Terence and Percy to the Rescue
Based upon Thomas, Terence and the Snow by Rev. W. Awdry and Percy to the Rescue by Christopher Awdry
Adapted by Rachel Ravens
Takes place between TAC and TACO
The North Western Railway was very small in the early years. The only engines on it were Edward, Henry, Gordon, James, and the two newest members, Thomas and Percy. There were also the Peel Godred branch line engines and the Midland engines, but that's besides the point. The former of the cheeky tank engine duo ran the Ffarquhar branch line, and the latter was the current station pilot. Today, the two tank engines met up with each other at Knapford with Thomas' first train of the day; Annie and Clarabel were there too of course.
"Am I glad you joined our railway, Percy," smiled Thomas. "It's great to have another tank engine to talk to. I mean, aside from Julie, Katie and Lauren, but I hardly get to see them on this side of the island, unless there's a traffic spike on my branch line."
"I'm just glad everyone's friendly," Percy replied. "My old home was terrible. Everyone belittled me because I was smaller than them."
"That's no way to treat an engine!" snapped Annie. "You should have been treated with love and kindness, not bad names."
"If I saw those engines, I'd give them a piece of my mind," agreed Clarabel.
"Ditto to that, girls," Thomas grunted.
Just then, the engines and coaches felt a bluster of wind sweep through the station.
"The weather's certainly getting colder out here," commented Percy.
"Indeed," agreed Thomas. "Good thing we've got fires to keep us warm."
"For once," said Annie, "I wish we were people."
"Why's that?" asked Clarabel.
"They get to ride in us and keep warm," Annie sighed. "If we were people, then we could get into coaches and keep warm too."
"Well, I can't say I disagree with that statement," Clarabel conceded.
"I'll go as quickly and safely as I can," said Thomas. "Then you two can be warm too."
"Thank you, Thomas," both coaches said gratefully. Thomas' guard's whistle blew and he was off, whistling goodbye to Percy as he left, and the green tank engine whistled in kind.
The cold breeze was a sure sign that autumn had come to the Island of Sodor. The leaves changed from green to brown, and the fields from yellow stubble to brown earth.
"I never saw the changes from Summer to Autumn in this great detail before," Thomas commented as he headed along. "Being stuck at the big station of Victoria can do that to you."
"How long were you there, Thomas?" asked Annie.
"Quite a few years," Thomas admitted. "Too many for me to count."
"This must be a nice change of pace for you," smiled Clarabel.
As Thomas was puffing down the track, he heard the chugging of another vehicle in the field.
"Huh?" Thomas gasped in surprise. "What's that?"
"I can't quite see what's making that sound," Annie admitted.
"Neither can I," agreed Clarabel. "Wait, I think I saw something bright orange in the field."
"Bright orange?" asked Thomas. "What could possibly be in the field that's bright orange? It can't be another coach."
"I sure hope not," gasped Annie. "If it were another coach, the poor dear would be scared."
"No, I don't think it was," Clarabel admitted. "It was definitely moving."
"I guess we'll have to figure it out later," Thomas sighed.
On his return journey, Thomas and his coaches were coming up to a red signal.
"Oh!" Annie realised, "it's a tractor!"
"Why so it is," added Clarabel. "They always live on farms."
"Ah, I see," Thomas noted, and it was at this point where he braked to a stop right next to the tractor in question.
"Hello," said the tractor. "I'm Terence. I'm plowing."
"I'm Thomas," replied the tank engine. "I'm pulling a train." He was about to say something else, when he got a closer look at Terence's wheels. "Oh, what ugly wheels you've got."
Before Annie or Clarabel could retort, Terence chuckled. "They're not wheels. They're caterpillar tracks." he started to roll around the field, proudly showing them off. "I can go anywhere. I don't need rails." He came to a stop, grinning. "See? It's easy when you have caterpillar tracks."
