A/N: Hey, yes, I'm still alive. But my life has been very lifey for the past week, and that is my only excuse for not uploading sooner. Believe me—I wanted to get this posted on schedule, and I tried. In fact, I wanted to upload this on Autistic Pride Day (June 18), but time and circumstances didn't allow me to do that, so here we are with yet another late chapter. But this one's pretty long and has a few laughs, so I'm hoping that helps to make up for the long wait.
A little note to Eliot Reader: Remember that OC that I mentioned in my author's note back in chapter six who had dark eyelashes? This is her introduction chapter.
I have to bring this up so that nobody gets confused or calls me out for thinking that I did this, but: I did NOT copy Emerald Omen's story "Mavis's Mistake", and I highly recommend that fanfic because it's pretty good. I already had this storyline for my chapter planned out in my mind before I even read their fanfic, and after reading it and realizing how shockingly similar some of the elements in their story were to what I had planned for this chapter, I tried to make as many differences in here as I could so people don't mix them up. I didn't mean for it to be so similar to some of what Emerald Omen wrote in their story, and I hope I didn't fail at trying to make this chapter of mine as different from their fanfic as possible, but anyways... enjoy!
"Marion, did you hear the news?" Timothy asked as he puffed up to the railway steam shovel.
"Hm? No, no I didn't," Marion replied as she dumped some rocks into a truck. "What news?"
"That Sir Topham Hatt has ordered a tank engine from another country to help us out here in the Clay Pits."
Marion almost dropped some rocks onto the tracks. "What?! Another? But aren't Bill and Ben trouble enough already?"
Timothy sighed. "Yes, but not all tank engines are that cheeky, you know. After all, I'm one."
She hummed in agreement and went back to digging up rocks. "I just hope that they'll be a Really Useful Engine and help us out more than those troublesome twins usually do. Actually, I hope they won't be driven insane on their first day here. Perhaps a few days at the very most."
The dark blue saddle tank engine smiled a little. "Oh, I'm sure things won't go as badly as you think they will. Cheer up, Marion. You've been rather down lately, I've noticed."
Marion smiled sadly back at Timothy. "Yes, well… It's just that Bill and Ben have been getting on my nerves a lot lately, and I feel quite overwhelmed by it all. But I'll be fine."
"You're sure?" he asked with visible concern in his eyes.
"I'm sure, Timothy. Now we'd better get back to work before those two little tornadoes come tearing back through here again and make things difficult for us."
They both chuckled as Timothy puffed away from Marion, leaving her to continue clearing away fallen rocks.
*Hiro steamed into Brendam Docks to pick up a goods train that he was to take to Vicarstown. The Japanese tender engine rolled up to his train and waited patiently to be coupled up to it.
"Hiro? Is that you?" said a high-pitched voice.
He looked up to see a pastel pinkish-purple tank engine on the track in front of him. She had dark eyes and eyelashes, and her face was soft and childlike.
"...Kioko?" Hiro finally asked.
The little tank engine darted towards him in an instant, stopping mere inches from his buffers. "It is you, it is you! Oh Hiro, am I glad to see you again!"
Hiro smiled and briefly pressed his buffers against hers. "I am glad to see you too, Kioko. But… what are you doing here on the Island of Sodor?"
She giggled in a bubbly way. "I work here now! Driver says we are going to be working up at some clay pits or something like that…"
Sir Topham Hatt approached them right at that moment. "Yes, Kioko. You will be working at the Clay Pits northwest of here, hauling China clay back here to Brendam Docks."
Kioko looked him over. "Are you my new controller?"
"That's right. I am Sir Topham Hatt."
She eyed his top hat. "Nice hat."
He adjusted it with a smile. "Oh, thank you. I never go anywhere without it. Now then… I'm sure you're eager to meet the engines you will be working alongside there, so—"
The Fat Controller was cut off by a pair of high-toned whistles, and he turned to face the line that led through the Sodor Shipping Company building and up to the Clay Pits.
