It was a long trip back to Sodor, but at last, Vicarstown station came into view.
"There it is!" said Gordon. "Just over the Rolling Bridge is our home!"
The cavalcade glided over the bridge and into the grand station.
"They're back!" called Arthur. Ali, Dennis, Bear and Murdoch all glanced over.
"Thank goodness," sighed Ali. "We were beginning to think we needed to send another search party!"
"Indeed so," said another voice. Both Annabelle and Sir Topham Hatt came out of the building. "Barbara just got off the phone to me a few minutes ago. I'm not happy that you ran off, James."
"I know, sir…" sighed the red engine. "I'm sorry."
"And Molly, Amanda, Henry and Gordon," he continued, "I do understand your reasoning for why you left, but you shouldn't have done that, especially after Annabelle told you to stay put."
"We're sorry, sir…" Gordon said quietly.
"James and Henry," said Annabelle, "Mother said you were kidnapped. Are you two alright?!"
"I'm okay, Annabelle," said Henry. "But James took some damage."
"I just didn't want to see Molly getting hurt at the Steelworks," added James. "After she went all that way to help bring me home… well, it seemed right that I should help her too."
"You did a brave thing, James," said Sir Topham Hatt. "We'll send you to the Steamworks immediately. Now…" He glanced over at the four new engines. "Where did you come from?"
"Three of us – Theo, Hurricane and myself, Lexi – used to work at the same Steelworks, sir," the cab-forward engine explained, glancing at each engine as they spoke their names, "but then, Theo and I ran away and we met Merlin." Lexi gestured toward the three-funneled King Arthur class.
"I ran off from my railway when diesels came into power," Merlin added. "So we stayed at an abandoned yard together."
"Not the first time that steam engines ran away from scrap," said Sir Topham Hatt. "Hmm… I think I know places for you four on my railway. Merlin, Derek needs help with the airport traffic at Cronk. If you head there, BoCo can return to the Brendam branch."
"That's not a problem, sir!" Merlin smiled. "The passengers will be shocked when they see I'm an invisible engine!"
"Huh…?"
"Long story," Hurricane said quickly.
"I see… Anyway, for you, Hurricane," continued Sir Topham Hatt, "I think putting you with the Peel Godred engines would do them a world of good. And Arry and Bert could use some help at the Ironworks too."
"Oh, that's kind of like a Steelworks!" said Hurricane. "You can count on me!"
"Lexi," Sir Topham Hatt went on, "if we could rebuild your cowcatcher a bit, I think you'd make a good shunter for Cronk airport."
"Sounds good to me, sir!" grinned Lexi.
"And you, Theo… hmm…"
"He could help Victor and Kevin at the Steamworks!" suggested James. "He brought the breakdown crane to rescue me at the Steelworks."
"I-I think I-I'd like that," smiled Theo.
"Excellent idea, James!" said Sir Topham Hatt. "Now, Henry, Gordon, Molly and Amanda, I suggest you four get back to work as soon as possible. I've gotten a few calls from the Other Railway on where some of their diesels went."
"Heh… oops…" They all flushed with embarrassment as they dashed off; Ali quickly uncoupled from her trucks and gave them back to Amanda.
The new engines arrived at the Steamworks for some inspections, and James also went there for repairs.
"Goodness me, James!" gasped Victor. "That is quite a nasty bump you got, my friend."
"I've suffered worse, Victor," admitted James.
"And what happened to you three?" asked Kevin, gesturing to the experimental trio.
"Oh, exposure to the elements," said Lexi nonchalantly. "It does that to you."
"You three have been on the run for that long?" exclaimed Victor.
"Y-yes," stammered Theo. "I-it wasn't good at all…"
"Don't worry," said Kevin. "You're in safe wheels with me and my boss–"
CRASH!
"Oops! Sorry!"
"Oh… Kevin…" muttered Victor. The new engines all chuckled.
"You get used to it," said James.
Word soon got around that James and the others had safely returned home with new engines to join the railway.
"I just hope that his heroism doesn't go to his smokebox like his constant boasting about his red paint," sighed Barry at Great Waterton.
"I highly doubt that he will, Barry," reassured Pug. "He and the others have been through a lot lately."
"And besides," added Jinty, "we have new engines to welcome to the railway with open buffers."
Indeed, as soon as final repairs were done, Hurricane, Lexi, Theo and Merlin all came out with glistening paint and a few new parts. Lexi's cowcatcher was modified to accommodate the standard couplers of the United Kingdom.
"Coaches arranged for you, Derek!" called Lexi.
