A/N: My OC Gabriel Sand is officially introduced in this chapter. He had already appeared in *Tears of Happiness*, but the events of that fic take place some years after this story, when Gabriel is already a married man. So, here you will be able to know him better, and I hope you like him. Oh, and if you want to know how I imagine his face, just think of the actor William Moseley. :)

Guest 4: Thanks for the lovely review. I agree with each of your words.

Drewdy59: Thank you, my little one. I'm happy to hear from you again.

CHAPTER IX

THE QUEEN OF TIDMOUTH

"Each of you has a place in my heart… You are all my treasures." -Emily

A pleasant sensation of warmth awakened him.

After a restful sleep, Thomas noticed that his boiler was starting to bubble. He remained with his eyes closed, remembering what had happened a few hours before. And a slight smile appeared in his cute face on feeling Emily's warm buffers against his. The lullaby sung by the beautiful emerald still sounded in his mind and heart. He remembered fondly that Edward had also sung him to sleep once.

Then, a lovely whisper interrupted his thoughts. "Thomas…"

"Mmm…?" it was Thomas' weak response. He did not want to open his eyes. He wanted to keep enjoying that moment.

"Looks like my baby wants to keep sleeping...," continued the whisper. "I think it'll be better if I keep silent."

"Mmm-hmm."

"Hee! Hee! It's so exciting to see you like this."

Thomas slowly opened his eyes and saw Emily's smiling face. He smiled back at her. "Good morning, Emily," he said softly.

"Good morning, Thomas. Did you sleep well?"

"I slept peacefully in your embrace… You're a tender mother… and you sing like an angel."

"Aww… thank you. I slept peacefully too… Now I know what a mother feels when her baby sleeps in her arms… It's something so beautiful… Thanks for having come here last night, Thomas… Oh, and thanks for having made a prayer asking Lady for a female steam engine."

"You're welcome, precious. Now I can see that that prayer was the best thing I made in my life."

"O-oh…" Emily smiled widely. "You're so lovely, Thomas… You make me happy."

Thomas looked at Emily affectionately. "I'm glad to see you happy… I felt a pain in my heart on seeing you crying last night… I hope you'll never be sad again. And I also hope that one day you can live at Tidmouth Sheds."

"Wow… If that happens, it'll be the happiest day of my life. You don't imagine how much fondness I feel for each one of you..."

"Emily… don't make me cry, okay?"

"Hee! Hee! Hee!"

Thomas and Emily talked for a while longer, and they were soon ready to leave the shed. Then they wished a happy day to each other and went out to do their jobs.

During the day, Thomas thought of giving Emily some surprise to let her know how much they loved her. He was eager for the night to come and get to talk to his friends about it. He knew they would agree and wanted to hear their opinions to decide what that surprise would be.

When night finally came, Thomas puffed quickly to Tidmouth Sheds and waited until his friends arrived. Then he told them how his night at Knapford with Emily had been.

"I went to see her because I thought she would be sad after her incident with Elizabeth," Thomas began by saying, "and I was not wrong. I found her with her eyelids swollen from crying so much."

Everyone was surprised. It was the first time they heard that Emily had cried so much.

"It hurts me to hear that," said Percy.

"My angel shouldn't be sad," added Henry.

"It hurt me too," continued Thomas, "even more so when she said she was... rubbish."

"Oh, no!" exclaimed Edward. "And what did you say to her, Thomas?"

"I asked her if she wanted to talk about what was bothering her, but she said she didn't want to remember it. Then it occurred to me to tell her about the night we asked Lady for a female steam engine. I told her that she is a gift from Heaven, and that Heaven never sends rubbish, just blessing."

Now the engines smiled.

"You did well, Thomas," said Edward. "It's good that she knows that she is not here by chance, but thanks to a higher plan. And how did she react?"

"Oh, she felt very happy. She said it was a revelation to know that she was the answer to a prayer. Then she told me something that surprised me a lot. She said that after her incident with Elizabeth, a voice whispered that one dream of hers would come true, and then she saw a cloud of golden dust in the sky."

Everyone gasped.