"Actually, I think that's them coming along right now…" said Sir Topham Hatt.
"'Them?'" Kioko repeated as her gaze followed that of the Fat Controller.
Suddenly, a yellow saddle tank engine puffed out from the shadows of the SSC building, an evil grin on his face. "Prepare for trouble!"
Another engine that was perfectly identical to him followed, the exact same mischievous expression on his face as well. "And make it double!"
Kioko quickly reversed. "Aaah!" she screamed.
Just then, Edward puffed past, having seen everything. "Oh, stop it, you two. Kioko is new to this railway, and she's probably worn out from her journey here, so quit scaring her and make her feel welcome."
"'Kioko?'" the first twin replied.
"What kind of a name is that?" asked the other.
Kioko bit her lip. "I am from Japan. My name means 'child born with happiness' in Japanese."
"Oh, so you're from Japan, are you?" The first one shared a cheeky look with his brother.
"Does that mean we can call you 'Kioko-chan'?" the second twin asked her.
"No," she replied with a deadpan face.
"Aww…" they both groaned.
Hiro made a noise as if he were clearing his throat, and Kioko turned her attention back to him.
"Kioko… I have to go now, but I will see you again. I must deliver this goods train to Vicarstown for now, but I will be coming this way again later on. Perhaps we will see each other then."
"Aw, do you have to?" she asked, her dark pupils growing larger.
Hiro's expression saddened, but then he tried to brush it off and gave her a smile. "...Yes. Do not worry—I have a feeling that we will be able to talk again soon. I am glad that we will get to see each other more often now. Welcome to Sodor, Kioko."
The pastel tank engine smiled back and reluctantly began to pull away from Hiro, but then she suddenly rushed forward again and gave him one last buffer press. Then Kioko switched onto the same track as the mischievous twins, and they watched as Hiro whistled and began to puff away.
"Ki wo tsukete…" Kioko whispered sadly as she watched him go.
"Ki-wo-what-now?" asked one of the twins.
"I was just saying goodbye to him."
Kioko wasn't sure why, but she felt agitated by these twins. It had nothing to do with their question—there was just something about them, something very annoying…
Sir Topham Hatt coughed, and the three tank engines all looked back at him when they remembered that he was still there. "Bill and Ben, would you two show Kioko to the Clay Pits now? She is going to be working alongside you both from now on."
The first twin gasped. "Oh, so you're the new engine that's going to be helping us?" He chuckled darkly.
"Glad to have another test subject—excuse me, I mean friend, here on Sodor," the second twin added with an evil smirk.
The Fat Controller gave them a suspicious look, then he dismissed the trio, and the three little tank engines set off for the Clay Pits.
Kioko finally broke the silence after a few minutes had passed. "I already miss Hiro… I first met him shortly after he returned to Japan after being gone for so many years. He told me all about his life on Sodor, and I have been wanting to see it for myself ever since. And now… I finally get to do that."
"Is Hiro your best friend or something?" asked the twin in front of her.
"Kind of. It is more like a mentor and student bond that he and I have." She sighed and tried to shake away her visible sadness. "So, the fat man in a suit said your names are Bill and Ben?"
The tank engine twins giggled.
"That's right," said the first one. "I'm Bill."
"And I'm Ben." He grinned. "Or maybe I'm Bill, and he's Ben?"
"No, I'm Bill!"
"No, I am!"
"No, I am!"
Kioko stared at them like they were crazy. "I see how it is…" she muttered to herself. Then Kioko raised her voice. "So, will it be just the three of us working at the Clay Pits, or are there other engines there, too?"
"Oh, there are other engines alright," said… Bill? Ben? Kioko wasn't sure which.
"But one of them's an annoying oil-burning tank engine named Timothy, and the other is actually a steam shovel named Marion who only ever talks about digging and likes to play 'Guess What's in My Shovel'," said his brother.
"Okay, so… Timo-thay and Marion, right?" Kioko asked, pronouncing Timothy's name the way the yellow tank engine had.
