Ozzie's Grindhouse© 2008
Ozzie's Grindhouse Presents "Hippies, Goths and Ghosts"
Dedicated to the Memory of David Mitton (1938-2008)
Dear friends and fans of Thomas,
Sad news on the Island of Sodor. The man that literally helped to bring Thomas the Tank Engine and his friends to life has sadly left us. We salute a legend with a sorrow filled "peep peep" and a hearty horns up from all of his loyal friends, followers and fans alike. Farewell David, the Island of Sodor will feel incomplete without you. Now for some good news. The Island is changing for the better. The engines don't mind the work; they love to feel needed from what I am told. Yet all is not well. My good friend Henry is feeling unwell. For one thing, he's dealing with some serious issues. And another, he's discovered that he has a sister! Who is this mystery engine? Well, read on and find out. \m/\m/ – Ozzie Bastard.
Chapter One: The Grinding of Broken Hearts
It was a beautiful day on the Island of Sodor. All the engines were kept busy with an increased number of goods and passenger services. The Island itself was going through some radical changes. It was modernizing. New industries developed and new technologies were being brought to the fold. A new radio tower was being built for the growing demands of mobile phone usage. New car dealerships sprang up on the Island, new shopping plazas were under construction and new internet and phone cables were being laid. The Fat Controller assured the engines that the railway itself wouldn't be modernized in any way (aside from the new GPS SatNav systems being fitted into every engine) but the engines didn't care. They were ecstatic at the new changes brought forth on the Island. All the engines worked hard and never complained. Well, except one. Henry was the only engine on the Island who wasn't working. He was feeling miserable and refused to come out of his shed. It wasn't boiler problems that were bothering him. Oh no! This was something that went much deeper. And, indeed, a lot more painful. You see, a long time ago, Henry suffered from severe water leakage in his tubes and couldn't build up enough steam. During one run of shunting a long train full of coal, Henry was forced to stop as his tank ran dry from the severe leaking. Emily had shown great concern for Henry throughout the day and came to his aid when Henry ground to a halt.
Ever since then, the two began talking to each other, sometimes rather openly about their most candid secrets. Pretty soon, the two engines hit it off, becoming the hot new couple on Sodor. They seemed happy together, garnering the envy of the entire engine community. It certainly seemed to make Henry happy. He hardly ever smiled as much as he did. But then, it all came to a halt. Emily took Henry aside one day and told that things weren't working out between them and decided to break up with him. Henry was devastated and heartbroken. The break up left him feeling miserable and dead inside. Henry was so depressed that he couldn't concentrate on his work. Often times, he would just sit in the shed for days and cry. Henry would refuse to come out, saying that there was nothing worth coming out for at all. The Fat Controller, in his own fatherly sense, consoled Henry for weeks after the incident and decided to let him work things out for himself. This brings us to the day in question. Henry was still feeling miserable; his fits of uncontrollable crying had reduced to silent mourning. Henry sat alone in the dark, empty shed. A few streaks of sunshine sliced through the window. Henry watched the streaks slowly crawl along the dusty floor. He sighed deeply and glanced around the shed. As he did so, one set of doors creaked open. The bright sunshine practically blinded Henry. Rolling into the engine berth next to him was James. He had returned after pulling the Flying Kipper, Henry's flagship train. James was exhausted after his long night of hauling fish back and forth from Tidmouth. He seemed too exhausted to berate Henry for his moody nature as of late. In fact, James seemed to be… changing.
"Hey there, sweetie." James greeted Henry, something completely out of character.
"Oh, hey there, James." Henry glanced over. His eyes still filled with sorrow.
"Still feeling like crap from that bitch's breakup, are you?" James asked.
"Yeah. Aren't you gonna put me down with your "Rubbish Henry" or "You're just too lazy, misery wheels"?" Henry replied; the anger was clear in his voice.
"Oh, by no means." James replied looking rather hurt. "I think it was terrible the way Emily toyed with you like that. It was totally uncalled for and you shouldn't have deserved it."
Henry wasn't feeling better, he was still not registering James' act of kindness. He was most bemused. "I know it was totally uncalled for. That's what everyone else has been telling me. What I don't understand is your change of attitude towards me."
"Hey, I'm being sympathetic here." James gently assured him. "I went through the same thing you're going through right now. I went through a period where I was confused about who I really was and about my own sexuality. I was afraid that the others would reject me for my life choices and, therefore, become an outcast. But then I admitted that I wasn't doing myself any good at all keeping it hidden. So I summoned up the courage and admitted to everyone that I was gay." Henry's mouth dropped open like a trapdoor. He could hardly believe what he had just heard.
