A/N Charity the Paranoid Tank Engine replaces Skarloey.

Thomas was where his rails and the narrow-gauge rails met. He saw his narrow-gauge friends and could tell they were sad. I don't like them being sad, he thought and asked them, "What's got you sad?"

Rheneas sighed, saying, "Skarloey's very ill."

Just then Skarloey's crew and Mr. Percival came, brought by Edward, and Mr. Percival said, "Skarloey died this morning." and began to cry, drying tears from his eyes, along with Skarloey's crew. The fireman quickly dried the tears falling from his eyes and the driver was distraught, sobbing into his handkerchief in hysterics.

Duke and Bertram, who had no buffers, just pressed their buffer beams together and quietly wept. Rheneas and Duncan pressed buffers and shed some tears, Rheneas crying hard, but not loud and he was sniffling, with Duncan making no noise other than engine sniffles, the sniffling because their breathing was affected by crying. Sir Handel cried like Duke with Peter Sam buffer pressing. Freddie cried with Ivo Hugh. Mighty Mac cried with Luke. The diesels, Rusty and Fred, cried together. Thomas was an emotional wreck, wailing his broken heart out over the loss of his friend and buffer pressing Edward. All the engines were comforted by their drivers.

Thomas gave a tearful speech, as his driver pressed a cloth to his eyes. The tank engine said, his voice so broken and choked with wailing sobs he could barely speak, "Sk-Skarloey w-was a-a R-Really U-Useful E-Engine. W-We sh-shall m-miss h-him, b-but w-we m-must b-be R-Really U-Useful E-Engines a-and c-carry o-on. H-He w-was l-loyal a-and a-always tr-tried t-to n-not l-let th-the p-passengers d-down. H-He w-was g-good e-enough t-to b-be o-on Th-The B-Big R-Railway I-In th-the Sk-Sky i-if h-he b-believed i-in i-it. I-I'm br-broken-h-hearted b-by m-my gr-grief a-as h-he w-was m-my fr-friend a-and m-my fr-friend E-Edward's a-as w-well, s-so h-he's i-in gr-grief, a-as th-the r-rest o-of u-us. I-I'm d-dreadfully u-upset.". His weeping and wailing went on until he had no more tears to shed. Thomas's driver went back to the cab with the sodden cloth and then the tank engine's crew gave him a drink. Edward, too had a drink and they left.

That night, Skarloey's closest friends cried themselves to sleep and had a vision of him on The Big Railway In the Sky. The one in charge had heard their sobs.

The Skarloey Railway was closed to give the engines a chance to grieve and have a memorial service for Skarloey. The SR engines' standard-gauge friends grieved with them, as they were able and each other. They came to the memorial service, which was held at the Steamworks, to allow all Skarloey's friends to be there. In the time to come, the railway reopened and Charity, a narrow-gauge tank engine from a heritage railway came, inheriting Skarloey's crew. She was paranoid, anxious, cheeky and seemed a little naive. After getting checked at the Steamworks, she did something cheeky and the other engines laughed. Charity thought they were laughing at her, because of her paranoia, which stemmed from anxiety.

Charity said, "Why are you laughing at me? Are you mocking me?", then after her fight ran out, began to cry uncontrollably, sobbing and sniffling, long and loud, her face wet with big tears.

Charity's driver climbed onto her buffers. "There, there, Charity," he said, taking a cloth from his pocket and drying her tears. "They were laughing with you, because of your cheeky act.". He gently rubbed her cheeks and wiped her tear-filled eyes. "Not laughing at you and mocking you. However, I know it triggered a severe crying spell. I'm here for you, just to wipe away your tears and do what I can to get you through this.".

Charity sobbed more, fresh tears pouring from her eyes. She sniffled again, hard, coughed as she choked on her tears and hiccupped. She gasped and gulped, shaking as her tears flowed, not once stopping, as her driver comforted her.

He said, as he continued to wipe her tears away, "I know you feel things deeply, so I shall patiently support you and do my best to comfort you until you feel better. It's okay to cry, so let the tears out.". He held the cloth to her eyes and wiped all her tears away as best he could.

Charity's anxiety attack slowly subsided and her tears stopped, no more left to shed. Her driver dried her last tears away, patting her cheeks of any stray droplets and dapping tears from her eyes until they were dry. He went back to the cab with the sodden cloth and Charity had a drink. Her life on Sodor and Skarloey Railway had begun.

A/N This is set before Emily died, so it's gap filler. Skarloey dies first because he's the oldest. I got inspired to create a paranoid tank engine. My Thomasverse Skarloey Railway's somewhat a mish-mash of book and show, which means I have all the show engines and include book only ones, like Ivo Hugh and Fred. Edward's a friend of Skarloey's so that was just plot convenience, him bringing Skarloey's crew to where the NWR and SR rails meet. Review, but respect my Thomasverse. Charity does what's called anxiety crying.