OPERATION REINDEER

Every night when the air is still and the shed doors closed, Percy takes charge of the mail train, delivering letters and parcels to every station across the island. Of course, Percy couldn't go where the rails didn't lead, so he always had help.

"Hello, Mr. Tipper!" Percy called cheerfully as he pulled into Ffarquhar. A man in a blue cap and coat smiled as he stepped out of a smart red van.

"Good evening, Percy! You've got an extra van today, I see."

"Of course, Mr. Tipper, sir! There were a lot of letters at the harbour today!" Percy replied. Tom Tipper smirked.

"Ah well, nothing me old van can't handle." With that, he began loading the mail bags into his van. Percy liked Tom; he was always cheerful despite the taxing job and could always be counted on to take the tank engine's mail straight to its recipients.

Christmastime was naturally even busier than usual, with engine and postman having to work quickly through the night to make sure every piece of mail got to where it needed to go. Tom Tipper yawned as he drove his van along a quiet paved road that ran beside the railway.

"Just need to drop off Dryaw's letters, then… then…" His eyelids drooped over his eyes as he began to fall asleep. His head tilted forward and was about to hit the steering wheel when a horn startled him awake.

"Out of the way, lowly rail sympathizer! Bus coming through!" jeered Bulgy, who was coming in the opposite direction. Tom Tipper frantically turned the steering wheel, narrowly avoiding a collision. However, due to the icy roads, he couldn't steer back, and his van rolled off the road, straight into a snowbank. He tried to reverse the van, but it wouldn't budge. Tom groaned as he stepped out.

"Well, that's torn it… Sorry, old friend. You're not going anywhere tonight," he sighed, patting the hood of the van. He turned and noticed Bulgy driving away.

"Bulgy, Bulgy!" Tom shouted, waving his arms to get the bus' attention. Bulgy stopped and looked back.

"What?"

"Can you give me a lift to Dryaw please? My engine won't start." Bulgy heaved a long sigh.

"...you all would be lost without me." the bus grumbled, but nonetheless waited as Tom Tipper climbed aboard. Bulgy drove away, leaving the van behind.

The sun was just peeking over the horizon, signifying the arrival of Christmas Eve, by the time Percy was returning home to the sheds. As he rounded a bend, he was surprised to see Butch the Breakdown Lorry being hooked up to a van covered in snow.

"Butch? What's going on?" Percy asked worriedly, slowing down as he passed.

"Tipper's van crashed last night," Butch explained grimly, "Lucky he only hit a snowbank."

"Oh no! Is he alright?"

"He's fine, though the same can't be said for his van." Percy gasped, about to say something when Butch honked his horn.

"Afraid I can't stop to chat. Duty calls!" he called and drove away, towing Tom Tipper's snow-covered van behind him. Percy winced, beginning to speed up towards the top station.

"But if Mr. Tipper's van is broken, then who will deliver the mail?" he wondered aloud.

Tom Tipper exited the station building, sighing sadly. Suddenly, he heard a familiar whistle. He turned and saw Percy hurrying up to the platform, whistling frantically.

"Mr. Tipper, Mr. Tipper! I saw your van in the snowbank; what happened?"

"Oh. Well, er…" Tom scratched the back of his head.

"A bad turn, you might say," he chuckled nervously before sighing, "and now it's only gotten worse." Percy gasped.

"What do you mean, Mr. Tipper?"

"I was just on the phone with my chief. He's… not happy. Says if we have any hope of repairing the van, we'll have to get a new engine for it, which isn't in our seasonal budget. He can't even get me a bike! Looks like you won't be seeing me or my van around for a while, Percy. Merry Christmas." Tom waved sadly as he walked away, Percy looking on in horror.

"B-But Mr. Tipper! Wait!" But Tom had already left. Percy groaned and looked down at his buffers.

For the rest of that morning, Percy remained upset about the news of Tom Tipper and his broken down van. Toby watched him sadly bump trucks about Elsbridge Yard from the carriage shed.

"I wonder what's going on with Percy," he murmured to Henrietta behind him, "He's usually so filled with joy at this time of year."

"Why don't you ask him, Toby?" Henrietta suggested. Toby grimaced.

"I wouldn't like to intrude. It's probably none of our business, after all."