"What? No, it's pronounced 'Timothy'."
"'Timo-thay?"
"No, Timothy."
"I thought you said 'Timothay'."
**Bill (or Ben?)'s expression changed to a rather frustrated one. "No, Timo—" He cut himself off and sighed. "That's just how we say it, Kioko. It's our accent that does it."
"Oh, sorry. I thought that was actually how you say the name," she replied.
When they reached the Clay Pits, Kioko was amazed.
"Wow, so this is where I will be working? How fun!" she exclaimed when she saw her new surroundings.
"Fun?" one of the twins echoed. "There's nothing fun about working in the Clay Pits."
"But," added the other, "there is fun to be had if you play in the Clay Pits."
Bill and Ben chuckled, and Kioko stared at them for a moment, then she puffed off to go explore her new workplace.
The Clay Pits were enormous, and the Japanese tank engine found herself wandering around and gazing at all the workers as they went about doing their jobs. The pits were a little noisy, but Kioko didn't mind. She liked a fast-paced environment that was bustling with life.
Suddenly, a shovel swung straight into Kioko's path and almost hit her in the face.
Kioko braked hard, and when she opened her eyes again, an orange, friendly-looking, railway steam shovel was smiling in her direction. "Hello! Do you want to play 'Guess What's in My—'"
She stopped herself when she looked directly at Kioko. "Oh, hang on, you're not Bill or Ben." The steam shovel gasped. "Oh! You must be the new tank engine that's been sent here to help us in the Clay Pits! I'm Marion, and I love digging!" She punctuated the last three words with a raise of her shovel.
Kioko was bewildered by Marion's enthusiastic attitude, but she welcomed it and smiled back. "I am Kioko. I arrived here just barely, and I cannot wait to begin working!"
"Ooh, really?" said Marion. "Well, maybe you could start by taking these loads of rocks away from here? I would've had Bill and Ben do it by now, but…" Her smile flickered. "They're quite the troublesome pair, those two."
"They are a strange pair of engines," Kioko agreed.
She went to be coupled up to the trucks and take the rocks away, but then Marion called out to her again.
"Wait, I know! Since you're here, would you like to play a game of 'Guess What's in My Shovel'?"
"I suppose so?" Kioko replied with a look of confusion.
Several rounds of guessing what was in Marion's shovel later, Kioko finally began to make her way back through the Clay Pits again.
"I do not understand why Marion makes people guess what is inside her shovel," she commented to her driver. "It is just rocks or dirt every single time."
Up ahead, Kioko could see a dark blue saddle tank engine resting at a water tower without a care in the world. Suddenly, a train of trucks was shunted into his rear buffers, and another set was pushed in front of him.
The tank engine was startled and tried to move out of the way, but of course, he couldn't go anywhere, and he was trapped between the two sets of trucks.
"Bill! Ben!" the tank engine shouted. "Move these trucks right now!"
From both ends of the train, the mischievous tank engine twins hooted with laughter and pulled away from the trucks, then quickly sped away from the blue engine.
"I don't think we will, Timothy!"
"Little blue piggy in the middle!"
Kioko puffed up her cheeks with indignation, then she was uncoupled from her own trucks and went to pull away the ones in front of the dark blue engine.
"I am sorry that they did this to you," Kioko told the engine as she moved the trucks out of his face.
He sighed. "They do things like this to me all the time. I'm used to it by now, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't bother me."
She reversed next to him and was coupled up to her trucks again. "My name is Kioko."
The blue tank engine smiled. "I'm Timothy. Are you the new engine who's come here to help us?"
"Yes. Marion asked me to take these rocks away, so—"
She was interrupted by Bill and Ben puffing past with a train of full trucks, speeding by so quickly that some of their load spilled out and dust flew everywhere.
Kioko coughed and glared after the twins. "Are they always like this?"
