TRESPASSERS
Written by Zack Wanzer
Set during Series 7
More often than not, the engines of Sodor would see groups of people either taking photographs or writing down their names and numbers. These people are known as rail enthusiasts. While most of them were generally a friendly lot, with some even wanting to hear the engines' stories, there were, unfortunately, some people that gave the hobby a bad name, and disregard the rules of railway safety.
On one of his passenger runs, James the red engine could see a group of enthusiasts in the distance.
"They must be getting ready to take my picture," he grinned excitedly. "Hold on to your couplings, lads; here comes James!"
"You sound as if they're some sort of fan club for you," remarked Sean.
"You're like that every time we come across a group of enthusiasts, y'know," remarked Mick.
"Oh, can I really help it?" smirked James. "I'm always hoping that they'll get my good si–"
"Whoa there, James!" called his driver, and the red engine began to slow down. Before James could protest, he saw that some enthusiasts were now on the other side of the fence in order to get a good shot of him.
"What are they doing?!" exclaimed James. "Don't they know that that's trespassing? Get out of the way!" he called to the offending enthusiasts, blowing his whistle and wheeshing steam. Startled by this, the enthusiasts jumped over the fence and back to safety, cameras and all.
"Aww, nuts!" one of the enthusiasts cried. "I didn't get a good shot of No. 5!"
"He's not a pretty picture, is he?" said another, looking at his recently developed photo.
"My camera's gotten all wet from his steam!" said a third. James had overheard these remarks and was cross with their lack of priorities, as were his driver, fireman and the red coaches.
"We'll have to report this incident with the stationmaster," said the driver. "Sir Topham Hatt won't like this."
"I just hope that those enthusiasts will learn to be more careful when taking pictures," remarked Randolph, and the rest of the coaches agreed.
That evening, the engines at Tidmouth sheds were talking about the day's events when they saw James backing in.
"If James starts to go on about having more pictures taken than the rest of us," cautioned Gordon, "be prepared to tune it out, and eventually, he'll stop bragging." But what they heard from the red engine caught them completely off guard.
"Those rail enthusiasts, honestly!" James seethed. "Jumping fences in order to get what they think is the right shot!"
"You're not talking about those kinds of enthusiasts, are you?" asked Emily.
"Yes!" snapped James. "This sort of blatant disregard for personal safety… it's disgusting!"
"Disgraceful!" agreed Gordon.
"Despicable!" added Henry.
"Dangerous." The three big engines looked over at Emily in surprise.
"Er… sorry?" asked Henry.
"Jumping over fences in order to get a picture of an engine passing by is dangerous," Emily explained. "Not only is it considered trespassing, there's also the risk that we could hit them!"
"At least with steam engines," Bear pointed out, "people can hear them coming. But with diesels and electrics… Oh, I don't want to think about that!"
"Me neither," agreed Diesel. "It almost makes me sick to my engine."
"Aye, ye got that right," said Murdoch. "We'd better take care out on the main line when enthusiasts are nearby."
"If I see that same group of enthusiasts trespassing," finished Emily, "I will make sure to take matters into my own buffers."
A few days later, Emily was taking Martha and Julian out on a main line local run. The emerald engine had been keeping her eyes open to see if any rail enthusiasts were standing too close to the line.
"Don't you think you're being too paranoid about railway safety?" asked Martha.
"Not if James' encounter with those enthusiasts is anything to go off of, no," said Emily. "They were lucky he managed to slow down."
"Perhaps this was just an isolated incident and they won't do it again," insisted Julian.
"Driver, look!" called Emily. "These enthusiasts are trespassing! Stop the train!" To the passengers' surprise, Emily slowed down until she came face to face with the trespassing enthusiasts. She glared crossly at them.
"And what do you lot think you're doing?" she asked.
"What do you think you're doing?" one of the enthusiasts retorted. "You just ruined a photo opportunity for us!"
"And it's for your own good too!" Emily said firmly. "Rail enthusiasts taking pictures of engines should be standing on the other side of that fence over here, where there's little risk of people getting hurt as engines pass by. What do you think would've happened to you had I chosen not to stop?"
There was an awkward pause before another enthusiast spoke up. "Could I at least take a photo of you while you're standing here?"
Emily let off steam angrily at the second enthusiast's ignorance. "Listen here, you lot! I am not going anywhere until you get over the other side of the fence and off of private railway property, please!"
Realizing that they couldn't win an argument with a steam engine, the enthusiasts reluctantly walked over to the fence and climbed over it, back to safety. Emily smiled upon seeing this.
