High Stress Express

by AaronCottrell97

Gordon and Rebecca love pulling the Express, but one day they have so many passengers to attend to in just one day that it causes a lot of stress to build up between the two. Determined to push their way through this diificult day as perfectly as they can, they plan to make all their efforts worth it that night when they finally have the time for each other.

It had been a few days now since Gina left for Italy again after she had spent two entire weeks on Sodor with Percy and the other engines. After facing three weeks of absolutely crushed spirits over his most tragic accident and receiving such dedicated care and support from Beatrice and Emily, Percy could not have been rekindled to a better position than what Gina had given him over the entire course of her two weeks on Sodor. Now her time had come to an end. She was back in Italy with Stella, Giovanni, Tony and Ludwig, and would continue to bask in the glowing sense of satisfaction and accomplishment she and Percy had achieved together. Percy was indeed downhearted to return to Sudrian life without Gina, but he would eventually get over it with Emily's motherly support, having Thomas to work with and the rest of his friends too.

However, things were due to get exceptionally busy for Gordon and Rebecca again. As the Sudrian Industry and population made the progress that it did over the years, Gordon had been looking after more and more passengers alongside Rebecca, which was an adequate reason why the Fat Controller had brought her to Sodor in the first place, alongside Henry moving to Vicarstown per his own request. Rebecca and Gordon always adored pulling the express together, and with their perfectly imperfect stance of coming together as another engine couple, pulling the express only became better and better for both of them. But even in the midst of how much they enjoyed managing the express together, there was a certain overloaded schedule coming along for them soon. A schedule that would likely prove to be rather stressful for one or both of them. Stress which only a most rewarding get-together at the end of the day would make it all worth it in the end.

One evening, after another busy day for all the engines, Gordon and Rebecca were the last to return to Tidmouth Sheds with the rest of the engines. Rebecca turned around to her berth first, then Gordon soon followed, settling right beside with a smile and a wink. Rebecca smiled cutely and winked right back to him. They had both spent another busy day with the express, feeling rather harmonious as they always did together. The other engines were talking quietly amongst each other on how their day went, all except for Percy, who mostly kept quiet and to himself, thinking a little about Gina even now. Thomas sometimes looked to Percy and gave him a smile of assurance, whole Emily blew him a kiss or two so as to keep Percy smiling through the evening.

Then Thomas turned to the express engines. "Well, you two. Did your passengers all get on well with you?"

"They did indeed, Thomas," said Rebecca. "It was simply another day with the express, working happily with Gordon."

"Indeed, she was," said Gordon. "You know just how to manage all those passengers, Rebecca. There's no one else I would rather pull the express with than you."

Rebecca chortled adorably. "Hm-hm-hm! Thank you, Gordon. I don't think I could ever manage it better with any other engine but you, no matter how busy we may get. Not even when we all had to work so hard for the diesels."

"Well. Let's hope we don't have to manage something like that again," said Gordon. "The express is important...but it can be stressful at times. Especially with so many passengers to look after and oblige. But much of that stress is dissipated by you, Rebecca."

Rebecca blushed lightly. "Ohh...Gordon. Thank you. I've always found the express to be lovely fun. Especially with you."

"But of course," said Gordon. "I can only wonder what our day tomorrow will be like."

Then at that moment, the engines looked and saw the Fat Controller's car arrive at the sheds. When he came out, the engines noticed he was looking notably at Gordon and Rebecca, who looked to each other with a sense of wonder, then to the Fat Controller as he walked a little closer to the sheds. He seemed a little urgent, as if he had something to tell the engines. Or, rather two of them.

"Good evening, Gordon and Rebecca," said the Fat Controller. "I see you've both settled down for tonight, but I have some important news for both of you about tomorrow."

"Important? Of course, sir," said Gordon.

"What news could this be, sir?" Rebecca asked.

"I've checked the timetable for tomorrow, and I thought it only right to tell you now so that you're prepared. I've come to see that express is going to be most exceptionally busy tomorrow. There are many, many passengers to look after at many stations, almost all day."

Gordon and Rebecca looked to each other and suddenly began to feel a sense of uncertainty and concern. After a fairly regular day together, they began to wonder just how busy and demanding this schedule would really be.

"I see, sir," said Gordon. "Exceptionally busy..."

"Many, many passengers, you say?" said Rebecca. "Well...for how long?"

The Fat Controller thought for a moment, then looked right at both engines.

"Well, you two...I need you both to listen closely. Many passengers have requested to travel with both of you. More so than I usually recall, which is why I need you both to be diligent and fully prepared tomorrow for the first passengers arriving Knapford at 7:30 a.m. They must be dropped off at Wellsworth and Maron so they can go to work. You'll also be picking up passengers from those two stations to take onward to Kellsthorpe Road and Crovan's Gate. Then from those two stations, there are many more passengers that must go to Vicarstown. Some of them will be going to work, while Flying Scotsman will take the rest of them onward to London. After that, you are to return to Knapford and collect even more passengers around noon. Gordon, your passengers will go to Ulfstead Castle for a little tour of Sir Robert's Estate scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Rebecca, your passengers are going to Crovan's Gate for a little tour on the Skarloey Railway. Gordon, you will then have to collect the Ulfstead passengers again around around 4:00 p.m. and bring them back to Knapford at 5:00 p.m. Then both of you must go quickly to Vicarstown to collect the passengers again and bring them home from work, as well as the passengers from Crovan's Gate, along with the Skarloey tourists. Then bring them back to Maron and Wellsworth again, all the way back to Knapford. It will surely be 8:00 p.m. by the timetable's reckoning. It is a very long and very busy day for both of you."

Gordon and Rebecca had been listening the entire time, slowly but surely becoming more and more concerned by all the steps and requirements they had to meet tomorrow, and by the time the Fat Controller had explained everything, they both felt quite a heavy sense of pressure weigh down on their boilers as they slowly opened their mouths with surprise and a sense of worry. They could not recall having a schedule this detailed and this big for quite a long time. It immediately made them wonder if they really could manage such a busy and hefty day ahead. And the other engines wondered a little too.

"Goodness me," said Emily. "So much for both of you to do tomorrow!"

"Sounds like Percy and I may have to be ready early tomorrow with your coaches if there are that many passengers," said Thomas.

"It sounds almost like too much!" Percy exclaimed. "So many passengers! They'll keep you going forever!"

"Not even I could manage so many passengers at once!" James exclaimed.

"Bust my boiler, sir!" Gordon exclaimed. "This is certain to be hard, hard work, even for us! From the start of the day until when we could be done. That's almost thirteen hours of express duty!"

"Ohh! By my buffers! Thirteen hours!" Rebecca gasped. "Oh...dear, me! I knew we'd be at the express again tomorrow...but not like this! I do hope we can both manage."

"Even I must admit..." said Gordon. "As much as I adore this job, even Rebecca and I feel like we could have too many passengers every once in a while."

"Well, you two," said the Fat Controller. "As you both know, we're supposed to look after our passengers. And if everything I've just told you sounds like too much to remember all at once, you needn't worry. I'll make sure both your drivers each have a timetable of their own, so they'll know when and where you'll have to stop next. Just take it one stop at a time, and you'll be finished before you know it. But whatever happens, the express can't wait and you mustn't be late. And rushing to get it done won't help either, as we can't have confusion without delay. So...can you both pull your weight together tomorrow?"

Gordon and Rebecca looked to each other with strongly beating hearts. As uncertain and slightly uncomfortable as they both felt over the speculation stirring in their boilers, they knew that really useful engines do everything that they're told. So Gordon and Rebecca would indeed do so together. They looked to the Fat Controller again and both gave a nod.

"Very good," he smiled. "Now get all the rest you can. You'll need every wink there is tonight."

And the Fat Controller left for the night. Gordon and Rebecca watched him leave, then silence fell over the sheds. Both express engines felt completely different now. What had begun as a quiet, simple evening talking with the other engines had now changed to a speculative and almost discouraging precursor to everything they would probably feel the next day. In the moments that followed, small uncomfortable stirrings began to jump in Gordon and Rebecca's boilers. To be that busy for that amount of time didn't happen often, even for Gordon. The only other time he and Rebecca could recall being as busy as this was when the Diesels were trapped in the Dieselworks Sheds and all the Steam Team had to pull double-duty and overtime until the diesels were eventually freed from the Dieselworks with the new door system.

"Oh, the Uncertainty," Gordon finally stated, knowing this wasn't as indignant as it was uncertain.

"Oh, the Uncertainty is right, Gordon," Rebecca replied with an uneven voice. "I...I just don't know. Just thinking about it overwhelms me."

"It all sounds quite overloaded. But don't worry, Gordon," said Thomas. "Rebecca is bound to keep you going. Won't you, Rebecca?"

"I...I suppose so, Thomas," Rebecca said, unsure of herself. "So long as we can manage."

"I do hope you don't get too tired out there, Rebecca," said Percy. "Your passengers wouldn't want you falling asleep on the line like Caitlin did at Vicarstown Bridge."

"Oh...oh, dear. I'll certainly try, Percy," Rebecca sighed. "We both will."

"For the sake of the passengers, and you, Rebecca," said Gordon. "We're not letting that schedule stop us."

"It sounds like an awful lot to take in, but as I told Percy last winter, as long as you're both careful, you'll be absolutely fine," said Emily.

"And the Fat Controller is right," said Thomas. "You should both get all the rest you can tonight. Tomorrow, it all begins. Goodnight, now."

All the engines bade goodnight to each other, although Gordon and Rebecca didn't feel the most chipper. Then one by one, the other engines fell asleep. But Gordon couldn't fall asleep as easily as the other engines. He still wondered how he and Rebecca would get through the day tomorrow as he gazed at the stars, thinking deeper and deeper about everything the Fat Controller had said. As much as he loved pulling the express, he also knew that passengers could be urgent, but with a workload this big, he and Rebecca would have to be as precise to the timetable as they possibly could.

But even now, Gordon felt as though he couldn't remember every single piece of the schedule they had just been given, and it made him anxious. Rebecca found herself not able to remember every little piece of information down to perfection either. Even though their drivers would be able to guide them along, not knowing everything about the next day suddenly made them start to feel a sense of stress. They began to think over what stations they had to stop at, and when. Would they be too early, too late or right on time? Would this happen at every station, and how would they feel in the end? There were so many questions left unanswered.

When Gordon looked to Rebecca, he could see she was gazing deeply to the stars too. She also had a look of concern and building stress on her face, which made Gordon feel even more downhearted. He hated seeing her lovely smile have to ebb away into a look of discomfort and stress. But even in this midst of thought and minor conflict over what to do and how to do it, Gordon felt even now that there could be a little ray of hope. In the hopes of finding and giving even little sense of assurance, he decided he had to make a little approach.

"Rebecca...are you alright?" he asked, already feeling that he knew the answer too easily.

Rebecca looked to Gordon and maintained her uncertain expression. She could see the uncertainty and little flickers of stress in his expression too. Somehow, this made her feel a little better as she knew she wasn't alone. They were in this together.

"Gordon...please come here," she whispered. "I'd like us to talk face to face...truly."

Gordon immediately obliged and turned around quietly on the turntable. Then he slowly came up to Rebecca and buffered up with a deep sigh. Rebecca looked at him for a moment then sighed herself.

"Thank you, Gordon," she answered quietly. "Oh, dear. I really don't know how or what to feel. It's all so much to think about...and just to get through it all. It's not often you and I are this busy. Not since we all had to work doubly hard for the diesels."

"I feel just the same," Gordon replied. "I'm just as worried as you surely are, Rebecca. The express is my favourite job on Sodor, and looking after my passengers has always been my signature duty and obligation...but thirteen hours, and so many passengers to pick up, drop off and take to so many places...it's not like I can't do it...but the pressure of pleasing so many, and keeping right on time...I strongly and potently believe in perfection for our passengers, Rebecca."

Rebecca sighed deeply as she looked deeper into her big blue engine's eyes. She knew this to be true ever since she had first come to know about Gordon. She knew that pleasing her passengers was of utmost importance and that any mistake, confusion or delay most often resulted in unhappy passengers, and displeased complaints to the Fat Controller about his railway.

"I strongly believe in pleasing our passengers too, Gordon," Rebecca replied. "But perfection can't be achieved all the time every day...which is what worries me about tomorrow. If there's any time we have to work to as much perfection as possible, it's tomorrow. But as much as I love pulling the express myself...especially doing so with you, this does seem like an unexpectedly long day to manage for both of us. I might be feeling exhausted by noon tomorrow, with eight more hours still ahead of us. It makes me tired just thinking about it."

"Me too, Rebecca," said Gordon. "We may feel tired early in the day, but that doesn't stop either of us from adhering to our duties. Not even when we were all overworked and underslept."

"I know, Gordon," said Rebecca. "In fact, the more I think about it, it may be because we've had such a good day with our passengers today, only for all of this to be put upon our schedule tonight. Perhaps we just need to let tomorrow run its course."

Gordon found that he fully agreed with Rebecca. Perhaps it was just the shock and uncertainty waiting to calm down and slowly become certain as the day would progress. But the uncertainty still made it feel like quite a mouthful to take in. Then in that moment, Gordon suddenly began to put a few more things together.

"Perhaps you're right, Rebecca. After all, the Fat Controller did say our drivers can guide us along, and just to take it one stop at a time. All I hope for is that we can please all our passengers. The last thing I want is to see you not able to cover all the work. Passengers have been displeased with me before, and you may have caused confusion without delay on your first time pulling the express, but I would never want to see the passengers getting cross at you."

"Thank you, Gordon," Rebecca sighed. "I wouldn't want them cross with you either. I don't know whether to think about something now or just let the day go by as it will for both of us."

"I don't think either choice will be easy, Rebecca," said Gordon. "But the best we can do is just concentrate on the given moment. Thinking too deeply about it might just make it seem more difficult than it really is. I certainly know that having you help me makes everything feel less difficult."

Rebecca managed to smile lightly with a little blush. "Hm-hm...thank you, Gordon. I certainly find things much less difficult when I work with you. But with something this big, it may be a little difficult even if we help each other."

And Rebecca gave another deep sigh as she and Gordon fell silent for a few moments. No way would be an easy way, and they would just have to do the very best they could. But in that moment, Rebecca suddenly felt a ray of hope in this midst of potential stress. A silver lining in the dark clouds which she and Gordon should have seen earlier, even when the Fat Controller came and handed them this most unexpectedly large schedule. Rebecca suddenly felt a rush of excitement jump to her heart as she thought a little more about what would probably happen...after this huge schedule would be taken care of.

