?" He asked, Fred looked fine, but he was worried. "I'm fine, but I'm worried about tomorrow, Edward, I'm afraid that Gordon will try and carry out his plan." He explained to Edward.
That night, Fred had trouble sleeping as much as Thomas did, they couldn't stand Gordon's boasting, the others didn't pay attention to his boasting, and fell asleep.
The next morning, Thomas wouldn't wake up because he didn't have enough steam and was up all night due to Gordon's boasting, Henry blew his whistle to wake Thomas up. "You need to wake up, Thomas. It's nearly time for the express. Gordon will be waiting for his coaches." he said as he left for his goods train. Fred shoveled enough coal into Thomas's firebox, and at last, Thomas started, now fully awake. "Oh dear! Oh dear! Must get going. Must get going!" He said, now moving to get started shunting for the day.
Later that morning, Thomas had brought had brought Gordon's coaches last, Gordon still hadn't forgotten about the prank that Thomas pulled on him two days ago, and when Thomas came into view. "Hurry up, you!" He called, Thomas wasn't in the mood, either. "Hurry up, yourself." He mumbled, Fred knew it was too late. Thomas, you fool! You fell for it! Fred thought, scared of knowing what was coming next.
"Hmm. Yes, I will." Gordon quietly said as the coaches were buffered up, everyone including Sir Topham Hatt scrambled in. Oh no, here we go! Fred thought in despair as Gordon started off so quickly, that the station master and porter forgot to uncouple Thomas in time. It was no use as Thomas tried to stop, but Gordon had kept going, which made the paper bag containing Fred's lunch to be thrown out of Thomas's cab, Fred didn't notice because he had eaten breakfast and he nearly threw up, it wasn't until that they got to Vicarstown station, Fred got out the empty paper bag and finally threw up. "HA! Well, little Thomas, now you know what hard work is like, don't you?" Just as he was about to go, a familiar voice appeared. "Gordon, I am ashamed of you!" Gordon knew who that voice belonged to, Sir Topham Hatt had just gotten out of the first coach, he wasn't pleased. "Fred was right, You did carry out your plan, now I know why he needed two paper bags." He said, looking at Fred who now lay on the ground and to Thomas, who had nothing to say because he was out of breath. Sir Topham Hatt then looked back at Gordon.
"I said it once, and I'll say it again, you big engines are always causing me trouble. I'm glad Henry's not the one causing trouble this time, but I can't say the same for you. You did something childish and caused confusion and delay, I don't want people laughing at my railway." He said crossly, Gordon tried to find a way out of it, but Sir Topham Hatt wouldn't let him finish. "Do not even start, Gordon, You will pull goods trains after tomorrow for the rest of the week as punishment for playing a trick on Thomas, Think long and hard about what you've done." He finished, Gordon was in disgrace, he silently blamed both Fred and Thomas. Sir Topham Hatt managed to bring a drink of water to Fred to help ease his stomach and throat. "Thank you." Fred said hoarsely due to his throat hurting because of how hard he threw up. Thomas had a long drink til he felt better, Sir Topham Hatt looked at him, he wasn't cross, but he was disappointed. "And you know better than to prank a fellow engine, Thomas, but I'll let you off with a warning, be glad you didn't end up like Gordon, He'll be doing goods trains for the rest of the week, but please don't do that again." He warned, Thomas sighed. "Yes sir, I won't do It again, I promise." He said with a bit of sadness in his voice, Sir Topham Hatt nodded. "You look like you're worn out for the day, have a rest, Thomas, I want you to return to work tomorrow when you're fully rested." He then turned to Fred, who was feeling a little better. "I'm afraid you lost your lunch, thanks to Gordon, I'll pay for your lunch when we go to the Sodor cafe." He said, catching Fred off guard. "But I...can't." Was all he managed to get out, his throat was still sore.
Sir Topham Hatt laughed. "I insist, Fred, you need it. After all, your warning did come through, And I'm glad you told me." He said, Fred was about to reply, but a remaining chunk from breakfast was caught in his throat, he opened the bag again to throw up. Thankfully, it wasn't as bad as it was minutes ago, coughing, Fred managed to barely speak in a full sentence. "Thank the lord I had this bag handy, otherwise I would have made a big mess." He said, Sir Topham Hatt chuckled. "And I'm glad you didn't, we would have to clean this mess up if you didn't have that bag handy. Still, I think you and Thomas deserve a rest." He finished.
The rest of the day went normal, Fred was treated to lunch at the Sodor cafe and went back to the sheds with Thomas that evening, they were both glad for the day to be over, Edward looked at Fred with worry. "I saw what happened, Fred. Are you Thomas alright?" He asked, Fred wasn't happy. "No thanks to Mr. big, blue & Pompous, he made me lose both my breakfast and lunch. Thankfully, he was given goods trains as punishment after tomorrow for the rest of the week after tricking Thomas, I'm glad that I was treated to lunch, I didn't want it, but Sir Topham Hatt insisted, He was too generous. I know he's kind, yet stern, but he didn't have to be generous." Edward, James, and Henry were shocked and surprised.
"I didn't know Sir Topham Hatt was on Gordon's train. I guess I was too busy to pay attention to you and Thomas. Oh, by the way, my driver and fireman found your lunch bag, we were going to give it to you after you got back, but since you were treated to lunch, I guess you can have it for tomorrow." Edward said, allowing his driver to give Fred back the lunch he lost to Gordon, he looked at the driver.
