Thomas and Friends: The Retold Adventures

by The Blue EM2

Stepney's Special

The next morning came, and in Carousel Boutique (Rarity's home in Knapford), Rarity and Sweetie Belle rose from their beds and went downstairs for breakfast. Rarity put some toast on whilst Sweetie Belle poured some cereal.

"So," Rarity asked her sister, "did you have a good run down from East Grinstead?"

"Yep!" Sweetie Belle replied, picking up a spoon and digging into her cheerios. "Ran smoothly up to Brighton, then to Battersea, transferred over to the West Coast Main Line via the North London Line, up to Barrow in Furness via Carnforth, and finally through Vicarstown to here."

"How did you meet Stepney? He seems to like you," Rarity asked.

"That's quite the story," her sister answered. "We found him on a siding in a place called Hayling Island, alongside several other engines on display. He seemed quite battered, and had been hit by a truck full of sugar a few days earlier, being shunted by a careless S100 tank engine."

"That's an American one, isn't it?" Rarity said. "That must have been quite the mess to clean up."

"Tell me about it. Well, I got to cleaning him, and he told me that he had been there for days with the other engines, who had all been withdrawn alongside him. His parts were old, and he said he couldn't work for much longer, but I was sure this wasn't the case. He seemed quite withdrawn, until I told him I was a member of the Bluebell Railway."

"How did he react?" Rarity asked.

"He was the happiest I had ever seen an engine. I pursuaded the manager to buy him, and then myself and a team moved him to Sheffield Park, repaired the damage, and repainted him. In return, he asked if I could be his driver, and we've been together ever since."

"I've heard through the grapevine (and not the Railway Grapevine, mind) that they have saved other engines. Have they?"

"Oh yes!" Sweetie Belle nodded, her eyes aglow. "We have more than 30 engines at Sheffield Park, the largest private collection in Britain. Amongst the oldest are 323 and 27, a pair of P Class dock shunters used at Chatham docks until 1960. The manager, of course, chose to give them names. 323 became Bluebell, and 27 became Primrose. Some say he was wrong to do it, and they became a bit cocky afterwards, but they work hard alongside their drivers. All engines should have names, I think. Imagine if we only referred to people by numbers!"

"Quite right," Rarity nodded, her toast finally ready. She popped it onto a plate, put some butter and jam on it, and then sat down opposite Sweetie Belle. "What other engines are there?"

"We also have Adams, named after his builder. His number is 488, and they used him at a place called Axeminster until 1963. He's a wonderful engine, and can pull away with most passenger trains on the quiet days. He and Bluebell often topped and tailed trains in the old days. Then there's Cromford. He's interesting."

"How so?"

"He's from London originally, built for the North London Railway, and his number is 58850. He was then moved to a place called Cromford in Derbyshire, to work a section of railway called Hopton Incline. At 1 in 13, it was the steepest adhesion worked railway in Britain!"

"And I thought getting up Gordon's hill was hard enough!" Rarity exclaimed. "You didn't have any trouble there, did you?"

"No, not at all," Sweetie Belle replied. "Then there's Baxter. He's quite the celebrity. An industrial who worked at a quarry. You wouldn't like him; he has quite the foul mouth!"

"Good gracious!" Rarity cried. "Whomever purchased him needs to give him lessons in etiquette!"

"Oh well," Sweetie Belle sighed. "I don't mean to sound rude, but Stepney and I don't get out much more. The trains are too long and heavy for him, and they tend to use the S15 or 9F most days. What we would like is some work to do whilst we're here."

"Well," Rarity smiled, "I'll speak to Sir Toppham Hatt and see what I can do for you two."

Rarity was true to her word, and soon Stepney and Sweetie Belle were put to work alongside Duck and Apple Bloom shunting Knapford yard. It wasn't long before engine and driver struck up a firm friendship. Later that day, Thomas came by for a while, and then headed out on a train. But no sooner had the train left, than a great commotion started up.

"What's goin' on?" Apple Bloom asked, looking concerned.

"I don't know," Duck replied.

Later still, the signal box suddenly went crazy, as the buzzer sounded out a rarely heard code. 1-5-5. "What?" the signalman asked. "Surely that's a mistake, as that's the code for a special train!" Then another set of codes went off. "Ah, it is a special!" he said.

Meanwhile, Thomas sat at a red light before the station. "What's going on?" he grumbled. "Why are we being held here?"

