Chapter 4: A New Friend

The next morning, Shaina went off on an errand to Crovan's Gate, looking for this mysteriously massive library that Rick had been telling her about. Crovan's Gate was considered by many to be a city, alongside Brendam, Vicarstown, Knapford, and Tidmouth. These cities were smaller than cities on the mainland and in other parts of the world. However, they were the biggest on the island. Knapford was the connection between the main line and Thomas' line, while Tidmouth housed the main engine sheds and the headquarters of the North Western Railway. Brendam and Vicarstown were both on the coast with Vicarstown having the Mainland Bridge and Brendam having the main docks and the China Clay pits. And, of course, Crovan's Gate was the home of the mighty Steamworks, which was responsible for the upkeep of every steam engine on the entire island, as well as bringing in steam engines from around the world for repairs and restoration.

Needless to say, Shaina had been doing her research.

It was a busy day and she had to duck and weave through the crowds of people as they made their way to their own destinations. Things were packed tight in a few places and she really had to squeeze. In fact, she was squeezing so hard that she didn't see the young woman in front of her.

"Hey! Careful!"

Shaina looked over to see a girl with brown hair that was all tangly and poofy. For a moment, it reminded her of Merida's hair from Brave, but shorter and brown in color. Her skin was a bit darker than Shaina's, more of a bronze color. She wore a white, short-sleeved, button-up shirt with a black tie and black leggings. The girl muttered as she shifted the items in her arms.

"You almost made me drop my lunch!" she complained.

Shaina carefully stood up and saw the lunch. "... A slice of pie and a cup of coffee?"

"Yep. Everything a person could want. I love pie and coffee. Dad says I'm addicted, but I think he's overdramatic."

Shaina chuckled. "Well, there are worse things to be addicted to, I suppose."

"I know, right?" The girl shifted her things so she could hold out a hand. "I'm Miranda Hanes."

"Shaina McKin. I think I've heard your name before…"

"I bet. My dad drives Henry and Uncle Rick drives Percy."

"Family of railroaders, huh?"

"Yep! I'm an apprentice at the 'Works. Wanna come see?"

Shaina was a bit taken aback. "I… Would it be alright?"

"Yeah! C'mon. I think you'll find it interesting!"

And, before she could argue or protest, Miranda was pulling Shaina along towards her car, which was also alive. Surprise, surprise.

The Steamworks was just outside of Crovan's Gate on the northeast side of town. It was a large building painted tan with windows lined along the sides, one set on top of the others. The roof held multiple chimneys that streamed a thin layer of smoke. Tracks of all sizes wound their way around the building and yard. There was a very interesting contraption that Miranda described as a "transfer table" that was at the three large entrances to the building. Above the entrances hung a sign that said "Sodor Steamworks" in large, green letters. Underneath the letters was a symbol in the same ugly green color - a chimney with steam coming out surrounded by a large cog wheel.

Shaina carefully eyed the building as she got out of Aria, Miranda's car. "Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, I don't want you to get in trouble or anything…"

Miranda laughed. "Do you know how many fans come to the railway on a weekly basis? Well into the thousands. And that's not including those that live on the island… You'll be fine." She paused a moment to wave to Aria and shift her coffee to her other hand. "There are rules of course. Guests can't come in unless they're part of a tour or invited by a worker, like me, guests have to stay in specific areas for their safety, fun stuff like that."

Whatever the outside of the building implied, the inside was vastly different. Massive pieces of machinery packed themselves into the building, creating a dim roar echoing throughout the building. Sparks flew from a couple of those machines, creating flashes of light. The air was warm and muggy. Smoke settled in the roof, giving the light streaming in from the skylights a hazy effect. There were engines scattered around the building, pulled into various sidings to be worked on.

As Shaina finished taking it all in, a sigh came from a nearby engine. He ran on rails that were closer together than the rails she'd normally seen. He was covered in red paint with yellow lining and just below his cab window was the same symbol as the big sign outside. The engine looked to Miranda, exasperatedly.

"Por amor de Dios, Miranda… Who is this?"

"Hello to you too, Victor. This is Shaina, a friend of mine. She's new to the island."

Shaina swore she saw a spark of recognition in the red engine's eyes.

"Ah. Would this be the same Shaina that Henry's been talking about for the past few days?"

"I haven't heard of anyone else by that name," Miranda replied as Shaina blushed behind her.