"Thanks Gilbert." He said, receiving the bag from the driver. "You're welcome, Fred. You know, if I were you, I'd keep my lunch bag close the next time I go with an engine." Gilbert advised, Fred smiled. "I'll keep that in mind." He really meant it. The rest of the drivers were about to leave when Fred called out. "why don't you guys stay here for the night? Besides the engines, I'm the only driver who sleeps here." He said, the drivers thought that Fred was right and he had nowhere else to go. "Why not?" Asked Mr. Arkwright, Gilbert turned to him. "Sure he's new, but does he have to stay at the sheds when the engines are there?"He asked, Gilbert and the others were reconsidering their thoughts, then Gilbert had an idea. "Why don't we stay with him, tonight, that way, we could get to know him better." Everyone agreed to his idea, Fred smiled as the other drivers came over to the sheds, and out of the other drivers was a woman a year younger than Fred himself.
Fred looked at the female driver. "And who are you? I didn't even see you around days ago." He said, looking at the woman, she had red hair, freckles, brown eyes, and that was all he could see, the woman turned in his direction to respond. "Oh, sorry. My name's Vanessa Lodge, and you are?" She said, introducing herself, Fred could tell Vanessa was American like him, he wasted no time in responding, "Fred Williams, Nice to meet you, Vanessa, are you new?" He asked, Vanessa nodded. "Yep, are you new here?" Fred could tell that she wanted to know him more. "Only by three days, I'd advise you not to take Gordon out tomorrow, he's in a bad mood from what happened earlier this morning, he tricked Thomas here, and made me lose my breakfast, I told Sir Topham Hatt yesterday about what happened earlier today because I planned it, and now since Gilbert handed me my lunch, I'll be able to eat it tomorrow." He said, recalling the events that happened, he continued. Like you and me, Thomas is new, but like me, he's been here for three days. So which engine were you on?" He asked, Vanessa laughed. "James, he's sort of funny, but I don't know why he has wooden brake blocks, they could catch fire immediately during an accident." She said, confused about Jame's wooden brake blocks, Fred and the drivers knew very well about Jame's problem.
"Well, Sir Topham Hatt knows about Jame's wooden brakes, He said he'll look into it, Hopefully, it'll be soon." He said, Gilbert and Mr. Arkwright nodded. "Somehow, I think he knew when he bought James a few years ago." Arkwright said, earning a look of disbelief from Vanessa. "It's true, about eight years ago, I was about Fred's age when James first arrived, and in all my years of working with him, I never noticed until about a couple days before Fred and Thomas came, James started releasing smoke, although it was small at first, it began to be a problem when the smoke started getting out of the cab, nobody noticed but us and Sir Topham Hatt." He finished, Vanessa seemed concerned about James.
Then she noticed Fred's book on a table near the wall a few feet away from Thomas. "Is that your book?" She asked, pointing to the book, everyone now looked at the mentioned book, Fred was panicking in his mind. Gilbert saw the cover. "Ah, You've written a book, have you, Fred?" He asked curiously, Fred looked like he was about to brake apart. "Alright! I know you have questions, but ask them one at at time." He was about to tell them anyway as they asked him, He explained it to them in the same way same way he told the engines, the drivers were much more understanding, and felt sorry for him, Vanessa most of all. It was almost time for bed and Fred as getting tired, the others were as well. And by the time Everyone one finished talking, they went to sleep.
The sun was coming up next morning, and Fred was getting ready to start Thomas up, until he heard frustrated groans coming from Henry's cab. "What's the matter?" He asked, clearly forgetting that today was the day Henry's boiler wasn't working properly, Vanessa came up. "Henry's boiler isn't working right, I don't know if I can identify the problem, do you know what the problem is?" Her question hit Fred like a brick, he suddenly remembered. Oh boy, I should have seen that coming. He thought, realizing what to do next, then he thought of something. "How about we try Welsh coal?"He asked, that made Vanessa look in surprise, then her surprise turned into disbelief. "Are you crazy? That coal is expensive! We can't afford that kind of coal!" She said, not even wanting to think about it.
Fred couldn't believe what he was hearing, he then turned around to start Thomas's fire, and looked back at Vanessa. "If you want to prove me wrong, then hop in Thomas's cab. I'll keep an eye on your progress when we have to shunt the trains." He said is if making it a challenge, Thomas hadn't moved yet, so Vanessa climbed in, and started Thomas without warning, although he was going slow at first, he was going at the normal speed when he got to Knapford station, Fred simply couldn't believe what Vanessa was doing, she was making up for lost time, although she was going much too fast, she wanted to prove that she wanted to be the first female driver, but although she was in too much of a hurry, She didn't know that what she was about to do would cause confusion and delay, and Fred knew this. We're bound to get into trouble if she's going to cause it. He thought, although he knew that Thomas was happy, he knew that Thomas would also cause confusion and delay, but that would only result in even more trouble, his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of humming, and it came from Thomas. "Who knew Thomas could sing or hum, huh?" He asked Vanessa, but she was too busy paying attention on shunting the coaches to platform one, he overheard Edward telling Thomas that pulling trains hard work, but neither Thomas or Vanessa listened.
And while the coaches were shunted, Fred got out, and saw Sir Topham Hatt pacing back and forth and turned to face him. You'll have to find another engine to take these coaches, Fred. We can't have the passengers complain and say what a bad railway this is." He said, not liking the the situation, Fred gestured over Thomas. "There's only Thomas , sir. All the others except Henry are out dong their jobs, and Henry's having trouble with his boiler, so Thomas is the only engine available,sir." He explained, Sir Topham Hatt looked at Thomas who was smiling innocently, with a sigh, Sir Topham Hatt gave in. "You'll have to do it then Thomas, be quick now." He ordered, Thomas was far too reluctant. "Yes sir, sir." He said as he ran around the coaches and backed up safely so not to bump them, what happened next nobody knows.