Gordon suddenly looked up again when he heard Rebecca utter a deep, almost passionate sigh. He suddenly saw Rebecca smiling right at him. This managed to make him smile as all he ever wanted was for her to be happy alongside him for every day they worked together. He began to wonder if she had any plans or intentions for the day to come. Her smile was deep and almost inviting.

"Rebecca...what is it?" Gordon asked.

Rebecca batted her eyelashes to Gordon and suddenly buffered closer, touching her nose to his.

"Gordon, my dear," Rebecca said quietly, but surely. "I have an offer to make of you. Tomorrow might be rather stressful indeed with so many passengers for so many locations. But you and I both have the strength to get through it together. We've gone through very busy times before, and what matters most is simply moving forward...to our reward."

"Reward?" Gordon pondered. "And what reward would that be, Rebecca?"

Rebecca narrowed her eyes and pressed her lips to Gordon's cheek, kissing him steadily for several seconds. When she let go, she giggled and purred invitingly.

"Well, my Big G," she said smoothly. "I'll work as hard as I can...but so will you. And depending on how well we do tomorrow...there is some most delightful quality time in it for yours truly...if you impress me enough."

Gordon suddenly got a little glimmer in his eyes. "Impress you, my love? How do you mean?"

Rebecca narrowed her eyes so much, her pointy eyelashes seem even pointier as she leaned in and kissed Gordon on the lips.

"You shall find out tomorrow in good time," she purred softly. "If you can impress the Fat Controller with all your efforts...and impress me too, I promise you. You will not be disappointed in the very least, my Big G. With major, stressful jobs, there can be most delightful and treasured rewards which you and I know that only we can give to each other. What do you think, Big G? Will you impress our passengers...and me?"

Gordon still felt the precursor of stress which he and Rebecca inevitably knew would come the next day, but hearing what she had just said made him suddenly feel a little stronger, more determined, and even a little...charged. He gave a little narrow look in turn and kissed her lips right back.

"You're absolutely right, Rebecca," he whispered. "In fact...I'm very sure I would have made you just the same offer...and I stand by my own offer now. Whatever efforts we succeed in together, I assure you, any rewards I may conjure up for you will please you unlike any other engine could ever hope to please you. You're my Golden Queen, and you most certainly deserve to be treated like a queen. MY queen."

Rebecca blushed a light red and kissed Gordon's cheek to this. Gordon then returned to the turntable and turned around, back to his berth, keeping his eyes right on Rebecca with a smooth smile of his own. Rebecca gave a single wink of approval.

"Well, Gordon. You certainly know how to impress your queen, even in the little moments like this. I know with no doubt that the rewards will be immense and truly worth it. For you and I."

Gordon looked at Rebecca and suddenly felt less stressed and more excited for whatever would lie ahead at the end of tomorrow. He always welcomed the sense of victory and accomplishment whenever he finished an express run before, with or without Rebecca. But with the plans they were slowly putting together now, only time would tell just how it would all turn out.

"Thank you, Rebecca," Gordon finally replied. "As long as we get through this together...we will not let any stress hinder us from doing the duty that our passengers ask of us."

"And you're most welcome beyond all else to my help and love, Gordon. Now we have a big day tomorrow, and we need all the sleep we can get tonight if we are to get through it all. Goodnight, my love. Ahh..."

And Rebecca fell fast asleep with a deep, blissful sigh, enjoying every moment of sleep she would feel tonight until the big day would start. Gordon watched her sink deeper into her sleep for a few moments, watching as she stood very still and peaceful in her berth. This was enough to make him feel enough calm and sound mind to find sleep himself.

"Goodnight, Rebecca," Gordon replied. "We will get through this, my Golden Queen."

And Gordon fell asleep right beside Rebecca, appreciating every moment of sleep he could feel too, until morning would come again. Neither of them knew for sure just how demanding the next day would be. Whether it turned out fairly busy or even rather stressful in some aspects, both engines also felt a sense of assurance that they would be there for the other whenever they could be, until it would eventually be all over. All they could do was look ahead. Not back. The two express engines would need all the sleep they could get. No matter how much their plans of reward had helped them tonight, as with everything, this high-stress express would be easier said than done.

At last, morning started to arrive with a pinkish red sunrise peaking over the hills. Gordon felt the sense of morning and slowly woke up. He looked around and saw the sun starting to rise. Immediately, he began to think about all the potential pressure and stress that would be ahead of himself and Rebecca within the hour. It made him nervous to think of how hard he'd be working and how hard Rebecca would be working too. As the sun rose over the hills, he took a deep breath and sighed with determination and ambition. However hard this day would probably turn out, he and Rebecca would have to get through it together. Then with the little offer of rewards that she made to him, he suddenly felt a rush of excitement and managed to smile.

This made Gordon turn his eyes to Rebecca, just in time to see her eyes start to flicker open. She then gave a deep, long yawn before she started to feel everything flowing right into her boiler. She began to feel the sense of pressure starting to creep to her smokebox. She seemed a little nervous too. She knew she and Gordon had a huge and potentially demanding day ahead of them, and they would have get through it together one way or another. It made Rebecca feel dizzy just to even start thinking about it. She looked and saw that her express partner was awake and looking right at her.

"Well. Good morning, Rebecca," said Gordon. "This is it. This may be a high-stress express today. Are you nervous?"

"Good morning, Gordon," she replied. "Yes...I do feel a little nervous. It's going to be a huge day for both of us...but we're getting through it."

Then the other engines started to wake up. Thomas, Percy and Emily came out of their berths and looked to the two express engines.

"Good morning, you two," said Emily. "Are you feeling alright enough for your big day?"

"We don't know, Emily," said Rebecca. "We're doing what we're told, but it just seems so huge to think about."

"Well, I just want to say I wish the best of luck to both of you today," said Emily.

"Indeed, Rebecca," said Thomas. "It's your big day today with Gordon. Perhaps Percy and I should get on our way to arrange your coaches, then."

"Indeed, Thomas," said Gordon. "Be sure that Rebecca and I have enough for all the passengers today. They'll be depending on both of us."

"It's too bad Gina wasn't still here," Percy sighed. "She'd shunt your coaches about so quickly and precisely, just like she and Thomas did together in Italy."

"She shunts exceptionally indeed, Percy," said Rebecca. "But you and Thomas can still work together to help us get started."

Thomas and Percy whistled back and both set off down the line for Knapford. Emily, James and Nia were soon on their way too for their own day's work. Gordon and Rebecca watched them all leave, and soon enough, they saw their drivers and firemen arrive at the sheds.

"Good morning, Gordon and Rebecca," said Gordon's driver. "I hope you've both had a good night's sleep...because Sir Topham Hatt called us this morning to remind us of the big day ahead of us."

"Too right he did," said Rebecca's driver. "He's bound to be at Knapford by now, waiting to give us the timetable. It's almost 7:00 a.m. now. And that means it's time for thirteen hours of endless express and passenger duty for both of you."

Gordon and Rebecca looked to each other again and suddenly felt their hearts begin to jump. They had been wondering how everything would turn out even before this day had come. Now that it was here, they would soon be on their way to start a most demanding day for them both. As their crews started their fires and got them ready, the two express engines began to feel the sense of hard work and potential stress building more and more. It made them both start thinking about what they wanted to do, but how they couldn't do it so easily. They wanted to get it done fast so as to be finished earlier, but that would lead to confusion without delay, and their passengers would end up missing a few trips. They couldn't take it easy either as that would lead to confusion and delay, which would land them in even more trouble with their passengers and the Fat Controller. The sense of uncertainty and stress began to build again in both of them.

"Oh, dear," Gordon sighed. "This might turn out to be more of a high-stress express than we thought, Rebecca. I can't push the thoughts out of my head. We can't hurry, or the passengers will miss a few trips. We can't go slow, or they'll end up late. I still can't feel entirely clear about today."

"Me neither, Gordon. I...I can't help but worry," Rebecca said anxiously. "What...what if this doesn't work out? What if we make a mistake and end up too early or too late?"

"Well, Rebecca, I know you're worried," said Gordon. "I'm worried too, but we can't let that worry control us now. We'll take it one stop at a time, just as the Fat Controller told us to do. I know we can get through today. It's just a matter of what happens and how we manage it. Remember as you told me. If we impress our passengers, and each other, the rewards shall be immense."

To this, Rebecca managed to smile for a moment. Then she suddenly seemed solid and serious. Gordon wondered what she could be thinking now.

"Thank you, Gordon," she answered surely. "I know those rewards will be truly special...but now when I think about it...I don't want to think too much about those rewards."

"Why not, Rebecca?" Gordon asked.

"Well...you and I are perfectly imperfect," said Rebecca. "We've always enjoyed the express together, but with today's immense schedule, I believe we can't let our temptations overtake us. Thomas and Emily learned about 'work before play,' just as James and Molly came to know that too, as well as all the engine couples. Perhaps we should focus solely on our duty all throughout today...then when it's all over...then we shall focus entirely on rewarding each other."

Gordon didn't know how to give a clear answer to this as he already felt his sense of duty and obligation gripping to his boiler with an ironclad grasp. It was a powerful and slightly unsettling feeling to be faced with, but just having Rebecca alongside him for most of the day would make it manageable enough. He finally gave a single nod to his Golden Queen.

"Very well, Rebecca," he decided to say. "It won't be easy as pie, but we will dedicate the next thirteen hours to our passengers only. Then we shall do what we please. Just you and I."

To this, Rebecca took a deep breath and sighed as she could feel her senses and determination all starting to work away in her smokebox. She looked to Gordon again, and gave a serious nod of agreement. At that moment, she and Gordon felt their fires well and truly lit. Then they could feel their steam travelling to their cylinders as their drivers opened their regulators. The time had now come.

"Time to go, Gordon. It all starts now," said Rebecca.

"So be it. Here we go," said Gordon.

And with their minds getting fuller and fuller by the moment, the two express engines made their way out of the sheds, ready to take on the big day ahead.

Gordon and Rebecca made their way to Knapford Station just as the clock struck 7:00 a.m. in the morning. With every chime they heard in the clock, they felt their hearts beat right along with it. They knew their big, big day had now begun. They stopped at Platforms 1 and 2 and looked about. Just ahead of the station, they saw two lines of six express coaches standing beside each other. Then those coaches started moving along the line. Gordon and Rebecca looked to the back of those coaches and saw Thomas and Percy gathering the coaches together. They brought the coaches through the station, then eventually came back five minutes later, shunting the coaches right behind the two express engines.

With such a heavy schedule ahead of the two express engines, Rebecca didn't feel too chipper about pulling the express now. She felt it would be less fun and more stressful as she thought ahead to the hours that would follow. And Gordon didn't feel the most pleasant or thankful, even for the two tank engines fetching his coaches. As he thought endlessly about sticking precisely to the timetable and not wanting to make any mistakes, he felt a little impatient as he heard Thomas and Percy whistle behind him and Rebecca.

"Hurry up, you!" said Gordon, looking back to Thomas' direction.

"Hurry yourself!" replied Thomas.

"Exactly, Gordon!" Percy put in. "Gina's been gone for a few days now, and I'm not in the most chipper mood myself!"

"Maybe so, Percy. But Rebecca and I have many passengers to look after today!" Gordon insisted. "We can't keep them waiting a moment too late!"

"Or too soon," said Rebecca. "We can't be too early either, Gordon."

"Yes, yes! I know all that," grunted Gordon, already feeling a trifle irritated as he contemplated the stress ahead of himself and Rebecca.

Thomas and Percy sighed to themselves and buffered the coaches to Gordon and Rebecca, then their drivers got out and coupled them on. Thomas and Percy then set off for their own day, just as the Fat Controller came out of his office and saw the two express engines had arrived. Gordon and Rebecca looked up with a sense of alert and kept very still.

"Good morning, sir," they said together.

"Good morning to you both, and very good of you to be on time," said the Fat Controller.

"Yes, sir," said Gordon. "Although, neither Rebecca nor I feel the absolute best. We've wondered all night as we slept...all about today."

"Gordon is right, sir," said Rebecca. "We've wondered what it may be like, and now that the day is starting...we don't know what to feel."

"Well, as I told you last night," said the Fat Controller. "Just stick to the timetable, and you'll both do nicely. I know I'll be very proud of both of you when you return tonight. Now, I have copies of your timetable right here for your drivers."

To this, Gordon and Rebecca's drivers came to the Fat Controller and gathered the timetables for themselves, reading them carefully.

"Alright, then," said Gordon's driver. "It seems that from here to Wellsworth, Maron, Kellsthorpe Road, Crovan's Gate then Vicarstown, you and Rebecca will be working together, Gordon. Then we must return here by noon to collect your passengers for Ulfstead Castle at 1:00 p.m. then pick them up for 4:00 p.m. and bring them back here."

"And you, Rebecca shall bring your noon passengers to Crovan's Gate," said her driver. "Then you and Gordon must meet up again at 5:00 p.m."

"Then from 5:00 p.m. onwards, you're working together again," said Gordon's driver. "From Vicarstown, to Crovan's Gate, Kellsthorpe, Maron, Wellsworth, all the way back here, it may well be 8:00 p.m. by the time your day is through."

That confirmed it. Gordon and Rebecca had heard what their schedule was once again, and they now had their timetables on hand so as to keep on schedule. It sounded like a rather stressful day indeed as they thought about all the passengers and thinking about pleasing them all and not missing a single one in case they went too fast or too slow for the timetable. They both swallowed hard and looked to the Fat Controller.

"Thank you, sir. We're both ready now," said Gordon.

"As ready as we'll ever be," Rebecca sighed. "This all about the strength of our will. We can't let getting tired get in the way of being really useful."

"That's exactly right, Rebecca," said the Fat Controller. "Now, your passengers should be arriving shortly. Good luck to both of you, and be sure to be on time and really reliable."

And the Fat Controller returned to his office. Gordon and Rebecca looked to each other again, feeling even more determination to be as good as they possibly could for their passengers, but the stress in their boilers kept lingering. Gordon suddenly turned his view to Rebecca as he began eyeing her graceful, beautiful form, trying to find even just a little comfort to ease his uncertainty by gazing at how beautiful she was. But within moments, Rebecca's voice spoke up, making him look away quickly.

"Gordon? What are you doing?" she asked.

