Russell awoke the next morning to the considerably more gentle hiss of slushy rain on the roof and the clack of the first few shed doors being opened. Catching a glimpse of the world outside through an open door close to him, he was greeted by the bright white of fresh snow that must have fallen while they were sleeping. The frosty rain had turned the thin snow to ice which covered everything in a transperant, glittering blanket, punctuated only by the dark, mud sloshed shapes of footprints where the workmen had trodden. The slick cover of ice, Russell knew, only made travel slippery and dangerous for the reckless or unprepared.. And he wasn't looking forward to going out there.
Just the thought of it made him shiver, feeling the thin coat of frost that had crept over him during the night crack and slide down his boiler and funnel to drip onto his running board. He longed for his fire to be lit so as to combat the dreaded freeze he was inevitably going to face during the day, as well as in the long months ahead. Winter was well on its way and he knew this was only the beginning- it was worse than the rain by far.
But judging by the dim light outside, Vernon and his fireman, Edwin -God bless him, Russell thought, even if he is rude- weren't due to arrive for another twenty minutes at least.
Sighing, he cast a gentle, concerned glance over at his sleeping companion. Inwardly, he worried for Henry- it hadn't taken him long to pick up on the reality that the green engine was subject to illness. He could see it just by looking at him, how he coughed and struggled to get going in the morning. Even the way he was built singularly suggested that while his shining moments might be quite grand, he was too highly strung and prone to ailment to claim a place as a really useful engine on a railway. A railway other than Kollsvik, anyhow, which had since its founding become something of a dumping ground for rejects of railways worldwide.
Silently watching Henry sleep for a minute, Russell finally sighed a second time and resigned to getting a few extra minutes of sleep. He was definitely going to need it for today.
Henry, however, awoke a few minutes later to a deep pain in his back end and a tickle in his nose. Oh dear, he thought. He knew exactly what that was. He squirmed and scrunched up his nose, trying his best to hold it in but hardly a moment passed before;
"A-ptchoo-!" Soot flew everywhere, out of his funnel, out of his mouth, and dusted the ground around him as well as the top of his and Russell's boilers. A few of the engines nearby were startled awake, including Russell, and a few let out a squeaky cry of fear- as if they expected the roof to be falling in or some such disaster. Despite how terrible he felt, Henry couldn't help but blush darkly at this. Quietly he snuffled, but no amount of sniffling and snuffling would hold in the watery discharge that seemed to want nothing more than to run down his face in a terribly unsightly manner.
Glancing quietly over at Russell, he was greeted by the little red engine's horrified expression. He met it with a grim one of his own. They both knew that Henry was in no condition to do any working today. Russell tried to think of something to say, but before he could put his thoughts into words, he was interrupted by the shed door directly in front of him being flung open. In walked four men- two Russell recognized as his driver and fireman, and the other two were Henry's new driver and fireman. The four of them seemed to be chatting about something, and the two engines caught the tail end of their conversation as they came in.
"When the day came 'round, it turned out she already recieved three other copies exactly like it; so I had to go all the way back down to Blaenavon to exchange it for my first choice, all the while keeping it hidden and pretending that my emergency trip was to get sugar for the sweet rolls. Of course it didn't stay a secret long because when I got back with the replacement and the sugar, she was standing in the kitchen holding a full jar and asked me what the blazes I needed more sugar for."
"Ha, it's just getting harder and harder to get the right gift these days. All this mass produced nonsense, I'd rather just go back to getting lauded as a hero for bringing home some flowers." The lot of them snorted in agreement as they seperated to their respective engines. Even still they continued to chat across the gap between the rails Russell and Henry were on. The green engine made a face when his fire was lit.. Or almost lit. His firebox felt damp and stuffy- and the coal on Kollsvik was hardly of any level of decent quality. Neither of these circumstances served to help his condition at all, and after a few failed attempts to get him steaming, his crew climbed out of the cab and started looking him over with a sudden trepidation that quickly made him uncomfortable. They began to speak to one another quietly, assuming thoughtful positions and occasionally pointing at something or other.
"He was working fine yesterday.. Maybe it's the cold weather.." The bespectacled driver mused, and the fireman shook his head.
"Well if this is going to continue being a problem.." Russell recognized that tone and he looked up quickly. If they couldn't find a way to make Henry work in the next few minutes, they would have to contact the administration to let them know one of the engines was out of commission; which meant Charlotte's attention would be focused on his ailing friend.. Which also meant trouble, if they didn't play their cards just right. He looked over to Vernon, who had taken notice of the other crew's difficulties and was observing Henry now as well. Russell watched him quietly, looking away only when Vernon cast him a sidelong glance. There was a silence as the man stared at Russell; as if he could see right through him. It certainly felt that way.