"I don't know," Twilight replied. "Don't ask me!"

Just then, in the distance, they heard an unfamiliar puffing noise, and a pair of headlamps sat level in front rolled towards them. Express headcode, it was, and Stepney rolled out of the gloom, illuminated by the station lights. Pulling one coach, he stopped at the signal box, and Sweetie Belle handed the token over to the signalman. Stepney then whistled, and puffed away into the night.

"What?" Thomas said. "Bust my buffers, I've never seen anything like that!" But he was cross the next morning. "Shunting on my own branchline?" he exclaimed. "It's a complete disgrace, I tell you!"

"On the railway where we work," Sweetie Belle said to him, as Stepney rolled to a halt outside the yard, "we're glad when we get anything to do."

"And sorry about that," Stepney added. "But the train was a special. An important passenger came to the station after you'd gone, and said he had to get home. So, Sweetie Belle and I provided a high speed run home for him. Duck would've taken it, but he and his driver Pudding Spoon-"

"APPLE BLOOM," Sweetie Belle reminded him.

"But he and his driver Apple Bloom let us take it. We had a smooth run, no record breaking of course."

"How about I show you the road?" Thomas suggested.

"Of course," Stepney smiled. "Always defer to local knowledge, that's what I say."

Thomas was so flattered he immediately forgot to be cross, and set about telling them the way.

Author's Note:

Of the Stepney stories, this one has the distinction of being predominantly exposition rather than narrative, or as one less than positive Guardian writer put it, "showcasing Awdry's fetish for preserved railways".

Battersea is the junction where the Chatham and Brighton lines diverge. It is also where the first season of TTTE was filmed.

Comments

[Magi Tail Welkin]

The Bluebell Railway is also home to GWR 3217/9017 Earl of Berkeley the last "Dukedog". One of my favourite locomotives.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

"That's quite the story," her sister answered. "We found him on a siding in a place called Hayling Island, alongside several other engines on display. He seemed quite battered, and had been hit by a truck full of sugar a few days earlier, being shunted by a careless S100 tank engine."

Nice reference to that wretched Season 12. (Which in my book was indeed a huge disgrace, and not by just it's writing but the style of it was worse)

[ArcanaMaverick7]

Okay, now that I think about it, I believe Oliver will be driven by Scootaloo. It would make a little sense when you think about it.

[The Blue EM2]

10125024
And currently being overhauled.

[The Blue EM2]

10125164
Ah yes, that piece of nightmare fuel.

[The Blue EM2]

10125165
Wait and see Arcana, wait and see.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10125517
Not to mention a waste of time for several characters. As they hardly get screen time or even voices.

And another note, The fact that Diesel and Thomas tried racing each other wouldn't match up, Diesel can only go 20mph, Thomas could easily outrun him!

[MLPThomasfan]

"We found him on a siding in a place called Hayling Island, alongside several other engines on display. He seemed quite battered, and had been hit by a truck full of sugar a few days earlier, being shunted by a careless S100 tank engine."

For some reason, that sounds like Rosie's basis pre-BR conversion.

[The Blue EM2]

10125532
The Class 08 is limited to 18 miles per hour. The Class 09 could hit 20 on a good day.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10125560
Hmm, it would seem to be that many of the classes from 03 to 09 are not made for high speeds it seems.

[The Blue EM2]

10125551
Rosie is indeed an S100. She is one of the Vulcan Foundry built examples, and following the war the majority were purchased by the Southern Railway and used as dock shunters at places such as Southampton-displacing the E2s which had worked there since the 1930s.

[The Blue EM2]

10125563
They didn't need to go fast as they would only be working yards with 20 mile per hour speed limits tops. The need was for power, not speed. BR did build the Class 14 for trip freight, but the problem was that trip freight working had vanished by the time they were introduced. As a result, they didn't have much of a reason to exist, as they were too powerful for yard work and too weak for long distance freight.

As a result, a few were exported to Spain whilst the rest ended up in the Dean Forest.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10125567
Okay, that makes a lot of sense on that note.

[The Blue EM2]

10125569
It's like how J94's rarely roamed beyond beyond yards and branchlines.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10125577
That's true.

And quite frankly if I were running a heritage railway, I'd use a Class 03 or Class 04 for maintenance work on the line.