"Do you mean she saw Lady?"

"Yes, James, and the whisper she heard was Lady's voice."

"Wow… That was a privilege."

"And what dream of hers will come true, Thomas?"

"It already came true last night, Percy. She wished to know what hugging a baby and singing to put him or her to sleep feels like."

"Oh, my sweet angel!" exclaimed Henry. "No wonder she has wished that."

"But how did it happen?" asked Gordon. "We engines can't hug a baby."

Thomas smiled and took a deep breath as his friends waited for his answer. "You will not believe it…," he said, looking at nothing. "I was her baby… She hugged me tenderly... and she sang me until I fell asleep in her arms."

No engine spoke. All of them looked at Thomas open-mouthed.

Some eternal seconds passed until one decided to say something. It was James. "Perhaps you dreamed of that, Thomas. We've no arms like humans."

"Did I forget to say that the whisper she heard was Lady's voice, James? It was a miracle from Heaven! She used her steam to hug me, as if the steam was human arms… And we saw some particles of golden dust in it."

"WOOOW!" everyone exclaimed.

"So she used her steam…," said Edward. "It really was a miracle from Heaven."

"And could you feel it, Thomas?" asked Percy.

"Yes, I could. It was as the embrace that humans give each other. Oh, and then she sang a lullaby with the sweetest voice I ever heard."

"You're a really fortunate engine," said James. "I also heard her sing and I agree that her voice is the sweetest one ever."

"Fortunate is the least that can be said, James. I felt like Heaven... And I was thinking of giving her a surprise to let her know that we love her just the way she is."

"GOOD IDEA!" it was the general answer.

"And what do you think it could be the surprise, Thomas?" asked Henry eagerly.

"Well… I wanted to hear your opinions about it."

"I know!" exclaimed James. "How about if we invite her to spend one night here with us? She would be delighted."

"I support James' idea," said Gordon.

"Mee too!" added Percy.

"Certainly it's a great idea," affirmed Thomas. "But one of us should give her his place… We can't leave her outdoors."

The engines looked at each other. No one wanted to leave his place. Everyone wanted to stay there when Emily was present. But after a while, Henry spoke. "I'm going to give her my place. She'll spend the night here, and I'll stay at Knapford when I finish taking the Flying Kipper."

"That's nice of you, Henry!" Thomas smiled. "Then it is decided. We're going to invite her to spend a night here."

"In addition to bringing her here," opined Edward, "we could give her something else."

"Do you have something in mind?"

"Yes, Thomas. But we're going to need Gabriel's help."

"Wow... Tell us about your idea."

Edward told his friends about his idea, and everyone agreed. So Thomas offered to talk with Gabriel in order to prepare the surprise. Now all the engines were looking forward to the big day. Better said; the big night.

The next day in the evening, Thomas went to Gabriel's house near Wellsworth Station. He found Gabriel sitting in the garden of his house with his Celtic harp, performing 'Brian Boru's March' as the last rays of the Sun shone on the strings of the musical instrument.

Gabriel was the son of Edward's driver; Charlie Sand. He was a handsome young man with light brown hair and blue eyes. From his childhood he proved to have talent for music. He had a soft tenor voice and played the harp. His classmates used to tell him that he should forget the engines and devote himself to music, but Gabriel's greatest passion was the railway and he was determined to follow in his father's footsteps. His dream was to drive an engine as nice and kind as Edward. The Nº 2 engine was a very close friend of his. In fact, Edward was even his Math teacher when he was a kid...

"I hate Math! I hate Math!" complained the little Gabriel. "Why do we have to learn a lot of silly numbers?!"

"Because they're very useful," replied Edward.

"Useful? For giving headaches, perhaps!"

"I rather think that they're to avoid headaches…"

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, just look at my tender... There is a number there to identify me, and there are many numbers in my cab. There are also numbers at the platforms of the stations, on the phones, on the clocks... How will you work on the railway if you don't want to learn the numbers?"

Gabriel was silent. He realized that Edward was right, and his expression of anger gave rise to one of sadness. "But I can't manage to memorize the multiplication tables...," he said sadly. "I can't concentrate as I'm reciting them... And if I don't learn the times tables, everything else will be very difficult for me."

