Gordon was woken by a quiet noise from a corner of the sheds; unfamiliar and unwelcome. Henry, the source of the noise, was whimpering quietly: curled up in a corner of the shed and partially hidden by his engine. His rebuild at Crewe had forced him to listen to the other horrible truth of the Works there: Scrapping.

The engines outside were younger than Edward, some even as young as Thomas. They had fluctuated between silent and downtrodden, ranging with grief, and screaming in pain. These engines were to die; anaesthetics would be wasted on them!

And so they had suffered.

Henry hadn't gotten much sleep at Crewe.

Back on Sodor, neither had Gordon.

Gordon had been worried and distracted while Henry had been away getting rebuilt. He'd grown close to him, treating him almost like an adoptive brother; Henry was made from stolen plans of himself, even if the plans had been shoddy and construction poor. He'd been unhappy. Dare he say it, lonely.

He'd been almost ecstatic when Henry returned, though he hid it well. But he had quickly begun to see the cracks in Henry's façade.

Gordon sighed as he heard another loud whimper from Henry's berth. A quick glance made it clear Henry was hiding, as his face was absent from his smokebox. As Edward was asleep, it fell to him to calm Henry, lest the others be woken by him.

He'd quietly shifted into his projection form, and clambered down from his cab.

He'd telegraphed every step on the gravel to let Henry know he was coming.

The green engine had been skittish and easily spooked since his return, so he and the others had gotten used to making enough noise for Henry to hear their approaches. He only hoped that tonight might be one of the better nights.

Henry had heard the careful footsteps on the gravel and had quickly scrubbed the tears off his face with his sleeve. He should have been more careful, should have been quieter, now he was going to be in trouble; he might even be scrapped!-

Gordon rounded the corner of Henry's tender to find him curled up on the sleepers between the rails and hugging his knees to his chest. His eyes squeezed tight, braced as if afraid of something. Gordon sighed.

He carefully sat down next to Henry, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Henry had opened one eye cautiously, relaxing against Gordon once he'd recognized who was holding him. He trusted Edward and Gordon, but he still struggled with physical contact from the others. The diesel shunters who'd worked at Crewe had been rather rough with the damaged engine, partially traumatizing Henry.

Gordon had felt Henry relax in his arms, and let a tired smile creep over his face. He began to hum gently, something new that he'd heard from a young lady on one of the platforms at Knapford.

Henry looked curiously at Gordon as he'd begun humming. It wasn't new knowledge to him that Gordon could hold a tune, but the other engine rarely sung or made music. Henry listened carefully before joining in, singing quietly.

+And some days I can't even trust myself,+

Gordon's eyes widened, but he joined the song without missing a beat.

#It's killing me to see you this way.

'Cause though the truth may vary this

ship will carry our bodies safe to shore.#

Henry had scrutinized Gordon, trying to decipher his mood. Gordon's arms shook slightly around Henry.

+There's an old voice in my head

That's holding me back.+

#Well tell it that I miss our little talks. #

+Soon it will all be over, and buried with our past+

#Things used to be so nice when we were young

And full of life and full of love...#

+Some days I don't know

if I am wrong or right.+

#Your mind is playing tricks on you,

my dear.#

#+ 'Cause though the truth may vary This ship will carry our bodies safe to shore.+#

+Don't listen to a word I say, hey

The screams all sound the same+

#+And Though the truth may vary This

ship will carry our bodies safe to shore+#

Gordon had stopped humming and looked down at Henry in mild concern. He had heard of engines left in unstable mental states after prolonged exposure to scrap-yards and places that scrapped engines. Henry seemed alright, but Gordon decided to stay with him for a while, to make sure he was okay.

Henry, apparently deciding Gordon was alright, nuzzled into Gordon's chest, content. Gordon let out a low, rumbling laugh that Henry could feel; he ruffled Henry's hair gently. Henry grinned. If Gordon was here to protect him, maybe the nightmares wouldn't come tonight.

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