[The Blue EM2]

10125580
Or brakevan rides. The Epping Ongar Railway propels its brakevans using an 03.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10125596
I think I saw a video with that once.

[The Blue EM2]

10125914
Ever seen Over the Hills by Rhys Davies? One of the key characters is a Class 03 who works the Penwyth Valley Railway's engineering train.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10125927
I have seen that series, it is a very good one. And I'm still waiting for the next episode to air

[The Blue EM2]

10125972
We may be waiting a long time. His most recent video was 3 weeks ago.

[The Blue EM2]

10126052
Thanks. Hopefully you learned some railway history in this one.

[The Blue EM2]

10126095
Yep. The Bluebell is one of the best preserved lines.

[The Blue EM2]

10126100
As I say, visit if you can.

[Thomlight Sparkle 1]

10126022
Karabast!

[The Blue EM2]

10126146
And a livestream.

[Wessexbrony]

10125927
The line in that series is the basis for a Fic I'm writing set on a preserved railway.

[The Blue EM2]

10126243
Though the Penwyth Valley is the Esthwaite Branch, available on UKTS

[JimmyHook19]

Now I know this is COMPLETELY off topic to the chapter, but I just realized something in terms of the comments number of this story along with a past story from you:

TAnon-a-Miss Remastered

• Equestria Girls
• Mystery
• Sad
• Thriller

The comic retold once more...

• Violence
• Profanity
• Alt. Universe
• CMCs
• Sunset Shimmer
• Dazzlings
• Principal Celestia
• Vice-Principal Luna

The Blue EM2 · 42k words  ·  109  48 · 5.2k views

For you see that story, along with this story, are so far two stories on your account to have... well.... 1,000 comments!! :D

[The Blue EM2]

10126434
I know. This story is a LOT less controversial, mind.

And for the chapter?

[JimmyHook19]

10126471
Gotcha :3

Heh, excellent use of referencing the 30 locomotives part that we talked about in PM a while back. ;3

[The Blue EM2]

10126496
I wrote this well before that PM.

[4804255858ARD]

10126499
Did you know that Stepney is Thomas' cousin?

[Wessexbrony]

they tend to use the S15 or 9F most days

Funnily enough, I was at the Bluebell Railway today (Model Railway Weekend) and the 9F needs quite a bit of work to get going again. The two engines in operation were Camelot and the visiting Wightwick Hall.

[The Blue EM2]

11288847
Interesting. Having just done the research, Sweetie Belle wouldn't even have been born when the 9F was last operating. Oops...

[ScisetShimmerEvan]

"That's quite the story," her sister answered. "We found him on a siding in a place called Hayling Island, alongside several other engines on display. He seemed quite battered, and had been hit by a truck full of sugar a few days earlier, being shunted by a careless S100 tank engine."

I'm guessing that's a reference to the last episode he appeared in before the show went full cgi. 😏

"Oh yes!" Sweetie Belle nodded, her eyes aglow. "We have more than 30 engines at Sheffield Park, the largest private collection in Britain. Amongst the oldest are 323 and 27, a pair of P Class dock shunters used at Chatham docks until 1960. The manager, of course, chose to give them names. 323 became Bluebell, and 27 became Primrose. Some say he was wrong to do it, and they became a bit cocky afterwards, but they work hard alongside their drivers. All engines should have names, I think. Imagine if we only referred to people by numbers!"

I'm more used to calling trains by their numbers over names mainly because there's only a handful of trains in North America that have names, one example being class j 611, which received the name Spirit of Roanoke (the city it was built in Virginia) in the mid 2010s when it returned to steam for Norfolk Southern's second steam program, 21st century steam. And while the program lasted short from 2011-2015, 611 is still running today albeit has been struggling with several things.

"We also have Adams, named after his builder. His number is 488, and they used him at a place called Axeminster until 1963. He's a wonderful engine, and can pull away with most passenger trains on the quiet days. He and Bluebell often topped and tailed trains in the old days. Then there's Cromford. He's interesting."

I happen to know another steam engine with that same number, except its narrow gauge and a mikado.

"And sorry about that," Stepney added. "But the train was a special. An important passenger came to the station after you'd gone, and said he had to get home. So, Sweetie Belle and I provided a high speed run home for him. Duck would've taken it, but he and his driver Pudding Spoon-"

Lmao, he got her name wrong! I know it's mean but I find this one hilarious.