Timothy sighed. "Yes, I'm afraid so. Nobody can make them behave, except for Edward, and he doesn't even work here. When Bill and Ben go down to the docks, though, he always makes sure that they do what they're supposed to if he's around."
Kioko's eyes widened as an idea flew into her funnel. "Timothy, what if I tried to keep them in order? Maybe I could get them to stop bullying you."
He smiled gratefully, but there was doubt in Timothy's voice as he told her, "Marion and I have tried to do just that, but we're both still unsuccessful at getting them to permanently behave. If you ever do manage to keep them under control… even if it takes you a few years to do so, I'd be very thankful."
"Then I will try the moment I get back from taking these rocks away."
"Hey Ben," Bill said to his twin as they were refilling with coal.
"Yeah?"
"You see that sleeping truck over there?" Bill gestured to a Troublesome Truck on a nearby line.
"What about it?" asked Ben.
Bill grinned in an evil way. "Let's wake it up."
But Marion was steaming past on another track and overheard them. "Oh, no you don't."
Ben ignored her. "Why?" he asked his brother.
"To see how it reacts, of course."
His eyes lit up. "Ooh, okay. Good idea."
Marion narrowed her eyes. "Bill and Ben, are you listening to me? I said don't do it."
But the tank engine twins just burst out laughing, then they quieted down as they both approached the Troublesome Truck, one from behind, and the other in front.
Marion puffed forward. "Stop that right now!"
Bill suddenly sped into the buffers of the truck, and it yelped as it woke up with a jolt. Then Ben bashed into it from the front, and the poor Troublesome Truck went screaming back into Bill.
This was the scene that Kioko came across when she returned to try and deal with the twins herself.
"Bill! Ben! Leave that truck alone or I will make you!" she yelled.
"Then come and make us," taunted Bill.
Kioko charged towards them, but the twins quickly switched onto a different line and raced away, laughing loudly about their little prank.
"Sorry about those two," Kioko said to the Troublesome Truck as she gently brought it to a rest from Bill's last shove.
The truck didn't respond, staring into the distance as it gasped for breath in a panicked way.
Marion came up next to Kioko. "We've tried forcing them to behave before, but it doesn't seem to work on them. They just keep resisting like the rebellious little troublemakers that they are."
Kioko's eyes narrowed with determination. "...Then maybe they just need to be told how to act in a different way."
"Bill! Ben!" Kioko called out when she had found them again.
"Yes?" the twins asked in unison, mischievous smirks on their faces.
"Shunt those trucks over there out of the way, please." Kioko gestured with her eyes to show them where. "And whatever you do, please do not do it carefully or in the right way at all."
"Oh! Yes, Kioko!" Bill responded mischievously. Ben giggled as he buffered up behind his brother.
"Kioko, what are you doing?" asked Marion in disbelief as she pulled up next to the Japanese tank engine.
"Reverse psychology," she whispered back.
Unfortunately, Kioko's whisper wasn't quiet enough. "Reverse reverse psychology," chanted the twins as they did exactly what she had told them to do.
"Wait! Bill and Ben, nooo!" she cried as she chased after them.
But the twins were too eager to cause mischief, and they shunted the trucks so hard that they almost derailed!
Kioko studied Bill and Ben's faces as she stopped next to them, her almond-shaped eyes narrowed with frustration. "You are without doubt the most troublesome twins I have ever heard of."
"But you have heard of us," Ben replied with a smirk.
Kioko grunted and went to shunt the trucks properly. When the twins realized that she could still hear them if they tried to speak to each other, they decided to communicate through morse code.
What if we prank her next? Bill flashed to Ben using his lamp.
Good idea. But how? Ben flashed back.
Those trucks full of China clay over there need to go to Brendam Docks. We'll have Kioko come along, too.
Bill and Ben winked at each other, then a few minutes later, they both puffed up on either side of the pastel pinkish-purple engine while she was shunting.
"Kioko, do you want to help us with something?" asked Ben.
"Only if we will actually be working and not causing confusion and delay," she responded warily.