"Thanks, Lexi!" he smiled.
"Sonar truly is magnificent," grinned Merlin.
"Sonar?" asked Derek, before laughing, "No, it's 'Sodor'. You got a couple of letters mixed up."
"Ah," said Merlin. "Don't worry, Erik; I'll get it next time." He saw the passengers and chuckled as an idea formed. "Invisibility… on!" He closed his eyes and shrouded himself in a cloud of steam. But as the steam cleared…
"He's gone!" cried a child. "Oh, wait… there he is!" Perhaps it was lucky that Merlin didn't hear that child…
"It was always a chore to wait around for another engine to pick up these goods to Cronk," grunted Pamela. "What's the point in having the train stop here if you can't take it any further?"
"Don't worry, Pamela," said Hurricane. "I can take those trains now, no problemo!" He coupled up and started to head down the line. As he passed by the Ironworks, he started to hum to himself. "This is the hottest place in town…"
"A steamer oo's not scared o' the Ironworks…" trailed Bert. "Not bad…"
"Ugh!" grunted Arry. "We don't need 'im; we'll 'andle it on our own, now come on!"
At the Steamworks, Victor and Kevin were helping to train Theo in supervising repairs.
"H-how's James now, Victor?" asked Theo.
"Well, you tell me," he chuckled.
"I d-don't see any dents anymore," he commented. "H-how d-do you feel, J-James?"
"I'm fully awake, and nothing hurts at all," the big red engine smiled. "Thanks, Victor and Theo."
"Anytime," smiled Theo. "Y-you know where to find us."
With that, James steamed back to Tidmouth sheds. The other engines were still working, but Sir Topham Hatt sent James to the sheds to emotionally recover from his ordeal. On his way back, James spotted Edward and BoCo chatting at Wellsworth station. The blue engine was looking far happier than James had seen him in years.
"It is good to be back with the one you love…" he said to himself.
As James turned around on the turntable, he was shocked to see an older male figure at his berth.
"Bertram Hatt?!" he exclaimed. "I wasn't expecting you here, sir!"
"Hello, James," the former controller smiled. "Charles called me to be here."
"I guess you wanted to add to his, er… lecture?" asked James nervously.
"Oh, nothing like that, James," assured Bertram Hatt. "It's just that he heard from the other engines that you've been feeling like you were overshadowed for years."
"Oh, yes, I have," said James. "I even had a dream where I never came to Sodor, and Edward had that accident in the field instead of me, yet Thomas still got his branch line. And basically… everything else that happened was of little consequence. Johnson ended up taking the express for Gordon when he went down the wrong line, and… he became the North Western Railway's number six; the other Midland engines were purchased one year after the other after that."
Bertram Hatt gasped quietly; even as experienced as he was, the former controller couldn't have anticipated how undervalued James felt. "Oh… James…" He put a hand on his bufferbeam. "Listen… even the tiniest bit on the railway helps a long way. For instance, if you weren't here when you were, we may not have been able to hide Glynn until the Earl could have restored him for the Estate Railway. Remember? You 'covered' for him until Mr. Dry and I could return to work."
"I… I do remember that," said James. "You were so happy to see Glynn when you saw him back in working order last year."
"Indeed," said Bertram Hatt. "And what about Sir Handel and Peter Sam? When they saw you at Peel Godred before they joined the Skarloey line, they cheered up a bit."
"That was one of the few goods trains I didn't mind taking," James remembered. "Driver even said that my red paint brightened up their day."
"And in recent years," continued Bertram Hatt, "you still continue to do good for the railway. You did take the mayor to a dinner, when Edward said the mayor should give you another chance."
"Oh, yes!" grinned James. "How could I forget that day?"
"And just recently," said Bertram Hatt, "you also saved Molly from an accident, and brought home four new engines that needed a new start."
"I guess I am a team player for Sodor after all," smiled James.
"Indeed you are," said Annabelle, walking over to James. "I'm very proud of you, James. And… I did some investigation of the… incident."
"What would that be, my dear?" asked Bertram Hatt.
Annabelle quickly explained about the express coaches. "As it turns out," she went on, "Stafford saw the whole thing. James was trying to shunt his trucks when a signalman switched the points too soon. They went sideways and collided right into the coaches."
"So… it wasn't actually my fault," said James.
"No…" came another voice; Gordon was backing down into his own berth. "I'm really sorry I let my anger cloud my judgment. If that signalman had actually paid attention…"
"Let's not delve into that, Gordon," insisted James. "Some good did come out of the accident, after all."