Thomas heard the station master's whistle, originally it was for Edward, but he thought it was for him, and Went off without the coaches, leaving everyone, including Fred and Sir Topham Hatt behind, Vanessa didn't notice because she only heard the whistle. Fred knew he'd have a talk with Vanessa after the incident as he tried to help Sir Topham Hatt calm the passengers down, it was an hour before Thomas and Vanessa came back, The passengers saw how sad Thomas was and couldn't be cross, Vanessa was humiliated, her sobs could be heard from Thomas's cab, Sir Topham Hatt walked over to Thomas looking disappointed "I'm sorry, sir." Thomas said, he knew he'd get into trouble. "I did say to wait until everything was ready." He said, reminding Thomas. "I guess I was a little too excited, this is my first time pulling a passenger train, and I guess I blew it." Sir Topham Hatt understood and smiled. "Ah well Thomas, early days, early days." He said, cheering up Thomas a little, Vanessa was still sobbing when Fred hugged her. "It's okay, Vanessa, I'm here. It'll be alright." He soothed, but Vanessa was still sobbing. "I messed up, Sir Topham Hatt's gonna send me packing." Fred was shocked, he knew Sir Topham Hatt would never do that to anyone, well, he'd do that to Diesel later on in the future, but he would never do that to any of his drivers. "Sir Topham Hatt's firm, yet kind, compassionate, and understanding, He'd understand, and I think you'd need to take a day off, Vanessa, how about tomorrow? You'd need it." He said, Vanessa's sobbing lessened some, but she understood. "I guess my competitive attitude got the better of me, I'm sorry." She said, Fred understood and felt sorry for Vanessa, like him, she was inexperienced, but she could learn a thing or two from him. "We need to make up for lost time, and this time, the express is due to leave now." He said as soon the station master blew his whistle, Sir Topham Hatt then told Thomas that was it was time to take the express. At first, Thomas found it hard to pull, but when he started to move, it became easier to pull the coaches. I guess Edward was right about pulling trains, I should have listened. I hope the others won't laugh at me. He thought, as he pulled the express, but he was wrong afterwards that night, James told the other engines, this made Gordon laugh along with him. "I'm glad you came to work on our railway, Thomas, you always give us something to laugh about." Gordon said while laughing, James was still going, but he stopped laughing. "And that's not all, I didn't see Fred on Thomas." He said, all eyes, minus Thomas and Fred, were all on Vanessa, she didn't like the looks everyone was giving her, Gordon started to chuckle. "Oh, I think I now know how it happened." He began, Fred, James, and Edward were shocked, Gordon was going to say it. "Don't you dare, Gordon!" They warned, but he said it anyway. "She must have opened the regulator and set Thomas off without the coaches." He said laughing, Vanessa ran away, this caused every engine to angrily look at him, Fred and the other drivers were cross. "Now you've done it, Gordon, I was trying to help her settle down, but now you've made it worse." Fred said Furiously, Gordon didn't seem to care.
"Well, neither you or her should have come, besides, I don't care about your well being." He said, not not even caring in the slightest, Fred was about to scream, but Gilbert put his hand on the young driver's shoulder. "Go after Vanessa, she needs you more than ever, we'll deal with Gordon." He said sympathetically, Fred calmed down, and left the sheds to find Vanessa. He found her near Crovan's Gate, out of breath and still sobbing. "I'm useless, I can't do a simple job." She said, her eyes red from runny tears, Fred felt even more sorry. "Hey, it wasn't your fault, you didn't know, and besides, I've made stupid mistakes myself, you don't have to be alone, I'll be there for you." He said comforting Vanessa, her sobbing stopped. "Really?" She asked, tears still running her face, Fred smiled. "Yeah." He answered, hugging Vanessa. "I may be out of place, but I care for you, and I won't let anyone say anything bad about you, because I won't let it happen again, I let my guard down, and I let you down, I shouldn't have challenged you and should have known, besides, what happened today was already written in that book, although it doesn't mention that you opened Thomas's regulator, it's true! The book says so, when we get back, I'll read the story to you when we're alone." He then yawned. "But not tonight, I feel tired, searching for you really wore me out, and I couldn't go by engine, so I had to walk on foot." He explained, Vanessa felt better, she tried to think of a way to get back to Tidmouth sheds, but she couldn't. Then to their luck, a mail van pulled up, and out came someone who Fred could barely recognize.
"Oi, what are a lad and lass like you two doing out here in the middle of the night?" He asked with a Scottish accent, almost sounding like George Carlin. "Are you a mailman?" Vanessa asked, the mailman laughed. "Aye, and proud of it! The name's Tom Tipper." He introduced himself, Fred now recognized Tom. "Really? I didn't recognize you at first, but now that I do, can we ask you a favor?" He asked, Tom was more than reluctant to answer. "Aye, I'm done with my routes tonight, and the back's empty as well, don't worry, It's got air conditioning in the back, where do you need to go?" He asked, Vanessa looked full of hope. "Tidmouth sheds, Tom. We need to get there as fast as possible, If we don't make it, both of us will fall asleep on the way back on foot." She explained, Tom wasted no time. "Say no more, lass, I'm afraid that we'll never make it due to traffic at this time of night, but I will try to get you there." He said, getting the two drivers in the back, and started off to Tidmouth sheds.
In the back, the two young drivers, looked happily at each other. "Well, it's not what we were expecting, but we needed a brake from walking back." Fred chuckled, Vanessa giggled. "I guess we did need it, still...thanks for finding me, I really needed the comfort." She said, leaning over to kiss Fred on the cheek. "I know that we aren't dating, but I'd like to start dating later on when we have time." She said, Fred blushed furiously. "Uh...sure, as long it doesn't affect our jobs, I hope we don't get into trouble with Sir Topham Hatt about it." He said, wondering what Sir Topham Hatt would say if he found out.