Edward felt pity for the little one and thought about how to help him. "Gabriel, I have an idea," said Edward after a while. "I could recite the times tables as you try to concentrate on my voice, and afterward we repeat together. What do you think?"

Gabriel raised his eyebrows. "Would you really do that for me, Edward?"

"Of course. Take your book and come to sit on my running-plate."

"Wow! I like that! I'll be back in no time."

Gabriel rushed into his house. It was the noon break time, so he was careful not to wake his father who was taking a little nap before returning to work. Soon he was back with his Math book in one hand and a box of chocolates in the other. He sat on Edward's running-plate and placed the book in such a way that Edward could see it. "These are the multiplication tables," he explained. "We should start with the 2 times table, because the 1 times table is veeery easy."

"Okay," said Edward. "Pay attention while I recite it."

Edward started to recite the 2 times table while Gabriel ate the chocolates. Then Gabriel repeated along with him, and in a little while the child repeated alone. Thanks to his natural talent for music, Gabriel had a great auditory memory. So he just needed to concentrate on Edward's voice to learn faster. His problem was that, in detesting Maths; the mere thought of having to memorize numbers made him lose the enthusiasm, making the concentration almost impossible when he studied alone. However, the voice of his good friend Edward was like... music to his ears.

After a few pleasant minutes of study, Gabriel stood up and pressed his cheek against his friend's. "Thank you, Edward," he said. "It was fun studying with you."

Edward closed his eyes and smiled as he felt Gabriel's soft skin against his. "You're welcome, my little boy," he responded. "Anytime."

"Tomorrow we'll study the 3 times table."

"Okay."

Gabriel said goodbye to Edward; took his book and entered his house.

And Edward looked fondly at the wrapping papers and chocolate scraps that decorated his running-plate...

Back in the present, Thomas did not want to interrupt Gabriel. He preferred to wait until he finished playing his beautiful musical piece. The harp produced a sound that appeared to be coming out of Heaven itself. It is not surprising that it is called the instrument of angels. Thomas imagined Emily's voice accompanied by the harp's sound and he breathed deeply.

As Gabriel finished his musical piece, Thomas blew his whistle. "Bravo!" he exclaimed.

"Thank you!" responded Gabriel. Then he left his harp and approached Thomas. "Good evening, my friend. What brings you out here?"

"Good evening, Gabriel. I came to see you on behalf of my friends. We would like to count on your help to give Emily a surprise."

Gabriel smiled. "I am at your service," he responded. He loved the engines and always liked helping them. So Thomas told him about the idea to surprise Emily. Thomas and his friends wanted her to feel as a queen the night she'll stay at Tidmouth Sheds. And Gabriel totally agreed. "That's a good idea, Thomas," said Gabriel. "I'll let you know when it's ready. We're going to make Emily feel happy."

"Oh... Thank you, Gabriel."

"You're welcome, boy."

Some days after, the surprise was ready.

When the great night came, Henry went to Knapford to talk to Emily. He found her in her shed, relaxing to rest. "Hello, Emily," he greeted.

"Hello, Henry," responded Emily. "To what I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

"Oh…," Henry felt flattered. "We want to invite you to spend the night at Tidmouth Sheds."

"Wow! That's something I wanted for a long time. I'll have no problem to remain next to the building. My crew can cover my tender with a tarpaulin to protect it from dew."

Henry smiled sweetly. "No, Emily," he said, "we're not going to leave you outdoors. You'll stay in my berth, and I'll stay here when I finish taking the Flying Kipper."

"Oh, Henry... Are you going to make that sacrifice for me?"

Henry slowly moved forward until he carefully touched Emily's buffers. "It's no sacrifice, Emily," he said. "On the contrary, it's a pleasure being able to do something for you. You've been so good to me since you came to Sodor… Even you already cared about me before I met you... You're a real angel... and I feel secure in your presence because I know I can trust you and always count on your help… Thank you, Emily… Thank you for being so sweet and compassionate."