"Wait a minute, you're gay? When did this happen?"
"About three weeks ago. Did nobody tell you?" James wondered.
"No. No one did." Henry looked puzzled.
"Oh, that sucks." James sighed and thought for a second. "You know what you need to do, Henry? Go back to work, it'll clear your mind and help you get over the, ahem, unpleasantness." Henry perked up a bit. And yet, one thing troubled him.
"Why are you being so nice to me?" Henry asked sheepishly.
"Oh, I don't know." James answered. "Maybe coming out of the preverbal closet has brought out the nice engine inside me. Or maybe it's because I've spent most of the night taking your train and I'm just exhausted. I can't really tell." James paused for a moment. "Look, that my advice, hun. Forget that bitch and go do some heavy shunting. You'll feel better. Trust me."James closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. Henry pondered for a minute. "James is right." He said to himself. "I should get back to work; I think I've suffered in this cage long enough." Henry noticed that James' crew had stuck around, checking his systems and polishing up different odds and ends. Henry called to James' fireman and asked that he contact his crew with the message that he was ready to go back to work. The fireman gladly obliged and rushed to the nearest phone.
Soon, Henry was fired up and full of steam. He set to work pulling passengers along Thomas' branch line. Henry felt good getting back to work; his mind was clearing of all the negative thoughts that had plagued him for so long. When Henry reached Elsbridge station, the painful thoughts had completely left his mind. Well, almost. "How are you feeling, old boy?" Henry's driver called to him.
"Great. I haven't felt this good in a long time." He replied with a smile on his face.
"Fantastic. That James knew exactly the right remedy to ease your-" All of a sudden, Henry's driver was distracted by an approaching engine. "Oh shit. Here comes trouble." He murmured. Pulling into the station was Emily. Henry gulped slightly as she came to a stop. Emily looked over to Henry apprehensively. "Oh, hello there, Henry." She said.
"Emily." Henry greeted her. The awkwardness between the two engines was settling in thick and fast. Their respective drivers shared their engines nervous dispositions as well. The silence was deafening. "How have you been?" Emily finally broke the silence.
"Oh, I've been doing better." Henry answered. "I still can't really get over it, but I've been working to relieve the pain. And you?"
"Me? Round about the same. I've been working things out too." Emily sighed.
"Good, good." The awkwardness was getting worse. Emily's fireman tugged at his collar, he knew that this wasn't going to end well. Emily exhaled deeply.
"Listen. I don't want to let this thing get between us. I still want to be friends."
"I do too, but it's a little hard to be friends with the engine that broke your heart." Henry moaned. "You burned me, Emily. But I'll get over that in time."
"I know you will, Henry." Emily broke out a small grin. "I know you will."
Just then, Diesel, Emily's new boyfriend, slithered up along side her. He gave her a dark look. "What are you doing talking to this loser?" he coldly spoke, his thick Russian accent making him sound menacing. "You have passengers waiting."
"Yes, uh, sweetie." Emily squeaked as the station master blow his whistle and she rolled out the station. Diesel glared darkly at Henry. "As for YOU!" he growled. Henry shook in his axles.
"You talk to my girl again and I will kill you." he snarled. "Got it?"
"Y-y-y-y-yes, Diesel." Henry stammered. Diesel grunted as he rattled away. Henry was frightened beyond words. His face was white as a sheet. "Ignore him, Henry." His driver comforted him. "Let's us get back to the job at-"
"Take me home." Henry cut him off.
"Excuse me?" his driver asked.
"I was right. This is nothing worth it for me on the outside world. Take me back to the sheds, NOW!" Henry demanded. His driver and fireman were forced to comply. What choice did they have? Edward was called to take over for Henry's service at Wellsworth station, he hated seeing him so distraught and broken up. Henry brooded all the way to the sheds. As he was parked in his berth, Henry shut his eyes and started to cry. The driver and fireman could do nothing more than shut off his systems and wander home. Henry was back to square one and he didn't like it one bit. He felt worse than ever.
The following day at Knapford station; Thomas, James, Duck and Percy were discussing Henry's situation. He was not getting any better. As a matter of fact, his depression was sinking lower. The engines were deeply troubled by this. "I'm very worried about Henry." Thomas spoke up. "His depression is getting worse and I don't know if he'll ever recover from it."
"I know." Percy chimed in. "I've seen Henry depressed and woeful before and I've always teased for that. But I've never seen him like this. I feel ashamed for teasing him."