It wasn't long before they arrived to Tidmoth sheds without any trouble with traffic on the road, the two were tired and thanked Tom for the ride. "No problem, let's not make this a habit, shall we?" He asked smiling, the two drivers smiled, although it was a tired smile. "We won't, I guess we'll see you again." Fred said, yawning, Tom nodded, chuckling. "Aye, you will. And if you get a chance to help out with the post train, that is." He said, Vanessa smiled. "We will one day, right now, we're tired, if you get the chance to see us again, visit on your free time." She said, looking like she was about to fall over and pass out, but she was fighting it, Tom chuckled again, "Sure, I'll be able to remember that." he said, smiling.
He left a few minutes later as Fred and Vanessa plopped down on the bed together, neither caring to take off their clothes, they were just tired, and went to sleep.
Things obviously got better yesterday, but it wouldn't last long, Thomas had gotten into trouble after almost having an accident with the freight cars which got them into trouble with Sir Topham Hatt, then Thomas helped Henry overcome his fear of the rain, the next day had turned into a chase and an accident with James coming off the rails, and after that Thomas had eventually gotten his branch line, it wasn't easy with Thomas on his first few days on the branch line, even after when he met the last Coffeepot engine named Glenn.
A few days later, Thomas was on his first passenger run of the day, he had gotten to the station where James was waiting, Thomas had been daydreaming about going fishing because of watching people fishing by the river. "You know James, I've seen people go fishing by the river, and I was thinking, if people could go fishing, then why can't we? I want to fish." He said, James scoffed. "You know we can't do that. Besides, Thomas, we're not humans, and engines don't go fishing, Sir Topham Hatt would never allow that." He said, knowing that he was right, the drivers agreed with him.
"James is right, Thomas, so stop daydreaming, and please pay attention to the passengers." Fred said not knowing that Thomas was sill daydreaming, but Thomas was chuckling to himself. Silly stick in the muds, I'll get my chance one day. He thought as he took the passengers to the next station. Little did Thomas know that he'd get to do so the next day as he was feeling thirsty, the feed pipe to the water tower was blocked and had a sign That said 'out of order'. This made Thomas cross. "Bother, now I'll have to get water from the river." He said furiously, Fred and Vanessa laughed. "Don't worry, Thomas, we'll tell Sir Topham Hatt about that later, right now we'll have to get the water from the river." Fred said, moving the regulator, he was glad there were no passengers on board Annie and Clarabel.
By the time they got Thomas over to the bridge, he was feeling very thirsty. "Oh dear, I'm feeling very thirsty, I really need water." He said, his boiler was running dry. "We'll need a bucket, let's get one from the guard." He said as he and Vanessa went over to Clarable to check with the guard. "Are there any buckets we've got? Any bucket that doesn't have holes?" He asked, hoping to not get the very bucket that had holes. The guard came back with what Fred had dreaded of seeing. It was THE very bucket that he dreaded not to see. "Of all the buckets it had to be, you had to get the worst bucket we've had yet." He said, not even happy with the bucket, Vanessa had never seen Fred so angry at the guard.
Thomas was shocked to see Fred angry as he saw Fred lower the bucket into the river so many times to fill his side tanks, unknown everyone, something had been poured into Thomas's left side tank, eventually, Thomas felt a lot better. "Well, I feel better a lot better now." He said, Fred was still fuming, he still wasn't happy with the bucket. "Well I don't, and I want to get rid of that bucket so badly." He said, then he got an idea, Vanessa looked at him like he just went crazy, in fact, his plan was fool proof.
He smiled the craziest smile and it scared Vanessa. "Please don't tell me you're going to get rid of it." She pleaded, Fred looked like she wasn't seeing the point, the look on Fred's face described it all, it was clear that he hated the bucket with a passion. "You're joking! I hate this bucket, it has seven holes. SEVEN! In fact, I think I know how to get rid of it." He said, tossing the bucket up and kicked it over the river, never to be seen again, or so he thought. "HA HA! SAYANORA, YOU STUPID BUCKET!" He yelled to the top of his lungs before calming down and catching his breath. "Okay, got that out of my system." he breathed, letting out the anger he had for the bucket, Vanessa had enough of Fred's little outburst, clearly scared of his fury against the bucket and how much trouble he went through because of it.
"You scare me sometimes, you know." She said, getting into Thomas's cab. Fred climbed in after her. "Well sorry, I hated that blasted bucket just as much as the next person would. Anyway, let's go. We've got to make up for lost time." He replied opening up the regulator, Thomas was on his way to the next station, Fred and Vanessa were arguing over the bucket, not even paying attention to Thomas's safety valve and pressure gauge, a hissing sound stopped them from arguing, Fred looked at the pressure gauge in horror. "OH YOU'VE GOTTA BE KIDDING!" He shouted, Vanessa held her ears at the hissing noise, Thomas was in pain. "I've got such a pain, I've got such a pain." He moaned, as he was slowly making his way to the station, Fred had uncoupled Annie and Clarabel from Thomas as he was moved to a siding. "First the bucket, and now this, why does the universe hate me?" He asked himself, Vanessa had enough of the hissing noise as she went over to the station, and put signs around Thomas that read 'danger, keep away' written in red. Fred telephoned for an inspector and Sir Topham Hatt.