"I don't want to go 'anywhere'." retorted Thomas. "I like my rails, thank you!" The signal dropped and Thomas was away with Annie and Clarabel, who were very shocked by Thomas' behaviour.
"How dare you, Thomas!" snapped Annie.
"You must apologise to Terence next time you see him." added Clarabel. "You were very lucky he didn't get upset about that."
"I guess I did go a bit overboard," sighed Thomas. "Though I still wouldn't want to go 'anywhere'. It would be dangerous for engines to run without rails."
"Well, I suppose that can't be argued," Annie admitted, and Clarabel had to agree.
However, Thomas had a bit of bad luck when trying to talk to Terence.
"Terence!" called Thomas when he was halted at a red signal one day. "Are you there?"
"Oh…" sighed Annie. "He's on the far side of the field."
"We'll have to try again later." added Clarabel.
This wasn't the only day where Terence was on the far side of the field. However, when Terence was on the near side of the field on other days…
"Terence!" called Thomas. "I have to talk to you-"
"The signal's green!" called Annie.
"Oh, bother…" sighed Thomas as he had to keep going. "What's it going to take for us to stop and talk to each other?"
The months slowly went by, but eventually, the engines were at Knapford where a great surprise greeted them.
"Oh, the Christmas decorations are going up," smiled Edward, who was waiting at platform three.
"They are?!" cried Thomas and Percy, both rushing over; the former with Annie and Clarabel heading to platform two, and the latter shunting three old coaches, Audrey, Hilary and Mark behind Edward.
"Oh, they are just beautiful!" Thomas exclaimed. "Definitely rivals the decorations I've seen at Victoria station."
"I've never seen anything quite like this before," smiled Percy.
"It's a magical time of year, Percy," Edward said warmly.
"Really?" asked Percy. "Does that mean fairies come out and grant wishes to everyone?"
Annie chuckled. "Not quite like that, Percy."
"Edward means that sometimes, the best things happen this time of year," Clarabel explained.
"Like what?" asked Thomas.
Before Edward or any of the five coaches could reply, the group all saw dark heavy clouds up above.
"Oh, it might rain at this rate," sighed Thomas.
"I don't think so," said Audrey. "It may snow."
"Snow?" asked Percy. "Really? What's that like?"
"It chokes the lines," Hilary explained. "You all may have to get snowplows fitted."
"Oh no…" groaned Thomas. "This is all I need now…"
"What's so bad about snowplows?" Percy asked curiously. Being stuck in a workshop for so long, he never really saw snow himself.
"They're heavy and uncomfortable," grunted Thomas as his guard's whistle blew. "And a real nuisance if you ask me."
"This is going to lead to trouble…" sighed Annie.
"Let's hope it's not too much," agreed Clarabel.
The snow fell lightly onto the tracks on the journey, just barely enough to cover the ground. Some spots of the ballast were very visible as Thomas puffed along.
"This is silly soft stuff," Thomas grinned, feeling cold but confident. "Nothing to it."
"I don't know, Thomas," said Annie. "The clouds look like they are getting heavier."
"The snow could be thicker on the return journey," agreed Clarabel.
The trio managed to reach Ffarquhar safely, and Thomas gently shunted Annie and Clarabel into their shed and he went to rest at the engine shed next to them.
"It would be nice if we had a couple of other engines to talk to at the sheds here," Thomas commented.
"Percy could very well join us sometime," Annie agreed. "He's proven his worth on the branch line already."
"Such a delightful little engine too," Clarabel smiled.
Unfortunately, while the trio were talking, the snow had fallen much quicker and had spread very thick onto the line. The rails were two dark lines standing out in the white snow.
"You'll need your snow plow for the next journey, Thomas," said his driver.
"Snow is silly soft stuff!" grunted Thomas. "It won't stop me."
"Listen to us," added the fireman, "we are going to fix your snowplow on, and we want no nonsense, please!"
