GATOR'S WHITE CHRISTMAS

Written by Zack Wanzer, James Riddle and Rachel Ravens

Set during Series 18

One year ago, an unusual engine by the name of Gator came to the Island of Sodor. Despite the other engines initially being put off by his appearance, thinking that he was a monster, he became very friendly with them, especially Percy. In fact, Percy had become close to Gator during his brief time on Sodor, and was sad to see him return to his home railway in Colombia.

Months had passed since that fateful autumn, and Percy had been missing Gator so much, he would often go to Brendam docks to see if he would be coming back to Sodor. Come December, and Gator did return to Sodor, bringing a load of rock salt with him. However, Percy kept missing Gator whenever he tried to say hello to him, only to reunite back at Brendam docks after he'd accidentally bumped into the trucks of rock salt and covered Gator with it.

Now, Gator had just had the salt cleaned off of him, and Percy was bringing him to Tidmouth sheds to reunite with the other engines.

"I'm so glad you were able to return for Christmas, Gator," Percy beamed. "So much has happened ever since you left."

"Oh, I'll bet a lot has happened since I first visited," Gator chuckled. "I can't wait to see how the rest of the engines will react to me coming back."

"Well, quite a few already know," grinned Percy. "Remember? You made stops at the Blue Mountain Quarry and the Steamworks with that salt, so Victor and the other narrow gauge engines should already be aware."

"Oh, yes, that's right," laughed Gator. "Almost forgot about them! Hopefully James won't be so shocked to see me that he jumps into another pond."

"That would be even worse now that they're all frozen," laughed Percy.

"Frozen?" gasped Gator. "You mean… people can ice skate on them?"

"Yes," said Percy. "Haven't you seen ice skating before, Gator?"

"No," Gator admitted. "We never get snow in Colombia."

"Then this is your first white Christmas!" gasped Percy excitedly. "Oh, you'll love it, Gator!"

Gator was glad to catch up with old friends and make new ones. As the guest of honor, he was able to sleep in Percy's berth, while Percy bunked in with Thomas for the time being.

"It's great we finally get to properly meet you, Gator," said Henry.

"Likewise, Henry," smiled Gator. "I heard you've all had plenty of white Christmases. I can't wait for my first one."

"You should have seen Toby's first Christmas on Sodor," smiled Thomas. "We and our drivers and firemen gave gifts to Mrs. Kyndley."

"Oh, she and her successors live up to their name," said Gordon. "They've taken up a family business of being therapists."

"And they were a massive help after the likes of Jacob Hockings was here," said Henry. Gator raised an eyebrow at the name.

"It's a long story," said Edward. "But for now, let's change the subject to something a bit more pleasant."

"I know!" said Thomas. "Gator, there's a big party going to be hosted at Ulfstead Castle this week. All the engines have had their schedules rearranged so they can go."

"You'll get to meet the Earl of Sodor as well as Stephen and Millie," added Emily.

"That'll be fun!" smiled Gator.

As evening turned to night, Gator swapped stories with the other engines, and learned about many escapades they and the Skarloey engines had.

"…so to make that old grouch happy," James went on, "Duncan tried jumping through hoops; adding more coaches to his train, speeding through the workmen when they were tending to track maintenance, and deliberately holding his train up so he could catch it. But did any of that satisfy him? Nope!"

Gator laughed. "I'm going to have to talk to the little engines at some point during my stay."

The following day, Gator was coasting down the main line when he saw the airport at Cronk. Many passengers were on the platform, and Gator almost couldn't see it.

"Fizzling fireboxes!" he cried. "I've never seen so many people."

"Tell me about it," said Caitlin. "With Bear on the mainland, I had to step in and take some of these trains!"

"There's a bear?!" exclaimed Gator. "Where?"

"Huh? Oh, no, no, no," laughed Catlin. "Bear is one of the North Western Railway's diesels. He came here long before I visited the first time."

"Oh, I see," said Gator, before chuckling. "And I thought I got mistaken for the animal I'm named for!"

"Oh… pardon me," said Caitlin. "I don't think we've officially met. I'm Caitlin; I was brought in from America a couple of years ago."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Caitlin," smiled Gator. "My name's Gerald, but everyone calls me Gator, hence my appearance."

"Pleasure is all mine," said Caitlin. "Say, with all these passengers, do you think you can help with the airport traffic? Even with mine and Connor's help, we're a bit behind schedule."

"Hmm," Gator considered. "Well… I think I can spare some of my time on that. It'll give me a chance to meet more of the engines too. I am curious about this 'Connor' you mentioned."

"Great!" beamed Caitlin. "A lot of people will be very happy with your help."

A few days went by, and on one of his airport runs, Gator was taking some passengers to Crovan's Gate. Many were rather fascinated at the sight of such a peculiar engine.