"Come off it, Toby; he's your friend! It might be important!" the coach persisted. Toby sighed as he was uncoupled from her.

"Alright, alright. I'll let you know if it is." Henrietta smirked as Toby rolled alongside Percy, who tried his best to smile.

"Oh. Hello, Toby."

"Percy, what's the matter? It's not like you to be so downcast at Christmas."

"It's not me," Percy lamented, "It's Mr. Tipper! His van's broken, and he can't get it repaired until after Christmas! That means none of the Christmas mail will be delivered! All the letters, presents, everything! Christmas will be ruined!" Toby was taken aback for a moment, but quickly regained his composure.

"Oh dear, that is troubling. Mail doesn't have to be delivered by van, though. Why, Santa Claus uses a sleigh and flying reindeer-" As Toby tried to cheer Percy up, an idea flew into the green engine's funnel.

"That's it!"

"W-What?" Toby stammered, hoping he hadn't given Percy false hope.

"Reindeer, Toby! Mr. Tipper's like Santa Claus, but he doesn't have any reindeer to help him! We could be those reindeer!" Percy explained excitedly. Toby stared blankly, not fully understanding.

"Percy, I wouldn't fancy growing antlers or having my nose glow red… and I'm far too heavy to fly." Percy laughed.

"No, no, not actual reindeer! We could help Mr. Tipper like the reindeer help Santa! Think about it! Without Mr. Tipper, we can deliver the mail for him!"

"Oh! Yes, I see. That makes more sense." Toby paused as a thought struck him.

"Just us two? I don't think we alone can cover all the ground we need to in just one night, Percy."

"We could build a whole team!" Percy insisted, talking quicker and quicker as he went on, "A whole team of reindeer! Let's recruit as many as we can today, Toby! Together, we'll save Christmas!" Before Toby could reply, Percy whistled and hurried away. Toby looked back as he heard quiet chuckling from the carriage shed.

"So you're a reindeer now, Toby?" Henrietta smirked. Toby sighed.

Throughout the day, Percy and Toby asked anyone they could about joining them. Percy sat at the junction, calling out to passing engines.

"Would anyone like to take the mail with Toby and I tonight? It'll save Christmas!" However, the engines only either looked away or ignored him entirely. Percy sighed, about to roll away when Diesel crept alongside.

"I'll help you, Percy," he said, trying not to snicker. Percy braked, astonished at what he just heard.

"R-Really, Diesel?"

"No!" Diesel burst out laughing and hurried away, spraying exhaust in Percy's face as he passed. Percy coughed before groaning. Toby wasn't having the best of luck either as he tried his recruiting along the branch line.

"Oh! There's Bertie the Bus. Why not ask him?" Henrietta suggested as Toby pulled into Elsbridge, where Bertie was letting off passengers on the road above. Toby raised an eyebrow.

"He's a bus, Henrietta, I don't see how he'd be much help carrying mail."

"Don't be like that, he might surprise you! Go on," she urged. Toby rolled his eyes and cleared his throat.

"Er, excuse me, Bertie?" Bertie looked down curiously at the tram engine.

"I was just wondering if you could help me and Percy tonight. We're taking the mail for Tom Tipper since his van broke down."

"Oh yes, I'd heard about that. Poor Tom; he always did love that old van. I'd like to help you, but I'm terribly busy tonight. You know how it is on Christmas Eve. Toodle peep!" Bertie honked his horn and drove away. Toby raised an eyebrow at Henrietta, who rolled her eyes.

That afternoon, Percy pulled into Maithwaite, stopping alongside Toby and Henrietta, who were at the other platform.

"Any luck?" Percy queried hopefully. Toby sighed.

"No… Thomas says he's bringing the tree to the party, and Harold is being grounded tonight because of high winds." Percy frowned, disappointed.

"So it really is just us two then?" Percy and Toby jumped as Henrietta cleared her throat from behind the tram engine.

"Us three, actually. Just because I have seats doesn't mean I can't carry parcels and letters."

"Oh, you'll help, Henrietta? Thank you!" cried Percy gleefully, "That makes three! That's not bad, right, Toby?"

"Well, three's better than two, I suppose, but what we really need is someone on the road." Just then, they heard a horn and looked to see a yellow steam lorry puffing along the road towards the level crossing, their tipper filled with several stacks of crates. Percy gasped.