Emily was touched. "Henry…," she said tenderly, "you don't need to thank me… You're a very honoured, kind engine, an engine that has already suffered enough… I'm pleased to be able to help you and I'm happy that we're friends… It touched me that you give me your berth to spend the night at Tidmoudh Sheds… but I would have liked you can stay there as well…"

"Don't worry," responded Henry, "tomorrow night, I'm going to come here to stay with you."

"Oh! That's a great idea! And we're going to talk a lot."

"Of course." Henry smiled. "By the way, Emily… um… Thomas said that you… hugged him with your steam… Do you think I can do it too?"

"Sure. Just wish it."

"Well… I…," Henry felt a little nervous, "I-I wish to hug you… If you don't mind…"

"Aww..." Emily smiled at her friend caringly. "Hug me, Henry... hug me… Let off your steam and Lady will do the rest."

"O-okay." Henry looked at Emily shyly while letting off his steam. Soon, some particles of golden dust began to appear in the air, and then Henry's steam moved towards Emily and hugged her boiler right behind her smoke-box. Henry could not believe it. "This is... a t-token of my affection," he whispered trembling, "for you to know that... I-I appreciate you a lot... and that our friendship will never end."

Emily felt a lump in her throat and could not respond. She smiled as a tear rolled her cheek, and then she closed her eyes to enjoy Henry's sweet, respectful embrace. Henry also closed his eyes, and he continued hugging Emily for a few wonderful minutes.

After a while, they opened their eyes. "I also appreciate you a lot, Henry," whispered Emily. "Thank you for your embrace… It was very comforting."

Henry blushed. "You're welcome, precious," he responded. "Well, we must go now. Our friends are waiting for us."

"Okay. Let's go."

The two friends set off for Tidmouth, where the big surprise for Emily was ready.

On arriving at the sheds, Emily steamed onto the turntable. "Hello everyone!" she greeted. "Hello Emily!" responded all the engines. Emily saw that Duck and Oliver were parked on one side of the building and Toby and Henrietta on the other side, and she wondered what they might be doing there at that hour. "Thanks for inviting me to spend the night here," said Emily as she entered Henry's berth between James and Thomas. "This is something I wanted for a long time."

"You're welcome, Emily," replied Thomas.

"We hope you enjoy your stay here," added Percy, who was beside the Nº 1.

Emily smiled. "I'm sure I'll enjoy it, Percy."

"Emily," said Henry, who had stayed on the turntable, "we want you to know that we all love you just the way you're, and that's why we invited you to come here. This night you'll be the Queen of Tidmouth and we're going to pay an affectionate and well-deserved homage to you."

"O-oh...," replied Emily, touched. "What have I done to deserve homage?"

"Well, you're very sweet and compassionate," said Edward.

"And a talented, beautiful lady," added James.

"And a realy useful engine," opined Gordon.

"And extremely brave!" exclaimed Oliver.

"Do you see, Emily?" asked Thomas. "You've virtues that make you very special. And, as I told you some days ago, your biggest virtue is that sweet motherly love that comes from your heart and envelops us all."

"Oh, my dears," Emily blushed, "thanks for your words of affection… You all make me feel like a real queen."

"Glad to hear that, Emily," said Henry, "because in fact you are our queen. And now, let the homage begin."

At that time, a group of children came out of Henrietta and went to place themselves in front of Emily. All of them had a red rose decorated with a white ribbon in their hands, and they wore emerald-green clothes. Emily smiled at them with affection, and her heart began to beat strongly as she wondered what they would do. Soon, Gabriel appeared with a concert harp and placed himself near the children.

Emily gulped. Now she knew what would happen.

After a small introduction with the sweet sound of the harp, the children began to sing.

"There's no one quite like Emily…"

"Oh, my Gosh!" thought Emily, trying to hold back her tears. She did not expect a song composed exclusively for her.

The song spoke about Emily's virtues. The phrases were conceived by the engines, while Gabriel composed the music giving it a melody special to be sung by the children.

As for the roses the children carried in their hands; this had been an idea from James. The Nº 5 engine knew Emily's fascination with the red roses.