Without a choice, Thomas had his snowplow fitted on, and he grunted as he backed onto Annie and Clarabel. Though he was cross, he didn't dare bump his coaches.
"Let's get this over with," sighed Thomas as he headed out to the station to collect the passengers.
But when Thomas was out on the open line, he started to shake the snowplow.
"Thomas!" cried Annie. "Careful up there!"
"I'm surprised our passengers aren't being rattled around," muttered Clarabel.
"I hate this thing," grunted Thomas as he banged his snowplow through a snowdrift. "I just wish for it to go away."
"This is going to be a long trip…" sighed Annie. Clarabel didn't reply, but rolled her eyes in annoyance of Thomas' behaviour.
Eventually, the driver and fireman had to take off the snowplow when they reached Tidmouth that evening.
"You are a very naughty engine!" snapped his driver, as he closed the shed doors that evening. The other five engines were already at the sheds; Gordon and Edward being steamed up for their evening trains.
"What happened back there, Thomas?" Percy asked.
"Oh, it's my snowplow," grunted Thomas. "It's so uncomfortable that I-"
"You should wear it when it's heavily snowing outside," grunted Henry. "You could end up in an accident without it."
"Nothing happened when I was shunting at my home at Victoria station," Thomas replied. "I was fine."
"The yards and the branch line are two different things, Thomas," Edward sighed. "You must be very careful."
Before Edward could say anymore, the turntable was turned his way, and he had to follow Gordon out to the station. "Just keep what I said in mind."
But I'm afraid to say Thomas didn't when he went to sleep, and his driver and fireman came early next morning to try and fix the snowplow to make it fit.
"It's no good," grunted the fireman. "We'll have to carry on without it."
Thomas grinned as he headed to find Annie and Clarabel. "I shan't have to wear it!"
He collected the coaches and set off down the line, grinning all the way.
"I hope it'll be fine," sighed Annie.
"I don't see any clouds this time," said Clarabel. "And the snow's been cleared away yesterday."
"It's not bad here," Annie admitted when they pulled into Knapford. "But it's sure to be bad in the valley. Some snow could have fallen down from the hills."
Down at Ffarquhar station, Thomas had halted to let passengers on and off as usual.
"Hmm… oh, cinders and ashes!" he cried. "Annie, Clarabel, is that the Vicar of Ffarqhuar?"
"I do believe you're right!" cried Annie.
"But what's he doing here?" asked Clarabel.
There were a lot of children from his Sunday school in their best clothes with eager faces.
"We can't be late!" smiled one of them.
"Come on!" cried another. "Last one in Annie and Clarabel's a rotten egg!"
"Don't crowd," said one of the teachers, "one at a time into the coaches, please."
"What's the hurry, Reverend?" asked Thomas.
"It's the school Christmas party," he explained. "This year we're having one big party for all the valley's schools, so we shall be leaving you when we get to Knapford."
"Oh," smiled Thomas. "The girls and I will get you there as smoothly as possible."
"This is exciting," smiled Annie.
"So many happy children," said Clarabel. "I can't wait to see their reactions to what Knapford station looks like."
Thomas set off when his guard's whistle blew. But the group couldn't help but notice that snow had begun falling on the way down to Ffarqhuar.
"I don't like this nasty weather, Annie," said Clarabel anxiously.
"Neither do I, Clarabel," agreed her older sister. "Uh, Thomas, maybe you should go back for your snowplow."
"Just to be safe."
"I don't need that heavy, uncomfortable plow," grinned Thomas as he headed through Hackenbeck tunnel. "Snow is silly, soft stuff. It won't stop me."
But Thomas had spoken too soon. "Cinders and ashes!" He cried.
CRASH! He stopped right in the middle of a high snowdrift.
"I'm stuck!" he cried. He tried to reverse, but that just resulted in more snow landing on top of him.
"Now do you see why you had to bring your snowplow?!" snapped Annie as the passengers and Thomas' crew tried to dig him out, while the guard went for help.