By now, the hissing noise had gone away since Thomas's fire had been put out. At last, Sir Topham Hatt and the inspector arrived to see what was the matter, the inspector climbed on a ladder to look in the left side of Thomas's tank, he saw it but couldn't tell what it was "Excuse me, sir, but can you look in the side tank? There's something blocking the pipe." He climbed down the ladder. "Why certainly, inspector." Sir Topham Hatt said, climbing up the ladder, and when he saw what was blocking the pipe in Thomas's left side tank, he nearly fell off in surprise. "Inspector, can you see...fish?" He asked, this surprised everyone. "Why goodness me, Fred. How did the fish get there?" He asked as he got off the ladder, Fred looked in thought, then it hit him. "We must have fished them from the river by accident, sir. Even so, I hated every second of it because of a bucket that seven holes in it and I had to get rid of it." Sir Topham Hatt looked back at Thomas, but he was smiling. "Well Thomas, So you have been fishing. Well, Fish don't suit you, and so we must get them out." He said, but that was the problem, nobody thought of how to get the fish out, but Fred had an idea. "Why don't we fish them out? There must be fishing poles in the station." He said, Sir Topham smiled. "Well, that's a good Idea, Fred, why didn't I think of it sooner?" He said, pacing back and forth before heading to the station and came back with several fishing poles.
Soon everyone was hard at work, taking turns fishing out of Thomas's left side tank, it was hard, but the reward was fish and chips for lunch. Sir Topham Hatt turned to Thomas. "Well Thomas, I hope you've learned you learned your lesson, so you mustn't do it again." He said sternly, Thomas sighed. "Yes sir, engines don't go fishing, it makes them uncomfortable." He said, learning his lesson, Sir Topham Hatt turned to Fred and Vanessa. "What caused him to go fishing, you two?" He asked, Fred looked like he was forgetting something until he remembered. "The feed pipe from the water tower, sir, it's blocked, it wouldn't work earlier, and I think by now that it's still out of order." He said, Sir Topham Hatt looked in thought before looking at Vanessa. "Is this true?" He asked, Vanessa was twiddling her thumbs. "Well...Yes, it's true, sir." She said, confirming what Fred had said.
"Thank you for bringing this information to me, you two, I'll be sending workmen to repair the water tower first thing tomorrow morning." Sir Topham Hatt said, Fred and Vanessa climbed back into Thomas's cab. "Now what say we make up for lost time and head home?" Fred asked, both Thomas and Vanessa agreed.
Later that night, Thomas told the other engines about what happened, and they laughed, and so did the rest of the drivers, Fred looked embarrassed, though he didn't lash out at anyone for doing so. "Alright, laugh it up, we've got a busy day for tomorrow. I hear that there's going to be a circus coming here next year, so all of you be on your best behavior, that means you too, Gordon. And I hear James did well with his goods train and the express, didn't he, Gilbert?" He asked while informing everyone, Gilbert chuckled. "Well, James wasn't ready at first, we had a few mishaps, but he did well. And considering his progress, I think he'll do it. Sir Topham Hatt would pick him to do so." He said, Fred smiled, he knew Gordon would be outrageously jealous, He knew Henry would be even less jealous than Gordon, but he'd understand, Thomas and Edward weren't jealous, They were happy that James would get to pull the circus train in the coming weeks and the year ended with a stubborn Thomas being stuck in the snow, where a tractor named Terrance rescued him and a bus named Bertie took his passengers home, although he made good friends with both the tractor and the bus.
The first month of the year arrived, at first James was reluctant, but he soon started to grumble, and so did Gordon, Henry was trying his best, but the coaches laughed at them all, "You're lazy and slack." They laughed, Fred was on Henry, he felt even more bad for the big green engine. "Just don't pay any attention to them Henry, I understand how you feel." He said, Henry smiled sadly, he knew Fred was right, but he still felt upset and hurt from the coaches laughing at him, James saw this and stopped grumbling, he felt sorry for his friend, Vanessa saw Henry's face and now understood why. Maybe Fred was right, Henry does need Welsh coal, I just hope we can get a chance to tell Sir Topham Hatt about it. She thought as she and James took their coaches to platform three.
Gordon didn't like being laughed at, especially by the coaches, he wanted to bump them, but that would get him into trouble and cause an accident, and he knew exactly that as he pulled into platform one. Gilbert was on him, he suddenly noticed that Gordon was silent. "Are you alright, Gordon? You've awfully quiet since we got to platform one." He said, worried, Gordon finally let out a sigh. "I just can't help it, I don't like being laughed at, and I don't think I'll ever get used to it." He said, Gilbert understood, but he knew he had to be strict yet firm like Sir Topham Hatt. "Well, if you were a hard worker like Edward, you would have a different time pulling freight cars and coaches without fuss." He said, Gordon scoffed. "I'll have you know I'm a very..." He was interrupted by his driver. "Important engine, I've heard it before, and I'm not letting you get away with that excuse, Gordon." He said, Gordon started stammering. "But...but..." He stammered, but Gilbert Perkins wouldn't have any of it. "Don't you dare finish that sentence, Gordon, We're going to be late." He said, the stationmaster blew his whistle and Gordon started off.
Fred saw this and laughed, and so did Vanessa and James. "I didn't think Gilbert was like Sir Topham Hatt, well now I see why." Fred laughed, he heard the stationmaster's whistle go off and Henry had started off with his train. James and Vanessa calmed down, it was their turn, and as soon as the whistle blew, they set off with their train.
The second week had come, Gordon and Thomas were chatting, but Gordon was being his usual self, and he left the station, he later went to Tidmouth sheds to reverse on the turntable, but there was a problem, the wind was blowing hard, and the turntable was stuck because of Gordon's tender, he tried to turn around three times, but it was no good. "It's no good, Gordon, your tender upsets the balance, now you'll have to take the express backwards like a tank engine." Mr. Arkwright said, Gordon didn't like that at all, a few minutes later, Gordon had brought the express into the station where some boys mistook him for a tank engine. "Cool, it's a new tank engine." the first boy said, but the second boy saw right through the steam and smoke. "Oh, it's only Gordon back to front." He said.