"Indeed," Gordon admitted. "Without your little journey beyond Sodor, that Frankie would still be trapping engines in the Steelworks, Hurricane would still be unwittingly helping her, and the experimental trio would never have found a new home of their own." The express engine paused for a moment. "James… I'm not sure how much this would make it up to you, but… how would you like to take one of my evening express runs? If you're feeling up to it, of course."
"Really?!" gasped James. "Oh… wow! Er… thanks, Gordon. How can I say no to that?"
"I'll see to it that uncle Charles makes the arrangements," said Annabelle.
Several days later, arrangements had been made. As James was backing onto the train, he was very surprised to see a certain Great Eastern engine waiting for him.
"Molly!" he cried. "Oh, you're coming on the evening run too?"
"Surprise," giggled Molly. "I'm so excited, honey."
Edward then backed down onto his own train, but he wasn't alone either.
"Hello, James and Molly."
"BoCo!" exclaimed Molly. "Looks like it's a 'double date', if you will."
"As close as engines can get to one," laughed Edward. "We will be going separate directions after you two depart."
At that moment, the guard for the 6:25 service blew her whistle, and James and Molly departed Knapford station, with Edward and BoCo following five minutes later.
The night sky shone as James and Molly sped down the line.
"It's such a lovely night, wouldn't you agree?" asked Molly.
"It sure is," James agreed. "When I was trapped at that Steelworks, one of my biggest fears was that you'd eventually forget about me and move on to another love. To be honest, I wouldn't blame you if you had, as I've never really been anyone's favorite love. If there was a choice over who'd be the favorite lover, I bet it'd be you."
Molly giggled with a blush. "Oh, silly James," she teased as music started up. "Nobody has to be the favorite…
It's not a competition in the end
It doesn't matter if you prove that you're the very best
But what will happen when you put your friendship to the test
Never mind about who is the favorite
The most important thing is being friends!"
"The most important thing is being friends!" James joined Molly on that last lyric as they continued up the main line. And they weren't the only engines to join in on the song…
"Everybody can help! Everybody join in!" sang Edward.
"When everybody has a part to play…" BoCo continued.
"Then everybody can win!" Philip added.
"Everybody can help! Red, green, yellow or blue!" Salty and Porter added.
"When you're ready to try, you'll find out what you can do!" Bill, Ben, Timothy and Marion continued.
"Everybody can help! What I'm saying is true!" Julie and Johnson sang.
"When you give it a try, you'll find out what you can do!" Lauren and her coaches joined in.
"Nobody has to be the favorite
It's not a competition in the end," sang Pamela and Harleen.
"It doesn't matter if you prove that you're the very best
But what will happen when you put your friendship to the test," added Selina and Kyle.
"Never mind about who is the favorite," Hurricane, Barry, Jinty and Pug went on.
"The most important thing is being friends!" Theo, Victor and Kevin all sang.
"Nobody has to be the favorite," sang Thomas, Percy, Toby and Mavis. ("Everybody can help!" came Annie, Clarabel and Henrietta.)
"It's not a competition in the end," sang Duck, Oliver, Donald, Douglas, Ryan and Daisy. ("Everybody join in!", the slippies, Toad, Gladys, Judy, Jerome and Dexter went on.)
"It doesn't matter if you prove that you're the very best," Arthur and Sidney went on. ("Everybody can win!" went on Derek and Merlin.)
"But what will happen when you put your friendship to the test!" Diesel, Den, Dart, Paxton, Placido and Maeve all sang.
"Never mind about who is the favorite," sang Henry, Gordon, Emily, Bear, Murdoch and Belle.
"The most important thing is being friends!" sang Harvey, Stanley, Charlie, Whiff, Scruff, Stafford, Rosie, Amanda and Dennis.
"The most important thing is being friends!" all the engines chorused.
"… wait, when did we decide to become a musical theater group?" Stanley asked in confusion.
Author's Comments
Here we are; the final part (almost) to Journey Beyond Sodor! Greatly expanded upon from the canon special, it delves a bit more into the aftermath of the adventure and gives an insight into Hurricane and the experimental trio's new Sodor life, as well as James learning that he's a true player on Sodor after all. That was very much his entire arc in the rewrite, understanding that even the smallest of moments can have a big impact in the long run, either for better or for worse. Things get even better for James when he's accompanied on the evening express by Molly, as Gordon's way of apologizing for his behavior, set to "The Most Important Thing is Being Friends" to end the story, much like the actual special did.
But it's not quite the end; what's up with Frankie at the Steelworks?