"Yes…" sighed Thomas. "Oh, my wheels and coupling rods. I'll have to stay here until I'm frozen solid. What a silly engine I am…"
The coaches were about to add another retort, when they heard Thomas give sniffles of sadness.
"Oh, Thomas…" sighed Clarabel. "Don't cry. Help will come…"
And help did come. The same bus who rescued Thomas' passengers when he "went fishing" came for the Vicar and the children and teachers. Thomas gave a small smile at the bus.
"Don't worry," called the bus as he headed off. "I heard a chugging sound when I was coming down here."
Indeed, the chugging sound was Terence the tractor. He turned around and was attached to Clarabel.
"Let's get you out of here," he said, and slowly but surely, Terence pulled Thomas, Annie and Clarabel out of the snow.
"Thank you, Terence." smiled Thomas. "I have to admit, your caterpillar tracks are splendid, and I'll never call them ugly again."
"And I hope you'll wear your snowplow in future," said Terence. "Remember, you have to be sensible if you want to stay safe."
"I will," sighed Thomas. "And I'm sorry for being rude to you all those months ago."
"That's alright," smiled Terence. When the snow was clear, Thomas was able to proceed with getting himself, Annie and Clarabel back to Knapford to see the children's party.
The trio made it just in time to see everyone else gathered. However, the Vicar seemed to be speaking anxiously to one of the teachers, and rushed over to the closest engine at the station to speak with his driver - that being Thomas.
"This is awful!" he said. "I stupidly left my costume behind."
"Costume, Reverend?" asked Thomas. "I thought it was Christmas, not Halloween."
"Yes," he replied. "I'm to give out presents, and I was going to dress up as Santa Claus, but I left my costume in a box on a seat at Ffarquhar station."
"Oh dear!" gasped Thomas. "It won't be safe for me to go without a snowplow, and mine isn't repaired yet."
"No," replied the Vicar worriedly. "It's supposed to be in the evening. There's no way the snow can be cleared in time either."
"What about me, Reverend?" asked Percy. "I've been down Thomas' branch line before."
"That's a great idea, Percy!" smiled Thomas. "You get your snowplow fitted, and go down there. Ffarquhar is the station at the end of the branch line, remember?"
"You got it!" Percy happily got his snowplow fitted and puffed down the branch line.
"Whoa," he commented as he coasted along. "The snow is very thick. No wonder a snowplow is needed."
"It's all worth it in the end," smiled the driver.
"Indeed," agreed Terence when he saw Percy at the field.
"Good job rescuing Thomas!" called Percy as he passed.
"Thank you," smiled the tractor.
Percy's driver put the box in his cab, and the tank engine raced back up to Knapford.
"Thank you, Percy," smiled the Vicar as the tank engine panted in. He raced off to get changed, and it wasn't long before he was dressed up and giving presents to the smiling children.
"Merry Christmas!" he announced as he did so.
"Wow…" Percy said in amazement. "That really does make a difference."
"Christmas really is a magical time of year," smiled Thomas. "Thanks for helping me out, Percy."
"It wasn't a problem," said Percy.
"That was quick thinking, Thomas," complimented Sir Topham Hatt. "Thank you and Percy for making the Christmas party a success. We are here to give a service to the public, and it's incidences like this that prove that we do so. I'm proud of you both. And merry Christmas to everyone."
The engines all whistled in acclimation.
THE END
SUPRISE! I bet you didn't see this instalment coming, cause I sure didn't. Compared to all the other adaptions, Thomas, Terence and the Snow didn't seem as fleshed out, but I did it. When Zack mentioned he was going to adapt Percy to the Rescue at some point, I decided to give it a try, and I thought "hey, why not have both stories take place together?" I mean, Daisy's role had to be dropped for obvious reasons, so it had to be fleshed out another way.
Update: (1/11/2021) Additional lines have been either added or changed up to reflect recent updates within the Seventyverse.
