Chapter 293: The Early Bird

Three times a week, Thomas and Percy collect the mail from the depot and deliver it to all of the stations on the line. They love this job more than any other, and are quite proud to do it.

But one morning, Percy was ill. His head ached, his nose was stuffed, and he had a terrible fever. A doctor was called to do a house visit.

"A bad case of Pneumonia," he told Sir Topham Hatt. "But he'll pull through. A week of rest should do him well."

"Hmm," Sir Topham Hatt thought aloud. "That does put me in a bit of an awkward position. I shall have to find someone to cover his mail runs."

"I'm sorry, sir," Percy croaked weakly.

"Don't worry Percy, it's not your fault," Sir Topham Hatt said kindly. "Just get some rest, I'll make sure the post is looked after."

After that, he headed to the Ffarquhar sheds, where Rosie was getting her engine ready for its first train of the day.

"Good morning, sir."

"It is Rosie, but not for Percy I'm afraid. He's too ill to work right now."

"Oh dear, I hope he's alright!"

""He'll be alright, but until he's better I'd like you to do his mail runs."

Rosie was excited.

"Oh, thank you, sir! I promise to do my best."

"I'm sure you will. Just remember to ask for help if you need it."

That evening, Rosie was at the mail depot cheerful and ready for work. Thomas was there, getting ready for his share of the work.

"Evening, Rosie. Is this your first time taking the mail train?"

"It is, and I'm so excited! I've never worked the night shift before."

"Are you sure you know what you're doing? I can give you a few pointers, if you'd like."

"No, thank you. I think I've got it under control."

"Alright, if you say so."

Rosie had a marvelous time on the mail run. The air was crisp, and the signal lights shone green.

"This is the life! I wish I could do this every day."

And as she ran past a town, she gave a sharp blast of the engine's whistle. Unfortunately, this caused a bit of a disturbance, as plenty of people were roused from the slumber.

"Hey, what's all that racket! I'm trying to sleep!"

"Stupid night owls."

Rosie had a marvelous ride that night, so she was surprised to see Sir Topham Hatt arrive the next morning very cross with her.

"Rosie, what is the meaning of this? I've received several complaints about you making noise and waking people up in the middle of the night!"

Rosie was shocked.

"I'm sorry, sir. I guess I was just excited."

Sir Topham Hatt sighed.

"Since it was just your first time, I'm willing to give you another chance. But please keep the noise to a minimum!"

"Yes sir, thank you, sir."

The next night, Rosie met Thomas at the mail depot again. This time she asked him for advice, which he happily gave.

"Only blow your whistle when it's absolutely necessary. And if you do need to do it, only hold the chord for a few seconds."

Rosie nodded, and set off on her run. This time, she only blew the whistle when she arrived at stations to let the porters know she was there. After a long night, she completed the run with no further complaints.

The next day, Percy was back at work, feeling much better. He came in to the engine shed, wanting to speak to Rosie.

"Hey Rosie, I just wanted to say thanks for filling in for me. I know it wasn't easy, so-huh?"

But Rosie didn't hear him, for she was already fast asleep.