Every passenger laughed, and so did Fred, Thomas, Annie and Clarabel. "Hello Gordon, playing tank engines are we? Take my advice, scrap your tender and have a nice bunker." Thomas said, Gordon was about to say something when James went by laughing. "Oh this is rich, Gordon's playing tank engine!" He laughed, Gordon thought otherwise. "Don't be silly, James, you might stick, too." He warned, but James laughed again. "have no worries, I'm not as big as you!" He called, he soon arrived onto the turntable at Tidmouth sheds moments later, Gordon's warning had been stuck in his smokebox for hours, he began to worry as he went onto the turntable. I mustn't stick. He thought, the turntable could now swing easily.
Gordon arrived just in time to see everything, James had was spinning faster and faster until the wind stopped, the turntable slowed down until it slowed to a halt, James felt dizzy, Gordon Chuckled. "Well, well, are we playing roundabouts? Take my advice, stay off the turntable when it's windy." He teased in the same tone Thomas teased him with, Mr. Arkwright laughed. "Oh, the others are gonna want to hear this." he said, later on at the Sodor cafe, Fred and the others laughed at what he told them.
"Oh boy, I knew this would happen, but I can help but laugh every time when I think about it." Fred laughed, Vanessa giggled, Gilbert hooted in laughter. "Fancy that, James The Red Engine becomes James The Red Top!" Everyone laughed at James's new nickname, James himself wasn't there to hear it, and he was glad he wasn't, but word of his nickname soon spread afterwards.
The day of the circus arrived, James was happy to take it, Gordon's reaction was what Fred predicted, he was outrageously jealous, when it came time for the circus to end, James had forgotten that an elephant had broken out and was in Henry's Tunnel, Henry brought the workmen, although they thought the elephant was a monster, the foreman recognized the elephant as it pushed Henry out of the tunnel, they gave the elephant a bucket of water, Henry accidentally let off steam, and the startled elephant sprayed Henry. Poor Henry.
That night, Gordon, Henry and James held an indignation meeting, Fred had hidden himself along with Vanessa so that they could hear every word the three tender engines were saying, and Fred's suspicion had become a reality, the three tender engines were planning to go on strike, and while the engines were discussing their plan, they didn't know that Fred and Vanessa had slipped away without being heard.
The next morning at Knapford station, the passengers were gathering up at the ticket window, Fred and Vanessa had arrived to avoid the angry passengers and went into Sir Topham Hatt's office, he was at his desk receiving calls, he didn't know what to do. He noticed the two drivers. "Thank goodness you two are here, do you know what's going on?" He asked, feeling exhausted, Fred looked at Sir Topham Hatt with sympathy. "As a matter of fact, we do. Henry, James, and Gordon are in the sheds because they planned to go on strike, it was happening last night because we overheard them discussing their plan." He explained, Vanessa nodded. "It's true sir, we hid on the outside the walls on Tidmouth shed to listen in on their plan." She explained, Sir Topham Hatt looked in thought, then he thought of a plan to teach the silly tender engines a lesson, but he thought of Thomas as he looked in the yard. The yard's never been the same since Thomas left. He thought sadly, then he looked at the two young drivers.
"Get Edward, he'll need a change of scenery, and by change, I mean get him to shunt the coaches since he doesn't fuss about it, and please tell him about the situation, I'll go over to the mainland to buy another engine tomorrow." He said, Fred nodded, Vanessa followed him out the door, and they went to Edward who was shunting some freight cars. "Hey Edward, Sir Topham Hatt needs you to shunt coaches for a while, Henry, Gordon, and James are in the sheds because they're on strike." Fred informed, Edward sighed he knew this was coming. "It was bound to be inevitable, but I'll help anyway, those three need to learn anyway." He said, reluctantly going to work, Fred knew Edward better than anybody.
Over in the sheds, while Gordon and James were going along with their plan, Henry started to have second thoughts. I should have never listened to Gordon, I know we'll get into trouble, I just know it. He thought as Gordon looked at him. "Don't worry, our plan will work, trust me." He said, thinking his plan will work, Henry stayed quiet, knowing that Gordon's plan will eventually fall apart, he saw Sir Topham Hatt walking over to the three tender engines. "Come on Henry, it's time to take you train." He said, Henry was about to reply, but Gordon interrupted him. "Henry's not going, and neither are we, we won't shunt, that's a job for tank engines like Thomas, and as I've said before, tender engines don't shunt." He said rudely, Sir Topham Hatt looked he was smiling. "Oh? Then why is Edward shunting your coaches to your platforms?" He asked, pointing to Knapford station where Edward was indeed shunting coaches, Gordon and James stared in disbelief, Henry seemed relieved. "That is proof of why tender engines DO shunt, this my railway and you will do as you are told, Gordon." Sir Topham Hatt Continued, he looked at James next. "And all of this trouble because you were called a top? I gave you your red paint to help cheer you up after your accident, not to make you conceited, a joke is just a joke, it's not meant to last forever." He said sternly, James then regretted going along with Gordon's plan.
