Hello, you may know me through my OK K.O fanfiction, don't worry, I haven't given up on it. I just lost motivation for a while, it happens to everyone ^^
But, now, I'm here with something completely different. It may be odd for a teenager to be invested in Thomas the Tank Engine but I can't help it haha! This show had a huge involvement in my childhood and I cherish it even when I'm deemed 'too old' to still enjoy it. This fanfiction doesn't have an overall story, but it's made up of a bunch of short stories about the adventures of Thomas and his friends (none of them will be in chronological order) along with a brand new friend!
Let me know what you think of it! I hope you enjoy!
It was a bright, sunny day on the Island of Sodor. The birds were singing and the children were happily playing. The island was home to what was known as the North Western railways, run by Sir Topahm Hatt, or the Fat Controller. This railway was popular with the residents of the island as well as those who come to visit from the Mainland. The engines who work on this railway were also beloved by many. Some engines shunt cars or pull goods trains while others pull passenger coaches. Some work in the yard, some work at the docks, some work at the quarry and even some worked at the mines. One of these popular engines was Edward, he was a mixed-traffic tender engine who was painted in a bright blue with red stripes. A number 2 was also painted on his tender. He was one of the older engines but he was also a very hard worker and very reliable with special jobs. Sure, he isn't really strong enough to do big jobs like pull the Express or the Kipper run but the Fat Controller trusts him to be a really useful engine.
Recently, rumors had been spreading among the engines about Sir Topahm Hatt's seven year old niece, Katherine, moving to the Island of Sodor from America. Edward didn't pay much attention to these rumors and just treated them as such. That is, until one day when he was called into Knapford Station for a very special job. It was a very misty morning, and hardly anyone was awake, so he didn't expect anyone to actually be waiting for him when he arrived at the station. Boy, was he wrong. Not even two minutes after he halted to a stop at the platform, a young girl ran, excited, out of the Fat Controller's office. She jumped straight into Edward's cab. He was surprised to say the least and he actually wanted to be cross with the troublesome kid. But, it was also pretty cute so he chuckled.
"Katherine!" Called a familiar male voice, then the Fat Controller came running outside as well. He looked flustered and overworked. He really needs to take a few days off or something. Then the young girl looked out of Edward's cab and giggled. The Fat Controller sighed, in both relief and frustration.
"I apologize Edward, maybe I shouldn't have told her which engine she were to look out for." He sighed. Edward didn't mind much, he guessed this girl was Katherine, as the Fat Controller as referred to her as. She hopped out of his cab and he got a real good look at her. She was pretty small for her age. She had medium length brown hair with tints of blonde at the bottom. It was held up in a hair tie as well. She wore a blue and orange stripped tang top with darker blue jeans. She even had freckles.
She gave him a toothy smile and spoke in a adorable squeaky voice, "Hi! I'm Katherine, but you can call me Kat!"
"And I'm Edward, but I'm sure your uncle already told you that." The blue engine smiled warmly. Kat giggled as a response. The Fat Controller rested a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"Edward, your special will involve you watching over my dear niece. She will accompany you while you're off doing your regular jobs." Sir Topahm Hatt looked more nervous about handing a job like this to an engine rather than assured. Edward noticed this and he had to admit, this did seem a bit irresponsible and silly. He was an engine for goodness sake, he can't play babysitter! But Kat looked excited. If the Fat Controller were to go as far as assign an engine to keep Kat occupied, then why can't she go out and play with the other children? Something must have happened. He wanted to protest, but he kept his mouth shut. Instead, he just said 'Yes, Sir' somewhat anxiously and Kat jumped right back into his cab. The Fat Controller thanked him and went back to working in his office.
"Peep, peep!" He whistled and he pulled out of the station. He made sure to not go too fast so Kat wouldn't be overwhelmed because she likely hasn't ridden a train before, at least as far as he knows. He still can't believe the Fat Controller gave him a silly job like this. He puffed into the shunting yard where a certain black mixed-traffic, tender engine was complaining about having to deal with troublesome trucks, as usual. He was James, and he was one of the newer engines to arrive on the Island of Sodor. A number 5 was also painted on his tender. Upon spotting Edward, James spoke up, looking cross.
"Where have you been, Old Iron?" He groaned as he pushed a few more cars into their place. Edward rolled his eyes.
"I was given a special and I was held up at Knapford." He explained.
"What 'special'?" The younger engine questioned. Just as he had finished the statement, Kat decided to poke her small head out out of Edward's cab. She chirped a friendly 'hello' to James. The black engine looked surprise at first but then he suddenly burst out laughing, "You have got to be kidding me! You're 'special' is to babysit!?" He continued to laugh until his boiler ached and even the troublesome trucks joined in. Edward's face flushed and he was cuppled up to a goods train scheduled to be delivered to the docks. Kat, meanwhile, didn't understand why James thought it was so funny that Edward was watching over her for the day. It was fun. Edward puffed out of the yard and headed towards the docks. Along the way, Edward ran into Gordon and Henry and they both were greeted with a 'hello' from Kat as they passed. Gordon made a sarcastic comment and began to laugh, Henry did the same. And each time, Edward felt more and more embarrassed. Honestly, he didn't like other engines laughing at him, whether it would be for his old age or the fact he had a child riding in his cab. Why couldn't the Fat Controller chose a different engine for this job, or better yet, an actual babysitter?
As the blue engine was riding along the tracks, Kat was leaning out of the cab, happily observing the surrounding land in wonder. She had never explored the railway like this, there were so many things she had never seen. It felt nice to be out in the country rather than New York where she used to live. It wasn't long until Edward halted to a stop at the docks. In the blindness of her own excitement, Kat jumped out of Edward's cab without his knowledge as he was watching Cranky unload his cargo. Cranky didn't notice a little girl exiting Edward's cab either, neither did Salty. Edward wasn't watching like he should've been.
Think the girl was sitting still in his cab, he let out a 'peep, peep' as his cargo was unloaded and he began to puff back to the shunting yard. At this point, Kat was no where to be seen but Edward didn't pay much attention.
End of chapter one! There, obviously, will be a second part to this chapter as well. Let's see what happens when Edward realizes that he lost a seven year old at the docks lol
Thomas the Tank Engine and its characters don't belong to me.