"Are you new here to Sodor?" one asked.

"Not exactly," said Gator. "I've been here before, last year."

"It's good to see you, Gator," said Peter Sam. "There are some special caterers in my train for the party at Ulfstead."

"I can't wait," said one. "I sure hope our meals will be the talk of the night."

"They will be so long as you don't forget to preheat the ovens like last time," snorted another. Clearly, this wasn't the first time such a blunder had occurred.

"Well, why do they call it 'preheating'?" asked the first caterer. "Does that mean to heat the oven before heating it?"

Peter Sam's driver chuckled. "No, it means that the oven has to be heated up before the food goes in. Without it, the food won't cook properly. It's like if I tried to move Peter Sam without lighting his fire first."

"When you put it like that… it does make sense," the little green engine remarked. "Are you on your way to Ulfstead Castle, Gator? The caterers will have a lot of work to do before the party."

Now, Gator was already busy helping Caitlin and Connor, but he didn't want to let the caterers down, especially so close to Christmas.

"Nothing to worry about, Peter Sam," Gator smiled. "I'll be sure to get them to Ulfstead Castle quicker than you can say 'candy cane lane'."

The caterers started to load their supplies aboard the train.

"You have a merry Christmas, Gator!" smiled Peter Sam. "My friends and I will be there for the party."

"Except Duncan, maybe…" muttered Ada.

"The one who had trouble with the grumpy passenger?" asked Gator.

"Heh, yes," chuckled Jane. "He's been a bit of a humbug so far. Rusty and Rheneas had their spirits dampened this morning."

"Oh dear…" sighed Gator. "I hope he feels better soon."

"Duncan comes around… eventually," said Mabel.

"Sadly though, Granpuff will not be partaking in the festivities either," Peter Sam lamented. "He's on a lengthy overhaul." Gator raised a curious eyebrow. "Oh, Duke. 'Granpuff' is a special nickname that Sir Handel and I call him."

"Ah, I see," said Gator. "Well, when Duke does come back, you'll have to make that Christmas extra special, won't you?"

"I'm almost certain that we will," smiled Peter Sam, and the guard's whistle blew. "See you later, Gator!"

"You wouldn't believe how often I hear it, Peter Sam," Gator chuckled as he set off.

Gator headed back down the main line as a light snow began to fall.

"Oh my," he said, glancing up at the sky. "I've never seen it snowing before… It looks beautiful."

When he got to Cronk, he saw that Caitlin and Connor were taking trains in opposite directions.

"I sure hope no planes take off in this weather," said Connor.

"I know I'm not," said Jeremy. "If the snow keeps up, there may be whiteout conditions!"

"Does this happen a lot?" asked Gator.

"Like you wouldn't believe," said Caitlin. "We may need Donald and Douglas' expertise to get us through this Christmas."

"It doesn't look too bad right now," said Gator. "What's a few little flakes dusting the track?"

"You haven't seen much snow in your home country, have you?" asked Connor.

"Not at all," said Gator. "Colombia is so hot, I never get snow. It's quite a nice change to celebrate a white Christmas with you all."

"Snow may look pretty, Gator, but it's a lot of trouble," said Caitlin. "Just ask engines like Thomas and Oliver – they'll tell you plenty."

"Don't worry," assured Gator. "I'm sure I can handle the snow. Besides, if the planes can't fly, it's all wheels on deck, right?"

"Well, yes," began Connor, "but Gator–"

Just then, Gator's guard blew the whistle. "Got to hurry now. See you two at the party later." And he steamed away to Ulfstead Castle, much to Connor and Caitlin's concern.

"He'll be in trouble soon," worried Caitlin.

It wasn't long before Gator reached Maron station. From there, the main line splits to go either to Knapford station or Ulfstead Castle; the signaller at the junction had changed the points so that Gator could head up to Ulfstead Castle.

"Silly soft stuff," Gator insisted. "If I can tackle my fear of heights, then I can certainly tackle a bunch of soft, white snow." And he carried on up the line, through the Whistling Woods and past Boxford Halt, but the further upwards Gator climbed, the harder everything felt.

"Oh my!" exclaimed Gator as he felt his wheels slip on the hill. "Ugh… how hard can it be to get a grip?!"

"Er… Gator," called the driver. "Just how full are the coaches?"

"I believe that all seats are taken," said Gator. "Why?"

"That would explain a lot!"

"How so…" Suddenly, Gator felt himself going backwards instead of forwards. "Oh, help!" he cried. "I can't grip the rails!" The passengers' cries of shock didn't help matters, as Gator tried desperately to get up the hill.

Further along the line, Oliver and Toad were out on one of their mail runs, with the latter singing some carols.

"Hark, now hear the angels sing– whoa!" he cried. "Mr. Oliver, what's going on in front?!"

