A/N Michaela belongs to FurryFoxFires.
One morning, Thomas heard Erica moan.
"What's wrong, little sister?" he asked.
"I think I took some bad water, brother. I got boiler-ache. I need a washout, I guess.".
So she went to get her boiler-ache taken care of. When Erica arrived at the Steamworks to get her washout, she began to cry from the pain in her boiler. She was miserable and unable to take the ache anymore. The kind workman was there.
"Can you wipe my eyes?" she asked. She sniffled and moaned, "I got boiler-ache."
The workman, in response to Erica's request, climbed onto her buffers, pulled out his cloth hanky and gently dabbed the tears from her eyes. Then, he dried her wet face as his fellow workmen started to treat her.
"There, there, Erica", he said. "We'll take care of you. The other workers shall make your boiler feel better."
"Keep wiping", she said with a big sniffle, crying more.
He said, as he continued to wipe her tears away, "We're all to help you feel better. I know you're miserable, but I'm here for you." He wiped her eyes dry as she finished her crying. When she was ready to go, he said, "We've got all that nasty sludge out of your boiler. It's time for you to get back on the rails and be a Really Useful Engine again."
"Thank you for drying my eyes", she said to the workman who comforted her.
Erica wanted to visit her sister, Rosie, after getting out of the Steamworks and asked her driver, "Driver, can I go to Vicarstown and see Rosie?". The sisters talked for a while and then Rosie had to get back to work.
On the way back to Knapford, Erica saw her friend Michaela at a signal with a dreamy look. She gave a hello whistle and Michaela startled, shaken from her reverie and whistled back in greeting. The bluish-purple tank engine then headed to Knapford.
Kennet said, "Michaela, there's a time for daydreams. I enjoy drifting away sometimes myself, but you need to keep it in the proper place. The signal's green now."
Michaela was unhappy because she messed up, so Kennet patted her side. Then, she moved along back to the Little Western.
Erica arrived back to Knapford Yards and soon Thomas came by after pulling Annie and Clarabel to Knapford. She whistled at her "brother" and said, "Hello", with her cheeky smile.
"I see you feel better, now, little sister", Thomas said. He smiled back.
"I always cry in the Steamworks", she said. "I didn't when I was there to get ready for Sodor, but my first time there after that, it was loud, then I was there because I was cheeky with some Troublesome Trucks on a track that had something wrong and this time I was miserable from boiler-ache. But I get comfort from a kind workman who always wipes my eyes when I ask."
Thomas said, "I love comfort when I'm sad. Being able to be open with my emotions is important to me and when I'm unhappy, I want to feel better. I'm not afraid of feelings and understand emotions happen, though I quite like it when I or others can be happy. My values and emotions are what I want to lead me. I try to be a Really Useful Engine because I value that. That's how I feel in my heart and I follow it as I'm able."
Erica replied, "I cry when with those I trust or am unable to control my emotions. When I feel like crying, I usually just need to cry right then and there or else hold it until I'm around those I'm okay crying with. If there's only an engine friend's comfort, I just shut my eyes and let myself go. However, if Driver or one of the Hatts is around, or that kind workman when I'm at the Steamworks, I just say, "Can you wipe my eyes?" and let that human comfort me until I feel better. I try to be happy if the moment allows, but I know emotions happen. I'm not afraid of my emotions, but I just want negative ones to go away, so I let them out. I cry because when I cry and am comforted, I feel better."
Thomas said to his "sister", "I don't like it when my friends are sad, but I don't want them to change their emotion until they truly feel better. However, I care and want to help them find comfort and cheer up. I just don't want to prevent someone from feeling an emotion. Hiding feelings isn't something I like."
She said, "I need to get back to work. Good-bye." And they went on with the rest of their day.
A/N Erica's response to the workman's comfort's rooted in how when you wipe someone's tears, they cry more, allowing you to keep wiping. My FanFiction buddy who types the characters types Thomas with a type that enjoys comfort when feeling bad. What he says to his "sister" reflects his personality type.