Gordon tried not to blush as he knew he had been noticed. "Oh...Rebecca...I...I just feel so anxious and excited at the same time."

"Excited?" Rebecca asked. "Do you mean...excited because of me? I thought we agreed to not let temptation overtake us today."

Gordon tried not to blush. "Y...yes, Rebecca. I fully agree, but I simply can't help it in these given moments. You're such a lovely engine for me to be blessed with, that I feel that taking whatever chance I have now just might help me feel a little more prepared. I know we agreed to only think about our duties until they're done...but just until the passengers arrive...may I admire my queen?"

Rebecca thought for a moment, then decided that perhaps her Big G needed a little encouraging beauty. Perhaps she could take a little chance too.

"Well, perhaps we do need just a little encouragement," said Rebecca. "But only until the passengers arrive. So until then, why don't you take a lovely look at your queen, while I admire my Big G for some time?"

This made Gordon manage to smile. "Thank you, Rebecca. I promise we'll get through this."

"So do I, Gordon," Rebecca whispered.

So Gordon took a brief, but close look at Rebecca's yellow form, eyeing her square shape, her intriguing wheels and her lovely face. Steadily, he felt the building stress begin to ease off just a little. Rebecca gave Gordon a close look in turn as she looked closely at his blue paintwork, his silver side rods and his dignified expression. She could see little creases of nervousness underneath with the brooding schedule, but when she gave him a little smile, he managed to smile back as they remained silent for a little while more.

But then, Gordon and Rebecca's eyes looked to the clock and saw that it read 7:15 a.m. Then they suddenly heard a great series of chattering coming from beyond the station. They looked up together, and there they were. All the passengers slowly began to pour into the station and lined up at the ticket window. Gordon and Rebecca lost their sense of heartfelt admiration toward each other and felt their hearts begin to race again. They could see how many passengers there were and they began to feel that perhaps the day would be even harder than they had expected this morning. As the passengers gathered their tickets and started boarding the coaches, Gordon and Rebecca kept looking to the station's entrance and could see more and more passengers arriving.

"Oh, dear," Gordon thought. "I don't recall seeing this many passengers for quite a while."

"So, so many of them," Rebecca thought to herself. "We can't make any mistakes at all!"

With the big crowds of passengers that had just arrived at the station, Gordon and Rebecca felt even more nervous over holding to their schedule down to absolute precision. Today, there were so very many passengers who were depending on these two engines, expecting a comfortable journey and expecting to be right on time wherever they went, as would all the other passengers at the other stations throughout the day.

About ten minutes later, all the passengers had boarded Gordon and Rebecca's coaches. All the express doors shut, and the guard was waiting for the right moment to blow his whistle. It was now 7:25 a.m. only five minutes left before they'd have to get going and start their heavy, very busy and high-stress express. Gordon and Rebecca looked to each other and could both feel just how nervous and stressed the other was starting to feel underneath.

"G-Gordon..." Rebecca said after a few moments, making Gordon look up. "I...well...thanks."

"Thanks? For what, Rebecca?" Gordon asked.

"For...just for being here with me," said Rebecca. "...I guess I'm trying to look for silver linings in the cloud over us right now."

"Hmm. There is indeed a cloud over us until 8:00 tonight, Rebecca. And what silver linings do you think there are?" Gordon asked.

"Well..." said Rebecca. "As stressful as this may turn out to be...at least we'll be doing it together. I know already that if I had to be doing all of this work myself, I would never manage. And neither would you if you had to manage it all yourself. Perhaps times like this are one of the reasons the Fat Controller decided to bring me here to Sodor...and to you, Big G."

Gordon suddenly felt a little more confident to hear this. Rebecca was right. This would surely be a stressful day for them and the express, trying to hold precisely to their timetable all day, but with two engines, it was certainly doable, even if it wouldn't be the easiest job to do.

"Oh, Rebecca," Gordon managed to smile again. "That is indeed very true. As much as I love the express, even I could never manage this many passengers all alone. I'd probably burst a safety valve from doing all this work alone. And perhaps you're right. Maybe times like this are what make us more meant to pull the express together...which in effect brought us together as such precious figures for each other. I love you, Rebecca."

"I love you too, Gordon," said Rebecca. "But as I said already. Just don't get in too deep eyeing me throughout today. For the sake of our passengers, and for our rewards later tonight, I hope to resist pandering to you until this entire day is done."

"Avoid pandering to me. Is that so?" Gordon observed. "Well. If that be the case, since the Fat Controller has put us in charge of so many passengers, and seeing how you've decided not to think of our future rewards until the day is out, I might be steaming up some resistance of my own so as not to pander to you and get us delayed. Until the day is out, we are NOT pandering to each other's infatuations for even a single moment. We won't so much as rest, kiss or let off steam together without our timetable saying so!"

"Well, you'd best hold to that intention, Gordon. For as long as our passengers need us!" Rebecca replied with a superior smile.

"Oh, you can be sure of THAT, my Golden Queen," Gordon winked. "You can be sure of that."

As soon as Gordon's sentence was done, the clock gave another little chime. Gordon and Rebecca's hearts jumped as they looked up. 7:30 a.m. right on the mark. Then just a moment later, the guard leaned out of the brake coach and blew his whistle, waving the green flag.

Gordon and Rebecca both whistled strong and determined and both began to move. Gordon tried to set off at the speed he usually would, but with six coaches filled with many passengers already, he found it to be heavier than usual. Rebecca had to make some fair effort to get started too. She could feel quite a weight on her tender coupling as she and Gordon started off at a steady pace at first, then they slowly went faster and faster.

"Express Coming Through!" they whistled together and set off down the line.

Now the thirteen-hour window of express duties had well and truly begun. Gordon and Rebecca were now focused on nothing else but sticking to the timetable and just being really useful, no matter how tired they would probably get. They could feel the desire to hold to the timetable gripping to their boilers harder and harder as their wheels pounded the rails at a significant speed. Then Rebecca saw Gordon start to go even faster. It seemed that his desire to be on time was becoming a little too hasty, which could potentially lead to confusion without delay. Luckily, Gordon's driver eased him off.

"Steady, Gordon," he said. "We aren't running a race."

"We are then," said Gordon. But he said it to himself.

"He's right, Gordon," said Rebecca. "We can't bump and bounce our passengers too much. We can't arrive too early. Otherwise, we'd cause confusion without delay again, and today is the absolute wrong time to cause any confusion at all. We mustn't be late, nor early."

"She's right, Gordon," said his driver. "Wellsworth isn't too far off, and it's only our first stop. There's plenty of time."

"Sorry," said Gordon. "Perhaps I'm feeling too prepared too soon. Perhaps there's no need to worry...at least not yet."

"I agree, Gordon," said Rebecca. "For now, let's just think about getting to Wellsworth first...and about these heavy coaches!"

"Indeed, Rebecca," said Gordon. "It's indeed harder work than usual."

"We can do this, Gordon," said Rebecca. "Onwards and forwards."

And so they did. Gordon and Rebecca carried onwards and forwards across the line together. Their passengers were enjoying the start of their journey and they were making good time indeed. This made Gordon and Rebecca feel a little better as they huffed quickly, but smoothly along the line.

Soon, Gordon and Rebecca arrived at Wellsworth to let off their first round of passengers. So far, neither of them felt too pressured as they still felt the mood of a normal express run. They stopped at their platforms and let off all their passengers, who went right out through the station and on their way to work. But then, as the new passengers began boarding the coaches, Gordon suddenly remembered what would be coming next before he and Rebecca would get to Maron and shuddered deeply. Among the stresses he had been feeling, there was one little thing he had forgotten about, and with today's heavy load of passengers, it made him even more stressed out.

Rebecca looked up and saw him shutting his eyes rather tight and baring his teeth just a little. She immediately saw that she needed to find out what could be bothering him. In the little moments they could spare, she'd have to know.

"Gordon, what's wrong?" Rebecca asked.

"Oh...oh, dear!" Gordon groaned. "So much to think about, I forgot what's coming next, Rebecca."

"What, Gordon?" Rebecca asked. "It's just Maron Station next."

"Not quite, Rebecca. I can't believe I didn't see it before! Remember what stands right between us right now, Rebecca? My hill will surely slow us down. What if we get stuck there and end up needing Edward to push us up?"

Rebecca suddenly shuddered herself. She had not thought of this earlier either. Although she had managed the hill every time before, she felt her stress build even more in the passing moments. She shut her eyes and shook left and right in brooding concern. She began to feel the stress brooding even further, not just from their heavy schedule and keeping on time, but of what obstacles potentially lay ahead.

"Oh, dear...this has just become more difficult," she whimpered. "Why didn't I see it before, Gordon?"

"It's a high-stress express for us, Rebecca," said Gordon. "Perhaps we weren't thinking clearly. That's very hard to do when you're concerned and worried about so much, but so many passengers is exactly what we have to worry about today!"

Rebecca took a deep breath and gathered whatever courage she could feel and looked strongly to Gordon again.

"We're not letting that hill stop us today, Gordon," said Rebecca. "Not even with these heavy coaches."

"It's not just the coaches and how heavy they are, Rebecca," said Gordon. "I'm just so afraid that being so stressed will make us give up and not want to press on."

"Now calm down, Gordon," Rebecca urged. "We can't afford to start panicking. We're getting over that hill, no matter how much it takes from us."

And right at that moment, the guard blew his whistle again. In that instant, Rebecca got an idea.

"Quickly, Gordon!" she whistled. "A fast start should let us get up the hill easier."

And she started with a rush and sped down the line. Gordon whistled strongly and panted a little to catch up to her, held back a little by his heavy coaches. It wasn't long before he caught up with her and they carried on, still feeling the heavy weight of their coaches behind them. It was indeed harder work than usual and it made them feel like they'd be more tired than they expected whenever they'd reach Vicarstown. But right now, Gordon's Hill was the center of attention and stress as Gordon and Rebecca looked desperately to see the signal that came right before the hill.

Before they knew it, they came that signal and looked as closely as they could. To their initial relief, the signal showed clear. Gordon and Rebecca gave one look to each other, then went even faster, not caring how heavy their coaches were. But then as they came around the bend and saw Gordon's Hill, they looked upward to the very top, suddenly feeling their boilers jump with brooding stress and worry. Somehow, Gordon's Hill seemed higher and steeper than they thought it would be. It may have been their minds playing tricks on them, or rather the high-stress express playing tricks on them, but either way, neither Gordon nor Rebecca felt entirely safe. They looked back, thinking of their passengers, then looked back up the hill.

"Alright, Rebecca. Here it is," said Gordon. "Let's give my hill a good fight!"

"Now or never, Gordon!" Rebecca whistled urgently. "Keep going! Keep going!"

And with that, Gordon and Rebecca began to climb. But even at a fast speed, all those coaches were indeed quite a weight to manage. Gordon and Rebecca soon felt themselves pulling their trains harder and harder. Clouds of smoke and steam billowed from both express engines ad they struggled up the hill, both feeling the weight of their coaches pulling back very strongly. Gordon suddenly thought back to his earliest days when he first got stuck on this hill and how he said noisy trucks hold an engine back, and that it would have been different with coaches. He had gone over this hill countless times, but with all the coaches and passengers he had now, he was not so sure if that were entirely true. His coaches felt heavier and heavier by the moment, as did Rebecca's.

"Rgh...! Rebecca strained as she shut her eyes tight and bared her teeth with her efforts. "Come...on...Gordon!"

"Don't...stop...now, Rebecca!" Gordon strained as he shut his eyes tightly too.

"We can do it, Gordon!" Rebecca panted and struggled. "We can do it!"

"We WILL do it!" huffed Gordon.

Then suddenly, several passengers leaned out the express windows and started chanting their two engines onwards.

"Rebecca! Rebecca! Rebecca! Gordon! Gordon! Gordon!" They chanted from their own trains with each engine.

Gordon and Rebecca heard the chants and felt their intentions intensify as they climbed even harder. They were now about halfway up the hill. Gordon and Rebecca's wheels gripped the rails as tightly as they could. Their rods and pistons began to ache and strain against the climb and their heavy trains, and a few sparks leapt from their funnels, but they kept huffing upwards, foot by foot, yard by yard. Neither engine knew what was happening, but they felt as though their wheels were going gradually slower.

Gordon opened his eyes and saw Rebecca was just starting to fall behind and she strained terribly to keep going.

"Argh!" Gordon groaned. "Don't let the hill beat you, Rebecca! We've got to get over the hill now, or we'll be late!"

"I...know!" Rebecca heaved and groaned. "Hgh...Rgh...Ahh!" Come on, Gordon! We're almost there...almost...almo...RRRGH!"

Then with a final huff and wheesh of steam, Gordon and Rebecca felt the incline stop as they began to peak over the top. They could see all that was below and began to feel a great sense of victory to get over that hill. But no sooner had they gotten to the top, than they both started down the other side. First slowly, then faster and faster.

"Whoa! Careful, Gordon!" Rebecca wailed as she and Gordon glided down the other side.

"Steady now, Rebecca!" he whistled. "Hold tight!"

He and Rebecca started to apply their brakes so as not to go too fast, but with all those heavy coaches, they were being pushed along quite heavily and it took quite some effort to slow down once they got to the bottom of the hill. Before they knew it, Gordon and Rebecca found themselves huffing along the line again, both feeling rather spent and a little wearisome to negotiate that hill. Then what they heard next made them both smile heavily. They could hear the passengers cheering through the open windows, and this made Gordon and Rebecca feel a brief wave of assurance. At least they made their passengers happy through the journey so far.

"Well...well done, Rebecca," Gordon panted. "You're one tough lady to get past that hill with this heavy lot."

"Hm-hm...you're one tough Big G too," Rebecca panted as she gave a little whistle in response. "But my wheels are starting to tire...and it's not even noon yet."

"My wheels have taken a grinding too, Rebecca," said Gordon. "But our passengers come first until we're completely done. Onwards and forwards."

Within a few minutes, Gordon and Rebecca felt their strength start to return. Their wheels still felt a little worn, but they had to keep going. For the next fair while, they huffed onwards, trying not to think too deeply about making any mistakes until they reached Maron Station to let off and pick up more passengers. When they stopped at the platforms again, they saw a few passengers stop and look at both of them.

"Thank you, Gordon and Rebecca. Very comfortable journey and remarkable efforts," said a passenger.

"You're both so strong!" said another one. "We knew you could get us over that hill."