Sir Topham Hatt then turned to Henry, and before he could say anything, Henry went first. "If I may sir, I wasn't fully on board with Gordon's plan." This surprised Sir Topham Hatt, and shocked both Gordon and James. "Really? Then would you care to tell me about why you weren't fully on board with Gordon's plan?" He asked, Henry was reluctant to explain. "Well, Gordon convinced me that he'd help me after I got sprayed by the elephant, but all he did was sit around and do nothing, then I thought of what I was doing and immediately regretted going along with his plan." He said, Sir Topham Hatt thought for a moment, Henry did give him a good explanation, and he had a good reason to, at last his mind was made up. "Well Henry, I admit you did have a good reason to explain, but you still caused trouble, however, your punishment will not be as bad as you think, while spending time in the shed, you will be watching over these two after you take your trains."He explained, Henry sighed, knowing that his punishment was a lot less harsh than the one that had him bricked up in Henry's Tunnel, he was lucky to not be bricked up again. "Yes sir, I don't mind being dirty for a while, but I'll take my train." He said as he left the sheds, James followed suit, Gordon was last, he grumbled to himself as he left the sheds, Sir Topham Hatt smiled, knowing Henry would see things through, but he knew Gordon would stand by that nonsense, no mater what he said.
Trains ran late, but at least the passengers stopped complaining, Henry was paired with Vanessa as he took his passenger train, the punishment and what he said were still fresh in his mind as he began the conversation. "Vanessa, I regret what I was doing today, and I was thinking about what I said earlier." He said, Vanessa looked in interest. "Oh? What makes you say that?" She said, curiosity stirring her interest, Henry continued. "Last night when Gordon was talking about the strike, I was interested at first when we started going with it at first, but then I realized that we were making people mad and we would get into trouble, fortunately, I gave my reason as to why I stopped following Gordon's plan, and I explained it to Sir Topham Hatt that I'd gladly take my punishment." He finished. Vanessa was shocked, she never heard Henry say that he'd gladly take punishment, Fred was going to have a field day with what she was going to tell him.
James and Fred were taking a goods train and Fred decided to not make fun of James. "So, have you learned your lesson?" He asked, James sighed in defeat. "Yes, I shouldn't have listened to Gordon." He said, Fred was happy to hear that, James then thought of Fred's question, then he thought back to when he was called a top. "Did you call me a top?" He asked, Fred looked puzzled. "Why would you ask that?" He asked, then it dawned on him. "OH, I remember, Mr. Arkwright told me about what happened. Look, I only meant it to be as a joke, and let me tell you, I got tired of that joke, no matter how funny it was, the book had that written in as well, as for how that happened, I didn't think I didn't think that I would be the cause of of your punishment." He said, James thought back, as far as he knew, Fred, Thomas, Edward, and Henry had been supportive of him weeks ago, and he caused his own record to go down in smoke today because of Gordon's plan to go on strike, and as long as he knew it, the big blue engine would never let him hear the end of it. "I understand, and I think I understand why I let myself get into trouble today, it was because of Gordon, he dragged me into this mess." He explained, Fred nodded. "Understand something, James, Sir Topham Hatt cares for his engines, even if he has to be stern, yet firm with you, he knows that it wasn't your fault, but you have to take the punishment anyway, you have to be an independent engine, not vain or snooty, I'm trying to help you become really useful, and the railway is more important than you are, that's why Sir Topham Hatt is trying run this railway, he's doing the best he can to keep it running." Fred explained, James knew that Fred was telling the truth. He thought about paying Gordon back for that stunt.
The next morning, Edward looked tired when Gordon came by and wheeshed at him rudely, Sir Topham Hatt was surprised, as well as Fred and Vanessa. "Goodness gracious me! What was that all about, Edward?" He asked, Edward looked upset. "Gordon says that I have gray wheels, and he offended James as well as Henry, saying that we're a disgrace, we're not a disgrace, are we, sir?" He asked, Sir Topham Hatt laughed. "Of course not, Edward, you're a really useful engine to me." He replied, Fred nodded in agreement. "Yes, but something must be done." He said, James rolled up beside Edward. "I think it's time to put Gordon in his place, we need another engine to help us out, sir." He suggested, Sir Topham Hatt looked in thought, he knew James was right. "That we do, I'll go to the mainland to buy an engine, another tank engine is what we need." He said, Edward smiled at James for his suggestion. "Thank you James, we need an idea like that, you're really useful." He said, James looked a bit upset, but he knew that Fred was right, the railway was more important than he was, but he still wanted to pay Gordon back.
A while later, the new engine arrived, he was small, but that didn't matter to Sir Topham Hatt, he didn't regret his decision at all, the new engine was called Percy, he made friends with Edward, Thomas, Henry and James, along with Fred and Vanessa, especially since Vanessa was going to be driving him for the remainder of the week, Edward, and Thomas worked pulling trains back and forth on the mainline for several days, Henry and James were let out eventually, but Gordon was still in the sheds, he felt really silly for his actions, he stayed there for weeks, until Sir Topham Hatt came to see him. "I see that you're sorry, Gordon, now listen carefully, we have a new tank engine called Percy, and Edward and Thomas have worked the Mainline nicely, I will allow you to work as long as you treat the other engines nicely." He said, Gordon looked at Sir Topham Hatt with sad smile. "Yes sir." He said, Sir Topham Hatt smiled. "That's a good engine, but please remember that this 'no shunting' nonsense must stop." He said, Gordon soon went off, there he found his coaches waiting, but they had to be shunted to Platform One, he knew that he had to do it, otherwise he didn't want to make a mistake again, then he saw Percy, he was painted like Henry, The little green engine looked at him, he had never met Gordon before. "Hello, I'm Percy, are you new here as well?" He asked, Gordon remembered the first time he met Thomas, he wasn't going to do the same mistake he did several weeks ago, finally he spoke. "No I've been here for a year, so I have been here longer than you have." He answered honestly, Percy smiled. "Well, can you tell me your name? I'd like to get to know you." He asked, Gordon looked in though for a moment, he knew he shouldn't lie about what he did, but he had to tell the little engine. "My name is Gordon, I'm not sure if you would like to hear about what I've done these last few weeks, but I must treat you nicely, it's what Sir Topham Hatt wants me to do." He said, Percy didn't know what Gordon meant, but he knew that Gordon got into trouble at some point.
