19 - Gadwall

"Ms Quicksilver?" A timid voice called out her name as she rested in the workshop with Great Northern nearby.

Quicksilver looked up to see the youngest of her siblings, Gadwall entering.

"Hello, dearest Gadwall!" Quicksilver curtly greeted him with a smile. "How are you today, young one?"

Great Northern looked over at the newcomer with a bored almost uncaring face. Just another ugly streamlined monstrosity he no doubt thought.

"I'm okay, but, I'm worried about Mallard," Gadwall piped up as he approached his silver sister.

"Has something happened? Is he okay?" Quicksilver asked.

"Well, we were doing runs alone at King's Cross, Polly and Scotsman weren't there and uh," Gadwall looked around worriedly.

The young engine caught sight of Great Northern and blushed, suddenly embarrassed.

"Oh you aren't alone, I'm sorry," the green A4 exclaimed flustered.

"Don't mind him, he's just a cranky old man," Quicksilver explained dismissively and North hissed steam at her.

"But he looks spotless and brand new!" Gadwall argued to which North raised an eyebrow at the young engine.

"You came here with concerns Gadwall?" Quicksilver drew her little brother's attention back to her. She didn't want her little brother to be subject to North's horrid manners.

"Oh um yes!" Gadwall became nervous again. "Well, me and Mallard were doing runs out of Kings Cross and uh, some of the black and red engines came up and harassed us."

"Black and red engines?" Quicksilver asked, concerned with a glance at North to which he returned. "You mean LMS engines?"

"I don't know," Gadwall admitted. "I wasn't paying attention, I was too upset."

"Gadwall, you know you can come to myself or King if you need help. You can go to Flying Scotsman or Pretty Polly if they're nearby too dear," Quicksilver assured the engine and Gadwall put on a brave face.

"I know, but I wasn't worried about myself, I was worried about Mallard," Gadwall clarified. "The smaller red engines were calling Mallard a phoney and a cheater. He got really upset and they made fun of him, tried to get him to cry. He's been avoiding me since then or he tries to act tough but I know he's still upset. I tried to ask Merlin for help but Merlin's away for the next few weeks and… and I don't know what to do!"

The young engine fretted on the edge of tears. He looked up to his sister desperately.

"Gadwall it's okay, calm down we can figure this out, okay?" Quicksilver quickly moved forward to reassure her younger brother with a gentle bump on his buffers.

He sniffed and took heavy breaths to calm himself before looking back up at his sister.

"Okay!" He exclaimed with a brave face. "I'm just worried about my brother, he's my hero! I don't like seeing him sad."

"Maybe that's why he's not opening up to you," North suddenly growled out of nowhere.

Quicksilver threw the A1 a warning glare but Gadwall looked at his cousin intrigued.

"What do you mean Mr A1 sir?" The young engine asked, puzzled.

"Perhaps he does not want to break that image you have of him being a hero," North clarified. "Little brothers should look up to their elders of course."

"I do! I do look up to Mallard! He cares about me and he loves me but… he doesn't let me see his vulnerable side," Gadwall explained. "Is he afraid I'll make fun of him? I'd never do that!"

The young engine paused before looking to North hopefully.

"You're like, the big brother to all the express engines right? What would you do?"

"Come along Gadwall!" Quicksilver sharply intervened. She did not want Gadwall to be caught up in North's ridiculous ploys. "Let's discuss this while I inspect one of the new coaches."

"Yes Ms Quicksilver!" Gadwall moved to follow his eldest sister but not before giving a little peep goodbye to Great Northern.

"Goodbye Mr A1! It was nice to meet you!"

Great Northern did not respond to the young A4's farewell. He only gave a chuckle and a slight smile which did not go unnoticed by Quicksilver.

"North is uncharacteristically nice towards the younger engines now, have you noticed?" Pretty Polly called to Quicksilver as she sat in the yard near the King's Cross Top Sheds, watching some of her younger siblings arguing with each other.

Quicksilver looked over at the A3 Pacific who rolled up alongside her, her 'Crown' glinting in the sunlight.

"Really? I haven't been around the Top Sheds as often to notice," she mused. "I'm normally up at Donnie with the young lads and Merry."

