James is the second-newest engine on the North Western Railway, arriving a while before Thomas. Ever since Thomas had rescued him from a nasty accident, James had been sent to the Steamworks by Edward.

When James arrived at the Steamworks, the workmen started repairing the black engine, and gave him updated brakes like the other engines had.

As soon as that was done, the Fat Controller presented red paint cans.

"This new red paint will cheer you up." he explained as the workmen started to apply the red paint to James.

"You are a mixed traffic engine," the Fat Controller continued, "You can pull coaches and trucks quite easily, even if trucks are... difficult things to handle."

James winced and couldn't help but agree, remembering his accident.

The next day, James puffed into the yard.

Thomas and Edward were there, as Thomas was just about to have his first run along his branch line.

"*ahem*" James said, hoping to be noticed.

Thomas and Edward looked very impressed.

"James? Is that really you?" gasped Thomas in surprise.

"Of course it is! How do you like my new paintwork?" James asked.

"Wow, James! You look splendid!" Thomas said eagerly.

"I know. I'm ready for my coaches!" James said proudly.

"We're Thomas' coaches now, James." said Annie teasingly.

"That's right, and he's got his very own branch line too." added Clarabel as Thomas puffed off with the two coaches.

"Thomas got a branch line?" James stuttered.

"To be fair, he does deserve it." grinned Edward.

"I suppose you're right..." muttered James.

That night, as James puffed into the shed, Henry and Gordon were a little jealous; especially Gordon.

"Well, hello everyone! How do you like my new red paint?" James asked.

Henry grunted.

"Why should you get such a dignified color?" Gordon grumbled, "After all, you're a small engine, and quite useless too! You don't deserve special treatment while I get the shaft!"

James frowned.

"I quite like your paint James," commented Edward, "It looks so glossy, if you ask me."

"No-one did ask you, Edward." snorted Gordon.

James just smiled modestly.

But the red paint got to James' funnel quickly.

"Look at me!" James boasted to Edward one morning at Tidmouth, "My red paint stands out from your blue and Henry's green! I'm a new color; a new form!"

Edward chuckled.

"Well, you certainly are eager, aren't you?"

"Eager about my paint, yes. How could I not be?"

Gordon arrived to shunt his express coaches, and was still grumbling.

"First Thomas gallivants off to his own line, then James gets a new coat of paint! What is possibly next?!" Gordon grumbled.

James couldn't help but giggle.

Gordon glared.

"James, you don't deserve that paintwork! It doesn't even look that good!"

James, however, just laughed.

"Well, I've proven myself so quickly that the Fat Controller gave me this beauty of a color instead of that grimy black paint! Look at this!"

The paint sparkled in the sun.

"Don't get too puffed up in the smokebox," advised Edward, just as the Fat Controller walked up to them.

"James, I'd like you to pull coaches today, and Edward can help you. Edward, do please show James what to do. We don't a repeat of events, now do we?"

Gordon snickered as he was finished shunting, but James stayed firm.

"Of course sir!" James said, pleased that he was pulling coaches.

"Come along, James. Let's go." puffed Edward.

Gordon grunted and puffed away as Edward and James went off to find the coaches.

Edward was a very experienced engine, and knew everything there was to know about coaches and trucks.

As James arranged the coaches into the station, Edward tried to give him some advice.

"Do be careful with the coaches, James. They don't like to be bumped. However, trucks are silly and deserve being bumped, but coaches get cross since they're well-behaved and will pay you out eventually."

But James didn't pay attention and bumped the coaches as he backed onto them.

"Oh, oh!" they shrilled.

Edward winced as he was coupled in front of James.

"What did I tell you?" he sighed, "I'm sorry, dears. James didn't mean that."

"Hmph!" scoffed the coaches.

The Fat Controller, the stationmaster, and some little boys came to admire James' paintwork.

"A fine shade of red." the stationmaster murmured.

"Yes, the painters at the Steamworks did a fine job indeed," agreed the Fat Controller, and he admired his reflection.

James was very pleased with this attention, and hadn't even heard the coaches or Edward.

"I'm a really splendid engine!" James said excitedly, "Ha! I am just as good as Gordon after all!"

James was so excited that he left off steam loudly, and all the people on the platform jumped.

A shower of water fell right onto the Fat Controller's new top hat!

James winced as the stout gentleman felt over his hat angrily.

"Bother! I just bought this hat! Now it's all ruined!"