"Lord knows how much he has suffered not just because of his breakup." Duck added.
"I personally blame that God damn Diesel!" James snapped out loud. "If he hadn't torn into Henry like he did, he wouldn't be so despondent right now." James was fuming. "I tell you what, if I ever come across that commie bastard, I'll rip open his cold, black hide and take out his fucking soul."
The other engines heartedly agreed. At that moment, Gordon pulled up to the station with his express. Unlike the other engines, Gordon had showed some callousness towards Henry's spiraling depression and had overheard the conversation. "If you want my opinion." He boasted full of pride. "Henry is making too much of a big deal of this. He has never been able to cope with these sorts of situations. Something of a self-loather, I believe. I say Henry should suck it up and get over it." The engines frowned at Gordon.
"Say what?" Thomas yelped. "You of all engines should be sympathetic."
"What do you mean?" Gordon asked.
"Don't you remember your relationship with Molly? You broke up with her and she ended up depressed and torn up inside. She wouldn't stop crying for weeks." Gordon pretended to feign ignorance. "And she was so distraught and out of her mind with grief that she ended up tossing herself off the broken viaduct." Thomas almost broke out into tears when he finished but he was focused on his anger towards Gordon.
"Well, it wasn't my fault." Gordon pleaded his case. "You saw the accident report, her brakes were faulty and she became a runaway."
"You idiot." Thomas scoffed. "You know that theory was never entirely proven. She threw herself off that viaduct because you broke her heart."
"And with no conveniently placed garbage barge to break her fall." Added James. "Poor thing died when she hit the water." The other engines reluctantly agreed. They didn't want to remember the tragic event that unfolded that day, but they did.
Molly had been dated Gordon for several months before the accident. But when things fizzled between them, Molly was devastated. She was depressed for days, refusing to come out of her shed. At times, Molly would cry for hours on end. Edward, playing the big brother card, often stopped by her shed and consoled her. Days before the accident, Molly had finally reached the point where was ready to go back to work, despite the crippling pain in her boiler. One day, Molly was on her way to the Works. Her driver had noticed that her brakes was slipping and needed new brake pads. The driver and fireman had stopped briefly to grab a morning coffee from the local StarTrucks coffee house. What happened then was nothing short of tragic. Molly's brakes slipped and she ended up rolling down the line. Her driver and fireman scrambled to catch up but she picked up too much speed and disappeared into the distance. Indeed, Molly was a runaway. Signalmen tried desperately to divert Molly to any safer routes, away from traffic. It worked, up to a point. However, fate as it would seem stood in the way. Ahead lay serious danger. The viaduct was being rebuilt after part of it collapsed due to severe decay. There was only one more set of points that would have saved Molly, the points leading away from the viaduct. However, the circumstances did not play into Molly's favour. The signalman at the time was fighting a severe illness and had subsequently fainted at the controls. As Molly passed the last set of points, her fate was sealed. She was doomed.
Workmen on the viaduct weren't notified of the runaway Molly and had only seconds to scramble to safety. They could do nothing expect watch her plow into the breakdown van and plunge into the gap. Molly tumbled for what felt like an eternity before plunging deep into the waters below. It took salvage crews a long while before they pulled Molly out from the bottom of river. But by that time, news of her demise had reached the yards. No one knew what happened until they saw Molly's remains being transported on a flatbed. Though she was covered with a large tarpaulin, the engines all thought the worst. In the accident report; one workman reported making eye contact with Molly. The sight of her helpless and tear filled eyes haunted the workman for weeks. It was the saddest day to ever hit Sodor. All the engines mourned Molly's tragic passing for a long time. Most of them never really got over it. That happened almost three months ago. Back at Knapford, the engines feel silent. Deathly silent. Each remembered Molly in their own way. Duck had always helped Molly whenever she ran into trouble. It was often said that Duck had a thing for her. Percy had always looked up to Molly as his big sister. She was not averse to getting dirty with Percy. They had loads of fun together playing in the mud. James was always teased by the others saying that Molly had a crush on him before she dated Gordon. Yet he always denied such rumours as childish speculation. James would tease Molly back, which is something he now regretted. The tragic death of Molly had affected Thomas most of all. On the day he met her, it was he that made her feel special and needed, teaching her that empty trucks are just as important as full ones. As for Gordon, well, he felt remorseful at how things had ended. None of the engines spoke, they didn't want to. They were in a state of silent mourning.