"It looks like another engine needs some help, Toad!" exclaimed Oliver.

"Let's go, then!" The duo charged forwards as fast as they could.

Oliver quickly changed tracks and gently buffered up behind the train. "I gotcha!" he called.

"Oliver?!" cried Gator. "Oh, am I glad to see you!"

"What's happened, Gator?" asked Oliver.

"I, er… thought I could handle the snow without any issues… and may have taken more passengers than I should have…"

"Heh, Mr. Oliver thought he could handle the snow without issues too," chuckled Toad.

"Hey!" snorted Oliver. "I can handle snow. I just… got unlucky that one time."

"Crashing into a snowman is unlucky… sure, Mr. Oliver." The Western engine rolled his eyes.

"But the snow looks to be getting worse," said Gator, "and I don't know if I'll make it to Ulfstead Castle by myself."

"Hmm," said Oliver. "Well, if I leave Toad and my mail trucks in a nearby siding, I can help you with the train."

"Oh, that'd be great, Oliver," said Gator. "You won't be too delayed with your mail, right?"

"Ulfstead isn't too much further," Oliver explained. "Besides, I have to take my trucks there to pick up and drop off some post anyway."

The Western engine did just that, while Gator backed down the hill to a flat surface. Oliver went to buffer up from behind.

"Okay, Gator!" he called. "Put some sand down on the rails. That should help you grip!"

"I'll do my best, Oliver," replied Gator. With both engines laying sand down, they started to take the heavy train up the hill. Many of the passengers were so happy to see Oliver helping them, they began singing Christmas carols.

"Oh, the weather outside is frightful

But the fire is so delightful

And since we've no place to go,

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…"

"I guess having Christmas in winter isn't always fun and games," Gator admitted.

"It is fun," said Oliver, "but you have to take care in this kind of weather. The rest of us were practically 'born' in these kinds of situations and have learned what we need to do… even if we do get 'unlucky'."

"Yes, even experienced engines can learn something new," said Gator, as the two pulled into the castle. "Do you have any more tips on how to handle snow?"

"If it's heavy, never go anywhere without a snowplow," said another voice.

"Heh, that's rich coming from you, Thomas!" laughed Oliver.

"I may not like it," grunted Thomas, "but it's still needed."

"So… what's all this I hear about you and snow, Thomas?" asked Gator. With a bit of reluctance, Thomas recounted the tale of when he dismissed Terence and got stuck in the snow.

"Well," said Gator, "I'll definitely know to ask around for a snowplow I can borrow… least I ask Terence to be around on standby!" he said with a laugh. Thomas just groaned while Oliver smirked.

It wasn't long before the engines were all gathered around for the Christmas party. The big Christmas tree was in the center, presents were being unwrapped and food was being eaten. The engines all joined in for the carols.

"So, what do you think of your first white Christmas, Gator?" asked Percy.

"It's certainly different," he replied. "The Christmas lights look magnificent against the snow."

"Do you think you'll join us again, Gator?"

"Well… I think I'll spend next Christmas at home," said Gator. "I won't run into any snow there."

"I guess you could say you want 'snow' problems next year," chuckled Percy. And with that, Gator had to laugh too.

THE END

Author's Comments

Just in time for Christmas, here's a story explaining what went on when Gator returned to Sodor for the holidays, as shown in Long Lost Friend! This was an idea suggested to me a while back by EndlessWire94, but for a long time, I was unsure as to how it could play out. With the original title, Catering Gator, the idea suggested by James was that Gator would help out with some caterers during the lead-in to the Christmas party, and a train would be named in his honor called "The Gator Cater". However, as the story led to Gator having trouble with the snow, having not seen it before, the story's title was changed, and some changes were made to reflect upon that, and I think the story is better for it.

Gator's White Christmas will be the final story for 2023, and so we wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Here's to more adventures for 2024 to mark the 40th anniversary of the original TV series!

Upcoming stories:

- A Special Friend for Duck - Duck witnesses an incident at Knapford station in which a child is belittled for being unable to handle big environments.

- Serious Sigrid - A new diesel is brought to help out on the Arlesdale Railway, but Rex, Bert and Mike soon find out that she'll stand for no nonsense from anyone.

- Caroline's New Friend - On one of her travels, Caroline encounters an elderly bus named Edgar, who hasn't worked under Sodor Roadways for years, so she tries to find someone who could save him from a worse fate.

- A Kyndley Gesture - When Mrs. Kyndley's cottage needs some repairs, she temporarily moves into Dowager Hatt's house at Maithwaite, but can she put up with the eccentric old lady's antics?

- Mavis and Scarlett - With the workload increasing at Anopha Quarry, Mr. Croarie brings in a new engine to assist Mavis, and she proves to be quite the buffer-full.