He was about to tell James off when the guard blew his whistle.

Everyone got on the train, and James was so worried that he wanted to hurry out of the station as quickly as he could.

"Hurry up, Edward! Hurry up, Edward!" James cried out urgently.

But Edward didn't like starting quickly, and was slightly resistant.

"Don't push! What's the rush, James?" Edward asked.

James didn't respond; he didn't want to explain his silliness to Edward.

Then the coaches started to complain.

"Don't go so fast! Don't go so fast!" they fumed.

"We must go fast, we must go fast!" James cried.

James was so nervous of being reprimanded that he didn't even want to stop at Knapford Station.

They started to overrun the platform when Edward noticed James' urgency.

"James, stop! Stop! This is our station!" Edward cried, and he braked hard.

James quickly realized his foolishness and came to a halt.

But even so, the first two coaches were beyond the platform, and the two engines had to go back to let them out.

Edward and James grew embarrassed as Gordon raced by, laughing.

"Look at you two, flying past your station! Edward, Thomas was a better student!"

Gordon chortled away, and James grew as red as his paintwork.

"Don't listen to him, James." said Edward kindly, "A mistake any engine could make."

But James still felt a little silly.

Lots of people came to see James' paintwork again.

Nobody seemed to know about the Fat Controller's hat, so James grew more confident.

Thomas puffed in with Annie and Clarabel, after his first run on his branch line.

"Hello James! Lovely to see you've been getting on so well," said Thomas.

James grinned.

"Thank you, Thomas. How's the branch line?"

"Oh, it's so amazing. All the stations and sights! I even saw a-"

Before Thomas could finish, the guard blew his whistle.

"Sorry I can't stop," continued Thomas, "but a busy engine must keep working! I don't know what the Fat Controller would do without me to run this branch line!"

And off Thomas went, into a tunnel.

The two engines themselves puffed off, and they soon passed the field where James had had his accident.

The fence was mended, and the cows were grazing on the grass again.

James whistled at them, but the cows didn't even flinch.

Edward giggled.

"Cows don't usually respond back to engines, James." he chuckled.

"Now I know," grumbled the red engine.

On went Edward and James through the countryside, through Wellsworth, and they started to climb Gordon's Hill.

The coaches were heavy, and made it hard to puff up the hill.

"It's ever so steep! It's ever so steep!" complained James.

"I've done it before! I've done it before!" replied Edward.

James grew more determined as he saw the top ahead.

"It's steep, but we'll do it! It's steep, but we'll do it!" Edward and James chanted as the top was inches in front of them.

They whooshed over the hill, and it all became easier.

Edward and James puffed into Maron Station and applied the brakes.

As the passengers disembarked, Edward decided to cheer James up after the "top hat incident".

"James, you know Gordon isn't perfect either. He's made plenty of mistakes, and the most iconic one was when he stalled on the hill, all because of his trucks. I had to come and push him up, and even then he was reluctant. Gordon didn't even thank me as he puffed into Maron!" Edward chuckled.

James started to laugh, and laugh.

He laughed so hard that he began to hiccup.

An old lady with a bonnet and cane edged along the platform towards the coaches.

James made so much noise hiccuping that he frightened her and she dropped her purse.

"Oh, my purse!" the lady groaned, "Somebody get it!"

The porter came and helped the lady get her purse.

"Thank you, gentleman." and the lady boarded the train.

But James continued hiccuping.

"It isn't that funny, is it?" laughed Edward.

James just hiccupped.

The two engines left the station, and the rest of the journey remained uneventful as James' hiccups subsided.

As James puffed into the shed that night, he was strangely quiet.

Gordon looked over at James' embarrassed expression and laughed.

"Everyone's heard about your wheeshing of the Fat Controller, little James! Soon you'll be sent away in disgrace, being extremely rude like that!"

James grew a little pale.

"Don't listen to him," consoled Edward, "You enjoyed your day, didn't you?"

"I suppose so," sighed James, "But I'm worried of what the Fat Controller might say..."

"As you should be!" Gordon snickered.

"I have to admit that does sound rather embarrassing." agreed Henry.

"Well, it was! He just bought that hat, and now I ruined it!", James groaned, "What am I going to do, Edward?"

Edward smiled kindly at James.

"I don't think the Fat Controller will be too angry. It was an accident, after all."

James wasn't so sure though as he closed his eyes.

"Will I be sent away?" James thought worriedly.