As the engines stood in silence, Emily pulled up to the station with her rail service. She appeared to be full of glee. "Hello gentlemen." She tooted. None of the other engines responded, they had all drifted off into their own worlds. Emily tooted again, this time with annoyance. "Heeelllllloooo gentlemen!" This broke the other engines concentrations. But they didn't greet Emily, they just glared at her. Emily looked tense. "What's going on?"
"Nothing that concerns you." Snapped Duck. He angrily whished steam at Emily, and he puffed out of the station in a huff. Emily was confused as to the engines hostility. "Alright, what the bloody hell is going on?" she demanded.
"Well, I hope you're proud of yourself." James scowled at Emily.
"What?" she wondered.
"Thanks to your possessive new beaux, Henry is more broken up than ever. You make me sick." James seethed.
"Hey it's not my fault that Diesel ripped into him." Emily defended herself.
"Oh yeah? Whose fault is it then?" Responded Thomas. "It was you who ended things with Henry, wasn't it?" Emily struggled for an answer.
"And wasn't it you that jumped into the shed with Diesel almost a week afterwards?" James put in.
"Now that's not fair!" Emily retorted. "I didn't jump into the shed with Diesel. We were friends for a long time."
"Friends? Ha!" said James. "That's a laugh." James chortled mockingly.
"I don't know whose fault it is." Percy added. "But what I do know is that Henry is hurting bad and in need of some company."
"Young Percy is right." Boomed Gordon. "Henry is in a dark place at the moment and needs someone to pull him out." The others agreed.
"Perhaps I should go and talk with him since you all seem to agree that it is entirely my fault." Emily volunteered, although she knew that she didn't have a choice.
"And so you should." Said James. "Go and straighten things out before Henry gets any more miserable." With that parting remark from James, Emily puffed out of the station and headed for Tidmouth sheds. The engines still frowned at her as she disappeared into the distance.
Meanwhile in the dark and gloomy atmosphere of the shed, Henry's spirits sunk low. His driver and fireman had stopped by to see how he was doing. Surprise, surprise, he wasn't doing so well. Henry was watching rerun after rerun of Monster Garage on an old television. The Fat Controller had set it up the television for him. "If only souls and hearts were that easy to rebuild." Henry sighed.
"I could sure use a rebuild of my heart." The driver and fireman made a conscious decision to stick around with Henry; they felt he needed the company. So they headed into town and purchased an extra large keg of beer. They returned to the shed and split the keg with Henry. "We figured you could use a tall one." The fireman laughed, pouring a beer for their long suffering engine. "Thanks guys." Henry chuffed softly. "Though I could do with a straw."
So the three amigos sat in the shed, tossing back beer after beer and gazing at the old television. Just then, the shed doors opened. It was Emily's driver and, indeed, there was Emily. Henry gazed drunkenly at her, he was not to happy to see her. "Uh, Henry?" Emily peeped tensely. "Can I speak to you?"
"What do you want?" Henry growled. "You're not gonna si-si-sick your commie boyfriend on me again, are you?"
"No, please hear me out." Emily sighed heavily. "Look, I came here to apologise for Diesel's actions earlier. You shouldn't have deserved it." Emily was most sincere.
"Also I want apologise for everything that has happened. I never really meant to hurt you, Henry. I meant what I said that I still want to be friends with you." Henry appeared indignant but Emily continued. "Can you find it in your heart to forgive me?"
Henry gazed angrily back at her. Something about the beer brought out the deep seated rage within him. "Forgive you? Forgive you?" Henry laughed bitterly, he slurred his words. "Youse know wha you can d-d-d-do with your apology? Youse can take it that apology… and ssssssshove it up y-your firebox! All up your firebox. I couldn't give a shit!" Emily gasped.
"Henry! Please don't act like this! I'm trying to-"
"I dun wanna hear another God d-damn word of it. As f-f-far as I'm concerned, you're dead to me." Henry bellowed.
Emily couldn't believe what she was hearing. "But Henry!"
"DDDEEEEAAAADDD TTTTOOOO MMMMMEEEEEE! Get the ffffffuck out of my face, bitch! I'm done with you." Henry's driver and fireman slammed the doors shut right in Emily's face. She started to cry and she raced over the turntable with tears streaking down her cheeks. As heartless as Henry's tirade was, it was justified by his accounts. Although, we all say things under alcohol that we think are justified. In Henry's case, it was a matter of venting those hurt feelings gnawing at him.