"Link and Scotsman noticed it too, suggested that they talk to you, see if you knew anything," Polly explained. "From Osprey onwards he's been… well I should rephrase that, not nice but, well-"

"Polite," Quicksilver cut in. "He's been more polite to the young A4's, all of them except-"

"Mallard," A voice butted in and the two engines turned to look at the Scotsman who was coming up beside them.

"Oh hello you," Polly chirped with a wide smile as her elder brother came to a rest beside her. "Aren't you supposed to be on the way to Scotland?"

"They're having a workers strike up there, directors thought it best not to let me go," Scotsman explained with a shudder of his frames. "I'd rather not have a repeat of what happened last time workers went on strike with me around."

"That's understandable," Quicksilver agreed. "We would prefer you to not be derailed again dear cousin."

Scotsman chuckled and looked out to watch the A4s arguing.

"Why single out Mallard?" Polly asked. "What did he ever do to make North extra indignant towards him?"

"Because Mallard is successful. Because Mallard is the best of Gresley's engines," Scotsman stated and they looked at him. "And North is not."

"Surely not," Quicksilver muttered but Scotsman sighed.

"Why do you think North has always demeaned me? I didn't notice it before but since Mallard achieved his speed record I began to notice how similar North's attitude towards him was," Scotsman began.

"He's jealous," Polly realised. "Of course! Why have I not noticed it before?!"

Quicksilver wheeshed steam. "He's always been insufferable but he's always been completely nasty to any engine that Gresley dotes on that isn't him, it makes sense. A self-important engine like him not being the centre of attention. He's a spoilt child, through and through."

"He'll never admit to it though, trust me," Scotsman humphed. "I've tried to get him to lay off Mallard but that ego of his…"

"North's a stubborn old fool," Polly snapped. "Still, at least he's become somewhat nicer to the other A4s, that's a start."

"He seems to dote on Gadwall," Quicksilver suddenly piped up. "Mallard's little brother. Gadwall adores Mallard. Mallard is his hero yet… Somehow North tolerates him following him around while in the yards. He seems open to give Gadwall advice too, it's very strange."

"Maybe North likes the attention young Gadwell gives him," Scotsman suggested. "Gadwall's approached me a few times with that starstruck attitude. He has an adoration for famous engines it seems. It's sweet, I can see why he loves Mallard so much."

"I'd still keep an eye on him," Polly pointed out. "North might be planning to stir up trouble and Gadwall is still very naive and innocent."

"Sir Nigel is keeping tabs on them, he's become the de facto leader since Link stepped down," Quicksilver commented and she then looked at Scotsman. "He told me you always ask after Mallard. Isn't Mallard constantly nasty towards you? Why do you care?"

Scotsman looked thoughtful before looking back at Quicksilver.

"Because I feel like I should have stepped in and pushed Mallard away from North long ago," Scotsman admitted. "I saw how North treated Mallard, I should have spoken to Sir Gresley but… I was too much of a coward to do so."

"We've spoken about it to him as well but I think our designer is too enamoured with North to see what's going on," Quicksilver explained sourly. "But still, I'm curious why you care for Mallard so much."

Scotsman paused and frowned before gazing up at the dull grey sky above.

"Because he's the only other engine I know who knows what it feels like to be under such scrutiny and pressure," he finally explained with a wistful sigh. "Sir Gresley places a different kind of responsibility on myself and Mallard. If you don't have support it will drive you insane. It hurts. It hurts a lot, for the longest time, before I met you Polly, I felt nothing but loneliness."

Scotsman sighed and looked sadly at Polly and Quicksilver.

"When I look at Mallard I see that same loneliness and pain…" his voice grew soft and reflective. "I want to let him know that he's not alone, that I understand."

"You had that prototype, Gordon long before you met me," Polly pointed out and the Scotsman gave a faint smile.

"I did," he looked longingly in the distance. "He was like North, but he had a big heart. Arrogant but always willing to put it aside if I was in need. But my memories of him are… fleeting these days."

"Whatever happened to him? Was he scrapped?" Polly asked and Scotsman looked appalled at the suggestion.

"Good heavens no! He was sold to Sodor!"

"Ah that on the other side of the country next to the furness!" Quicksilver hummed. "I hope he's doing okay."

"I'm sure he is," Scotsman smiled. "I just hope Mallard has someone similar. He needs people he can turn to for help."