"Superb efforts, you two," said a third. "You should both be proud so far."

These were the first little comments from any of the passengers today for Gordon and Rebecca. To hear even little compliments like this made them both feel rather privileged. In the midst of this high-stress express, it seemed there were already little rewards being presented through gratitude and thanks.

"Well, Rebecca," said Gordon. "It looks like we're already earning a few little rewards...long before you and I might exchange ours."

"Yes, so it seems," said Rebecca. "Speaking of which, Gordon, I'll have you know right now, you impressed me by beating that hill with such a heavy train."

"Thank you, Rebecca," said Gordon. "And you impressed me just the same. I could see you struggling hard, but I couldn't be more proud of you to get over that hill with me. But there's still quite a long schedule ahead of us even now...and here come more passengers."

Gordon and Rebecca looked and saw more passengers starting to arrive after the others had gone. Gordon and Rebecca looked to each other, then among the passengers...until Gordon saw one in particular which made him start to feel the stress again.

"Oh, no...not another problem!" Gordon uttered quietly.

"What is it, Gordon?" Rebecca asked.

"Look," Gordon whispered.

They both looked and Rebecca saw just what Gordon meant. Among the other passengers was the Grumpy Passenger. The one Duncan had come to know in a rather negative light, and who the Thin Controller knew too well to be complaining about every little thing there could be. And indeed, when the Grumpy Passenger looked up to Gordon, he immediately found his own little excuse to gripe about.

"Hmph! Your carriages had better be clean and spotless!" he huffed grumpily. "Aren't you both supposed to be performing at utmost precision?! Next thing I know, you might end up late if you're both so overly busy today!"

Gordon heard what that man had just said, and he was in no hurry to let the Grumpy Passenger start complaining about every little thing. He let off a light hiss of steam and gave the Grumpy Passenger a slightly defensive look.

"The express is never late!" he huffed. "Nor is it early. It arrives precisely when it is meant to arrive. And Rebecca and I have quite enough to worry about already! We're looking after many other passengers besides you!"

"Indeed, sir," Rebecca added with a narrow look herself. "We can't be too early or too late. That way, there's no confusion or delay."

"Gordon and Rebecca are right, sir" Gordon's driver checked. "That should be enough for you. Now get onboard."

The Grumpy Passenger merely sighed and got on with the rest of the passengers as they got on and off from Gordon and Rebecca's coaches.

"Thank you, sir," Gordon said to his driver.

"No need to thank me, Gordon," said his driver. "You and Rebecca don't deserve any more stress than you may have already. You're both doing very well so far."

"Thank you, sir," said Rebecca. "But we still have quite a lot more to do before the day is out."

"Well, we do have to pick up and let off more passengers at Kellsthorpe and Crovan's Gate. Then it's off to Vicarstown. Then your morning round is done."

"Just the morning round?" Rebecca asked. "Oh, dear. I don't want to start thinking too deep about it, but I still feel a little tired after that hill."

"I may feel a little worn too, Rebecca. But we're getting through this," said Gordon. "You and I."

It wasn't long before Gordon and Rebecca heard the guard's whistle blow again, and they were both on their way again on their way to Kellsthorpe Road Station. This time, they didn't have as many worries about hills or keeping to the timetable, but they still carried a few more thoughts to express to each other as they day would keep progressing. They arrived at Kellsthorpe around 10:00 a.m. and let off more passengers. Among them, Gordon saw the Grumpy Passenger leave to, much to his inner relief. Then after the new passengers boarded their coaches, he and Rebecca set off again as she too began to feel a few new thoughts and concerns for how the day would turn out.

By the time they reached Crovan's Gate Station, it was now 10:30 a.m. They had been on the express run for three hours now, and so far it had been fairly manageable with some hefty challenges along the way. But there were still ten hours to go. As they stopped and waited for their passengers to be ready again, Gordon and Rebecca couldn't help but start feeling the stress build again...but not so much about keeping to the timetable. Something was different, and Gordon had been thinking to himself, as was Rebecca.

A few moments later, Gordon decided to talk with Rebecca to see what she would make of it.

"How are you so far, Rebecca?" he asked, looking curiously at her.

Rebecca looked up with a neutral look on her face.

"Mmm...alright, I guess," she replied. "We've been working for three hours now...with ten more to go. I don't know how we're going to feel by the time we get to Vicarstown. It's only one more station ahead, but my wheels are feeling a little more worn every few minutes with all these heavy coaches and all these passengers to think about and please along with you."

"It's getting tiresome for me too," said Gordon. "But you know, Rebecca. I've been thinking. I'm beginning to wonder if our stress is not just about trying to keep on time."

"What do you mean, Gordon?" Rebecca asked, slightly worried. "Are we late? Too early?"

"Not at all," said Gordon. "Trying to keep on time has been a stress and a challenge for both of us, particularly with negotiating my hill, and it almost could have been made worse by the Grumpy Passenger, which thankfully didn't turn into anything else. But I think my share of stress is also about how long we've been working...and how much more there is left to do...and it's making me worry if I'll give in to your beautiful form before we're through for today. I've been trying my best to hold t our duty...but just looking at you helps me feel even a little better about today."

Rebecca looked away and blushed. As much as she loved Gordon's infatuating words toward her, she knew they had more important things to do before anything romantic could happen. She looked back at Gordon and answered.

"Well, Gordon...I must admit, with ten more hours left to keep working this hard, I've been starting to wonder if I might give in too soon. You're such a handsome engine in my eyes, but with today's schedule, we can't afford to let infatuation get in the way. Looking at you does make me feel better even as I look at you right now, but today is a day of serious work for both of us. You and I are not going to be too early or too late with any of our passengers."

"I understand, Rebecca," said Gordon. "And now that we're almost to Vicarstown...I've been thinking a little more about something else I should have seen earlier. It's making me worry about yet something else."

"What is it, Gordon?" Rebecca asked.

"Once again, I've been so caught up in thinking about our huge schedule, that I didn't think about what Flying Scotsman might say if he notices us getting tired. We're stressed and worried enough as it is, and any of his little-brother talk would be most unwelcome today, when you and I have this many passengers to worry about...and I agree with you. It's not yet noon, and I'm starting to feel an edge already."

Rebecca shut her eyes and hummed to herself.

"I feel the same, Gordon. I'm starting to feel tired myself, but when it comes to your brother, I'm right here for you. If it makes you feel better for now, I'll make sure he doesn't add to any of our stresses today."

"Thank you, Rebecca," Gordon smiled lightly.

At that moment, the guards whistle blew and Gordon and Rebecca set off again. By now, their coaches felt very heavy indeed, and ther faces were starting to turn red from all the hard work. And they just began to feel the little flickers of getting tired starting to grow a little. This made them feel a little concerned as they thought that perhaps they'd be too tired to do much more by the time they returned to Knapford...with eight more hours ahead that would surely tire them even further. They both whistled loudly in an attempt to push those thoughts away, and they simply looked up, down, left and right to the rolling hills, trees and fields all round them. Doing this managed to ease the constitution a little, until they would arrive at the next station. Then Gordon would find out if his and Rebecca's stress would remain as it was, or grow even more.

By the time Gordon and Rebecca finally arrived at Vicarstown, it was just after 10:50 a.m. It had now been nearly four hours since they first arrived at Knapford. This would usually be a straightforward journey for them both, but with such heavy loads of passengers each, it felt more like six hours to them. As they had expected, they already felt considerably tired indeed. Carrying so many passengers was indeed heavier than they usually could recall. They looked ahead to the station and they could see a line of red express coaches, and beyond that, those two green tenders which only belonged to that certain engine. Gordon remembered how Flying Scotsman had come to consider his relationship with Rebecca most honourable, but he still felt prepared for any big brother banter Flying Scotsman would probably have ready to let out.

Gordon and Rebecca made their way to the platform together with a weary hiss of steam and both sighed deeply as the passengers all left their coaches. Some of them went through the station and on their way to work, and the rest started making their way to the other platform to wait for Flying Scotsman. Gordon and Rebecca breathed deeply together, trying to catch their breath from all they had done so far, but then they heard Flying Scotsman whistle and come along the platform to collect the passengers, stopping nearby the two express engines.

"Here he comes, Rebecca," Gordon whispered very lowly.

Rebecca just winked and almost yawned with tire as they looked up again. All the passengers were boarding Flying Scotsman's coaches, and he started to speak.

"Well, well. If it isn't the perfectly imperfect couple again, here on Sodor. Gordon and Rebecca. Working doubly, triply hard, so I hear?"

"Whew...oh..." Rebecca panted. "Yes, Flying Scotsman. It's just a little past noon, and I'm already starting to feel exhausted."

"Me too, Rebecca," said Gordon. "Oh, my aching wheels..."

"It's no wonder you're both so rugged by now," said Flying Scotsman. "I heard you'd both be coming here. And with twelve coaches altogether, with only two of those coaches' worth of passengers bustling about Vicarstown! Well, it's a good thing I carry two tenders to manage all the rest of this lot."

"And it's still not over for us," said Gordon. "I still have to manage more passengers to Ulfstead Castle then bring them back again...and this evening, Rebecca and I have to come back and recollect the passengers from here, and all the rest of the stations."

"And I have to take more passengers back to Crovan's Gate for a tour on the Skarloey Railway," Rebecca panted.

"Great Scott, you two!" Flying Scotsman exclaimed. "That is indeed quite a great deal to manage together. In that sense, you'd best be careful not to let your schedules slip. You wouldn't want the passengers to start thinking too much about travelling more with me now, would you. Eh, little brother?"

Stressed and tried as he was right now, Gordon did not take kindly to this in the least and let off steam indignantly. Flying Scotsman opened his mouth to speak again, when Rebecca stepped in.

"Now, now, Flying Scotsman," Rebecca put in. "We're both tired with a lot more ahead of us. A little more decorum would not hurt you."

"Very well, Rebecca," Flying Scotsman gave in. "Only teasing. Anyway, I'd best be going myself, and you two carry on together. Flying Scotsman coming through!"

And Flying Scotsman set off out of Vicarstown for the Mainland. Gordon and Rebecca watched him leave, then looked to each other. The two of them couldn't help but yawn, not out of sleepiness, but from the coming exhaustion both from all their efforts so far, and from thinking endlessly about what was still yet to come.

"Very well, Rebecca. So far, so good," said Gordon. "We've managed through the morning, but we're not even halfway done. It's 11:00 a.m. now, and that means nine more hours to be on passenger duty. Four hours of such heavy work, and see how we feel now?"

Rebecca felt just the same as Gordon, but by now, she was more determined to be really useful and get everything done.

"We are starting to tire, Gordon. Yes," said Rebecca. "My wheels may be wobbling a little now, but we have to keep going, Gordon. We can't keep our next line of passengers waiting."

Gordon suddenly remembered again about the offer Rebecca had made him.

"Well, Rebecca...since we have succeeded through the morning run, I'd just like to know...have I impressed you enough for now? Neither of us have exchanged any banter or overly infatuated nature...would you say I'm doing well enough at that?"

Rebecca thought to herself, then managed to smile.

"You know, Gordon...yes, you have," she replied. "These have been four very hard-working, tiring hours, and given how we've managed with little to no banter through it all, I think you have impressed me...but not enough. You still have to impress me throughout the afternoon...while we work separately for a while."

"What? But...how?" Gordon asked. "What do you mean, Rebecca?"

"Well, if you can bear through the stress throughout the rest of today...my rewards might be all the more impressive for you."

This made Gordon's sense of tiredness lift a little and he felt his heart jump. Then he formed a sleek smile.

"Well, then...if that's true...then I think it's only fair to say you've impressed me too so far, Rebecca. As I said earlier, you fought that hill with such effort and you made it right to the top with such a heavy load of passengers. And we've made them all happy so far today. I promise you, Rebecca. You may be starting to feel tired, but if you can press on through whatever today might throw at us, you will not be disappointed with any of the rewards I'll be preparing for you tonight."

Rebecca gasped slowly and blushed deeply. This made her feel less tired too. Now she began to feel less stressed about the nine hours ahead, and more encouraged by Gordon's words and promises to her in this moment.

"Well, Big G. We do have to return to Knapford...and for that, we need a turntable. Perhaps for all our efforts so far, I can give you just one little reward...for now."

"Oh? What's that, Rebecca?" Gordon asked.

"Just follow me," Rebecca winked.

Gordon followed Rebecca to a siding in the yards where they briefly left their coaches. Then Gordon followed Rebecca to the Vicarstown turntable. He watched as she turned right around...then backed up from the turntable. Gordon wondered what she had in mind.

"Come here, Big G," Rebecca said invitingly. "Come to your Golden Queen."

Gordon slowly but surely made his way onto the turntable and looked to Rebecca. Her eyes gleamed in the sunlight as she buffered up to him and touched her nose to his. Then a moment later, she leaned in and kissed his left cheek, holding her lips there for several seconds. Gordon felt a great rush of warmth leap to his heart. Somehow, Rebecca's lips felt exceptionally gentle and soft in these moments, most likely due to all the stress he had been feeling before and now much of that stress dissolved in an instant.

"Mmm...ah!" Rebecca chirped sweetly as she let go of Gordon's cheek.

Then she pressed her lips to his other cheek, kissing him just as steadily there. Gordon felt himself tense up, then let out a deep sigh as Rebecca kissed him, then let go with another happy smooch. He then gazed into her eyes and her gleaming smile.

"Well, Big G? What do you think?" Rebecca asked sweetly. "Will this little reward do you until tonight?"

"Rebecca...thank you," Gordon answered with shining dignity. "That's all I'll need until tonight...just you and I, wherever we may please."

"Ooh! I look forward to it all, Gordon," Rebecca gleamed. "Nine hours left before we're finished...but good things are worth waiting for. Ooh..."

"Especially with you, my Golden Queen," said Gordon. "Now. We have to get back to Knapford, Rebecca. To look after even more passengers."

"Indeed we do," said Rebecca. "Which means you'd better turn the right way around. I'll be right behind you."

With that, Rebecca moved away from the turntable, allowing Gordon to turn right around, then return to the siding to retrieve his coaches. Rebecca soon followed him and regathered her coaches too. Then they started making their way out of the yards and back along the Main Line.

"Well, Rebecca," said Gordon. "Since our coaches are empty for the time being...and much lighter too, do you think we could afford even a few minutes to take it easy?"