Bill grinned at Ben as he spoke to Kioko. "Oh, of course we'll be working! Those trucks over there need to be taken down to Brendam Docks, but Ben and I have needed the strength of another engine to help bring them there. Will you come with us?"
Kioko chewed on her lower lip as she thought about this. Deciding that there would be no harm in being useful, she finally agreed.
"You know, Bill, we can take more trucks than usual now since there's another engine to help us," Ben said to his twin as they took the back of the train and watched Kioko take the front.
"I know, which is exactly why we added more trucks to this train before we asked Kioko for her help," Bill replied with a grin.
Ben laughed. "I don't know what I would do without a twin—more specifically, a twin like you."
"Aren't we the same?" Bill asked.
"Pretty much, yeah."
"Except I'm better."
"No, I'm the better twin."
"No, I am!"
Kioko whistled from the other end of the train. "Can we get going?"
The twins stopped fighting and began to move, and the clay train finally started off for Brendam Docks. When the trio had left the Clay Pits and was beginning to climb over the hill that separated them from the docks, Bill whispered something to Ben, and the pair both held back a giggle.
As they reached the top of the hill, Kioko gently applied her brakes so they wouldn't speed down the other side. The tank engine twins, on the other hand, began to push forward and speed up.
Kioko began to panic. "Bill, Ben, we are going too fast!"
"We know!" they shouted back, laughing loudly.
As they weaved around bends and zoomed past the scenery, the trucks almost derailed several times, and Kioko felt as if she were going to be sick.
When the train finally came to a screeching halt at Brendam Docks, Kioko had had it with the twins and their tricks. She didn't say a word on the way back, and though Bill and Ben laughed about their prank, she was very angry and only just managed to hold back her anger.
But when they got back to the Clay Pits, things only got worse.
"Oh dear, Kioko," said Bill as he watched her go to get a drink at the water tower. "No need to be so angry at us. It was only a bit of fun."
Kioko's eyes blazed with fury, and she glared at the twins as they pulled up alongside her. "WILLIAM AND BENJAMIN!" she shouted. "What is wrong with you?! I try to help you, and you almost derail the three of us!"
Marion and Timothy watched the scene unfold together from a little ways off, both rather nervous and startled by Kioko's outburst.
"Actually, it's Bill and Ben—" one of the twins began.
"I DO NOT CARE!" she yelled. "Just like how you did not care about our safety and especially mine a few minutes ago! When will you two quit being so reckless?!"
The twins were silent for a moment but it was quickly broken by Bill. "You know, you really shouldn't trust us, Kioko. After all, we're engines…" He chuckled. "...And we have loco motives!"
Both twins burst out laughing all over again, and Kioko gave them a harsh glare. "Shut up! You are the most annoying engines I've ever met!"
Ben gasped at her harsh words, and he said something that finally made Kioko snap. "Goodness, Kioko. What would your good friend Hiro say if he saw you lose your temper the way you are now?"
Kioko inhaled sharply.
Bill saw the warning sign first. "Uh, Ben… I think we may have crossed a line—"
"AAAGGGHHH!" Kioko let out a scream of rage and advanced towards Ben.
For the first time since she had arrived, Ben actually began to genuinely fear Kioko and quickly reversed. "Bill, help!" he called out to his twin.
"What am I supposed to do?!" the yellow tank engine called back.
"Stop her!" Ben's voice had a note of terror to it.
Kioko was getting faster, and she was practically on fire as she rushed after him. The two engines raced around the Clay Pits, with Bill trailing after them in the hopes of somehow being able to stop Kioko's rampage.
And then there was trouble.
As the tank engines rounded a bend, Ben realized that the track he was on led to a dead end—and there was only a pair of buffers at the other end to prevent him from falling into a rocky pit in front of them.
Ben braked hard, but it was no use. With a bash, Kioko accidentally smacked into him, sending him flying forwards and through the buffers with a crash. But the sound was nothing compared to the resounding crunch as Ben fell into the pit and smashed onto the large rocks.