"You worry too much cousin," Quicksilver chuckled. "You need not worry about Mallard. He has Merlin and Gadwall. As long as they are around, our blue duck will turn out to be as strong as you."

"Hah! That's not too hard!" Scotsman laughed. "I'm an idiot!"

"You're a lovable idiot," Polly giggled in response and Quicksilver joined in their laughter, drawing the attention of the argue engines who sheepishly crawled away.

"Tydfil dearest, I'm not going to hurt you."

"Shut up!" The young engine howled, squeezing her eyes shut desperately as she shook her frames. "Leave me alone!"

It was long since the rest of the other engines had left for work that morning. Arthur had tried to get her to go out that morning but she had refused.

Evening Star, the lovely Evening Star had gone off to get help for her but Tydfil was convinced that no one could help her.

Who else had ghosts in their smokebox? Who else was built on the corpse of another engine? Who else was nothing but a placeholder for a particular engine?

It was probably late morning now, she wondered. The Sudrian Controller would be mad with her. Ms Parsons would be mad. Everyone would be mad at her.

Not that it mattered anyway.

"Lady of Legend!" A loud shout called her name but she ignored it.

"Go away!" She shrieked. "Leave me alone!"

"Tydfil…" The voice sounded concerned now and she recognised it as the Controller of the Sudrian Railway. With hesitation she opened and eye and peered at him. He was looking up at her, a look of deep concern on his face.

Lady of Legend tried to speak but all that came out was a jumble of incomprehensible sounds and squeaks. She gave up trying to speak and looked away from him.

"Lady of Legend, you are not in trouble," the Sudrian Controller tried to assure her but still her frames trembled. "Ms Star came to see me this morning, she told me what happened last night. About your… predicament."

Tydfil hesitantly looked back at Sir Topham Hatt. The man had a kind smile and a look of concern.

"I keep hearing Maindy Hall's voice in my smokebox sir," Tydfil shakily fretted. "I'm just, I'm just some freakish zombie engine!"

Her frames shook and her wheels wobbled as she whimpered. The Controller did not say a word, instead he just placed a comforting hand on Tydfil's cylinder box.

"I can assure you that you are not a 'freakish zombie engine'," Sir Topham assured her. "Maindy Hall was dying, her soul was damaged too badly from being infected with Black Smoke and so she gave up her engine so that you may live. She wanted you to live. Her soul, all her Gold Dust was gone before work on you started.

"If that's true, then why do I still hear her voice in my smoke box!" Tydfil shouted at him. "It's been there for so long! I thought I was crazy!"

Sir Topham looked thoughtful for a second then nodded to her.

"It was confirmed that Maindy Hall's soul was gone, however a silver soul may have come back," he mused to himself. i"The silver link, the silken tie, Which heart to heart, and mind to mind, In body and in soul can bind."

"Sir?"

"It's an old poem, one which Spencer's original name came from," he explained. "It was the inspiration to try and bring back 'engines' that had been scrapped. Ms Parsons' husband and a few others looked into it. They took the original nameplate or a similar piece of a scrapped engine, believing that it held the 'memories' of that engines life and they tried to bring back the soul of said engine. It kind of worked, instead of a Golden Soul, they brought back a Silver one."

Tydfil sniffed, not really understanding what the man was saying.

"I don't understand sir," she muttered. "I'm sorry."

"Oh. I apologise," Sir Topham smiled at her apologetically. "Basically what may be in your engine is not Maindy Hall's original soul but a memory of her."

Tydfil stared at him a while then looked away.

"A memory?"

i"Yes sweetheart. A memory, I don't want to hurt you,"/i Again Maindy's voice came but this time Tydfil did not flinch, her curiosity overwriting her fear.

"You're a memory? Of everything Maindy was?" Tydfil muttered to herself then looked back at Sir Topham who waited patiently for her.

"Not everything," he revealed sadly. "Sadly this process rarely works completely. It is only if an engine had a strong will, an unfulfilled spirit or a strong ambition in its life, that it could come back."

He looked over at the Lady of Legend and gave her a kind smile.

"Maindy Hall's last wish was for the Saint Class to be reborn, for you to live, young Tydfil," he gave the engine reassuring pats on her running board. "If a Silver Soul of hers appeared in your smokebox, then it's all the more reason you should be here. Her will alone was for you to succeed. For you to be here."