"Hmm...well...we do have a noon schedule to keep, Gordon," said Rebecca. "Do you think we could...race on it?"

Gordon may have been tired, but after Rebecca's little kissing reward, he decided to humour her.

"Race on it!" he whistled.

And with that, Gordon shot away down the line. Rebecca laughed merrily and raced after him, soon getting alongside him and flashing a playful smile to him. They were still carrying six coaches, but since they were both empty, they both found it much easier and lighter to huff along at a considerably faster pace. They had managed to get through their morning bustle well enough, and it was indeed heavy, hard work, but they both managed together.

Gordon and Rebecca were happy to have a faster run, but by the time they doubled back past Kellsthorpe Road, they began to feel tired again and slowed down a little. Their drivers reduced steam a little to ease them a little further.

"Steady now," they said to Gordon and Rebecca. "We shouldn't be too early."

"Maybe not," said Rebecca. "But we should at least be there in time for the passengers...and to tell the Fat Controller how we've been doing."

"And indeed we shall be," said Gordon's driver. "No need to worry there."

So Gordon and Rebecca huffed onwards, feeling a little wearier, but rather confident with all they had accomplished so far. But even now, they couldn't help but wonder what the rest of the day would bring. Would they still need all six coaches, or would their loads be lighter...or heavier? And which engine would take the light and heavy load, if there would be such a thing? These thoughts occupied their minds as they huffed onwards and forwards to hopefully find a chance to rest even briefly, then carry on through the day.

By the time Gordon and Rebecca returned to Knapford again, they were both plenty tired. They looked at the station clock and could see it was 11:40 a.m. Twenty minutes before noon. Almost five hours of express duty had gone by at this point. Gordon and Rebecca left their six coaches in two separate sidings then came to a hefty stop at Platforms 1 and 2, both feeling considerably relieved compared to how they had started out.

"Well...here we are again, Rebecca," Gordon sighed deeply. "I'm most proud of you this morning."

"Thank you dearly, Gordon," Rebecca smiled. "We may have gotten here early, but the passengers haven't arrived yet...lucky for us not to cause confusion without delay."

"Indeed," Gordon replied.

At that moment, the Fat Controller came out of his office, looking considerably proud as he looked to the two express engines, tired but so far, triumphant.

"A fine piece of work, you two," he said. "I've been hearing from all the stations so far that your passengers are quite happy...even after you had to work quite a fight on your hill, Gordon. You and Rebecca, so I hear. Very impressive."

"Thank you, sir," Gordon replied. "Although it has left us both rather tired."

"I see that," said the Fat Controller.

"But we're not letting that stop us," said Rebecca. "Now seeing as we've arrived twenty minutes early...are the passenger set to arrive any earlier, just in case?"

"Not just now, Rebecca," said the Fat Controller. "You and Gordon still have a great deal more passengers to look after, but they're still scheduled to start arriving at 12:00 noon. For now, you two must wait for now, and be sure to keep to the timetable."

"One more thing, sir," said Gordon. "Will Rebecca and I still need all six coaches each for these passengers? This whole morning almost wore us out."

"Well, you two are in luck, at least until 5:00 p.m.," said the Fat Controller. "You won't need all six coaches for Ulfstead, Gordon. I'd say you'll only need three until the final evening run to get everyone home starting at 5:00 p.m."

Gordon's eyes widened for a moment, then he smiled. "Of course, sir. That will be a much lighter load than six coaches."

"As for you, Rebecca," said the Fat Controller. "You'll need only three coaches too, for the tourists to Crovan's Gate. Skarloey, Rheneas and Duncan will be waiting there for you until their tour is done later this evening when you and Gordon are making your way back from Vicarstown again."

"Oh, thank you, sir," Rebecca chortled cheerfully. "That sounds much easier for me too...until the final evening rush."

"Well, you've both done very well so far," said the Fat Controller. "Now, Rebecca, you'll have to turn around at Tidmouth Sheds to get back to Crovan's Gate with your passengers. You, Gordon, you'll have to take the line up through Tidmouth and onwards until you reach Ulfstead, so you may stay put."

"Yes, sir," said Gordon.

And the Fat Controller returned to his office. Gordon and Rebecca looked to each other. Once again, Rebecca suddenly seemed a little worried as she yawned lightly again.

"Well...this is it, Gordon," she said lowly. "Until 5:00 p.m., we'll be working on our own...so...I..."

"What is it, Rebecca?" Gordon asked.

"Well...I...I still feel a little tried and spent after this morning," said Rebecca. "Our passengers will be arriving soon, and there's going to be more bustle throughout the day...what if by the time we're finished the final rush at 5:00, we might be too tired to exchange any rewards? I...I don't want to lose my promises to you."

To this, Gordon felt a brief flash of concern, but even now, in the little flickers of stress he still carried to please his next few passengers, he knew just what Rebecca needed.

"Don't worry, Rebecca. That will not happen to either of us. However tired I may get, I'm holding my promises for you tonight right in my heart."

"Thank you, Gordon," Rebecca sighed. "I...it just seems like there's one more barrier for us to break through...and I just hope we'll feel that magic rush of love by the end of it all...just for you and I, Big G."

Gordon looked deeper into his Golden Queen's eyes.

"Rebecca. We watch out for each other. We both stand a chance of getting through the rest of today. What does it matter if we're completely exhausted by the end? I believe we WILL feel that wholesome energy that we both get whenever the time is right...for us to flourish together. I still believe that we'll both be exchanging excellent rewards to each other, just as long as we carry on through the rest of this schedule."

"You sound so sure that we won't fall asleep the moment we come back here at 8:00 tonight," said Rebecca.

"I'm not entirely sure yet," said Gordon. "But it's all I know. Now, Rebecca...our passengers will be arriving soon. You'd best get yourself turned around. Would you like me to arrange your coaches for you?"

Rebecca smiled from buffer to buffer. "Aww, Gordon...you're too sweet. Thank you."

And with a little coo and a wink to Gordon, she set off through the station. Gordon watched wistfully as her beautiful yellow form passed through the station and on her way for the sheds' turntable. Then he looked back toward her coaches.

"Well, then...I'd best make the most of it for my queen," Gordon said to himself.

So Gordon went quickly and efficiently to rearrange Rebecca's coaches. His driver uncoupled the brake coach from the other five coaches. Gordon then placed those five coaches in a separate siding and he soon placed the brake coach at Platform 1. Then he fetched two more coaches and lined them up as well. As he did this, he could hear the sound of more chatter beyond the station. The passengers were beginning to arrive, as it was just about noon.

Just when Gordon recollected three of his own coaches and made his way to Platform 2, the passengers began to board Rebecca's coaches. Then Gordon looked and saw her coming back along Platform 2, facing the other way. She saw her arranged coaches and smiled dearly. Gordon let her switch to Platform 1 and couple up to her train as the Fat Controller came out again.

"Ah, good. Everyone has arrived," he said. "Now, Rebecca, you are now set to return to Crovan's Gate for your passengers' tour with Skarloey, Rheneas and Duncan. You must be there by 1:30 p.m."

"Yes, sir," said Rebecca. "And thank you, Gordon for preparing my coaches!"

Gordon just smiled. Then in that moment, the station clock struck twelve noon. Gordon and Rebecca looked to each other with every passing chime the clock gave, until the chiming stopped. Then Rebecca's guard blew his whistle, and she whistled too.

"Good luck, Gordon! See you at 5:00!" And off she steamed.

"Good luck, Rebecca!" Gordon whistled. Then he looked to his own passengers as they began to arrive too.

He watched as they all made their way down the stairs, then came up again on Platform 2, all boarding his coaches too. Gordon now felt as though the day would be a little easier, but even now, he still carried that little flicker of stress on pleasing them all and getting through the final evening rush, whenever it would come. But just before he could start thinking about Rebecca again, his guards whistle blew too.

"Oh! Of course," said Gordon. "Express Coming Through!"

And Gordon set off too with a much lighter train. Now that he was on his own, Gordon was feeling his sensation of enjoying the express coming back to him. While he still carried the odd concern of pleasing his passengers and keeping to the timetable, he found himself feeling more relieved than stressed by now. But then he felt himself ready to yawn again, and his eyes began to feel a little heavy. He suddenly felt a little wave of concern again for a few moments, but then his expression hardened and he widened his eyes again.

"No. I can't rest quite yet," he said to himself. "Rebecca needs and deserves me tonight, however it all turns out."

So Gordon went a little faster. He knew not to be too early so as not to inconvenience his passengers by waiting longer for the Ulfstead tour, but he also didn't want to be late either. And even with a lighter load, his wheels still felt a little achy after such an overloaded morning, and he didn't even want to think yet about how he and Rebecca would feel with six coaches again that evening.

Eventually, after almost an hour of deep thinking and simply carrying on through the strength of will, Gordon made his way to the hill that would lead to Ulfstead Castle. He looked upward as he climbed, then started curving around the bend, feeling the steep climb as he went up and up the ever-curving hill that would lead him to the Castle Station. He began to pant a little again as he remembered how difficult it was to manage his own hill with six coaches. Even though he only carried half the weight of passengers, his now-tired mind was just beginning to take its toll on him. But he wouldn't give up now. He became more and more determined not to let Rebecca down when they'd next meet up.

"Rebecca must be doing a wonderful job with her passengers now, no matter how tired she may feel after this morning," he said quietly to himself.

A few minutes later, Gordon found himself at the top of the hill. He took a deep breath and sighed as he looked up and saw the castle gates ahead. Then as he made his way to the platform, he, he saw Stephen and Glynn waiting with a few open passenger coaches, and Millie was on her own line with some of her own passenger coaches too.

"Oh! Bonjour, Gordon!" Millie whistled.

"Good afternoon, Gordon," Stephen and Glynn said together.

"Ah, hello, Gordon. You've made it in time," said Sir Robert.

"I...I have, sir?" Gordon breathed a little heavily from his efforts.

"Of course. It's 1:00 on the spot," said Sir Robert as Gordon's passengers started getting out and approaching Stephen, Glynn and Millie.

"Oh. Well, that's excellent to hear, sir," said Gordon. "But it wasn't as easy as it would usually be. I'm now feeling rather tired. Rebecca and I have been working to the rugged edge with six heavy coaches all morning, and there's the final rush this evening still to come."

"Well. It must have been difficult to get over your hill, Gordon," said Stephen. "Quite like how Glynn and I raced to get over the hill ourselves."

"And we ended up delaying Gordon quite a deal," said Glynn. "And it must have been much harder for Gordon and Rebecca today."

"Of course it was," said Gordon. "And I hear that I must pick up these passengers again and take them home at 4:00 p.m. What shall I do until then? Rebecca is sure to still be busy on her way to Crovan's Gate."

"Hmm...I know, Gordon," said his driver. "Perhaps you're considerably tired now because you're starting to get low on water."

"I am?" Gordon asked, looking back. "Well...at least that would garner a little rest."

"Come on, Gordon," said his driver. "You're sure to feel better after a long drink at the water tower. Perhaps Maron would do...and I'm sure the wine and champagne has been cleaned away ever since David and Emily's little...ahem...drink there together."

"Oh, the Indignity," Gordon shook as he remembered hearing all about that event. "At least I can gain a little rest this way."

So it was arranged. While Sir Robert's tour went underway with his three engines, Gordon was soon on his way back down the hill with his empty coaches. At least now he'd find a few minutes to rest and regain himself.

He eventually made his way down toward Maron again and saw a water tower ahead, then stopped. Before long, his fireman had prepared the pipe and soon Gordon was being given a long, well-deserved drink. As he thought a little more about Rebecca, he was personally glad he didn't feel anything unusual compared to what David and Emily did on that most outlandish night.

As he finally felt the chance to rest even briefly, Gordon felt himself getting steadily tied all of a sudden. His eyes began to flicker and he almost fell asleep, when he suddenly heard two whistles up ahead. He looked up and saw Thomas and Emily stop side by side and look at him.

"Hello there, Gordon," said Thomas. "You look as if you've been up all night, like we all were when we worked to save Percy. How's Rebecca?"

Gordon sighed wearily. "We've both been working so hard this morning...and right now she's on her way to Crovan's Gate for Skarloey's little tour."

"You seem rather tired, Gordon," said Emily. "Is Rebecca tired too?"

Gordon told Thomas and Emily all about his morning with Rebecca. By the time he explained everything so far, Thomas and Emily looked to each other, then back to Gordon.

"Hmm. I see," said Emily. "So you both have the final rush at 5:00, do you?"

"Yes, Emily," said Gordon. "And I just hope we can get through it all. Neither of us are letting how tired we may get hamper our efforts. We wish to reward each other all we can when today's schedule is taken care of between the two of us."

"Reward? Hmm," Thomas grinned. "Well, just be sure you two aren't too tired by the time you're both done for the day. Neither of you want to end up short-changed."

"No, Thomas. We won't," Gordon replied, sounding a little tired and irritable. "I might even take some rest here if I can."

"That sounds like a good choice, Gordon," said Emily. "Just be sure to make her very happy tonight. I know you can, and she knows it too."

"Thank you, Emily," Gordon replied. "I shall."

"Well, good luck to both of you...and be sure to enjoy yourselves together all you can," Thomas winked.

And Thomas and Emily set off down the line, while Gordon continued to idle and think. But then he let out a long yawn. All the endless hard work, deep thinking and stress to please his passengers was getting a more steady hold of him. He simply had to do more than just rest. In that moment, he made a decision. As he had done many years ago with his express runs before, he decided that perhaps a brief nap would do him well, until he'd have to return to Ulfstead Castle.

Gordon slowly placed his coaches in a nearby siding, then fell straight to sleep right there, until he'd have to carry on again...then finish the entire day with his Golden Queen...

Rebecca, meanwhile, was well on her way to Crovan's Gate with her hefty load of passengers to take for Skarloey, Rheneas and Duncan to give them their rides around their part of the railway. She had started off fairly and was glad to have a much lighter load, but by now, she was beginning to tire considerably. Her wheels were feeling worn out and her boiler felt hot too from all her efforts today, but she knew she had to keep going. Then slowly, her eyes began to flicker a little as she felt little flares of sleep just starting to tug at her. But she knew she had to keep going. She blew her whistle strongly to keep herself awake and just keep huffing onward. Although she was starting to feel an edge already, Rebecca's sense of duty to her passengers kept her going on and on along her way.