Early next day, the Island had woken up to a solemn mood. News of Henry's drunken tongue-lashing had spread quickly through the grapevine. The engines didn't want to stir up any controversy, so they stayed quiet. Well, most of them did. Percy was filling up on water before taking the mail train when Thomas steamed up beside him. He appeared to having something serious on his mind. "I've been thinking, Percy." Thomas said.
"What about?" answered Percy.
"Gordon said something about pulling Henry out of his dark place the other day and it's given me an idea."
"Oh?" Percy wondered.
"We could be the ones to bring Henry out of his depression." Thomas smiled.
"Really?" Percy asked innocently, "How do we do that?"
"It's simple." Continued Thomas. "This whole thing started because Emily broke up with Henry, right?"
"Right."
"And Henry is unhappy because he is feeling lonely and empty inside, right?"
"Er, right." Percy didn't see where this was going.
"So, what I thought that we should do is play match maker and set Henry up with someone, what do you think?" Thomas beamed. Percy thought about this, it took him a while to process the idea. "Thomas." He finally said, "That's brilliant!"
"Elementary, my dear Watson." Thomas laughed smugly.
"Whose Watson?" asked Percy in a state of confusion.
"Never mind." Thomas grunted in frustration, "Just follow my lead." Thomas puffed quickly away with Percy in hot pursuit. "What about my mail train?" he called out to his friend.
"Don't worry. I asked the Fat Controller to let Whiff take care of that."
"Whiff?" Percy gasped. "But he's smelly."
"You're smelly too sometimes." Laughed Thomas.
"I'm not smelly!" Said Percy indignantly, "Get bent!"
Thomas and Percy arrived at the Centre Island quarry where they spotted Mavis shutting trucks filled with heavy stones. "Do you think this plan of yours will work?" Percy asked anxiously.
"Of course it'll work." Thomas said with confidence. "When have any of my plans ever failed before?" Percy knew the answer to that question. The two engines chuffed forward and peeped to Mavis. "Wassup, dudes." She happily tooted back. Thomas explained to Mavis the terrible state that Henry was in and their idea of setting him up with another engine. Mavis understood the little engines plan but wasn't so sure. "So, anyways." Thomas rattled on, "Me and the green caterpillar here were thinking if you would be interested in, you know, going out with Henry and-"
"Whoa, time out!" Mavis cut him off. "Are you dudes serious, man?" She was stunned.
"Yeah, man. We are." Thomas responded. Percy grinned widely.
"Dude, seriously. Henry is cool and all, but I don't really think of him that way." Thomas and Percy's faces fell in disappointment. "Besides, you know I have a thing for Toby."
"But he's like fifty times your age." Said Percy.
"Yeah, I know, dude. But there's something about him that I find… alluring. You know what I'm saying, eh?" Mavis chirped. The engines never understood Mavis' grunge rock lingo.
"Frankly, I don't." said Thomas blankly.
"Well, don't worry, Sherlock. You'll understand in time, eh." With a goodbye toot of her horn, Mavis went back to work. "Later, dudes." Thomas and Percy felt dejected. Their first attempt at matchmaking didn't go like they had planned.
"Now what, cupid?" snapped Percy.
"Well, we'll just have to move onto the next eligible bachelorette." Thomas huffed and steamed along the track, his compatriot following in his wake. Eventually, they came up to Daisy, the self-absorbed diesel rail car. She sat alone in her shed; her driver was busily applying her makeup. Thomas and Percy never really got along with Daisy. She can be best described as being a stuck-up bitch. Upon her arrival on the Island, Daisy made it clear that she would never, never pull. To quote her, she was "highly strung and pulling was bad for her swerves." Despite their hostility and general hatred towards her, Thomas and Percy knew they were doing this for Henry. With all his courage, Thomas cleared his throat and spoke. "Hey, uh, Daisy."
"What the hell do you want?" Daisy scowled at Thomas.
"Err, look Daisy. I know we haven't gotten along over the years, what with you being an egotistical, self-absorbed, self-deluded-"
"What are you babbling on about?" Daisy snapped. "I'm busy."
"Anyway." Thomas grunted. "Percy and I have been trying to set Henry up with a date with someone because he has been depressed as of late and we wanted to ask if you would be interested in going out with him." Daisy stared at Thomas in stunned silence. She couldn't believe what he had asked her. The silence was broken when burst out into laughter. Thomas and Percy stared at each other in confusion. "You've got to be kidding!" Daisy laughed.
"Set me up on a date with that over-sensitive hypochondriac? Ha, I don't think so." Daisy laughed again.
"And why not? Henry's a decent engine; any female engine would love to go out with him." Thomas retorted furiously.