Tydfil sniffed quietly as she processed the man's words.

"This is a lot," she finally mumbled after a while and Sir Topham nodded to her.

"Take your time. I apologise for not realising what was going on sooner," he solemnly said to her. "I can understand why you didn't tell me or anyone else about this but now that we know, we can actually help you."

Tydfil gave the man a weak smile before she turned her attention inwards, towards this memory, this silver soul of Maindy Hall.

"So… you're not going to hurt me?" She asked of the soul within her frames, her boiler, her very being.

i"Darling no, I might be just the memory of the original Maindy Hall's soul but, the fact that she wanted more than anything to protect you is testament to the fact I am here,"/i the voice called to Tydfil.

Tydfil looked down at her buffers, confused but a serene calm had drifted over her at finally understanding what was going on. That was until she remembered how King Edward I, Clun Castle and that strange engine that looked like Tornado had been doing the night before.

"Sir! The other Great Western Engines! King Edward I and Clun Castle! They kept making vague threats towards me!" She suddenly fretted. "I think they want to erase my soul and bring back Maindy Hall."

At her words, Sir Topham Hatt seemed to become concerned.

"I knew there had to be more going on here," he muttered. He looked thoughtful for a second. "It seems I need to make a few phone calls."

He then turned to Tydfil who was watching him anxiously.

"You're relieved of your duties until further notice Tydfil," he informed her, he saw her eyes widen in panic and quickly added. "You are not in any trouble. I just would rather not have you working while you are so clearly distressed. It could lead to accidents and I know you don't want any more of those."

"Yes sir," Tydfil gloomily stated.

"I'll wait with you until Murdoch returns," Sir Topham assured her. "You're to keep close to him and you are not to go near King Edward I or Clun Castle alright?"

"Yes sir," she had no intention of going near them anyway.

"And you are under no circumstances to do what Ms Parson's tells you, Mr Corbyn is the director of the Great Western engines, not her," he reminded her. "You will not get into any trouble if you refuse her demands, alright?"

"Alright sir, thank-you for staying with me sir," Tydfil quickly added. "I'm sorry for being so… difficult. I don't know why I can't just do things like you ask, I really don't, I'm sorry."

Sir Topham Hatt chuckled. "It's alright young Tydfil. I have a feeling you've been through a lot in your short life already. I should have taken that into account beforehand, but that's okay, we can help you grow into who you want to be now."

Tydfil felt her boiler warm-up, either from Sir Topham's words or the now calming presence of Maindy Hall's Silver soul. She wasn't sure, maybe it was both.

But for now, Tydfil felt appreciated and that was enough to get her through the rest of the day.

Still, at the back of mind, something told her the worst was yet to come and it wasn't Maindy Hall's Silver Soul.

"Welcome to the Bluebell King Edward the 2nd and Ms Tornado!" A loud voice shouted right next to Tornado and she gave a loud shriek as she was startled from her nap. Surprisingly trusting King Edward II to take her there and not be a jerk by braking suddenly.

"Oh no, I'm sorry!" The voice squeaked as she heard several small engines tittering around her and the King Class. "I didn't mean to startle you! I do seem to have a habit of that."

A small gaggle of tank engines was gathered around the platforms, welcoming them to the railway. She recognised the voice as belonging to Stepney, the little Bluebell engine.

"Thomas! Stepney!" She cheerily exclaimed as she recognised two of them. "And friends?"

"Oh oh! Tornado! King Edward! This is my brother, Fenchurch!" Stepney introduced his brother to Tornado and the Great Western King.

"Hello, Fenchurch!" Tornado greeted the little engine brightly while the Great Western only gave a small grunt. "It's nice to meet you!"

"It's nice to meet you too! You're so bright and bubbly!" Fenchurch remarked as he stared up at her in awe.

Tornado gave a soft giggle in response.

"And this is Captain Baxter!" Stepney continued to introduce his friends.

"Hey there!" Captain Baxter gave a small peep to the two big engines and Tornado laughed.

"Hello! Why are you little engines up so early?" Tornado asked with a glance at the little group gathered.

"We're getting stuff ready for the gala!" Thomas cheerily explained. "Everyone else is asleep right now!"