Then, at exactly 1:30 p.m. as scheduled, Rebecca wearily looked up and saw she had made her way to Crovan's Gate Station. She smiled lightly, then let out another steady yawn before she widened her eyes in an attempt to keep in the present moment. As the Fat Controller had told her, Skarloey, Rheneas and Duncan were all waiting with their own Narrow Gauge coaches for Rebecca's passengers to start their tour.

Rebecca came to a stop and managed to put on a smile for the three little engines.

"Hello, little lads," she greeted warmly.

"Hello there, Rebecca," Skarloey smiled. "I see you're here in good time with our eager tourists...but you do look tired."

"I am," said Rebecca. "But I can't let that stop me. Gordon and I have much more to do from 5:00 p.m. onwards, until 8:00 p.m."

"Well, you've performed gallantly, Rebecca," said Rheneas. "We heard talk of your busy day with Gordon, and you are rather diligent. And thank you for making it in time. Our passengers are eager to see our railway again."

"Huh! I just hope there won't be any grumpiness from any of them!" Duncan huffed.

"Do you mean the Grumpy Passenger, Duncan?" Rebecca asked. "He's not here on this train."

"Well, good! I'm a plain, blunt engine. I speak as I find," gruffed Duncan. "Passengers should be passengers and not crab pots! Thank goodness that particular passenger isn't here today!"

Rebecca sighed and began thinking about Gordon as her passengers left her coaches and made their way to Skarloey, Rheneas and Duncan's coaches for their little tour until they'd be ready to return later.

"Well..." Rebecca said wearily. "I've made it here in time...but until I meet up with Gordon at 5:00...what do I do?"

"Ah, Rebecca," said her driver. "Looks like you're running low on water. Perhaps we should fill up here...and probably rest a while too. it's the least you can do to pass the time, and regain a little strength for your final rush tonight."

"Oh...thank you, sir," Rebecca managed to smile. "That would be indeed lovely. I wonder if Gordon's doing the same somewhere else..."

So Rebecca made her way to the water tower and filled right back up. It felt good to finally receive even a little rest after a steadily stressful morning, and now a weary afternoon. It was then that Rebecca gave another yawn. Her driver noticed this and wondered if Gordon were feeling the same, wherever he'd be...and what else he might be doing to regain his strength."

"You know, Rebecca," he said. "We do have a few hours before we have to meet up with Gordon. Perhaps you should nap here for a while until we're ready for the final rush with all the passengers again?"

Rebecca looked back. "Do you really think so, sir?"

"Of course, Rebecca," said her driver. "Besides, it might help give you the little rush of strength back that you and Gordon will need at 5:00."

Perhaps you're right, sir," said Rebecca. So she left her coaches in a nearby siding, then settled right where she was and fell asleep, finally able to find at least some rest after the big, demanding day she and Gordon had to manage to far...until the final rush she and Gordon would face together. At this moment, both the Big Blue Engine and the Golden Queen were both asleep in their own sidings along the Main Line, resting and waiting for the right time to come.

One hour passed. Then another...and so on. As the moments, minutes and hours slowly ticked by, Gordon and Rebecca slept at Maron Station and Crovan's Gate too. Given the current circumstances they were still faced with until night would come, neither of them felt any dreams drift into their minds. All they could see in through their closed vision was each other, right there in each other's close hold, smiling and nurturing each other with all the company and loving bond they could ever give...

Then at Maron Station, almost as if no time had gone by, Gordon heard a voice.

"Wake up, Gordon. Come on, now."

It was his driver. Gordon woke up at once and saw him standing right there in front of him. He suddenly felt a sense of urgency and a little worry. He didn't know how much or how little time had gone by. It somehow felt like a long time and a short period of time had gone by at the same time.

"What time is it?" he asked.

"3:30, Gordon," said his driver. "We'd best find a wye line and get back to Ulfstead Castle, and get those passengers back in time for 5:00. Rebecca will surely be ready for you by then."

"Quickly, then!" Gordon whistled. "Let's get to it!"

Once he regathered his coaches and found a wye line to turn the right way around again, Gordon was making his way back along the line. He was now preparing himself from the inside for the final push he and Rebecca would have to make in less than two hours now.

Before he knew it, he was back at Ulfstead Castle about half an hour later. It was 4:00 p.m. right on the mark. By now, Gordon felt a new sense awakening in him. He knew that it was just about an hour now before he and Rebecca would have to give the biggest effort of the whole day, and they couldn't make any mistakes now. He saw Stephen, Glynn and Millie all return with their passengers, ready for Gordon to take back to Knapford. All the passengers seemed quite pleased with the tour they had been given and were all eager to return to Gordon.

"Very good, Gordon," said Sir Robert. "Just leave your coaches here, use the turntable, then make your way back to Knapford."

"Yes! Right! Of course," Gordon said hastily.

While Gordon's passengers left Stephen, Glynn and Millie's coaches and went to Gordon's coaches, the big blue engine used the turntable to turn back around, then made his way quickly back to his coaches, just as the last passenger got inside. He was now starting to feel nervous again. The final rush was coming closer and closer and he didn't as to exactly why he felt the way he did. It was a strange mixture of fear, concern, stress, excitement and building sense of victory even before it came.

"Thank you, Gordon. You're all set now," said Sir Robert, but Gordon barely heard him.

But Gordon almost didn't hear him. He gave a quick look to Sir Robert, then gave a hefty whistle of strength.

"Express Coming Through!" he proclaimed almost nervously.

And Gordon set off with a pant and a heave of steam as he made his way out of the castle grounds. As he approached the spiraling hill and made his way down, he suddenly felt a little dizzy. He had been working so hard and he had so much on his mind, he wasn't quite used to the motion and speed anymore. He felt himself going faster and faster until he applied his brakes to slow down and try to regain himself.

"It's almost here...almost here...and then, it's just me and her for the rest of the night. I hope," he uttered to himself as he huffed onwards and forwards...

Meanwhile, at Crovan's Gate Station, almost three hours had passed since Rebecca dropped off her tourists. She was was still in absolute silence and stillness, enjoying her nap, when she was sure she heard a voice speaking her name.

"Rebecca? Rebecca, wake up. Come on, now."

Her eyes slowly opened, and there was her driver. She suddenly felt a sense of urgency too. She didn't know how much or how little time had gone by either.

"Oh. What time is it?" she asked.

"Just after 4:00, Rebecca," said her driver. "We have to get back to Knapford and prepare for the final rush from Vicarstown."

"Oh, my!" she suddenly exclaimed. "But wait...what about the tourists? Shouldn't we wait here to pick them up?"

"No, Rebecca," said her driver. "They'll be back later this evening. It only makes sense to start from Vicarstown, then work all the way back from there. That way, it's all one trip. Now we have to get moving!"

"Very well. I'm coming for you, Gordon!" Rebecca proclaimed.

And she whistled with urgency and determination as she immediately began thinking of Gordon again. She gathered her coaches together and backed up slowly and carefully down the line, until she found a wye line of her own. She turned around the right way, then set off with all haste for Knapford, where she hoped she would find Gordon.

Eventually, Gordon made his way back to Knapford Station at Platform 1. Thomas and Percy were already there so as to help arrange Gordon and Rebecca's coaches for the final rush. It was now 4:45 p.m. As all the passengers got off and thanked Gordon for the ride, he gave little smiles to them all, but he mostly looked around the station. He saw Thomas and Percy, but he couldn't see Rebecca anywhere. He hoped that she was on her way and would be here any minute now. With the final rush only fifteen minutes away, Gordon could feel his stress building back up again. Only this time, it was at the highest it had ever been. He was sure it was because it was the final effort he and Rebecca had to make, and as tired as he felt right now, neither he nor Rebecca could afford to tarry in the very least. Thomas and Percy heard Gordon begin to pant and mutter inconspicuously to himself and they thought it best not to bother him with any questions.

Then about five minutes later, which felt like two to Gordon, he heard her whistle and looked up. There she was coming right along the line. She hastily left her empty coaches in a nearby siding as Thomas and Percy whistled to her.

"Hello, Rebecca," they called together. "Are you and Gordon ready?"

"Hello, Thomas and Percy! Can't talk!" Rebecca blurted urgently. "Gotta turn the right away around in less than five minutes! Get our coaches ready quickly, please! Hi, Gordon! Bye, Gordon!"

"Rebecca, I-" Gordon tried to speak.

"Get our coaches ready! It's the final rush, and our passengers need to all get home!" Rebecca called behind her as she vanished around the bend.

This made Gordon look right to Thomas and Percy. "Well? You heard my Golden Queen! Get those coaches back together. Six for me, Thomas! Six for Rebecca, Percy! Hurry, hurry, hurry!"

Thomas and Percy knew that Gordon wasn't just ordering them about. His passengers needed him and Rebecca, and the two express engine were going to pull through, no matter what. Thomas and Percy then thought it best not to tease Gordon or be cheeky back to him. They knew this was a serious matter that couldn't afford confusion or delay alike, or both. They hastily rushed about the yards, shunting the coaches together, then rushing them behind the station.

Just as Rebecca returned and placed herself beside Gordon, Thomas and Percy came up behind them with all twelve coaches, six for each engine. Their drivers hastily coupled them up, just as the Fat Controller came out once again to check on his express engines' progress in what little time they had now.

"Bravo, both of you. I hear you both had a little rest at Maron and Crovan's Gate alike. Fair enough to pass the time until now. Are you both ready?"

Gordon and Rebecca began to quiver and quake in their wheels. They couldn't feel more anxious and stressed than they did now. So many feelings were rushing through both their heads. Their answers were brief and shaky.

"As ready as we'll e-e-ever be," Gordon uttered unevenly.

"We-w-we won't fail you, sir. W-we promise," Rebecca uttered. "We've worked so hard for so long today, and I know we can't let up now."

"Well, just stay calm, you two. You'll both do very well together," said the Fat Controller. "I know that to be true, I assure you."

Then just as the Fat Controller returned to his office, that's when Gordon and Rebecca heard it. The clock chimed once, twice, thrice, four times...then five.

It was now 5:00 p.m. in the afternoon. The time for the final rush had now arrived. Gordon and Rebecca had been in the time window of passenger duties session for ten hours now. It had indeed been a longer and more demanding day than usual for both of them. But now came the final push. Their twelve coaches of six per engine were empty and considerably light for now. But now, they had to take them to Vicarstown and recollect the passengers from work there. Then from there, they'd have to stop at each express station back along the way, putting more weight on their wheels once again with each stop they'd make, regathering all the passengers they needed to collect, and bring them all home in time for 8:00 p.m.

After about a minute of suspenseful and almost intimidating silence, Gordon looked up to Thomas and Percy, who were both eyeing the express engines with surety and solid respect.

"Go, Gordon. This is your moment with Rebecca now," said Thomas.

"Finish strong, Rebecca," Percy peeped. "And go all out together."

To this, Rebecca gave a single nod, then Gordon turned to his Golden Queen.

"Come on, Rebecca. Those passengers may take plenty of our strength, but they will NOT take our rewards for each other tonight. Follow me!"

And with a loud whistle of fervor and ambition, Gordon then set off with a roar and sped down the line. Rebecca then set off too, racing wearily, but determined to catch up to Gordon and finish their now very tiring express run for the day. As they looked to each other with a solid look of surety and no fear at all, they felt another new sensation buzzing in their smokeboxes. As tired and rugged as they might have felt, as they felt their wheels spinning further and further along the line every few moments, their minds felt like they were turning off in some way or other, and they just kept going on and on as the minutes passed.

Then around 5:40 p.m., Gordon and Rebecca looked again and saw that they had found their way to Vicarstown Goods Yards. They briefly uncoupled from their coaches, found the turntable and turned themselves around so as to go back the way they came. They then retrieved their coaches, then they reversed carefully through the yards until they reached the station. By then, it was now 5:50 p.m. Gordon and Rebecca looked about the station and soon, they saw several passengers gathering at the platforms, ready to make for home onboard the evening express run.

As Gordon and Rebecca waited and let their passengers board the first few coaches, they looked to each other with a growing smile. They had made their first step in the final rush for today. As overly anxious and strongly driven as they both felt, they suddenly felt a great wave of assurance and trust spawning in their boilers.

"Such a day this has been, Gordon," Rebecca said steadily. "We've been worked to the rugged edge, you and I...and now, this is our time to face the final high-stress express for the day...together. It's been a huge day for both of us...now is our chance to finish it all off...and spew out all the rewards and gifts we possibly can tonight. Pump those pistons, Gordon. Spin those wheels! Let us give every ounce of steam we have!"

Gordon smiled broadly and lowered his eyebrows with a sense of sheer determination that now basked in his boiler. Rebecca's words gave him the little spell of strength that they both needed to get through the entire day.

"A high-stress express this has been indeed, Rebecca," said Gordon. "And so that's what we shall face and triumph over together. And so, you and I shall pump our pistons, spin our wheels, give out every ounce of steam we have! For accomplishment, for being really useful! For our passengers! For Sir Topham Hatt, and my Golden Queen!"

Rebecca gave the same determined smile right back to Gordon...then in that moment, as their guards whistle blew, Gordon the No. 4 Big Engine and Rebecca the No. 22 Yellow Engine gave a very loud, bold warrior-like whistle that sounded all through the station and through the town as they both set off with a roar, a great cloud of smoke and steam and started powering their way back with every ounce of steam they had. Their boilers slowly swelled a little larger, but just large enough to maintain their fast pace together.

As Gordon and Rebecca roared along the line all haste together, bound for Crovan's Gate, they both made the rails ring and shake quite strongly. Their wheels almost caused a tremor within the rails wherever they went. Big, thick clouds of smoke and steam almost as big and thick as Merlin's invisibility steam billowed and puffed from the express engines' funnels and pressure chambers everywhere they went. The final rush of determination, unity, duty, obligation and last fragments of stress somehow felt beyond compare tonight. Gordon and Rebecca were great and powerful express engines, dedicated to their passengers and making sure they would all be pleased with every journey they would make until at last, it would be all over.

They flew into Crovan's Gate Station, stopping with a big hiss of steam together as Skarloey, Rheneas and Duncan's passengers all returned to Rebecca's coaches. As soon as the guards whistle blew again, she and Gordon rocketed away and were gone. They raced right back to Kellsthorpe Road Station where they saw that crowd of passengers coming back too. Among them was the Grumpy Passenger, but Gordon and Rebecca did not care. The guards whistle blew again, and they dashed away again. Even the Grumpy Passenger was surprised by the terrific speed both engines were going at now.