"Thank you for your consideration," she said as she set off again. Martha and Julian stayed silent for the rest of the journey.
Lauren was waiting for Emily and her train at Kellsthorpe Road.
"Five minutes late," the flatiron tank said. "Emily's usually very punctual."
"If she's late, there must be an explanation for it," said Audrey.
"Here she comes now!" Mark called, and sure enough, Emily came pulling into the station on the main line platform.
"So sorry about this," Emily panted. "Had a run in with some trespassers."
"Not the same ones that James was complaining about a few days ago?" asked Lauren.
"I think so. If that's the case, I wonder why they didn't learn from the first time."
"Some people are just stupid, violating the rules for the sake of a picture," huffed Hilary. "They can just as easily get a good shot from behind the fence!"
The stationmaster was being given complaints about the train's lateness, although she took notice of those regarding the trespassing enthusiasts.
"Sir Topham Hatt's not going to be happy when he hears about them violating the rules again," she sighed. "Good on you, Emily, for reminding them about the rules and regulations of railway safety."
"Always happy to help out, ma'am," said Emily. "I just hope that this time, they'll take the lesson to heart."
But I'm afraid that that was wishful thinking on Emily's part…
"Who does that old fashioned engine think she is, telling us what to do?" huffed one of the enthusiasts. "We've not gotten hurt thus far!"
"You're right there, Kenny," said another. "As long as we get our shots of the engines passing, that's what matters more than anything, right, Hubert?"
"Er… right, Mo," said Hubert, the same enthusiast who'd asked Emily to take her picture while she stood still.
"Well, boys," said Kenny, "I think I know just how to get the perfect shot; standing right between the tracks!"
"But what if another train is coming by on one of the lines?" asked Hubert. "They don't stop on a sixpence–"
"We can do whatever we want, Hubert!" snapped Kenny. "As long as no one gets hurt, it'll be fine! Have I ever steered you wrong before?"
"Er… no?"
"My point exactly," said Kenny. "Trust me on this, boys; this'll be one for the ages!"
Murdoch was taking a goods train intended for the mainland, and was approaching the curve between Killdane and Kellsthorpe Road, the same spot where James and Emily had encountered Kenny and his friends. The three enthusiasts were waiting on the other side of the fence in order to catch what Kenny called "the perfect shot".
"Wait for my signal, lads," said Kenny. "As soon as the next train is within our sight, get ready to jump!"
Kenny, Mo and Hubert waited, and sure enough, they could see Murdoch coming into view.
"Alright, lads! JUMP!" And then everything seemed to happen at once!
Bear was approaching on the other line with the Limited, and as he approached the curve, he saw three figures jumping over the fence and running towards the railway tracks! Then, to his horror, they were crossing the line he was on!
"BRAKES, DRIVER!" he yelled, tooting his horn in alarm. His brakes squealed as he got closer to the enthusiasts, missing them by mere centimeters! Mo and Hubert were taken by surprise at Bear's sudden appearance, but Kenny was undeterred, determined to get his shot.
Murdoch could hear the commotion as he got closer, and to his shock, he saw the enthusiasts standing between the railway lines, with Kenny about to take his picture, and the Limited coming to a sharp stop!
"GIT OOT OF THE WAY!" he shouted, blowing his whistle loudly. All of a sudden, the flash of a camera momentarily blinded the orange goods engine as he passed by, but Murdoch didn't come to a stop until he and his trucks were beyond the curve. Bear had also come to a stop, but his eyes were shut tightly and he shook in his frames, hyperventilating.
The silence was deafening.
Once the chaos had stopped, Bear's guard jumped down from the brake coach of the Limited and confronted the enthusiasts.
"What in the blazes did you think you were doing?!" she yelled. "Jumping the railway tracks like you just did – you could've gotten yourselves injured, or possibly even killed!"
"We were just trying to get a good shot of the train as it passed by," protested Kenny, holding up his camera. "I hope the shot I took came out good–"
"Forget the shot you just took!" snapped the guard, taking the camera away from Kenny. "You lot are coming with me to have a word with Sir Topham Hatt about your stupidity and reckless endeavors!"
"There's a bit of a problem, Janice," said Bear's driver, running up. "Bear won't be going anywhere by himself. He's gone into shock!"
The guard glared crossly again at Kenny and his cohorts. "Right!" she said. "If you weren't in trouble before, you're definitely in trouble now!" The enthusiasts gulped nervously.