"Not for long though!" Captain Baxter and Fenchurch sniggered at each other. King Edward rolled his eyes, annoyed by the banter.

"Oh don't look so sour King Edward!" Stepney chided the Great Western. "It'll be a good gala! We've got some surprises for you!"

"Like the Australian engine?" Tornado piped up and the engines looked at her.

"How did you know that? It was supposed to be a secret!" Thomas pouted and Tornado laughed.

"Well, my engineer told me it's a poorly kept one!" She laughed.

"There are two Australian engines actually," Captain Baxter chimed in. "A steam engine and a diesel."

"Well, the diesel's going to Swindon this morning so it's lucky you arrived ahead of schedule, you'll get to meet them!" Fenchurch added. "That is, if you're alright with meeting a diesel."

"Of course I am!" Tornado exclaimed before she looked to King Edward II in front of her. "Not sure about this guy though."

King Edward II huffed and wheeshed steam.

"I am not so rude as to ignore international visitors, young Tornado," he scoffed. "I would be honoured to meet these visiting engines, even if one of them happens to be a diesel."

Thomas rolled his eyes at the backhanded compliment but Tornado seemed at the very least happy with his answer.

"Who are these lovely bluebirds?" A voice called out to them and the little group was surprised to find two large strange engines, green and gold in colour, approaching them.

"Speak of the devils!" Stepney exclaimed cheerily. "Good morning esteemed guests!"

"You cut that out right now you little ratbag!" The big green steam engine scolded the little engine who only laughed. Said steam engine looked over at the newcomers and gave them a brilliant wide grin. "Which one of you is the baby engine?"

"I'm not a baby!" Tornado huffed loudly and wheeshed steam but the Green engine just laughed heartily.

"I know mate, just stirring you up," she smiled warmly. "Lovely teh meet ya, the famous Tornado! Wanted to meet ye as soon as I knew we were coming here!"

Tornado blushed embarrassed.

"Really? You came here to see me?" The young Peppercorn asked, surprised. "I didn't know people knew about me outside of the UK."

"Sweetheart, you're famous worldwide, everyone knows who you are!" the Australian engine assured her. "My name is Grey by the way and this is my emotional support diesel, Gold!"

The Australian Diesel gave a grunt of acknowledgement.

"I'm not famous!" Tornado exclaimed, completely flustered. "I'm just a silly engine made by passionate people!"

"Aren't we all?" Grey grinned at her and Tornado just turned even redder. 3801 turned to look at King Edward II. "What about you big fella? What's your name?"

"My name is…" The Great Western paused as he sensed Tornado's eyes staring into the back of his tender. "My name is Rhion. It's a pleasure."

The little engines glanced at one another, confused and looked to Tornado who looked as equally as bewildered. Grey or Gold did not notice the confusion of the other engines, or if they did, chose to ignore it.

A Great Western King Class being so informal? It was unheard of.

"Rhion ay? King Rhion!" Grey grinned at him. "Has a nice ring to it, nice to meet ya your majesty!"

The King Class gave an awkward laugh, clearly uncomfortable but seemed to appreciate the foreign engines candour at least a little.

"It's just Rhion," he admitted. "I've grown tired of trying to act like a King over these many decades."

There was something sad in his voice that didn't go unnoticed by the others gathered.

"Alright then, 'Just Rhion'," Grey cheered and King Edward II or Rhion gave a small sigh. Grey didn't miss the slight smile the King class gave her, however.

It would be a most interesting Gala.

Green Arrow found himself mulling over Gordon's little request. He could be assured that Gordon would fufil his end of the bargain. As much of a grump and a stubborn jackass as he was, he knew that Gordon had a big 'heart' for his family and friends.

Well, family that wasn't him, Arrow scowled to himself as he wandered Edward's branch line.

He doubted that not getting any info would help repair that relationship either. Not that Green Arrow was particularly bothered by it. Or at least, that was what he told himself.

The only member of his family that Arrow was amicable with was Ryan and in the past, Mallard.

Arrow sighed deeply. Even though Mallard had ultimately only been out for himself, there had been moments when he had felt genuine.

It bothered him, not having close ties to his family. But he could see from a mile away that Scotsman's bravado hid his insecurities. He didn't like that. To be perfectly honest he had never liked Scotsman. His personality always rubbed him the wrong way.