Before they knew it, Gordon and Rebecca could see the sun starting to set, and as they looked ahead, they saw that they had rushed their way back to Maron Station. All the passengers were waiting there too and were all most excited to see Gordon and Rebecca glide into the station and stop just at the right spot for them all to get onboard. Gordon and Rebecca could feel their boilers starting to tire immensely now, but the rush of determination was too much for them to care how tired they were now. Almost before the guards whistle blew, Gordon and Rebecca started off again, just as the last door was shut. By this time, both their express trains were almost full to the brim, which made them both exceptionally heavy, but Gordon and Rebecca were almost lost in an ecstasy of their own now. It may not have been an ecstasy of love yet, but it was still unbelievably powerful for both of them to feel.

As the sun began to lower on the horizon, Gordon and Rebecca then saw Wellsworth up ahead. Their last stop of their express run before Knapford. The moment of accomplishment was so, so very frustratingly close, but Gordon and Rebecca would just have to wait a little while longer until they made their way back to Knapford. As soon as the last Wellsworth passenger was on board, the guard blew his whistle once more, Gordon and Rebecca felt such a jump in their hearts, they thought their boilers would burst. But instead, they gave one more whistle of unwavering fervor and effort and set off together, already feeling the rush of victory together.

And finally, the moment came. After thirteen hours of stress, speculation, wonder, endless efforts, and being worked to the absolute rugged edge, Gordon and Rebecca started to slow down. Then in that moment of truth they had been waiting for together, they looked up one more time, and both gave a loud exclaim of accomplishment and absolute glowing victory together.

There was Knapford Station just ahead, just as the clock began to chime what hour it was. As Gordon and Rebecca looked again, they saw Thomas, Percy and Emily all waiting side by side by the platforms beyond 1 and 2, all smiling and cheering immensely for the two express engines. Then just as the two express engines came into the station and let off one more big hiss of steam, the clock stopped chiming as they looked up and saw the time for themselves. 8:00 p.m. right on the dot.

In that moment, the Fat Controller came right out of his office with eyes as big as sugarplums. But before he could even say a single word, all the doors on all twelve express coaches opened dup and the passengers all came pouring out to the main platform. Gordon and Rebecca nearly lost their minds as they heard nothing but cheers, compliments, praise and absolute gratitude toward the Fat Controller as they all stated several times what a truly good railway it was and just how amazing Gordon and Rebecca had pulled through together for them all.

And then, just a few minutes later, the passengers all maneuvered out of the station and made their way home. In that moment, at long, long last, Gordon and Rebecca's high-stress express runs were well and truly done for the day. As they slowly began to feel all the wright and pressure dissolve away from their hearts, they regarded just how the day started in the minutes that followed. Neither of them could recall any time being this busy with the exception of when all the diesels were trapped in the Dieselworks. This may or may not have been busier than that most overworking day, and Gordon and Rebecca could not recall feeling sensations like this in a very long time. But finding themselves back at Knapford Station with a lovely pinkish red sunset just going down behind the hills in the distance, Gordon and Rebecca felt they were home at last.

The Fat Controller had been kept busy with the happy passengers, but then he looked to Gordon and Rebecca and suddenly flashed into a jig.

"YIPPEE!" he hollered, dancing and tapping his feet in a way that none of the engines had seen before.

The Fat Controller hummed and sang lightly to himself, the removed his hat and tossed it into the air, catching it again, then calling so many praises to Gordon and Rebecca.

"You did it! Fantastic teamwork! Bravo! Well done both of you! Congratulations, Gordon and Rebecca on managing all your passenger runs through everything that came along for both of you to manage, and making every last passenger happy! You are true express champions today!"

"Hooray for Gordon and Rebecca!" Thomas and Emily whistled together.

"Hallelujah and hooray!" Percy whistled with sheer glee.

Gordon and Rebecca finally found their voices and briefly retold everything they had been through throughout the entire day, all the way up to the present moment. Thomas, Emily, Percy and the Fat Controller were all extremely proud and happy for the two express engines. This was indeed a truly exceptional milestone in duty for Gordon and Rebecca to have overcome together.

"Well...my goodness. Bless my ringed funnel," Emily breathed strongly. "Absolutely remarkable, Gordon and Rebecca."

"Cinders and Ashes and Fire and Smoke," said Thomas. "You're both such a legendary couple to push so hard together!"

"And now...both of you have a truly amazing night together," said Percy. "Tonight is now for you two, and you two alone."

"Indeed, in every meaning of those words," said Emily. "You have both worked so hard today, and now is the time for you two just to be together. Have a very wonderful night. Both of you."

Gordon and Rebecca just smiled as Thomas, Percy and Emily made their way back to Tidmouth Sheds, while the Fat Controller gave a final chuckle of absolute pride and a tip of his hat to Gordon and Rebecca as he returned to his car and drove home to sleep very well tonight. With that, Gordon and Rebecca looked into each other's eyes, feeling truly amazing and exceptionally accomplished in their basking glory.

"It's...it's over, Rebecca," Gordon gasped. "All our passengers have been looked after! We...we did it, Rebecca!"

"Indeed, we have, Gordon!" Rebecca gasped in turn. "We...we did it! Hooray! Gordon! Gordon, you did wonderfully today, dear! Ho-ho!"

For a minute or two more, the two express engines basked further in their afterglow of victory and such an uplift to both their hearts as all the weight and stress they had been feeling throughout the day dissolved more and more.

"Rebecca...it's time," said Gordon. "Let us get these coaches out of the way...and then..."

Rebecca gave a big, big giggle to these words and immediately complied to Gordon's words.

"You have impressed me in ways I could never imagine today, Gordon. And of all of that...our rewards are due very, very soon."

And so with those words, the two express engines worked steadily and excitedly to shunt their coaches back into their sidings. They placed three of their coaches in a siding each. Then Rebecca placed her last three in another siding. But they were so buzzed, excited and astonished by their overwhelming sense of victory after working so hard all day, that as Gordon began moving his last three coaches to the siding beside Rebecca, she began to back out toward his line of coaches, just as Gordon began to cross over the points.

"Whoa!" Gordon exclaimed.

Rebecca exclaimed too as she braked suddenly, just in time to stop before the coaches. Then she gave a playfully cheeky look to Gordon.

"Oh, you having a little trouble there?" she teased.

"Oh, get away from me!" Gordon chuckled as he placed his last coaches into the last siding.

"Oh...the Victory!" Rebecca gasped as Gordon came back beside her.

"Ohh! Rebecca!" he exclaimed. "If I could manage an express schedule at that magnitude when I first-ever came here, all the passengers...they'd be bowing in the streets when I huffed along today!"

"I don't know about that, Gordon," Rebecca grinned. "But their gratitude and shining pleasures could not have been better tonight. You and I saw them just now and how truly ecstatically happy they all were. I don't think I've ever seen them make such nose over what a good railway this is."

"Nor me, Rebecca," said Gordon. "And a thousand thanks to you for all that you've done with me today, Rebecca."

"And a thousand thanks to you for all you've done with me. The Express is most hard work, Gordon," Rebecca stated.

"Yes, it is, Rebecca," Gordon replied. "Lucky for me, I had the perfect helper. None other than my Golden Queen."

Rebecca smiled purely to Gordon, her heart filling with more and more joy just to be back here with her Big G after all they had to face together today. But then, in that very moment, Rebecca felt one last sensation jump to her heart, which made it jiggle. Her axles began to shake steadily and her breathing became fast and erratic. As Gordon looked to her and saw her face beginning to blush deeply, he suddenly remembered for the last time tonight. He and Rebecca had indeed impressed each other so very, very much through all they had done...and now the time they had both been waiting for was finally due to arrive. Gordon felt his axles begin shaking wildly too. He was almost afraid to ask, he was so excited, but he swallowed the lump jumping to his throat and uttered the words.

"Rebecca...are...are thinking...what...I...?"

Rebecca shot her view to Gordon and gave such a shaky chortle of absolute excitement...and lust.

"Gordon...my Big G...my absolute love of my life," she whispered. "Do you remember what we told each other last night?"

"Y...yes, my Golden Queen," said Gordon. "A...about impressing the Fat Controller...our passengers...and each other."

Rebecca nodded and spoke again.

"Well, Gordon...you have now found out in good time. We have indeed impressed our passengers and the Fat Controller...but YOU, my Big G...you have impressed me in ways I never imagined you would today. Through such a major, stressful job, even I didn't know for sure if we'd make it all the way...but now we have...and since you've impressed so very, very much...it's now time for your rewards. OUR rewards."

And with those closing words to her sentence, Rebecca took a deep breath and let out a blissful sigh, looking Gordon directly in the eyes. It was in in that moment, when they both felt that very sensation start creeping into their heart. The sensation these two big engines had been holding back on for thirteen very long, very demanding hours. They had pulled such immense weight and effort together and on their own alike, and now that it was all over, there was no more time to wait. The rewards HAD to be exchanged!

"Rebecca...my dear Golden Queen," Gordon replied shakily. "I...I could never agree more with all that you have just told me. Everything you said about impressing our passengers, the Fat Controller, and you too...I say all the same about you...and as such, I do not want to waste another moment of tonight. All I care bout now until morning comes again...is rewarding and pleasuring YOU."

Rebecca then began to purr as she leaned in closer toward Gordon.

"Well, my Big G...what do you say I reward you for all your immensely hard work today...so as you can reward me too...with all the good things that are worth waiting for? Don't budge, my love. I'll be right back!"

Before Gordon could answer, Rebecca dashed away through the station, and within five minutes, she came reversing back, facing the other way...and when she got ahead of Gordon, she was now facing him. Gordon could now she her face in its full form again. Now that he could see her face beaming with excitement, passion and lust that was all-too desperate to be let out and exchanged, she buffered as close as she could to Gordon and gazed so deeply into his eyes, her eyes almost seemed cloudy.

"I'm ready for you, Rebecca," Gordon whispered. "You don't have to worry anymore tonight...I'm here...I'm here."

Rebecca's eyes gleamed even more as she pressed her face right to Gordon's and nuzzled him so closely for about a minute until she let go.

"So...where do you think we should spend tonight, my queen?" Gordon asked.

Rebecca thought for a moment or two...then gave an absolutely adorable smile of longing.

"Gordon, my love...do...do you think Henry's Tunnel will be...empty tonight?" Rebecca purred.

Gordon looked away, thinking to himself, then smiled very deeply as he buffered right up to Rebecca.

"I'm hoping it is, Rebecca. I most surely am."

And without further ado, Gordon began pushing Rebecca on their way, making her gasp and chortle with such bubbling anticipation as they set off together, face to face and down the line as the stars began to glimmer through the sky. It had been a most demanding and tiring day, but they would not waste a single moment now. With such hard work and stressful spells, there had to be justly rewards to make it all pay off in the best ways there could be, and Gordon and Rebecca knew within themselves and to each other that this would be yet another night to remember together. They huffed right through Wellsworth and went right over Gordon's Hill, feeling no struggle in the very least now after all they had accomplished together. They sped right down the other side, and before they knew it...they had arrived.

At last, after quite a few months since that most sacred eve of December, they found their way back to Henry's Tunnel...the very place they had slept at after they had expanded their relationship beyond how it started out, and where they slept together after their first true kiss to the lips, when everything in their world became more perfect than any engine could ever hope such times to be.

Gordon and Rebecca slipped right inside and finally came to their final stop for the night. Nothing could disturb them now. For as long as the night would last, it was them and them alone who would be in this Tunnel of Love. Gordon and Rebecca suddenly felt a great rush of warmth spread through them as they felt the close and secure safety of the tunnel all around them.

"Ooh...Gordon," Rebecca cooed happily. "Right inside our tunnel...ooh...it's so cozy."

"It is indeed," Gordon replied surely. "It's absolutely perfect...but only because I have you right in here with me."

Rebecca blushed shyly. "Oh, Gordon...are...are you saying I make you cozy? Am I a big, cozy engine, my dear?"

"That and much, much more, my love," said Gordon. "You're sunny, joyful, excessively cheerful to all that you meet every day, and you're truly and absolutely beautiful, Rebecca. And staying here tonight is a most perfectly fitting first step in our rewards to each other tonight. So...are you ready, Rebecca? Are your rewards all gathered together to hand out to me...just as mine are prepared to hand out to you?"

To this, Rebecca blushed a deeper. Then she slowly formed a coy, active expression as she began to purr softly. Now that they were where they wanted to be...it could now begin. She gave a deep, blissful sigh to Gordon, which made him look at her divine, lovely face in the light of their lamps. She began to purr very softly again as she buffered up to Gordon and began cooing softly, enticing Gordon right into her spells as they just began to be weaved inside the tunnel.

"Rebecca...I...I love..."Gordon tried to speak as she batted her eyelashes to him.

"No more waiting, Gordon," Rebecca purred. "I am ready. And my first reward to you...is to make me feel truly wonderful and absolutely blissful. Time to pay your dues to your Golden Queen. Where's my big strong Big G?"

"Right here...in our tunnel...to make all your troubles fade away," said Gordon, smiling just as deeply as she was.

"Alright, then, Big G," Rebecca whispered. "Serve me. Serve your beautiful Golden Queen."

That was all Gordon needed to hear. And so it began. After a long day of managing a rather high-stress express, the rewards and payments were due to be made. Gordon buffered up to Rebecca and started kissing her adorable cheek, which made her hum and croon with such fervor as her axles shook strongly to the sensual and gentlemanly approach Gordon made. After all they had been faced with throughout this high-stress day, Gordon's boiler almost burst as he felt Rebecca's soft, creamy, almost fluffy cheek on his lips again. As soon as he felt her skin upon his lips, he immediately felt all the weights and burdens of the entire day slowly burst away completely. He and his love could only look ahead now. Not back. When Rebecca began to feel Gordon's gentle nurtures for the night, she slowly began to jump and chortle to his steady kisses. This made Gordon very proud to make her feel so happy, and seeing jump and chortle to his kisses made his heart melt even further into his dignified charms which he would only ever give to the engine he loved beyond all else.

"Oh...oh, oh, Gordon...ooh...Gordon," Rebecca whispered and purred. "Oh, yes...that's right...ahh..."