Emily enjoyed the song, smiling while some tears escaped from her eyes. And a wave of happiness invaded her soul as all the engines joined the children to sing the last part of the song. The voices of the impressive choir echoed in the sheds, and Emily did her utmost not to cry. Emily had the feeling that sir James Stirling was smiling at her from Heaven. He had said to her "there will be no one quite like you", and according to the song that now echoed in the sheds, the prophecy had been fulfilled.

When the song ended, Emily smiled widely while her friends blew their whistles. Then the children approached her and placed the roses over her running-plate. Emily was about to thank them, but she stayed open-mouthed on seeing that each rose had the name of one of her friends written on the white ribbon. This was so emotional for her that now she could no longer contain herself. So, Emily closed her eyes and broke out in tears.

Immediately, the children got to caresse Emily's buffer-beam with their little hands, and the engines looked at the scene fondly.

After a while, Emily opened her eyes again and smiled between her tears. "Thank you, little ones," she said. "You are all lovely."

"You're welcome, Emily!" responded the children.

The children would have liked to stay a bit longer, but it was already bedtime and they had to go home. So they said goodbye to Emily and boarded Henrietta.

Toby and Henrietta also said goodbye to Emily, just like Duck and Oliver who had to return to Arlesburgh.

After they left, Emily took a deep breath and looked at her friends. "My dears...," she said softly, "my beloved friends... I-I don't know what to say... The homage was just awesome and sweet... I love you all... Each of you has a place in my heart and I feel very happy to be here in your company… You are all my treasures."

The engines were touched by Emily's words.

"You're also our treasure, Emily," said Edward tenderly. "We love you."

"We want happiness to be the sole reason for your tears," added Percy.

"Aww…," Emily smiled. "With so much affection from you all, my tears can only be of happiness." Then Emily looked at Gabriel. "And you, charming gentleman, it's not in vain that you've an archangel's name. Thanks for helping my friends with this surprise. The song and choir made me shiver with excitement."

"You're welcome, charming lady," responded Gabriel, "you deserved that. But the party is not over yet."

"Wow! Is there more?"

"Yes, there is. Your friends told me that you're the flower of their garden, so I'm going to play a melody special for you. It's called 'Waltz of the Flowers'."

"Oh, my… Go ahead!"

Then, Gabriel's fingers softly slipped over the harp strings, playing the chords of the beautiful waltz.

Emily felt blessed. As she enjoyed the music, her glance swept the roses that embellished her running-plate. She read with tenderness the names of her friends written on them, and her heart pounded on seeing the one that contained James' name. Emily closed her eyes. "Why do I like you so much, my troublesome engine?" she thought. "I fail to understand... All I can say is… my heart is red."

At the end of the waltz, the engines blew their whistles and Gabriel bowed before them. Emily was delighted.

After the exchange of congratulations and thanks between Gabriel and his select audience, Gordon had an idea.

"Emily," said Gordon, "James and Thomas have already had the pleasure of hearing you sing. Could you sing to all of us now?"

"Oh... well..." Emily was taken by surprise.

"Please, Emily," said Percy. "Allow us to hear your lovely voice."

"Oh! And maybe Gabriel could accompany you with the harp!" exclaimed Thomas.

"I have no problem," replied Gabriel.

"Come on, Emily," encouraged James, and then he added in a low voice, "kindly mermaid..."

Emily blushed deeply before James' charming whisper. She realized that all eyes were on her and she got a bit nervous, but she was determined to please her friends. They had given her such a wonderful surprise that she felt indebted to them. "Okay, my dears," she responded, "I'm going to sing to you all."

"YEEEES!"

"Hee! Hee!" Emily thought quickly of a song, and then she looked at the gentleman in front of her. "Um... Gabriel, I would like to sing the song that you played on St. Patrick's Day, 'When Irish Eyes Are Smiling'. Could you accompany me?"

Gabriel's jaw dropped. "Are you going to sing that, precious?"

"Y-yes."

"My goodness! It'll be my pleasure to accompany you."

Emily trembled a little as Gabriel played the intro to the song. But fortunately, her nervousness disappeared as soon as she began to sing.