"Isobella! She'd be perfect!" Quickly, he whistled loudly to get the lorry's attention. Isobella raised an eyebrow as she stopped just before the crossing.

"Isobella, how would you like to be a reindeer?" Percy asked. Isobella, rather perplexed, was about to reply when Percy continued.

"Mr. Tipper's van has broken down, so someone needs to take his Christmas mail for him! Toby and I can't do it all on our own, but with you on our team, we could deliver it in no time!" Percy's smile faltered when Isobella rolled her eyes.

"That's nice and all, but I'm a steam lorry, not the island's mail carrier. Besides, I'd miss the Christmas party Miss Jenny's throwing. I've gotten polished and everything!"

"We'll miss our party too, but that's worth it if we make everyone else's Christmas better! That's what Christmas is all about!" Isobella looked conflicted for a moment.

"I'm sorry, Percy, but Miss Jenny's said it'll be our best party yet, and we've been preparing it for months." Percy gasped as Isobella began to drive away.

"W-Wait, Isobella!"

"Let her go, Percy," cut in Toby firmly, "If she prefers partying over helping others, it's for the best she doesn't join us." Isobella overheard this and winced but kept her composure as she puffed away.

"But… what about the mail?" Percy fretted.

"We can deliver it on our own if we have to. We'll find a way. After all, we're reindeer," Toby replied encouragingly.

"Exactly! We'll make it through, Percy," added Henrietta. Percy gave a small smile as the crossing gates opened and Toby trundled away. When Toby and Henrietta were out of sight, though, a worried frown crossed Percy's face.

Isobella puffed along the lane, trying her best to forget her interaction with Percy.

"It's not like I'm the one wasting my whole night on a fool's errand," she muttered, "Just enjoy yourself today, Isobella. Christmas only comes once a year." She rolled through the yard entrance and stopped near the sheds, where Kelly the Crane was carefully lowering a star onto a large Christmas tree.

"Hello, Kelly! More decorations for you," Isobella called.

"Already? That's the fifth load today! You know, you'd make a good delivery lorry!" Kelly chuckled, but Isobella seemed uncomfortable at the remark.

"Yes, well, Miss Jenny wanted all these decorations. Someone around here has to pull their weight," she shot back, rather unconvincingly. Kelly raised an eyebrow.

"You don't sound like yourself, Isobella. Is something wrong?" Isobella winced, unsure of how to reply. Suddenly, there was a crash. The two looked over to see Max, covered in snow and surrounded by the remnants of an unfortunate snowman. Kelly sighed as he placed the star and lowered his crane arm before rolling towards Max.

"Max, stop destroying the snowman!" As Kelly scolded a still-laughing Max, Isobella sighed in relief and hurried away, her crates having been unloaded.

"That was a close one…" she murmured.

Day soon turned to dusk, and dusk soon turned to night. As everyone across the island began their Christmas Eve celebrations, two engines were noticeably absent. At Ffarquhar Sheds, Percy and Toby were preparing for their long operation.

"Alright, this is it!" Percy announced, "Mail vans?" Toby glanced at two sets of loaded mail vans behind him and Percy before speaking.

"Check."

"Snowploughs?" Toby looked down at his own and Percy's fronts, which were covered with their usual green and grey snowploughs.

"Check."

"Henrietta?" Toby was about to reply when Henrietta spoke first.

"Check!" she grinned from the back of Toby's train.

"We know our routes?"

"Henrietta and I will take this branch, the Little Western and the first few stations on the main line."

"And I'll take the rest." Percy took a deep breath.

"Right. Let's move out, reindeer!" Percy whistled and Toby rang his bell. Together, the two rolled out of the yard and towards the open line.

A light snow fell down on Percy and Toby as they made their way across the island with their precious loads. Their crews unloaded the mail bags onto the platform, and then the engines moved on to the next station. Henrietta raised an eyebrow as Toby pulled out of Toryeck.

"The stations are awfully dark," she remarked. Toby grunted.

"Stationmasters have all gone home for Christmas. Those bags will be sitting there gathering dust until someone bothers to take them on."

"Didn't mean to ruffle any feathers, Toby. Are you still upset about Isobella?"

"Of course I am. She could've helped, but simply chose not to. Now, these letters won't even make it to those that need them. She made Percy really upset too, which isn't particularly endearing."