"Please, you think I'd be caught dead with that loser?" Daisy huffed. "I have a reputation to uphold on this Island. I'm highly strung and-"
"Pulling Henry would be bad for your swerves." Percy angrily sighed. Thomas and Daisy were horrified at Percy's unknowingly perverse comment.
"EWWWWWW!" Thomas and Daisy cried out in unison. Percy looked confused.
"What?" he asked. Thomas whispered to Percy at what he had said. Percy was taken aback, he blushed with embarrassment.
"As I was saying, little engine." Daisy continued. "Henry is way out of my league and I wouldn't date that sulking hunk of Iron even if you chloroformed me." Thomas and Percy glared at her. "Now, piss off!" The two engines stormed out of Daisy's shed as her driver shook his head in dismay. Percy sighed with frustration. "Well, that was a waste of time." He sulked.
"Calm your super heater, my friend." Thomas comforted his friend. "Going to her was a mistake to begin with anyway."
"Damn straight." Percy concurred. "Onto the next edible bachel, uh, bachia, uhhh, single engine, then?"
"It's eligible bachelorette, and yes we shall." Thomas corrected him.
"Shall we ask Rosie if she wants to go out with Henry?" Percy asked.
"Are you nuts?" Thomas groaned. "Henry is old enough to be Rosie's father. More to the point, you know she's had a crush on me ever since she came to this Island."
"Oh yeah." Percy remembered. "But wait a minute? If Henry's old enough to be Rosie's dad, does that mean I'm young enough to his son?"
"You're old enough to be an idiot." Thomas said exasperated.
"I'm not an idiot!" Percy snapped. "Bite me!"
The day was drawing to a close and back at Tidmouth sheds, Henry sat in darkness. The drinking session with his crew didn't make him feel any better. He still felt depressed and he had a hangover that would kill an Antonov cargo plane. His eyes were bloodshot from crying and his boiler was encrusted with filth. Henry watched old TV shows on the crapped out television. The old thing kept going static, Henry would have tried to bang it back to life but he had no arms to bang it with. Just then, His driver and fireman stopped by the shed. They too had monster hangovers and were trying to cure themselves by drinking orange juice. "I take it you're not at all feeling in good spirits." His fireman mused, gulping down his OJ.
"Quite the opposite." Henry sullenly stated. "That drinking party of ours only enhanced my pain, not ease it." Henry was right. Despite his memory being hazy, Henry remembered how badly he scolded Emily, especially when he said that he didn't want anything to do with her. "This shed isn't aiding my situation any good at all; I need to get out of this place." The driver and fireman agreed in harmony, slamming down their drinks and tossing their empty glasses on the ground. Henry's fire was lit up and he slowly built up steam. "Where do you want to go?" his driver asked.
"You know where to go." Henry answered.
"The special place?"
"Bingo." Henry sniffed. His driver pulled back on the throttle and Henry surged forward onto the turntable. Where they were headed was a mystery. In the meantime, Thomas and Percy were still trying to find an eligible bachelorette. They were running out of ideas… and steam. Thomas and Percy were not having much success in playing match maker. They tried asking Pip and Emma if either one would be interested in dating Henry. Emma told the two little cupid engines that she was already dating Bear. She admitted that his deep, growling engine noise reminded her of Barry White. Pip, on the other hand, was apparently seeing BoCo and the two had recently moved in together. Thomas then tried to contact Duchess of Hamilton at the National Railway Museum. But she was unavailable due to historical run commitments. The two engines contemplated asking Lady, but they realized that she would be young enough to be his daughter. Ergo, they skipped her. Thomas and Percy then thought outside the box and tried other non-railway folk on the Island. Caroline the aging car appeared too senile to comprehend what they were asking. Isabel the auto coach was "attached" to Oliver. Old Slowcoach told that she was comfortable living out her remaining years as a spinster. Isobella was only interested in road vehicles and Madge was an admitted lesbian.
At last, Thomas gave into frustration. "Why does this Island have to be such a sausage fest?" Thomas shouted at the top of his boiler, attracting the attention of just about everyone.
"What's a sausage fest?" Percy asked, as innocent as ever. Thomas was about to answer when he said, "I'll tell you when you're older." He then stormed off, Percy chased after him.
"No wait. What does that mean?" Percy cried out.
"Oh ok. It means-"
Moving right along, Thomas and Percy had finally reached Elizabeth, the final "contestant". Like everyone else on the Island; Elizabeth had shown sympathy towards Henry. But like everyone else before, she was reluctant to date the melancholy green engine. "I'm a Lorry. He's a steam engine. You do the math."