"Mm.. I know that look. He's your friend, isn't he." The question sounded more like a statement, and Russell looked back up at his driver; his worry was clear.
"Please help him.." He quietly pleaded. Vernon stared at Russell for a moment or so before sighing heavily and turning to walk back to the cab. He and Edwin then exchanged a brief, somewhat terse coversation.
Shortly afterward, the four of them were all pitching in to get Henry working; cleaning him out, drying off all they could reach, choosily selecting what coal with which to try and start his fire, tightening what was too loose and loosening what was too tight. Henry cast a thankful glance at Russell as the men went about fixing him up, and the little engine smiled weakly in return. But even in spite of their best efforts to do all they could with the time they had, it was all to no avail; and though Henry felt a bit better for it he still couldn't manage to get going. Once they had done all they could do and Henry still wasn't responding as positively as they needed him to, Vernon and Edwin returned to Russell, going back to their own business. Henry sank onto his wheels, sniffling and wishing now more than ever that he was home on Sodor.
Glumly the two engines sat in silence. It was hard to think of what to say in such a situation, knowing there was an excellent possibility that very soon, you or your only friend might be carted off to the smelting facility with hardly a chance to even say goodbye..
The sound of tires crunching over ice made the both of them look up at the same time, and Jimmy, Charlotte's car, gave them a sleazy grin.
"Good morning~." He purred, though he obviously knew it wasn't a good morning at all. Henry wrinkled his nose, casting Jimmy a nasty glare.
"Now, now, that's no way to look at your superiors, see? You'd better wise up and look sharp, the Lady has business with you and she won't put up with your sass." The car sniffed haughtily and glanced somewhat loftily at Charlotte as she was pushed around front in her wheelchair, facing Henry with her back turned to Jimmy. Normally, Jimmy wouldn't express much in front of her either simply because she didn't approve of it and he knew it was best to be on her good side. But since she couldn't see him, he merely continued to grin smugly as she spoke.
"I ought to have known it would be one of these two.." Charlotte drawled in a monotone voice. Motioning vaguely to one of her attendants, she waited for him to come over and bend down slightly to be level with her.
"Remind me to have their respective places in the shed seperated sometime. Thank you." She then dismissed him and returned her attention to Henry and his crew. The two men stood tall and still in front of their engine, and Charlotte surveyed them silently. Truthfully, she didn't care for the cold, and though her thick fur coat blocked a majority of it, she would rather be back home at her desk near the fireplace. Perhaps with a cup of tea.
The thought of that made her a little more eager to have this over and done with, and she folded her hands, making a decision.
"When I bought this locomotive, I told its previous owner that I had the means and funding to have it fixed and keep it running." She looked up at Henry, her gaze sharp, but not as cold as he'd seen it. He wasn't sure whether this was a good or bad thing.
"I did not lie." She finally finished. "I do have the means, the funding, and at this moment, the time to make it so. And so, as I have spent a sizeable amount of money on this particular locomotive, I believe it would be most beneficial to call a maintenence day." Henry and Russell both released a breath they hadn't realized they'd been holding. And Vernon, leaning against Russell's running board, also felt a strange sense of relief. He wasn't sure why, Henry wasn't his engine, nor did he feel any attatchment to him. Shaking his head and adjusting his hat deftly, he went around back to climb into Russell's cab.
"You two" Charlotte demanded, pointing to Henry's driver and fireman. "Start right away, I will have a maintenence crew along to join you soon. If there's something you need, take note of it and let me know, I will make the rest of the arrangements." She was quick to leave once everything was in order, and Jimmy cast the two engines a sour glare as he turned to leave.
"Too bad. But I expect we'll be meeting again soon. Good day." He snorted away, kicking up slush in Henry's direction. Henry didn't even care anymore, he was so incredibly overwhelmed with relief that he couldn't find any way to take offense to Jimmy's teasing. Russell too was unable to find any words; he had fully expected to lose another friend.
The both of them looked at eachother; they didn't smile, they didn't speak, but they didn't need to. The silence said enough by itself that words would only get in the way.
After Russell had left and the maintenence crew arrived to start working on Henry, he had time to think on what had happened. Briefly he remembered his last moments with Rene and those poignant words that had been offered.
'May God watch over you both.'
Henry then cast his gaze upward to the sky, and sent up a silent prayer of thanks.