"I know, Toby, but there's nothing we can do to help it. Let's just do the best we can do, alright?" she soothed. Toby sighed.

"Alright, Henrietta." The tram engine rang his bell, and he and Henrietta continued onwards up the branch line.

Isobella wasn't feeling happy either, as although the Christmas party was remaining strong, all she could think of was the mail, and the other machines were starting to take notice.

"What's wrong with Isobella?" Jack whispered to Alfie and Kelly, "She's been excited for Christmas for weeks."

"Something's on her mind, clearly," Kelly murmured, "It's a shame she won't tell me what." Alfie glanced at Miss Jenny, who was pacing in front of the sheds.

"I'm more worried about Miss Jenny. I've never seen her so nervous." Before Jack or Kelly could reply, they heard a high-pitched whistle in the distance. Alfie gasped.

"Is that Percy? What's he doing out here?"

"This is too many puzzles for one night…" Jack groaned. Miss Jenny stopped her pacing and her face lit up as Percy came to a halt at the yard station.

"Christmas mail is here!" he called cheerily. Miss Jenny ran up to him, leaving the machines rather confused. Isobella backed further into her shed, not wanting Percy to see her.

"Percy! What's all this?" Miss Jenny asked in astonishment, gesturing to the trail of mail vans behind the tank engine. Percy grinned.

"Toby and I are taking the mail around Sodor since Mr. Tipper can't!"

"And I believe this mail is for you, ma'am." Miss Jenny turned in surprise as Percy's driver, carrying a large mail bag, offered it to her.

"Well, I'll be! I was worried all the presents I'd gotten for my crew weren't coming!" Miss Jenny took the bag from the driver and looked to Percy.

"Thank you, Percy. You'd make a mother proud." Percy blushed.

"You're welcome, Miss Jenny! Merry Christmas!" His driver got back into the cab, and Percy rolled away. Miss Jenny turned and carried the bag to the sheds, where the machines and crew were waiting.

"Thank you all for being a part of the Pack; it is all of you that keep us building…" As Miss Jenny made a speech to her crew, Isobella, who had overheard her and Percy, felt the weight on her tipper increase drastically. She glanced between the yard entrance and Miss Jenny, who was handing out gifts from the bag to her crew. She rolled out of her shed and alongside Kelly.

"...Kelly? Can I go?" she whispered. Kelly was caught off guard.

"W-Well, I mean, you don't need my permission, but why?" Kelly was further startled by Isobella's determined expression.

"I need to be a reindeer." Without another word, she quietly rolled out of the yard and into the night. Kelly watched her leave, utterly dumbfounded.

"...a what?"

The wind buffeted against Isobella as she drove into Crosby station, where a pile of bags sat on the platform.

"Are you sure you're up for this, Isobella?" her operator asked, "This looks like it'll be a long job, and you are vintage-"

"If Percy and Toby can do it, so can I," Isobella cut in bluntly. Her operator nodded and set to work loading the bags onto Isobella's tipper. Once the bags were tied down, Isobella honked her horn and set off into the town. Just as she left the station, Toby entered the station throat, trundling home with Henrietta in tow. Toby yawned as he drew to a halt at Crosby next to the water tower. As his tanks were being refilled, Toby's eyes drifted to the station platform. He blinked, astonished at what he saw.

"H-Henrietta?"

"Yes, Toby? What is it?"

"There were mail bags on the platform over there just where we left them, but they're… they're gone! What happened to them?" Henrietta thought for a moment, trying to think of an explanation. Then, in the distance, she could see a yellow steam lorry, rolling through town and stopping at each cottage. Henrietta couldn't help but chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Toby asked, annoyed, "I'm telling the truth!"

"Oh, I know, Toby, I know. Must simply be a Christmas miracle." Toby raised an eyebrow but didn't comment as he continued to wait for his tanks to fill.

"This isn't so hard, once you get used to stopping and starting," Isobella remarked as she stopped at another cottage. Her operator shot her an unimpressed look.

"Probably because you're not the one sorting through the mail." Isobella smiled sheepishly as the operator shuffled through one of the bags before pulling out a letter. She quickly scanned the letter to make sure it was the correct address and slid it into the cottage's letter box. This routine carried on throughout the night, as Isobella drove from town to town, bringing mail that Percy and Toby had brought to each individual. It was repetitive, but Isobella refused to stop until every person had their Christmas mail.