"But I don't like math." Percy whimpered.
"Fucking hell." Thomas impatiently muttered, not under his own breath.
"He's a nice boy but things would just be too weird." Elizabeth continued. "I really feel for Henry, really I do. But I just don't think of him that way."
"Oh, we understand." Percy sighed, looking towards the ground.
"I'm sorry, boys." Said Elizabeth remorsefully, she then drove away to Jem Cole's farm. The day was at an end and the cupid engines had miserably failed. "What do we do now?" asked Percy, he didn't know what else to do. And neither did Thomas.
"Nothing." Thomas answered gloomily.
"So, we failed?" Percy posed the question.
"I'm afraid so." The gravity of the situation had snuck in on Thomas.
"And Henry is going to be lonely forever?" Percy made a grim assessment.
"Oh yeah." Thomas heaved a sigh. Percy thought about this and started to cry.
"Henry's going to be lonely forever." He wailed; tears trickled down his chubby cheeks. Thomas tried to comfort his little green friend. "There there, Percy." Thomas said, he was mentally exhausted. "We tried our best, but obviously the odds were against us." Percy sniffed heavily.
"Come on, let's go home." With a sad peep peep, they chuffed home to Tidmouth sheds, defeated and none too happy. The sun had finally set when they arrived at the sheds, the other engines were agitated. Thomas saw that Henry's berth was empty. He rushed over the turntable in amazement. "Where is Henry?" he asked in panic.
"We don't know." Answered Gordon.
"Last time I saw him, he was still here." Added James.
"We don't know where he could have gone." Edward chuffed sadly. Thomas was baffled at Henry's sudden disappearance and then he remembered the tragic story of Molly. Suddenly he thought the worst, "Oh no!" he gasped.
"Percy, we've gotta find Henry, now! Something could have happened to him." The two immediately set off to find their melancholy friend. The other engines would have helped but their respective crews were occupied with other business, they had all gone down to the pub. Thomas and Percy searched high and low all over Sodor. Percy checked the China Clay railway. Thomas checked Crovan's Gate and asked the Narrow Gauge engines if they had seen Henry. Unfortunately, none of them did. Percy searched Wellsworth station and its adjoining sidings while Thomas sped along the mainline to Maron station. Almost everywhere they looked; Thomas and Percy couldn't find Henry. They regrouped at Kirk Ronan station, they were beyond exhausted but they knew they couldn't rest until they could find their friend. For all they knew, Henry was probably suicidal and looking to end it all. "We've looked everywhere." Percy panted.
"Not everywhere." Thomas wheezed. "Now come on. Think, THINK! Where could he have gone? Use that brain of yours, Percy!" Percy shut his eyes and concentrated, trying to come up with the answer. It then struck him like a wrecking ball. "I've got it, the forest!" he shouted.
"Of course!" Thomas concurred. "It's his most favourite place on the Island. Come on!" Thomas urged, screaming off into the night. Percy followed panting heavily.
"You know something, Percy? You're not that much of a dildo after all." Thomas laughed.
"I'm not a dildo!" Percy grunted. "Kiss my bunker!"
Sure enough, the two exhausted engines reached the forest. They slowed down as to keep an eye out for their friend. Thomas called out "Henry? Henry?" as loud as he could. At first, all he could hear was the owls chirping away. "HENRY?" he shouted again until his throat was hoarse. "I'm over here." A voice answered from a siding. Thomas and Percy were ecstatic, they had found Henry! They rushed to find him sitting alone on an empty siding staring up at the moon. The two little engines gasped for air as they pulled up. "Oh thank God we found you." Thomas wheezed. "We thought you had done yourself in." Percy gasped heavily.
"Done myself in?" Henry wondered. "No, I just needed to get out of that dirty old shed. So I came down here to clear my head." Thomas and Percy smiled.
"Well, thank God you are alright." Percy chuffed. Henry smiled back and looked back up to the moon. "You know, I've always like this place." Said Henry. "I feel more at peace with myself here than pulling coaches and trucks and dealing with the everyday bullshit that comes by. There's something about this place that makes me feel… happy."
"We were playing match maker today." Percy peeped proudly.
"Match maker?" Henry asked. "For whom?"
"For you, Henry." Thomas answered, Henry was surprised. "We just couldn't stand the thought of you being in pain all the time. So, we decided to set you up with someone. We're sorry but, there were no offers." Thomas looked discouraged.
"Oh, that's ok, guys. I appreciate your efforts." Said Henry. "But it didn't really matter."