Gordon, however, Gordon was passionate and he was ambitious. A job well done was something Gordon strives for. Arrow could relate to that. Part of him longed to be in Gordon's good graces but considering how much Gordon cared about his brother he doubted he'd forgive him.

He needed to find out what those Great Westerns were doing but when he had gone to fish around their Sheds near Harwick, he and his crew were yelled at by some nasty old women.

Arrow was pulled out of his thoughts as he heard a whimpering sound coming from an overgrown track.

"Do you hear that?" He asked his driver, Gabriel, and the man eased off his throttle to listen.

"Yes, it sounds like crying!" The man replied as he quickly sent one of his crew to change the points.

Curiosity overtook him as trundled forward, taking care not to wheesh too much steam and startle whoever was the source of the noise.

His eyes widened as he came across the back end of a familiar engine.

"Bear?" He asked, confused. When the Hymek didn't respond he called out to him again. "Bear, are you okay?"

The diesel sniffed and stopped his crying, realising there was someone behind him.

"Bear what's wrong?" Green Arrow asked and the diesel ahead of him quivered.

"No- Nothing Mr Green Arrow," Bear stammered.

"Bear, I'm not stupid, you're clearly upset," the V2 argued and Bear began to whimper again.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you again," Arrow quickly mumbled. "I'm not good at emotional stuff."

Bear seemed to come to a little and gave a shake of his chassis. He didn't say anything for a while, leaving Green Arrow to awkwardly sit behind him. The V2 was about to ask if he was alright when finally he spoke up.

"I'm sorry," Bear mumbled, his voice barely over a whisper.

"Sorry for what Bear?" Green Arrow asked, confused.

"For being nothing more than a stupid, fanatical diesel," Bear mumbled to himself. "For being an annoying git and making everyone's lives harder."

"I-" Green Arrow was shocked. He'd never seen the happy-go-lucky Bear like this before. Bear had apologised to him before but this apology seemed desperate, broken, sad.

Something had to be up. This was so unlike the Hymek. Someone must have done something to upset him.

"What happened? Who upset you?" Arrow asked and Bear seemed tense and nervous now.

"I uh, I uh went to the castle to see if I could find Edward-"

Green Arrow immediately began scowling. He knew exactly who was behind this.

"You met Coppernob didn't you?" Arrow questioned and the whimper that Bear gave confirmed the V2's suspicions. "Right. That nasty old horse!"

"He was being nasty about Edward," Bear sniffed. "I tried to defend him but he was just nasty about him."

"It's good of you to defend Edward Bear," Arrow praised the Hymek. "But neither you nor Edward should tolerate that old rust bucket. It's no wonder Edward avoids him so."

"He just ranted at me," Bear explained glumly. "Coppernob just snapped at me saying Edward was in no position to give other engines advice for abandoning his old railway."

"If anything it sounds like Edward escaped his old railway," Arrow muttered under his breath.

"I don't understand Mr Arrow, Edward's the nicest engine ever, why would someone be so nasty about him?" Bear asked, his voice sounding strained and croaked from crying.

"Well, let's go and find Edward and sort this out shall we?" Green Arrow offered.

In all honestly, he really didn't know how to handle this situation but if it came down to Coppernob being miffed about Edward, then Edward should have some idea.

"Okay Mr Arrow," Bear's voice seemed to lighten up slightly and Arrow felt proud for at least cheering him up even a little. He was never good at such things.

"Are you okay to travel?"

"Um, can I stick behind you, Mr Arrow? I don't really want to be seen right now," Bear asked nervously and Green Arrow smiled a little.

"Alright Bear," the V2 relented. "Let's go and find Edward shall we?"

"Yes Mr Green Arrow!" Bear piped up, the eagerness returning to his voice.

Green Arrow inwardly chuckled.

Maybe he could befriend the Hymek instead of being annoyed by him all the time. Arrow didn't have all that many friends and neither did Bear.

As Green Arrow replenished his steam, he could feel Bear's excitement.

"I get to be in a consist with Green Arrow!" The diesel exclaimed and this time Arrow chuckled openly.

"Any news on Lady Olivia, Sir Robert?" Came the nervous voice of Lady. Sir Robert spun on his heel and found the little scarlet engine had appeared behind him looking most downtrodden.