Victor smiled to Shaina. "Hello, my friend. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"And you as well, Victor," Shaina replied respectfully.

Victor looked over to Miranda. "You know the rules. Make sure she stays in the safe areas and don't let her get burned."

"Yes, Boss," Miranda nodded.

"You called, Miranda?" replied a man, walking over. He wore something very similar to the engine crews, but over that he wore grey overalls with an embroidered Steamworks logo and the words 'Sodor Steamworks' encircling it. He also carried his hat under his arm instead of over his shaggy blonde hair.

"Hey, Samuel," Miranda greeted. "Yes, I know I'm not back in uniform yet. I… was just headed back to do that! So… I'll be… right back…" And with an awkward chuckle, Miranda was gone.

Samuel shook his head. "Miranda…" he sighed, then turned to Shaina. "A guest, huh? I'm Samuel Evans. I'm the Human Head of the Works."

"..."Human" Head?"

"Yep." Samuel chuckled. "Victor's the Engine Head. I handle human stuff, like employees and things, and he mainly sticks to helping fix the engines." He motioned for her to follow him as he walked. "See, fixing living engines is a bit tricky, because they can feel. And some things that seem really bad for them may not hurt as much, or vice versa. Victor has a better idea of how things might feel to an engine. The engines may also tell him things that they might not be able to explain to us."

"So… in some ways, he acts as a translator?"

"In a way, yes."

Just then, there was a massive groan from the entrance. There was a tank engine painted in avocado green with yellow lining. On his sides, he had a symbol that said "GWR" and the number 11. At the moment, he was being pushed in on a flatbed by Percy and it was easy to see why. His whole left side was nearly covered in mud and looked very dented. His two drive wheels on the same side had also snapped clean off.

Victor and Samuel raced over, looking horrified.

"Oliver, my friend, what happened to you?" Victor asked.

"Ran into something and my wheels came off heading out of Haultraugh. Took me and my train down with it. I'm lucky Duck asked to switch my passenger train with him or things could have gotten really messy."

Shaina winced from the sidelines as Miranda finally returned, dressed in her uniform but still holding her cup of coffee.

"Yikes!" she whispered to Shaina as they watched Victor direct Percy to an open space. "Oliver really did a number on himself…"

"Is this a normal thing or…?"

"Seems like it. I haven't been working long enough to tell, to be honest. Wanna say hello?"

"I… Wait…" Shaina stuttered as Miranda drug her over to the other side of the Steamworks. "Can I even…?"

"You'll be fine as long as you don't get in the way." And, before Shaina could really register what was happening, she was standing by the hoist, Oliver watching her curiously. The two blinked at each other for a few moments until Miranda sharply nudged Shaina.

"Hey!"

"Say something! Shockingly, Oliver doesn't bite."

Shaina rolled her eyes, thinking that maybe Miranda's coffee addiction wasn't that great after all.

Oliver was the one to make the first move. "Hello, miss. It's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too, Oliver. I'm Shaina."

There was a flash of recognition in the engine's eyes. "Ah, yes. Henry was mentioning you yesterday."

Miranda chuckled at Shaina's surprised reaction. "Rule 1 of Sodor: Watch what you say around the engines. They're the worst gossips in the world, especially when someone makes an impression on them."

"Good to note," Shaina muttered to herself in reply.

Turns out that, once Oliver got to talking, he tended to hold up a conversation just fine. Miranda was quick to reassure that most engines liked talking about themselves and could likely do so for hours. Oliver told story after story, leaving Shaina spellbound.

Eventually, Shaina grabbed a ride with someone leaving and headed back to Crovan's Gate, this time with actual directions to the library. Sure enough, the library was as massive and beautiful as Rick had described it. By the time she left, she had a fair stack of books tucked away in a bag.

When she returned home that night, she found a small notebook with a matching pen, both in the same pale pink color of her favorite jacket, waiting on her bed. Inside was an inscription:

Songbird,

It seems I forgot something in my gift. Be sure to write good stories. You never know when you may need one.

Best of luck,

D

A/N: Here she is! Chapter 4! Thank you guys so much for all your support and your comments. They really help me.

So, Shaina's venturing out a bit further from home and she's met Miranda and the Steamworks crew. Shaina's learning more about the island and engines, as well as making some new friends. This won't be the last time we see the Steamworks crew. They'll pop up eventually.

Next time we see more with the engine crews, Shaina hears another story, and Chris has a gift! Stay tuned!