The three engines smiled at each other and stared up at the moon for a while. They watched as the clouds rolled gently across the sky. "You know, James told me about how he came out of the closet earlier." Henry spoke up. "He said that he had been confused and scared about his own sexuality and how it would affect his personal life. I've been going through the same thing as of late, I've been struggling to cope with who I am and my decisions in life." The two little engines listened hard.
"Since this break up with Emily." Henry continued. "I've been in a dark place. Something that I thought I couldn't find my way out of but after much reflection, I came to the realization that I've been living a lie. This hypochondriac personality of mine doesn't suit me at all. It's not me. I never liked being the butt of everyone's jokes, being put down because of niggling problems. It's bullshit, come to think of it! So I've decided to make a change. I'm not going to let crazy stuff like this get to me anymore. I'm going to fight through the pain and work it out like a true engine. Out goes to old hippie, hypochondriac Henry and in with the new tougher, stronger, faster Henry. I'm back with a vengeance." Henry smiled the biggest smile he could muster.
"Yeah, Henry's back." Thomas and Percy happily cried in unison and cheered with a series of "peep peeps."
"Come on, big guy. Let's go home." Thomas chuffed. The three engines soon steamed back home, none of them stopped smiling. "Does this mean that you don't like the forest anymore?" Percy asked.
"I never said that. I still like the forest, but not in a tree-hugger sort of way." Henry explained. "Do you understand?"
"No." Percy whished, he was baffled. Henry just laughed as the trio of friends rumbled towards Tidmouth. Meanwhile, back in the sheds, the other engines were getting increasingly worried. They had wondered whether something wrong had happened to Henry, though none of them wanted to actually admit that. In the distance, they heard a faint whistle. Their faces all lit up with joy when they realized who it was. "It's Henry!" shouted Edward. The engines finally saw Henry, Percy and Thomas steaming towards the shed. The other engines cheered and all talked simultaneously as Henry rolled gently onto the turntable. They were all excited to see their friend come back. "Simmer down, simmer down." Henry called to them and the other engines calmed down.
"Henry, old chap, we were so worried about you." Gordon chuffed.
"But not too worried as to not go out and look for me?" Henry retorted.
"Actually, our drivers went down to the pub. They haven't come back yet." James explained.
"I see." Henry raised his eyebrow.
"Where did you go?" asked Emily.
"Oh, somewhere special, you know." Henry answered. "Just to clear my smoke box of all the craziness of the past few days. I've been thinking a lot about what's happened. There were a lot of things that have been gnawing me, some things that I've regretted saying while others have been about my own soul. Now that I've had time to contemplate about them, I have a few things I want to get off my boiler. Here goes." Henry cleared his throat and looked over to Emily.
"Emily." he started as Emily held her breath in anticipation. "I forgive you. And I'm sorry for the way I acted to you the other day. It was totally uncalled for and you shouldn't have deserved that outburst I gave you. I hope you can forgive me for that."
Emily was so happy that she cried a little. "I do, Henry, and thank you."
"Awwww, that's so sweet." Said Percy, he started to cry a little too.
"And you all should apologize to Emily too." Henry spoke to the others. "Lord knows how bad she has suffered from being ostracized by everyone." All the other engines agreed and apologized to Emily. Henry breathed heavily and spoke up again.
"Now that that's taken care of, I have another thing to say. Despite what has happened to me, I came to the decision that I'm not going to let it get to me. In fact, I believe it has made me stronger because of it."
"Well put, Henry, well put." A prideful Gordon acknowledged. Henry continued as the turntable spun him around and he slowly backed into his berth. "Also, you won't have to worry about me being so hypochondriac-like and self-hating anymore. That Henry is long gone. Say hello to the new, improved Henry. Faster, stronger, smarter." The engines cheered for Henry, they were all proud to know that this ordeal was over.
"It's good to have you back, Henry." Gordon chuffed happily.
"Thanks. There's just one more thing I have to say to you, Gordon."
"What is it?" Gordon asked. All of a sudden, Henry's cheerful disposition quickly shifted, much to the alarm of the others.
"Where the fuck do you get off saying that I'm a self-loather?" Henry barked angrily.
"Well, I, errrr…" Gordon stammered as Henry ripped into him some more. Thomas just grinned; he glanced over to Percy who did the same. They realized that Henry didn't need help getting out of his dark place. The only engine that could help Henry out was himself alone. Henry didn't need angels or cupids to help him out, but he did need friends. And that's all that mattered.