"She's doing alright as I understand it," the Earl nodded to the engine. "Most of her worries are for her baby though. Dr Hendrick says it's a girl."

Lady lit up at the sound of that. A baby girl. No doubt would be as strong as her mother.

"Do they have a name for her?" Lady asked, dancing around the question she really wanted to ask.

"Polly. Polly Gresley."

"Pretty Polly!" Lady squealed, delighted. "Little Scot and Little Polly! Such delightful children for a delightful family. I'm sure they will be as wonderful as the engines they are named for."

"One can hope," Sir Robert smiled. "But you're not focused on Olivia now are you? You know she can take care of herself."

Lady cast her eyes downward and she looked away from the Earl. He knew that she was stalling, that she was afraid to ask what she feared was true.

"Something terrible has happened to North, I feel it," Lady lamented quietly. "It has something to do with Olivia's missing Whistle."

"You can't feel his presence at all?" Sir Robert asked concerned. "Nothing?"

"Nothing," Lady informed him bitterly. "North is extremely well versed in dealing with Gold Dust but even he could not conceal himself from my gaze."

The small scarlet engine gave a frightened, shaky breath.

"I'm fear we may be too late," Lady tearfully wept. "But I can't be sure. Part of me still holds on to hope. I can't bear not knowing what has happened to my dear North. His Gold Dust has been getting weaker, I just pray that he's still holding on."

Sir Robert frowned and put a gentle hand on the side of her cab to reassure her. I didn't seem to help the poor engine but she at the very least appreciated it.

The Earl looked up as he saw Sir Topham striding towards him a grim look on his face.

"Things getting to you dear fellow?" The Earl greeted him. "They're getting to a lot of us."

The Controller shook his head.

"The Parsons woman," he muttered. "According to Scotsman's driver she threatened Olivia in exchange for North's life. She was going to infect him with Black Smoke."

"She did what?" Sir Robert looked completely aghast. "I knew that she wanted to try and use Gold Dust to achieve status but I never thought she'd go so low as to threaten someone!"

Sir Topham shook his head while Lady looked alarmed.

"If North was infected with Black Smoke, he wouldn't be able to handle it for long! Not as a human!" The Scarlet engine shrieked terrified. "Oh no! North!"

"We need to find out what going on!" Sir Robert urged and looked to the gold and scarlet engine. "Surely you can go in and check in on what she's doing as a human."

Lady looked at him frightened.

"I can't, it's too risky," she lamented. "If I was to get caught then…"

She trailed off, his voice becoming quiet and frightened.

"That would risk all engines, not just yourself," Sir Robert nodded to her. "Well we can't sit around and do nothing."

Sir Topham Hatt looked thoughtful.

"Flying Scotsman used his Gold Dust to visit Gordon the other night," he explained thoughtfully. "James caught him just as he was coming in, talking to Henry and Gordon."

"Really? He was here? I am ashamed I didn't notice. I should have, considering I gave part of my soul to him." Lady frowned as she considered. "This 'Parsons' has brought so much Black Smoke with her that I wasn't even aware of a golden warden on Sodor. This is… concerning."

Sir Robert and Sir Topham glanced at each other, now deeply troubled.

"Where did she even get that stuff from? It's usually locked away or rendered harmless by a Golden Engine," Sir Robert shook his head. "That woman has always been trouble. Even when her husband was still alive."

"She's always been jealous that her husband put more love into the engines than her. She's always been narcissistic and I don't mean to spread rurmours but there's good reason her kids left when they were younger," Sir Topham muttered. "She's never been like by anyone, at least to my knowledge."

"I remember her going off on me about not taking advantage of the Gold Dust," Sir Robert nodded. He then frowned. "The Great Western's Gold Warden is Truro yes?"

"Yes it's Truro," Lady picked up but then her eyes widened in shock. "Truro's soul was broken by Mallard, the Great Westerns no longer have one! She must have taken advantage of that and made a move for the Scotsman's Golden Whistle!"

"What was Scotsman doing here?" Sir Robert suddenly asked. "Visiting his brother for his birthday I assume?"

"It's Scotsman, there's always more to it with him," Lady pointed out.

"Yes, he was asking for Gordon and Henry to try and find out what happened to North," Sir Topham revealed. "Scotsman can't leave Truro nor can he go missing without notice on his 100th."