"How much trouble did you get into?" He asked, Gordon looked at the little engine in regret. "More like how much trouble I caused, I caused trouble when Thomas first arrived here by dragging him along with the express while making Fred lost his lunch, I caused Vanessa to run away after I insulted her, then there was that horrible plan I went with, and it left me shut up in the shed for weeks, since then, I've learned my lesson, and I've been thinking about starting over." He said, Percy felt sorry for the big blue engine. "I wish you didn't have to go through all that." He said, Gordon, chuckled. "I know, but I had to, I needed to be taught a lesson, I guess my ego was too big, and I needed to be brought down to Earth, oh, don't worry, it's just an expression. Anyway, I have to accept the facts that I've got to shunt my own coaches. After all, tender engines do shunt." He said, as he shunted his coaches, Percy felt sorry for him.
After he shunted some freight cars into a siding, he went over to a signal box, he was warned by Edward to be careful and whistle to the signalman to let him know that he was there, but he forgot to whistle as the points were still against him, suddenly he saw Gordon rushing towards him, Vanessa jumped out Percy's cab, not wanting to be involved in an accident. "WATCH OUT!" Gordon cried out as he was nearing Percy, Fred was on him as well, and immediately put on the brakes before he stopped a few inches from Percy's buffers, Percy opened his eyes, he felt scared, he felt his wheels moving, at first, he wasn't going anywhere, but then he shot off like a rocket, he felt scared, without a driver, his brakes couldn't be put on. "HELP!" He cried, Vanessa ran into the signal box to tell the signalman to warn the next one of Percy's runaway situation.
Percy went up Gordon's hill without stopping, he went straight around the bend, he almost derailed, he was feeling tired, but his wheels wouldn't let him stop, he was almost out of water and his axles ached, he was slowing down just enough to reach the next signal box as Signalman kindly switched the points, Percy went onto a siding, and stopped in a bank of earth. "I stopped, thank Goodness." He said, workmen soon arrived gave him some coal and water, moments later, Gordon looked relieved when he arrived, he had been worried. "There you are Percy, I thought you were gong to have an accident." He said, Percy looked silly. "I know, I should have listened to Edward's warning." He said, Gordon felt sorry for the little green engine, he knew that Edward was trying to help, but in the end, Percy learned his lesson. "Percy, I know what it's like to be forgetful at times, and that caused me to become arrogant, and my smoke box was filled with too much pride, I hope you take care in future lessons, you have to be to be careful on the mainline, Sir Topham Hatt depends on all of us to do our jobs and keep the railway running." He said, Percy understood, but he couldn't move. "I'm stuck." He said, Gordon chuckled. "I know, that's why I'm going to get you out and take you to the Steam Works, You'll be back in working order soon." He said, Fred nodded. "Same here, you know Percy, I'll read you a story when you get back." He said, Percy smiled. "Really?" He asked, Fred smiled, he knew Percy could keep it a secret.
That night, Tidmouth sheds had been quiet, nobody spoke to Gordon, Sir Topham Hatt arrived, Gordon figured that Sir Topham Hatt would be cross with him, but Sir Topham Hatt wasn't, he was smiling. "Well, Gordon, I've all about it, and I am proud of you, Vanessa and Fred." He said, the other engines were confused. "You prevented a nasty accident from happening and rescued Percy from being a runaway, and for that, I am proud of your actions." He said, the other engines were shocked, Gordon never got so much as a praise from Sir Topham Hatt. "Thank you sir, but it wasn't really my idea, I had help." He admitted, Sir Topham Hatt smiled. "Well, you're honest, I like that in an engine." He said, Liking what Gordon had become, the other engines were silent, except Thomas. "Excuse me sir, Where's Percy?" He asked, Sir Topham Hatt turned to him. "Percy is at the Steam Works after his near collision with Gordon, We're still trying to figure out what caused him to shoot off like a rocket." He explained, Vanessa remembered, Percy's brakes were not screwed on tight enough and she knew it. "Sir, Percy's brakes were loose, that's what caused him to go off like that, I'm glad he didn't end up like James." She said, but that made her wince, James shuddered at the memory. "I'm still trying to get that memory out of my smoke box." He said, not very fond of the memory, Vanessa looked sheepish. "Sorry." She apologized, James mentally shrugged off the memory and looked at her. "It's fine, I'm still trying to forget it, but it's like a nightmare that won't go away." He said, looking like he had seen a ghost.
"Don't worry James, we're here by your side, it's going to be alright, it's just a bad memory." Henry said, comforting James, Nobody had ever seen Henry act like that before, he acted like a father to James, although they weren't related, they were still friends. Sir Topham Hatt smiled as he watched the display, thinking that each of his engines will become like a family one day. Perhaps I was right to buy Percy, that one accident may have caused something good to come out of this, and as soon as Percy's out of the Steam Works, I'll send him to work on Thomas's branch line in the future, but for now, he'll have to stay as a station pilot. He thought as he looked on.
Fred: Wow, so that's how I disappeared?
Me yeah, I decided to show what happened, since this really isn't a crossover story.
Fred: Alright, but what about your other Thomas stories?
Me: Well, the Thomas And Friends/Ranma 1/2 crossover is still on hold, but Edward And The New Engines is officially canceled as of now, that series was a warm up to something like this, but I'm not abandoning the former.
Fred: Oh.
And another thing, more original characters are on the way, but for now, it's only you and Vanessa right now.
Fred: Oh, I see.
Me: the second chapter is on it's way, so in a way, I might get to work on it more.
Fred: Read and Review, folks, let Prowl know what you think and what you want to see.