A/N Erica belongs to me. Michaela belongs to my buddy here FurryFoxFires.
One day while going down the tracks, Erica met up with a small iridescent tender engine. "Hello, I've never seen you before", she said. "Are you new here?"
"I'm Michaela", the iridescent engine said, without making eye contact.
Erica thought to herself, I think she might be autistic. She acts odd. "Do things bother you more than other engines ever? I don't like really loud noises, for example."
"I don't like unexpected touching or cold water," Michaela said.
"Duck doesn't, either", Erica said. "Makes three of us, I guess. Engines with sensory issues, as I call us. That's the term I was told for it."
"I'm still a "baby engine", as they call recently built engines like me, but I'm learning things.", Michaela said. "Like I've learned how to shunt. I'm a shunting tender engine."
Erica said, "I also don't like smelly stuff, like stinky cheese or smelly onions. As a tank engine, I can shunt, too or maybe pull a light train. I shunt in Knapford or work with Thomas, mostly. We're really close, like siblings, except I'm a different tank engine class. We just formed a sibling-like bond, due to my being a tank engine, too and similar personalities."
Michaela replied, "Sometimes, I need to move trucks from one place to another, like from Arlesburgh to another yard. But it's hard for me because I've got a small tender." I need to go back to work. See you."
"Good-bye", Erica said. She's shy, Erica thought, watching her new friend leave. I've been told about shyness and my new friend shows traits I'm told are shy. However, I'm sure she's nice, so it's okay if she's on the shy side. She was so happy.
Her driver said, "Time for us to move along." and they went on back to work.
Later on, Erica was on a siding in Knapford resting while her crew was on break. Diesel 10 came by and his horn blew, scaring the smaller engine. She began to cry, letting a small wail out and shutting her eyes. Her face was wet with tears and she kept sniffling.
Sir Topham Hatt was riding Winston, checking on things. He came to where Erica was and saw her scared face stained and streaked with tears. I shall ask her if there's anything I can do, he thought. She had a request for him, though.
"Sir, can you wipe my eyes?' she said in a slurred, tearful voice. "Diesel 10 scared me."
He climbed onto her buffers, took a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped her eyes dry, then took care of her tear streaked face. As he did so, he told her, "I won't let Diesel hurt you. You shall be fine. As long as you're a Really Useful Engine, I'll protect you. I love steam engines.", to cheer her up.
"Keep wiping, sir", she sniffled, her eyes filling up as she cried more.
He said as he continued to wipe her tears away, "I'm not a very emotional person, but I do care about my engines and will meet your needs. You'll be taken care of. You let me know what you needed now and I met it."
"Thank you, sir", she said as she stopped crying. "I feel better." She smiled a bit.
After drying her last tears and dapping the dampness from her red, swollen eyes, he said. "I've got a railway to run. Cheerio."
Erica's driver came back as Sir Topham Hatt left and saw her face still red. He asked his engine what happened.
Erica told her driver, "Diesel 10 scared me, but Sir Topham Hatt helped me feel better. He wiped my tears away at my request and cheered me up."
Her crew climbed into her cab and after having a drink, it was back to Knapford for her. Thomas was there at the station after pulling Annie and Clarabel. He heard his "sister" whistle.
"Hello, Thomas", she said.
"Hello, Erica", he said and whistled back.
Erica then told him about the new friend she met and about Diesel 10 scaring her with his horn and Pinchy.
Her "brother said, "That's quite a day you've had."
A/N In my Thomasverse, engines know what they're for. The scene with Sir Topham Hatt and scared Erica is an engine form of a child asking her father to dry her eyes and reflects his love for his engines. He's not sure what to do for her at first, as his thoughts indicate and needs to be told because he's not emotional. However, he does what he can. Someone said on Quora "when you wipe someone's tears, they cry more, allowing you to keep wiping.", which Erica reflects. Their eyes can look bloodshot, according to the books and my theory about their getting red-faced or bloodshot looking eyes is steam acting like blood.