Lady gave a small smile. "He always says he's stupid but I think Scotsman is far smarter than he gives himself credit for."

"Part of me wants to let Gordon investigate, but I do not want him anywhere near Black Smoke, he has been apart of my family for 100 years," Sir Topham worried. "That said, I do believe that young engine, Lady of Legend, is in extreme danger. I have Murdoch looking after her for now, I doubt that any engine would try anything with a 9F around."

"We'll get to the bottom of this, mark my words Topham," Sir Robert vowed, slamming his fist into his palm. He then turned to Lady. "It's not safe for you to be here Lady, you should go somewhere safe until this all simmers down."

Lady looked as if she was about to argue but then close her eyes in acceptance.

"You are right, I will go and spend time with Truro," she relented but then opened her eyes and looked to Sir Robert. "You must secure the castle, do not allow anyone near the Well."

The Earl nodded he turned to the Sudrian Controller.. "I don't mind closing the castle down until this gets sorted."

"I don't have a plan yet, but I have a feeling that they're going to make a move tonight," he explained. "But I do have a few ideas."

"Well now, I'm open to all ideas old chap," the Earl encouraged and Sir Topham Hatt gave him a smirk.

"All this tatt does not make up for the years of bullying and abuse you put Scotsman through," came the scold of his cousin as he sat in his study.

Great Northern did not turn around, nor did he acknowledge Quicksilver as she stood in the doorway, arms crossed a scowl on her face as she eyed his huge collection of Flying Scotsman memorabilia.

"If you want to make it up to him you should go an apologise in person," she continued after she did not get a response.

Still North ignored her. Angered, Quicksilver stormed over to him and slammed the book he was reading shut.

"Enough of this!" She demanded and North gave an annoyed sigh and glared at her.

"I am researching a way to get your brother's soul back, now if you don't mind-"

"Mallard? You've not once cared about Mallard!" Quicksilver snapped furiously at him. "You treated him worse than you did Scotsman!"

"I did- I do care about him," he argued but Quicksilver was not at all convinced.

"You have a funny way of showing it!" She snarled. "Why the change? Are you consumed with guilt over how you treated him? Treated your own brother because you couldn't handle being the centre of attention?"

North said nothing, he only looked away from Quicksilver's piercing gaze. She gave a humph and frowned before turning away from him, annoyed.

"You're a joke, a pathetic joke," Quicksilver snapped.

"I know," North mumbled and all it did was serve to infuriate Quicksilver more.

She turned her heel and went to storm out of the man's study but stopped in her tracks when her eyes suddenly caught on something lying on one of the tables, wrapped in a protective plastic.

"Is that- why do you have Gadwall's nameplate!" Quicksilver thundered furiously.

"It's a fake one," North explained regretfully. "I've been trying to retrieve the real one but all I've come across is fakes."

"Why are you looking for the real one?!" Quicksilver snapped. "Don't you think you've done enough damage?!"

"I told you," North defended himself. "I've been researching for a way to get Mallard's soul back. This is the closest I've come to it, even if Sir Nigel doesn't think it will work."

"You-" Quicksilver paused. He had a point, if they were somehow able to get Gadwell's actual nameplate then it could change everything.

"He'll know if it's a fake, and even if we can't use the real one to create a silver soul," North continued. "It's worth trying. Gadwall was Mallard's closest friend."

Quicksilver frowned and crossed her arms.

"Even if Mallard is restored, this won't excuse how you treated him," she reminded him. "This doesn't change the fact that Mallard dragged Scotsman to a scrapyard to try and kill him. This doesn't make up for the fact that Mallard's stolen the souls of engines just to try and feel a semblance of warmth!"

North bowed his head and nodded.

"I know, but, It's hopefully a start," he commented and Quicksilver just sighed and shook her head. "Even if we just get Gadwell back, I think the remaining A4s will gladly accept that."

"What a fine mess you find yourself in Great Northern," was all she said as she turned heel and went to leave. "I believe you when you say you want to fix this, but it shouldn't have taken until most of us were gone for you to realise that."

"I know Quicksilver, I know."

My days are currently consumed with work, being an adult and Tears of the Kingdom. But we'll get to the end of this story someday I swear.