Emily's voice mixed with the sound of the harp turned Tidmouth Sheds into a piece of Heaven at that moment. The engines looked at each other with their best smiles. They were simply enchanted by their queen. As Emily reached the phrase 'you can hear the angels sing' they sighed of emotion, because in fact, they were hearing an angel's voice. And when Emily sang 'for your smile is a part of the love in your heart'; they felt that she was perfectly portraying herself with those words. Emily's sweet smile was really a part of the love she had in her maternal heart.

James in particular was as hypnotized by the kindly mermaid as the first time he heard her sing. He looked at the roses on Emily's running-plate and he wondered which of them would be the one that contained his name. Perhaps that rose that was closer to her long hair; or perhaps the one that was right under her face and had the privilege of being the first to caress her with its aroma everytime she breathed...

Gabriel was also enjoying the song. He loved Ireland. A few years ago he and his classmates made a trip to the Emerald Isle upon finishing high school, and since then he was in love with it. So, it was a delight for him to hear Emily performing this lovely musical piece.

When Irish eyes are smiling

Sure, 'tis like the morn in Spring

In the lilt of Irish laughter

You can hear the angels sing

Gabriel was so excited that he joined his voice to Emily's giving a grand finale to the song…

When Irish hearts are happy

All the world seems bright and gay

And when Irish eyes are smiling

Sure, they steal your heart away

Six whistles followed by three cheers for the artists echoed in the sheds.

Emily and Gabriel thanked the ovation and they also congratulated each other for their performance. The party was wonderful and everyone was pleased and happy, and Emily could hardly believe that she was the reason for all that celebration.

Gabriel continued to play some musical themes until the time came when Henry was to take the Flying Kipper. Then he said goodbye to his friends.

"Thanks for inviting me to join this party, guys," he said. "I've had a lot of fun with you."

"It's we who ought to thank you, Gabriel," said Thomas. "It was very nice of you to help us prepare this party."

"Thomas is right," added Emily. "What you did is priceless. I'll never forget this night."

"It was my pleasure to help you, my friends," replied Gabriel. "And as for you, precious Emily, I'm glad to know that you enjoyed your homage. I would like to stay longer here, but I must already go home. So, goodnight everyone."

"Good night, Gabriel!"

Gabriel took his harp and approached Henry, and the crew members helped him place the heavy instrument to the cab.

"Have a good rest, Emily," said Henry before leaving.

"Thank you, Henry," replied Emily sweetly. "Have a good journey."

And Henry left to take Gabriel home and take the Flying Kipper.

Emily looked at her friends. "Thanks again for the homage, my treasures," she said. "The song and the roses were very tender gestures for me. You're wonderful and I feel privileged to be your friend."

All engines smiled at Emily with affection.

"You brought tenderness into our lives," said Thomas, "and you stole our hearts away with your smile... This homage was the least we could do to show you what you mean to us... Thanks for existing, Emily... Thanks for being a lady…"

Emily swallowed hard. "Thomas...," she whispered, "don't make me cry... or I won't be able to sleep because of happiness..."

Everyone chuckled.

"Don't worry, precious," responded Thomas, "we're going to help you sleep."

"Really?"

"Yes. Close your eyes and relax..." Thomas winked.

Emily smiled. She knew what her friends would do. "Okay," she said. "Goodnight, Thomas… Goodnight everyone."

"Goodnight, Emily!"

Emily closed her eyes. Then, Thomas began to sing soft and slowly, "There's no one quite like Emily…"

And all the engines sang with Thomas.

Emily relaxed as she listened fondly to the lullaby from her friends. "I love them... I love them...," she thought until she fell asleep.

At the end of the song, the engines smiled at each other, feeling proud of their queen. And then they fell asleep too. But James stayed awake longer. He could not stop looking at Emily. At last he was having the opportunity to admire her curves without her realizing...

From her cloud of golden dust, Lady smiled tenderly at the engines. "My beloved ones," she said, "you deserve the company of your queen... In a little while longer, she'll move to Tidmouth Sheds..."