***Kioko suddenly stopped, and the flames in her smokebox flickered for a moment with a sickening feeling. "Oh, no… W-what have I done…?" she whispered, her voice cracking a little.
"What have you done?" Bill demanded as he pulled up behind her. "What did you do to Ben?!"
"I…"
Her response was cut off by a gut-wrenching yell of pain that came from Ben, and Bill's face immediately tensed, then he quickly rushed away to get help.
As the workers and the other engines came over to see what had happened, Kioko suddenly felt overwhelmed by fear and guilt, and she immediately fled the scene.
Hiro was peacefully traveling to Brendam Docks to pick up another goods train, when he suddenly heard a high-pitched whistle. The next thing he knew, a pastel pinkish-purple tank engine was rushing towards him, tears streaking her round face.
"Kioko? What is the ma—"
Both of them came to a stop as she met Hiro's buffers and began to sob. The two sat there on Edward's Branch Line while Kioko cried, and Hiro silently watched her with compassion in his eyes.
When she could speak again, Kioko explained to Hiro about everything that had happened between her and the twins, and Hiro was silent for a moment as he thought about all that she had told him.
Finally, he gave her a gentle smile. "Kioko, could you come with me on my way to the docks?"
"Y-yes…" she said with a sniffle.
As the two Japanese engines puffed along side by side, Hiro gave his student figure some counsel. "The best thing that you can do, is to go back and tell Ben that you are sorry. It may not fix everything, but apologies are the first steps that must be taken on the path of healing."
"But Hiro… I do not think he will forgive me after what I have done to him."
"Whether he forgives you or not is his choice," he replied wisely, "but it is your job to show that you are sorry and at least try to make things right."
"Ben and his twin are the ones who started this whole problem in the first place!" Kioko suddenly burst out. "Should he not apologize, too?"
Hiro paused and studied her face. "Yes, he should, but perhaps he will not be willing to do so, unless you apologize for letting your anger overcome you first. If one opens their heart and becomes vulnerable, the other might then be more willing to also open theirs."
Hiro's tone softened when he saw how downcast Kioko looked. "You are the one who is willing to change for the better, Kioko. It is in your power to teach those boys how to act. Perhaps they will learn from your example and become as wise as you one day."
Kioko's dark eyes lifted. "Me? Wise?"
He smiled. "Yes, of course. You may be young, but you are mature for your age, and your open-mindedness and will to learn and grow has and will take you far. You have proven that in seeking my counsel and taking it to heart."
She smiled back. "I am only wise because I learned from the wiser one, Hiro. Thank you for helping me."
"I am always here for you, Kioko. Now go, and resolve your conflict with Bill and especially Ben."
"I will, Hiro! Thank you!" she called as she quickly puffed away.
When Kioko got back to the Clay Pits, it was dark out, and all the workers had gone home for the night. As she approached the sheds, Kioko could see Timothy and one of the tank engine twins resting inside.
"Ben? Is that you?" she called out.
"No, it's Bill." The yellow saddle tank engine did not look happy to see Kioko at all.
She came to a stop on the track right outside his berth. "...Look, I just want to say that I am so—"
"Why did you do that to my brother?!" Bill demanded. "Now I have to sleep without him tonight, and if there's anything I hate, it's being stuck in a shed with nobody to talk to and being forced to listen to Timothy's snoring all night!"
"I will be sleeping here tonight," Kioko reminded him. "But never mind that. Where's Ben?"
Bill stared at her hard for a few seconds, before finally telling her, "He's at the Steamworks, with damaged wheels. He won't be coming back until tomorrow."
"Okay. Thank you." Kioko began to reverse, but then she stopped and spoke to Bill again. "I really am sorry about what I did to Ben. I was very angry, but I did not truly mean to hurt him."
Bill hesitated as he thought about this. "...I suppose I'll accept your apology. But don't ever separate me from my twin like this ever again."