By the time she had delivered each and every piece of mail, the sun was beginning to rise, signifying the arrival of Christmas Day. Isobella was utterly exhausted and could barely keep her eyes open as she rolled along the lane through Ffarquhar.

"Almost home… Almost…" She trailed off, starting to snore as she came to a stop beside the engine shed. As Isobella fell asleep, Percy and Toby were just waking up. Percy grinned giddily as his eyes fluttered open to the sunshine outside.

"IT'S CHR-"

"Ssh!" Percy stopped and frowned at Toby, who had hastily shushed him.

"What?"

"Look," Toby whispered. Percy did so and gasped at the asleep Isobella beside the shed.

"Isobella? What is she doing here?" To Percy and Toby's surprise, Henrietta began to giggle.

"She had been helping us all night! I saw her at Crosby; poor dear must've exhausted herself, racing about like she did." Percy's giddy grin returned.

"She did become a reindeer after all!"

"Yes, she… did," Toby wasn't sure what to say, which Henrietta quickly picked up on.

"Perhaps you shouldn't have been so hard on her, eh, Toby?" she smirked. Toby cleared his throat.

"Well, I wouldn't- Percy?" Toby cut himself off as he noticed Percy rolling out of the shed, towards a tree that stood a short distance from the line. Percy's driver snapped two twigs from the tree, and the little engine quickly reversed back to his berth. Toby was still confused.

"Percy, what are you doing?"

"Does anyone have any glue?" Percy asked suddenly.

Isobella yawned, stirring awake as the midday sunshine beamed down on her. Suddenly, she could hear snickering from beside her. Her eyes fully opened and gasped in horror as Percy, Toby and Henrietta were in the shed, giving innocent expressions. Isobella spluttered.

"P-Percy? T-Toby? What am I doing here?"

"You fell asleep last night, dear. Quite odd; did you do some heavy work last night of some sort?" Henrietta asked, stifling a laugh. Isobella's face turned red.

"W-Well, I, um…"

"You're a reindeer, Isobella, just like I knew you would be!" Percy burst out gleefully, "And I can prove it!" Percy's driver walked over to Isobella, carrying a mirror. They held it up to her face, and what she saw only made her even redder. She had two twigs sticking out of each side of her cab that looked like antlers. Isobella's operator, who had also woken up, laughed so hard that she cried.

"Can't argue with that, can you?" grinned Toby.

"See? I told you. Thank you for being such a help, Isobella; together, we really did save Christmas after all!" added Percy.

"D-Don't thank me," Isobella stammered, "I was rude to you-"

"You more than made up for that," Toby cut in brightly.

"And you did as good a job as me!" Everyone looked to see Tom Tipper walking up to the sheds in a scarf and coat, grinning from ear to ear.

"All of you did," he went on, "I can't say just how grateful I am that you stepped in to make sure everyone got the mail they deserved. How can I ever thank you?"

"We don't need thanks, Mr. Tipper! It's just what reindeer do!" beamed Percy, "Isn't that right, Isobella?" Isobella chuckled sheepishly.

"Yes… yes it is." Everyone laughed, leaving Isobella to glance up at her "antlers" and smile.

Author's Note: Merry extremely late Christmas! I actually had this written before Christmas, but I wasn't sure whether or not to post it here. I was originally considering retiring from this website, but I don't think that'd be fair to the audience I've built up over the years so I'm here to stay, at least for now. This story, like Christmas on the Roads before this, was something I thought of on the fly and didn't really plan out. I don't think that hindered this too much, though, as I'm actually quite pleased with how this turned out. Technically, this is Tom Tipper's reintroduction in my AU, which I think is extremely fitting and something the official series should consider doing in the future. The other main standout is Isobella, who previously returned in Nature vs. Nurture but has appeared again in a much more major role. I like that I had the chance to flesh her out beyond Kelly's dynamic with her, which is a common theme in this story. I think I've nailed Percy, Toby and Henrietta in this as well; surprisingly, I've really enjoyed writing a more wholesome, cheeky Percy over the overworked, grumpy version I had originally intended on writing, but I'm not opposed to it. Happy new year, everyone; there are a lot of stories to be told!