DEAR FRIENDS,
Some of our friends from Sodor and elsewhere have siblings. Annie and Clarabel are sisters, Gordon and the Flying Scotsman are brothers and Donald and Douglas are twins. Others are more unique like Henry and Percy on Sodor or Theo and Kana on the Mainland.
Thomas is happy to be who he is, but recently, he couldn't help feeling a bit sad and jealous about this. Luckily, he met some new friends who helped cheer him up and this story will tell you how.
THE AUTHOR
The Island of Sodor is a very special place. There are many railway lines with lots and lots of engines. Many of these engines come from the Mainland, but some of them arrive from other places around the world. Most Sodor engines look different from one another while some of them look almost the same, but whatever they look like or wherever they come from, they all want to be Really Useful.
It was summertime and all the engines were very busy. Thomas the Tank Engine was pulling the Local on the Main Line. When he arrived at Vicarstown, he saw the Flying Scotsman waiting with his train. "Hullo, Scotsman!" he whistled. "Nice to see you."
"Well, hullo, Thomas," replied Scotsman grandly. "Another busy day on Sodor, I'm sure?"
"Oh yes, we're always rushed off our wheels at this time of the year and summer's only just begun."
"It's busier on the Mainland too," Scotsman sighed, "especially with all that track maintenance going on. Why do they have to repair the tracks now of all times?" At that moment, Spencer wheeshed in with the Duke and Duchess of Boxford and he was looking tired as well. "I say, Spencer," exclaimed Scotsman, "don't tell me you're rushed of your wheels too."
"Not as much as some engines I could mention, but who wouldn't be tired from racing around in this heat? I may be one of the fastest engines around, but the faster I go, the more water I use."
The Flying Scotsman smiled. "Cheer up, cousin. At least you only have to take the Duke and Duchess around instead of being rushed off your wheels like us."
Something Scotsman had said caught Thomas' attention. "What did you say?"
"I said that we're rushed off our wheels, more so than him."
"No…cousin? Spencer's your cousin?!"
"Yes actually, he was built with a much-upgraded version of my design."
Thomas pondered. "Then…if Spencer is your cousin…and Gordon is your brother…then that means…"
"Yes," said Spencer, "Gordon is my cousin too."
"But I suppose it would be hard to tell, given how different we all are," Scotsman added. Thomas was most surprised.
As the hours passed, Thomas went about his work as usual, but he couldn't stop thinking about what Spencer and the Flying Scotsman had said. When he arrived back at Tidmouth Sheds that evening, he was glad the other engines were still awake. "Gordon," he said, "I saw Spencer and the Flying Scotsman at Vicarstown this morning. Scotsman told me that you and Spencer are cousins. Is that true?"
"Yes, Thomas, it is," said Gordon simply. Thomas looked thoughtful again.
"What's the matter, Thomas?" asked Percy.
"Nothing's the matter, Percy, but I've been thinking. There are so many engines here on Sodor and all over the world. Most of them are different, but some of them are very similar. Donald and Douglas are twin brothers and so are Bill and Ben, 'Arry and Bert, Dennis and Norman and Max and Monty. Annie and Clarabel are sisters and so are Henrietta and Hanna. Even Judy and Jerome are twins."
"What about them?" asked Nia.
"Well," replied Thomas, "with so many engines out there…could there be another tank engine like me somewhere?"
"Stuff and nonsense," huffed James. "We already have three blue tank engines on our railway already: you, Conrad and Simon. The last thing we need is another 'Thomas'.
"That's enough, James!" bellowed Gordon. "Scotsman may tease me a lot and Spencer and I have never gotten along, but we are all still grand express engines that must stand together. If there was another engine like Thomas out there, he would be very lucky indeed."
The other engines were surprised. "So, you really do care about Scotsman and Spencer," Rebecca smiled. "That's so beautiful, Gordon." Gordon's face went a deep shade of red.
"I suppose it would be nice to have a brother, a sister or a cousin," said Emily, "but remember, Thomas, even if you don't, the important thing is that you still have lots of friends who will always care about you."
"That's right," agreed Percy.
"Here, here," added Rebecca.
Later that night, Thomas was still thinking. He thought about what Spencer and the Flying Scotsman had said and about his other friends on Sodor and beyond. He remembered the Experimental Engines he met on the Mainland and how Lexi had said they were "one of a kind." Everyone says I'm a Really Useful Engine, Thomas thought to himself. I wish there was another engine like me. Then we could show everyone how useful the two of us can be together. As Thomas thought about all his friends who had brothers, sisters and cousins, he couldn't help feeling a little sad and jealous.