Gordon didn't care about anything now. All except Rebecca and simply making her happy. He soon went for her other cheek and started kissing it too, which made Rebecca begin to blush and pant a little as she felt her cheeks tingle and pulse with passion as she felt every kiss Gordon gave her. She too felt all the weight and pressure burst away from her heart and right out her funnel. Everything was becoming perfect again for the timid, but truly lovely Rebecca. Gordon's Golden Queen.

Then Gordon decided to give Rebecca even more of a reward for her and himself. He suddenly began to nibble and tug on Rebecca's cheek. The instant Rebecca felt this, she felt such a tickly, jiggly wave rush to the tip of her cheek as she began to shake and squirm.

"Oh-OHH! Gordon! Tee-hee! Hee-hee! Th-that tickles! Ooh-hoo-hoo-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" she squealed and wailed relentlessly.

Gordon didn't say a word. He just kept nurturing and teasing Rebecca however she pleased, all while he listened to her absolutely adorable, giggles. Rebecca had such a sweet, bubbly, titillating little voice that made Gordon's heart race unlike he could ever recall before he ever met her. As he gazed at her and listened to her, every little chirp, squeal and giggle that escaped her lips kept making his heart rush faster and faster. And seeing how her adorable little lips moved to how she smiled and giggled all the way made it even better.

Then Gordon suddenly let go of Rebecca's cheek and paused for a moment. She looked up and saw him smiling gently as he leaned in and buffered up a little closer. Then he started leaning left and right, rubbing his buffers to Rebecca's, rather like how Percy and Emily did on their night of motherly therapy. Rebecca looked down to her buffers and watched as Gordon's bufferbeam leaned left and right. She slowly began leaning just the same and feeling a new and adorable sensation bubbling in her.

"Oh-Ohh! G-Gordon!" Rebecca squealed. "Ooh! My buffers are so ticklish! Tee-hee-hee! He-he-he! Oh! Oh, Gordon! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!"

All Gordon did was grin and beam away while he continued to please his Golden Queen in every way he could. But then, when Rebecca took a deep breath and closed her eyes with a happy sigh, Gordon got another idea. He felt his heart pounding to what he was about to do, but as he stared at Rebecca's adorable smile and her beautifully pointy eyelashes, he knew just what he had to do to make his Golden Queen even happier, and spawn her spells for him even further.

What Rebecca felt next, she had never felt before and it made her eyes bulge open as she squealed so loudly, her voice echoed right through the tunnel. Gordon had pressed his lips to her cheek and began to very gently suck on it, humming very lowly and pleasingly as he felt her lovely skin being tugged to his lips. Rebecca then began to pant and groan with such overwhelming tingles rushing through her body. She had never felt anything like this before, and it made her heart almost burst.

"Ahh! Ahh! Ah! G-G-Gordo-o-on!" she squealed. "I...by my whistle! I...I..!"

"I love you, Rebecca," Gordon finally whispered very softly and purely. "You deserve every service I give you, my Golden Queen."

And as he began to kiss and nibble her little chin, Rebecca suddenly felt her steam creeping right through her pipes, right into her cylinders. It all happened so suddenly, and she knew she couldn't hold together for even a minute longer. As soon as Gordon heard her start gasping and cooing what she said next, his heart almost jumped into his throat with fervor and anticipation.

"Oh...G-G-Gordon!" Rebecca panted. "My...my...my steam! It's...it's...ohh! I I'm ready! I...I think...!"

Then Rebecca gave an even louder squeal of joy as she steadily let off a large, warm cloud of steam and let it drift along Gordon's face. Gordon whistled with sheer pride and delight to have made Rebecca feel so very wonderful tonight, and as she gasped for all the breath she had let out and started sighing countless times in absolute bliss and pure warmth she felt with her favourite engine on Sodor, Gordon leaned in and kissed her much lightly, earning little blushes from his favourite engine too.

"What dost thou say, my Golden Queen? Did I suffice thy golden wishes tonight?" he asked proudly.

Rebecca took deep breaths, catching all the breath she needed after everything Gordon had sparked within her, but she was more than happy to have been part of it all tonight...and much, much more yet to follow from her, then from both of them. She already began to know what she would be doing in return as she spoke rather heavily and blissfully.

"That...oh, Gordon! That was truly fantastic! I've NEVER felt anything like that before! I'm sure to have even more golden wishes with you for some other time...but for now, you've already exceeded any expectations I might have had...and you should be very proud...and very infatuated too."

And she leaned in and kissed him right on his nose. Gordon couldn't help but chortle in return to this. Then Rebecca went very still...and looked so very inviting. Gordon felt as though he couldn't recall her looking like this before, and he immediately felt his heart rush with anticipation for whatever Rebecca might have had stored in her boiler for him now.

"Time for your turn, my Big G," Rebecca smiled smoothly as she buffered right up to him. "Let your Golden Queen make all your troubles disappear...and replace them with all your dreams for today coming true. You just stay where you are, and let your queen reward her big, powerful knight."

To this, Gordon took a deep breath and sighed proudly, letting Rebecca do whatever she pleased. She gave Gordon a narrow look, then batted her eyelashes right at him, giggling adorably as she did. Then she buffered up and puckered her lips, cooing invitingly as she came closer. Then her adorable little lips touched to Gordon's cheek as she began to kiss him wherever she pleased, letting out little chortles and shy giggles as she did.

Gordon immediately felt himself tense up then felt his wheels wobble as he felt Rebecca's soft, tickly little lips trail along his face, and with every kiss she left on his cheeks, he felt as though she were a fairy princess. She kept uttering bubbly little giggles, much like she did when Gordon kissed her, but somehow, hearing Rebecca's little giggles and her almost magic-feeling lips on his cheek made his heart buzz even more.

"By my boiler...R-Rebecca!" Gordon gushed through a hoarse whisper. "Whatever you do...do not stop at all! Oh, the Glory!"

Rebecca tittered and giggled with such bubbly joy to how good she was making Gordon feel with her sunny, lovely nurtures. This was indeed the most perfect outcome either of them could have hoped for, and it made Rebecca so happy to be right here with her Big G. She kept kissing him so flutteringly and daintily, smooching her lips quietly as she went on toward his other cheek and kissed it just as lovingly for another five minutes, which only made Gordon's heart pound and buzz even stronger.

Rebecca then decided to reward him further and began to steadily nibble Gordon's cheek, trailing her lips, up, down and along his cheek, feeling her lips claim wherever she could reach and sending endless jolts of reflex to Gordon's face.

"Tickle-tickle, Big G!" Rebecca giggled in such a bubbly voice.

"Ohh! Rebecca!" Gordon exclaimed. "Oh, the Glory! You're too...too perfect!"

Rebecca continued to nibble and tickle Gordon wherever she pleased along his face, right until she finished it off by leaning downward and planting a kiss right on his chin, which made him jump and laugh with such joy. Then she suddenly stopped and began breathing slowly and deeply. Gordon looked up and saw her eyes glimmering with quiet, but powerful joy in their lamp lights. Her gaze became very, very longing and dependant on Gordon. He suddenly felt his wheels start to shake as he got a sensation that one or two more new things would come for him and her too.

"G...Gordon...Please...I...I love you beyond all else...please...may I...well..." she whispered very softly.

Gordon saw her slowly leaning toward him, and he suddenly felt a rush in his heart, telling him just what she was thinking of doing.

"MY answer is yes, Rebecca. I love you beyond all else just the same...and whatever you wish to do new tonight...my answer is yes."

To this, Rebecca's eyes shimmered as she closed her eyes, then puckered her lips, leaning right toward Gordon's cheek. She pressed her lips right to the middle of his cheek...then it happened.

Gordon felt himself almost gasp for too much air, but he managed not to faint. Rebecca had begun to suck on his cheek and kiss it very lightly in between. Gordon had never felt anything like this in his life, and he felt himself losing himself deeper and deeper into Rebecca's new spells. She hummed and moaned with such delight and trembling passion as she gently sucked on Gordon's cheek, relishing in every instant that she could feel, right until she reached down and gave his cheek a little suck and a big, pure kiss immediately afterwards.

"Ohh...Rebecca! I...I love you...I love you!" Gordon gasped heavily as she let go, then gazed into his eyes again.

"Now...my Big G," she whispered. "Time for one more truly special gift for you...and me too...a brand-new joy for both of us..."

"Rebecca?" Gordon pondered shakily. "What...what are...you...?"

Rebecca leaned in again and puckered her lips again. Gordon figured he had to do the same. As soon as their lips toughed together, Gordon was prepared to tart kissing her deeper...but what he felt next was something even he was not expecting tonight. Gordon felt Rebecca slowly open her mouth and start pressing a little deeper, silently asking him to let her tongue in.

The instant Gordon and Rebecca felt this new spell of lust and passion together, they froze where they were and looked right into each other's eyes. Neither of them felt anything like this before...but that was exactly what they loved about it tonight. This was what they needed after all they had done together throughout this most impressive day in the ways that it was.

Rebecca briefly let go. "Gordon? Are...are you ready...to...?"

"I'm more than ready, Rebecca," said Gordon. "Let us flourish together tonight...and drive our spells to a new level after all we've done today..."

That was all Rebecca needed to hear. Her heart pounded with surety and never-ending passion for her fellow express engine. She gave a single nod, then pressed her lips softly back to his. And in that moment of purity and new boundaries being broken, Gordon and Rebecca slowly began their motion together, deepening their kiss to each other, each rolling their eyes back into their heads, then closing their eyes as Rebecca's tongue gently made its way in...then touched right to Gordon's tounge. They froze once more for about another minute, then began to pass over and intertwine more and more in a synchronized dance which neither engine had ever felt before. Thomas and Emily knew this feeling, as did James and Molly, Luke and Millie, Rosie and Stanley, Percy and Gina, all the way to Belle and Flynn. Now it was Gordon and Rebecca's turn to flourish and relish in every instant they felt tonight. And so their tongues danced and writhed together with stronger and stronger passion that went on and on, minute after minute, almost onward into a full hour, with Gordon and Rebecca slipping further and further out of their own minds, except for each other and nothing else that night.

At last, after about two entire hours of exchanging nuzzles, kisses, nibbles and pure worship to each other ever since they came here tonight, Gordon and Rebecca found themselves beginning to tire. Their deep kisses became gentler and their lips began to slow down as they exchanged a few last little nurtures to each other through a few more nibbles and tickles. Their barriers slowly began to lower and bring them down to a truly profound blissful afterglow. After such a long, stressful day, all the gifts they had given to each other were more than enough to settle the waves of uncertainty for both of them. They finally opened their eyes once more and gazed right into each other.

"G...Gordon, my love," Rebecca whispered. "Today was so...so intensely exceptional...in so, so many ways...you are absolutely incredible..."

"Indeed, Rebecca. Very indeed," said Gordon. "You're just as amazing and incredible too, Rebecca. I can't recall any other time I've had to deal with so many passengers for so long as today...and I would never have gotten through it all without you...my perfect Golden Queen."

Rebecca's eyes nearly shed tears of love to these words. All she could do was press her soft, perfect fact to Gordon's and hum so happily right there with him. The two of them spent a few minutes more, basking in the warmth that they felt and kissing each other's lips just a little while longer. Then in the moment that eventually came, Gordon and Rebecca felt their barriers fall even further to such a low, quiet and truly peaceful state. They could not have felt more physically and passionately spent than they did now.

"Well, now..." Rebecca said wearily as let out a big, deep yawn. "I...ohh...I'm so, so sleepy now...such a huge day today."

Gordon gave a long, low yawn too. "Indeed it has been, Rebecca. Most indeed. But it's over now...and we're right in here together...just you and I."

As she felt herself becoming more and more sleepy at a rather fast rate now that the day was completely finished for these two engines, Rebecca gave one more little nurture to Gordon as she kissed his cheeks once more and spoke so very softly.

"Come here, Big G," Rebecca cooed. "Press your face to my soft, cuddly cheeks. They're so soft and warm, you'll fall asleep right in here in our Love Tunnel. Let me feel your handsome, most dignified face all through the night. Sweet dreams, Gordon. I love you so, so much."

Gordon did exactly what Rebecca said and indeed pressed his face right to hers, feeling her cheeks warming his right there in the tunnel. It could not be more perfect that it was now as he yawned deeply too.

"The sweetest of dreams to you, Rebecca. My perfect Golden Queen," he whispered.

"Sleep tight, my Big G," Rebecca tittered sweetly. "Ahh...time for a lovely, cozy sleep...sweet...d-dreams...Big...G..."

And with that, Rebecca fell fast asleep. Gordon watched as her eyes fluttered shut and her pointy eyelashes fluttered a little too as she stirred a little and got comfortable. Gordon was just about to shut his eyes and fall asleep himself, when just a moment or two later, he was rewarded with one more little nurture for the night, which made his heart twitch with pure, impossibly perfect delight.

Rebecca began snoring sweetly, which brought such lovely, perfect music to Gordon's ears. He watched with a gaping smile as her petite little nose shook so adorably, and her perfect, pointy little smile opened her mouth.

"Zzz...mmm...Zzz...ahh...Zzz...express...Zzz..." she snored.

Then she softly puckered her lips and whistled very quietly. To such an adorable sight and sound to behold for the last few moments of the night before turning in, Gordon felt himself becoming more and more sleepy to every little snore Rebecca uttered until he touched his cheeks even closer to hers and settled in.

"Sleep tight, Rebecca. My Golden Queen. I love you beyond all else...goodnight, my love."

And Gordon fell fast asleep too, right there with Rebecca with nothing else to worry about.

And so the two express engines slept onward through the night together. It had indeed been a high-stress express for both these engines, but through it all, it had gained them a rather impressive reward. Gordon and Rebecca couldn't be more proud of each other for all their efforts, and for all the rewards they had gifted to each other. But for Thomas and Emily, things would soon be experimented with again. Particularly surrounding Thomas' occasional knack to be a cheeky scoundrel again, as he had been on a few occasions before. But as with all progress in how they experimented with a few new nurtures of love along the way, whatever nurtures that would come to follow would surely be driven by a certain aspect of moonlight, as both of them would find out soon enough.

---

Another beefer of a story, and I was hoping this would be a lot shorter, but it isn't. Regardless, finally giving Gordon and Rebecca more attention, though in hindsight I realize that we really haven't given Rosie and Stanley any proper attention either, apart from "The Love Tree", but even then they didn't really have anything major there. We'll get back to them eventually, but next time we're focusing on Thomas and Emily again, in a sort of sequel to "Thomas the Scoundrel", because why not. Until next time, tell us what you thought of this story, and stay safe.