That night at Tidmouth sheds, Bear was still feeling rather shaken from the whole ordeal, as was Murdoch. While the latter had been able to finish his journey without further problems, Donald had been called in to help the former with the Limited.
"Are you two feeling alright after what had just happened?" asked James, concerned.
"Physically, yes," sighed Bear. "I still can't believe I almost hit those enthusiasts. If they had been a couple of steps slower–"
"Och, let's nae think aboot that!" groaned Murdoch. "That flash from the camera wasnae safe either."
"I thought they would've taken the hint after I'd told them off for trespassing!" huffed Emily. "Guess I was wrong."
"You did all that you could to make them see sense," said Henry. "But some people are just too bullheaded to reason with."
"It's a shame Annabelle's away on her honeymoon with Paul," said Diesel. "I know she would've done drawings for Bear and Murdoch to cheer them up after today's events."
"We can almost guarantee that she'll hear about this," said a familiar voice. Sir Topham Hatt had arrived at the sheds, with Barbara Regaby not too far behind.
"Ah, good evening, sir, ma'am," said Gordon. "What brings you to the sheds tonight?"
"We're just checking in to see how Bear and Murdoch are doing after that near miss," said Barbara.
"Still in a bit of shock, ma'am," said Bear.
"As am Ah," said Murdoch, "but nae near as much as Bear here."
"Aye, poor Bear wis in sic a state whin Ah cam tae hulp him oot," added Donald. "Hud tae tak' th' Limited while he wis recuperating 'n' Douggie hud tae manage th' goods by himself oan the Wee Western."
"Yes, those enthusiasts had caused a great deal of trouble for us today," agreed Sir Topham Hatt. "Suffice it to say, Bear, I think you'll need a few days' off of work in order to recover from this whole ordeal."
"Thank you, sir," said Bear, smiling sadly. "If I may ask, ma'am, what did become of those enthusiasts?"
"They've had their cameras confiscated, been charged with a hefty fine each and will be behind bars for about a year for repeated trespassing," explained Barbara. "One of the questions I asked was whether or not they could justify their stupidity, and they couldn't. I hope that after this whole ordeal, they'll think twice before resorting to such dangerous behavior."
"Personally, I'm not so sure they'll be willing to go anywhere near railways after this ordeal," remarked Sir Topham Hatt. "That whole incident must've scared them straight!"
"Ah'd say it has, sur," agreed Murdoch. "After all, engines cannae stop at once!" Everyone else agreed with that sentiment.
A few days later, Bear was out pulling trains again, but if anything had changed, it was that any rail enthusiasts taking pictures were given stricter guidelines on how to do so safely, and away from the railway line. Signs were put up by fences warning people not to trespass, and people were informed to use overhead bridges if they were crossing to the other side of the tracks. If, for any reason, they were to take pictures over the fence, they would need a permit, courtesy of the railway staff, in order to do so.
The engines still enjoy having their pictures taken, but if people aren't willing to follow the rules and keep themselves – and everyone around them – safe, it doesn't mean anything.
THE END
Author's Comments
A bit shorter than the previous three stories in Set 3 thus far, this is the first Between the Lines story in a while that I wrote solely by myself. This one is very much railway safety focused, showing why trespassing near railway lines without proper permission is not only a bad idea, but incredibly dangerous. It's one of those slice of life stories that happens while the engines are out doing their jobs and how they react to such behavior. James and Emily were both fun to write for, as the former has limits when it comes to impressing people by the lineside, and the latter shows how seriously she takes railway safety, a bit like her character from the Hit Model Era, but with good reason behind it.
Upcoming stories:
- Pardon My French - Daisy helps bringing passengers to Ulfstead Castle and meets with Millie, who proves to be helpful when some foreign passengers arrive.
- Riddle Me This - A series of crimes take place around Kanpford, and Charlie becomes interested in the mystery as the perpetrators have left riddles behind. Will Charlie meet his match and come across the riddle that even he can't solve?
- Every Dog Has Its Day - While on the way back to the Search and Rescue Center, Belle and her crew encounter a litter of abandoned puppies and bring them home. It's later revealed that they were deliberately abandoned, and so the puppies become pets to the rescue center team, eventually joining their ranks.
- Whistling Wilfred - Whilst out on a run outside of Peel Godred, Stevie the electric engine learns about how Wilfred gained his nickname as "the musical engine".
- Emily's Delivery - Helen Hatt goes into labor while on Emily's train, and the emerald engine has to rush her to the hospital, but can she make it on time?
