The Winx Club's Sodor Adventures - Season 2

Episode 5: Old Iron

One day, James and Stella had to wait at the station till Edward and Tecna and their train came in. This made them cross.

"Late again!"

"Well, the least you can do is keep up with the timetable!"

Edward and Tecna laughed, and James and Stella fumed away.

After James and Stella had finished his work, they went back to the yard, and puffed on to the turntable. Even though Stella was in a better mood, James was still feeling very bad-tempered.

"Edward is impossible!" he grumbled to the others. "He clanks about like a lot of 'old iron'! And he is so slow, he makes us wait!"

Thomas, Percy and the other fairies were indigent.

"'Old iron?!' Slow?!"

"That's no way to treat Edward like that!" said Musa.

"Musa's right," said Thomas. "Why, Edward could beat you in a race any day."

"Yeah," agreed Bloom. "Never judge an engine or a fairy by their age."

"Really?" said James. "I should like to see him do it."

"That's enough, James!" said Stella crossly.

Next morning, after James and Stella brought in a freight train into the yard at Knapford Harbor, the Princess of Solaria suddenly felt ill. She was so dizzy, that she could hardly stand.

"Stella, are you feeling okay?" asked James.

"I don't think so, James," she answered sadly. "I think one of the sandwiches from my lunch must've got some bad bits in it."

So while Stella went off to the restroom, the fireman uncoupled James ready for shunting. James was impatient.

Suddenly, the signalman shouted. There was James puffing away down the line.

"All traffic halted!" called the signalman.

When Stella felt better, she was sent to see the signalman. And he told her what had happened while she was gone.

"Excuse me, sir," she asked, "but why did you send for me? And why is all the rail traffic stopping?"

"It's about your engine," he answered.

"Do you mean James?" asked Stella. "What about him?"

"Well," Said the signalman, "while you were elsewhere, two boys were on James' footplate, fiddling with the controls."

Stella was shocked. "What?!"

"They tumbled off and ran when James started."

Soon there was a ringing. And the signalman answered the telephone. "Yes, Stella's here. Right, I'll tell her." "The inspector's coming at once. He wants a shunter's pole and a coil of wire rope."

"What for?" wondered Stella.

"Search me, but you better get them quickly."

Stella was ready when Edward and Tecna arrived with the inspector.

"Hey, Stella," said Tecna. "We heard what had happened to James. It must've been terrible for those boys to play on James when they're not supposed to. They're nothing but trouble."

"I know," said Stella, "those little troublemakers are going to be in so much trouble when they're found."

"Well, never mind that now," said Tecna. "We got a runaway engine to catch."

"You're right," Stella agreed. "Let's go."

The inspector saw the pole and the rope. "Good, Stella, jump in."

"We'll catch him! we'll catch him!" puffed Edward.

James was laughing. "What a lark! What a lark!" he chuckled to himself.

Suddenly, he was going faster and faster. He realized that he didn't have Stella on board. "What shall I do? I can't stop! Help! Help!"

"We're coming! We're coming!" called Edward.

Edward was panting up behind with every ounce of steam he had. At last, he caught up with James.

"Steady, Edward," called Tecna.

The inspector stood on Edward's front, holding a noose of rope in the hook of the shunter's pole. He was trying to slip it over James' buffer. The engines swayed and lurched. At last... "Got him!" he shouted, and pulled the noose tight.

Gently braking, Tecna checked the engines' speed, and Stella scrambled across into James' cab and took control.

"So the 'old iron' caught you after all," chuckled Edward.

"I'm sorry," whispered James. "Thank you for saving me. You were splendid, Edward."

"That's alright," replied Edward.

The engines and their fairy friends arrived at Crosby Station side by side. Sir Topham Hatt was waiting. "A fine piece of work," he said. "James, you and Stella can rest, and then take your train. I'm proud of you, Edward. You shall go to the works and have your worn parts mended."

"Oh, thank you, Sir," said Edward. "It'll be lovely not to clank."

The End