It took her a little while to find her way there, since she was new to the Island of Sodor, but Kioko eventually arrived at the Steamworks.
Victor and Kevin were asleep inside the building, but when she looked up, Kioko could see Ben hoisted in the air while waiting to have his wheels replaced in the morning.
The Japanese tank engine took a deep breath, then called out softly, "Ben, are you awake?"
The yellow engine's eyes cracked open. "Kioko? What are you doing here?"
She lowered her eyes, and it took her a few moments to muster up enough courage to speak. Finally, it all came rushing out of her. "Ben, I am so, so sorry for knocking you into that pit! I did not mean to hurt you, and yes, I was very angry, but I should not have done that and I am so sorry…!"
Ben's eyes widened when he saw that she was starting to cry. "Woah, hey! Stop crying!"
But Kioko only sobbed harder, and he could see that she really did mean everything that she had said.
He tightened his lips. "Kioko, I said stop! I don't like seeing you cry!"
This time, she did stop. "What?" Kioko asked with a sniffle, hardly believing what she had just heard.
Ben's cheeks turned red. "I-I mean… I don't like the sound of other people crying."
The two were silent for a moment, then Kioko spoke up again. "Please, will you forgive me?"
"...Only if you'll forgive me for taunting you," Ben replied with a smile.
Kioko's face lit up with hope, and she looked up at him. "Wait, really?"
"Yes, really. I shouldn't have made you so angry, and I wouldn't have done those things if I'd known you were going to blow up like that… Okay, I shouldn't have done them in general," Ben added after she raised an eyebrow at his remark.
The pastel purple-pink engine sighed in relief. "Of course I forgive you. I am just glad that you forgave me, too."
Ben and Kioko sat in another awkward silence for a minute, then Ben closed his eyes and let out a breath of air. "Now go back to the Clay Pits. We both need to sleep, and I don't think Victor will like it if he finds you sitting in here for no reason."
Kioko chuckled and began to reverse. "You only make me want to try to stay," she teased.
Kioko could hear Ben failing to stifle his laughter as she steamed out of the Steamworks and went back to the Clay Pits.
The next day, Ben had been fully repaired, and he was sent back to work in the afternoon. Bill was very happy to see him again, and the two were nearly inseparable for the rest of the day.
An hour after Ben had returned from the Steamworks, he and Bill were puffing through a narrow track in the Clay Pits that was surrounded with walls on both sides, when they suddenly heard a strange noise coming from somewhere nearby.
"Did you hear that?" Bill asked his brother as he cast a glance at their surroundings.
"Yeah… It almost sounded like another engine," Ben replied.
As they rounded the bend, they could see a junction up ahead where the track on the other side of the wall merged with theirs.
Suddenly, a pastel tank engine jumped out from behind the wall. "Boo!"
"Aah!" they both yelled.
Kioko started to laugh, and after a moment, Bill and Ben began to laugh, too.
A little ways off, Marion and Timothy were watching the trio with smiles on their faces.
"You know, Timothy, I think they're all going to get along better from now on," said Marion.
"I think you're right, Marion," Timothy replied with a tiny smile as his eyes turned to look into hers.
A/N: Kioko is based off of a 0-4-0 JNR B20 tank engine, with added buffers for working on Sodor.
*In this story, Hiro doesn't permanently leave Sodor and go back to Japan with Kenji like he would have in Season 24 (which doesn't exist in Iridescence). Instead, he continues to travel back and forth between Japan and the Island of Sodor every time Sir Topham Hatt needs his assistance on the North Western Railway. I did this because Hiro is one of my favorite characters and the first CGI character to be introduced that I ever liked, and seeing him go was hard for me to watch.
**Bill and Ben's accents confused me for years. I finally found out that they had Birmingham accents, but I had to look it up after puzzling over them for so long.
***Kioko would never intentionally kill or seriously injure another engine. This was basically an emotional breaking point for her. New home, new job, annoying new co-workers... yeah.